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What do you wish you had done in Grade 8 to prepare?


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I'll take links to previous threads;)

 

My oldest is on the spectrum. So, he is a bit behind in some subjects do to being in public school for a few stints and relearning materials. This year he has gotten over his pencil fears:tongue_smilie: He is doing so much better. I know that he may not be a super achiever in High School because of this. But, I do know that he is intelligent and ready to get working. I, also, understand that their are some hormonal shifts happening.

 

I'm trying to be realistic.

 

I've been slowly planning for our upcoming year. I realize I need to spend this year working towards my High School Plans for him. I'm getting a little nervous.

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Your son is 13. Why not give him another year before going into high school? He can work on whatever he's behind in and continue ahead with what he's doing well with. At this time in his senior year, he'll be 18. I'd also suggest doing a keyboarding course as good typing skills will help tremendously with all the writing. :)

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I'll take links to previous threads;)

I've been slowly planning for our upcoming year. I realize I need to spend this year working towards my High School Plans for him. I'm getting a little nervous.

 

I plan throughout the year for the upcoming year. I like to enjoy my summer. So, during the next school year 2010-2011 I will be planning for 2011-2012.

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Guest MamaBear10

If you're speaking curriculum wise- Grammar, grammar, grammar!!!

 

My dd who will be a Junior next year has atrocious grammar. Mine isn't all too great, but man, oh man how I wish I would have focused on basic grammar in middle school.

 

It would be so much easier for her to write her papers and such if she didn't have to refer to a grammar guide every now and again.

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You know, high school really isn't all that bad. Don't forget that your ds will keep on growing and maturing during those four years, and as he matures he will start to have some strong opinions about what he wants to do with his life. That will help you plan and shape his high school career.

 

My oldest ds is on the spectrum, too, with some learning disabilities thrown in to the mix. His high school wasn't college prep, but it wasn't lax by any means. It was unique, tailored to his interests, and allowed him lots of time to pursue his interests and gain real-world experience in those interests. He also learned study skills and note taking skills and honed his essay writing skills.

 

My usual advice for preparing for high school is to relax a bit about the academics -- they will take care of themselves. Instead, take some time to cherish your child and enjoy family rituals and routines. The pace of life accelerates through the high school years until suddenly they are out the door, living their own lives. During the middle school years I started reading aloud to my boys again, or we listened to audio books together. We even had some impromptu trips to the zoo or museum -- just like when they were little. It was a way of reconnecting with my kids rather than my just being the home school mom and chauffeur.

 

With a child on the spectrum, you have the additional job of teaching life skills -- skills that you might not think about because they are so routine. My ds called me because he was perplexed by an unfamiliar ATM machine -- he wasn't sure what it was asking and had never had to use one until he moved to the other side of the country. Cooking, cleaning, filling a car with gas, addressing an envelope, laundry, grocery shopping -- many spectrum kids don't pick up on these things just by living with us for 18 years -- they have to be taught specifically, and it is never to early to start.

 

Do you have any other specific questions?

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I plan throughout the year for the upcoming year. I like to enjoy my summer. So, during the next school year 2010-2011 I will be planning for 2011-2012.

 

I'm slow on the take - thank you! I'm glad to hear he has another year, and if he's made great progress with the writing this year, I'm sure he'll continue to build on that this year. Awesome!

 

Planning a year in advance is awesome! For me, I wish we had done "formal" vocabulary sooner; we had to double up in 8th to get up to grade level. Paragraph writing and five paragraph papers have been great in getting her prepared for the writing she'll be required to do in high school. I'd also use the year to especially catch up in any areas that need that and to make sure his math is solid. I know that for my dd, 8th grade was a year her academics really took off. It's amazing the difference a few months can make. :)

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What I learned and am doing with my youngest--

 

Choose the science program you would like to use in high school, and start the child it their junior high books so that they learn the terminology, the way they give tests and how to study for them, and how to memorize...we did a lot of reading out loud and hands-on in elementary, and going from that to high school study was too much of a learning curve.

 

Since I give short essays questions for all of our history exams, I've learned to teach how to write short essays in 8th grade. I have the child write one answer, and then we go over it, rework it, give mom-examples of what is needed...until it is finally learned. I slow way down on 8th grade content if necessary in order to make sure they can take the exams they are going to have in high school. This eliminates the learning curve showing up on the transcript.

 

With some of my kids, I went through all the elementary/middle school reading level books and made sure they had read the ones I wanted them to have read. Some of them were simple reading, but I wanted them to have a body of knowledge from their reading, and if they'd miss any of the classics I thought they should have read, the books get piled together and they are assigned to be read! Do keep them reading books that push them. Sometimes I had them read a chapter and then read through the chapter summary in Sparknotes or Cliff's Notes so they could keep pushing through a harder level book. One year my kids were given a reading assignment at a camp and were told that it might be hard reading, but to try to get through it. My son's response was, "It was NOTHING compared to Shakespeare!" Just keep pushing a few books at them that force them to work and bring their reading level up.

 

Continue moving forward on math and composition as they are able. Write, write, write...find a program that works!

 

Make sure they can type!

 

Get yourself organization for high school papershuffle and grades put together--I get a banker's box and folders--one folder for each class--and a notebook. I have a page for each class in the notebook where I record all grades--tests, papers, labs, etc. The papers get put into the appropriate folder. Practicing keeping your records and organizing them (if this is your first child) can help you work your way through the high school years with less stress.

 

Make a list of the classes you think your child will take if all things go as you would like it to go, but be ready to make changes. Start looking for materials and be open to ideas discussed on the boards. File these into the folders. Then when you have to get ready for the next year, you have ideas in place.

 

Hm...can't think of more off the top of my head--

 

Jean

Edited by Jean in Wisc
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This is good advice, especially about the learning curve going from non-textbook learning to textbook learning. I agree with slowing down content to get study skills and basic writing in place. I wish I had read That Crumpled Paper Was Due Last Week (or something like that) and gotten that system going earlier. Something I did with mine that paid off was making sure they were used to writing lots, even if it was just copy work or was badly written or is math. Volume of writing could have been a problem. I wish I had continued to work on outlining and verbal answering of questions. My son was good at those (for his age) when he was younger, so I stopped working on them as I worked with his older brother, and they didn't progress. Now that amount good isn't good enough SIGH.

 

-Nan

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If you're speaking curriculum wise- Grammar, grammar, grammar!!!

 

My dd who will be a Junior next year has atrocious grammar. Mine isn't all too great, but man, oh man how I wish I would have focused on basic grammar in middle school.

 

It would be so much easier for her to write her papers and such if she didn't have to refer to a grammar guide every now and again.

:iagree:

 

Grammar also helps with foreign language, in high school.

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