I wanted to reiterate that the Dibels website has free downloads by grade level. Dibels is often used for assessment purposes in schools, so you don't want to use these materials if you think your child will be assessed with them. If not, though, they are great materials for timed readings. Typically timed readings have carefully selected vocabularies for the grade level plus word counts to the right of each page so it is easy for you to figure out how many words were read per minute. For Dibels, try logging on as dibelsuser with a password of 980679. Downloads are where the pages are for assessment, and these are the ones (again, if I am remembering correctly) that make good repeated reading material. I think there are about 20 different reading pages per grade level. If you do decide to use these, I would definitely start with the lowest level and work your way up.

Timed word drills are fine, but what I am talking about is timed reading of actual text. The content must be at or below the comfort level for the reader. Usually you time the first reading out loud, let the student re-read the material silently once or twice, then do another timed read. Some materials come with a chart and target goals for speed and accuracy. The Six-Minute Solution is good, but it's almost impossible to find the old edition, which was much less expensive than the new one. The ISBN of the old edition is 1-570355-919-9. This was a single book containing 20 one-page readings for grades 3 through 8. It was so popular the publisher split it into 3 parts and upped the price on each part. You can find the new edition here. You would want the primary level. The new edition has 25 one-page readings per grade level. I really like my old edition, as the readings are varied and interesting. There is a table of target fluency rates for each level (accuracy plus speed) in the front of the book. Another program is QuickReads. These are more school-oriented. The readings are much more content-oriented (teaching the meaning of the U.S. flag, for instance) and in addition to the readings there are comprehension and other questions. Another program possibility is Great Leaps. This program is well laid-out and easy to implement. It is divided into 3 sections that work separately (if I am remembering correctly) on drilling individual sounds, individual words and phrases, and text for repeated readings. It isn't enough to drill words individually. Repeated readings of text is the approach typically used to improve fluency (accuracy in combination with speed).

This seems to be a new requirement for 12th graders in Wisconsin public schools. The notice came home with my dd. The school has one day when they will give the vaccinations for free.

She had chicken pox when she was 5. Maybe I will have her get the Tdap at school and take her to the doctor for the chicken pox titer. That sounds safer to me. Thanks, ladies!

It is the Tdap (tetanus, diptheria and acellular pertussis) and the varicella (chickenpox) vaccine, which would be given on the same day. This is a new requirement as dd's public high school for 12th grade students. I can opt out of her getting them at school and get them done privately, or of course sign a waiver. My dd got the typical vaccines as a youngster, but one-by-one for the most part and considerably later for all of them. I am anti- giving tons of vaccines at a time to young children, but I do believe in immunizing one at a time. I know that we want to have dd immunized against meningitis before she goes to college, but I thought that was going to be it. Any advice?

CogCal is short for Cognitive Calisthenics, the cognitive training skills program Dr. Stephey has developed.

I don't know. Could they be used for reading or for copywork?

I would purchase it new and then sell it when you are finished, especially since there seems to be a demand for it used.

Realized there are a *lot* of forums there. Here is the one devoted to knitting machines.

I don't, but I wonder if you could get some expert advice on one of these forums.

It would be fine to start her on cursive now. Montessori schools start all the children with cursive. You might want to have her do Callirobics first, though. This is a very gentle program that helps develop the fine motor skills and muscles associated with writing. There is a condition called dysgraphia which can be neurological in origin. My 17yo dd has borderline dysgraphia and, when she was younger, her printing was very messy. (It still is, actually, but it's much better and more readable now.) I started her on cursive too late. She was already so used to printing, she preferred printing. Cursive is faster than printing, so it's a good idea to start it early. I agree that Handwriting Without Tears is an excellent program for messy writers. Some people don't like the simplified script, but I was happy to just get cursive that was legible from my dd. She types most of her work now, so neat cursive isn't as necessary as it used to be.

I don't have experience with those materials, so can't comment on them. However, I am wondering if you are planning on doing repeated readings? Repeated readings are the most frequently used technique to work on improving reading speed and fluency. These can be done timed or untimed. Basically the child reads a page or so out loud, then reads silently, then reads out loud again. There are materials specifically designed for repeated readings. You might want to post on the ReadNOW list to get the names and websites. Dibels is one that is online and free, and can be quite useful for homeschoolers who want to work on fluency, but you need to know how to navigate the site to get to the appropriate materials.

There are different levels of APD testing. My friend took her son to an audiologist who specializes in APD. It took almost two full days and required a lot of specialized equipment. My understanding of that kind of testing is that they first do a round of basic testing in each subtest area. If that comes out okay, there is no APD and that is the end of the testing. If they find something "off", then they do more in-depth testing in those areas. I think there are at least three levels of testing done that way. Length of time depends on how many subtest areas show problems and how long it takes to identify the specific subtype(s) and severity of each subtype problem. My friend's son showed a major problem with integration; can't remember now if there was anything else. This was about six years ago, so testing protocols may have changed since then. My understanding of APD testing done by speech pathologists is that they administer screenings for APD. They don't have the equipment or training to do full-scale APD evaluations. Some of the screenings have high false negative outcomes. However, I think that medical insurance usually does not cover full-scale evaluations by audiologists so the screening type evaluations are much more common.

Wow. You know, another thing about that article is how suspect their birth and death certificates are, given the very closed nature of the society and lack of independent oversight. Makes me wonder if some of the children in the compound were from other compounds and not with their biological parent or parents. CPS had no way, at the time, of determining who was the biological parent of which child. According to people who have left the FLDS, wives can be re-assigned to new husbands by the prophet, and children can be taken away from their biological mother and given to a "sister" wife. This means that children could potentially end up in households without even one biological parent present. Also, CPS must have realized that any children left at the compound would be at risk of being moved elsewhere. Without a protective order or restraining order of some kind (and I suppose that would have to specifically name the children being protected, which they couldn't do since they couldn't be sure of which children belonged to which biological parents), it would be legal to move a child.

I have an iPod I love, but the library lending system for downloads via computer does not use the iPod format. There is some translation software available, but for anyone wanting to borrow free audiobooks from the library, I think it's easier to simply purchase an MP3 player that is compatible.

I would go to your local library and ask for their list of MP3 players (assuming they have audiobook lending via the internet, which I think most libraries do now). That way you can download the library lending software, and then borrow audiobooks from the library for free from the comfort of your home. The software "expires" the book after a couple of weeks (although you can renew online, just like for regular books). Once you have that list, look them up on Amazon to check price and customer reviews. That should narrow it down to one or two "best buys" for you.

:hurray: :party:

I'm in a fairly rural area of WI and the going rate here is $20 an hour. (It's $50 an hour if you go for up-market cleaning, such as a team who comes in and prepares a house for sale showings.)

Have you by any chance read any of the books written by people who have left the FLDS? I have just started reading Escape by Carolyn Jessop (yesterday, as a matter of fact) and highly recommend it -- not for literary value, but informational value. I think the actions of CPS are much more understandable in the light of this kind of information. Even if half of what Carolyn Jessop writes is embellished, and I personally doubt that, this situation is far outside the limits of being a religious rights issue or a homeschooling issue. It really is about systematic patterns of abuse.

We are in WI and had a little bit of snow just this morning. I'm focusing on things we eat a lot of and things that can be frozen or canned (a first for me!). Planning on green and red bell peppers, tomatoes, crookneck squash, green beans, peas, herbs (in containers) and chili peppers (in containers). I figure we can't eat or store enough pumpkins, potatoes, onions, corn and winter squash to make them worthwhile (plus we don't have the space for corn).

Oops. :001_huh: I just assumed Colorado City was in Colorado. Never made the connection with all the Arizona talk. Always scored really low in geography..... :blushing:

The Amish do take care of their own people, and don't use Social Security or Medicare. I'm thinking they probably use the religious exemption for paying taxes for these things. I think missionaries can use this exemption, so I'm assuming there is a provision for the Amish. If the FLDS wanted this exemption, I'm thinking they could have gotten it. However, their philosophy is to "bleed the beast", meaning they're fine with taking as much as they can get from the government. Saw on tv where someone had calculated the rates of welfare use. Wish I could find the data online. As I recall, Colorado's overall rate was something like 2% while the FLDS rate in Colorado City was over 30%. I seriously doubt the FLDS are paying in anywhere near as much as they are using.

Is this the article? I guess the big problem I see with fumarase deficiency is that there is no treatment for it at this time, and therefore no chance for a normal life.

Check the ISBNs on Amazon, as I think they are worth some money. Dust jackets in good condition will make them more valuable. I'd get rid of them only if you think you will never read them.

Wikipedia has an informative article about fumarase deficiency also.