I didn’t want to follow their lesson plan outline so I’m doing it this way. This is NOT a day-by-day plan, it’s just the order of how I’ll combine things. I’ll only be doing a lesson 2x a week at the most for this stage…

Abbreviations are CF: Cursive First, SWR: Spell to Write & Read teacher’s guide, WISE: Wise Guide for Spelling, LL: learning log (kids’ book)

We will be introducing cursive first along with the phonograms (the kids know the single letters already), then the learning logs and spelling lists. I want them to write their spelling in cursive so that’s why I’m spending some time on that first. I anticipate C will race through most of the early spelling lists but it appears to be about the right level for Mo to start from the beginning.

1. SWR 1 to 5, teacher prep: let kids play in salt box.
2. Cursive First 2A-26A (covering SWR lessons 6 & 7): This will be extensive as we introduce the phonograms, numerals, cursive strokes, and lower case letters 4 at a time, depending on how the kids handle it. We’ll be doing tactile and gross motor writing before we do paper/pen writing so introducing the cursive will take a couple weeks depending on how they handle it.
3. SWR 8: intro to learning log
4. SWR 9: vowel & consonant page in LL
5. SWR 10: phonogram page in LL
6. SWR 11: placement test for WISE
7. SWR 12: prep to start WISE
8. WISE A and CF 26B, 27AB
9. SWR 13: Reinforce spelling
10. SWR 14: Classic literature
11. SWR 15: number page in LL
12. WISE B & CF 28AB 29A
13: WISE C & CF 29B 30AB
14. SWR 16: grammar

15. SWR 17: final E
16. WISE D & CF 31AB 32AB
17. WISE E & CF 33AB
18. SWR 18: start sh and ti
19. SWR 19: AEIOU page in LL
20. WISE F & CF 34AB 35A
21. SWR 20

22. WISE G
23. SWR 21: sentences (starting compose own sentences)
24. WISE H1
25. WISE H2 & CF 35B 36AB
26. SWR 22: explain ed

27. WISE I1
28. SWR 23: reading in books assigned
29. WISE I2 & CF 37A
30. SWR 24: vocabulary
31. SWR 25: abbreviations
32. WISE I3 & CF 37B 38A
33. WISE I4 & CF 38B 39A

Capital letters in cursive from CF.

34. WISE J1
35. SWR 26: er page
36. WISE J2
37. WISE J3
38. SWR 27: plurals
39: WISE J4
40. WISE J5
41. SWR 28: contractions
42. WISE J6

So that breaks down which lessons and which workbook pages or lesson log reference pages we need to do each day. This gets us through section J of the WISE guide which is about halfway through second grade spelling wise. I don’t know how long it will take us to get the kids there, I’m starting them at the same time and I’ll adapt as needed for Mo and add extra stuff for Christopher. Because each lessons has fun enrichment ideas, I think it won’t be hard to have Christopher do those things and keep pace with Mo for the first bit as he works on his handwriting and the phonograms. Then I’ll start doubling up his spelling words until he catches up to where he tested at, in section Q. If he shows me he has mastered through J then I may just quiz him on the spelling lists to jump him ahead but still make sure we get the spelling rules covered along the way.

So really, I’m not sure how this will work. 🙂 I may stagger the days I do this with them once they get the basics down and C goes ahead.

If this is something you are interested in then let me know and I’ll have you over to look through it. That way you can have the books in front of you so you can see what I’m referring to – otherwise it’s just a bunch of letters and numbers. 🙂 But once you see it, if you’re visual like me, it will make MUCH more sense.

Even after pouring over these books that give me flashbacks to foreign language texts in college, I am still so excited. The kids are practicing cursive letters in the salt box now and love it.