You will notice that the game charts have a column labeled LEARNING STYLES.  If you have READ Discover Your Child’s Learning Style, you will understand what the notes mean.  If not, here is a brief key:

Modalities:

Print means that most content is in print.

Picture means there are a lot of pictures or other graphics.

Visual means that both print and pictures are used in the game.

Verbal means there is some to quite a bit of talking involved.

Listening means that listening is involved.

Auditory means that both Verbal and Listening skills are used in the game.

Hands-on means that there is significant hand movement of cards, pieces, etc.

Whole Body means that the whole body is moving.

Writing means that writing is involved.

Dispositions:

Move means that there is significant physical activity.  These games are great for the very active child who hates to sit still.

Produce means that there is a clear (to the student) and quantifiable learning objective.  These children like to have a game labeled “educational” whereas that adjective is the kiss of death to most of the other dispositions.

Invent or Discovery means that there is discovery and/or experimentation involved.

Interact means that there is significant social interaction.  This learning style enjoys most games so it is only listed it when the group interaction is above average.

Create means that the game requires significant thought and/or creativity.

There is another vital element of learning that is important in regard to physical movement or what schools like to call Physical Education.  This is explained in depth in Smart Moves by Carla Hannaford.  Therefore, we have included the notations Vestibular and Proprioceptive to help you pick out P.E. games and activities that give your child reinforcement  in these sensory areas.

Vestibular refers to awareness of body balance and movement.

Proprioceptive  refers to the relative position of different parts of the body and the strength of effort used in movement.

Most games combine multiple elements, so we listed only the salient ones.  Likewise, any one child’s learning style is far more complex than these simple definitions and each child’s personality includes a combination of several modalities and dispositions.  Watch for the elements in games that your child likes and look for those or similar elements in other games

If you have been using Math It as your basic guide for math and your child has mastered the addition, subtraction, multiplication and division facts, it is time to begin Advanced Math It.  This will help your child learn about fractions, decimals and percentages.  If you are not using Math It, you will want to pick other games from the list that will help your child with these concepts. In addition, you may want to give your child further practice with addition, multiplication and factoring with games such as Over and Out, Prime Pak , Goose Egg Division, and the Wonder Number Game.  We have also included games that will reinforce understanding of time, spatial reasoning, money and sets.

Keep in mind that Math-It teaches how to manipulate numbers easily, but it does not help with the underlying conceptual understanding of numbers.  Some children are still in the concrete learning stage at this age and need objects, drawings and other concrete representations in order to understand what the numbers mean. These children will benefit by using coins, Cuisenaire Rods, an abacus, measuring cups, rulers, scales, thermometers and graphic representations of the concepts to be learned.

To give your child practice with paper & pencil calculations you can practice with everyday situations that just come up, download practice sheets from the internet, or get a workbook.   We also like the Life of Fred math series. It is the best math series we have seen for explaining in concrete (if somewhat whimsical) terms the why and how of math.   If your child is able to do long division, you can start with the Fractions book.  If not, start with Goldfish.  Another excellent math series is Ray’s Arithmetic.    These books are filled with practical, everyday problems, which demonstrate the usefulness of math.  They do not follow our modern grade system, but you will probably want to use Ray’s New Practical Arithmetic at this point.  If your student finds the problems too difficult, step back to Ray’s Intellectual Arithmetic.  Dr. Ruth Beechick has written a parent guide to the Ray’s series, which is very helpful.

At this age, some children love to write while others run from a paper and pencil, but both groups will love the Create-A-Story game.  Don’t make your children write out their stories every time you play or they may soon lose interest in the game.  Instead, play as often as you can for the fun of developing stories and learning about the elements of a story.  When your student invents an especially good one, suggest he or she write it down using the outline form provided in the game.  Once the outline is completed, show him how easy it is to write it out in narrative form.  Don’t do this all in one sitting.  Break it up into several sessions and give lots of help as needed.  You may need to write it out yourself from dictation.  That is fine.  Write or type it out and start a portfolio of stories.  If your child likes to draw, suggest that he may want to illustrate the story.  Playing the game and telling your stories orally will build the skills you are looking for.  It is not necessary to do a great deal of writing at this age.  Reading (or listening to) well written books will give your child a feel for good language.

A quick and fun sentence composing exercise is Twisterz Story Starter.  Spin the wheels on the sentence tube to create the first sentence in a story. Then continue the story using the prompt provided.  This is a fun way to get creative writing started.  Several players can work together to make a story.

You can start to learn more about formal grammar at this age too.  If you read and enjoyed the Ruth Heller World of Language books and/or played with Mad Libs, your child has already been introduced to the parts of speech.  Sentence Says will gently reinforce elements of a sentence with a touch of hilarity.  With children, you may want to dispense with the timers.  Watch how your children react and change the game as needed.  Go to Press offers more help with sentence structure.  English spelling is challenging at best but often it is daunting, especially to a 10 year-old. Pick Two, Speedeebee and Quiddler are very different games that all give spelling practice and are fun for everyone.  Quiddler Deluxe Edition includes a spelling dictionary that can be used between turns.  This is a huge boost for younger players and adds to their vocabulary at the same time.  The other games listed help with sentence structure, vocabulary and just a bit of literature. Hopefully, you are reading lots and lots of books.

GEO DICE is no longer available, but can be found on Amazon or other sites.

By age 10, most children are beginning to develop a sense of the world.  If you don’t have a world globe, consider getting one or buy an inflatable world globe.  You can play games with it finding oceans, continents, countries, cities and physical features.  Most people learn very little world geography because it seems boring from a textbook.  If your children play games with maps and puzzles and sing along with the Geography Songs CD they will eventually learn a great deal about the world, probably more than most adults.  You can order extra activity books for the Geography Songs so that each child can have one to use and write or color in.

Another important way to learn geography is to read exciting and interesting books about explorers, adventurers and people around the world.  Put a world map on the wall and label the places you have been to in books or in person. The World Scrunch Map can be used for this purpose or can be scrunched up in its bag and carried in a purse or backpack for use on the go.  Movies and TV shows about far-away places can also help your child begin to understand about people, places and cultures beyond our borders.  This is something that builds for years.  Enjoy it but don’t push it.  If you find a place or culture that fascinates your children, learn about it.  Be willing to feed their interests.

We included games with and without maps.  It is important to have maps around to help children develop a visual sense of where things are.  The games that include maps for this year are Where in the World, Mad Dash and Geo Dice.  You might consider putting a map under a clear plastic tablecloth on your dining table.  It will provide a great visual of the world that your children can’t miss when sitting at the table and you can devise games for dinnertime using the map.  Talk about a country that is in the news or find a major river or tell why something is considered a major landmark like the Eifel Tower,  Ankor Wat or the Taj Mahal.  Maybe you can find a children’s storybook about these places.  There are Write-on, Wipe-Off placemats for every continent, the U.S. and the world.  Use these at the table and your children will begin to learn new places while they play or eat.

We also included some games for a little culture and history. We have found that the Professor Noggins games are tremendously popular.  They are fun and interesting and provide challenge to adults, while giving easy enoughquestions for younger children to enjoy.  The cards are easy to slip into a purse or a zipper bag for the car.

The JINGO games are really Bingo with a new label.  These games are great for the whole family.  Although designed for middle school and up, younger children can find the spots using the pictures on the calling cards.  There are several levels of clues so there is a lot to learn with the very popular JINGO games.

Here is another simple game for the car:  Mom or Dad starts by naming a continent.  The youngest child names an animal (or country or physical feature) on that continent.  The children continue in order of age to name more animals from that continent until no one can think of any more.  A variation is to start by naming a country.  The next person must name a country that begins with the last letter of the previous country.  Or, you can use the second letter of the previous country since an inordinate number of countries end with the letter “a.”

Books to fill out your knowledge of the ancient world:

• Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt by Elizabeth Payne
•  Spend the Day in Ancient Egypt by Linda Honan (hands-on activities and projects)            
• The God King by Joanne Williamson
• The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone by James Cross Giblin
• Cleopatra by Diane Stanley & Peter Vennema
• Mummies & Pyramids (Usborne)
• Outrageous Women of Ancient Times by Vicki Leon
• Spend the Day in Ancient Rome by Linda Honan Honan (hands-on activities and projects)
• Asterix the Gladiator by A. Uderzo
• Who Were the Romans (Usborne)
• Who In the World Was The Acrobatic Empress? The Story of Theodora by Robin Philips
• The Roman Colosseum  by Elizabeth Mann

Audio recordings by Jim Weiss:

• Egyptian Treasures: Mummies and Myths                                                                                                
• Julius Caesar and the Story of Rome

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SCIENCE

Emphasis:  Physical Science, Biology, Inventors and Explorers

These games will give your child an introduction to several areas of science.  We provided a variety, including short card games, bingo games and board games.  Be sure to pick your games with your child’s learning style and attention span in mind.  When you find that your child has a special interest in some area of science, get books, DVD’s, science kits, etc. on that topic.   Take field trips to museums or other points of interest and encourage your child to ask lots of questions.  Watch for opportunities to volunteer or interesting groups or clubs.

Many adult clubs (rock hounds, herpetologists, scuba, etc.) have wonderful free lectures, slide shows, films, etc. at their meetings and anyone can attend.  Often children who show an interest are welcomed.

Book Suggestions for Fifth Grade Science:

• Archimedes and the Door of Science by Jeanne Bendick
•  Along Came Galileo by Jeanne Bendick
• Carry On, Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Latham
•  The Longitude Prize by Joan Dash* (out of print but well worth the search)
•   Benjamin Franklin by D’Aulaire
• Guns For General Washington by Seymour Reit
• The Amazing, Impossible Erie Canal by Cheryl Harness
• George Washington Carver (Sower Series) by David Collins
• The Story of Inventions (Usborne) by Anna Claybourne & Adam Larkum
• The Usborne Book of Science Activities (Volumes I, II & III)
• Kids Inventing! A Handbook for Young Inventors by Susan Casey
• Shoes For Everyone- A Story About Jan Matzeliger by Barbara Mitchell
• Healing Warrior- A Story About Sister Elizabeth Kenny by Emily Crofford & Steve Michaels*
• Fine Print- A Story About Johann Gutenberg by Joann Johansen Burch
• Frontier Surgeons- The Story of the Mayo Brothers by Emily Crofford (out of print)*
• What are You Figuring Now? The Story of Benjamin Banneker by Jeri Ferris

*Although out of print, these books are easily found either online for a very low price or at your library.  These books are gems and well worth the search.  As a part of the Creative Minds Biographies series of several dozen informative and inspiring books, they gradually went out of print after their publisher, Carol Rhoda Publishers was purchased by a larger company. They are short (about 60 pages) and meant for about 4^th to 6^th grade.

Of course there are lots of things you can do for exercise, but don’t fall into the trap of thinking that being on a sports team provides enough variety and frequency.  Children need frequent and varied movement including lots of unstructured play for optimum health and development.  A generation or two ago, that was provided by sending them outside to play with whatever they had at hand, from roller skates and jump ropes to climbing trees and impromptu ball games.  Today’s children are often seduced by video games and spend way too much time indoors.  They don’t play as many traditional games that require fine motor skills like jacks and marbles or intricate whole body coordination like challenging jump rope games.  Often their schedule is heavy with organized sports and other organized activity, with little time left over for creative play.

If you have a variety of interesting physical games (and we encourage parents to play too whenever possible), your children will benefit.  Many children who have trouble with reading, writing or math improve greatly after engaging in consistent physical exercises that improve coordination, agility and a sense of where their bodies are in space.  We included some unusual game products that are especially good for coordination (Kendama, OgoDisk, Juggling Stix, Slackline) because they are both fun and challenging.  In addition, they can be played alone or with others to develop physical body systems that are a vital adjunct to developing the intellect.