:iagree:I agree with Mrs. Mungo. Send out a general email as a final notice and then follow through with consequences by the due date. Good luck! Michelle

My ds11 was diagnosed with autism (PDD-NOS) when he was 3.5 years old. His school team has used social stories with him to address specific behaviors/expectations (i.e. waiting in line, how to respond appropriately when someone is crying (since he usually laughs), etc.). They write stories that are individualized to his needs using the Carol Gray Social Stories format. There are also books available that have general social stories that can be used with any child. You may also want to look into Michelle Garcia Winner and Social Thinking. You can google it since I can't recall the web site off the top of my head. She has lots of great info on her site, books, videos, etc. I really like her idea of teaching "social thinking", not social skills. I went to hear her speak at a conference and she was amazing, IMO. Good luck to you and your family:001_smile:, Michelle

We haven't filed yet. My husband went for the appointment with our tax person yesterday and was told that his appointment had been for LAST Wednesday. Our house is chaos!!:lol:

Dust in the Wind (I think it is by Kansas?). My neighbor's young cousin was hit by a car and killed. This was played at ther funeral.

Thanks for the info Beth and YLLK. My son would never been able to handle 4 hours a day, but perhaps we will give it a try. I appreciate your input! Michelle

I actually have a question for Beth in MD. How easy (or difficult) is it to try to implement the Cloud Nine program at home if you have not been officially trained at a LindamoodBell Center? If my son did cooperate, is this parent-friendly?? I know that going to an actual center is out of our price range at this point. Thanks:001_smile:, Michelle

I eat dinner with my children every night, but my dh has to work late 3 nights a week. On the evenings he is not with us, we have a family read aloud at the end of the meal (usually just fun, silly books) because it is a time when I have all 3 sitting together at once (ds11 who has autism, dd11, and ds8). It's just nice "family time" and everyone looks forward to it.:001_smile:

Thanks Julianna! Your response is the encouragement I needed to try Semple.:) Michelle

Bump :bigear:

You may want to check out the following (sorry, I don't know how to link a web site): runofthemillfamily.blogspot.com - interesting lapbook ideas to go with SOTW 1 & 2 redshift.com - I just found this recently. It has a neat section called "chronological art lessons" which gives a list of art projects that we want to use with SOTW. Each lesson is related to a specific period of time (primitive art, Egyptian, Grecian, Roman, Chinese, etc.). There is quite a bit of other info on this site, so it is worth the peek. Hope this helps! Michelle

I haven't used either, but I am planning for the next school year so I am interested in the responses you receive. I did get an email this morning from homeschoolbuyersco-op.org that listed a discounted price for the Simply Music piano dvds. Michelle

Boscopup, my kids would LOVE goat herding!!! We live in NY and have to include our P.E. goals/resources on the education plan that we submit to the district. I would like to see how they would respond if I put goat herding on our IHIP. Enjoy, Michelle

My ds11 has autism and is in public school as I do not feel that I could adequately meet his needs at home. However, I am not thrilled with the education he is (or isn't!!) receiving. He cannot do any basic math. He can really only do a number plus zero, but other than that, he is lost!! The district did a little Touch Math with him, but they really don't seem to stick with any specific program. It is almost like, "Oh well, he can't add, so let's move on to fractions!" There is never any mastery of any concepts. So, I am now researching math programs I could try at home with him over the summer. Does anyone have any info that they would like to share about Semple Math? It sounds like it would be a good fit for him. Either that, or I could go back to trying Touch Math on our own, but I know that some users of TM state how difficult it is to ever transition to regular math without the Touchpoints. Any suggestions would be appreciated!! Thanks. Michelle:bigear:

My ds8 is using MM for math instruction, but we do incorporate some of the manipulatives & math games from RS Level B. :lol:

Our P.E. "program" is similar to what Milkmaid posted. On the IHIP that we submit to the school district, I list the outdoor activities that my kids do on a daily basis during good weather (hiking, biking, roller skating, playing catch, using trampoline, swimming, etc.) and Wii physical fitness type games that we do inside. We also engage in games with neighbors (when they get home from public school) such as playing SPUD, basketball (the "horse" game), tag, hide and seek, etc. Any kind of game or activity that gets them up and moving I consider to be a P.E. activity. We also discuss the importance of exercise and nutrition as part of our health/science classes. Michelle:001_smile:

Hi, I know of 2 groups on yahoo that discuss dyslexia: "Heart of Reading" and "LearningAbled". Just wanted to let you know in case you are interested. Also, these groups do have discussions on other issues/interventions for dyslexia, like vision therapy, etc., as well as other disabilities related to dyslexia like dyscalculia and dysgraphia. Good luck to you!! Michelle:001_smile:

I saw on the NL web site that they are adding additional levels. I, too, have questions about using it with multiple grade levels. It looks like a great science curriculum. Can anyone share their experiences with this program? We recently started using RSO Life for science, but I am impressed by what I read about NL and would love to hear how it is working for your family. The price puts me into sticker shock, but it seems like it would be worth it. Thanks, Michelle:bigear:

I'm interested in finding out about this too! Michelle

I'm curious about Latin programs too. I'm wondering about Latin for Children. Anyone??? Michelle

Thanks for the info. We are starting to purchase books that we can download and print out and it is really getting expensive. Has anyone had experience with the Kodak printer that is supposed to have much cheaper ink?? Michelle:lol:

I finally took the plunge this evening and ordered Hake Grammar and Writing for fifth grade from Christianbook.com. It is from the creators of Saxon math (which I don't use). You can read a review about it on Cathy Duffy's site and on the Rainbow Resource site. I'll post more when we receive it and start using it. Good luck to you!:001_smile: Michelle

We are using RightStart Level B with our ds. He has a lot of difficulty with math and can't seem to memorize math facts. He seems to be improving at basic addition now that we have been playing the RS games. He also has fine motor delays, so RS is a good fit since it doesn't involve a lot of writing at this stage. Visualization of math in his head (for example, picturing the abacus in his mind to figure out a problem) has been hard for him. We are looking at addressing that through Lindamood Visualizing and Verbalizing, but that is for another thread in this forum!! All in all, we like it, but beware that it is teacher intensive. I pretty much sit with him one-on-one for each lesson. It is not the type of program where I give him a worksheet and walk away. Good luck!! Michelle:001_smile:

Thank you for the input so far. I was leaning toward something like Hake Grammar & Writing since it is all-inclusive. I would only need to add in a spelling program. I am interested when I read posts that have quite a few resources listed for language arts. How do you make it all work together? I am concerned that I won't be able to create a thorough program if I am jumping around and using so many different options at once. Obviously, it can be accomplished because I see so many here are able to create a cohesive program. It is just frightening to me since my daughter loves writing and this has been her strength while in public school, yet as I mentioned previously, she isn't aware of spelling rules and hasn't really had formal grammar instruction. It just comes naturally for her (she loves to read, so I am sure this has helped!). I have looked at MCT and think it sounds great, but then I have read some negatives about it too. IEW also seems very thorough, but sounds like it would be complicated (and expensive) for us just starting out. I need to look into some of the other programs mentioned in the other posts. Thanks again for listening! The support on this site is wonderful. Michelle:bigear:

I am interested to hear how others respond to your post. Today is my dd's last day in public school. She is half way through 5th grade, but we are tired of peer issues/bullying etc. My problem is I "research" curriculum too much and can't make a choice (or I do make a choice, read something else, and change my mind for the millionth time!!). Does anyone have advice regarding language arts? I have been reading about MCT, IEW, and Hake Grammar and Writing. Language Arts is an area of strength for my dd and I am terrified that I will somehow stunt her growth in this area. She loves to read and write fiction stories, but is not as strong when it comes to nonfiction/essays. I started reviewing some grammar with her and it seems that she has not had a lot of direct grammar instruction. She is a great speller, but also doesn't really know the spelling rules. Also, I know that different programs are more teacher intensive. I have been homeschooling my ds8 since October as he was experiencing academic difficulties and was not "far enough behind" to meet the criteria at school for extra help. He is now reading on grade level (thank you Orton-Gillingham). He does really need me to be 1:1 with him for most tasks, so I need to figure out how to balance his needs while starting homeschooling with my dd. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!! Sorry for the lengthy post. I have been lurking for awhile and finally decided I really need guidance. Michelle:lol:

My ds just started a social skills program based on Michelle Garcia Winner's approach to social skills. She actually calls it "social thinking." Check out her web site at socialthinking.com. It has tons of info and resources that my help you. I was lucky enough to attend one of Winner's conferences and I really learned quite a bit.:001_smile: Take care, Michelle