Hi, I am wondering if anyone has tried Reading Focus Cards http://readingfocuscard.com/ for kids with ADD or reading comprehension issues. I bought some for my daughters (age 14) and so far, just have to keep reminding them to use them. They have ADD and I thought it might help them focus on the content rather than the rest of the page. Any feedback from others on these cards would be appreciated. Thanks, Beth in MD Mom to four (19, 18, and 14 year old twins)

She sounds a lot like my twin daughters who are now 13. Math and basic counting concepts are a huge struggle. They are making strides but I still never get the feeling they have a real understanding of what is going with math. They went to a Montessori school for k-3 and used all the math manipulatives and counting frames etc. With homeschooling, we have tried the following programs: Right Start Touch Math Mammoth Math DreamBox Learning Time4Learning Teaching Textbooks Saxon Excel Math Aleks Math I would say the most effective for them have been some of the games in Right Start Math, Touch Math (since they have memory issues) and Excel Math (lots of repetition and reinforcement). Beth in MD Mom to four kids. 19, 17 and 13 year old twins http://www.homeschoolfrederick.com

My daughters started on Concerta this year for ADD-inattentive type and it has helped somewhat for one, but has had no apparent effect on the other. They have upped the one daughter's dose twice and still no real effect. They don't like taking it because they completely lose their appetite and eating has become a chore. They don't take it weekends so they can build up some calories and not lose weight (they are skinny!) Not sure about next steps for them. Beth in MD Mom of four, ages 19, 17, and 13 year old twins http://www.homeschoolfrederick.com

I was just looking into a watch with reminders as well. Here is a review of three: http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/7147.html Beth in MD

We love Excel Math here, after trying about 10 different curriculums for my daughters with dyscalculia. They love they way they can write the answers right in the book and don't have to transfer to paper. The daily reviews help them with retention. The consistent format and structure is nice too. But the best part of all is the checksum feature! They are able to check their own work, and find their errors before turning their work into me. So I am no longer the bad guy, and I have found they get a lot out of trying to find where their mistake is. It really makes them more careful and take more ownership of for their work. Also, the feedback is immediate, rather than me checking the work later and giving it back to them. Love, love, love, Excel math! I wish it went higher than 6th grade. Beth

I just spoke to Verticy today as I am still on the fence as to go with them or Connections Academy (with IEP type supports). The woman, who was very helpful, said clearly that the program is designed to remediate reading fluency disabilities but not really reading comprehension or math disabilities. She said the math is basically Calvert math with some extra materials thrown in. Our biggest issue is math, so this is disappointing. We may end up doing the Calvert virtual academy (perhaps with Kurzweil added for read aloud and notetaking etc.) with more assessments and project based work, and doing math our own. Beth

Thanks, RamonaQ! Beth

Thanks for the reply, Dobela! Beth

For Kurzweil, RamonaQ mentioned getting files compatible with Kurzweil. Where you get these, or find out if a book you want is available in this format? Thanks! Beth

Hi, my daughters have similar issues with math. We have tried several curriculums over the last three years and Touchmath was one that my girls enjoyed. It gave them a way to be successful with basic arithmetic so they can move on to other higher order things. Some people say it's a crutch, but it worked for us at a time when they really needed to have some success. We have also recently had some success with Excel Math workbooks, where they can do all the work in the book rather than having to transfer problems to copy paper. Excel Math also provides daily review of previously learned concepts which helps with the memory issues. Best of all, they provide a checksum feature, where for each set of problems, they have to total to the checksum so they can check their work. It keeps me from having to be the bad guy and I find they spend more time trying to figure out where they went wrong, then if I just mark a single problem wrong. Best of luck in your journey! Beth in MD

Hi, I have a "good problem": I have been trying to get my insurer to pay for neuro-psych testing for my twins at Children's Hospital in DC and was not optimistic. So I lined up testing through our local school system to be completed next month. Meanwhile, the insurer just came through and approved the testing at Children's scheduled for September. They will pay for all but the educational portion. The school system has put a lot of time and prep into the screening process and test times with them are all set up. I hate to cancel and feel like I'd like to pursue testing at both places. Does anyone know if there any problem with having the same tests administered so close in time to each other (within 2 mths). Does it invalidate the results of the second test? Beth

I'd just like to add that my daughters have been doing well lately using Excel Math. All computation can be done right in the book and it is spiral with daily math fact practice. Visually it is black and white with different areas boxed off nicely. The best part for us is each area has a checksum feature where you add three answers together and you can see if you got something wrong. My girls like this because they can catch their mistakes before I do;) We've tried just about every homeschool math program and this is one that seems to work for them. Worth a look: http://www.excelmath.com/index.html Beth in MD

I just stumbled onto some remedial math texts for middle and high school from Jamestown Education that look great. They are from the Number Power series and are also sold on Amazon under the name Contemporary Number Power. Reviews look good. The Jamestown website says they are targeted to struggling readers. There is a nice sample on the Jamestown site, in case you are looking for some summer review or remediation. I need to spend more time on the Jamestown site, but it looks like they may have some other interesting products as well. Beth in MD

You might also want to take a look at Stern Structural Mathematics and Addacus. I was just looking at some of the samples from the manuals on the Addacus site and they look like fun. I may have try this, to add to my collection of math programs;) They have a sampler pack which is a nice way to try it out without the total expense upfront. Beth in MD

Michelle, I would say the book and materials were very parent friendly..incremental and almost scripted. I can not imagine doing it for four hours a day, which is what they do at the Lindamood Bell center, but it can't hurt to try it at home. They do offer parent training sessions which would be much cheaper. And yes, with the last poster, I too was shocked at the cost of the program. That was not even in-home, we would have to travel about an hour a day to do it. I appreciate the tip on the book...I will have to get it! Beth in MD

Hi Catherine, I bought the materials and guide for this book and tried it with my daughters who are 12. It may their age or middle school mother/daughter relationship, but I got real resistance with it being "too babyish". It takes you all the way back to counting on a number line, which frankly, they could use help with, but they were so resistant to all the "too easy" stuff, I gave up. Meanwhile, they still struggle with simple computations and number sense. I recently checked with Lindamood Bell about having a trained teacher administer it, and they require 4 hours a day at over $100 an hour, 5 days a week for 8 -12 weeks. Doing the math, LOL, for two children, it was a non-starter for us. I will say the materials were high quality, and the book was easy to understand. Beth in MD

I am looking for reviews of Verticy Math and how it differs from regular Calvert Math. I have searched the archives and see mixed reviews. My daughters are 12 with serious math delays and struggle with basic math concepts, logic, number sense etc. The spent 5 years in a Montessori school so have lots of experience with manipulatives to no avail. We have tried Right Start, Rod and Staff and Saxon. I am little worried it is the same as regular Calvert math just with placement at lower levels? I don't want to just start over...we can do that without Verticy. Is there something unique about the way it is taught (like the O-G for phonics)? Any info on Verticy math would be appreciated. Thanks! Beth in MD

Hi Ramona, thanks for the info! My girls are great decoders and read fairly fluently, so I think they would be okay with reading the math textbook. They just have terrible trouble with the math itself. But for science and social studies where the text load is heavier, they prefer to have it read to them. Text that is highlighted as it is read to them is the best of all. I don't think they need the notetaking feature so they would probably be okay without that. Are the online books delivered via the internet browser or on a CD? Thanks! Beth

Thanks for this info! Does Natural Reader highlight the words as it reads aloud? I am also looking at TextAloud by nextup.com Thanks! Beth in MD

Just realized I meant to say "text to speech" readers instead of speech to text...Sorry! Beth

I'm looking at Calvert's Verticy program (math only) for my daughters. They can decode and read fluently but hate to read. They do better with comprehension when I read to them, or when they read text online with with a read aloud option. As they get older, and the reading load is heavier (going into 7th grade) I'm thinking about having them use a text reader for some online textbook content. So it needs to be able to read internet browser content as well as PDFs without me scanning pages in. Kurzweil looks good, but is expensive. Has anyone tried other readers like Natural Reader , Read Aloud, or NextUP? Any opinions or suggestions welcome. Beth in MD

Does anyone have suggestions for literature, science or history curriculum (middle school) that uses interactive textbooks with video and/or a read-aloud feature? I am looking at Progress Academy which uses interactive textbooks that look pretty interesting. Just wondering if there are other similar offerings I am not aware of? Thanks! Beth in MD

My 12 year twin daughters are about to start Little Women, and we are also studying the Civil War period. Does anyone have any suggestions for companion resources, study guides, lapbooks, games, art activities etc. to go with this book? We are big diorama fans so will likely do one of the March home;) Similar ideas welcome. Thanks! Beth in MD

Hi, I recently reviewed a courtesy copy of WordBuild by Dynamic Literacy and would like to share a link to the review. We are enjoying this vocabulary program and plan to continue using it. Beth in MD Mom of 4, Homeschooling 12 year old twin daughters

Hi, has anyone tried these programs at http://www.learning.com/products/? They are incredibly inexpensive at $15.00 per student per year and look good but I can't find many homeschool reviews. For science, I am looking at it as a full curriculum for struggling 6th grade twins and for math, as a possible supplement. I am not a huge science fan and so love the idea of online science with virtual experiments but wonder if it is boring. The Edtech program looks interesting too for the price. Any comments appreciated! Thanks;)