I use Typing Instructor also. I have both the Kids and Deluxe version, but so far my children have only used the Kids version (ages 10 & 12). When my son (the 12 year old) learned the finger placement, I would have him type out the alphabet 5 times and then some Bible verses.

I homeschool through a public charter school which follows the classical education model. California State standards say that students should be learning American History in 5th grade (at least I think that's what the state standards say! I could be wrong) but in our school we are learning Modern World History for all grades. If a public charter school can do that, I don't think there should be any problem for a private homeschooler if they choose to teach something other than the state standards.

I've only been homeschooling for 2 years, my kids were in public school before that. One thing they did at the school was word sorts. When they received the list of words at the beginning of the week, they had to sort them into categories of similar spelled words. However, at no time did I see them learn any particular spelling rules, just memorization. I am using Barton (OG method) with my daughter because she is dyslexic and it thoroughly covers the spelling rules. She is good at remembering the rules (I keep the spelling rules page in front of her when she is working), so she spells better than her 7th grade brother. He is an advanced learner, but has only relied on memorization to learn spelling, so even though he can easily score 100% on his spelling tests, his everyday spelling is awful! I'm thinking about using the Barton with him, just so he can learn the rules (although I don't know if that will help him). I'm starting level 4 in Barton with my daughter, and one thing they utilize at that level is a Franklin Spelling Ace. If the child is unsure about the spelling of a word, he can use that to check it.

I've always seen tutors in the library. In fact, some libraries in my area have small rooms that tutors can reserve. I would think that libraries would encourage learning!

Thanks! That's what I was thinking, but since I hadn't used the curriculum before, I wanted to be sure

:lurk5:

I'm trying to figure out what level of WWE to start my 5th grade dyslexic daughter on. Her dyslexia is pretty mild, so she performs pretty well. We used K12 curriculum for the past 2 years - it was intense on the writing and I had to sit with her and help her with every single sentence. I want her to be able to coherently put together a paragraph (or even a few paragraphs) without my constant guidance. She is currently using the Barton system to help with reading and writing. I was thinking of starting her on level 4, but am afraid it might be too hard for her. Any thoughts?

My son is entering 7th grade. I am going to use Writing Strands with him this year (we had previously used K12 curriculum). Should I start him at level 3 or level 4? Their website suggests starting at level 3 unless the child is over 6th grade and likes to write, in which case you should start at level 4. He hates to write, but is good at it (he is an advanced learner). I was thinking level 3 would not give him enough of a challenge. Does anyone have experience with these levels and can give me advice?

I'd like to know also! I'm going to be using it for my 7th grade son next year.

I used K12 (cava) and liked it. There tends to be a lot of writing in 6th grade and above, so if your child doesn't like to write, that could be problem.

I take care of the inside and he is in charge of the garage, cars, outside. We're teaching the kids to clean, so that is reducing my workload :001_smile: He willingly helps inside, but has been working alot lately, so I don't want to put that added stress on him right now.

I'm going to try Winston Grammar with my dyslexic 10yo. I asked my son (12 years old) if he wanted to do it also (Winston Grammar Advanced), he said "No, it looks too much like Barton" (his sister is doing Barton right now).

Our kids enjoy Sea World!!!!!! There is a Wahoo's near by with great fish tacos at a very affordable price! Seaport village is very nice as well. Should have great weather and crowds should be down.

I've been using Barton since April. My daughter (entering 5th grade) is just finishing level 3. It's nice because it uses the colored tiles which helps the hands on learner. Every time they learn a new spelling rule, it is added to a sheet which the student can look at as they're working. It has worked well with us. I agree with LizzyBee that you should contact Susan Barton and see if she thinks this program would be good for your son (Susan is very good about helping with questions).

My daughter (dyslexic) prefers to write on the whiteboard, and my son (advanced) does well with oral lessons - writing it down is boring for him and he retains it if we go over it orally. I think it depends on the child's learning style which one works better. I agree that HWT is an excellent curriculum - stick with that and your child should do fine :001_smile:

Ha, Ha - my son pronounced Socrates that way this year! And he had to do an oral report on Archimedes (he really struggled through that, even though I repeatedly told him how it was pronounced!)

I did the orientations also. They did help with navigating the OLS :001_smile:

I was told by the teacher going into K12 to "teach to the objective". Look at what the child is supposed to learn for that lesson and then it is up to you how they learn it. You can use what they give you, or if you have something else you want to do, go for it! In CAVA (California), they didn't require the elluminates, so my kids never did them. They preferred to do their work at their own pace. I did attend a "community day" once a week where their teachers taught some of the math and language arts lessons. It was a good source of support, as I was able to talk to other parents every week and figure out the best way to teach the kids.

My 7th grade son works at an advanced level does this and also his spelling is awful (yet he easily gets 100% on all his spelling tests!). It drives me crazy! My dyslexic 5th grade daughter is working on the Barton spelling system and I think I'm going to have my son go through the spelling rules on that (my daughter would have been able to figure out the correct way to pronounce "concerning" since in the Barton system they are taught that "c" makes the "k" sound except when followed by "e, i, y" in which case it makes the "s" sound)

Now I'm thinking that I should use Winston instead of FLL (since it is only grammar, I'll still use WWE in addition to it). I like the idea of having the different color cards. That's similar to what Barton does with the different colored tiles to teach spelling.

Thanks! I have a friend who will be using Winston, so I may be checking that out also.

I'm not familiar with AAS but my daughter (5th grade) is doing Barton. It's a good program, but if your son is reading at grade level and doing well on his current AAS program which he likes, I'd say just to keep doing what you're doing. The spelling will catch up (unless you notice that he starts struggling with it increasingly). I have a 7th grader who is an advanced learner and his spelling is awful - but he's always passed every spelling test easily! (I've actually considered pulling out the Barton for him!)

I use the Barton reading and spelling system. It's great for teaching children how to spell. My dyslexic daughter just finished level 3 and is spelling better than the rest of the family! (Spelling rules start in level 3, but you need levels 1 and 2 as a foundation) The down side is that it is a bit pricey - we bought ours on ebay to save on costs.

I can sympathize with you!! :001_smile:

I'm going to try to listen to the instructor DVDs and scan through the book of level 4 this weekend, so hopefully that will help me figure out and plan my curriculum accordingly.