I've been putting together lessons for the next tutoring session after today's lessons. Would you believe that the oldest boy forgot the difference between past, present, and future? Why do we have to keep going over this very basic stuff?
Then there's the youngest boy, who isn't interested in phonics at all, but I toss in some suggestions while he's reading. He has a lot of energy and enthusiasm, so I don't want to kill it with too much drilling, but I do have to push him a little. Finding that happy medium is a hard decision to make. We're dealing with plurals. I never realized it was so complicated! A lot of words just take s at the end, but if the words end in x, z, s, sh, or ch, they take es. How many of you could recite the letters that need es? It's easy if you can read the word and then think how it's pronounced, i.e., tables vs. couches. But what if you couldn't read those words? When I read the words aloud to him, he knows when it's s or es, but for homework, it's harder for him. And now I've addd the y that changes to ies. He said, "This is so confusing!" I agree.
The girl wrote an interesting piece on what she thinks will happen when she and her friend, who I also tutor, go to ride the horses. Last time, she was very scared, and it was basically a pony ride, where I led Penny around at a walk. I asked her if she wanted to try trotting and led Penny at a very slow jog, but she was very insecure, so it was a short try. Meanwhile, her brother got to steer and start and stop Penny all by himself without me leading, and now she is eager to try it. She asked why he got to do it and she didn't, last time, and I said that she was so paralyzed with fear that she couldn't, so I hoped this time she would relax more. Her writing indicated she is determined to do just that. Also, last time, they each fed Penny a piece of carrot, and the girl was disgusted by the horse slobber that got on her hand from it. I explained that horses are dirty and some people think they are smelly (though it's ambrosia to me), and that to be around horses, you need to be a bit cavalier about getting your hands dirty, manure, mud, etc.
I think she may want to show her friend, who has never been on a horse, how it's done.
I warned her that my friend's horses are not as gentle as Penny, and even if she could control Penny, Fenia might reach down to grab some grass if a rider seems timid or like she can't control the horse, so I might have to monitor her more closely. I don't know if anyone will get to ride independently. We'll see.
She also thought she might bring along a book to read for the long trip. A half hour. I do it all the time, going in to tutor the kids. I said she could certainly bring a book, but she and her friend might want to chat or look out the car windows at scenery they haven't seen before.
So the girl is getting psyched up for riding! All she has to do is accumulate about 20 more stones. Her friend already has them and is waiting for her. I sure hope it's a bit cooler when we go to the horses. The flies are bad in the heat, and I mentioned that cooler weather will actually be better, but she is eager to go asap.
