If you have a visual-spatial learner , which curriculum works best ?

[blessedmom3]

If not sure what visual -spatial learner is , you can check it here:

 

http://www.gifteddevelopment.com/Visual_Spatial_Learner/vsl.htm

 

Most children with autism & Aspergers are VS but not only . I am a VS but not in the autistic spectrum :001_smile:

 

Mostly interested in what workd best for math &spelling and reading

 

Especially for beginning math K-3.

 

But also history . How do you teach history to a child who does not like to be read aloud to ?

[Corraleno]

My son is a pretty extreme V/S learner and the math program that has worked best for him is Math Mammoth. I tried several computer programs with him at first, somehow thinking that those were more "visual" than a textbook, but they didn't actually illustrate the concepts. I think the thing that worked best with Math Mammoth is that she literally draws the concepts, so my son can "read" the explanation in his own language: pictures.

DS really struggled to memorize math facts (and they are still far from automatic, even at 11), and he can't handle a program with tons of repetitive problems to work, because plodding through the arithmetic takes forever. If he can "see" the concept, he gets it, and he doesn't need 40 problems to bang it into his head. I like that the word problems in MM are quite challenging, so I can see if he gets the concepts without making him do page after page of arithmetic.

I also think the design of the pages is very well done for a visually-oriented kid. Math pages with too much color and too many illustrations can be really distracting, while pages that are all B&W can seem overwhelming because it all blurs together. MM uses color sparingly but very purposefully, to delineate different sections and to illustrate concepts.

When I pulled DS out of PS at the end of 4th grade, he was in a remedial (3rd grade) pull-out math program. The teacher, the tutor, and the text he was using all explained things in words, and he wasn't getting it. After a few false starts with Destination Math and some other programs, he really took off with Math Mammoth. He *loves* the way MM illustrates algebra problems and says they're so easy! And the visual way they solve word problems (using bar diagrams, like Singapore) is the ONLY thing that ever worked for him in terms of translating words to pictures to numbers.

Jackie

[Corraleno]

I forgot to address the other subjects:

 

Spelling: I started using the Barton system with him, but it's very expensive and time consuming, and several folks on another board said they had switched from Barton to All About Spelling and had equal success. So I bought AAS levels 1 & 2, but am embarrassed to say I haven't started using them yet.

 

History: Two words: Netflix & DVR. I think Netflix has about 200 documentaries on Egypt and DS has watched most of them, LOL. I also sit down every Sunday night and scroll through everything on Discovery, History Channel, Biography, Science, Nat Geo, etc., and set the DVR to record anything that looks vaguely interesting or relevant. We have watched a ton of documentaries on ancient civilizations, some of which were truly very very good. There was one particularly great one on the Hittite Empire that was more interesting and informative than any book we had. I do also read aloud a lot, since DS doesn't mind being read to, but he probably remembers about 10% of what he hears and 90% of what he sees. He will often talk about something he saw in a documentary several years ago, and he remembers it perfectly in incredible detail (even though he can't remember a single word of something I told him 5 minutes ago!).

 

Science: Ditto above, plus lots of experiments and hands-on activities. We're also really lucky to have a terrific Science Museum here, as well as a Natural History Museum.

 

Jackie

[Closeacademy]

My oldest learns like this. This is what has worked best for us:

 

Math: Singapore

 

Spelling: Spell to Write and Read, Grades K-1 we just concentrate on learning the phonograms and their sounds, I draw pictures with key words that use the sounds and we read stories (fairy tales) that have these sounds in them. In 2nd, I have the child make notebooking pages for the phonograms and rules that are similiar to the picture pages I made earlier, we also listen to Fables that have the sounds in the story.

 

While reading easy readers at this point, I keep a piece of paper nearby to write out words letter by letter when they need to be sounded out.

 

Around 3rd/4th we start working through the lists but I have my child write the words.

 

Reading/Math: CDRom games, video, Stuart J. Murphy books

 

History: We did SOTW the first time around. She colored either the coloring page or map from the AG while I read to her. The second time around we are using Oak meadow and Lapbooks.

 

Lapbooks are also excellent for this type of learner as they create a fun visual guide to a subject for the child to look at and share with others.

 

Science: get outdoors and observe nature in the early years, then pick up science kits when they get a little older. We like Oak Meadow for 5th-8th grade science. It has a lot of neat ideas.

 

You can also read through my blog on what I have done and am doing. What works and what hasn't worked.:001_smile:

[mo2]

:lurk5:

[Ummto4]

My son is mostly visual-spatial. He told me he thinks in pictures and his profile fits the VS profile.

 

Math: Math Mammoth.

 

Science: My Pals are Here - less memorization, more conceptual and full of pictures. High retention. Other books:

- whatever science picture books I have in hand. He's very into encyclopedia of animals which I have, called Wonder of Nature.

 

History: 1st Step Elementary history (from the writer of Connect the Thoughts) - reading is not wordy and to-the-point without being dumbed down. Less detailed, conceptual and less name to memorize. High retention. Other books:

- horrible history

- history comics I got from Timber doodle while on sale.

- documentary.

- history picture books (non fiction).

 

English: Junior English from Galore Park. Colorful, various assignment and theme. Funny as well. Appeals to boy who likes to fantasize.

 

All of those, except math mammoth, start from 2nd grade only.

 

For first grade, I read aloud across the board to him as recommended by Ambleeside Online. We ended up being miserable, but he did learn how to narrate. Now he can narrate his reading, and the only read aloud I do for him is literature. He's okay with it now. But then I no longer do read aloud across the board.

Edited February 6, 2010 by mom2moon2

[mncsmom]

AAS works wonders for my highly visual ds. Not only is he becoming a great speller, I think AAS is helping to remediate his poor auditory skills. Spelling words are mastered both visually and kinesthetically making the auditory component (dictation) relatively easy. He is forced to practice auditory skills but in a very non-threatening way.

For History, we also draw, color, map, timeline while reading SOTW - I try to find library picture books to show him before we begin to give him a visual framework.

Science - Apologia Lapbooks! - Live and Learn Press makes a great one.

Thanks for this post - I was desparately researching new math programs for him, but now am going to check out Mammoth and Singapore because of these great responses. Thank you!!!!

[SophiaH]

What will work for one VSL may not work for another, of course, because there are other factors at play. But for me, it was important to pinpoint all of the problems where my dd was struggling and find a curriculum to address those specific issues. Is your dc having specific issues with those subjects you mentioned?

 

I just discovered the term visual-spatial before Christmas and realized many of the issues I was having with my very bright dd were due to her different style of learning. *Everything* she learns has to have a story, be put into the context of a bigger picture, be connected to something she already knows, or hold some meaning for her...and I mean everything.

 

Even though her memory about past events, books she's read, movies and other things that held meaning for her was brilliant, she often couldn't remember 2+3 or some other easy fact. And don't even ask her to do subtraction! All this despite being able to add 56+87 in her head quickly.:confused: RightStart B & C had given her the strategies to do the larger problems, but what I found was that she needed more focused review of things just learned, more consistent practice with math facts, and topics introduced incrementally. We had tried Singapore in first grade before moving to RS but that did not go well (I personally don't like Singapore's 1A/1B level), and at this point the mastery of Singapore would have been a disaster for her. Plus, my dd is easily distracted and all the pictures of Singapore are just too busy for her. *shrug* When I had narrowed my choices to BJU and CLE, I let her compare the two samples and she easily chose CLE saying that BJU had "way too much stuff on the page." So CLE supplemented with Singapore's CWP and IP is working for us. She loves it and her confidence is through the roof. Not to mention that her speed drills are fantastic. Yesterday she had 40 seconds leftover!

 

For reading, we dropped phonics. I had struggled with phonics with this girl--stressed, worried, switched curricula, and on and on--for 3 years. The phonics rules went right over her head. I mean, how many times can you teach the rule "the 'e' at the end makes the vowel say it's name" to a very bright girl, and she looks at you like you were an alien? We were doing AAS on top of our phonics and although AAS seemed to work well while *doing* AAS, outside of it...no carryover. However, she had *wonderful* reading comprehension--way above her grade level, and when she did read, she had great accent and emotion. Her story narrations are very detailed. She was reading books at the 5th and 6th grade reading level on her own with very good comprehension, so I just gave up on the phonics.:001_huh: She's obviously doing a better job of teaching herself to read than I was!:D But we are sticking with a nicely visual spelling program for the rest of this year (A Reason for Spelling) that includes word families so she can see the patterns. I've used Wheeler's Elementary Speller, too, which I love. We've also been doing lots of copywork and studied dictation, and next year I will move to a spelling program like Simply Spelling or Spelling Wisdom that includes those things.

 

The jury's still out on grammar. FLL did not work. I've picked up R&S 2nd grade because although she knows what a noun and verb is, she can't tell you the right word when asked what she's looking at. I thought maybe the incremental approach with all the review would help. I think the Sentence Family would be great for this age. I'm planning on checking out some of the Brian Cleary and Ruth Heller books on parts of speech. Next year I'm seriously considering MCT because I've heard it's good for kids who need that story and context.

 

As far as history is concerned, my dd LOVES to be read to, but I wonder if it's because she's been listening to audiobooks since she was very young. Have you read Right-Brained Children in a Left-Brained World? He talks about how important it is to teach VSLs to develop a running movie in their mind when reading. I wonder if encouraging your dc to try to picture what's being read would help? We're going to start a timeline next year because that will not only be a visual help, but will also put history into that all-too-important context that my dd needs.

[LizzyBee]

My 13 yo dd is extremely VS.

 

Spelling: Spelling was traumatic for my dd through 3rd grade. At the beginning of 4th grade, we tried Calvert Spelling on CD and it was like a magic pill.

 

Math: Singapore in early years, Key to series later, Times Tales

 

Writing: Classical Writing

 

History: When we used SOTW, I would have her sit beside me and follow the words on the page; books with lots of pictures; Middle school - making a timeline and Choosing Your Way through the World's Ancient (Medieval, Modern) Past.

 

Science - as many hands on activities as possible

 

Grammar - Ridgewood Grammar, Winston Grammar

 

Vocabulary - Vocabulary Cartoons (She doesn't think of these as school books and thanks me for buying them for her. :) )

 

Art - outside class since I'm extremely opposite of her and can't draw a straight line

[SophiaH]

LizzyBee,

 

I just wanted to say 'thank you!' because when I was doing all my initial research on VSLs, of course I came here, and got so much encouragement and information from reading your past posts! So, Thank You!! :grouphug:

[EKS]

Singapore math

MCT language arts

All About Spelling

 

As for history and reading aloud, with my read-aloud resistant VSL (who also has confirmed auditory processing problems, dyslexia, and ADHD) I had to work up to reading aloud for long periods. I started with books with fabulous pictures on every page and read for short periods. Also, he found it more tolerable if I switched books frequently. It took a few years, but he was eventually able to listen to books without pictures for long periods.

 

You might want to take a look at K12's history program (K-4). It is chronological (except in K where they do geography and a smattering of US history) and is quite like SOTW but with more color pictures. VSL kids do seem to enjoy doing some of their learning on the computer. At least mine do.

[siloam]

Most of the program I use are in my sig line. There are a few that are not.

 

LiPS is a program that works on feeling, seeing and hearing the difference between sounds. It is great for speech issues and children who can't hear the difference between sounds. My 2nd dd often can't hear both sounds in blends.

 

Seeing Stars specifically helps a student develop the ability to see words in their mind, if they cannot. Many kids that are bad spellers are so because they don't have visual memory, and many kids who are simply remember a word, and can spell it from what they see in their mind. SS can be used as a stand alone phonics program or as a add on (using just the manual) to a different spelling/phonics program.

 

For math I adore Right Start, and can't say enough good about it.

 

For LA I use WWE, FLL and AAS. The SL LA I use is more for phonics, but I modify it to make it more o/g (Orton/Gillingham). There are a lot of great o/g reading programs you can use instead: Barton Reading, Wilson Reading (I prefer those because of the use of tiles-but you can add tiles to other programs), Preventing Academic Failure, Horizons Reading, Recipe for Reading, S.P.I.R.E. and I am sure there are more. For fluency and remedial work of students who are already reading Great Leaps and Rewards are recommended.

 

With history and science I read aloud during meal times. I also try to keep the hands on programs going, and use video and audio resources as much as possible. While doing RA's the kiddos usually work on a hands on project (even if it isn't related to their studies), Perler Beads being one of their favorites. Toob Toys is another for my ds. My ds will also spend a lot of time bouncing on my exercise ball.

 

Heather

[LizzyBee]

LizzyBee,

 

I just wanted to say 'thank you!' because when I was doing all my initial research on VSLs, of course I came here, and got so much encouragement and information from reading your past posts! So, Thank You!! :grouphug:

 

Wow, thanks! I'm glad my experience can help others. It's still a daily struggle for me because my dd and I are polar opposites. I can talk all day about VSLs, but it's harder to actually implement the kind of teaching she needs.

[Arch at Home]

For K-3 we start with Singapore Early Bird Math and then move to Singapore Primary Math and Miquon. For spelling and reading we do a combination of Explode the Code and Whole Word reading (lots of read alouds and having the child read). As for history we have done SOTW with lots of picture books. The AG is has a great list of picture books which give meaning to SOTW text. We also use the CD and play it multiple times often in the back ground or when the kids are captive in the car. The kids pick up a lot that way.

[Lori D.]

Younger DS (now 16yo) is a VSL, mildly dyslexic, and still struggles with spelling and the process of getting thoughts down onto paper for writing. Things that have worked for us:

 

 

GENERAL RESOURCES

- Unicorns Are Real: Right Brained Approach to Learning (Vitale) -- specific diagnostic tests and learning strategies (gr. K-4)

- How to Get Your Child Off Refrigerator and onto Learning (Barnier) -- specific tips for very active, kinetic, challenged learning styles (gr. K-5)

- How They Learn (Tobias) -- overview to learning types

- Every Child Can Succeed (Tobias) -- learning environment strategies (gr. 6-12)

- Right Brained Children in a Left Brained World (Freed) -- specific learning strategies (gr. 6-12)

- Upside Down Brilliance: The Visual Spatial Child (Silverman) -- visual-spatial and auditory-sequential learner descriptions, tips, helps (gr. 6-12)

- 100 Top Picks For Homeschool Curriculum: Choosing The Right Curriculum And Approach For Your Child's Learning Style (Duffy) -- for all ages

 

 

MATH -- gr. 1-3

- Miquon (sort-of; more than anything else we tried in gr. K-3!)

- triangle flashcards for math facts (by learning fact families, cuts down to 1/4 the amount of facts to learn!)

- skip counting songs (Skip Count Kid)

- Schoolhouse Rock: Multiplication Rock

- manipulatives (esp. geoboards, pattern blocks, cuisenaire rods and fraction bars/circles) and math supplement booklets to go with them

- you might look at Right Start, as it has lots of games and hands-on

 

MATH -- gr. 4-8

- Math-U-See (esp. Delta through Pre-Algebra levels)

- Singapore 3A/B, 4A/B, 5A/B, 6A/B levels as supplement for learning/practicing problem solving

- Key to Math series for specific troublesome math topics, practice, review

- Hands On Equations for visual presentation of algebra "solving for x" concepts

 

 

SPELLING

- frankly, spelling did not at ALL even begin to connect for him until age 12 -- that is when the spelling portion of his brain finally began to mature; you might look at All About Spelling, which incorporates techniques for all learning styles, for elementary aged spelling

- out loud back and forth spelling practice (from Andrew Pudewa Spelling & the Brain homeschool seminar)

- on a whiteboard build words/work with words by syllables, adding endings/prefixes, homophones, etc. (ideas from Sequential Spelling)

- dictate short sentence with 2-3 spelling words in it to practice simultaneous thinking/writing/spelling (ideas from Stevenson Blue Spelling Manual)

- Stevenson Blue Spelling Manual has visual pictures for student to see and remember vowel patterns and mnemonics (gr. 1-5)

- I have heard that Apples and Pears is a helpful remedial program from the UK that works with delayed spellers or VSL

- Megawords (gr. 4+) -- awesome! has helped tremendously! teaches vowel patterns and syllabication rules to help break long words into "bite size syllables" for spelling attack

 

 

READING

- Reading Made Easy helped somewhat in the process of learning to read

- made our own little phonics-based booklets with him as the hero

- Calvin & Hobbes comic collections, search and find books, "exploded view" and highly illustrated books, maze books, Highlights Puzzlemania books or Hidden Picture books, and other very visual books just to keep interested in books in general

- "popcorn" read aloud together ("you read a page, I read a page") -- we STILL do this!

- encourage reading with the Book-It or Reading Adventure programs (read books, earn prizes)

- give him "fidget toys" when you read aloud (let him sit/lay/roll around on a big bouncy ball; play with magnets, clay, koosh ball or squeezy ball, pipe cleaners; coloring pages and markers; etc.)

 

 

HISTORY

- colorful, linear or fold-out timeline to visually see connections/distance between people/events

- hands on projects for whatever time period you're studying: make food, play games, build models of places, act out/recreate key moments in history for Dad

- highly visual/illustrated history books (Usborne World History; Eyewitness series)

- keep the reading aloud short (10 minutes) from short books (Growing Up in Ancient ... series), highly illustrated books (If You Were Alive When ... series), or story-like renderings (older Cornerstones of Freedom series) -- check out the short, visual, adventure story-like books in this list: http://www.amazon.com/Favorite-History-Picture-books-videos/lm/3VU45PPKKHH61

- Yo Millard Fillmore (Cleveland) -- visual book for learning US presidents

- VHS or DVD history series for kids (NEST videos; Liberty's Kids; PBS: History Detectives; Schlessinger Media series)

- historical fiction to flesh out and get a for feel of the times

- films set in the time period studied to flesh out and get a for feel of the times

- history documentaries (library, Netflix, etc.)

- look for Youtube or other free online videos to match your history (http://video.kidzui.com/channels/history) (National Geographic Kids history videos: http://video.kids.nationalgeographic.com/video/player/kids/index.html)

 

 

GEOGRAPHY

- use lots of maps, globes, geography placemats, etc.

- free online geography games such as http://www.sheppardsoftware.com

- The Kids Fun-Filled Search & Find Geography Book (Tallarico)

- geography songs -- to learn states/capitals

- Yo Sacramento -- visual book for learning states/capitals

- a visual atlas, such as Galloping the Globe

- travel documentaries

- films set in different cultures

- listen to music, make food, place games, etc. from different cultures

- children's picture books of myths of different cultures (myths give you a sense of culture, the illustrations give a sense of the artwork)

[blessedmom3]

very helpful !

[mominbc]

The book Upside Down Brilliance really helped me. I wish I had this when my DS(16) was younger, it gives so many great suggestions. My son is a gifted VS and he really enjoyed Singapore Math as well as a lot of hands on stuff...lots of lego and knex, how things work books etc. I tried to do a lot of delight centered learning with him in the earlier years. He also loved books with lots of pictures and still does, Eyewitness books were a favorite. I really encourage you to read as much as you can, VS can be difficult because they think so different from the norm. I always knew my DS was special and once I discovered the website and this book, it revelutionized our lives..mine because I finally understood him, and him because he didn't feel so different anymore. HTH:)

[chaik76]

Oh, my!!!!!!! I FINALLY know what kind of learner my oldest is. YAYAYAY!!!! This is going to make such a difference!!!!

[Paisley Hedgehog]

nm

[LizzyBee]

The book Upside Down Brilliance really helped me. I wish I had this when my DS(16) was younger, it gives so many great suggestions. My son is a gifted VS and he really enjoyed Singapore Math as well as a lot of hands on stuff...lots of lego and knex, how things work books etc. I tried to do a lot of delight centered learning with him in the earlier years. He also loved books with lots of pictures and still does, Eyewitness books were a favorite. I really encourage you to read as much as you can, VS can be difficult because they think so different from the norm. I always knew my DS was special and once I discovered the website and this book, it revelutionized our lives..mine because I finally understood him, and him because he didn't feel so different anymore. HTH:)

 

My sister bought Upside Down Brilliance a few years ago when she went to a seminar by the author, and I borrowed hers for awhile. I really regret not buying a copy for myself. I have it out now via Interlibrary Loan, and it seems so much more relevant now after a few more years of homeschooling my VSLs. I really want to own a copy that I can highlight and make notes in, but it's so expensive since it went out of print! I've been trying to find one for a good price for months. I tried to get it on ebay last night, but lost the auction. I found one for $55 on half.com today, so I ordered it; that's the best price I've found. There aren't many books I'd pay that much for, but this book is just a wealth of information!

Edited February 10, 2010 by LizzyBee

[Guest]

Lori D -- Your list is like a private seminar on VS learners. What a terrific resource. I'm printing it out too.

 

Right-Brained Learners in a Left-Brained World transformed my attempts to teach my daughter how to spell.

 

Also have a look at Mapping the World By Heart -- visual memorization that can be linked to history or current events.

[Aurelia]

We use Right Start and MEP for math, used AAS until it got to be too time consuming and will use Apples & Pears for spelling, probably starting next year. We got started on it this year, but dropped it because school was just taking too long. For reading, I combine Jolly Phonics (Ariel really likes the coloring sheets and actions for the sounds) and Dancing Bears. I plan to use Jolly Grammar next year, which reinforces phonics and starts the parts of speech with pictures and coloring, etc.

[abreakfromlife]

I read all the VSL books over Christmas break and it's been so nice to really understand how to teach a VSL. It's funny, because I am just as much a VSL as my dd is, and yet I still had trouble teaching her. One of our problems was that I did 100 Easy Lessons with her to teach her how to read, which, looking back, was a huge mistake. So reading took a long time for her to get. But now that she's reading well, we do SOTW for history. She reads the chapter, and then I make up worksheets that have questions from the chapter and she rereads the chapter, filling in the answers. That physical act of reading and writing the answers has helped her really retain what she's learned, and then we do review games to keep it fresh.

 

Spelling - we do AAS, but she's not really fond of the tiles, so we don't do it as fully as I'd like. When I do her spelling words, I write them out in colored pens, making each phonics blend a different color. Her spelling has really taken off since we've started doing that.

 

I also let her do most of her work in colored pens, which she loves. The only thing she uses pencil for now, is copywork/handwriting. She does colored pens for diagramming, too, to see the different parts of the sentence.

 

Right now we're doing FLL for Grammar, but I am ordering MCT and plan to switch over to that soon.

 

She is also big on crafts/projects, so I try to do those, but with all the little ones, it doesn't happen as often as I'd like.

 

Math - we use the free British math program; I forget the name of it offhand. It goes a little fast for her, so we do a lot of supplementing with games and worksheets from the internet.

 

I saw a lot of VSL books mentioned, but I don't think I saw Unicorns Are Real mentioned - I might have just missed it. But that one is a really good book with practical teaching tips in it.

[Colleen in SEVA]

:lurk5:

[Lisa in the UP of MI]

:lurk5:

 

I'm especially interested in what you are using for Latin. Most of the programs that I've looked at won't be very engaging for my kids.

Edited February 9, 2010 by Lisa in the UP of MI

[Moniksca]

This thread is a blessing, I just realized TODAY, that my ds is a VSL. I've already put some of those recommended books on hold. This is great. I now I have to take a major look at what we've been doing.

[Arch at Home]

I could use help with Spanish. Languages are tough.

[mominbc]

:lurk5:

 

I'm especially interested in what you are using for Latin. Most of the programs that I've looked at won't be very engaging for my kids.

 

My son did well with a latin program with videos, although it didn't stick long term. I know Upside Brilliance says they learn best in an immersion based language study. I was having a new baby at the time, but I do think if I had learned more with him and was able to communicate in Latin with him, we would have had a long term success (learning from mistakes:tongue_smilie:)

[LittleIzumi]

Oh. My. Goodness. This IS dd. Wow. I was looking at it for the Drama, since I still am having trouble figuring out how she learns, but this is the Sponge. Completely. Heck, today in her AAS whenever she got a word she sat back and made a comment about what the word was in real life (when we said "bag" she not only told me what it was but had to go and find her bag and show me) before she would spell it. Every word had to have a world connection before it was spelled. At least that explains a little why she HATES the OPGTR and anything that's repetition-based like that.:lol:

 

I need to see if they still have the Unicorns Are Real at the library tomorrow....

[abreakfromlife]

 

I'm especially interested in what you are using for Latin. Most of the programs that I've looked at won't be very engaging for my kids.

I haven't started Latin yet, but from what I can tell, I think Lively Latin would be the program that would appeal to dd the most, but I am a little nervous about using that and fully understanding what I'm teaching; so I'm still leaning heavily towards Great Latin Adventure; that might be a little more boring, but it has thorough review, which she needs, and it will hold my hand while I teach. And I think I've seen Latin games/puzzles elsewhere that I can get to make it more fun if she needs it.

[treestarfae]

:lurk5:

[almondbutterandjelly]

We like Minimus for Latin. Has cartoon-style story. We tried Prima Latina, and that only worked when we totally departed from the program, and I had her make full-color flashcard illustrations for every word and its meaning. Very cumbersome. Minimus is more fun!

[almondbutterandjelly]

For history, we LOVE the comic book style history. Timberdoodle.com has a lot, and Capstone Press makes a ton. I got Capstone's catalog to see what they have, and then just order them from Amazon, because it's way cheaper. They publish graphic nonfiction for tons of biographies, US History, World History, Inventions, all kinds of stuff. They also have science comic books starring Max Axiom. chestercomix.com also has some good comic books. They are all elementary age-appropriate, too, UNLIKE the Cartoon History of the Universe stuff, which is pretty irreverent and completely inappropriate for elementary kids. Oh, History Dudes is also great! They have a book on Vikings and a book on Ancient Egypt. My dd draws a picture of something she read about that day in history and writes a caption, and we hang it up on the timeline we have on our wall.

[Dani n Monies Mom]

WOW! Reading this post has been an epiphany. My dd15 is a VSL. That explains so much. I made a wonderful list of resources that I'm looking forward to diving into.

 

It's been such a relief to read this! Thanks for sharing everyone,

 

Ava

[jabuford]

http://www.custom-homeschool-curriculum.com/visual-spatial-homeschool-curriculum.html

[wapiti]

My sister bought Upside Down Brilliance a few years ago when she went to a seminar by the author, and I borrowed hers for awhile. I really regret not buying a copy for myself. I have it out now via Interlibrary Loan, and it seems so much more relevant now after a few more years of homeschooling my VSLs. I really want to own a copy that I can highlight and make notes in, but it's so expensive since it went out of print! I've been trying to find one for a good price for months. I tried to get it on ebay last night, but lost the auction. I found one for $55 on half.com today, so I ordered it; that's the best price I've found. There aren't many books I'd pay that much for, but this book is just a wealth of information!

:iagree: I have a copy, and have read it several times (each time with a different child in mind, and a few times with myself in mind :) ). I think it's time to read it again - thanks for reminding me!!

[wapiti]

Regarding Latin, we're using Getting Started With Latin (first and third graders) and loving it. All three of them are VSLs, with left-brain weaknesses. The page layout is fantastic, as is the organization of the book. Ordinarily they're much better whole-part learners rather than part-whole, but this book breaks the lessons down into teeny tiny bites, with just the right amount of review in each one. I'm not sure what we'll do when we're finished - dd is already on lesson 50 of 134, and we've only been at it for a few months of afterschooling (we don't do it every day, but rather randomly, whenever I can get them to sit still long enough :D). I love it so much that I ordered the author's similar book for Spanish. My first graders are moving at about half of dd's pace.

[Guest]

For those of you whose kids like comics, there is a whole manga series for quite upper level math and science: The Manga Guide to Calculus, The Manga Guide to Physics, The Manga Guide to Chemistry, etc. We have the physics book and it's actually very good.

[wapiti]

For those of you whose kids like comics, there is a whole manga series for quite upper level math and science: The Manga Guide to Calculus, The Manga Guide to Physics, The Manga Guide to Chemistry, etc. We have the physics book and it's actually very good.

Thanks, that's good to know! One of my kids loves Murderous Maths, which has a bit of a comic book quality. He reads them just for fun.

[BlueTaelon]

This is the most awesome thread I have found for VSL kids:)

[RahRah]

Lightbulb moment here - this all sounds exactly like my DS's learning style!

[Critterfixer]

Has anybody checked yet to see if Rosetta Stone does a Latin program? (edit-yes, quite expensive, but they do have it.)

My brother is a Spanish teacher who teaches online to schools that cannot afford a full-time Spanish instructor and he showed me the Rosetta Stone Spanish program. Expensive, but very, very heavy on the visuals.

 

Good information. I'm going to see if I can't get some of the books at the library this weekend also. As much for me as for both my sons. All three of us are V/S--no wonder we all get grouchy when there are no pictures!

 

That said, I think there is also a place for teaching a child with V/S learning style to learn in an auditory way. While I will never be a fan of books on tape, preferring to read them so that I can "see" the pictures in my mind, I needed to be able to gather information and use it when the only source was auditory material. Those of you who have some of these V/S books, are there tips on how to assist a V/S learner in using other styles, even if they are not his dominant method of learning?

Edited April 10, 2011 by Critterfixer
Research

[Guest Cachequeen]

I have been so blessed by this thread. I am a very left brained thinker and have just realized that I have a 9 year old visual spatial learner. I have reviewed a lot of your comments on what has worked and not worked for homeschooling. I have made some adjustments in the teaching method and we are already seeing wonders; however, spelling is still the point we are having trouble. Are there any specific tips that any of you have that might help? I have tried All About Spelling which I thought would be perfect, but because we tried it so late, she gets frustrated with it. She went through Reading Eggs website and did ALL of the lessons, but still has trouble. She can spot the right words, she can read them fine, but if I ask her to spell them on paper, she reverts back to a year ago. What am I missing? I appreciate any help you can give.

 

Thanks so much.

[wapiti]

I have made some adjustments in the teaching method and we are already seeing wonders; however, spelling is still the point we are having trouble. Are there any specific tips that any of you have that might help? I have tried All About Spelling which I thought would be perfect, but because we tried it so late, she gets frustrated with it.

 

If you are using weekly spelling lists, try the method described by Silverman here (it's described elsewhere also, maybe in Freed's book, I can't remember). In addition, for a word your dc is having trouble with, also try having her write the word on a paper and turn it into a picture (draw stuff around the letters, have the letters be part of it, etc.) - not sure where I read about that angle.

[BlueTaelon]

If you are using weekly spelling lists, try the method described by Silverman here (it's described elsewhere also, maybe in Freed's book, I can't remember). In addition, for a word your dc is having trouble with, also try having her write the word on a paper and turn it into a picture (draw stuff around the letters, have the letters be part of it, etc.) - not sure where I read about that angle.

 

That works but it's missing something, I color each sylible a different contrasting color. The idea was in Reeds book:)

[SophiaH]

I thought Freed had some great ideas but I needed something more concrete if it was going to get done around here. AAS didn't work here either, but we are having success with Apples and Pears. Dd tested into around lesson 60 of Book A last year when she was 9 so that's where we started. We're getting close to the end of Book B and my hope is that we might be able to finish out the series by the end of next year (5th grade). The good thing is there is nothing "babyish" in the texts, even in A so it's good for older children.

[laundrycrisis]

But also history . How do you teach history to a child who does not like to be read aloud to ?

 

DS1 is not V/S, but he cannot stand to be read to or to listen to an audio track. He likes to read information, himself, but his stamina for reading is low. This is why SOTW did not work for him - too much for him to read himself, and listening to me or the CD is not an option for him. What is working for him for history is the EPS School Specialty Publishing series, "The Story of Western Civilization". They are reading comprehension workbooks that cover history in a chronological series. I supplement them with Brainpop videos when there is one that fits the chapter topic.

[Walking-Iris]

DS1 is not V/S, but he cannot stand to be read to or to listen to an audio track. He likes to read information, himself, but his stamina for reading is low. This is why SOTW did not work for him - too much for him to read himself, and listening to me or the CD is not an option for him. What is working for him for history is the EPS School Specialty Publishing series, "The Story of Western Civilization". They are reading comprehension workbooks that cover history in a chronological series. I supplement them with Brainpop videos when there is one that fits the chapter topic.

 

My ds is also having a hard time with SOTW. So much so that I've nearly gave up on it. But he likes the map work and the projects. I've looked at that series by EPS and thought I would use them next year. He can read SOTW on his own, but has no interest in it to make it worthwhile. My ds also does better if I can find a Netflix video that somehow plays into what we are reading.

 

I'm the same way really. I don't like audio stories. I need to read it or see it or do it myself to really learn it! :001_smile:

[laundrycrisis]

My ds is also having a hard time with SOTW. So much so that I've nearly gave up on it. But he likes the map work and the projects. I've looked at that series by EPS and thought I would use them next year. He can read SOTW on his own, but has no interest in it to make it worthwhile. My ds also does better if I can find a Netflix video that somehow plays into what we are reading.

 

I'm the same way really. I don't like audio stories. I need to read it or see it or do it myself to really learn it! :001_smile:

 

The EPS history workbook chapters are much shorter than the SOTW chapters, with much less detail. They hit the important high points. He really does find them interesting and the amount of reading they require is perfect for him. The questions require him to look back into the text to get the answers, so he is learning the skill of reading for information, and how to use a highlighter. All the questions are too much for him to handle in one day so I split that work into two days. We are finally getting history done. These workbooks are exactly what was needed for him.

[ChicoryChick]

I had an AHA moment when reading this post. I have read abous VSL before but for some reason it didn't click then that that was dd12, now her whole past learning experience makes sense. She didn't learn to read until the end of 2nd grade.

 

After slamming my head against the wal with phonics, I finally used a reader that taught with sight words (while continuing with phonics) and within a couple of months her reading took off and she caught up and surpassed her grade level in reading.

I used MUS with her until half way through Gamma. Unlike my other dd who could watch the dvd on her own, I had to sit and explain everything to this paticular dd. I colored the multidigit addition problems (1's green, 10's blue, hundreds red) to help her understand place value. I had a to the MUS rods size decimal street where she could physically carry over to the tens etc. When doing her problems. It helped her to get the picture of why we carry over. Finally in Gamma we hit a brick wall with multidigit multiplication. I tried SM which worked for almost a couple of years. I began to think she might have discalcula because she couldn't remember which symbolmrepresented which function,and still had trouble with her math facts () especially multiplication. This year we used RS and while we still have our struggles I feel she has made a lot of progress with this program. She has finally gotten multi digit multiplication. I used the place values tiles from RS and break apart the problem so that 4368 x 60 becomes 4000 x60, 300 x60, 60x60, and 8 x 60, then she adds them up. This has helped her to visual each step whichnshe wasn't able to do before. I did finally let her use a calculator this year (she is in 6th)when a problem has multiplication but that isn't the learning point of the problem.

 

We are also usong AAS with success although she still struggles with using it in her regular writing and I plan on using Winston grammar this coming year (maybe along with IEW Fix it Grammar). sorry this was long winded.