I let my younger son return to public school for 1.5 yr. He came home not even knowing basic mechanics of grammar. I am thinking maybe I should take a break and go over basic grammar? Or do you think it is better to just pick up go forward, maybe back up a grade level? If taking a break to remediate, what would be the suggestion? Just a review book from the book store? I usually use BJU English. I have found that in the past, I have had to stay a year behind the public school level. So, for example, if child completed 2nd grade in public school, we needed to do 2nd grade English at home. So I could go pick up the 4th grade book and just start in on it now. (he will be in 5th in the fall).
I think you will be surprised what he can learn in grammar when you focus on it in your daily life and continue on without taking the break. I was the kid that never understood grammar because I didn't focus in class...ever. I had to learn it in college and made it through but teaching it made me understand it. So maybe show him the basics and ask him to "teach" you. Trust me, there are many examples of grammar used incorrectly out there. My 4th grader loves to point them out to me. Then again, he loves to point out everyone's wrongs but I digress. If he struggles with basics like noun, pronoun etc Madlibs are a fun way to master that. But if it is the grammar of a sentence (when to use I, me, or their, there, they're etc )I would use a book at his grade level. They all teach the same basics and add on a bit each year. We are using Easy Grammar 45 this year. it is grades 4-5. My son has had no problems with it and it is our first year homeschooling. He was in public school before that. Now if only we can get the boy to write... I am also determined that my boys understand grammar.
I think I might use Daily Grams 4. If you know your grammar well, you can use it for teaching as well as reviewing. I found my students made the most progress when we did one page every morning, and discussed each point, every rule that applied. The first item is always capitalization, so I had them tell me not only which words needed capital letters but also why (first word in a sentence, title, proper noun, proper adjective, title of a book...). The next item is punctuation - not only what mark where but why. The next items are various concepts of grammar - homophones, spelling, pronouns, prepositions... The last item is sentence combining, making one good sentence out of three, four, or five you're given, including all the information in as few words as possible. I've not used BJU but my friend used it for a couple of years with hers, and found that it didn't stick with her boys at all. I've used only Christian Light or Rod & Staff, both of which are excellent.
I recommend Daily Grams or Easy Grammar. Both are quick, easy, and either review basics or expand on them.
I would be inclined to use some of the Bookstore workbooks to play catch up. They are typically on the light side and you can move through them quickly to find the weak spots.
I just let my kid do a lot of creative writing, explained what corrections needed to be made, and she pretty much just absorbed it. Reading constantly helps. If you read words and punctuation used properly, you'll pick it up. Also got her a Little Brown Essential Handbook and The Elements of Style to study on her own in her "I'm going to be a writer" phase. Great references! Never studied grammar per se. We never heard anything but praise from her teachers about her writing. She nailed the English sections of the ACT, too. More than any other strategy...I think reading a LOT and doing some original writing every day (no matter if it's a journal entry, a short story, a letter) are most valuable for mastering English.
Grammar remediation -- my two cents I'm a homeschooling dad, but in the business world I teach writing and, on occasion, grammar, usage, and punctuation. I'm also an instructional designer, and over the past 20 years I have studied intensely the teaching of grammar. My own kids and groups of local homeschooled students have all been guinea pigs for my methods and materials. Bottom line: I really understand this particular challenge, i.e., teaching grammar, and my own approaches have been tempered by the natural stages and constraints of child development. That is, I've seen for myself that their little brains evolve and that what is difficult to teach this year will be really easy to teach two years from now. You say that your son is in 5th grade this year. For what it's worth, here's my suggestion: Postpone for a few years the formal teaching of grammar. [*]Instead, focus on your son's reading. The reason: I would guesstimate that 98% of grammar, usage, and punctuation is learned not in formal grammar lessons, but through reading -- absorbed unconsciously, through a kind of osmosis. Written English is almost a separate version of English, with features that simply don't exist in Spoken English. Take punctuation: There are no commas, periods, colons, or semicolons in our speech. To the extent that we are familiar with those things, it is entirely from our reading. Another example: Capitalization. In speech, there is no such thing as uppercase or lowercase. Again, we get this feature of Written English entirely through our reading. At any given time, in addition to his schoolwork, I would recommend that he be reading at two different levels: 1) reading for fun, for pleasure -- books that he selects; 2) books that challenge his reading level, that you select together, and that you read with him. Give him a couple of years. You'll find it much easier to teach him formal grammar in, say, 7th or 8th grade. His brain will be completely different and more receptive to both the abstract principles and the strict logical requirements that grammar entails. Any of this make sense?
