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DD12 had a multi-disciplinary bunch of assessments last week, and in advance of the report they have indicated that she needs a curriculum that 'values learning through doing/exploration/experimentation/demonstration'.

 

Any ideas where I start with this?  At the moment she is working well and happily above grade level with a traditional math program (Calvert) so I had no intention of changing things up there, but everything else is up for grabs for what will be 7th grade.  I am particularly interested in materials for science (her favourite) and writing (the biggest struggle for her).

 

I hope to be able to put numbers on the testing, but at the moment the comments during the assessment were that she is: very, very active, jumps between tasks having difficulty sustaining attention to complete them, is immature, has a significant expressive and language disorder, has a good memory.

 

If you could help me turn the testing recommendations into curriculum that would be great.  As the assessing team have zero experience of homeschool (we are overseas), I can't expect much from them.

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Sounds like your evals are helping you turn up things!  I spent a year doing physical science labs with my dd using the BJU physical science, and we literally did just the labs.  It was a lot of fun, but the problem is you end up doing something with nothing for them to relate it to, kwim?  So that to me is the challenge of hands-on stuff, to figure out how much of the other stuff (reading, videos, whatever) you happen to want with it.  And since you're looking at 7th, you're starting to think about setting her up for high school science and figuring out how traditional or non-traditional you want to be there.  

 

You could use a regular text and *de-emphasize* the text.  For instance, you could use the apologia text but just listen to it on audio, not bother with the tests and all that, and do labs and add in more labs. 

 

Another way would be to find something driven by labs, something where it has a short reading and then activities.  I've got a book like that downstairs.  I'm thinking it's Joy of Chemistry?  But that idea of book paired with labs.

 

Or you can do labs where you add on books.  

 

Or you can do something totally discovery-driven like the Bridget Ardoin stuff.  http://www.scienceforhighschool.com/product-category/biology

 

Or you could try a different way each year and never really figure it out but keep trying... Then you're me.  :D

 

I don't think it's a thing you can really win on, because you're not talking equivalent options.  At some point you just pick something, give up on the romance, and decide the aspect that was MOST IMPORTANT to you got done.  For instance the year we did all those physical science labs, I really wanted her to TOUCH the science and DO the science, and I decided everything else didn't matter as much.  But sometimes when you hit high school you get this much less romantic "as long as something can get done every week so I can check this off at the end of the year and give her credit" kind of practicality steps in, kwim?  So it will just depend on what is most important to you.  

 

I don't think shoving them through something that doesn't fit them necessarily results in more learned than if we had done a less flashy thing in a more engaging way.  Simple things done well, that's my motto.  Maybe that will help you too?  Gives me confidence when I get screwy in the head and worried.  Pick a simple thing but really do it.  Then let it be good enough.  :)

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On the writing, check out Inspiration software.  It's AMAZING.  Don't do it if she's not ready for it, but I was able to get my dd through WWS and thought it was useful.  Actually Bravewriter would work for you.  My ds has verbal apraxia, so to have the thought, use working memory to hold it, then actually get it out is actually pretty challenging.  We have a game "A Fistful of Coins" to work on it.  Maybe they'll refer you off for some ST to work on the expressive language a bit?  My dd doesn't have any labels for that, but her word retrieval is low and processing speed low.  With her, we make lots of bubbles for her thoughts, get them all organized (using Inspiration), then walk away and let her write.  For her, that's enough.  

 

She did WWS1 in 8th btw and WWS2 for 9th.  Plenty high IQ, but she just wasn't ready before then.  Her writing really came to in 8th btw.  I'm trying to remember when she started fan-fiction writing.  It was late 7th, early 8th I think.  We had been doing Heathermomster's metronome homework, and BAM it all just happened.  There's also something about the age.  I think a bit of gentleness and working on it but not killing them over it can be appropriate, kwim?  When it finally came on, it really came on.  Getting her typing speed up to functional helped.  Getting her an iPad helped.  

 

If your dc has ANY issues with expressive speech, definitely consider dictation software.  The iPad will do dictation if you have it on wifi.  A mac laptop or iMac or whatever can do dictation even offline with the free downloaded software.  It's not perfect, but the price is right.  Both people in our house use it and I just taught a friend to use it.  I HIGHLY recommend dictation software, highly, highly, highly.  You may see a huge difference in what comes out with the software vs. without.  I'm also pretty flexible and unopinionated on WHAT they write.  I think people stress over the "right" kind of writing way too much and the appeal of the writing way too little.  My kid was better off writing scads of otherwise worthless fan fiction in 8th than she was mountains of essays.  People jump the gun way too much.  So whatever your kid is into, I'd harness or nurture.  One year my dd was into writing recipes.  Just whatever it is (captions for that hip drawing kids do these days, whatever), work with it.  Play games and talk.  Read articles and talk.  Talking is pre-writing.  I had some debate prompts (50 controversial things) that we did in 7th.  It would give pro and con arguments and we'd just talk.  

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DD12 had a multi-disciplinary bunch of assessments last week, and in advance of the report they have indicated that she needs a curriculum that 'values learning through doing/exploration/experimentation/demonstration'.

 

Any ideas where I start with this?  

 

I hope to be able to put numbers on the testing, but at the moment the comments during the assessment were that she is: very, very active, jumps between tasks having difficulty sustaining attention to complete them, is immature, has a significant expressive and language disorder, has a good memory.

 

If you could help me turn the testing recommendations into curriculum that would be great.  As the assessing team have zero experience of homeschool (we are overseas), I can't expect much from them.

 

Sounds like your DD has a Kinesthetic learning style! FUN!  I have a webpage with activities ideas for incorporating Kinesthetic learning activities into different curricula.  http://learningabledkids.com/multi_sensory_training/page24-kinesthetic2.htm 

 

If you use the "forward" button at the bottom of the Kinesthetic page, it will take you to a similar page for Tactile activities, which can be used for hands-on explorations.

 

The listed activities will help you with whatever curricula you chose.  Incorporating activity can be done in a variety of ways... bouncing on a big exercise ball while reading or working at the computer, bouncing on a mini trampoline or walking on a treadmill while reciting facts or listening to an audiobook.  

 

We even put a plank across the arms of our treadmill so my son could walk slowly and do school work with his textbooks! :-D 

 

Having an active child who can't sit still for "lessons" requires out of the box thinking and creativity for incorporating activity into learning.  The good news: now that you know it's what your DD needs, you can begin planning for movement based learning! :-D 

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Now see that's how my ds is.  Put him in motion, and he'll put up with anything.  Kinesthetic learner.  My dd is also a doer with lots of motion, but to her the material is more important.  So in that sense, even though I try to bring in a lot of doing and she remembers best what she does, I wouldn't really describe her as a kinesthetic learner.  She's more visual and auditory.

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