Bsyo knew 2x this week with just one slip in place on 6x2, which she corrected quickly, so we started on 3x, she saying them with me and losing place much less often than she had while learning 2x. V pleased and happy. 9 year old, who had not known 2x at the beginnng of December, completed his first multiplicaton practice, multiplying three-digit numbers by single digits, using the standard method. I'd given him half a dozen and asked him to do more - mum was confident that he'd succeeded, and, when I checked, he had made only one error in 15 examples. This is excellent progress in three months, and was made possible by explaining how to move the overflow numbers (aka carrying) without getting confused. This week, he will practise multiplying by two-digit numbers.
Bsyo's reading keeps getting better, though she still has to go back and work out words one letter at a time. So, we work on blending letter combinations, using the technique of working on similar words to a word that has caused a problem, then going back to it. We are now at the end of Ruth's purple set of books, and there is a twist - Bsyo reads the parent's introduction as well as the book itself, so that she learns to read longer and more intersting words such as continue, impressed and ignore, as well as building up her blending skills. She'd been dressing up as a Roman Empress at school, and liked the impression of a leaf on a reproduction Roman vase we have in the house.
Nine year old has written a nine-line description of Oliver Twist, with accurate grammar and punctuation, but some spelling mistakes, including groul for gruel, workes and skruffy. We work on these using the principles of Slimmed Down Spelling. I get out my Doulton set of Dickens characters and he decides his next description will be of Mr Jack Dawkins, aka Dodger. We read the Dickens introduction to Dodger, and mum will re read it with 9yo before he writes his description. This writing was a solid L3 overall, and a good base for reaching the expected standard by the time he goes to secondary school. 9yo's life is changing for the better.