homeschool

How We Build a Solid Foundation in Our Elementary English

September 3, 2015 by Meredith

building bricks — Building Bricks by Hannes Grobe/Wikimedia Commons/CC 3.0

Children love building tall towers. Their goals can be quite lofty (literally) and sometimes others are enlisted to complete the project. At some point, the simple tower always seems to come crashing down. For an unsuspecting child, his response to the fallen tower is often tears or outbursts of frustration. But a “demolished” tower made from building blocks can easily be rebuilt.

When it comes to your children’s education, the process of building their tower of success is more intricate and complex. It requires establishing a solid foundation before adding more levels of learning. Their future is at stake, and that’s not something to play around with.

One subject that affects your children’s educational success “tower” is their mastery of the English language. It plays a key role in preparing them to communicate clearly through their academic papers and projects now as well as for their meeting presentations in the future.

Did you know that all our BJU Press elementary English textbooks have been written with those goals in mind? Each textbook presents the parts of speech in a similar chapter order and includes alternating chapters on writing to provide immediate application. Every grade level also adds a more detailed explanation so that your children understand foundational concepts before their knowledge is increased.

Sentences are defined as expressing complete thoughts in English 2. This concept is then used to help students identify and properly use the parts of speech. By the time your child enters sixth grade, his grasp of the English language should allow him to form compound and complex sentences.
Nouns may be the easiest part of speech to understand in comparison to the others largely because they relate to what children are already familiar with—people, places, and things.
Verbs come next. They add another layer of understanding by showing action. Other types of verbs such as helping and linking also receive special attention in a separate chapter.
Pronouns are gradually introduced in English 2 to make sure students can distinguish between a noun and a pronoun. English 3 through English 6 include a separate chapter just for this part of speech.
Adjectives are explained in English 2 by relating them to the five senses—how things look, smell, sound, taste, and feel. Specific types of adjectives are included in later grades.
Adverbs come in English 3 where they are compared with adjectives. This pairing of the two parts of speech continues all the way through English 6.
Conjunctions appear in English 3. The role of this part of speech is outlined more thoroughly as your child learns to write compound sentences.
Prepositions are first presented in English 4 after the nouns and pronouns are clearly defined. They are connected with learning about phrases.

Children try to build their towers so that they reach the ceiling, and all of us at BJU Press want your childen to reach their full potential when it comes to using the English language.

Check out the “Look Inside the Book” feature for our elementary English products.

Remember These Dates in September

August 27, 2015 by Meredith

September 2

The US Department of the Treasury was instituted by an act of Congress on this date in 1789. This organization does a lot more than choosing Presidents’ portraits and printing them on our coins and currency. It primarily manages our country’s monetary resources. Take the family on a virtual field trip to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing with this Field Trip to the Money Factory video. It’s amazing to see the detail artists use when creating our currency.

September 8

Donate some books on International Literacy Day to a library, thrift store, or local prison. Literacy is an important key to an education worldwide. It is also a skill needed so that we can learn what God reveals about Himself to mankind in Scripture.

September 11

You and I have memories of what happened on 9/11, but your kids probably don’t. Remember why we should always observe Patriot Day and National Day of Service and Remembrance. You might want to have a discussion with your kids about this act of terrorism and how it impacts today’s world.

September 13

Nana and Papa deserve a hug on Grandparents Day! Find ways to celebrate the influence of older generations on the lives of your kids. A homemade card, a phone call, or a quality visit can communicate that grandparents (or “grandfriends”) are loved. Spend time learning family history by completing this simple family tree.

September 17

“We the People” have the opportunity to observe Constitution Day. On this date 228 years ago, the United States Constitution was signed, creating a stable national government for our young nation. The key principles in this document reflect the need for government because of man’s sin nature and the tendency of that power to corrupt those who hold it. Use brief biographies of the delegates to the Constitutional Convention as examples to teach your kids how citizens can serve their country.

September 22

Celebrate the birthday of Michael Faraday (1791–1867). A Christian physicist, Mr. Faraday is best known for his work in electromagnetism. He discovered that alternating magnetic fields can produce electrical currents, an essential principle in the development of our modern electric power industry. Children have also benefited from his experiments through a series of scientific lectures Faraday started just for them at the Royal Institution of London. Conduct an experiment with the kids and make an electromagnet.

September 23

The autumnal equinox is when the sun is directly over Earth’s equator. It marks the point when the South Pole begins its tilt toward the sun. (Our planet’s axis always points in the same direction, but the inclination of the axis toward the sun changes as Earth revolves around the sun.) In everyday terms, it’s the first day of fall. I think that’s a wonderful excuse to bake these pumpkin muffins!

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How Can I Use That Distance Learning Online Feature?

August 25, 2015 by BJU Press Writer

If you’ve viewed our quickstart guides, you and your child are probably navigating Distance Learning Online (DLO) pretty comfortably by now. A few more features that we’d like to share with you relate to choosing settings and connecting with other families using DLO.

Blog

The DLO blog is primarily used by the students. This feature functions like a chat room and is actively monitored by our DLO team members. They interact with students on an as-needed basis according to the guidelines listed in our DLO blog and profile policy. And every time your child publishes a new conversation thread, it can be viewed from your DLO Dashboard.

A relatively new capability you have in DLO is to adjust certain settings for your child’s student profile. This option is helpful for monitoring your child’s access to the blog or time spent on it.

We also recommend that you enter a test password so that your child is unable to view his assessments until it is time to take them.

Communities

Here you have access to discussion forums that are grouped according to your child’s grade level, technical questions, feedback, homeschooling topics, and more. Like other discussion forums, this one allows you to join current conversation threads or post new ones. You’ll find that many DLO parents are willing to share ideas and offer support. Your child doesn’t have access to these discussions.

Grades

Your child can view his letter grade and current average for each course he’s enrolled in. You can view and edit his grades. In fact, we have provided three options for recording grades. Both the Record of Grades PDF and DLO Spreadsheet Record of Grades can be downloaded. The Online Gradebook is easiest to work with since it automatically updates every time your child completes an assessment. All three options can be found when you view a course under your parent profile.

Help

If you or your children have any academic or technical questions, send us a Help Ticket. Our DLO team members are prepared to offer support.

Thank you for choosing BJU Press Distance Learning Online! As we partner together this year, we know your child is sure to receive a sound education from a biblical worldview, and we’re pretty sure his love for learning is going to grow as he gets to know his distance learning teachers.

What other questions do you have about DLO?

How Are My Distance Learning Online Materials Organized?

August 20, 2015 by BJU Press Writer

You and your child have been successful in accessing Distance Learning Online (DLO); so now let’s talk about how things are set up. We’d like to cover two aspects today.

1. Printed Materials

Each course includes a Video Lesson Guide and Student Handouts. These packets provide an overview of the course and any related handouts to save you time and money on printing.

Video Lesson Guide

The VLG is specifically for parents and allows you to see how the course is laid out. It outlines the content, materials needed, Student Text or Worktext pages, assignments, and parent responsibility for each lesson.

Student Handouts

The SH packet provides the handouts your child needs for the lessons. Each page has the related grade, subject, and lesson printed on it. (We know how things can sometimes get out of order!)

The VLG and SH packets are the more challenging pieces of DLO to keep organized—primarily because of all the paper. We have three-hole punched each sheet so that it easily fits into a notebook, folder, or tray. You might want to consider color coding different subjects if your child is enrolled in multiple courses on DLO.

Creating an organizational system requires some planning, but the packets lend themselves to easy grouping by lesson, subject, grade, or any other option you choose! Our goal is to provide your family with sound educational resources from a biblical worldview that support your goals but are flexible enough so that you can choose to do what works best for your family. And if these printed materials get lost, no worries. The materials from these packets are in PDF form on DLO.

2. Online Course Materials

Each course Homepage in DLO provides your child with access to the course’s eTextbook (available for each course that includes a Student Text as opposed to a Student Worktext). This eTextbook can be viewed online or downloaded once you’ve created a Vitalsource Bookshelf^® account. You can learn more about our eTextbooks at bjupresshomeschool.com.

Below is a summary of how the courses are set up on DLO.

Lessons

You and your child have access to the course lessons through your separate profiles. From here, you can both view the course lessons we have provided for your child to complete. (You can view sample videos of the lessons.) While DLO does allow you to customize your child’s learning experience, we recommend that you check your state guidelines to see what is required. Instructions, answer keys, and other attachments are provided as needed for you every day. Specific instructions for the parent are featured in a green box that your child is not able to see under his student profile.

As your child completes each item, he can mark it complete to record his progress in the course.

Discussion

Our high school math and science courses include discussion forums. Your child has the opportunity to ask questions related to his course and receive feedback from one of our DLO team members or other students currently enrolled in the same course. The forums don’t appear under your parent profile, but you can still view everything your child posts from your DLO Dashboard.

Our distance learning teachers have integrated different activities and materials specifically for your child into their courses. All of the educational materials we provide are designed to build up your child’s joy of learning. In the next post, we’ll share additional features in DLO, such as adjusting settings and connecting with others.

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Now That I’ve Ordered Distance Learning Online, What’s Next?

August 18, 2015 by BJU Press Writer

Welcome to the BJU Press Distance Learning Online community! We’re excited to be on the same team for your child’s educational experience. Our distance learning materials are crafted to provide your child a sound education from a biblical worldview. Starting something new can be challenging; so over the next two weeks we’ll share the how-tos of our online program.

Welcome Email

Once your Distance Learning Online (DLO) order has been processed, the first thing you receive is a welcome email directing you to create a profile. At the same time, your child should also receive a welcome email.

To create a profile each parent and student is asked to provide a unique username and password and to confirm the first and last name. The confirmation of this information allows us to provide you and your child the distance learning content and educational materials related to his enrollment. Protecting your family’s privacy is important to us, and you can read how this information is used in our Children’s Privacy Policy. If you choose not to provide a separate email address for your child, then all emails related to his enrollment in DLO will be sent directly to your email.

Printed Materials

Your printed materials should arrive soon from our distribution center. These materials may arrive all together or in separate boxes. What you receive depends on the grade and subject ordered, but each kit should include these items.

DLO grade/subject kit no textbooks:

Video Lesson Guide
Student Handouts

DLO grade/subject kit with textbooks:

Student Text(s) and/or Worktext(s)
Video Lesson Guide
Student Handouts

If you’re looking for the Teacher’s Edition, tests, or test answer keys—don’t worry. An abridged Teacher’s Edition PDF and other resources are located in DLO. We’ve also provided available eTextbooks in DLO for you and your child. Most courses in grade 5 through grade 12 also include online assessments that are graded and recorded electronically. (Courses up to grade 4 that use tests include the printed tests and test answer keys when you order the grade/subject kit with books.)

Logging In

When you and your child log in to DLO for the first time, you’ll both need to agree to the terms of Edvance360. It’s important to remember that all of our distance learning content (video presentations, assessments, and other educational materials) is hosted online by this third-party company. Their terms will appear on the screen when you set up your profile. (For children under the age of eighteen, a parent needs to agree to the terms.)

Once the terms are agreed to, you will see the Homepage, which we also refer to as the Dashboard. From here you can access informative messages (Alerts), courses, resources, and your student’s progress. Your child also has a similar Dashboard; however, he doesn’t have access to the Contacts, Communities, or Mailbox. Another feature your child will have view-only access to is the Gradebook. We’ve created a quickstart guide for parents and another guide for students for easy navigation reference. It might be helpful for you and your child to review these PDFs before starting the first course. (We update these guides periodically.)

Our distance learning teachers and textbook writers are focused on providing your child with sound educational materials that will build the joy of learning. If you’re missing some of these materials, please let us know. We want to make sure you have everything you need to make the school year a successful one. In the next post, we’ll talk about how these materials are organized. Please let us know if we forget to include information that would be beneficial for you.

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