Thank you so much for your reply Dobela. I feel like a blubbering idiot and have been crying since yesterday! :) This whole roller coaster of trying to get down to the bottom of my daughter's issues and be able to actually help her has been so long and frustrating already. She's frustrated and I'm frustrated and I just want to help her with the RIGHT method. I told the therapist I am willing to try just about anything right now. :) On another note: I got approved for a Care Credit card so we'll have to use that for the time being and go more into debt. My husband will not be happy with that, but if its a life changing thing then it'll be worth it. So do I keep taking her to the reading therapy {the LiPs program} along with the vision therapy or do we just focus on one at a time? Thank you again.

Ok, so I had the 2 1/2 hour consult appt with the Vision Therapist. It was very interesting. Basically the optometrist diagnosed her with Ocular Motor Dysfunction- Pursuits and Ocular Motor Dysfunction- Saccades. She said that her visual perception was great. Everything else... Visual Saccades, Visual Tracking, Visual Motor, Reversal Frequency, Reversal Frequency Execution, Reversal Frequency Recognition, and Visual Memory were all at about a 4-5 year old level. She showed me each and every test and how my daughter did on each one. When she did the test with the Reversal Frequency Matching test... she actually did alright. She had to find the correct letter in a line up of letters and match it to the letter she was looking at. The letters she had to choose from were all backwards and reversed and on EVERY single item on that page she chose the correct letter. The vision therapist said she believes that if she was truly dyslexic that she would NOT have been able to see the correct letter in the line up. I don't know about that but that's what she said. At this point I don't even know what true dyslexia is. I think it just means she's 8 years old and can't read. She has 2 mild retained primitive reflexes... Tonic Labyrinth Reflex, Spinal Galant, three moderately retained primitive reflexes...Moro Reflex, Asymmetric Tonic Neck Reflex, and Symmetric Tonic Neck Reflex, and a very severely retained Palmar Reflex which she said explained her extreme grip on the pencil when trying to write. The full 40 sessions of vision therapy was recommended. $150 per session of course. The therapist offered to do once a month with us for two hours instead of once a week to cut us a break financially and said that she would teach me as much as she could in that time frame to go home and practice with my daughter for the month. She referred us to Care Credit for a credit card for medical services. I don't know how I feel about that. 15% discount with a club card there for every time I make a payment. But I can't do both.. either the Care Credit Card OR the club card. Sigh. Total amount for the therapy including a materials fee charge is about $6000 total. I wish we hadn't already spent $2000 on a neuropsych eval and $800 on a speech/lang eval and another $1000 already on LiPs. I don't know where we're going to get this money but we have to make it happen somehow. Thanks for listening.

Thanks everyone. Our appt. is Thursday so I will know more then!! I looked at the LiPs materials online and I have been sitting in on the lessons so I have a pretty good grasp of what she is doing with her and how to do it. I thought of doing it on my own with her but she seems to do better for the therapist than me in that regard. :confused: But we will see. As for the Fast Forward, I believe there may be a grant option available that our therapist referred us to so we have to check that out as well to see if we qualify. Thanks everyone, I'll be back on Thursday I'm sure! LOL

I'm sorry I must have confused everyone. She isn't doing anything other than the LiPs right now. That is the one on one tutoring she is getting in reading... with a reading therapist who is trained in the LindaMoodBell program. She started there in June I believe? This reading therapist also recommended that my daughter do something called Fast Forward. I am not sure that we can afford that right now either. I want to do whatever I can to help her but I want it to be the RIGHT thing! Thanks for listening

Thanks!!! I think you're probably right... I just need to start somewhere!! I appreciate it! Getting littles into bed right now so I can get to work! ;)

This year we are doing a few things we have never done before so its all new for me and my kids but we are excited... DD11: IEW writing Grammar {Essentials Classical Conversations} Latin - Prima Latina and CC Math- Math U See/LoF/CC games Science- CC History- CC/SOTW 3/4 Fine Arts: CC DD9: IEW Writing Grammar {Essentials Classical Conversations} Spelling- AAS Latin -Prima Latina and CC Math- Math U See/Right Start games/CC games Science- CC History-CC/SOTW 3/4 Fine Arts: CC DD8: {Dyslexic, HFA, Expressive/Receptive Language Disorder} Reading: LiPs/Barton/PAL? Not sure yet. Ugh. Just want her to be able to read already!!!! Writing: PAL {IEW Primary Art of Language program} Spelling: AAS and using Some of Dianne Craft's right brained techniques with cards, etc Math: Right Start Math Speech therapy: NATHHAN {home therapy} Vision: Maybe VT? {will find out on Thurs.} History: CC/SOTW 3/4 Geography: CC Science: CC Latin: CC DD7: {ADHD} All of Language Arts: PAL {IEW's program- covers spelling with AAS, writing, reading, speaking} Math: Math U See/Right Start games Latin: CC Geography: CC Science: CC History: CC/SOTW 3/4 Fine Arts: CC DD5: {so excited to start school already! Hearing impaired} Language Arts: PAL & ETC Math: Math U See/Right Start games Latin: CC Geography: CC Science: CC History: CC/SOTW 3/4 Fine Arts: CC {composers, drawing, tin whistle} DD3 1/2: {4 in Sept} Preschool workbook Mighty Minds magnet cards! Inchimals {blocks math game} puzzles coloring Lots of good reading aloud with Mom! ALL KIDS: Sonlight readers and read alouds with Mom! :)

Wow, ok, so drop the reading therapy tutoring? Ok. I was getting frustrated because I am still doing the same thing we were doing in the past... covering up each. and. every. single. letter. for her to be able to get the sound, even though she is getting the sounds individually through the LiPs program. Poor Leah. I feel awful for my daughter that it seems I keep throwing her around from place to place trying to find something that works. :confused: and draining all our money doing it too. I just want that magic bullet for her. Its a long, winding road we are on instead of a straight one it seems and its so frustrating for the both of us. I could just cry. Thank you for your advice. It is more important to me that my daughter learn how to read than she do anything else. How long does it take to see improvements from VT?

I have used Sonlight's curriculum since 2004 {with some occasional side steps to other areas, but mostly using Sonlight as our core for history, science, language arts, writing, grammar, spelling, etc}. And Math U See. For Science we did Sonlight and some Noeo. This year we are completely changing everything we have done in the past. I read WTM and Teaching the Trivium and am starting up a Classical Conversations group this year for my kids to be a part of which we are excited about. I LOVE the classical method and I love how my literature-leaning has led me to the classical method of education. For Math... I am using Math U See still... with LOF for my older daughter, AND Right Start Math for my 8 year-old dyslexic daughter who needs more kinesthetic type math. For Language Arts... {for my younger non-readers and beginning readers} I am using the PAL reading and writing program {By IEW's Andrew Pudewa} and I am so excited about it! The Phonetic Farm looks awesome and I know my girls will love it and the stickers! The writing uses AAS which I have heard awesome things about which I hope will help my dyslexic daughter as well. {For my older kids- 10 and 11} they will be in the Essentials class at Classical Conversations getting their writing from IEW and grammar from Essentials}. I am supplementing a Latin program as well and Prima Latina copywork. For History... they will get the bulk of that from CC but we will be using SOTW 3 and possibly 4 to go along with what they are studying at CC. We also have the Kingfisher Encyclopedia to supplement when needed. And of course great history books from SL to read aloud whenever we want! For Science...we are using CC's science program and will have some good science books to read at home. For Geography, that will be covered by CC. But, I am used to opening up my curriculum and just starting. Very little prep time. With so many little ones that has been a necessity for me to keep my sanity. Now that my kids are getting older and I have more to teach and I have a few right-brainers who could benefit from more hands-on learning, I have ordered curriculum that requires a LOT of teacher prep. I got some boxes in the mail today from RR and Right Start and I am just overwhelmed. Between that and the PAL program, I have a lot to organize and schedule and put together {on top of organizing and planning my Foundations and Essentials classes that I will be tutoring} and I am freaking out because I don't know where to start!!! Have mercy on this overwhelmed, former SL-user who needs to know how to get her year organized since I have never really had to do that before!! :) I bought the Old Schoolhouse Planner and downloaded it and looked at the scheduling pages and my mind went blank! LOL Help.

Unfortunately it seems like many of us mean it literally. Us too! When i say we have "no money" that means basically that we probably have about $30 or so in the account or less... and waiting patiently on getting paid again... since we only barely seem to have enough to get by and that's it. Argh. I keep hoping and praying that things will get better soon! Dh wants to get a motorcycle to save on gas money. We are still arguing about that one since I'd rather pay more for gas and have a live husband! :)

I don't have an answer for you but I would love to know if you find this out. We'll be using SOTW 3 this year too. I "heard" that there is a SOTW/Sonlight reader schedule somewhere... possibly on the Sonlight boards perhaps? I haven't checked it out but you might want to look there first!

Just thought I'd give an update... So my daughter went and got evaluated by a developmental optometrist. We have the consult this week to go over results from that. Anyone have suggestions, questions or anything that I should ask at my appt. ? I know this is silly but I hope she doesn't need VT because I don't know how we can afford it. She has been seeing a reading therapist at the Speech/Lang specialist place and using the LiPs program. She is doing well and I sit in on the lessons with her. She is getting all the sounds and doing them really fast now but its not translating into being able to read.... she is still guessing words in books only she is doing it faster! Argh... $60/ hour for the reading therapy. I am considering moving from the LiPs to the Barton reading program once she can pass the Barton screening... although she is learning so much better from someone else that I hesitate to try to take over the teaching part of her reading. I have decided to continue to homeschool her myself and I have purchased curriculum that is more for Right Brain learners. So we'll see how that goes. I am revamping everything I am doing... I have been teaching her the way that I learn best... Left Brain techniques and that does not help her at all. Sigh. I will focus on the reading this year and the speech therapy we are doing at home with an at home program I purchased that is easy to do yourself called NATHAN. If she gets anything else along with that, great! We will be apart of Classical Conversations as well so I am hoping that the memory work/social stuff will be good for her. We'll see how it goes! Thanks everyone for your advice/words/help!

The Civil War was a war that divided our country, why would anyone want to display something that came to mean division? If I were to see a Confederate flag displayed on or in someone's home, I would be very uncomfortable. The history of our country involves a Civil War fought in order to keep a group of people in servitude to another group of people. Why would anyone display something that represented that? The answer from the teacher was very vague and it sounded like she didn't know how to answer. That would raise my hackles a little bit. Good luck on your decision with what to do!

Yesterday the website was down for me for about an hour and today my post keeps disappearing. How much longer before everything gets ironed out?? Thanks.

Thanks Mandy. A few people mentioned Living Memory here... can someone explain it a little?

Thanks Angela. I did go back and re-read my contract after reading your post. I am going to offer different options as far as tuition is concerned. I will be giving parents an option to pay half at a time and/or tutor in exchange for tuition or another job {such as teach the PE class, etc}. I don't want this to be a burden on families, but I do want there to be accountability of some kind so that they feel that they are either paying for or working for the class like everyone else. I don't want the family that came to my Information Meeting to choose not to participate because they have to choose food first. That's not why I started this in the first place. Something I learned last night... as I was filling in registration forms in the portal online... the $50 registration fee is per child, per class. So that if my two kids that are Foundations age are ALSO in Essentials {as all kids are supposed to be from 4th-6th grade}... then I pay $50 reg fee for each class for both of them PLUS another supply fee for each of their classes. So instead of the $300 for the registration fee... I am paying $400 for registration alone...that goes straight to CC. The tuition is also doubled as well... both of those kids will have to pay $312 for Foundations and another $312 for Essentials. That adds an extra $600 to my already $1800 tuition. Its a small fortune for some families unfortunately. I don't know if I can handle continuing to charge that kind of money in good conscience. We'll see how this year goes. Those that can pay will pay. Those that can't will tutor or teach a class {hoping to have a PE class after lunch for the younger ones and a chess class/skills class of some kind for the second hour after lunch}. Those that need to can break up their tuition payment in half. I think this is the only way I'll be able to do this and sleep at night. I'll re-evaluate next year. Thank you everyone for weighing in on your opinions and advice. I truly appreciate it!

Carrie, VP has an online video? Very interesting. So to do CC unofficially you would just do it without registering as a CC group right? Then you wouldn't have access to the extras and info online either right? Hmmmm wheels turning here... LOL

Yes for Foundations and Essentials CC only gets the $50 per child registration fee. The tuition goes directly back to the director and tutors. We won't have a Challenge group this year just F/E. Thanks.

CJ that's interesting... I will go check my Director's guidebook and see if that was the cut off. I thought it was two families. hmmmm

First baby... csec at 34 weeks for failed induction for pre-e 2nd baby... Homebirth After Cesarean {HBAC}- easiest birth! 3rd baby... planned hospital VBAC {new area didn't allow homebirth VBACs- turned to emergent csec for cord prolapse!} 4th baby... planned repeat cesarean turned Hospital VBAC! The night before the cesarean I went into hard labor at 3 am and she was born vaginally an hour and a half later! 5th baby...natural hospital VBAC- born in 15 minutes! Most painful 15 minutes of my life! :) 6th baby...natural, spontaneous hospital VBAC! DONE! :D

One more question for you Angela... the way you did it in your group where moms who couldn't afford it tutored...did the other moms have a problem with that or did they feel it was fair that those moms were working for their kids' tuition? I would love to chat with you more about your feelings on how CC is structured... thanks!

Oh geez, you're right... sorry about that! It's 60% to the tutors and 40% to the Directors. Eek. I knew that.... just put it backwards! Thanks so much. You have given me a lot to think about!

Actually,from my training and what I understand CC does NOT get a portion of the tuition. The tuition money goes right back to the Director and the Tutors {Tutors get 40% and Directors get 60%}. CC only collects the registration payments which are $50. per child {That charge is in addition to the tuition fee.} The $13/week analogy has been used everywhere I go. However that is not a realistic figure unless you only have one child in the program. If you have as many children as I do in CC, you are paying $78/ week PLUS the $50 reg fee PER CHILD, plus the facility fee {for us the facility fee will be $80/week divided by the # of families and our community is small so far}, plus the $50 supply fee PER CHILD. If you have 6 kids in the program like I do... that's $1872 for tuition, $300 for supplies and $300 for registration fee. Unfortunately you can try to break that up weekly to make the # look smaller but all that money is due UPFRONT! So $2472 for me for my kids. Unfortunately, that's about what we make in one month! We have one family who at the Information meeting was stoked about the program and wanted to sign up that night, she also has 6 kids. Turns out that she can't afford it either. For 6 kids that's almost $3000 just for them PLUS the curriculum for everyone!!!! That's not a small amount. Then, how do I offer a scholarship for this one family or offer to let her do something in exchange for tuition and make it fair for other families who CAN pay tuition or are willing to? I CAN'T even afford the tuition which is why I am directing and tutoring this year! As far as whether someone can really "afford" it or not... there is no way to know that for sure without seeing how much they make versus how many dependents they have versus their expenses each week. And I feel totally uncomfortable being their judge of that as well. So how do you make this fair for everyone? The family with 6 kids and my family would have to choose between food or tuition. Which is unfortunately the case for most people in our community right now. EVERYONE here is hurting financially. Thanks for the ideas, guys. I am just struggling and at a loss at what to do right now. Already I have spent $800 for CC curriculum for my kiddos {all the recommended CC curriculum plus the tutor/director stuff I need to have} along with at least another $500 for math/language arts. It adds up quickly. In the end it is the Director and Tutors who receive the tuition money, not CC. Just wondering how to make that work.. or maybe charge something cheaper ... like half of the tuition for the 1st semester and half for the 2nd. I don't know. Even that's a lot for a family with 6 kids. Ugh,

Anyone here participate in CC as a director or tutor? My question is pretty general but the tuition price is a sticker shock for many people right now. Myself included as I have 6 children. Tuition alone would cost us almost $2000. plus the reg/supply fees which for my kids would be another $600 total, plus cost of our facility. Is it possible to run a CC group and have everyone pay reg fees, supply fees, facility fees and that's it? Not charge tuition? If the tutors and I all agree to volunteer our time to direct and tutor and not get paid to do it in an effort to save us and everyone else $$ is this something we can realistically do? I asked our state manager and he said that the handbook basically says we HAVE to charge the tuition because CC says we have to, but that what we do with the $$ is up to us. I don't want their tuition money. I feel terrible taking it because I can't afford it either! {plus all the curriculum and everything else that I have to purchase!} The state manager did say something about offer someone a "scholarship"... don't know how to actually do that.. Any thoughts or ideas here? I love the CC group, curriculum, philosophy, and want to have our own community... but I am feeling reluctant to make it into my own business. I know that people value what they pay for and I get that. I have been a part of a number of co-ops where people were flakey, not responsible, didn't show up when they said that they would, etc. So I know how that would be affected. But I am more worried about not having a community at all for my kids due to the severe financial issues our community is suffering from. Thanks everyone for listening!

I see that no one responded to you but I just wanted to jump in really quick and say that I am using Primary Arts of Language and Writing this year with my three K-2nd graders. I have used Sonlight LA for my other 4 kids before but past the K level I wasn't fond of Sonlight's LA. I like that Primary Arts of Language is Orton Gillingham based {as I need that multi-sensory teaching for my kids} and that it is a preparation too for the IEW program which we are using for my kids when they are writing! I hope that helps and I would love to know what you think of the program!

Argh ok so I called ONE of two optometrists in my area and they charge $245. private pay just for the testing and eval with the doctor. Then vision therapy is $150 per session, once per week out of pocket. WHY does everything have to cost so much darn money???? GRRRRRR