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jgrabuskie

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  1. DS8 was in this boat last year. Math games did not help, I spent 2 months trying to focus his head on the game thinking they would be fun but honestly, the games were terrifying to him. See, he was missing the skills to play the games. His Dysgraphia, OCD, anxiety, and traumatizing PS experience, led to this perfect storm. We used to call it turtling when DS would curl up into a ball and not want to do anymore. With DS's Dysgraphia, OCD, anxiety, etc I really had my hands full. A lot of students like DS are right-brain. They need color, pictures, stories, etc. So I decided that we needed to stay on grade level math (DS did not want to go back a grade bc he did not want to be stupid) but slow it down to 1/2 speed and supplement the areas where the holes were present. It took us 2 1/2 months to do 1 chapter. Not kidding. IMO, MM is not for a child with difficulties. I tried it too because I fell in love with the simplistic beauty of the program. However, the pages of MM are jam-packed, there is no breathing room. DS could not understand he only had to do the odd questions, or half a page, all he saw was all those questions and his anxiety took his confidence and ability to reason out the door. So, I faced rewriting a few questions from MM or changing math texts last year. I switched math texts. I used Go Math (purchased from Amazon). Not saying that is what you need to use. Just pick a math program that has problems with adequate writing space and that the pages do not appear jam-packed. Use it at 1/2 pace when the holes appear, it's slow and you may not cover the entire book by the end of the year. Supplement with other math curricula or flashcards or games to fill in the holes. Example: right-brain thinkers need to take a "picture" of the problem before they can memorize it. So I made flashcards with the complete problem with answer surrounded by a color border. We went through these 20 per day, 5 days a week, changing the stack of 20 each week. To practice if DS knew his facts, I used the addition worksheets that are free on Math-Aids.com. NO timed tests here either, he just had to add. When he got stumped, I would say picture the flashcard in your head for 8 + 8 what answer do you see, 16 and the face lights up and no anxiety. Use picture cards to learn the months of the year. I printed month cards free from Twinkl that had pictures, I wrote a month number on the card so DS can see a picture and we talk about the season, what's going on in the picture (make up a story) and the number of the month. For the days of the week, TPT had a free Hungry Caterpillar booklet that I printed and used as a story to cement in the days of the week. This year we are using Saxon Intermediate 3. I love it. It is incremental, each lesson is a new topic but there are extensive spiral review questions each day. We use the whole program, Power Ups, Lesson, Practice. The first week was rough, any change is, but now the routine is set and the anxiety is lessening. I do not know about Saxon 2. This year so far, I am still reviewing tricky math facts. Sometimes it just takes longer. Because of writing issues, I have to modify or scribe for DS. I leave the meat of the problem to him. It has been a slow process but DS is learning at grade level and the holes are almost closed. His confidence is building and the anxiety is almost non-existent. I can now talk DS through problems or bouts of anxiety. Turtling ended last year about 3/4 of the way through the year, last year.
  2. Yes, with DS8 Dysgraphia issues I use the modified workbook. On some the questions in Intermediate 3, I will write/draw the diagram, but I also show him how I do it. This always happens at the first of the school year then by the end of the school year his confidence has grown and he is doing it himself. Example 1: Jasmine is 7th in line. Darren is 3rd in line. How many people are between Jasmine and Darren? I will draw with X's the people in line: X X X X X X X X X X X (i used 10 x's, DS will have to make the 3rd and 7th and do the math)--for some reason Mom doing the x's alleviates his anxiety over having to draw the problem out. Example 2: The short hand of a clock points between the 10 and the 11. The long hand points at the 5. It is daylight outside. Write the time in digital form. I will give DS our practice clock and he can manipulate the hands, then he writes the answer on the sheet. Example 3: The temperature outside is 32 degrees F. Dave said that it is a hot day. Do you agree? Why or why not? DS likes to do these orally and I act as scribe. However, I do make him do a complete answer, i.e., The temperature is 32 degrees F is it a hot or cold day? At 32 degrees F, water freezes. So it is not a hot day.
  3. My DS20 used Saxon at the charter school in 6-8 grade and did fairly well. I decided to switch DS8 to Saxon for grade 3. He tested into 5/4 but after a few days, I thought Intermediate 3 was a better fit. DS8 has dysgraphia. Getting away from conceptual math made all the difference. Math is not his favorite subject but I can see improvement already and I am not fighting teaching him to add 6 different ways to only be tested on the "old fashioned" way to add. I have read Saxon's reasoning for creating this math program. We use the whole program. No skipping, etc. Yes, it can be time-consuming but I found with DS8, it was time-consuming because he did not know his math facts by wrote. Over the past week we worked on this and now math is going faster. I feel like his confidence is boosted also because the lessons are short and concise. The spiral review may seem like a pain in the rear but the practice really cements the lessons in the head. With DS8's other math program I spent 1-2 days reviewing for the chapter test, not with Saxon, he reviews all the time. Which in reality, if you peruse any method on how to learn study skills it's better to review each day. Saxon teaches this way.
  4. I am teaching DS German. We are using an audio CD from McGraw-Hill that is surprisingly good. He has learned some basics. Today, we read a preschool reader and it was so much fun. Each night we use German translate on my Galaxy and look up words. We do not do any writing, just total immersion, and fun. It's been a blast. My DS8 has Dysgraphia and it appears that Latin is writing intensive which will not work for us. So we are using a living language.
  5. Not an audiobook fan. I tend to do other things and let it go to the background. Based on reviews, I purchased SOTW for DS8 to listen too. He hated it. He tuned it out and I had to redo the lesson. I brought it up again and he said no he did not like it. We have borrowed other audio books where he can view the book but he did not like that method either.
  6. So true about not wanting question if they don't have the answer. It's hard, my DS will not answer questions on paper or orally if he does have the answer in his head. It has to be some form of OCD.
  7. Warriors series. They are about cat clans. My DS loves them. The reader is immersed into life in a cat clan.
  8. Letterland. My DS used to come home singing these little songs. It is a fantastic program from the UK, yep for USA. There are some songs on youtube. It's written by a reading specialist. Its on Amazon too. Google it.
  9. I do this already, didn't know it had a specific name, LOL. I would love to see more too. FYI, kids have to be in the mood for it, though, sometimes I get not today Mom. My DS8 has Dysgraphia and this is how we do most subjects. Usually, pose questions like this over projects or looking through books. Then we stop and read something and then question again.
  10. Okay, first let me preface this by saying I am not inciting a battle. I am just trying to ask questions to find out information to apply to my situation. Situation: DS8 is doing 3rd-grade level work. Next year, I was tiptoeing around adding Latin to his instruction. However, he also has Dysgraphia and I spend a lot of time modifying his coursework. How much writing is involved in teaching Latin? Will I be able to modify any program to reduce the writing? Has anyone had experience with Dysgraphia and a specific Latin curriculum? I have also looked into Latin & Greek Stem word instruction. I can do this through flashcards. If teaching Latin is to increase vocabulary, wouldn't Latin & Greek stem word instruction accomplish the same thing? Teach a living language. I can teach him German or French orally. I have also read several articles that say Latin teaching does not make other languages easier, it does no more than learning a living language. Other articles say the opposite. Plus, Bauer's argument in TWTM. So, has anyone decided to teach a living language instead? I am confused on what to do. If you can offer me some insight or maybe what you have done that would be great.
  11. Okay. So he can write under a structured format, but not freely. I think it is a confidence issue. There is not a writing program with a structure to hold his hand. I would use one of the topics he needs to write on. Then either brainstorm or just write sentences. Then organize the sentences into a paragraph as a rough draft. Edit/Proof and then finalize. For a couple of assignments in each subject, I would help him along but not use a formula approach directly. Help brainstorm, or organize brainstorming into categories. Another way to get paragraphs started is with graphic organizers. They look less intimidating than a blank piece of paper. If that doesn't work, look into Dysgraphia and the inability to get words down on paper. The problems I have read about IEW is that it is very formula driven and you can tell from most writings who used IEW (?). Good or bad it is an opinion.
  12. I am in the same boat. Heavy grammar is ????? DS8 is doing 3rd grade and grammar is easy for him while physical writing is not. I did some research on the net and found that studies have concluded that teaching grammar outside of writing (or independently as a separate subject) does not make the writer any better. That grammar taught through proofreading and writing is how writers learn. So, since I have to modify so much for Dysgraphia, I switched DS's grammar to proofreading for grammatical errors. We spend 15 minutes say on Tuesday learning about a grammatical error and then on Thursday we proofread a paragraph and identify the error. This should give him a better basis for writing correct sentences and fixing mistakes in his work. Real Life Example: Tuesday last week we discussed common and proper nouns. I used free flashcards from www.havefunteaching.com and we did a sort between the 2 nouns. Thursday I used a paragraph that included both nouns but the proper nouns were not capitalized and some of the common nouns were capitalized. My DS then played teacher and corrected the "student's" work. You could do the same and keep grammar fresh by reteaching only grammatical errors as they come up in your student's writing. If there are no grammatical mistakes move on. Another way to address grammar is to do a google search on grammar covered on the SAT and address those lessons and anything else that needs help.
  13. We do a lot of our own because DS has Dysgraphia and I have to modify almost every part of the curriculum to reduce writing. Most work is completed orally, just learned I am using the Socratic method, flashcards, and extremely tailored worksheets when needed. Love Saxon Math Intermediate 3 although he tested into 5/4, dysgraphia again causes so many issues. Above expectations. I also added Sunshine Math (free) for more word problems and conceptual ideas. In NC we have to test, so I gotta cover the bases SOTW--I like it but use History Odyssey with it. I like SOTW1, but all the books had DS running, I need to do a lot more hands-on in history and I think the program will be just fine. IFFY on (NO LONGER LIKE) WWE2--lack of quality reading in public school is causing issues here, we are going to stick with it. Could not stick with it. No matter how much background info, DS did not like the reading selections. I am doing my own thing along the same lines by choosing books recommended for better reading that include history, science, and fiction. I have DS complete comprehension questions on Book Adventures (free) and then we summarize. Is it just me or why does a book have to be old to be considered well written? Sometimes the reading is laborious and boring. If I was an 8-year-old boy I would run too. I just can't believe that we do not have more current authors and topics for children to read and learn from. HATE most Homeschool science--too Christian, not enough meat. However, if you read a school textbook they are worse and the lovely encyclopedia is so DRY. Probably do our own. Ended up building our own. Using a combination of encyclopedia and books from the library that DS can read with the addition of many hands-on projects, flashcards, etc. We work through the main points for every lesson that he should come away with. I use flashcards (Montessori 3-part style), either free or made to review these important ideas. We review these every science day. Teaches him to pull the most important info, review a little often, prepared for the test, no stress. Dysgraphia is a pain, but the flashcards allow DS to remain in control of his learning without making his hands ache or getting stressed out. Doing our own thing Science--Earth Science and Astronomy Reading--various recommendations for 3rd graders concentrating on comprehension and fluency (see WWE2 above) German--orally and making personalized booklets for DS Grammar--standard old grammar workbook, I am moving toward low-key grammar instruction, mainly as it pertains to writing. For example: using more colorful or juicy verbs to create more exciting sentences, same for adjectives, and adverbs. No diagramming or boring worksheets, I use matching cards to play synonym, antonym and homophone games. Spelling--trying to figure this one out, DS is a dictionary; ended up switching to Words Their Way style spelling and vocabulary Vocabulary--using words from books and novels we are reading across curriculum plus math and science. Really concentrating on breaking apart words such as rebuilding = re*build*ing and teaching prefixes and suffixes, how the word is used in a sentence.
  14. We go by assigned pages or lesson if you wish. If DS finishes in 20 minutes great if takes 40 minutes that's okay. The only caveat is that I do not let math go past an hour. If it does happen, we stop and complete the next day. My son is pretty good about finishing his assignments but there are days bc of allergies, wiggles, etc.
  15. Definitely not a wuss and if you are I am in your company because dysgraphia battles are life draining. I think the reason my DS is having trouble with the comprehension of the reading selections is that he is coming out of PS where the reading was boring, plain and awful. It was scripted to practically spoon feed comprehension. Compared to WWE2 where his brain has to think and apply. So we are going to stick with it for reading practice, narration, and 1 sentence copy work to practice penmanship. The dictation is a not happening because of dysgraphia (thanks for the heads up).
  16. I would be cautious about touting phonics as the end all method. Just as we have several different ways to teach math, reading is no different. There are plenty of reasons why phonics may not work for some students. Learning disabilities are one such reason. My DS20 had vision tracking issues. Even after therapy, phonics was a disaster. The school assisted me in using whole word method. He did not read at grade level until 4th grade but was reading college level by end of 5th with full comprehension. My DS8 did PS for K and 1st. He learned both phonics (Letterland) and the context method. In my opinion, it is the only thing the PS school did well. DS can sound out words better than most adults; spells like a dictionary; can look for word meanings using the sentence and paragraph context; reads at a higher than grade level; reads fluently. He can answer reading comprehension questions flawlessly. The only thing I did not agree with was the type of literature DS8 was reading. It was plain, boring, and awful. He does not like to read because it is boring. It took a lot of work to convince him to read books. This is also where I am noticing the difference in his reading skills. These boring books are laid out in a manner which spoon feeds the reader the answers to comprehension questions. When quality literature is used, it makes the brain work and the reader must think about what they read to answer comprehension questions. I believe this is why my DS is having some difficulties with WWE2--however, this will probably be overcome in a month or two as he transitions to reading more and more quality literature. In addition, if you are on this forum or others sooner or later you see for many students phonics does not work for them and parents are asking for help. This could be to an inadequate program, teaching or learning disability. If we see it in our homeschool population then it is in the PS population as well. I am such a student that was taught solely through phonics (no disabilities) and had to do remedial reading through 6th grade. Mom taught me through flashcards and reading one word at a time. Phonics was considered voodoo teaching and Mom being an avid PTA person lobbied it out of existence in my school district, her reasoning was my lack of reading skills. I was unable to read a sentence, my spelling sucked; comprehension null; and fluency out the window. It was because of all the work I had to do to overcome my early education, it made me really cautious about DS8 and phonics at his school. Boy did I monitor his progress throughout K-1.
  17. I like Saxon, my ds8 tested into 5/4. We are math oriented too and math picky. But before you change your math program, determine why do is in tears. Do you see her as a left brain or a right brain learner. Left brain you will go more with a program of mastery and repetition. If a right Brainerd more of a conceptual math program. I purchased math mammoth last year for DS, but the overwhelming amount of work with very little instruction had me scrambling to put things together. A lot of this was bc DS was coming out of PS the prior year. But I would suggest you go to the website and try her freebies. Saxon has a placement test free online, test her and see where she fall. If Google it you can creatively find the 5/4, 6/5 and 7/6 text books to download and try out. Last year I officially used Go Math a conceptual spiral math program on CC. I used it bc a university's Tyler prep school uses it and I thought we might send DS there. I am an accountant, math is not a problem. I have 2 math teachers on call. I HATE the CC conceptual math program. Does a 7 year old need to learn 6 ways to add before rationality and logic is developed in their brains? Good luck! Sent from my SM-T377V using Tapatalk
  18. Saxon for sure. Take one of free middle school tests. Based on what the score says use that level. Saxon reviews basic math facts, 1 concept at a time, and gives a spiral review to reinforce. Google about John saxon and read about how and why this program was developed. We do the whole program and do not skip. Math is a cross between art and a foreign language for many it takes work to learn it, very few are gifted mathematics. Also, do pick up manipulative items that pertain to book you are studying as you are able to find. They made a big difference. My DS8 is younger than yours but this program has been a blessing so far. He is level 5/4. Some days math is too much so I cover the lesson over 2 days. Sent from my SM-T377V using Tapatalk
  19. I am so glad both of you shared your experiences. Dysgraphia is a struggle. I am at odds how to give my bright child a classical education when notebooking and paragraph writing is the expected output. At age 8, I still have some time, this seems like its going to be a long war. Sent from my SM-T377V using Tapatalk
  20. Letterland is a whole phonics program. There are youtube videos, booklets, books, hand motions, etc. If you live in NC at Tweetsie Railroad they do a Letterland day several times a year. Totally cute. My DS learned his phonics, how to read and spell with this program. He is awesome at all. I loved when he came home from PS and would sing his little songs. It's the only thing I praise about his PS.
  21. I agree about switching when it doesn't fit. This is especially true for children with difficulties. I love MM, it's a solid program and the ongoing help from the author is a plus. I purchased it for DS last year but the crowded pages had him in tears each day. Even if I highlighted what he had to do that day or covered up part of the paper, it was still too much. We did GO Math which is a CC conceptual math program used by our local university-style prep school, 3 days in classroom 2 days homeschool. Needless to say, I after teaching CC, I HATE the CC, so out that program went. DS tested into Saxon Math 5/4 however, his dysgraphia made it extremely difficult and the tears were practically flowing again. I moved him to Saxon Intermediate 3 and it is the perfect fit. Little bits of information each day and mastery of information over time. I loved the look on his face when answering the written problems, they must have appeared attainable because we did not go through the usual pep talk of you can do this, we have studied this before, I am here to help speech. He did it himself with a little help showing him how to look things up. He is beginning to take charge now. I think maybe today he even enjoyed it.
  22. I began using WWE 2 with my DS8. He has dysgraphia, however, his reading comprehension is awesome. Since using WWE 2 to learn writing he can't seem to answer the basic questions from the reading selections. I read Aesop's the fox and stork to him 2 times and DS was unable to tell me what the fox served the stork. The moral or lesson in the story drew a blank stare. If I read a book called Warriors Into the Wild (abt cats) (6-7 grade level) to him, he can list the characters, setting, beg middle end and discuss it. I don't understand. Has anyone had this problem? Should I make my own reading selection and use the same premise or will it get better as we work through the book?
  23. I agree with those who do not do formal history and science before the high school years. I believe that exposure is the way to go. DK books on different subjects, then have each child from 3rd on up do an oral about 3 things they read about in the book. If you do CDs then get DK or Nat Geo Kids books that correspond to the era. Even littles can look at a board book and point out things. Independent work, plus oral practice, and they learned about something. You could do different history projects for art if desired or just 1 project per year. I do history 3 times a week and science 2 times a week. However, it is mainly reading, a project sometimes, mapwork is by fingers pointing and finding things on a map. Geography is very important and a skill that is lost. DS usually has questions we look up either immediately or for next class. Very low key and usually 20-30 minutes total. For Example, this week we are building a pyramid. The darn glue takes forever to dry so I modified, each day we glue 1-2 layers and read something about pyramids. I didn't care for the SOTW explanation of pyramids bc it holds to the tomb belief, newer historians are leaning to the pyramids being built for other purposes than tombs. I taught DS a very important lesson on historical interpretation of ancient cultures in less than 10-20 minutes per day. FYI, my DS hated the SOTW CDs. He zoned out every time and could not narrate 2 sentences about what was said. I know they are beloved and I never saw a negative review but I think my son is not alone. If at all possible, borrow a set and try them. Also, if you just started your year, you might want to wait a little bit before trying to add history and science. I find that when I stagger my subjects in at the first of the year, stress on covering so much after a break is reduced. I am always amazed at the amount of work DS is doing at the end of the year vs. at the beginning in the same amount of time.
  24. We do Saxon 5/4. Honestly, I can't see handing DS the book and say do it and turn it in. I do a shortened warm up, usually orally or this is when we do a reteach if he needs it. Then I present the lesson using a whiteboard easel (cue easel from when he finger painted). After the concept is introduced, we work together doing the lesson questions on the whiteboard. I turn DS loose on the Mixed Review questions, usually 26. Sometimes I need to help him (dysgraphia). Then we have a 5 question quiz, he must get 4 out of 5. If he scores lower I review what questions to determine if it is current lesson material, previous lesson material or basic facts like add, sub, mult, divide. This determines if we go on or not. Usually yes, but I may use the reteach sheet if it is a concept, or a quick review with flash cards if it is a basic fact issue. Yep, math takes an hour or more per a day. It sucks. I have recently moved to doing math M-TH and taking Friday off. This seems to have worked very well around here the last 2 weeks and DS is very happy with the arrangement. I did alert him on 4day weeks, math will be every day. I really like Saxon for a variety of reasons, the consistent spiral that reviews. Math needs to be practiced, very few can get it and run. The 1 concept per lesson. Builds math confidence to be able to complete the review exercises competently because of the spiral. The 120 lessons per year that let me lengthen the lesson over multiple days or eliminate Fridays. The lack of multiple guess question formatting which I firmly believe only teaches the student to guess not how to do the math for the long run.
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