Tokyomarie
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Posts posted by Tokyomarie
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I agree with others to choose reading/language arts plus math curriculum that is multi-sensory and will meet your needs for developing foundational academic skills in the dyslexic student.
As for the content areas of literature, social studies (geography & history), and science, another option to consider is Five in a Row. FIAR uses good, classic picture books as the central piece around which a unit is build. The parent reads the story aloud each day and then chooses activities to extend the ideas that children are introduced to in the story. The manuals give ideas for activities and research into topics. I found that once I got the hang of the FIAR concept, I was able to generate ideas myself for extending the learning. The main FIAR curriculum is said to be most appropriate for ages 4-8, but one of my children with dyslexia was about 10-11 years old. She learned a ton, and because of the unit study approach, we could extend the learning to a higher level when she was interested.
In addition, we used a lot of DK and Usborne books for history and science info, which she responded to because she is such a visual learner. My son also watched a lot of Magic School Bus and other video programs when he was younger, then graduated to PBS documentaries and other such adult level programs by the time he was 10 or 11.
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rbk mama, have you identified any services that offer therapy over the internet? I haven't had time to look through any websites because it's been such a busy week for me, but I just did a quick Google search and came up with this site: http://www.berkshirespeech.com/teletherapy. I don't know anything about them, but they do say they offer therapy via internet to people outside the USA. They also have a note about their software and issues related to HIPAA compliance, which might be something to think about when you are looking for a service.
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My degree is absolutely necessary to practice in my original field. I have a bachelor's degree in physical therapy, but a clinical doctorate (DPT) is now required to enter the field. I practiced full-time for almost 5 years before having children; I did on-call work and also worked as a childbirth educator for a few more years before we got transferred overseas. Since then, I have not worked in my field, but have used my knowledge every day in one way or another: 20+ years of homeschooling, teaching co-op students, and managing the healthcare needs of my family.
At this time, I am back in school pursuing a master's level certificate in educational therapy. My bachelor's degree in a "related field" was required to enter the program.
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I think the ROPES book will help you share with him just where he could use some help. His frustrations, his irritation and anger directed at you, these are things he can learn to identify as problems with ineffective solutions. For example, he wants to play the piano. The problem is, he can't get what he wants. The solution is to learn. Now the problem is that he can't learn fast enough to appease his desire. The ROPES book has organizational tools to help him identify his frustrations, brainstorm various solutions, anticipate possible outcomes for these solutions, and learn to identify the reality of these events.
(parts of post snipped)
As far as turning 18 and being a legal adult, I would encourage you to keep open communication about "one day" when he's ready to spread his wings and venture out on his own. I wouldn't use age as an end goal, especially if he's easily frustrated and gets mad. Instead I would help him shoot for practical goals, keeping any age related goals to yourself. That way you can modify them as you see fit without worrying him unnecessarily.
Abeto, thank you for your detailed recommendation of the ROPES book. I will check it out because it may be helpful for my work with students.
I want to comment further on the age 18/legal adult issue, because I'm the one who brought it up earlier. I, personally, don't use age as an end goal, certainly not with the thought that I would *push* an 18yo out of the nest when he is not ready. Nor would I *tell* the teen that he has to be ready to assume adult responsibility at age 18. We know that these young people tend to be several years delayed in their acquisition of executive skills needed to function independently. It is usually best if they can be in an environment where competent adults are scaffolding their experiences in a way that helps them to continue to build skills that will lead towards further independence.
OTOH, what I was thinking about regarding the age 18 issue is that our legal system gives young people the right to make their own decisions about how they'll live life and EXPECTS those young people to be ready to navigate college life or work on their own. Parents don't have any legal leverage with a teen who has turned 18yo unless arrangements for guardianship have been formalized. This is obviously a drastic step, but one that needs to be taken in situations where a young person is likely to need long term assistance to manage daily life. With teens who are likely to eventually live on their own, navigating those years from 18-25 or so can be tricky. The young adult needs help, but he has to be willing to allow the parent or another adult to give that assistance. Figuring out now what the issues will be legally and how to get to the point in your relationship that your son trusts you enough to accept your advice and assistance will be an important part of this process, Dawn.
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Wishing the best for you and your family. Know that I will be thinking of you often.
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I think that it is a Moreton Bay Fig tree; the picture was taken several years ago just outside the lovely Melbourne Zoo. :)
We live in India right now. I will be looking at local options, but was wondering if Skype with a US therapist might be another option. It's for my 14yo DS who has trouble with his "r" sound. We've tried using exercises that I've gotten online, but he is just not able to hear the difference when he says it correctly. We've tried off and on for years. It's never seemed that super critical (and often it just sounds like he has a British accent which fits in here :) ) but I think its high time we actually consult a professional.
My son still cannot say the final /r/ in r-controlled syllables the way we pronounce it in Midwestern USA accent. I sometimes laughingly chalk it up to the fact that the speech pathologist who worked with him when we lived in Japan was from Australia!
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Our card has been blocked on several occasions in recent years- domestic and international. I've finally gotten it into my mind to call before I travel. I recently made a driving trip through several states and the representative noted the names of every state we intended to drive through.
The first time my card was blocked, I was in a central American country and tried to buy about 30 pairs of shoes at a shoe store that is a US based company. For some reason, the card company was suspicious about the amount of money being charged for shoes. Doesn't everyone buy 30 pairs of shoes at once? Shifty eyes..... I was actually purchasing shoes for children at a children's home. Our group had taken the children on an outing and they each got to pick shoes for themselves. But I panicked when my card was declined. We got another card to go through, thankfully. What was even worse was that my husband only found out when he tried to use the card a few hours later and couldn't because of the block on the account. He was able to explain to the card company that I really was traveling overseas and, yes, I intended to buy 30 pairs of shoes. I couldn't make the call myself because I didn't have a phone with international access and didn't know how to contact the cc company.
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Ohoooo, I'll delurk for this thread!!
I have a bento collection.... seriously, it has actually become a bad habit. I have to control myself on what I purchase! In my defense, it started when I lived in Japan, so that excuses me...right?!?!
(lots snipped....)
Kris
Hi Kris! I was just looking at my children's bento boxes that we bought in Japan back in the early-mid '90s. I want to declutter my kitchen but I can't bring myself to chuck them!
I haven't had a need for bento boxes in the last 6 or 7 years, but I've been noticing the trend here in the USA. If I needed to carry my lunch someplace, I would be all over some of the ones I've seen recently.
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I wish it were easier for you, Dawn. It's hard when the extent of a teen's challenges are not fully identified until the teen years. By that time, they've been off the typical developmental track for so long that they have a lot of ingrained habits and no experience with professionals who are trained in guiding kids with atypical development. Anything you start with teens will take time to make a difference. With the right professionals, it can make a difference, but there are no quick fixes.
Fortunately for parents of young children today, there is a lot more support and earlier diagnosis available than there was for young people who are now teens or young adults. Hopefully, they will not have to deal with as many of the difficulties when their children are older. That doesn't help those who have older children today.
Different set of circumstances, but I told my son that the one overriding goal is for him to become a productive member of society who can earn his own living and manage the tasks needed for living outside of Mom & Dad's house. Because the professional assessment showed there were certain skills that needed to develop in order for that goal to be met, as long as he was under 18, he needed to be involved with professionals who could help us.
If you haven't yet got a sense for the goals the counselor has set and what he is doing- generally- in sessions to meet those goals, you may need to have a sit down with this person and have him help you understand his plan and come up with language to use with your son.
Another thought: your son only has 2 years or less until he is a legal adult. Do you see him being able to function as an independent adult at some point? If not, you'll need to address those issues. Also, do you have any plan for the development of occupational skills? It sounds like you'll need to develop a plan to help him develop skills and it may need to include services that the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation in your state can provide. Perhaps the person who made your son's diagnosis and/or his current counselor could help you think through those issues. You don't have much longer to get a plan together so now is the time to think about it, even if your son seems to think it's not an issue.
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Continuing to pray for your recovery. Lots of fluids, healthy, high iron foods, and protein for tissue repair. Make sure you are resting and allowing others to do what needs to be done: cleaning, cooking, etc, etc. You will recover more quickly if you are strict about focusing on your healing.
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I am so sorry to hear about Faithmanor and her son! I pray that they are home soon and heal quickly.
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With Bookscan, you purchase the textbook you want scanned and send it in to their facility and pay a fee. They cut the book apart, scan all the pages, and send the PDF to your Dropbox. The remnants go into paper recycling and you do not get the textbook back. Essentially you are paying an additional fee for a PDF version of your printed textbook, but it would be worth it to us depending on the book.
It's definitely something to keep in mind for a book that's not already available in digital format.
Since my son is a STEM major and has a lot of his gen eds out of the way, he won't be reading many more works of literature for school. However, when he does have to read something, he often gets it on Audible, if it's available, because he likes listening to the professional readers.
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But as far as I can tell, 99% of what is not available on Learning Ally is available on Bookshare and with the VoiceDream app, can be read that way. Also, you can now use Bookscan.us and transfer any text to PDF, that can then be imported through Dropbox to VoiceDream. So really there should be minimal problems with getting books on text to speech if you have a iPad that will run VoiceDream (hopefully it will be compatible with other devices soon too).
So how does Bookscan.us actually work?
My son was already in high school by the time we learned we could use Learning Ally and Bookshare. At that point, very few of his textbooks were actually already available on either service. The few that were available on Bookshare had to be secured through a school and he didn't want to deal with his school over it. Mostly though, he wasn't in the habit of using technology and his school discouraged him from using any 504 accommodations, so we never overcame the barriers to using either of these services.
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Well, when the psychologist makes a statement like that, you really know it's true. I know it's hard to think of putting a 5yo on meds, but you have certainly done well at trying all your other options. I hope meds really do make a difference for your little one.
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He hasn't seen a neurologist yet, the appt is for four weeks from now. Since there was no swelling or bleeding, and the small'ish fracture, they wanted to wait to see how the fracture healed. Should I call and raise hell to get him in there quicker. We see the pediatrician on thursday, or friday, I can't remember right now. It's scary, his best friend had a concussion in November, and is still dealing with the headache.
He is saying that his headache is exactly the same, but he's out of his room a lot more, and is a lot more talkative this evening than in the past. I'd like to believe that means it's getting better, or maybe he's just getting used to it.
Ack, it seems like I cannot add a hyperlink to a webpage w/o losing my entire post. I'll just be brief this time.
If my son were exhibiting your son's symptoms coming up on 2 weeks post injury, I would be calling a concussion clinic ASAP to ask about their guidelines for referral to their clinic and what is considered best practice for activity during the recovery period. Such clinics are most typically found in university or other major medical centers. It sounds like you have a referral to a general neurosurgeon, maybe regarding the fracture, rather than a concussion specialist? If that's the case, it might not be what you need now for getting good guidelines for recovery.
Here is a link to an info sheet which suggests a concussion clinic consult when symptoms last longer than 5-7 days post injury: http://www.childrensnational.org/files/PDF/DepartmentsandPrograms/Neuroscience/Neuropsychology/SCORE/Instructions_for_Families_after_a_Concussion.pdf
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abdesigns, is your son being seen by a neurologist who is a head trauma/concussion specialist? If he's not being followed by a head trauma specialist, I would get him into a clinic that has one and follow their recommendations. Rest- including mental rest is absolutely essential to recovery. Also, if you get into a clinic, you'll be able to have a team approach to care, which typically includes care for emotional adjustment during recovery.
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Elizabeth, just another comment on rapid naming. There is another test besides the CTOPP that some evaluators use called the RAN/RAS. It can be used starting at age 5. I just mention it because some evaluators prefer it & will use it instead of the rapid naming section of the CTOPP.
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Elizabeth, if I were making the decision for my child, I'd go for it. If you feel confident that you've got an evaluator who can truly handle the 2E piece and who isn't wedded to one particular diagnostic category then you're probably in a good position to do the eval now. You're struggling with behaviors you don't have a good handle on and you're feeling frustrated because you don't have strategies for dealing with them. That tells me that waiting may not be the most helpful for your situation.
As for phonemic awareness assessment, the CTOPP 2 is now available and is listed for use from age 4, rather than age 6. Two other tests that could be used would be the LAC-3 from Lindamood Bell (from age 5) and the Phonological Awareness Test 2 (from age 5). I'm not as familiar with those two, but I don't think they have any rapid naming component.
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Cheryl
homeschooling mom to adopted boy/girl twins with autism, processing difficulties, learning disabilities, coordination delays, & severe mental illness
Simply Classical: A Beautiful Education for Any Child
Welcome, Cheryl. I have seen your book recommended here and it's on my reading list for someday in the hopefully not too distant future. I'm taking grad classes right now so most of my current reading (special needs issues) is prescribed for me, but I do want to read your book.
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Did you mention somewhere else about getting a neuropsych assessment? If so, did that happen or is it coming up soon?
What are your daughter's specific challenges? How well is she reading? Can she use phonics concepts to help her decode new words? If she struggles with this, it's a clue that she may be dyslexic, which is common amongst those with dysgraphia. What signs of dysgraphia have you noted? Does she have fine motor difficulties that extend across the board (ie cutting food, using scissors, tying shoes, doing buttons & snaps)? Or does she seem to have more difficulty with remembering how to form letters? Is she having difficulty organizing thoughts to write a paragraph- even if she dictates the sentences for you to write? There are a variety of difficulties that fall under the umbrella of dysgraphia, so it would be helpful to know a)whether she has been assessed yet and b) what aspects of written language are tripping her up.
That said, if one of the difficulties is fine motor and letter formation, she can practice spelling words using letter tiles. All About Spelling has letter tiles included in the materials for their program. AAS is an Orton-Gillingham based spelling program, which has helped a lot of mildly dyslexic students. Students who may be more severely dyslexic often need a program that moves even slower, such as Barton, though I'm not sure I'd do a full Barton program if she is reading well enough. Back again, to the idea of assessment and what it shows as your daughter's needs.
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People with dyslexia typically have difficulties with rote memorization....just as others ahead of me have said about their children, my children with dyslexia have had difficulties with memorizing days of the week, months of the year, math facts, and the like. Just repeating them over and over doesn't work. However, dyslexic people often have strong memories for narrative. They do much better with story telling, especially getting the big picture, more so than details of a story. Creating a story from facts is one strategy that can help.
Dyslexic people also tend to be strong at making associations. So, associating one piece of information with another and creating a visual to go with it, can really help. For learning the months of the year, creating calendars and drawing pictures of a key holiday or season change can help. People tend to connect emotionally with seasons and holidays. Things with an emotional connection tend to get remembered more, so tying the name of the month to the holiday in that month can help children gradually come to remember that month's name.
I second the recommendation to find curriculum that respects the way your child's brain is wired to learn. I wish I had better understood that when my son was 6yo. I could have saved him a lot of frustration. Some ideas from classical education were helpful for us, such as doing history chronologically in a roughly 4 year cycle. However, especially in younger years, we focused on the "story" part of history, rather than memorizing of little details. Keeping a timeline was helpful, but we used timeline figures rather than just writing words. We did map work which was tied to the history we were reading. Other ideas were not so helpful- especially those that focused on learning things in minute detail early in life.
In any case, dyslexic students learn best through multi-sensory methods, which means that the more senses you can involved in the learning process- auditory, visual, kinesthetic (touch & movement), even smell & taste in some instances, the more easily the child can learn. Repetition is important, but not rote repetition. Repetition through presenting ideas in multiple formats is helpful.
The last thought to leave you with is that these kids are late bloomers in many aspects of formal academics, especially reading and writing. That doesn't mean that we don't consistently teach them, but it is important to keep in mind that with consistent multi-sensory teaching, these students learn those skills but they tend to reach their highest achievement a little later in life than the typical person. It's best not to compare a dyslexic child against her peers in that respect. She may be every bit as intelligent- or even more- than those around her, but will often not appear to be so in the younger years. Encourage her by telling her that she has a good brain but it is a brain that learns differently from the brains belonging to many of her friends.
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Re: no 1-page summaries of important syllabus info:
It appears that administrators who make such policies have never engaged with the ideas in Universal Design for Learning, which is a set of principles for creating classrooms that are accessible to all, or at least most, learners. Students with reading or other learning disabilities are highly unlikely to tackle an 18pg syllabus- especially if it's in 10 or 11 point font and lots of information squished on the page will little formatting or white space. If they are motivated students, they may glance through it once, but truthfully, with other reading and assignments starting immediately, their eyes tend to glaze over and it gets tossed aside.
A 1-page document with assignment dates and other critical information may feel redundant to administrators but if well-formatted becomes an alternate format which makes it easier for students to pull information from to plug into calendars, contact lists, etc.
Something that has helped my son even more is to have due dates posted prominently on Blackboard, either on the first page seen when the student accesses the course webpage or on an assignments tab. I am taking online courses right now. I download the long syllabus, read it, and save it to a folder for future reference if needed. However, all assignments & due dates are posted prominently on the first page seen when I log into the course. BIG help for a busy woman handling sandwich generation responsibilities, volunteer responsibilities, and trying to get back into the workforce.
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In the case of two of my children, parent/family orientation activities took place during the first one or two days right around drop-off. The students then go through several days of orientation activities prior to the start of classes. That's when the students get to do their initial bonding with other students and find out about their departments and various campus services. My middle child's school did orientation early in the summer, and offered a parent program that was completely separate from the student event. In all cases, these parent programs are/were optional, so it's up to the parents to decide if they want/need to attend.
Rivendellmom, hindsight is 20/20, but if you didn't want to sit in those sessions, you could easily have bugged out and no one would have cared.
I will say that I took advantage of opportunities to meet special program and departmental personnel when they were available, such as at receptions for the program, music department concerts, etc. Establishing a basic "hi, how are you?" kind of relationship with these professors proved to be helpful a couple of times when I needed advice on how to handle a special situation that came up. I wasn't handling the situation for student, but I was able to get information about ways it could be handled within school policy so I could better coach the student on what steps needed to be taken.
Comparisons? Math U See vs Life of Fred; Barton vs Saxon vs LiPS
in The Learning Challenges Board
Posted
You describe your son as having a diagnosis of "severe" dyslexia and dysgraphia. In your situation, I would go for a full Orton Gillingham program, either Barton (which has the teacher training built in) or Wilson, using LiPS if the Barton screening indicates it's needed.
When my son was young, I knew he was dyslexic and dysgraphic but for reasons not relevant to this post, I was unable to get him fully evaluated until he was much older. I had to muddle along as best I could. I was already using some curriculum with an O-G based phonics progression and added some O-G elements based on what I could find in online descriptions, but I didn't have the full O-G training. Barton may have been available at the time I started, but it was really hard to locate resources and I didn't hear about Barton until my son was already reading.
If I had it to do all over again, I would go for the full Orton Gillingham program, not just a program that introduces phonics concepts in a similar fashion. The standard curriculum just moved way too fast for my son and frustrated him to no end. It also didn't have multi-sensory elements and I had to add them myself, so I don't think I was able to scaffold the instruction in a way that was as helpful to my son as it could have been.