[Which Vintage E-text Grammar book for those who delay until 4th or 5th grade?]

We are Charlotte Mason homeschoolers, so we don't study formal grammar until 10 or so years of age.

 

I was/am totally inspired by this thread: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=157186, but most of the suggestions are for younger aged children. I'm wondering if any vintage grammar textbook geeks :D out there have a suggestion for an older child beginning to study grammar.

 

I have Simply Grammar by Andreola/Mason. I'm really not enjoying it, which surprises me because I adore Andreola and Mason, but I'm not clicking with it and my son really doesn't like it. We're only on Lesson 3 and it asks the child to make 42 sentences with Noun subjects (it gives specifics on which type of nouns) and then it asks to repeat the exercise making 2 sentences with different nouns for the subjects.

 

Really? I find it totally uninspiring. My son has difficulty concentrating on sit-down work (unless it's reading) and this feels like drill and kill to me. I personally find the directions confusing.

 

I would love to know your favorite vintage E-texts for older children. I adore the subject matter, artwork and general vibe of the old-fashion books.

 

Feel free to throw out suggestions for other vintage books for older or younger children: Spelling, composition, etc. I'll save them for future reference...I've also got a 4 and 6 yr old. I've learned so much on this forum by lurking the past couple years.

 

Thank you SO much for your input.:grouphug:

[For all you baby wearers out there, which sling or carrier do you like best?]

I skimmed the first few responses and there were many Ergo recommendations. I LOVE my Ergo and have used it for almost 7 years with 2 boys, but I wouldn't recommend it for a newborn. I use my ergo until my kids are about 4 and even longer when their little legs get tired. I don't use a stroller and prefer to babywear. I used it once they can comfortably hold their head/upper bodies up. I know there is some sort of newborn insert, but it doesn't look comfy to me.

 

That said, I would recommend a stretchy wrap for the first 5-ish months. It's a narrow piece of fabric that is several yards long.

 

The kind I used was made of cotton jersey, but it's no longer in production. There are others out there that are similar. I could nurse in it which was a huge bonus. I was able to leave it wrapped on me and pop him in and out as needed for errands (no dragging that huge "portable" car seat into the store) and around the house. It left both of my hands free to hold hand with my 3 yr old and 7 yr old at the time.

 

There are many different ways to wrap. It's both extremely flexible and a little overwhelming. I used something called cross-front wrap (can't remember the exact name). I loved the information available at the babywearer forums.

 

I liked my mei tai when they were bigger and stronger.

 

Good luck and congrats on your decision to wear your babe.

 

If you have any more questions, feel free to PM me.

[Any other parents of kids getting/needing Vision Therapy?]

Thanks for your input!

 

Is there anyone else out there who has dealt with Vision Therapy?

[Any other parents of kids getting/needing Vision Therapy?]

I haven't posted to this special needs board, but I think I need to start spending some time reading here.

 

Background: I have a dh with Adult ADD (who is an extremely gifted physician and surgeon) and our oldest newly 11 yr old son is walking in his footsteps (struggling with schoolwork, behaves the same as dh did when he was a kid, etc). Just based on criteria used to diagnose ADD, he's there.

 

He is a quiet, thinker-type who can sink into his play for hours and hours (Lego building, digging in the dirt, etc). He tends towards low energy. He loves to read.

 

He has a couple sensory issues...nothing big, but has been seeing an OT for the past year for help with focusing on schoolwork (poor handwriting, poor spelling, difficulty completing tasks). We take a pretty relaxed approach and so he's not being inundated with "sit down, formal" schoolwork. We are also school using Charlotte Mason principals.

 

Last week, we went to a renowned developmental optometrist for a developmental eye exam and consultation. She found that our son has only a 25% function on focus range and flexibility (the ability to adjust from near to far and the ability to do it quickly and accurately). In other words, he's tired before he starts. :-(

In addition, his tracking is stuttered and not smooth. Can you imagine not being able to focus from near to far easily and quickly and how that might affect activities of daily living and schoolwork? :confused: Poor guy.

 

So...the recommendation is vision therapy. We have to drive an hour one way and pay out of pocket for it, which is a major bummer. She says his issues are re-trainable. I'm happy to know that and hopeful, but also wondering if anyone else has experiences with it.

 

I'm also wondering how the ADD symptoms play into this. Is it the chicken or the egg, so to speak? She says that gifted-ness is often covered up when there are vision problems. Kids that she sees with his issues tend to be strong in math and sciences. She thinks he's a visual-spatial learner, which I've also suspected, so it was nice to see my thoughts verified.

 

I don't even know where to begin on the whole visual-spacial thing. I'm sure that's another thread...or several. :)

 

Has anyone else has experiences with vision therapy? Positive? Negative?

 

FYI: These books were sent home from the doctor:

 

When Your Child Struggles: The Myths of 20/20 Vision by Cook

The Mislabeled Child: How understanding your child's unique learning style can open the door to success by Eide.

 

Thanks!

[My son was killed in a car accident this weekend...]

I'm sending out prayers for you and your family.

 

I'm so sorry for your loss.

 

:grouphug:

 

Amy

[Does anyone regret using Teaching Textbooks?]

Thank you so much for your input! :D

 

I like that you used different programs and both tested similarly. This was exactly the kind of input I was hoping for.

 

I'm still a little worried about the strength of the program. DS leans heavily toward the sciences and comes by it naturally - I'm an RN and DH is a physician, but as you stated, not all careers need tons of math. I just don't want to short-change him.

 

What "stronger" programs are out recommended for "mathy" kids? I'd like to be thorough in my research, but I'm still thinking TT will work well for him.

[Does anyone regret using Teaching Textbooks?]

After having gone through their program (or part of it), I'm wondering if anyone wishes they would have used something else.

 

I'm getting conflicting reports of it's strength as a math program upon searching old threads.

 

I've got a son (10) who struggles with ADD-ish issues. I don't use the term lightly and don't follow the argument that all boys struggle with it. He's seeing an OT for it. He has always easily grasped all math concepts presented, but is behind because he has difficulty concentrating on written work.

 

We are have used Right Start Math from the beginning. It's so teacher intensive (I've got 2 younger boys, as well). It has given him a fabulous foundation. For that, I'm thrilled, but we're lagging.

 

We use a Charlotte Mason approach to learning and the lesson time for Right Start is getting longer and longer as it goes up in level, which doesn't fall in line with our goals.

 

Why am I looking at Teaching Textbooks? Well...he LOVES and thrives on anything computer-related. It captures his attention better than sitting down at a desk with a math book.

 

Some folks here are saying that TT is not for those "strong" in math. It's for "average" math students. Well...what else is there out there for those who enjoy math, but can't concentrate on lots of worksheet problems? My son loves math...just can't focus on worksheets and drill and kill. :confused: He can read for hours upon hours, though. :001_huh:

 

I appreciate any thoughts.

 

Thanks so much! :)

 

Amy