Schooling methods for our Autism Spectrum Kids...

[Mesa]

Can we talk a little about what works for your children, and what doesnt?

Maybe a book suggestion or two? Does one curricula work really well for your child?

 

I'd like the fresh ideas.

 

We are dealing with Aspergers, ADHD, and SPD... I do know my son has poor short term memory, but great long term memory. He has gross and fine motor skills delays. Poor handwriting, and horrible spelling skills. He's a very good reader, I tend to say advanced... but that seems to be leveling off for some reason. He loves to read, hates to write. Language of any form is difficult for him. He's good at math, but claims otherwise.

 

Any ideas.. helpful tips? I'd like the learning process to be as easy and pain free as possible for him.

Edited September 26, 2009 by Mesa

[Mesa]

I'll go first as far as whats working here.

 

Math U See is working, and he like the teacher.

 

Singapore works better when I let my son do the reading for himself and just over see the lesson. I sit near him and point things out to him and answer questions as needed. I think my son does better if he reads or "sees" things for himself.

 

Usborne encyclopedias are a hit with my son too. He'll sit down with one for "fun" reading. Hey, I wont complain!

 

Literature based History Currics. It doesnt matter which one, we've used TOG, SL, and WP... He liked them all.

[Jamie Z]

I am new at hsing a high school special needs kid. IEW is working great for us with the writing. We are using SLCore 100 because she loves to read and I can talk through with her what she is reading using the teacher's guide. We are doing alot of analyzing what she got wrong, and why it was wrong, etc. Focusing on thinking through things. I think it depends no your goals to help you figure out what you are focusing on. For instance let me post one of ours:

Language arts:

1. To develop the ability to choose and record key words which will help her remember a complete idea.

2. To learn to communicate the main ideas from something she has read by using a key word outline.

3. To choose selections, read them and create key word outlines independently and then verbally retell the basic ideas to another person using only the outline.

This week we will work on this with her “How to Pray†book. Each day, she will make a key word outline from her reading. Then she will narrate the pages using only her outline.

Example: One note for each sentence or paragraph that she reads.

This will help M with:

Reading Comprehension: helping her understand what she has read

Language processing: encouraging her to tell about what she has read in a structured coherent manner

Writing: outlining and picking out the important parts

Eventually Malia can write a summary of what she has read based on these key word outlines. This week we will not focus on this for language arts.

The week we worked on this, my main goal was for her to learn the process of finding the theme in the chapter. She did very well with this after we laid it out like that. Then we moved to having her use her key word out line to tell me about it and then to eventually summarize a paragraph on paper. She gets a grade for doing this because it's important skills she needs to learn.

Blessings,

Jamie Z.

[Mesa]

Oh good! I'm glad to see IEW is working so well for you. I just bought TWSS a few days ago!

[MamaSheep]

Handwriting Without Tears has been great for improving my ds's handwriting. He hates writing too (with a passion) and we do a lot of work orally. I also let him type everything he possibly can because he finds typing a lot more manageable.

 

We're also LOVING Teaching Textbooks for math.

 

Ds dislikes hands-on crafty kinds of activities, partly (I think) due to tactile sensory issues and partly because of small motor control problems. I make him do a few here and there anyway, but I try to avoid things like lapbooking with him because it would be a constant battle I'm fairly sure I would not win and there are other, more compatible ways of learning the information.

 

Ds does like to read, though, so we tend to lean toward reading heavy materials and then discuss what we read.

 

With a lot of things I find that it helps if we can delineate "rules". He likes rules. Things like spelling, for example. Anything that can be done according to a formula, like math or a 5-sentence type paragraph is preferable to anything that is intended to be free-flowing and "creative", such as writing fictional stories with lots of description and dialogue.

 

And I also find that a written (or otherwise visible) schedule for the day makes things go a LOT more smoothly. Also, breaking any and all assignments down into small steps and writing down the steps so he can check them off helps him stay on task.

 

Ummm......if I think of anything else I'll add it later. :)

[Mesa]

Amy, you are so right! I "knew" these things, yet I've let some fall to the wayside and have forgotten about them.

 

So first things first I need to print out a schedule.

[jensway]

My ds is an Aspie w/SPD. He loves to read, hates to write, his handwriting leaves something to be desired. Is good in math and science. He is not a natural speller but getting better with AAS, likes history OK. He sounds quite a bit like your ds Tired Mama.

 

What works for us is:

Math U See

AAS

Prentice Hall Science

A Young People's History of the U.S. for a spine

 

A written schedule of what is to be done for each day so he can check it off when finished. Just started Analytical Grammar this year so the jury is still out.

[happygrrl]

Rod and Staff Grammar (English) is working *very* well for us. The pages are black and white, short and sweet. We do the exercises orally, and it really seems to stick. Diagramming sentences has helped his comprehension (he does fine with non-fiction, it's the he said she said of fiction that drives him batty). He loves diagramming, and I think he also loves that his public school friends can't do it. When we started diagrams I allow him to write just the first letters of the words on the diagrams so that he didn't overload. On his own he moved to abbreviations and now is writing the entire diagram. This is a big improvement as he has a hard time with forming letters.

 

Sorry this is so jumbled- I am in a hurry!

[Mesa]

My son is "liking" AAS as well. We are just getting started with it but it really looks like a good program. I think the letter tiles help my son "see" the word and to make a mental picture of it in his head.

[Mesa]

Jen, Keep me updated on Analytical Grammar. I'd like to try that program. I dont think Easy Grammar is for us.

[cjbeach]

Workboxes have worked here this year for him! No more asking "how much more work do I have to do!!!"

I also have a timer in the room which I give fair warning I'll set if there's a lot of dillydallying going on.

My ds has functioning ASD with hyperlexia yet getting him to read has been an effort. WE started to make a Xmas tree "chain" made up of books that have been read. That's working as well, a visual prompt of sorts.

My ds does not do too well on SOTW narrations but he likes the history. He IS doing well on WWE narrations though!

He likes the science program we're using as well this year.

Fine motor skills are an issue for him. He learned cursive in the MOntessori he was in for the latter half of second grade but it is difficult so we're changing slowly. He did not care for HWT cursive (? I have NO idea why since he learned to print using HWT) so I'm going to try Getty Dubay Italic cursive.

I've been trying to add some life skills or fine motor skills tasks into one of the workboxes daily (even if it's shoe tying or working on an erector set). I have not purchased the social skills curriculum I want to use due to finances ... but when I do that will definitely go in a workbox everyday (from www.socialthinking.com)

[IsabelC]

Don't know about most of it because we're not big into curriculum around here, but I just wanted to add a vote for Handwriting without Tears. My Aspie son used to loathe any attempt to teach him writing and was very poor with drawing/prewriting skills, and since starting on HWT, he has been asking to do writing :) (I'm hoping it's not just the novelty factor!)

[hsmamainva]

My 15yo is on the spectrum and I can tell you what has worked for him over the years!

 

Handwriting Without Tears is excellent!!! Can't say enough good things about it! IEW is also working well for him, as language arts is his weak area.

 

Math-U-See in the younger grades (K through 6th) and Teaching Textbooks in the upper grades (7th through present)

 

Anything hands-on for science (In the younger grades, we picked a subject or area of interest and went from there with lots of books, videos, experiment kits, etc. Now that he's in high school, we're using more textbooks and formal areas of study).

 

He's used Sonlight for History / Reading since Kindergarten. He loves to read and he LOVED being read-to when he was younger (he didn't learn to read well on his own until he was around 8 or 9).

 

He loves art and we've used numerous drawing books over the years! He's taking formal art lessons now once a week and loving them!