:iagree::iagree: Both these are excellent advice. Be sure to enjoy the ride because much of it is discovering as you go. Welcome to the homeschooling world!:001_smile:

Bethany, I know what that is like and it's awful. But I LOVE the above Psalm, especially the verse quoted. I will be praying for you, for it's only in HIm that we can both lie down, sleep and dwell in safety. He's got His everlasting arms around you tonight. Rest in Him and I will do the same. Karen

What a beautiful new granddaughter, Mariann! Prayers for your daughter's peace and health. :grouphug: for you! Karen

I went a step further in my mind. I was thinking of actual live chickens, like we have and how one would go about stretching a chicken's breast...:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

We were going to start this coming week (Monday) but this week was a week of so many appointments and everything took so much longer than I had expected. My major goal prior to beginning our school year was to do a total decluttering and major organizing. I have only dented the surface as of today. Since I feel this needs to happen prior to beginning another school year, we are going to take this week as well to accomplish that, with the goal of a week from Monday (9/17) as our first day of academic school. Since I feel that so much of real life is school, I'm more than OK with the delayed date. Sounds like you are doing a similar thing. Good for you! :001_smile:

Cool, very cool! Enjoy that dd. They grow up way too fast!!!! :party::party::party::party::party::party:

:iagree:with Grover. She still is the same child before the "diagnosis". I don't put incredible weight in what doctors and other "experts" say. I've seen love and support and encouragement accomplish amazing/miraculous things, things that the "experts" say could never happen. I will be praying for you and your family as you wrestle with this information and what to do with it. Hugs coming your way :grouphug: ETA -- I didn't mean to imply that the diagnosis isn't very serious and discouraging or something to be reckoned with. I'm sure that's so very difficult to do. And I'm also not suggesting that you put your head in the sand and be like PollyAnna. I just mean that you just never know what love and prayer can do :-)

:iagree::iagree::iagree:I like this very much!!!!!

Dh and I met, got engaged and married within a year! It was crazy but we were in our mid 30s and figured, "why wait?!" We also figured that because we were older, we were more mature. HaHaHaHa! We, had both, however, lived alone for 10 years or so prior to marrying. Needless to say, our marriage was difficult, especially in the beginning. Both dh and I are completely different. He is very structured and likes to know ahead of time what's going to happen while I am more laid back and like to have a basic plan but go with the flow. I love to talk things out and he does not. Add to that that we did not know each other very well and neither did we know ourselves! It took Dh years to grasp that he was really married. Then we tried having children. That took a few years. That was another milestone for dh. The difficult thing was that most of our dd's life, he has had to do mandatory overtime for a portion of the year which he greatly hates. He is most thankful for his job and for the extra money but more than anything else, he wishes he could have those years back to spend with his daughter. Add to the mix that our dd is on the complete opposite end of the spectrum from dh -- she is creative and a free spirit. God does have a sense of humor, doesn't He? When our dd was 3, I was finally able to get pregnant again but lost the twins at 10 weeks. That absolutely devastated both of us. It took years for us to work through that but it really is what saved our marriage. We realized that while we have two babies in heaven, we still have each other and our precious daughter. What makes our marriage hard (for me) is that we are so different (opposites attract :-). While I desire to talk everything through, he feels that talking brings pain. As a result it's been a long journey of trying to be best friends and knowing that God brought us together and trusting ultimately God will continue to show us the path on which to walk.

Has anyone used American Sign Language for their foreign language for their dyslexic child? If so, I'm looking for some options. I'd love to know what has worked for your dyslexic child. I have no idea what to use. I don't know American Sign Language so I'd be learning with her. I think we're going to try that next year for our foreign language. English is a big enough hurdle for my dd that I can't see doing Spanish and being successful. But, I think it may work with ASL.

What do you need to do The Logic of English? I looked at their website and the teacher's manual and student workbook is $120. Do you need Uncovering The Logic of English and all the flashcards and games? I don't want to get caught up in not purchasing something that would be helpful but it's just so hard to know before you try something. And it's not that my dd isn't worth every penny, it's just that it's getter harder to get those pennies together :-)

I'm still having problems with the search functions as others have noted in the above entries. Are others still as well? I'd love to be able to search for AAS and not get "Sorry no matches" or get multiple entries that aren't really correct -- I just searched for "Logic of English" and got Logic entries and English entries. UGH. I love this forum but it's hard to navigate when you can't find what you know is there!

SailMom, my dd has very little visual memory as well and mine is strong so I can totally relate to what you are saying. We tried Sequential Spelling and it didn't work for her at all, similar to your son's experience. Is your son mostly working through Logic of English on his own? And my main question for you and anyone else is this: Will Logic of English work with one who has dyslexia?

I have checked out what others recommended but I keep coming back to the manipulative tiles of AAS. And I love that it's Orton-Gillingham based. I think both of those would be an incredible plus for my dd's dyslexia. I love/hate scripted curricula. It gives me a jumping off place but I hate feeling like I'm acting in a play :-) I don't know if anyone gets that. But my question is: if I used AAS, would I begin at Level 1? Is there any kind of assessment provided?

My dd is 14 and has dyslexia. Would starting at Level 1 work for her or would she find it too babyish?

Oh Elizabeth, I've been using Spelling Power with my dd. I know it's helped some but I have been thinking for some time that something that breaks words down more would help. I know you said that you can use the AAS manips with another program but would it work with Spelling Power I ask because I am not really familiar with their program. And would you always recommend beginning at level 1 with AAS?

Thank you for the suggestions thus far. Can anyone add some good Christian (as in Bible-based vs. evolution) curricula that would meet our needs? ASG is a possibility but I was hoping there might be some Christian choices as well.

My dd is currently using TT pre-algebra. I like TT and she seems to do well with it. But, I have a question and a concern. I read somewhere (internet) that TT is considerably slower than other curricula. Would you agree with that statement? If so, could you tell me why? That really isn't a big deal to me, I was just wondering. What is a big deal to me is the cost. It's so pricey! So I was looking into Life of Fred. I gather that you either LOVE Life of Fred or hate it. If you've used it, do you like it and why (or dislike it and why)? Math does not come easily to my dd and TT has worked for us. She likes the lectures and I like that they explain step by step (no surprises) how they got the answer. I am a Math person (used to teach math and get paid for it!) but the way I think and the way my DD thinks are two completely different things. She is very creative and I am much more analytical. She and I used to get into arguments when I would try to teach her Math. So I like that TT lets her get it on her own (without Mom), allowing her to be more independent. By the way, anything that involves heavy reading comprehension won't work for her as she is dyslexic. The lecture piece is an important component. She needs that in order to understand the material. Just reading a book with Math concepts in it, wouldn't work for her. If you have another curriculum in mind, let me know. I'm open to suggestions. besroma Hive Mind Queen Bee Join Date: Nov 2010 Posts: 1,520 Based on your description, I think you would like LOF and your daughter would not. There is a lot of reading comprehension and analysis involved. Since it is working, I would stick with TT. It may be a bit behind grade level, but if it is working well for her, that is important. Changing to another curriculum could frustrate her and not only set her back, but turn her off to math. Have you looked into purchasing a used set? That being said, if you want to try something else, I would check out Chalkdust Math. We love the lectures by Dana Mosely, and it is a solid program. You can purchase the sets used, or if you search the threads here for his name, you can order the text and dvds from Amazon at lower prices. They just will not say "Chalkdust" on them, and you will not get their teacher support guarantee.

Hello good folks, who have helped me so much in the past. I have another set of questions. Perhaps you can help me :-) We have been using the Apologia elementary science books (Exploring Creation with Astronomy, Land Animals, etc.) for the past couple of years. Although my dd is in 8th grade, the reading level has been great for her dyslexia. Not too hard, not too babyish, interesting, just right. She has very much enjoyed the books. She is not necessarily "a science person" but she has enjoyed it thus far. She is mostly interested in nature and the practical hands-on type of material (which she has found in much of the Apologia curricula). My concern is that the 7th - 12th grade books move away from the "fun" stuff and onto much scientific terminology and the reading level becomes much harder and there doesn't seem to be much of the fun stuff :-( I don't see her going to college (necessarily) and I don't see her majoring in Science or anything that requires a heavy science background -- she's artistic. I figure that she can always take things at the college level (community college) should she need to fill in the blanks, if her plans change for the future. I say that to say that I am not necessarily looking for heavy college-bound courses with science labs (unless they are fun!). But I do want to expose to the basic sciences and infact, I'm required to. So, with that said, I have looked at the Apologia following courses: General Science, Physical Science, Biology, and their elementary Anatomy and Physiology, as well as Biology 101, LIFEPAC (Alpha Omega) health. I need something that is not just lots of words and definitions (which is my concern about the upper levels of Apologia Science I've listed), most likely something with a video component (perhaps) at least an audio piece (so that she could listen to the book as it's being read. My mission is for her to learn the basics of biology, chemistry, physics (perhaps), anatomy, physiology and health. While I'm sure I could make her read your classic science textbook, it would be meaningless dribble to her. I don't want that. I want something that will have applications and grab her interest. I know that's not always possible but isn't that the goal we reach for in home schooling? :-) Are there things that have worked for you and your special child?

My dd is currently using TT pre-algebra. I like TT and she seems to do well with it. But, I have a question and a concern. I read somewhere (internet) that TT is considerably slower than other curricula. Would you agree with that statement? If so, could you tell me why? That really isn't a big deal to me, I was just wondering. What is a big deal to me is the cost. It's so pricey! So I was looking into Life of Fred. I gather that you either LOVE Life of Fred or hate it. If you've used it, do you like it and why (or dislike it and why)? Math does not come easily to my dd and TT has worked for us. She likes the lectures and I like that they explain step by step (no surprises) how they got the answer. I am a Math person (used to teach math and get paid for it!) but the way I think and the way my DD thinks are two completely different things. She is very creative and I am much more analytical. She and I used to get into arguments when I would try to teach her Math. So I like that TT lets her get it on her own (without Mom), allowing her to be more independent. By the way, anything that involves heavy reading comprehension won't work for her as she is dyslexic. The lecture piece is an important component. She needs that in order to understand the material. Just reading a book with Math concepts in it, wouldn't work for her. If you have another curriculum in mind, let me know. I'm open to suggestions.

My dd's friend is 14 and is severely dyslexic. She and her Mom are working through Susan Barton's curriculum and they're up to level 6. DD's friend can read very short passages that have large print and that's about it. The problem is this: all the "beginning to read" books" that I've found are for little kids because of the topics or pictures. And the adult things I've found are for adults. What she needs is a book (of sorts) of one page stories in large print with teens in mind. This is a conservative Christian family so they're not looking, perhaps for your typical (whatever that is) teen reading but something that would be of interest to a 14-year-old. Any ideas?

What does MP stand for?

Could you clarify what you mean by the teacher guide "cluttered things and made it harder for me to use the curriculum"?

Trish, is this the full name of the Bible study? I couldn't find it when I did a search for it. Could you tell me who it's by or any other information? Thanks. Karen

Thank you. I will look it up! :001_smile: