mymommy1
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Posts posted by mymommy1
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Monica in Switzerland, we stopped A&P because I didn't feel like it was working well enough.
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No coal raking from me. He can rhyme now, but not then. Knows half of all his tables, counts on his fingers, etc. Still struggles to tie his shoes. That's why we did the testing; I always expected dyslexia (and ADHD). The same person did all the testing (a psychiatrist). Her actual reply was that with his ADD so high, the test could not indicate dyslexia. If we wanted, we could retest him medicated to see if it was really there.
Do you have an OG program that you like better than others?
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ucf612, thanks for the reminder. I've listened to that talk. We aren't to Phonetic Zoo level yet, as it starts after AAS3 or so. It does have to do with his sequencing and greatly with working memory because he has ADD. His short term memory is horrible, and his long term for things like math facts and spelling words is not much better. The words he can spell are the ones that he had in LOTS of lessons.
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JanOH, we are working on studied dictation right now and have tried just copywork before. He can read the section, see the words, then write them wrong. Just 2 or 3 at a time. We are working with Spelling Wisdom right now. Does Modern Speller organize the words by sounds or anything?
Thanks, Ellie! I think our library has that book, so it's worth looking at.
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Sbgrace, so glad to know I'm not alone! Yes, A&P was working to the extent that once a word had been on the lessons for a while, he'd learn it. He did make gains.
Thanks for describing your system. I'll think about that.
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Thanks for the replies! I'll look at all of those. Ellie, what would I need for Spalding?
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My DS 11 is going into sixth and can't spell. He can do basic words from programs he remembers, but "what" is STILL "whut".
He has had trouble with spelling and physical writing, so we are behind. We have done AAS 1 and 2 and A&P A completely. We've tried Sequential Spelling a long time ago and Natural Speller. If he writes a word enough times, it will transfer to his writing. I stopped AAS because it wasn't transferring to dictation.
Also, he had a full battery of evals and is not dyslexic. His reading and logic are way over grade, but all skills are below. He is very ADD.
Ideas about what to try or do to make progress?
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Also, my boys loved the Thornton Burgess Animal Book and others at that age and still now. They are on Librivox for free.
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My Father's World did have an animal per week or such in their K curriculum. I did that with my son, and he enjoyed it.
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Oh, another note. At least one other professor, older than me, said alternate base systems (not just binary) where taught to all children when he went to school in the 70's. Of course, they also learned to take square roots and logs without calculators.
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The joy of binary or other bases is realizing that not everyone used a base 10 system. If you or your children are interested in different number systems, there are a couple of books I've used with my kids and math ed classes: How to Count Like A Martian by Glory St. John (old) and (newer) The History of Counting by Denise Schmandt-Besserat. There are Egyptian, Mayan, Babylonian, and other systems.
When I do this with my college elementary ed majors, they seem to do best when we revert to snap cubes and place value charts.
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bibiche, did you use MEP the whole time or start later? I've used it a few times and did like it. Many things I tried with my oldest who struggles with math, and then didn't think to try them again with the younger. Honestly, I'm just getting the oldest figured out enough (LD things) that I can focus on ds2 now. He would be somewhere in grade 3 area.
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Epicurean, I do hope I didn't upset you. Most college text cost too much, especially since they don't change much. In courses that I can actually pick the book, I always make a cheaper choice, like $54 instead of $210. I'm just an instructor, so I don't always get to choose. In those classes, we search Amazon the first day to see what deals we can get. Usually, they have very good prices compared to the bookstore. My brother is a big pusher of OpenStax texts at his university. Those are free.
We did find a precal text for $54 for next year, and surprisingly, the other textbook company offered to cut their price by about 70% to try to keep our business. Hopefully, we will be seeing more and more lower price options in the next years.
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Thank you for your replies. I certainly didn't mean to imply that BA was overpriced, just that it would use a good portion of my homeschool budget. Most things we use are from the library, but math is harder to source like that. I know the math in BA is great or I wouldn't consider it.
I bought all of MM on sale last year because my oldest did not do well with BA or SM, and it was a great price. I kept them both in the same program to save money and added Zacarro for the younger one. I had also bought that for my oldest and ended up not using it. So, maybe it's more that there are so many things out there - some cheaper, some more, some better, some harder, etc. I just wondered what you would put your money in now if you are past my stage.
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My almost 8 year old is finishing 2nd grade and MM3. He has enjoyed BA some and Zaccaro Primary Grade Challenge Math from time to time as well. My question is what supplements or main curriculum do you think gave you the most bang for your buck.
I would just go with BA, but the price is a bit steep, not bad, but close. I am a college math teacher, so I can adapt some, but like having elementary level things planned out. I'm think along the lines of keeping MM going to cover the bases but want something for fun and challenge. Is Beast Academy worth the time and money to finish all the levels he has left? Just a couple Zaccaro books? Penrose the cat books? HOE? What has been the best return for your investment?
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Most of the math books through Pearson have MyMathLab with captioned videos. Are Khan videos captioned?
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You might look at Primary Challenge Math as a break from BA for a bit. Do the easier levels of each unit or the ones that interest her. What about possibly subbing in some logic work instead for a while since she is so far ahead? Games or books like Logic Liftoff or something.
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I totally get what you are saying about it just being too hard. The mountain is too tall to even start. He kept telling me school was too hard and boring. I knew that was a problem, so we went for testing. I do think there might be something auditory beyond inattention happening (his Wj-IV in phonological processing was 67 - 1 percentile). I'll run it by my aunt and whoever else I can to get some more details, but I think the spelling is beyond his reach, even at this level.
Today we did 2 ml (10 mg) of Quillivant and that was enough. I didn't have to call him more than once to get his attention at all. He followed a 4 step request (1 was the top). He did his multistep math problem alone without doodling all over the page. At the same time, his appetite is there, as well as creativity. After playing the Ticket to Ride app OhElizabeth recommended, he made his own paper version of the game. Instead of typing, he starting composing a story on his Kindle. He loves the auto-fill choice.
Thanks again!
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MistyMountain, what kind of computer game do you use for working memory? I tried one a couple years ago where he was to watch the screen and push a button when he saw a certain butterfly or something. He got so distracted during the game; he never made progress!
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My DH aunt is a diagnostician, so I'll have her go over the report again with me and brainstorm. When you say "in reach" do you mean bring the scores up or take his daily work down to where he is? He is behind in everything but science, history, and reading, but making steady slow progress.
I'm a math teacher, so we do all math together. I think his difficulty came in learning facts and my thinking he had to have them down to move on. We are over that; he has a times chart. He gets the concepts well. He did a 2-digit multiplication today without my help.
He is supposed to finish his 6 main lessons to play Minecraft. Even at that, he fights. I'll check into EF skills, metronome, and Ticket to Ride. We like to play Monopoly, cheese, and other games.
Thank you so much for all your input!
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I'm doing some fun stuff with him right now using the kindle for composition. This morning we made an acrostic for "Groundhog" hehe, which was fun. I want to reinforce that the technology (which he absolutely must have) is good and valid, so that has become part of our routine. I use a card labeled "Writing" from our visual schedule kit, and we dictate things into the Kindle.
Will you share how you do this?
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To play-off what OhElizabeth said, I'd ditch the History/Geography and play SOTW (or similar) while in the car or while she plays. Then just talk some about each chapter to help her comprehension, not specific questions, just discussion or you telling your favorite part. My son listened to the same audios over and over at that age.
My boys love Stack the States and the Geopuzzles and learn for more from it than workbooks. We do have them do Stack the State or Countries with maps at their side and help them answer some. You could even play that in waiting rooms.
If you have a kindle or such, TowerMath is great for kids who are quick with numbers. Well, at least boys, so check it first.
Is she your only child to homeschool? I sold good curriculum because they didn't work for my oldest non-NT child. Now my second and third could really use those things. If she is your only, sell it and get what she needs.
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*Update* We received our eval report last week. Overwhelmingly, it was ADD-inattentive. She did not see any learning disabilities beyond inattention. His IQ and achievement scores were average to very low, except in reading, global concepts (I can't remember the actual name), and logic, where he was average to above average. She observed that he was inconsistent and unable to pay attention during the tests, probably causing his scores to be low. Also, there were some issues with behavior, attitude toward school, executive skills, etc. (He has always been hs.)
Her recommendations were:
1. medication for inattention - We started melatonin a few weeks before and see benefit from a small amount, so we will continue that as needed. We are also going back to less processed-foods. (When I went back to work, I quit cooking as much.) And, after talking to his doctor, we are trying the liquid Quillivant. We are starting with a very low dose on only "school" days. Today was day one, and he did his work faster, maybe.
2. Change in schooling, like to computer - She felt it would help take the stress off the parent-child relationship since he struggles so with his work. We are changing his plan some. We are sticking with Apples and Pears because he is finally learning to spell and it covers enough handwriting and grammar for now. We do 5 problems or 15 minutes of math from MM or LOF. I added back daily art - drawing, architecture, clay, appreciation, etc. For history and science, he will pick books and read from them daily, exploring any project ideas he thinks of. We do lots of audio books, and I read-aloud as I can.
3. Using reward chart type things to improve motivation - We are trying, but hmmm, I don't know. Getting him motivated or started on something like A&P is hard. He will fight it all day for 15 minutes of work!
I'd love ideas on how to improve motivation, starting, attitude.
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Remediate Spelling
in K-8 Curriculum Board
Posted
CatholicMom, thank you for the suggestion. I think that's worth a try. I had phonics in school, but distinctly remember spelling being so hard! I was an A student otherwise, but I didn't really catch on to spelling till high school and college when I had to type so many papers. Even now, I choose words based on if I can spell them. I can learn the rules, but my problem is deciphering the sounds to decide which rule to use. I think a sight word book is worth a try even along with the other suggestions. At least he might learn "what"!
Also, she didn't refuse to do the test. He had the complete battery of tests for IQ, achievement, LD, gifted, etc that they offer. According to all the results, he does not have an LD. The reason being, the tests showed he is working at his level. There was not the discrepancy in achievement and IQ to indicate gifted or LD. (I think I explained that correctly.) She thought that the test would be more accurate in IQ, LD, gifted, etc. if his ADD was being treated. He was not able to hold his attention to the test and showed many inconsistencies normal with ADHD. She felt with meds that would go away, and the results might change.