6/5/12
My daughter did something really strange this morning as she was using the iPad. At first, I didn't quite understand why every time she tapped on the next arrow that navigate to the next page, she took a quick step back. It looks like she was afraid to look at the screen for some odd reason. So I pretended to be busy reading something on my laptop while quietly observed what she was doing. I finally realized that the ABC's in the Starfall apps have these real pictures of different animals. What she was afraid of was those "scary looking" animals like a alligator, snake, and many others. Since Starfall is a very interactive apps for children, they would have picture of the alligator snapping its mouth with the snapping sounds or the lion roaring loudly. My daughter is such a big chicken! She is scared of every little moving things. She would jump up and scream if a fly flew by her face. Once, we were having dinner and an ant crawl by her feet, she would jump onto my husband's lap and scream. How could I help her overcome these silly fear?
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
counting beyond 10
6/5/12
Today, something amazing happen, my daughter was able to count beyond 10. My husband and I have been teaching her how to count over the past few months. She was beginning to get the hang of it. We did not expect her be able to count beyond 10 this quickly. She was playing with my color pencils and I decided to make an exercise out of it. We started the usual way by counting up to 5 and continue to add more until we get to 10, but today she continue to add more pencils. Eventually, she arranged all 18 pencils in a straight line. Initially, she was having a hard time counting until she recognizes a pattern when you count beyond 10. In English, when you count past 10, it becomes a totally different language until you get to sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, and nineteen because you just add the -teen to what you know; where as eleven and twelve are on themselves and thirteen, fourteen and fifteen we use ordinal numbers for the prefix and add the -teen for the suffix. In Vietnamese, counting beyond 10 is a much more easier concept. When you get past 10 you just add the word 10 and the number you are counting. For example, 12 will become 10 and 2 and 14 will be 10 and four and hence for. With this type of pattern, she was able to understand that you will only have to add the prefix 10 before any number. I was so proud of her for recognizing the pattern and was able to apply it.
Today, something amazing happen, my daughter was able to count beyond 10. My husband and I have been teaching her how to count over the past few months. She was beginning to get the hang of it. We did not expect her be able to count beyond 10 this quickly. She was playing with my color pencils and I decided to make an exercise out of it. We started the usual way by counting up to 5 and continue to add more until we get to 10, but today she continue to add more pencils. Eventually, she arranged all 18 pencils in a straight line. Initially, she was having a hard time counting until she recognizes a pattern when you count beyond 10. In English, when you count past 10, it becomes a totally different language until you get to sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, and nineteen because you just add the -teen to what you know; where as eleven and twelve are on themselves and thirteen, fourteen and fifteen we use ordinal numbers for the prefix and add the -teen for the suffix. In Vietnamese, counting beyond 10 is a much more easier concept. When you get past 10 you just add the word 10 and the number you are counting. For example, 12 will become 10 and 2 and 14 will be 10 and four and hence for. With this type of pattern, she was able to understand that you will only have to add the prefix 10 before any number. I was so proud of her for recognizing the pattern and was able to apply it.
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Color coordinating
5/30/12
Last night, I was folding clothes after I did the laundry when my daughter asked if she could help. So I gave her a stack of socks (they were hers!) and told her to help me put them together. Of course I didn't even bother looking at what she was doing. When she was done, she brought the stack of socks that she had organized together and told me she is done. I look at it and to my surprise, the socks are stacked in pairs with matching colors and directions. They were stacked neatly on top of one and the other. I've never taught her how to coordinate things or match them with the same colors, but I don't know how she learned this herself. She must had seen me folding clothes and observed what I did. My husband made a comment that made me laugh so hard. He said "Oh my god, our daughter is OCD just like you!!"
Last night, I was folding clothes after I did the laundry when my daughter asked if she could help. So I gave her a stack of socks (they were hers!) and told her to help me put them together. Of course I didn't even bother looking at what she was doing. When she was done, she brought the stack of socks that she had organized together and told me she is done. I look at it and to my surprise, the socks are stacked in pairs with matching colors and directions. They were stacked neatly on top of one and the other. I've never taught her how to coordinate things or match them with the same colors, but I don't know how she learned this herself. She must had seen me folding clothes and observed what I did. My husband made a comment that made me laugh so hard. He said "Oh my god, our daughter is OCD just like you!!"
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
The first initiative!
5/29/12
My daughter came home from the supermarket yesterday as I was working on my project. She pointed at the labtop and asked me if I could turn on the ABC's for her. At first, I didn't quite understand what she was asking, so I asked her "What ABC's are you talking about?" She tried to explain by indicating that the ABC's with the train. Finally I've figured out that she wanted to play with the Starfall website. I was happy and surprised that she made the initiative to ask me to access the website instead of me suggesting it this time. However, I needed to do my work so my solution is to download the Starfall's apps onto the IPad. This way, my daughter and I won't have to fight over the laptop. Now, she is happy with her IPad and I could work peacefully on my project. At least, I know for sure she is enjoy learning the alphabet through this interactive website instead of sitting through the flashcards' lesson with me!!
My daughter came home from the supermarket yesterday as I was working on my project. She pointed at the labtop and asked me if I could turn on the ABC's for her. At first, I didn't quite understand what she was asking, so I asked her "What ABC's are you talking about?" She tried to explain by indicating that the ABC's with the train. Finally I've figured out that she wanted to play with the Starfall website. I was happy and surprised that she made the initiative to ask me to access the website instead of me suggesting it this time. However, I needed to do my work so my solution is to download the Starfall's apps onto the IPad. This way, my daughter and I won't have to fight over the laptop. Now, she is happy with her IPad and I could work peacefully on my project. At least, I know for sure she is enjoy learning the alphabet through this interactive website instead of sitting through the flashcards' lesson with me!!
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Starfall successful attempt!
My daughter first attempt using Starfall on my laptop!
5/23/2012
I thought about different ways to teach my daughter the alphabets and sounds. Yesterday, as I took her to Target, we saw these ABC's flashcard sets that are just for a dollar. I was so tempted to buy them, but ended up not. When I went home, something came across my mind. What about teaching her using some great website that are designed especially for kids? I remembered how much my kindergarten students love use Starfall during their independent time. So, I taught my daughter a quick lesson on how to use navigation pad. After 15 minute of computer skill tutoring, she was able to master the basic skill. She seems to enjoy it very much because she didn't want to stop after almost an hour. We ended up fighting for the laptop because she wanted to play some more, while I needed it to do my work! Of course, I won...
I don't think she would enjoy learning as much if I were to taught her using the traditional flashcards approach!
Website for Phonics
Please check out this website. www.starfall.com
This is a great website to teach children phonics and how to read. Maybe ESL beginner can also benefit from it in the classroom!
Thanks,
This is a great website to teach children phonics and how to read. Maybe ESL beginner can also benefit from it in the classroom!
Thanks,
Monday, May 14, 2012
Apple Store Adventure
5/14/12
On Sunday last week, my husband and I took my daughter to the Apple store in Old Town Pasadena. We were just there to browse around and look at all the cool stuff that Apple has. I was mostly interested in the new Macbook Air. It is such a great laptop for a grad student like me, but I digress. My daughter wanted to go the children area to play with the iPads that were being displayed on the table. They only had 4 spots to play and when we got there, lo and beholds, all the spots were taken. So, I had to find something else to distract the attention span of a 2 1/2 years old away from what she wants. I decided to put her up onto a chair at an unoccupied table with the magical Mac Air, while I watched a how-to-use an iPhone presentation. Since all the products in the Apple Store are connected to the internet through wireless, I decided to let her being occupied by watching Youtube. It took her less than 5 minutes to figure out how to navigate the mouse when her "touch the screen" adventure (iAnything generation) did not yield any results. So, I left her went on doing her own thing while I watched her with amusement. The next thing I know, she was on a site with flash games and playing it like a pro. She learned so quickly on the game works, but also got bored really easily. About 20 minutes of fiddling around, she has to use the restroom and that concluded our Apple Store Adventure. It is really amazing what technology can do to a growing child!!!
On Sunday last week, my husband and I took my daughter to the Apple store in Old Town Pasadena. We were just there to browse around and look at all the cool stuff that Apple has. I was mostly interested in the new Macbook Air. It is such a great laptop for a grad student like me, but I digress. My daughter wanted to go the children area to play with the iPads that were being displayed on the table. They only had 4 spots to play and when we got there, lo and beholds, all the spots were taken. So, I had to find something else to distract the attention span of a 2 1/2 years old away from what she wants. I decided to put her up onto a chair at an unoccupied table with the magical Mac Air, while I watched a how-to-use an iPhone presentation. Since all the products in the Apple Store are connected to the internet through wireless, I decided to let her being occupied by watching Youtube. It took her less than 5 minutes to figure out how to navigate the mouse when her "touch the screen" adventure (iAnything generation) did not yield any results. So, I left her went on doing her own thing while I watched her with amusement. The next thing I know, she was on a site with flash games and playing it like a pro. She learned so quickly on the game works, but also got bored really easily. About 20 minutes of fiddling around, she has to use the restroom and that concluded our Apple Store Adventure. It is really amazing what technology can do to a growing child!!!
English vs. Vietnamese
5/14/12
My husband bought me an orchid plant for Mother's Day. He gave it to me after we had dinner with his mom and my parents at our house. As he handed me the plant, he asked my daughter to say "Happy Mother's Day!" Of course, she couldn't say the whole sentence so he told her to repeats after each word. I couldn't help but laughed at her funny accent because we don't often speak much English with her at home. It made me wonder whether she would know that we are trying to teach her two different languages. Sometimes, on our way over to my mom house, I asked her some basic words that she knows in both languages. For example, I asked her what is "con cho" called in English. She would answered me "Con cho la dog," which translated as "a dog is a dog." Then, I asked her about the English name for a cat, tiger, lion, giraffe, monkey, snake, panda, bird, penguin, whale, and rabbit. She seems to be able to name all of these animals correctly. For the one that she doesn't know, she would asked me, for instance, "Con ha ma la con gi?" Directly translated as: "What is a hippo?" Then I would tell her "Con ha ma is a hippo" and she would repeats the word "hippo." I guess she does understand that I am speaking different languages to her at times....
My husband bought me an orchid plant for Mother's Day. He gave it to me after we had dinner with his mom and my parents at our house. As he handed me the plant, he asked my daughter to say "Happy Mother's Day!" Of course, she couldn't say the whole sentence so he told her to repeats after each word. I couldn't help but laughed at her funny accent because we don't often speak much English with her at home. It made me wonder whether she would know that we are trying to teach her two different languages. Sometimes, on our way over to my mom house, I asked her some basic words that she knows in both languages. For example, I asked her what is "con cho" called in English. She would answered me "Con cho la dog," which translated as "a dog is a dog." Then, I asked her about the English name for a cat, tiger, lion, giraffe, monkey, snake, panda, bird, penguin, whale, and rabbit. She seems to be able to name all of these animals correctly. For the one that she doesn't know, she would asked me, for instance, "Con ha ma la con gi?" Directly translated as: "What is a hippo?" Then I would tell her "Con ha ma is a hippo" and she would repeats the word "hippo." I guess she does understand that I am speaking different languages to her at times....
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Counting 1-10
5/9/12
My daughter was not very excited about balloons anymore. I guess she got a little scar with the last counting lesson attempt! As she was playing with the little animals in her toy box, I decided to try to teach her to count with them. Hopefully, it will not be so drastic like the last attempt. So I lay out 10 little animals on the floor and model how to count from 1-10 for her. After a few times, I asked her to count by herself. She said "Be' An khong mun dem," which means "Be' An (that's what we called her at home) doesn't want to count." I was a bit disappointed when she said that, but I insisted that she must. I could tell she was scared to make mistake. So I told her if she could count correctly, I would give her two gummy bears as a reward. Gummy bears are her favorite! As soon as I said that, she started pointing to the animals, going from left to right as she counted. To my very surprise, she counted from 1-10 without making any mistake. I almost jump to my feet with excitement!!! However, having a little doubt, I took away one of them and asked her to count again. This time, there is still no mistake. I was really happy and proud of her! Of course, she gave me a big smile as i handed her the two gummy bears that I had promised... My next goal is to start with her ABC's. I wonder how that will go????
My daughter was not very excited about balloons anymore. I guess she got a little scar with the last counting lesson attempt! As she was playing with the little animals in her toy box, I decided to try to teach her to count with them. Hopefully, it will not be so drastic like the last attempt. So I lay out 10 little animals on the floor and model how to count from 1-10 for her. After a few times, I asked her to count by herself. She said "Be' An khong mun dem," which means "Be' An (that's what we called her at home) doesn't want to count." I was a bit disappointed when she said that, but I insisted that she must. I could tell she was scared to make mistake. So I told her if she could count correctly, I would give her two gummy bears as a reward. Gummy bears are her favorite! As soon as I said that, she started pointing to the animals, going from left to right as she counted. To my very surprise, she counted from 1-10 without making any mistake. I almost jump to my feet with excitement!!! However, having a little doubt, I took away one of them and asked her to count again. This time, there is still no mistake. I was really happy and proud of her! Of course, she gave me a big smile as i handed her the two gummy bears that I had promised... My next goal is to start with her ABC's. I wonder how that will go????
Monday, May 7, 2012
counting 1-4
05/04/12
Friday
Excitement and happiness filled my daughter's face when she ran into the room holding four small balloons in her hands. After a tired day of work, I thought this would be a great teachable moment to teach her how to count using balloons. So, I asked her to lay them on the bed and modeled how to count from one to four in Vietnamese as I pointed to each balloon. She followed my lead as she counted and pointed at each of them. Then, I asked her to start counting by herself. After 20 minutes went by, my frustration started to build up as I realized my tone is getting higher and higher. I could tell she was getting upset too because she started crying when I start losing my patience. When I saw the tears rolled down that little small face, I realized I am not teaching her as a role of a teacher, but more of a mother. I was more disappointed at myself than of her because I now understand what it means when people say it is so much easier to teach other people's kid than of your own.
Friday
Excitement and happiness filled my daughter's face when she ran into the room holding four small balloons in her hands. After a tired day of work, I thought this would be a great teachable moment to teach her how to count using balloons. So, I asked her to lay them on the bed and modeled how to count from one to four in Vietnamese as I pointed to each balloon. She followed my lead as she counted and pointed at each of them. Then, I asked her to start counting by herself. After 20 minutes went by, my frustration started to build up as I realized my tone is getting higher and higher. I could tell she was getting upset too because she started crying when I start losing my patience. When I saw the tears rolled down that little small face, I realized I am not teaching her as a role of a teacher, but more of a mother. I was more disappointed at myself than of her because I now understand what it means when people say it is so much easier to teach other people's kid than of your own.
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