My 9yo dd was just diagnosed with Asperger's (which I've suspected for 5 years). "Not knowing" all this time, I've just plugged ahead with what worked for my oldest dd (neurotypical, possibly gifted, definitely advanced). I've had to make tons of allowances and alterations but that's kind of the point of homeschooling--tweaking to make it work!! So... We use Zaner-Bloser for handwriting. My dd had lots of reversals (in letters and numbers) and we used Dianne Craft's Brain Integration techniques...the writing eight exercise really helped cement proper directionality (and the "cheat sheet" is still taped to the wall in front of dd's desk). She does NOT learn handwriting (or much of anything) by seeing it demonstrated. When I started teaching cursive it wasn't enough to show her or for her to see the little arrows...I actually had to hand-over-hand guide her...but once she "felt" how to make the letters she could do it. (This happens with learning to swim, too--she needs an instructor who can put her body through the motions and then she can consciously take over). For reading, I used Phonics Pathways. It was nightmarish. I started "late" (age 6) and every time we got to three letter, c-v-c words, she hit a wall. We started PP from the beginning three times and finally, by the time she was 7 1/2, she got through the book. (By that time I had started it with my ds, who "got it" and soon read and spelled better than dd). For math, we use Saxon (primarily because *I* like the program). Dd needs LOTS of repetition and LOTS of manipulatives and LOTS of time to do math. Math facts and skip counting are laborious but necessary to keep repeating or she won't retain them. So...just about every time we get in the car she practices skip-counting (by evens, odds, fives, sevens, fours, threes, tens, etc.). We keep doing the flash cards even though she doesn't "get it" that 3+7 is the same as 7+3; to her they are two completely different facts and she so doing flash cards is like having a million different facts even though really there are only half that many. :) I need to make it "more visual" for her and use right-brain teaching strategies but I haven't gotten around to it. If skip counting/math facts can be linked to something "real" her abilities are much better...for example, ask her what three times five is and she'll struggle, but if you remind her it's like counting nickels or how many minutes past the hour is it if the minute hand is pointing to the three and she can tell you the answer is fifteen. She will be allowed to use manipulatives for as long as she needs to. I have her do the fact sheets with a timer but she gets TWO scores--a "before the line" and an "after the line" score--because she has to draw a line after the problem she just finished when the timer rings. She is supposed to be able to do at least 15 problems in 45 seconds but she usually does between 6 and 11. Her answers are accurate but her processing time is miserably slow. Only ONCE has she ever completed a fact sheet within the time allowed. It would damage her self-esteem to "lose" every day so we concentrate on the "after the line" score. For spelling we use Spelling Workout (because it's what we have...but might not necessarily be the best for her). I am using some right-brain teaching strategies (helping her color-code the salient features of the spelling words) to help her. Spelling is a really weak area for her but she does okay with some extra help. I need to help her learn to create "pictures" about the words and then I think she'll do much better. For grammar I tried First Language Lessons but we were so bogged down with just learning to read we dropped it. Definitely a better choice than English for the Thoughtful Child, though! I do plan to use Rod and Staff grammar with her...when we get to that point. I intend to minimize the written work (possibly only doing worksheets to reduce copying from the book, which would be time-consuming and error-filled) after doing the textbook work orally. Language is a HUGE weakness (she struggles with names, word retrieval, sequencing, conjugating verbs, pluralization, multi-step directions...just about everything verbal is hard but written work is even worse so we'll try the oral approach!!). For history we use The Story of the World. The audio CDs, though extremely expensive, are an absolute life saver for us. This is because my dd does not retain auditory information well at all and needs things repeated endlessly (minimum of four times). There is no way I can read aloud that many times and her reading skills are lower than my seven-year-old's, so she cannot read the material herself. Plus, when she reads she does not process or comprehend... So we "preview" the story by listening to the audiobook several times BEFORE I read it aloud "in class." Then I have my dd and my ds take turns doing the first narration (based on the activity guide questions). This way, he models for her (he "gets it" more quickly) and she also gets a chance to "stretch" a little bit. We complete the worksheets with LOTS of oversight on my part. We are doing SOTW 1 and it's manageable; I think SOTW 2 will also be but I worry that SOTW 3 and SOTW 4 will be beyond her reach... For science...well, we haven't gotten to it much. It takes her two to four times longer to understand subject matter and complete the work. Plus, she's active and distractible (probably a little bit ADHD) and if I leave her unattended she stops working. One thing that helps is to remind myself that dd is 1-2 years behind emotionally and socially. Academically, she is also about a year behind. She language-tests 1-2 years behind so it is reasonable that she would not be where she should be based on chronological age. Gearing some of her work down to a first grade level (she is in third) where my ds is helps tremendously. If it takes her longer to complete something, fine. If she isn't ready for something yet, stop and try again later. If she does just "get" something (like patterns in math...there was one lesson I was just dreading teaching her and she "got" it instantly--I was shocked!!), go ahead and move on to the next thing (and acknowledge her gift in that thing). If we never get to some things, it's OKAY (I have struggled with accepting this one...you know, I had my plan and it was going to work!).

I ordered my set--WOW, what a savings!!

Anyone have suggestions? I've been browsing at Amazon looking for audio CDs of Shakespeare aimed at grammar/logic stage kids. Anyone have a favorite they could recommend? TIA

a book called Circle of Grace about a month ago while I was away from home. When I got home, I ended up putting it on hold because I wanted to know how it ended. The author is Penelope J. Stokes; she has several other books I haven't read. Have no idea if that's along the lines of what you're looking for but I enjoyed it. :) Definitely "gentle fiction" in my definition...

I used Dianne Craft's brain integration techniques with my middle child and among those was the Writing Eight exercise. I have used the Zaner-Bloser handwriting program with her (because that's what I had used with my oldest dd who didn't need handwriting help). My ds has mild low muscle tone and an intentional tremor. He has spent much of this school year in occupational therapy to address these issues. I brought him in for OT because the low muscle tone and tremor were affecting his handwriting. His OT teaches handwriting and uses Handwriting Without Tears. She started my ds on that program (even though at home he uses Zaner-Bloser...again because that's what I've always used--and when I bought the books for one child I bought for them all). The critical component of Writing Eights is to always start in the middle and go UP when making circles. When you did the Writing Eights, did you also do the alphabet? That is how we did the exercise...three journeys through the actual eight, followed by one letter (written while saying it out loud), followed by three journeys through the eight, followed by the next letter (written while saying it out loud). The imprinting of the directionality is what was critical for my middle child. She was forever starting her letters from the bottom and making her circles in the wrong direction. Her letters were often reversed (and in special-needs preschool she wrote her name mirror-image). The Writing Eights helped her correct the reversals and she has done fairly well with the "typical" style of handwriting program (ZB which, incidentally, is what our local public school uses). Like you with the ETC books, for quite some time after retraining her with the Writing Eights, I had to remind her "up the middle and around" (my verbal cue to get her to go UP the center of the eight) and we had to talk about which side of the "stem" of the letter had the curve. Also, to help her, I taped the Writing Eight alphabet to the wall in front of her desk as a "ready reference." For my son, HWT helped him to focus, through direct instruction, on controlling his hand/finger movements so the lines of his letters ended up where they were supposed to be (generally his handwriting was pretty good in that the letters were formed, for the most part, correctly). HWT breaks handwriting down into very manageable chunks and, like the writing eights, emphasizes the similarities between letters ("Magic C" letters, and so on). I would say either ZB or HWT would be good choices. My kids are all right-handed, though, and I'm not sure how much difference it would actually take. HWT required a lot more of me "standing over" my ds and repeating verbal directions so he would write his letters correctly. ZB was just practice in making letters the right way and felt less teacher (me!) intensive. If you feel the Writing Eights have addressed all your dc's handwriting issues, then a "practice" program like ZB would be all that is needed, IMO. If, however, you feel that your dc continues to need direct instruction in letter formation, then HWT might be a better choice. My ds is only 6 and even though he has used both programs (ZB and HWT) he hasn't seemed to suffer any "confusion" from utilizing two different methods. If your dc does not struggle with reconciling "new ways" to do things (like my middle child does...if she has learned it one way that is the ONLY way to do it, in her opinion--she has a hard time with change) I think either of the programs we have used would work just fine. Alternatively, you could "modify" instructions from any program as needed so they more closely resemble the things your dc has learned and now uses from the Writing Eights. HTH

http://www.adnstore.com/IBS/SimpleCat/Shelf/ASP/Hierarchy/0D07.html http://www.adnstore.com/IBS/SimpleCat/Product/asp/hierarchy/0D07/product-id/36885193.html It's the Alaska Moose calendar from the Anchorage Daily News. I buy one every year for myself, one for my mother, and one for my in-laws. Where we used to live we saw moose all. the. time. I miss that. :sad: Your kids made a good move... We learned to never get between a moose and her baby--very dangerous!

I am thinking of taking the kids to see a movie this week in the theater... Race to Witch Mountain or Bedtime Stories? They are mature 11, immature 9, and mature 6 (so maybe more like 12, 8, and 7???). The enjoyed Night at the Museum, Bolt, the original Witch Mountain movies, the Herbie movies, etc. Which would you choose? TIA

We've made some attempts in that direction... My two favorite cookbooks on the topic: The Vegan Family Cookbook http://www.amazon.com/Vegan-Family-Cookbook-Brian-Mccarthy/dp/1590560876/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1237097247&sr=1-1 (favorite recipe in here: Mexican Lasagna...easy to add/subtract from...I like to add extra beans and seasoning) and Tofu Cookery http://www.amazon.com/Tofu-Cookery-Anniversary-Louise-Hagler/dp/1570672202/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1237097204&sr=8-1 (favorite recipes in here: peanut butter pie and pumpkin pie--we substitute sweet potatoes for the pumpkin)

http://www.uniquetomatoseeds.com Even though it says tomatoes, she has other vegetables, too. She also has homemade "heirloom" soaps for sale. She's wonderful!

:tongue_smilie: Here's the summary for A Test of Love: Due to an ignorant misdiagnosis, a disabled little girl was institutionalized at the age of three, and subsequently spent her entire childhood in a hospital for the severely retarded. A caring therapist helped her to prove her intellectual capability. It is based on a book...an out of print book...trying to think of the title. Had to go to my VHS tape...the movie is based on Annie's Coming Out by Rosemary Crossley and Anne McDonald. http://www.amazon.com/Annies-Coming-Out-Rosemary-Crossley/dp/0140056882/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1236573599&sr=8-1

Not sure how to link...it was on the general board... http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=82805&highlight=flying

To this great list of movies, I have one more--A Test of Love (similar topic to The Miracle Worker). http://www.amazon.com/Test-Love-Angela-Punch-McGregor/dp/6300184005/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=video&qid=1236558377&sr=8-3

Always as katalaska...even though we don't live in Alaska anymore... I started lurking around the boards right after reading TWTM...so probably 2001?? I know we started "preschooling" that year with my oldest dd. I've been off and on the boards depending on where I've been in my life. Sometimes I've been really "needy" and asked a lot of questions. Sometimes I've responded to a lot of posts. Lately I'm back to periodic lurking...

We got the DVD "Evolution Running" and dh and I worked on technique. Even when I AM "running properly" I'm slow. It is discouraging. I hate to run "with" dh because it's not really running WITH him at all! He practically walks while I die alongside him...or else he takes off and I'm left feeling like I'm shuffling along. Ergh. Evolution Running was good as a DVD running "coach," though. I can run the 180 steps per minute but I still cover the distance slowly.

even after months of training, sprints alternating with distance, etc. etc. etc. I can do a 5k in an hour. Seriously. I am realllllllly slow. Even when I feel like I'm going fast, I am slow. I also struggle to run outside (exercise-induced asthma). So my running is almost entirely indoors on the treadmill (when I'm not suffering from plantar fasciitis as I have been for the past 10 months). Dh runs about twice as fast as I do. He's not that much taller, his legs aren't that much longer, and while he does weigh less than I do the speed difference was the same when we both were at the same weight. I'm just slow. I can't seem to get any faster, either. At least now I know I'm not alone! :tongue_smilie: