They looked great, so I ordered the Bear Necessities and the Apples and Pears. I like curriculum that is very teacher friendly and this looks easy to implement. Really, really appreciate the information. One thing to check off of my list. :-)

I have briefly looked at it, just haven't dug in, so thank you for the recommendation. I will go look at it now. Would it be worth looking at AAS and AAR? I peeked at this for my other child and wondered if it would work for Ell. It makes sense that the spelling rules would help along the reading... sometimes I want to hit myself upside the head (like the V8 commercials) and say 'duh' why didn't I think of that before. So appreciate the reply!! Thanks!

Thank you so much for your response Dav! It helps to hear from others who have journeyed just ahead of us and gives hope and motivation to press forward when feeling exhausted. I've been researching the multitude of phonics programs out there and need to make a decision. We have the 'I See Sam' series and she did well with those, I just felt like I needed more. I've taught and like the K12 phonics program, but was also looking closely at Stevinson and AAR. Some of the others that are highly recommended are not for kids with a low IQ. I would love for her to be able to read. :-) Great to hear success stories! It sounds like your DS has benefitted greatly in homeschooling. We continually toy with the idea of going back to public school, but she was so overwhelmed. Thanks again!

Wondering if any of you could post updates on how you are doing and how the curriculum that you chose worked for your kiddos? Our daughter, who recently turned 9, was adopted from China at 11 months. Similar stories to those of you above. Thought we'd 'catch up', that she was just behind due to her circumstances in China. Lots of sensory issues, cognitive delays, developmental delays, speech, social struggles, etc. Recent MR diagnosis, possible PDD-NOS, ADHD... Would love to hear how things are going. Thanks so much!

We bought the nature's way, but I'm sure the other will be great and then you can maybe tell us if you see a difference when/if you decide to switch. Read the book and listened to the CD's last year at this time. I was so ready to do it all, but do you ever feel so exhausted at trying that you just can't try? I really want to give it another shot, to try the supplements and maybe more eliminations from our daughter's diet, but whew!! Please let us know how it goes.

What a difficult decision! When my son did Creation to Christ (last year as a 7th grader), I had him do the science portion of Res. to Ref. This year he is doing the Res. to Ref. and doing Rainbow Science. We have done some doubling up of the history and bible portions of the guide as we didn't want to finish in June. He has done well with it, but I keep a close eye to make sure he is understanding what he is reading. I am stuck for next year as well. Just can't decide. He will be in 8th grade and would like to go to public high school full time beginning 9th grade, so it just might be my last year. The next two guides look amazing, but he did American History in 4th and 5th grade. I wouldn't mind doing it again if I knew he would be home, but I know the school does the second half of American History in 9th grade. I've also looked at the new guide coming out. It looks amazing and I think he could handle most of the work. Hmmm... Blessings,

Great video and what an amazing lil' kiddo! My daughter matches up with his over and under responsiveness. Sometimes I forget like on New Years Eve. :-{

After years of looking and researching we ended up at a child psychologist. I had to chat with several before finding the one that worked with children with developmental delays (or find one that specifies in the areas you are concerned with) and one that 'fit' us as a family. She was kind, nurturing and even worked with us financially. We were applying for financial assistance for our daughter's disabilities and the center asked that we have an IQ test and and Adaptive Behavior Assessment completed by a psychologist. I didn't know where to start and I was quite nervous, but this was really good. We have tried multiple places, therapies, doctors, etc. and they all give varied information, or bits of information. One person can help with memory, one with dyslexia, another auditory and then there are the OT's and speech, etc. It was SO nice to speak to someone who could SEE ALL that is wrapped up in the tiny eight year old package of our daughter. It was a relief to have someone recognize her issues and be able to put a name to them and for someone to be honest with us and tell us it is more than just one issue. I don't have money to waste to try out all these therapies, which we've done a bit of already. That is just my experience... I would look for someone who can see the whole child. Ask lots of questions before committing. I hope this helps. Blessings, Trish

The STAR Center website also has a lot of wonderful information. The founder has a book entitled, Sensational Kids: Hope and Help for Children with Sensory Processing Disorder by Lucy Jane Miller. A lot of the books have checklists which are really helpful. I would say one big factor for me in trying to decide whether our daughter had sensory issues was asking myself, "Does my child's behavior affect what we do and where we go as a family?" It definitely keeps us home, out of crowded places, away from parades, movies, etc. The checklists will give you a great idea and then you'll know if you should move forward. You can even call, or email the STAR Center and ask questions. They are quite helpful. I also liked the book 'Parenting a Child with Sensory Processing Disorder' by Christopher R. Auer. I highlighted and underlined a lot in this book. 'Raising a Sensory Smart Child' by Lindsey Biel and Nancy Peske paints an excellent picture (page 15) on how it must feel to have SPD. I refer to this all the time when trying to explain our daughter's sensory issues. Also, when looking for an OT make sure to find one who specializes in sensory issues. Not all have this experience. STAR Center http://spdstar.org Blessings,

We are just beginning work with the metronome. We went to see a gal in our area who came highly recommended by a friend. Her daughter jumped 3-4 grade levels in reading by using this program. She does testing, recommends curriculum and exercises and also has her own curriculum. She has articles on her site that you may find helpful. Christian Cottage - Terri Spray http://www.christiancottage.com/Christian_Cottage/index.html How to Use a Metronome http://www.christiancottage.com/Christian_Cottage/Learning-Rivers-use-metronome-home-school-reading-learning-therapy-special-needs-writing-training-Teri-Spray.html Blessings, Trish

Not sure where your lil' man is at, but our DD8 really struggles with SPD and multiple delays and the over stimulation of social situations. She was in school - two years of preschool and one and a half years of kindergarten. It was regularly a struggle and felt like we were only seeing the worst. I wanted to see the best, not just battling with her through the worst, so we pulled her out. She has been home for one and a half years now and we see a lot of progress. We are able to monitor/limit her social situations, which has truly helped. Yes, kids may learn to modulate when with peers, which is good, but daily interaction may be too much. Our DD needs her down time at home. She even needs to be home without her sibling, so she has the space all to herself. We have found that 2-3 activities per week are good for her, but not more than one in a day. She is extremely social and loves her 'friends' but is quick to get overwhelmed, or jealous and that can cause meltdowns and aggressive behavior. Remember, you are your child's best advocate. You know what he needs and although the advice of the professionals is great, we just have to weigh that against what we know about our kiddos. Blessings!

So great to read everyone's responses and I resonate with so much of what is being said. Abandonment is never ideal and every orphan will at one point have to deal with the heartache that comes with feeling/being unwanted. (I didn't realize I had the issue of abandonment until I was in my 30's and I grew up in an excellent home and was adopted at birth.) Our darling daughter was 11 months when adopted from China. She has multiple needs; cognitive/academic, speech, gross/fine motor, drooling, sensory, etc. She is a high maintenance little bundle of joy. Usually attached to my hip, even at the age of eight. After reading through the responses, I too, wonder if she was abused. She does have scars. She always asks if we are coming back if we leave to go anywhere, she is quick to get aggressive, and frankly there are places we don't go and people we don't hang out with because they just don't understand, or don't have the patience. I too am trying not to allow the judgment of those around me to influence how I parent and how I see my daughter. And I too wouldn't change a thing. I would do it all over again. Our bio son was nearly 5 when she came home and as difficult as it has been for him I truly believe he wouldn't trade her for the world. I hope the words that everyone has shared has helped. We know that God gave us our little girl because He knew we would do whatever it takes to allow her to grow to her fullest potential. It is hard, exhausting and I've never been so angry as I have in parenting this little girl, or so sad that she just can't relate to children her own age yet desperately wants a little friend, but I've also laughed twice as much, enjoyed her snuggles that are too hard due to sensory issues, chuckled when she mispronounces 'peanuts' as you can only guess and filled with warmth and hope when I do see the growth. Blessings, Trish

I do use the writing traits in a classroom setting for homeschooled kids. We meet just once a week. I have really enjoyed the lessons from writing fix. If you look at their menu, click on 'mentor text lessons'. If you scroll down you can click on lessons for different grade levels. I'll give you a couple of examples of lessons I have done from the site. They might be a bit young for your kiddo, but they do have older lesson ideas. Amelia's Notebook - Used this mentor text as a springboard to show students how and why we might keep a writer's notebook and to get them more excited about the idea. Even my 6th graders caught on to this. Look at Corbett's ideas on the site of how to use a writer's notebook. Also check out Ralph Fletcher's books at the library. He has one about why writer's keep notebooks. Fun and inspiring for the kids. We use the trait 'word choice' and brainstorm words we could use to replace overused words, or work to revise our first draft to include better words. I Wanna Iguana - Used this mentor text to show students how to write persuasively - so fun! The kids got a kick out of writing their parents letters (which also taught them letter writing format) trying to convince them why they should receive the pet of their dreams. You could turn this into anything your child has been asking for; ipad, computer game, phone, etc. We do a lot of role play as well with persuasion. Take Me Out of the Bathtub - This mentor text is great to have the students take familiar songs from their childhood like "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" and turn it into a new song. I also used the examples of Michael Jackson's 'Beat It' and Weird Al's parody 'Eat It'. This was also a big hit for the older kids. Owl Moon - Great sentence variety If Not for The Cat - We wrote Haiku riddles with this mentor text. Fun! I hope this gives you an idea. Take some time to explore the site. Here are links to the books by Ruth Culham that I use regularly. I would go to the book store (Barnes and Noble) and look at them if you have something close by. Always nice to hold them in your hand before you take the leap. The guides have great tips on how to grade papers for each trait. It shows samples of student writing, which I also read to my students. (My 6th grader is in my class on the one day I teach, so I use this with him at home as well.) It gives activities and lessons to do with each trait. The third one on the list is strictly lots of titles and lessons to go with several titles for each trait. http://www.amazon.com/Traits-Writing-Complete-Guide-Grades/dp/0439280389/ref=pd_sim_b_1 http://www.amazon.com/Traits-Writing-Complete-Primary-Grades/dp/0439574129/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_b http://www.amazon.com/Picture-Writing-Scholastic-Teaching-Strategies/dp/0439556872/ref=pd_sim_b_2 Another book I love is 'If You're Trying to Teach Kids How to Write You've Gotta Have This Book' by Marjorie Frank. It is full of wonderful ideas on how to 'romance' your kids with words. I hope this gives you an idea. It is not a full writing curriculum, but lots of wonderful ideas to get your kids writing with strong words, excellent voice, organization, etc. Blessings, Trish

Try http://www.writingfix.com. I love the writing fix website and I use it all the time to do six trait writing lessons. It is fabulous. I also use the two younger versions of the Ruth Culham book. I really like the idea of using mentor texts to show students great writing. You can also use songs, speeches and poetry. They also make six traits reproducible workbooks. I don't recall the publisher, but I know they carry them at local bookstores usually. Blessings, Trish

Great thread! Just picked up "Shut-Up About Your Perfect Kid" at the library. I'll let you know what I think. The title called out to me. :)