Slipper
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Posts posted by Slipper
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We're scheduled for a full hour for lunch and chores. Chores are optional. Ideally, I would like for them to put away laundry or tidy their rooms, but nothing is set in stone.
She's not worried about being on schedule. She does worry about being behind in math. She really wanted me to hold her back for 2nd grade, but the only thing she was behind on was math. Our compromise was to place her in the 3rd grade category but she still does 2nd grade math. She was fine with that.
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If your child potentially has special needs, you might want to check with some of the organizations in your area, United Cerebral Palsy, Autism Society, Muscular Dystrophy Association, etc and ask them if they have babysitters they can recommend. Our local organizations keep lists of people that offer to babysit kids with special needs. They would at least be on the lookout for signs he was anxious and able to distract him. They typically cost more than regular babysitters.
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We're working on a set amount of time, not problems. For a while, I tried assigning a certain number of lessons per day, but it was not working. She has moments of regression where we have to re-teach math. We seem to be stable on single digit addition/subtraction and fairly comfortable with double digit addition/subtraction (but no carrying/borrowing). I know she's behind. Pushing to catch up is disastrous. So, my plan is to work for thirty minutes and then stop.
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Good idea since she does have several experiments this year. Thanks :)
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I live in a small, rural area that sounds similar. There aren't many violent crimes, but I've often joked (dark humor) that I could be stabbed and staked in my front yard and nobody would notice until I failed to show up somewhere. We are just that far out in the woods.
Law enforcement is friendly and prompt, but if you need them, at their fastest, it's still a good 20 minutes to get to my home.
All of us are being trained in firearms this fall, not just for safety but we occasionally have a wild animal wander up (or slither) and there is also no animal control where we live.
If you are concerned, ask your sheriff's department for advice. They might also help you train with a gun (ours will). If you live in a hard to locate area, it's also good to make sure that 911 knows how to find you. The sheriff's department can help you contact someone to have directions put on file with 911. Also, keep in mind that ambulance services are also slow. Update your first aid cabinet to have supplies (ice packs, eye flush, whatever is good for your region), especially if your kids have significant allergies.
It's hard to adjust, but we love small town living.
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I agree, set boundaries. We have a full size skeleton in our living room (cost of about $300, courtesy of my in-laws) that fascinates kids. As they walk in and exclaim over it, I tell them in a friendly way that it's a new addition to our homeschool supplies and they can look but are not allowed to touch. I then look at the parents and tell them "You wouldn't believe what those things cost!" It's never been an issue.
Tell them up-front, before they even enter the house that the homeschool room is off limits and set toys out in another area to re-direct them towards.
It must be a really cool room to draw kids toward, so congratulate yourself on making it so inviting! :)
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I have a 3rd grader of average intelligence who is a bit ahead in reading and a bit behind in math. She has significant anxiety issues, although they are MUCH better this year than last. It is possible that we will change therapists and difficult topics may come back up. She sees a therapist every other week, a psychiatrist every month and meets with our pastor every other week for discussion about religion (this is at her request, she feels that he can answer her questions better than we can - some of her anxiety has a religious basis to it, so we consider time with our pastor to be therapeutic).
We are seeing some regressive behaviors lately - more fear at night, baby-talking, helpless behavior. We're not sure if it's temporary or if her medicine is not working as well.
SO, here is what we have planned:
8:00 - 9:00 = Basically circle-time with her older sister. They say the pledge, read devotions, calendar and then work on writing/typing. This won't take a full hour, but I wanted to build in some extra time in case the morning is hectic.
9:00 - 9:30 = Reading (She enjoys this subject and can do it on her own)
9:30 - 10:00 = English (She also enjoys this one and can do it on her own)
10:00 - 10:30 = Break (She likes to spend time outdoors and run around outside)
10:30 - 11:00 = Math (she hates this subject and I will help her)
11:00 - 11:30 = Science (she's iffy on this subject and I help her)
11:30 - 12:30 = Lunch/Chores
12:30 - 1:00 = History (She's okay with this subject but I still help her)
1:00 - 2:00 = Art/Music (this is basically a free time to listen to music, do artwork - which she loves - or read)
She will have all subjects daily, except History. She has history three times a week. I'm expecting her to still complete Reading, English, Math and Science on therapy days. She takes dance and theatre in the fall.
Does this look okay? I need a schedule that is not overwhelming but still accomplishes some schoolwork. I want to make sure I'm not forgetting anything.
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It's only an issue if you have a tricky August birthday. My daughter's birthday is in early August and she enrolled in Kindergarten only a few days after turning 5. We ended up holding her back that year. (This was in Alabama).
If your child has an August birthday, I would call the school and ask them.
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I have a 3rd grader of average intelligence who is a bit ahead in reading and a bit behind in math. She has significant anxiety issues, although they are MUCH better this year than last. It is possible that we will change therapists and difficult topics may come back up. She sees a therapist every other week, a psychiatrist every month and meets with our pastor every other week for discussion about religion (this is at her request, she feels that he can answer her questions better than we can - some of her anxiety has a religious basis to it, so we consider time with our pastor to be therapeutic).
We are seeing some regressive behaviors lately - more fear at night, baby-talking, helpless behavior. We're not sure if it's temporary or if her medicine is not working as well.
SO, here is what we have planned:
8:00 - 9:00 = Basically circle-time with her older sister. They say the pledge, read devotions, calendar and then work on writing/typing. This won't take a full hour, but I wanted to build in some extra time in case the morning is hectic.
9:00 - 9:30 = Reading (She enjoys this subject and can do it on her own)
9:30 - 10:00 = English (She also enjoys this one and can do it on her own)
10:00 - 10:30 = Break (She likes to spend time outdoors and run around outside)
10:30 - 11:00 = Math (she hates this subject and I will help her)
11:00 - 11:30 = Science (she's iffy on this subject and I help her)
11:30 - 12:30 = Lunch/Chores
12:30 - 1:00 = History (She's okay with this subject but I still help her)
1:00 - 2:00 = Art/Music (this is basically a free time to listen to music, do artwork - which she loves - or read)
She will have all subjects daily, except History. She has history three times a week. I'm expecting her to still complete Reading, English, Math and Science on therapy days. She takes dance and theatre in the fall.
Does this look okay? I need a schedule that is not overwhelming but still accomplishes some schoolwork. I want to make sure I'm not forgetting anything.
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Thanks so much! :)
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For anyone who is interested, there are 2 books with very similar names: Indian Boyhood, by Charles Eastman, also called Ohiyesa, and My Indian Boyhood by Luther Standing Bear. It's the first one that FlyingMom is referring to, obviously.
I was looking up books on amazon and this one is free on kindle.
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We're out in the country as well. My nearest neighbor is my mother (she is next door). The other neighbors are not in visual distance from our house.
IF possible (notice that I said, 'if'), teach your kids that not every day needs an activity associated with it. My cousin's daughter is a bit older than your kids and needs special activities every day. It has become stressful in their household to provide entertainment for her.
Can you utilize the outdoors at all? Where we live, the girls can ride bikes (over the grass since the roads are all gravel), use chalk on our front sidewalk, blow bubbles, skip rope, run, etc. I also try to teach some basic skills (pulling weeds - I gave them their own little garden area to plant flowers in and they maintain it). We grow (or buy) fruits and veggies that they help put up. I know your kids are young, but they are old enough to learn to do some things that will become valuable to YOUR time as they get older.
Teach them to cook and put them in charge of one meal per week (crockpot stuff so all they do is cut, measure, pour and turn on, with a salad). At that age, they could also manage a rice steamer and iced tea maker.
For gifts, invest in books, puzzles, dollhouses, board games, dress up clothes (from thrift stores) and videos that are both interesting to them and have some lesson involved (Magic School Bus for example).
We also do a lot of extra curricular activities (theatre, soccer, dance) to take us into town and around others. And playdates. Invite other kids over.
Good luck :)
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Ruth and Penelope, thanks for your input. It's possible that I'm comparing my 3rd and 6th grader. All of my kids have had such different learning styles that I feel like I'm bouncing to extremes at times. :)
Noeo comes with printable sheets that they fill out and place in a binder. I consider that to be a science notebook. I will scale back my expectations on labs to be what Noeo recommends (filling out a simple form). I'd like her to do a science project, similar to a science fair presentation, for her fish study. My expectations for research are that she will learn how to look for information on a certain topic and make a tri-fold display and short paper (similar to a book report).
For my 6th grader, the Noeo kit comes with about 6 experiments. I want her to do more than the simple fill in the blank sheets that Noeo provides. She enjoys sketching, writing and explaining. Noeo typically provides two pages for her age/grade to fill out for labs. She uses about 6. I'd like to move her from fill in the blank to actually writing/typing it out on regular paper. That is what I'm calling a lab report.
My 6th grader truly inhales information effortlessly. She retains information easily as well. She moves quickly through things and I'm stuck with the choice of either moving ahead to the next level or providing more depth in what she's studying.
I love Noeo because it provides everything I need along with lesson plans. Looking through the books, kits this year, I noticed that astronomy has a couple of simple books for each grade - one is a biography and the other a book about planets. The biographies will be interesting, but the factual content is probably something they already know. The two labs on astronomy include making a solar system and making a constellation box.
I had previously been opposed to simply looking at the stars through a telescope. After further thought, it seems a shame to waste our view of the stars. We live out in the country (no street lights) and it is sometimes so bright outside (from the stars) that we don't even need a flashlight to see. We've looked at craters on the moon, moons of certain planets and so on. It's fascinating but I'd like to do something more than only star-gazing.
I'm looking for a bit more text (both girls enjoy reading about space) and projects. I would probably want a couple more books for my 3rd grader and several for my 6th grader.
I'd like the projects to be something they can do together, with more complexity for my 6th grader.
I hope this answers the questions :) Thanks again.
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Something that helps me (and it sounds odd)...I set out clothes the night before and I make sure the kitchen is clean. Sometimes I pre-cook some of the breakfast items (pancakes, bacon). For whatever reason, waking up is not so difficult if I'm not laying in bed thinking about what is clean to wear or do I need to clean the kitchen before breakfast, etc. I wake up and feel organized immediately. It makes it fun to wake up and start the day.
(Sidenote - I'm not always a morning person, but once I'm in the habit, I stay that way until something throws me off. BUT, when I'm a morning person, having things organized makes it easy to get up.)
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My youngest daughter has always been spiritually minded, even before we began attending church this past January. We attend a Presbyterian church, but my daughter's interests seem to lean more towards Church of God or Pentecostal beliefs.
I'm looking for Bible studies that would go deeper into the subject of spiritual gifts such as prophesy, healing, speaking in tongues, and so forth. I'm not very familiar in this area and our pastor believes that these mostly went away. He will answer questions but I feel like he disapproves of this interest.
I'm happy to answer more personal questions in private message. Thanks for any suggestions about books or studies appropriate for 8 year olds.
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I'm reposting in the hopes that I can tidy up my science into one neat summary that I can follow. I still am not happy with astronomy and feel like I need something more. My 6th grader is gifted and learns quickly and easily. She wants to go into some type of medical research or just the medical field in general. My 3rd grader claims to dislike science but enjoys exploring and investigating so I think she will come around. ;) She is a bit of a lazy learner. :) She'll do her work if I'm nearby. She might 'forget' if I'm not around.
My goals for my 6th grader:
I want her to learn how to write lab reports. She needs to learn how to take notes. (She is capable of being heavily challenged and enjoys it).
My goals for my 3rd grader:
Improving reading and note-taking skills. (This is difficult for her). Writing/drawing basic observations. Learning how to research a simple subject. Study skills. (She has low self-esteem. She enjoys reading but is behind in both writing and math. I work a bit slower to build confidence and a strong base of knowledge.)
They are both working in Physical Science this year through Noeo. 6th grader is in Noeo Physics II and 3rd grader is in Noeo Physics I. (We purchased the full kits for Noeo).
3rd grader:
Noeo - http://www.noeoscience.com/physI.html
Sub-topics (Noeo Text): Forces and Motion, Light and Color, 'Levers, Wheels and Pulleys', 'Electricity and Magnetism', Inventions, Sound, Flight, Space
I want her to be able to maintain a lab journal, science notebook and research.
Hands On:
Noeo supplies, Snap Circuits, K'Nex Levers and Pulleys
Daily for 45 minutes.
Additionally, she will do a study on any subject she wants - she picked out studying fish (mostly ponds/creeks/rivers). We have a membership to a science center and the zoo. We are getting books about fish and microscopic life.
6th grader:
Noeo - http://www.noeoscience.com/physII.html
Subtopics: Energy, Forces, Motion, Light, Sound, Electricity, Astronomy
I want her to maintain a Lab Journal, Science Notebook and be able to do advanced research.
Hands On:
Noeo Supplies, Snap Circuits, Solar Power Study kits, Programmable robot (simple and small), week-long robotics camp at science center
Books:
Noeo texts, "Touch This! Physics for Everyone", "Physics for Entertainment", "How to Teach Physics to your Dog", "The Wormhole Adventures"
She picked the human body for a year-long study. We purchased a full-size skeleton (that she will label this year), and the anatomy books from apologia. We also purchased an anatomy coloring book (Gray's Anatomy).
Daily for 45 minutes
Thoughts would be greatly appreciated :)
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My daughter once broke an item belonging to her grandmother (my mother). She didn't tell me, but as soon as my mother returned from vacation, she immediately went over, admitted breaking the item and offering to pay for it. My mother brought it up with me and I was annoyed. My daughter did everything correctly, but she didn't tell me. I didn't like it then, I wouldn't like it now. I don't need to know about every mess up, but I need to know the ones that involve me in any way.
I understand your frustration. If you had known, you and your husband might have been able to actually fix the fence before the neighbors returned (fixing the fence by means of propping it back up and stabilizing it until you spoke to the neighbors) rather than being blind-sided. Your daughter did a wonderful job in admitting responsibility and you should be proud of her. She just left out the 'heads up' part for you.
I think it's just the age. I also have a household where another child receives the lion's share of attention for medical issues. My middle daughter (the one who broke her grandmother's belongings), wants to be responsible and wants to help. I think it's possible that your daughter feels similarly.
If she wants to cook so badly, let her cook. I do believe the oven is safe at that age as long as she knows what to do in case of an emergency. Honestly, I'd teach her how to cook simple meals and put her in charge of dinner a few times a week.
We finally quit buying more than one bag of chips or cookies at a time because chip clips and baggies elude everyone. The mice eat like kings in our pantry. With one bag of chips, the waste isn't as bad and I can spot it quickly if they forget to clip it. I've put my daughter in charge of the pantry for a couple of weeks at a time to organize so she could see how much stuff needs to be stored properly to avoid waste.
I read somewhere (possibly here) that if kids start acting out, give them more responsibility (not in a punishment sense, but in a genuine effort to recognize their efforts). My youngest (who is 8 years old) gives our oldest (who is disabled) a bath every other night (I alternate the other nights). It helps her feel secure in our family and that she's needed and appreciated. She enjoys being able to contribute. I bet your daughter would appreciate being able to contribute as well.
She's getting older and soon will need to know these things for herself. I think you would be delighted at what she is capable of doing. One last thing, please don't take away her camp. For my middle daughter, her week at camp each summer is the highlight of her year. It teaches independence, and also gives us the opportunity to have alone time as I drive her, plus it's a chance for her to fully enjoy herself.
All the best to you both :)
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Bumping again... :)
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We haven't done that yet, thanks for the suggestion. :)
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Thanks for the suggestions. I'm still undecided. We do live about an hour away from a planetarium which would be a fun trip.
I'm happy so far with how it's coming together. Both girls are doing Physics and I've purchased extra books as well as snap circuits, k'nex levers and pulleys, and other fun kits.
They are also doing an extra project not related to physical science. My 6th grader wants to study human anatomy and learn about bones. My 3rd grader wants to study fish and creeks. I think I have those taken care of.
We ordered most of the items yesterday but I'm still hunting a few last things.
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I'm looking for suggestions on a side project. I have her science curriculum, but she is interested in doing reading and projects regarding 'fish'. I'm trying to expand this into viewing pond water under a microscope along with studying different types of fish. Any suggestions? She's not a science kid so I'm looking for easy and fun for 3rd grade.
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Did you find any?
No :(
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I think more Dads should breast feed in public with fully exposed nipples and areolas.
Am I the only one who just tried to google breast-feeding men in kilts?
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If so, can I pm you? I have a question about what constitutes violation of ethics for lawyers.
Mixing medications...WWYD?
in The Chat Board
Posted
I've taken tramadol for nerve pain and it was really helpful. I did feel very out of it, but after a week or so, I was able to function while taking it.
Seratonin Syndrome is very serious but not too common. My oldest daughter developed it while taking a mixture of medications. She has autism and I'm not sure if you would have the same symptoms, but she began acting very oddly (even after considering she has autism). Everyone around her kept saying, "Something's wrong". We took her to the doctor and they discovered blood in her urine as well. We got off of it quickly and things corrected within a few days.
My (not professional) opinion would be that if you have someone around you who could tell that something was wrong, you're fine to take the medicine. It isn't a common reaction and it's quickly reversible (in my experience).