Grammar English Mastery Studies (GEMS)
A complete language arts curriculum with emphasis on reading, writing, and grammar studies.
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1. Book (paperback) Grammar English Mastery Studies Volume I: Parts of Speech - book
Regular price $35.00 USDRegular priceUnit price per -
2. Book (paperback) Grammar English Mastery Studies: Volume II Parts of a Sentence and Sentence Structure
Regular price $35.00 USDRegular priceUnit price per -
3. Book (paperback) - Grammar English Mastery Studies (GEMS) Volume III
Regular price $35.00 USDRegular priceUnit price per -
4. Book (paperback) GEMS Quizzes and Tests
Regular price $20.00 USDRegular priceUnit price per
Covers all Language Arts Components
GEMS is a complete language arts course focusing daily on writing, grammar study, and reading. Students do vocabulary and editing on alternate days.
Frees up Teacher's Time
The lessons in GEMS are taught through the textbook and videos. Parents do not need to take courses to be able to use this curriculum. The students work through each lesson at their own pace without needing assistance. All the parent/teacher needs to do is monitor the students to make sure they are engaging with the lessons.
Provides Video Instruction
Video Instruction
By September 1, 2022 every lesson will have an instructional video posted on this website. These videos instruct the students through the objectives.
Every exercise in the textbook will have a video providing the correct answers and further demonstrations of how to reach the objectives.
Teaches Writing
Learning to write is a two-track process involving thinking and editing. Students must have the freedom to learn the discipline of transferring their thoughts to the paper in a stress-free environment. This means they do not worry about spelling, punctuation, or mechanics. They allow their thoughts to flow freely onto the paper. This is a discipline to be fostered and developed through free writing (journaling). Students of all ages should be encouraged to write their thoughts, dreams, ideas, hopes, memories, goals, and stories. No one should ever edit during the thinking part of writing. To do so would be to stifle creativity and the thought process.
Journal
Students are to write for ten minutes daily - called journaling - to develop the discipline of transferring their thoughts to their papers.
Teaches Grammar
Writing and editing are two different activities. Students edit their writing to make their ideas fit into genre specific formats. Editing is the application of the grammatical foundations.
Students do not become great writers in one year or even in four years. They become great writers by writing. They enhance their writing by applying standardized edits to their writing. They must work to learn grammar to apply the rules to make their writing readable and socially acceptable. Grammar study is imperative to making great writers.
Instills Love of Reading
Students must read daily. This is vitally important to all areas of development. Students should read books that are interesting, and they should enjoy reading. If your student does not enjoy reading, then keep searching. Find reading material that the student loves.
Provides Strong Vocabulary Study
Vocabulary should never be taught by giving the students a list of words and having them define them. The students have very little recall of these lessons because these lessons lack application. Students should learn vocabulary words through context , either hearing them or reading them.
When the students encounter an unfamiliar word, they should mark the page or write down the word in context. Provide the students with post-it flags, and have them place the flag next to the unfamiliar words. On the days they do vocabulary, the students use the flagged words to fill out their vocabulary pages.
Teaches Editing
Mechanics and Punctuation
Learning punctuation and capitalization rules need not be exhausting. The students make corrections to a sentence with errors. Then, they write the rules addressing the errors.
GEMS focuses on one-to-three rules per lesson. This should take the student about five minutes on alternating days. These exercises provide the students the opportunity to acquaint themselves with mechanical rules without sitting through boring lectures.
Repeats Concept Instruction
Repetition
Learning takes place through repetition. GEMS repeats and builds upon previous lessons. This gives students the ability to continually improve and solidify the concepts.
Reaches Objectives
Objective Based Instruction
Each lesson in GEMS states what the student should accomplish at the end of the unit. All assessments are based off of these objectives.
Focuses on Mastery Learning
Mastery Learning is the freedom to learn at one's own pace. Once the students score 80% -90% on both the exercises and quiz, then they move to the next unit of study. (Parents choose the standard a student should score to be considered mastery.)
Pre-Assessment - Students do one of the exercises in the textbook.
Corrective Instruction - See the Learning Styles Book for additional learning activities other than pencil and paper.
Parallel Formative Assessments: The first assessment is when the student gets an 80% on the daily exercises. The second is when the student gets an 80% on the quiz. (See Quiz and Test Book)
Provides Students Ownership of their Education
Student Paced, Graded, Mastered
When students own the responsibility of their learning, they are more successful. GEMS places the responsibility of learning on the student. When they spend 15-20 minutes a day reading the textbook, watching the explanation videos, doing the exercises, and watching the homework videos, the students retain the concepts taught. The students have immediate feedback and can make adjustments to their learning accordingly.
Weekly Schedule
Days 1 and 3
Students do the following:
1. Free write for 10 minutes (See Journal book)
2. Editing exercises (See Editing Exercises book)
3. Grammar (Begin with Volume I)
4. Read for 20 minutes (Mark unfamiliar words with a sticky note while reading.)
Days 2 and 4
Students do the following:
1. Free write for 10 minutes (See Journal book)
2. Grammar (Begin with Volume I)
3. Read for 20 minutes (Mark unfamiliar words with a sticky note while reading.)
4. Vocabulary
Costs per Family
GEMS Volume I: Parts of Speech $35.00
GEMS Volume II: Parts of a Sentence $35.00
GEMS Volume III: Expository Essay $35.00
GEMS Editing Exercises $20.00
Vocabulary for All Ages $25.00
GEMS Quizzes and Tests $20.00
GEMS Supplement $20.00
GEMS Quizzes and Tests with Answers (download) $5.00
Total for Entire Curriculum: $195.00
One Curriculum per Family
(If you purchase this curriculum for your family, you may make copies of the exercises for your entire family. Sharing outside of your family is copyright infringement.)
If you want to break up the purchase over time, you will need a starter pack consiting of:
GEMS Volume I $35.00
GEMS Editing Exercises $20.00
Vocabulary for All Ages $25.00
GEMS Supplement $20.00
$100.00