My 6yo at age 5 was reading at a 3rd grade level. While he could read any "word" I put in front of him he didn't like reading and often told us that he didn't know how to read. He was still using his finger and a book mark also. At the end of June we found out that he has Dev. Delays and will need Vision Therapy to get any farther then he is now. The Optometrist suggested working on lists of words only (not chapter books) until he begins treatment. I don't know if that's what's going on with your dd or not but if she doesn't begin reading for pleasure in a year or two it might be worth the $70 evaluation.

They are not far apart in chronological age, but they are worlds apart academically. For one they have different learning style. What works for one doesn't usually work for the other. My 8yo did 2nd/6th this year... that is I had him read all the suggested reading in SOTW 2, WTM for 2nd and 6th and Year 2 and 7 of AO . When he finished with the suggested reading lists he read the rest of the books in our public library on Middle Ages in the Juvenile section {preschool-8th grade reading level} by then he was sick of the Middle Ages. My ds8 has already read every book in the Juvenile section of our public library on Ancient times (that's 3, 469 books, he kept a tally cuz he's compulsive that way). He does all his own work in History. We did have issues with Narratives/Study Questions this year though and that was not fun. My 6yo did K/1st this year at level (he's gifted but has SPD and some Dev. Vision Delays). So I read to him or had him read to me some of the 1st grade SOTW 1 and WTM listed books and that was enough info for him. He also listened to SOTW 1 on CD and the other available Ancient times DVD's and CD's from the public library. My 6yo is very sensitive to "the plight of man" he was not ready for Middle Ages this year (legally it would be his K year with a Nov. B-day, but he did all things 1st except writing). The only subjects that we have been successful in combining are Bible, Natural Science -gardens, bird watching, charting weather, raising a pet, etc. (we do NS every year as family projects) and P.E. I want them to do the science cycle with their history cycle. According to WTM that means Early Modern Times & Chemistry in 3rd grade and The Modern Age & Physics in 4th/8th. I have the Chemistry books for my 8yo (for this coming year), but it will probably be too advanced for my 6yo when he gets to it next year. This year he will be doing half year of Earth, half year of Space Science and Natural Science (with the family). I have everything for those already.

In August of 2006 I had my oldest ds take the SM placement test. He placed into SM 1A. He did 1A-1B Aug.- Nov. [That is with 30 min. of math 4 days a week not the recommended 60 min 5 days a week SWB suggests] In December of 2006 I had ds take the SM placement test again. He placed in 2A. He did 2A-2B. In August of 2007 I had ds take the placement test again. He placed into 1A (and no that's not a typo). I had him redo 1A-2B in 2007, I added IP and CWP 1-3. He got stumped on Unit 6 in CWP 3 so we shelved it. He can do much higher word problems then computation. In January 2008 I had ds take the placement test again. He placed into 1A again even though he got no lower then a 90% on any of his work in 1A-2B. He was not in any way ready for 3A however. We tried to do the first two Units in 3A and shelved it. He just wasn't getting it. In March I had him do the MUS placement test, he technically placed into Beta, but we decided because he was counting up and down, and didn't have all the mental math down, to place him into Alpha. He did Alpha in 30 days because I wouldn't allow him to do more then 1 lesson (A-F) in a day which took him 30 to 45 min. depending on the lesson. I suspect that Beta will go fairly quickly for him (he probable doesn't need it but my 6yo does). When he is finished with Beta he will go strait into Gamma (he already knows times 0-6). If there are still days left in our school year after he has finished Gamma, I plan on having ds do SM 3A-3B (Those things which were covered in Gamma only). I already have the books on the shelf and don't want to have to buy Delta in March or April.

We've done AO alongside WTM since my oldest was 5. They like reading the stories... but don't like spending a ton of time reading off the computer. And if I print it all up I might as well just buy the books for the cost of ink and paper these days. So we just do those we can find on the list that are also at the library. As for the other book I'll have to take a look and see about it thank you.

That is really subjective... in the case of a slow (as in not doing things quickly) child you have to weigh weather it is stubbornness, laziness or a true problem. I would get her tested for any auditory processing problems and developmental vision delays (which look just like ADD in many children). At 10 the average child should be able to do about 4 hours of work a day, but that would be productive study. If it isn't productive I'd step way back and make sure she's got the basic skills and work up. Phonics for example shouldn't be taking more then 15 minutes out of the day while history and math should take about 30 minutes each. If you are doing SOTW with her then I'd read it to her and then have her give me a narration orally, then slowly work up to her doing it independently (over the course of the years). Reading should be about 15 to 20 min. until she hits 4th grade level then adding 10 more min. per grade level daily. I would work on Phonics and Spelling together. Whatever she is learning to read learn to spell as well (I'd do that orally unless there is an auditory problem as well). I would not worry about Comprehension (while reading) until she can read at a 4th grade level... which could be within a few months if she's motivated. If she has a vision problem I would hold off until after the problem is fixed. In that case I would do most of the reading for her. Phonics Pathways is a good program for children with vision tracking problems. For math I absolutely love Math U See because it is so gentle that the kids don't even realize how much they are learning. It is an AVKO approach that can really help the struggling mathematician. Also it doesn't go by grade level but rather skill level. I would separate "writing" as in putting pen to paper with "writing" putting down thoughts. That is, I would have her do copy work (starting small) 4 days a week with a dictation of the piece on the fifth day (or 3 days and 1 day). I would have her do a "writing assignment" each week, in which she tells me a story the first day (or narration), I become the scribe... writing exactly what she says w/o punctuation. The second day I would have her edit her work. This would require that she learn some basic editing skills such as using a / over beginning sentences. I'd work on one or two usage skills at a time, ie capitals and periods. After she has edited the work I would rewrite her edited work. On the third day I would have her place a N, V, Adj. etc. above each word. Starting with nouns until she can identify them all every time and then move on to the other 8 parts of speech. On the forth day I would have her write her most favorite and least favorite sentence as copy work or have her revise her writing by using descriptive words or replacing overused words. So she would be doing only 1 writing assignment a week but it would be stretched out so that she could better cope with the intricacies of the English language. For Word Knowledge you might try some word games this one has lots for free. And of course card games like Quiddler Game, Snap It Up! Spelling & Reading Game, Snap It Up! Word Families, Making Words Snap, and Sound & Sort Game are all great for children with early reading skills and can be used for older children as well. You could also do a word-a-day program where she writes just one word each day in her own personal dictionary/journal. Or you could have her choose a word each day and have her find the definition, homonyms, antonyms and synonyms for it. Another variation would be for her to keep a list of words she doesn't know when she's reading (but I'd wait on this until she is reading about 4th grade level, because it could be discouraging before she has master a few hundred words). I hope that all my babbling helps.

If we pay it all at once he charges $1,500 this is for 16 sessions which he thinks will meet our sons needs. If it doesn't we will have to pay $112 per session the "periodic" evaluations are extra $70 each, but the home material is included in the cost. And yes, I think he gave us the "your an hour away" discount because I heard his secretary telling another patient that their VT would be $2,900 but then it could be the type of VT that he's going to get also. He also offers a monthly plan that is almost the cost of our rent. I guess we could move in to their office, but I'm not sure they'd like that too much. lol

A little background first... My school age boys are 8yo and 6yo. With a almost 4yo and a 1yo tagging along. My oldest has a label of Gifted Underachiever and Cognitive Processing Disorder with a Very Low Processing Speed. In August he will begin SOTW 3 and Chemistry doing both 3rd and 7th grade materials. He reads on a 7th/8th grade level and writes on a 5th grade level. His math is average for his age and he will be doing MUS Beta, Gamma and SM 3A & 3B. Buying material for both 2nd and 6th this year cost around $1,500 and we still have to use the library a lot. My 6yo is labeled as ADHD (which we don't think he really has), SPD with Fine Motor Delay (he has other processing delays due to the SPD as well). We just had him evaluated for developmental vision problems and he has 3 developmental things wrong with his eyes beside being farsighted. They want him to get Vision Therapy, which we will do as so as we figure out how to print our own money lol. He will begin SOTW 2 and Life/Earth Science in August. He's reading on a 3rd grade level and writing on a Kindergarten level. He will be doing MUS Beta (pos. Gamma) and SM 2A & 2B. Buying material for him this year cost around $500. He used many of his older brothers books, but we had to buy workbooks for writing, vision skills, and math. So now to our decision. We buy new materials every year in February. Dh and I are trying to decide if we should spend the boys 4th, 2nd & K/1st school money (that would be 2009-2010 school year) on our usual school material or have them do Learning Rx and Vision Therapy instead. Learning Rx will cost $1,500 each (the older two) and lasts 26 weeks while Vision Therapy (only for the 6yo) will cost $1,792 and will last at least 16 weeks. If we did this we would still buy SOTW 4, MUS Alpha just the student book, Delta and Epsilon, and a Chemistry and Physics kit. Everything else would come entirely from the library. This would also mean that my youngest ds (who will be 5yo) would get nothing new for school... all that he would have are the hand-me-down books that we already have (which are probably enough), but no workbooks, except math. I feel like this is shortchanging my youngest boy. And I wonder if the other two will get behind doing so little. And then there is the issue of our state requiring that we do certain subjects every year. I'm just not sure what we should do at this point. There is no way we can do both.

I agree with the PP, but would add that Occupational Therapists also work with children having handwriting issues.

Is there any place I can call to get financial assistance for Vision Therapy in NE Ohio. My ds had an Eval. with a Dev. Opt. last week and he said that ds has tracking problems, an eye turn and a muscle problem... he wants us to make an appointment for a consultation to explain every thing more fully. The Opt. told me that ds would need at least 16 weeks of VT with home treatment 5-6 days a week as well, to the tune of $1,792.00. We don't qualify for CreditCare and our Ins. doesn't cover VT so there is no way we can afford to get the treatment without some sort of assistance. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

He does tend to enjoy Science Fiction and Mysteries over any other genre, but in relation to his age I would say that most of the books that he really enjoys have much more to do with vivid descriptive text and a lot less to do with relevance to his personal daily life. I don't think that this is the case since he is reading books designed for 12 year olds and he is only 8 years old. Also most of his friends even those who are 12 are reading books like Captain Underpants "for fun", while he is reading books like Where the Red Fern Grows. I read to all the children from The Children's Reading Hour a few days a week and dh has been reading through The Chronicles of Narnia with him... they take turns. He has also been listening to and reads SOTW 2, the Keys to the Kingdom series, Once Upon a Crime, and the Jonathan Park series. We used Words on the Vine which is a 5-8th grade Greek/Latin vocabulary workbook this year. (I don't recall if it had prefixes & sufixes as he did it mostly on his own with only occasional assistance). He enjoyed it quite a bit, but I think he needs something a little more challenging for next year. I think this is part of it as he complains whenever the print is smaller then 12 font. But then again so do I. lol

I wouldn't do anything except if her post was to sell something on the sell & swap board. If she were trying to sell something I might make a comment to have a hold on the check or something like that. If you are talking about the difference of just $10 (for me $10 or $100 is a lot of money btw), my peace of mind is of greater value then a small debt. I would forgive the debt and move on.

Okay ladies, Help me figure out what to do or not do next. I haven't had my monthly visit since May 2. I tested twice to see if maybe we might have a new addition to the family around February, but the test came back negative twice (18th & 24th). I have not had any significant weight loss or gain (though I am somewhat overweight), nor have I had any significant stress. I have 3 concerns here. One could the test be wrong? With my previous four children I knew I was PG withing 3 or 4 days, (with #1 I knew the next day) tested when I was 2 weeks late and always got a positive. Should I call for an appointment? Wait a few more weeks? Test again? The way I feel could indicate either. Some slight nausea, back discomfort, my ovaries and incision (4 c-sections) are tender. I usually have a discharge just before my cycle which is not present at this time. Two could I be going into Menopause early, (I'm 33)? My cycle has changed quite a bit in the last 8 years since having my first child. In my younger years I never had cramps or discomfort... but I did have the emotional moodiness that comes with PMS. Now I have most PMS symptoms mild to moderately with a 6 day very heavy flow. Three could something else be going on? My mother had a hysterectomy when she was 28 years old. She's since past away and I never thought to ask why she had to have the hysterectomy. Should I call for an Appointment? Wait a while longer? Test again?

Being raised by my father I have personal experience with this. Until I was 8 years old and "put my little foot down" lol, my father took me into the men's restroom. They stank, oh did they stink. He never gave it a second thought. He turned his handkerchief into a blindfold and marched me right past all the stalls. As a mom of three boys I make them go with me when I have to use the restroom, but when my 8yo or 6yo needs to use the restroom I let them go in the men's room with me standing by the door (a very new thing). They both have SPD but my 6yo has it with auditory aversion and has just recently gotten over the loud flush... that is he still screams, but doesn't completely loose it anymore. Also because of his SPD bathroom sinks full of soapy water are a real invitation for mischief, so he can only go to the men's room with his brother or dh. My dd is still in diapers. Once my dh had to take her to the women's restroom because of the lack of a changing table in the men's room. He didn't seem to have a problem with it and he made sure no one was in the restroom at the time.

I have 4 children. My oldest would love to go to camp this year. I'd love to send him. We can't afford it (among many other things). Our church would pay for camp if we asked. But we decided that there are other children who would benefit much more from the experience then our son. I have no problem asking, but with the funds being limited I want the child who needs it most (that child who's parents aren't believers) to go. On the other hand our local art center is having a day camp this year. We can afford exactly half. My dh and I have decided to ask for assistance from his grandparents. We won't be doing a mass email, but we will be "begging" for a little help from those who really love him. (He is artistically gifted, he very seldom asks for anything, and he has offered to 'work it off".) Next year this same son will be participate in Soapbox Derby. His aunt and uncle head our local chapter. While we'd love for him to be involved there is no way we could afford the cost, which is much more then the cost of camp. His aunt and uncle have agreed to fund his participation (equipment cost), provided that we pay the modest entry fees. *Just a side note... they asked that he be involved in Soapbox Derby because they are concerned about his socialization. The truth is we just couldn't afford to fund that type of socialization even if I worked a full time job. My dh has a low paying job, our life extras include a membership to the YMCA (sliding scale 4th of the cost of a regular membership) which came out of our school budget and DSL. Once a month we go out to eat at Subway or McDonald's. If we want our children to do anything that cost extra we have to take it out of our "school fund" which has already been spent for this year. So we do ask for assistance on occasion. By no means do we feel or allow our children to feel entitled to assistance. In most cases we ask their grandparents privately with the qualifier that we'd like them to "Think about it and see if it's in their budget". As they get older our children will be earning their way to many things, not entirely for the experience of the work ethic either. Even at 8 my ds has begun to experiment with his earning potential. It won't always be this way for our family. Dh is making steps to raise his income. If he and/or I were sitting on our butts eating Bon Bons all day then I couldn't in good conscience ask our families for assistance... but because he is working toward more financial stability, we don't waste the finances that we do have, and I stay home because our children's education is of most importance... I don't see a problem with asking for occasional assistance to do an extra. *When I say occational... we've asked for assistance from my parents exactly once, and his parents exactly 3 times in the 10 3/4 years we've been married.

My ds8 really loved SOTW 1. He loved doing the narrations, he loved doing the projects and he loved doing the Student pages. This year he hated SOTW 2. He complained to no end about narrations, so we had him do the questions, he complained about the questions and seemed to really not get it. My art and project loving ds even complained about the coloring and crafting. I like the info given in SOTW. I want him to "finish" the series. But he has gone from loving it to hating it in like 60 seconds. The thing is that he can tell me everything he's ever read. I mean he can remember things he read four years ago. No just reciting what he read, but he's able to discuss it. So I know that he's getting it even if he isn't giving written output. So for my question... Have any of you ever just had your child read the books and skipped all the AG material, questions and narrations for History? This is what my dh and I are trying to decide for next year, if we did this he would do no writing whatsoever for history. He would read SOTW 3 and the book list for year 3 and 7. I would also have him listen to the CD and we would discuss everything orally. If he sees a project that he wants to do we'll do it, but only if he wants to. Dh does think he should do the Student pages so we have a record that he did something for history next year. We do have a separate writing curriculum for next year if that makes any difference.

We have a list of mechanics that my son checks for. He checks off the list after writing. Then he does what we call an Honor Check. Did he do what was on the list? Did he do just one more thing to make the paper even better? He still makes mistakes, but slowly he is catching them. It can be frustrating when they are "ahead" in one thing and seem "behind" in such a simple thing like mechanics. But the truth is that elementary mechanics books are very much like high school and even college mechanics books. Eventually she will get it. One other thing that has helped my ds are Daily Editing Practice Books. Though we don't do them daily. :glare:

A good math program that you can use is Math U See. The program uses blocks of differing colors to teach counting, addition and subtraction concepts. You will have to modify it slightly in that you will not do the writing aspect (or at least not as much writing). The Primer teaches how to write each letter but you can use the games that follow instead of writing in the book... and you can always be your ds's scribe. A good Phonics Program that doesn't "require" writing is Phonics Pathways by Dolores Hiskes. For extra "eyerobics", which some but not all SPD children need in order to get past level 3 books, is called Reading Pathways by the same author. I wouldn't scrap all writing with him. Some writing exercises that a even severely delayed child (like mine) can do are... Body Letters You can ask your OT for this. He/she should have a print out of all the letters that can be done. (not all letters can). Sand Letter Writing You will need: A baking pan with at least 2" sides. (Square or rectangle work best) 2 cups damp sand (we found that Moon Sand works best) Little wiggly fingers *later you will need a small stick (about twice the circum. of a Kindy. pencil) Start with your finger. Draw the letter using the style you chose. Erase with flat of palm of hand...this is important if you are doing more then one letter. It will Erase the feeling of the previous letter. *At another time do Sand Letter Writing with dry sand, Flour, Rice, Salt, corn meal, pudding, whip cream, shaving cream, etc. Using different mediums will help your child develop more control over his fingers. When your child can write all the letters and some CVC words in all mediums start using the stick... be sure he holds it correctly. By then your OT will have taught him how to correctly hold a pencil. Use his/her method (there are several) in order to avoid confusion. The best style of handwriting for children with fine motor delay is Italic Handwriting and it lends it self easily to cursive writing later. At this point he won't need the books but you can get a desk strip at the above site so that you know how each letter is formed. They have desk strips for each of the most popular styles of writing if Italic style doesn't appeal to you. Sand Paper Writing You will need: Sand Paper Large (size) and small Letter/Number Stencils (or make your own using your style of handwriting) Scissors Glue or paste Card Stalk Red marker A empty wipes box or other small container On the Wrong side of the sand paper trace the letter (backward). Both upper and lower case letters in two sizes. Cut out letters. Glue to card stalk and cut into equal sized cards. Color (or have him color) the card stalk containing vowel letters. Have ds trace with his fingers the large letters first. When finished store in container. Chalk Writing Sidewalk Chalk Sidewalk or Chalk board Draw the letters using the large chalk. If your state requires documentation you could keep a picture log of his progress. Just snap a picture as he does his writing games or lettering on the sidewalk. We turned our photos into a "progress" book which my son still enjoys flipping through. I hope this is helpful to you.

In our church SS is divided into Nursery 0-1 1/2, Nursery 1 1/2 - 3, PreK-Kind., 1st-4th, 5th, 6th-8th, 9th-12th and adults. If my children attended SS the younger two would be in the Nursery. The older two would be in the K and 1st-4th class. My older two do not attend for different reasons. My 6yo is uncomfortable in groups larger then 10. His SS class has anywhere from 15 to 20 kids in a class designed for no more then 9. It has florescent lights that really hurt his eyes, no room to move (which he desperately needs), and the noise volume was literally been so high that it caused him to vomit. On top of that he had already learned every thing that the class taught. He complained that the teacher didn't explain things very well (not enough depth), and that the other kids had never even heard of Noah - that weeks lesson. My 8yo was the youngest in the class that he attended. The teacher had told him that he was not old enough for her class and that he would better be placed in the K class with his brother. (He's small for his age.) We did convince her that he was 7 and not 5. By the second week he told us, "I am offended by the childish behavior of my classmates." "The material is juvenile." "The games are embarrassing and foolish." The game was "Jesus Says". The teacher commented that my son read well above any of the other kids in the class, that he was obviously intelligent and that he was "too serious" for his age. She said that he was disruptive, he questioned the children's choices of words, calling each other stupid... and reprehended them for doing so. (The oldest child syndrome doesn't float well when you are the youngest.) He also asked too many "strange" questions which were over the heads of the other children, "Why was Noah considered righteous even though he was a winebibber?" "Why was Noah's grandson punished for his father's indiscretion?" And that some of his questions had "mature" themes and that she was concerned that it might be a problem for the other children (rather their parents), as they did not and should not understand such vocabulary. "Did Noah and his wife procreate after the flood?" "And did God allow them to be more fertile since they had to fill the earth with their seed?" btw they up until that day been taught about Noah a total of 45 times from our previous church attendance. I used to keep all their SS papers and we had quite a few replicas of the exact same lesson. The rule is that the 5th grade class children have to be 10-11 years of age before they can attend. In the class they discuss all the things my ds is currently grappling with. The big S, puberty and what God has to say about their changing bodies. My son's body isn't changing yet but he is aware of them. In all other ways developmentally he is closer to the average 12yo then he is the average 8yo. By the time he's old enough to be in the 5th grade class he will most likely be ready for the high school class. It seems that he is always getting caught in the pesky age related trap weather it is not getting to participate in the library club he's interested in or the SS class that would better meet his needs. Needless to say... we do SS at home. Would I be offended? No. (He however was.) We try to teach him that it's just the way things are. Even if he could be in the 5th grade class it wouldn't be the best fit, as I am sure he would be teased by the boys in the class for being too short or too smart or too (fill in the blank). These same kids meet for Children's Church on Sunday Nights and they think messing with my son is fun sport. He's learned to ignore it for the most part. Our Sunday night teachers try hard to meet our kids where they are but I think for us having a SN GT kid (my 6yo) and a GT motor mouth (my 8yo) has made any kind of normal church experience impossible. So we take what works for us and leave the rest.

Once your child has finished Phonics Pathways what do you use? My son finished doing PP 3 years ago. He was reading and comprehending so well I decided to drop any formal phonics program (since it goes to 4th grade level). He has been reading on a 7th grade level independently for some time now, but is not advancing. He 'can' read more difficult books, but gravitates mostly to 6th and 7th grade books. What can I use to build his vocabulary and phonetic decoding skills to get him over the hump? The only "phonics" type material we used this year was Sequential Spelling, but I'd like something in addition to this for next year (3rd grade for him). Thanks.

Your 8yo sounds so much like mine down to the April birthday. Though my ds also has a cognitive delay that sometimes slows him down, with things he doesn't enjoy... like math and penmanship. Oh and he doesn't like to ride his bike (balance issues from Sensory Processing Disorder). The thing I've learned over the last few years is that there is no way I can keep up with him... I have 3 other children to educate. So over the last 3 years we have been paying close attention to character development. And working hard at teaching him what we think is appropriate and inappropriate materials. I just can't preread everything he reads (10-15 chapter books a week on top of his SOTW and WTM reading lists). We talk about what the "theme" of the book was about. What things were appropriate and inappropriate. We avoid too many pop-culture books that tend to have an obvious lack of parental involvement and philosophies we don't agree with, in favor of older tried and true books. But every once in a while something slips through and my ds has been know to stop reading in the middle of a sentence just because there's something not right. I buy materials that have answer keys, especially in Grammar (which is his strongest suite) or is subjective and can be used for many age levels. I also give him both age appropriate and advanced materials with school subjects. I expect that all age appropriate materials are completed quickly, but don't require all advanced materials to be completed or understood (except in grammar). For instance this year he will be doing Adventures with Atoms and Molecules, Mastering the Periodic Table, A Taste of Science, Science in the Kitchen and several fun Science Kits. While we will go through all of these books I don't expect him to "catch" all of the terminology in Adventures with Atoms and Molecules. (Though he will likely complain that it's not enough which is why we watch NOVA). We try to remind our son, when he has a humility issue (which is rare) that it is good to have knowledge, but it is better to have wisdom. Wisdom tells us when and how to use the knowledge that we have. Anyone can be "educated" but it takes more dedication to be wise. We also practice honor in our home, we both model it and require it. Breath deep and often. Take time out to do as many fun things as your ds will allow (and remember his idea of fun may not be the same). And when things get frustrating take a break for your own sanity's sake.

My ds's OT seems to believe that some of His Sensory Issues may be due to some sort of vision problem. His visual processing is very low and his handwriting skills are still not close to where they need to be after 5 months of OT. He is improving, but she seems to think that it's going to take quite a bit longer for him to have significant improvement. And that she doesn't think she can address some of the vision issues. So have any of your children been to a Developmental Ophthalmologist? After looking it up online I saw that many children with Developmental Vision problems are labeled with ADHD, which is one of his dx's. My next step is talking with his PCP again about getting a referral. But I sure would like to know more about what exactly I'm asking for, before actually asking for it. :) So any BTDT would be great.

We saw improvement after the second session, but the bulk of the improvement has come only recently, we are on month 5 of 1 hour bi-weekly OT with my 6yo. Our OT told us that we will see a great deal more improvement of his vestibular problems and sleep problems when he gets his Benik Vest on the 4th of June. You should discuss with your OT the possible need for a weighted blanket/vest or a pressure vest. Different children have different needs, but I would think after 2 months you should be seeing some improvements. Of course, with your son being a bit older it may take a little longer to retrain his neuropathways. Also the other issues may be compounding the SPD issues. Our OT told us to give the behavioral issues at least 6 months and the social issues a year before deciding if it's working or not. And our ds's issues are pretty minor compared to some of her clients. Kids call him weird among other things, at 6 he's just now realizing these things and while he's very emotionally sensitive he's still pretty quick to forgive. My son has some of the same issues as your ds, but not all... just from memory I believe he has issues with... muscle tone/postural control bilateral coordination & sequencing balance and motor planning tactile discrimination fine motor skills/handwriting skills low registration of vestibular sense decreased body awareness he also has some over-registration issues with sound and textures.

I've been struggling with the olé' pushing issue lately. How do you know how much to push, when to back off and when to just let go all together. I thought that getting my dss' IQ would be helpful. Well, it has been, but only minimally. In some area's this is so easy. I just set the stuff in front of them let them devour it. But what about those things that aren't so fun. Like History. My kids could do tons with history, but they don't find it very fun. I could just require their age equivalent in those areas of not so fun, but I feel like I'd be doing them a disservice. And playing into a just get by mentality. I don't want to do that, but I also don't want to pressure them too much. So I've been looking for some kind of scale to guide me. I looked at Ruf's Levels of Giftedness and comparing what she has to say with my oldest two children. According to the Approximate Score Range my oldest's IQ would place him in Level 1 but when I read the Level Summaries. Level three and four descriptions seems to better fit them. My oldest did all the things mentioned in level 1 and 2 all but two in level 3 and the same two in level 4; grasp skip counting, backwards, addition, subtraction, more and less, by 3 to 4 years (he just learned this a few weeks before his 8th birthday... though he understood the concept he couldn't do computations with addition or subtraction consistently) and “read†numerous sight words between 15 and 20 months (he did this at closer to 24 months he could read "Dear Zoo" and any of the words found in it elsewhere). He's working at 2nd grade level in math. We are doing WTM rotation with history and science using both Grammar and Logic Stage materials, and he's doing 7th grade language arts. We have always insisted that he work at or close to the level across the board. So if he's using a 7th grade grammar book he has to do all the work asked in the book at that level. In writing we do make some allowances, penmanship wise. My 6yo took an IQ test but was unable to finish it. When I compare him to level 3 there are three things he could not do. He could not print letters, numbers, words, and their names between 2¾ and 3½ years. (he has SPD and is getting OT for fine motor delay and is just learning to write at a K level now). He didn't grasp skip counting, backwards, basic addition and subtraction, by 3 to 4 years. (He just learned to do these things this year). Many “read†numerous sight words between 15 and 20 months. (he was reading sight words at 24 months, no more then 10). SO my question is, which is a better indication of they're level of giftedness the FSIQ, the summary or something else? How do I know weather I am not expecting enough of them, pushing them, pressuring them, or overwhelming them?

What grade level would you call this bit of writing, compared to the average child (admitting to not knowing what that is)? My best birthday My eighth birthday was the best day ever, We ate cake and ice cream. I openedmy presents and they were cool. Ihandedout every single partybag to the children. me and my grandma blew up the balloons. Last we played with the balloons. It was written in 15 minutes with no help. I typed it just as he wrote it. This is the first draft.

My 8yo "can" write full page narrations on a section of SOTW. Last year he was writing well thought out, very good narrations... this year, not so much. This year he has gone with the least he can get away with. So we started using a new tool to help him get it down on the page. First dh will read the story to him. Then ds will read the story. Then he will listen to the story on CD. Last he will answer orally the questions in the AG. We record his answers and then have him tell a short narration into his tape recorder. He will play it back and see if he has answered the questions. We have a checklist; "did I answer the AG questions in my narration?" "Did my narration make since?" "Can I expand on it?"... (We have a similar list for each area of writing.) After he has answered these questions he records his narration again. Finally he listens to a sentence at a time and writes what he's narrated orally. It takes a lot longer to do it this way, but his writing has improved a great deal. We have used Writing Strands 1 & 2. I found (for level 2) that I had to modify the lessons a lot, deleting quite a few steps that my ds had already learned form reading. We did it in Kindergarten and I still had to do this. This year we decided to go with a more visually stimulating approach with Write Source. Ds did Write on Track... there's so much in the book that we were only able to (formally)get to page 42 of the 391 pages. (I've caught him sneaking peeks at other sections of the book.) Even still his creative and essay writing have improved a great deal this year due to the "Six Traits of Writing" that he's been exploring through this book. Meanwhile we are still working on the "recall" skills in History and Science.