We did use them for a couple of years (8 & 9) and I thought they would be perfect, but as she advanced with them, they weren't enough instruction for her.

I am just worried that since dd is not confident at this point, she will be totally intimidated by having to have her writing displayed for the students, as well as the teacher. I do agree feedback is great & helpful, but..... I do agree their on-line classes look fantastic but don't know if she'd be ready for them at the start, and while BW "Help for High School" did look thorough, it didn't seem as specific as IEW. She'll probably hate no matter what we choose, but I want her to at least come away knowing how to do essays & reports! ☺️

Okay, I haven't posted on here in FOREVER, and since I'm still having trouble with the "search", I thought I'd send out a public appeal for help! I need help ASAP in determining which way to go for dd (16) next year for writing. She's used EIW for a few years, and it was ok, but we felt it was lacking. This year, she started back to basics with WWS, but....still issues. We need something that is extremely explicit when it comes to instructions & specifics for her, as well as for me. She needs lots of help with essays & research papers, as well as note taking. I am leaning towards IEW, but I did see Braverwriter's "Help for High School" curriculum, also. I am thinking she needs to do some sort of on-line course at some point, and get feedback and help from someone besides myself, but not right when she starts. She's still too intimidated & unsure of herself. Thanks for the help! (My siggy is totally outdated?)

Yes, I am looking at some other therapy options. DD has been on a low dose of fluoxetine for years, in addition to the therapy. Even at the low dose, she hates how it makes her feel, and she has gone even lower on it. I have spoken to her about switching to something else, as has her therapist. She wants to try as much as possible to "work on things" without upping it or switching, so that's where we are. Maybe the SAM-e would help. Thanks for the encouragement.

Thanks so much for your reply; I've been trying to fix everything for so long and feel like nothings helping.

(I originally posted this on the high school board, but think this one might be a better place) I feel so discouraged & need help. My dd has chronic Lyme disease, which I've discussed here previously. Due to this (and not knowing she had it for so many years) her studies have suffered and have been extremely sporadic and all over the place. She has gotten treatment, and physically is doing so much better, for which I am so thankful. She also went from not being able to do any school, or even reading (had to keep reading the same page over & over to try and comprehend anything) to be able to handle a regular schedule. She does read and enjoys it now. She loves music, and started guitar last year. I thought she had greatly improved cognitively, but hadn't realized until now how much everything is still a huge struggle for her. She is able to read novels and enjoys them, but it seems like anything else (science, geography, writing) doesn't stick. She tells me she is able to read & understand the information, but almost immediately forgets the content, so her long-term memory isn't good. Whenever she does quizes or tests, she has to look in the materials for the answers. I am not pushing her at all, but she is concerned about the future, going to college, graduating "on-schedule". She is very worried about how she will take tests in college and just function there, period. Last year, I searched to resources to help, and found a program used by Bridgeway Academy, "LD Hope". http://ldhope.org/ . It is an educational therapy, and she's been using it for 7mos. She does it for approx. 45min a day, and hasn't seen much progress. It specifically was supposed to help with her long-term memory. Since this hasn't seemed to have worked, we are both so discouraged. I am heartbroken for her, because she feels she won't ever be "normal". (Her words) At this point, I am looking for anything else anyone can recommend we try, and also am wondering what kind of testing we can do to see where she's at. Maybe it isn't as bad as she thinks-I just don't know. I hate to see this constant, constant struggle. She basically hates school, but spends most of her time doing it, because she feels she has to, and it's hard to get her to do fun things. I keep telling her she needs to have fun and experience life, but she always says she can't, she doesn't have time, etc... Please, please help with any suggestions. Tammi

I feel so discouraged & need help. My dd has chronic Lyme disease, which I've discussed here previously. Due to this (and not knowing she had it for so many years) her studies have suffered and have been extremely sporadic and all over the place. She has gotten treatment, and physically is doing so much better, for which I am so thankful. She also went from not being able to do any school, or even reading (had to keep reading the same page over & over to try and comprehend anything) to be able to handle a regular schedule. She does read and enjoys it now. She loves music, and started guitar last year. I thought she had greatly improved cognitively, but hadn't realized until now how much everything is still a huge struggle for her. She is able to read novels and enjoys them, but it seems like anything else (science, geography, writing) doesn't stick. She tells me she is able to read & understand the information, but almost immediately forgets the content, so her long-term memory isn't good. Whenever she does quizes or tests, she has to look in the materials for the answers. I am not pushing her at all, but she is concerned about the future, going to college, graduating "on-schedule". She is very worried about how she will take tests in college and just function there, period. Last year, I searched to resources to help, and found a program used by Bridgeway Academy, "LD Hope". http://ldhope.org/ . It is an educational therapy, and she's been using it for 7mos. She does it for approx. 45min a day, and hasn't seen much progress. It specifically was supposed to help with her long-term memory. Since this hasn't seemed to have worked, we are both so discouraged. I am heartbroken for her, because she feels she won't ever be "normal". (Her words) At this point, I am looking for anything else anyone can recommend we try, and also am wondering what kind of testing we can do to see where she's at. Maybe it isn't as bad as she thinks-I just don't know. I hate to see this constant, constant struggle. She basically hates school, but spends most of her time doing it, because she feels she has to, and it's hard to get her to do fun things. I keep telling her she needs to have fun and experience life, but she always says she can't, she doesn't have time, etc... Please, please help with any suggestions. Tammi

That is another I was looking at, as well as Math Relief. No matter which one I choose, I think it would be wise for us to start with some type of tutoring, also. I want to make sure she understands from the get go!

I am still desperately trying to find an Algebra curriculum for dd & ds for next year. We've been using TT and dd especially doesn't feel there is enough explanation in the pre-algebra, so we are searching. A good friend recommended Math Help; mathhelp.com . I can't seem to find much info. on it, except Cathy Duffy did give it an excellent review in 2016. It used to be called "Algebra Classmate" as well as "Your Teacher". Anyway, I am leaning towards this, but wanted more feedback from the Hive. Or any other recommendations, please. Dd is not strong in math, and before TT we used MUS. She thought MUS went way too much into the reasons of how you got to the answer, and the why's behind everything, yet as I said, with TT she feels like they don't go over the concepts super well, or explain why you should use a certain formula for a certain problem, etc... We don't need anything super rigorous but I want something that will give her the solid foundation so that she doesn't end up floundering, especially when she gets to Algebra II. She will only be taking Alg., Geometry, and Alg.II. Please help! (Also, text book only isn't great, a combo. would be best) Tammi

Linwood is entertaining, so we thought his course would be a perfect spine. I new I'd have to add to it, but didn't want to make everything super complicated, which is what I always do, then it all never gets done. :001_smile: The one you're going to use looks really interesting! If dd wasn't such a picky eater, I'd consider adding it to ours, and having it be part home ec, too! There are so many options, I just need to take the time to research. Crash Course looks good, too. I briefly looked at the curriculum, but will examine it more, later. Thanks!

I'm trying to plan ds's history for next year. He wants to do World History, and he saw the GC description of "World History: The Fertile Crescent to the American Revolution" and wants to use that along with-whatever. Any other Great Courses you might suggest, or specific booklists? We've used Notgrass American History & Uncle Sam and we liked them, but after looking at samples of their World History, it seemed pretty dry. If we could have a specific spine or 2 plus a bunch of living books, that would be ideal, but I'm open. He is a voracious reader, so I had been considering SL W but I want this to count towards a credit for 9th grade, and a lot of the books look too light. He would be fine with it, but I'm just not sure.... Of course, if we did the SL core, we probably wouldn't add the GC. I don't know, I'm all over the place! Help!

EIL so far isn't what I would call intense. It's perfect for my dd, because it was a great intro. to analyzing lit., and the person I spoke with at EIW said using their writing & lit. course would count as her full credit for 9th grade (even though it's level 8) but level 8 of the lit. at least isn't super rigorous. We'll see how it is next year. They suggested having her possibly skip 9 & move on to 10, so I'll have to see.

Thanks for the encouragement. I like the idea of her only focusing on a few subjects each day, and think it would make a big difference. I know it would help her anxiety, especially on days when she isn't 100%, instead of looking at a mile long list, she would have something achievable.