Well, we have a diagnosis. Talk to me about homeschooling HS.

[AppleGreen]

I do not have the official report, but met with the psychologist today to discuss the results from testing earlier this week. I have long known something was going on, but waited until HS (for a couple of reasons) before pursuing a diagnosis. It looks like we have a very bright child with a low working memory and low cognitive functioning wrapped up with some ADHD. There is a dyslexia piece in there as well with very low spelling scores. Reading (decoding and comprehension) was in the average range, but much lower than would be expected.   

 

 

So, now I need to wrap my brain around HS and helping my child continue making gains and moving forward, but also being aware of the transcript. I have a Bachelor in Special Education, but really my focus has always been K-8 range, so I am venturing into new territory. I need help scaling the skills to the high school level. I have a stack of books to read and am pondering how I want to use this information to better help my child achieve the skills needed to be successful in a college/work environment. I can already see I am will need to tweak my vision for the year. 

 

I just feel really overwhelmed right now, even though there no really shocking information came to light. 

[PeterPan]

Hmm, well it sounds like you found out a lot!  Are meds on the table?  Are you connected with social or extra-curric opportunities for the dc?  

 

You have the normal learning curve of high school and the normal fears AND the SN considerations.  It sorta makes you feel like  :blink:     and  :svengo: and  :boxing_smiley: and  :chillpill: all at once.  I never understood why people chose to put their kids in for high school, but reality is some kids really need to be connected to opportunities.  I think you'll make the SN stuff happen, so to me it's more whether just the overall experience is going to be happy.  And I don't know how to say it better than that.  I think homeschooling high school SUCKS.  She doesn't want a syllabus from mom, wants lots and lots of opportunities to do, is pushing to separate but still needs guidance, is capable of so much and messes up other things royally, is so full of hope yet seems rather hopelessly DOOMED.  

 

  You could say it's very stressful.   :willy_nilly:  And I'm glad for these people with their NT kids who just hit 14 or 15 and begin DE and AP everything at home themselves, fine.  But with no meds for the ADHD and some SLDs to boot, your experience is not going to be so pretty.  And our kids sprout so fast, and we realize we aren't going to be able to take care of all the fires we have going AND have all those amazing conversations we thought we were going to have.  It's not nearly as magical as I thought it would be.  Dd's magic is this totally *other* sort of magic.  It's not magic that would make people go WOW if they read about her on the hs board, kwim?  Like she made pictures for someone this week, but she isn't going to be a photographer.  She made costumes for a play (amazing costumes!), but she probably isn't going into that.  She reads about Shakespeare for fun and is conversant on opera, but dh says she'd be bored stiff as a high school english teacher.  So this poor mama feels like  :willy_nilly:  

 

 If it's your best course, do it.  Definitely make some ways for him to be connected to allow for his blossoming social needs and independence.  They're going to blossom, maybe in spite of us, not because of us.   :rolleyes:

[AppleGreen]

Hmm, well it sounds like you found out a lot!  Are meds on the table?  Are you connected with social or extra-curric opportunities for the dc?  

 

You have the normal learning curve of high school and the normal fears AND the SN considerations.  It sorta makes you feel like  :blink:     and  :svengo: and  :boxing_smiley: and  :chillpill: all at once.  I never understood why people chose to put their kids in for high school, but reality is some kids really need to be connected to opportunities.  I think you'll make the SN stuff happen, so to me it's more whether just the overall experience is going to be happy.  And I don't know how to say it better than that.  I think homeschooling high school SUCKS.  She doesn't want a syllabus from mom, wants lots and lots of opportunities to do, is pushing to separate but still needs guidance, is capable of so much and messes up other things royally, is so full of hope yet seems rather hopelessly DOOMED.  

 

  You could say it's very stressful.   :willy_nilly:  And I'm glad for these people with their NT kids who just hit 14 or 15 and begin DE and AP everything at home themselves, fine.  But with no meds for the ADHD and some SLDs to boot, your experience is not going to be so pretty.  And our kids sprout so fast, and we realize we aren't going to be able to take care of all the fires we have going AND have all those amazing conversations we thought we were going to have.  It's not nearly as magical as I thought it would be.  Dd's magic is this totally *other* sort of magic.  It's not magic that would make people go WOW if they read about her on the hs board, kwim?  Like she made pictures for someone this week, but she isn't going to be a photographer.  She made costumes for a play (amazing costumes!), but she probably isn't going into that.  She reads about Shakespeare for fun and is conversant on opera, but dh says she'd be bored stiff as a high school english teacher.  So this poor mama feels like  :willy_nilly:  

 

 If it's your best course, do it.  Definitely make some ways for him to be connected to allow for his blossoming social needs and independence.  They're going to blossom, maybe in spite of us, not because of us.   :rolleyes:

Oh my goodness...yes!! Yes to all of it, but especially the bolded. 

 

At this time meds are not on the table. The psychologist felt like we should hold off on that for now. Her reasoning was that he is moving forward and learning, there may come a point when he hits a wall and needs that help, but for now we should keep on keeping on. She may have said that because I told her that probably wasn't going to happen at this time, and she said it much more eloquently than I am expressing.  :tongue_smilie:

 

Honestly, if we had a viable school option we would probably pursue that, but really nothing is great here. One of my take aways from the meeting (which she reinforced several times) was, "Nobody is going to be giving him/her more than you are." And I am thinking, "At what cost?" (to me and my other children). The public high schools around here all follow the block system, which I really think would be disastrous for the dc (especially in math). There are a couple of charter schools, which could be possibilities, but they are far and I am not sure worth the drive. I do feel like we have some solid data, if we go the school route. It is hard thinking about putting this bright, but academically struggling kid in a mediocre learning environment. There is a private school that offers some amazing additional support to kids like the dc, but definitely not in our budget.

 

We will see; I am definitely not opposed to school. All of the things I thought about homeschooling high school for this dc have been true. It is as hard, disruptive and challenging as I thought. I don't have a kid that is even remotely ready for managing a huge, difficult course load. Definitely having trouble managing much independently. I mean theoretically the dc should be able to, but practically-no way. The processing issues are too much. DC is such a s-l-o-w worker and for legitimate reasons. Those amazing discussions and connections, not happening. Lots of hand holding to get there. Again, on paper, you would expect some pretty thoughtful, meaningful insights being made, until you factor in that other end of the spectrum. Sigh.

 

DC does have some decent social outlets. I am not sure if a public school experience would be better for that, especially since impulse control is a huge issue and discernment is not a strong suit. We have seen improvements with maturity, so I am hopeful that will continue. We do a lot of coaching at home, hopefully some of it will stick out in the big wide world. Thankfully, the dc has a decent friend network with semi-regular contact. 

 

Thanks for the commiseration. The tester did say she really did enjoy testing the dc and thought s/he was very delightful and enjoyable . She also acknowledged the challenges with parenting and teaching a child like that, but it is always nice to hear pleasant things about your child.

[MerryAtHope]

I do not have the official report, but met with the psychologist today to discuss the results from testing earlier this week. I have long known something was going on, but waited until HS (for a couple of reasons) before pursuing a diagnosis. It looks like we have a very bright child with a low working memory and low cognitive functioning wrapped up with some ADHD. There is a dyslexia piece in there as well with very low spelling scores. Reading (decoding and comprehension) was in the average range, but much lower than would be expected.   

 

 

So, now I need to wrap my brain around HS and helping my child continue making gains and moving forward, but also being aware of the transcript. I have a Bachelor in Special Education, but really my focus has always been K-8 range, so I am venturing into new territory. I need help scaling the skills to the high school level. I have a stack of books to read and am pondering how I want to use this information to better help my child achieve the skills needed to be successful in a college/work environment. I can already see I am will need to tweak my vision for the year. 

 

I just feel really overwhelmed right now, even though there no really shocking information came to light. 

 

First--just keep reminding yourself that high school is just the next step. Just like when you had a baby and he had to learn to walk, potty train, read, etc.... High school can seem so scary, but it's really just the next step. 

 

Second, if you have materials that have been working, keep using them and doing the next level. Don't change things you don't have to change. 

 

Consider meds--they really can make a huge difference. They won't make life perfect, and there will still be rough spots, but they make it more doable. (ETA, I just saw they are off the table for now--I do get that!)

 

With the working memory and cognitive function constraints, along with dyslexia, accommodations are definitely in order. Look for curriculum that respects your child's abilities. Are audio books helpful to take some of the burden of reading off of your child? Pay attention to font size with books your student will read, and to things like margins. As much as possible, choose materials that have a layout that will work well for your child, not be too busy, not complicate reading with super tiny fonts etc... 

 

Rainbow Resource Center carries reading bookmarks with different colored overlays and also a clear one, that help with tracking, if that's an issue.

 

Don't assume your student will know how to read a book. Do things like bookmark lists of characters in the front of a book or glossaries in the back, and show these features to your student. If you are using a text book, your student may not know how to read that either--do you read side-bars first or skip them and just read text? When do you look at pictures and read captions? What about front and back-matter in a text book? Are things in bold important? and so on. Don't assume anything is "obvious." One year I spent a week JUST teaching one of my kids how to read a text book, before we even started the course. It was time well spent. 

 

Watch for those things that you find natural to "assume" your child should know--and then be willing to stop progress to teach those skills and fill in gaps as necessary.

 

Be willing to do only portions of texts--you can get the depth that interests your child but perhaps not get through all of the units or all of the chapters. Take things at a pace that works for your child and work on things like study skills, note-taking, test-taking skills and the like. If your student will be likely to go on to college, all of these skills will be helpful. It's okay to cover a bit less ground to help your student master material as you go and teach him how to study. 

 

I did things like letting my student take the test in writing, and then if the answers weren't thorough enough, I'd ask questions orally and then write down additional things they said. Don't be afraid to use tests as a learning experience to model--here's how you study for a test, here's what's required in answering test questions (or how to show work or how to be thorough etc...) Think about the areas where your student struggles to do things the way it might be expected for college or for testing situations, and scaffold towards those skills--think how to gradually build up those skills in your student. Your ultimate goal is to set your student up for future success, but don't be afraid to work towards that in baby steps. 

 

With note-taking, do a lot of modeling. Show your student what to focus on (I like Cornell Notes), let your student try taking notes from a text, and ask questions to see how well they did. Are things in their notes that they might need to understand or remember? Model by writing out how you would take notes--maybe you take every bolded name or topic and make a new entry for example, or maybe you use subheadings to help you decide what's important. Maybe your student writes down insignificant details but misses big picture ideas or really important events--modeling will help your student learn what's important. (I used to let my kids correct a test using their notes--if anything they missed was in their notes, I let them earn credit for it.)

 

Help your student work towards careful reading skills (short passages like test questions can be the hardest for dyslexic students, especially if you have a student who tries to guess from context). Continue to have your student read something aloud to you daily so you can continue to strengthen reading. I often used our daily devotional time for this--each of us read about a paragraph worth and the others read silently while one read aloud. It gave us good practice on reading words you can't guess easily (like some of the names and places) phonetically, and to practice breaking down syllables on longer words etc..., but you could choose a paragraph or page from a book he's reading etc... too. If your student struggles with reading test questions or instructions, you may want your student to read them to you before doing the work, or to explain what he thinks they mean before he goes to work. 

 

If remedial spelling is needed, work on spelling. Your goal here is not necessarily perfect spelling, but to help make the writing of words something that is more automatic. Again, with working memory constraints, this is so important. Your student doesn't have enough working memory to think about how to organize thoughts, be creative, use the right information etc... AND decide how to spell words. We don't want them to forget what they wanted to say because of spelling struggles. You want spelling to be as automatic as possible so that he's not using up precious brain-power deciding how to write words. 

 

Work on writing skills--start where he is and help him work up gradually. (My extremely reluctant writer/struggling speller is in college this year and many of his tests are essay tests. Unless your child has accommodations for using a keyboard or taking tests orally, you'll want to keep working on handwritten work as well as typing skills for papers.) Essentials in Writing really helped him by breaking things down incrementally. 

 

Know that you can get accommodations for your child on college tests like ACT and SAT, and that your student can get accommodations in college as well. Your tester should make some suggestions, but things like additional time on tests, test questions read to your student, more frequent breaks, or other things that your tester says are appropriate can all be documented and used then (and should be used now too, as well as any other accommodations you deem necessary as you scaffold your student toward that future environment). 

 

I remember that the journey to "college ready" seemed huge to me at times--like an almost insurmountable mountain. It's like the old adage about eating the elephant though--you just keep going, one bite at a time. Your student really will get there, and you really can do this. SO much changes in the next 4 years, and you'll be amazed at how much your student grows and can accomplish. 

 

Most of all, these are precious years. Enjoy them. Don't let the pressure of college looming on the horizon steal your joy. If a student needs a remedial reading, writing, or math class in college, it's not a big deal. Obviously that's not what we aim for, but sometimes remembering that there are options available helped me relax and not over-stress. I'm so glad that we homeschooled these years and had this time together--it's really been worth it. 

[MerryAtHope]

Oh, one more thing--workboxes really helped my oldest to see subjects broken into doable parts, and helped us work towards independence. 

[PeterPan]

I'll read the rest of what you wrote, but I want to say right now that I'm offering to come in and SET STRAIGHT the next idiot psych who has NEVER EVEN TAUGHT AN ADHD CHILD who tells us that homeschool is so magically adaptive that the kid doesn't need meds.  

 

Just sayin'.  

 

When they've taught the child or been in that child's shoes, they can say.  The UNIVERSAL sentiment on the board among those who wait and eventually try them seems to be to wonder why they waited so long.  I've made it no secret on the board that my dc is not on them and that it has been a source of consternation.  I'm just saying, as one whose kid is not and who got that line from 3 different psychs discussing two different kids, they haven't been there, they don't know, and they're idiots.  Get the meds.

 

Adding: I didn't know, when I first started this, that there were 4 hour doses.  So literally, if you want to try meds (which again, I think ought to be on the table), you can try them, take them in the morning, let them wear off, bam done.  Then it's a TOOL.  It's not like oh I'm on them all day or wow we had horrific side effects.  Four hours and you can decide for yourself how the dc wants to feel, how much is needed.

 

Also, I want to parse something here.  My ds' label is ADHD, SPD, all the SLDs you want to throw at him, and eventually they added ASD.  His processing speed, while a disability relative to himself, is not horrifically low.  It makes him jolly fun to work with, between the pleasant IQ and the livable (70s%ile) processing speed.  Really not bad.  Granted, he bolted and couldn't come into your world, but when he was there he was stellar to work with.  For him, OT has been tremendously helpful.  We've got like 5 things going on him (literally) and with all the things together we're approach 50-70% of a full boy, lol. He's so much more calm.  He fidgets, but he's able to come to a location, be there with you, etc.  If he weren't so prone to being skinny, I'd get him meds just to get him the rest of the way there, honestly.  But we're holding him together with duct tape and lots of OT.

 

Then look at dd. ADHD only, with no bonus ASD to help her hyper-focus like ds does. Her processing speed is mid-30s%ile, which is really stinking low relative to IQ.  She's got the total carriage whit thing going, where she has the punch line and great comics as the carriage pulls out.  It's HORRIBLE to work with.  There is no good day, no amount of OT, nothing that's going to change that.  Awful.  And there's no fidget toy, nothing that's going to change it.  So academics WEAR HER OUT because she's always working WAY harder than anyone else to do the same things.  Like triple hard.  It's HORRIBLE.  And it makes me ANGRY that a psych would look at that and go oh you homeschool, you can accommodate, you don't need meds!  You know, our kids deserve to be able to do their work and still have lives.  I'd like her not to be so worn out from simple things.  She can't double up on lessons or she'll be dead the next day.  I hate it for her.  And meds bump processing speed, in addition to helping the focus.  

 

So it's a choice, make the choice.  We were survivable for a long time, and high school, the way the game is meant to be played, is not survivable for her.  And maybe for your mix and your child it will be survivable without meds.  I'm just saying you might want to be pre-emptive on that and not let a psych, who has never taught anyone, influence that decision to much.  Use your best judgment.

[Heathermomster]

I do not have the official report, but met with the psychologist today to discuss the results from testing earlier this week. I have long known something was going on, but waited until HS (for a couple of reasons) before pursuing a diagnosis. It looks like we have a very bright child with a low working memory and low cognitive functioning wrapped up with some ADHD. There is a dyslexia piece in there as well with very low spelling scores. Reading (decoding and comprehension) was in the average range, but much lower than would be expected.

 

 

So, now I need to wrap my brain around HS and helping my child continue making gains and moving forward, but also being aware of the transcript. I have a Bachelor in Special Education, but really my focus has always been K-8 range, so I am venturing into new territory. I need help scaling the skills to the high school level. I have a stack of books to read and am pondering how I want to use this information to better help my child achieve the skills needed to be successful in a college/work environment. I can already see I am will need to tweak my vision for the year.

 

I just feel really overwhelmed right now, even though there no really shocking information came to light.

I don't know what a bright child with low cognitive function means? Are you implying low processing speed?

 

Was your child fully remediated for the dyslexia? Did you cover morphology? Does he type his work? Does he use audio books? Can he mindmap or outline? Is he familiar with Quizlet? Can he summarize or write a basic paragraph? I brought DS home in the 7th grade and used the remainder of the logic stage to work on study skills and writing.

 

High school for DS has been about organizing himself, continuing to write, and becoming comfortable with the accommodations he will need to attend a 2 or 4 year college. DS uses reg high school materials that are accommodated. DS uses a laptop, audio books, and an Echo Smartpen plus receives extra time for tests and modified assignments by eliminating busy work. DS completes the full work load in his outside classes.

 

At home, I tend to use documentaries and TC videos to supplement history and literature. About half of his work is completed without my direct intervention. We started meds a month ago, but I cannot directly discern the efficacy. DS gets himself up at the same time daily, dresses, eats, and starts his work. I mind him to ensure the work is completed. Chemistry, algebra, and writing are the subjects I teach or help with.

 

To get all the subjects covered, we have a core set that must be completed daily. The other subjects are covered 3 or so days per week. DS is a 10th grader. The first month of 9th and 10th grades have made me crazy. It takes about 4 weeks for the routines to kick in and for DS to engage. 9th grade was awesome once the classes were sorted. I had to switch around a couple of classes that were not working. Programming became computer literacy with two sw builds and one hardware build from the case up. He studied like mad for biology, informal logic, and an IEW class. DS pushed himself and did great. High school doesn't have to be awful.

[AppleGreen]

I don't know what a bright child with low cognitive function means? Are you implying low processing speed?

 

Yes, high IQ with low working memory and processing speed, like 27th precentile for cognitive functioning. 

 

Was your child fully remediated for the dyslexia? Did you cover morphology? Does he type his work? Does he use audio books? Can he mindmap or outline? Is he familiar with Quizlet? Can he summarize or write a basic paragraph? I brought DS home in the 7th grade and used the remainder of the logic stage to work on study skills and writing.

 

This child has had very direct instruction using O-G techniques since 4th grade. The encoding skills have been given, yearly. Phonological awareness skills are high, what one would expect to see with IQ and the type of instruction provided. Decoding skills, comprehension is in the average range. According to the DSM-V, we would not qualify for services b/c the child is at grade level, but working much lower than expected given the IQ. I think the psych got the dyslexia term b/c according to her it is presenting in a pretty typical way, although I am not sure how that translates as far as a diagnosis. Spelling is in the below average range and has been since we began end of year testing with the W-J back in first grade. 

 

We continue to work on typing. Yes, morphology has been explicitly covered for multiple years on a regular (like 4-5 times/week) basis. Yes, the child does know how to use an outline, but often chooses not to. Yes, a basic paragraph can be constructed. The paragraph produced during the testing put the child right in the average range, but given 4 more minutes the scored moved up considerably (and of course spelling is not counted, that would have brought it way down). We have always hit language arts harder b/c of the challenges present. 

 

High school for DS has been about organizing himself, continuing to write, and becoming comfortable with the accommodations he will need to attend a 2 or 4 year college. DS uses reg high school materials that are accommodated. DS uses a laptop, audio books, and an Echo Smartpen plus receives extra time for tests and modified assignments by eliminating busy work. DS completes the full work load in his outside classes.

At home, I tend to use documentaries and TC videos to supplement history and literature. About half of his work is completed without my direct intervention. We started meds a month ago, but I cannot directly discern the efficacy. DS gets himself up at the same time daily, dresses, eats, and starts his work. I mind him to ensure the work is completed. Chemistry, algebra, and writing are the subjects I teach or help with.

 

My child often cannot remember basic personal care habits without reminders (brushing teeth, deodorant, showers). This child has been waking up on their own since about 7th grade (not particularly successfully then, more so now). Generally, I do not do wake up calls, even when cutting it super close to the 8 AM on-line class M/W. My child does not have the skills yet to manage the outside class workload completely independently. The Spanish teacher gives a huge bulk of on-line assignments to complete, in addition to workbook and lab manual pages throughout the month. Had I not sat down and mapped out how many assignments needed to be completed in order to meet the due date, I am not sure everything would have been turned in. I do anticipate it will be better with the next chapter. There is also the challenge of spelling in that particular class. I think a 50% was received on the first quiz due to spelling errors, not comprehension errors. In math, the child is able to complete assignments independently, but still needs assistance on managing multiple assignments and how to get them completed in the allotted time.. We are working on it and putting strategies in place, but I imagine it will be a long process. 

 

To get all the subjects covered, we have a core set that must be completed daily. The other subjects are covered 3 or so days per week. DS is a 10th grader. The first month of 9th and 10th grades have made me crazy. It takes about 4 weeks for the routines to kick in and for DS to engage. 9th grade was awesome once the classes were sorted. I had to switch around a couple of classes that were not working. Programming became computer literacy with two sw builds and one hardware build from the case up. He studied like mad for biology, informal logic, and an IEW class. DS pushed himself and did great. High school doesn't have to be awful.

 

Hmm, perhaps therein lies the difference. My child is not that motivated in regards to school work. My child works very hard because I have high expectations, but if this child could get away with doing less, s/he would. There is definitely no "studying like mad" happening around here, BUT the psych said it is probably very mentally fatiguing for this child to do their work due to the low working memory and low processing speed. Perhaps that is the most frustrating piece-to have a bright kid without the motivation.

 

Thanks for your thoughts and feedback. I tried to cover everything you asked or brought up. :)

[Heathermomster]

Well, it sounds like we are in the same spot with our kiddos. How are you accommodating? Here's a list of possible accommodations: VoiceDream app on the iPad, Learningally, Bookshare, Kindle books with TTS activated, textmapping.org, laptop use, Ginger sw, and the Echo Smartpen.

 

I still monitor DS with his work and remind him to wear deodorant. DS was a HOT MESS the first couple weeks of school. He requested meds about two months ago after leaving some homework behind. The meds have raised his awareness. I don't know if that makes sense. If he is feeling tired or distracted, he hops on the elliptical for 15 minutes or takes a short nap. The decision to medicate is your family's decision.

 

DS is inattentive ADHD, 3 SLDs, and tests gifted. I have to believe that with scaffolding and maturity, DS will grow and seize his future. During 9th grade, I was seriously up son's chuff during the first semester of school, ensuring that he used his planner and stayed on top of work. I started backing off the 2nd half of the year. In 10th grade, DS carries a planner and uses a giant, blank, and laminated calendar with a dry erase marker and sticky notes to plan and space out school projects. The calendar is thumb tacked to our office wall so that he can get to it. We deliberately sit down every Monday and discuss work and the previous week. DS is very good about letting me know whether he needs extra help. Anyhoo..I have no idea how 10th grade will pan out.

 

We gave up spelling 5 years ago. DS is dysgraphic and types everything. Last year, the NP tested his spelling as 2.5 grade levels ahead.

 

You could take a less traditional and more interest led approach. Maybe check out posts by eligo esse felicem formerly One_l_michele. Basically, her boys use curriculum such as Switched on Schoolhouse with the online component to knock out the required, get 'r done type subjects in order to free up the kids to explore their interests and work with mentors. Her boys have built computers, coded, and managed servers. My DS goofs off with Blender, Adobe Elements, and Sketchup. OhE's DD sews and bakes. One student worked as lighting person for a theater company and turned that skill into a full time occupation. I know of one dyslexic who spent a year working on a Science Fair project and earned a college scholarship. Another student specialized in physics and has been quite successful.

[MomatHWTK]

Here's a recent thread on ADHD with links to resources:

http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/564475-those-with-experience-hsing-a-child-with-adhdhelp/?hl=%2Baccomodations&do=findComment&comment=6588526

[Heathermomster]

Organization article from Yale University.

[PeterPan]

Hehe, I was thinking about discussing the whole non-traditional thing (just to contrast with Heather's approach, which I admire), but I sort of got busy and gave up.  Heather is correct.  You definitely have the option to accommodate, make traditional happen, blah blah.  Dd really has a strong opinion about things.  Left to herself, she really makes things happen.  Like I could sit here and look up stuff for her and create courses or whatever, but when I leave her alone and look at what she requests from the library, she's bringing in all sorts of amazing and varied stuff.  (history of english, costuming, blah blah)  

 

Our psych specifically said to go as far out of the box with her as much as possible.  Granted, I tend to take things very literally, but that's what I've done.  Right now her base expectations are:

 

read something daily

write something daily

math something daily

make something daily

 

That's really all I ask.  And I tell her that I'll take what she does and figure out how to compile it into courses retroactively.  It's this totally inverse approach.  Now I *do* give her structure to her day (end points, lists, etc.), and I sometimes try to spark things.  Like I found her some nifty books on the history of the comic industry, so she's been running with that, getting more books on political cartoons and particular cartoonists that interested her, blah blah.  That's fine, kwim?  That to me is REAL and she's owning it.  

 

I think it's wise to work *with* the personality of your dc, not against it.  

 

Btw, dd has always been this greatly discontented child, with ideas and dreams beyond anything I could make happen.  Like if I found a canoe craft, it was no I want to go in the woods and CUT DOWN A TREE and CARVE it and make a real one!!!   :svengo:    Seriously, this is what it's like working with her.  She's sorta like Trump: larger than life, a doer.   :rofl:  What are you going to do, fault her and say there's only one way to learn and pin her into this box?  Obviously not.  

 

I also have another theory with her, and it might not be a theory that applies to ANY other child, dunno.  I noticed that we've been surrounded by successful adults who *clearly* had/have ADHD and also SLD reading, and these people now enjoy learning, just for the sake of learning, in spite of HORRIBLE school experiences growing up.  And what I concluded was that they found ways *they connected* with the content.  And we can say oh, Biology is this list of terms and chapters and if you don't do it that way you've not "done" biology.  Fine, whatever.  But since some kids would slog through that and promptly forget it, how much more interesting to ask what would it take for my fragile learner, someone who might otherwise be in the slog and forget category, to move into the "Wow, that's amazing and I'd like to be a lifelong learner of it because I know how I connect with it!" category?  Because do you hang with people who read Scientific American for fun?  I'm sorry, that's not my normal crowd.  But these people who struggled in school and couldn't learn the school way are crazy avid and read stuff like that for pleasure.  So explain the disconnect, kwim?  It's the writing level (more intelligent), the narrative (good for narrative learners, read Dyslexic Advantage by the Eides), the connectedness, the application of it...  

 

So I'm agnostic on some methodologies but I do ask what will move *her* toward being a lifelong learner of the topic...  and I pick methodologies specific to *her* to get that effect.  With my ds, it's K'nex.  Oh my lands, don't ask how much we do k'nex, lol.  Anything he can build and do is his way into learning.  I get him adult level books on audio, because he'll listen to them.  Lifelong learner, curious.  Sure it's not a proper foundation.  There are ways around that.  GA PBS has some free courses you can watch.  There are ways.  

 

I don't think I'd want to get into a game of equivalencies on any level, so don't think I'm saying that.  I'm just saying it's ok to have *options*.  You might want to sign up to get in on lectures/webinars by Lee Binz. She has good explanations on ways to go WAY out of the box and still translate their work into something colleges recognize.  The truth is, your kid needs to be able to pass the college entrance test or get a reasonable score on the ACT/SAT.  He needs some lab write-ups.  He needs to be able to get his thoughts onto screen comfortably.  He needs to have become an interesting, developed human being who will give to the community.  I asked my dd why she's not pursuing her Sindarin more.  Let them be unique.  We don't want to squash that out of them or keep them so busy they don't have a chance to develop those unique aspects.

[MerryAtHope]

I'll read the rest of what you wrote, but I want to say right now that I'm offering to come in and SET STRAIGHT the next idiot psych who has NEVER EVEN TAUGHT AN ADHD CHILD who tells us that homeschool is so magically adaptive that the kid doesn't need meds.  

 

Just sayin'.  

 

hitting the like button about 5 times...

[AppleGreen]

Thanks for all of the great feedback, links and suggestions! Truly, I appreciate them.

 

Right now we are in everything takes f-o-r-e-v-e-r, but at least I know. My child is a diligent student, but definitely struggling with the work load. I feel like all this child does all day is school. He feels like, "I am never going to get caught up because even when I work really hard, I turn around and there is another assignment I have to complete." I know things take longer, but I do want him to have outside interests and time to pursue things of interest. Really mulling and pondering how that all looks, and you all have given me a lot of good things to think about. 

[prairiewindmomma]

Awesome thread!!!

[chiguirre]

I I need help scaling the skills to the high school level. I have a stack of books to read and am pondering how I want to use this information to better help my child achieve the skills needed to be successful in a college/work environment. I can already see I am will need to tweak my vision for the year.  

Look for high school textbooks designed for kids with dyslexia from Power Basics and AGS. These really help cover the basics in a way that kids with processing difficulties and executive function challenges can manage. Geezle did amazingly well with Power Basics Geography this summer. He has a tutor who is a special ed teacher and they just flew with it. He enjoyed it and she was very impressed with his progress and his retention. Each reading assignment is 3 or 4 pages followed immediately by retention questions instead of a whole chapter and review questions at the end. The print is fairly large and the pages are uncluttered. It's just what Geezle needed.

 

http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/082515670X?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage