Seems like it's time for a roll call . . .

[rafiki]

.

[frugalmama]

I don't post much in this area as much of it doesn't pertain to my DD, but here is our post for the roll call. DD is 5yo with mild ASD and Mild SPD and some slight delays {primarily physical} due to the ASD and SPD. We are just starting down the road to an official formal diagnosis and any therapy that might help her.

[pdalley]

15 - oldest - dyslexia, CAPD and autism

 

12 - middle - CAPD autism generalized anxiety, PANDAS

 

10 - youngest - selective mutism, autism

 

The older two love Math U See for math. The youngest - a bit of a math whiz likes Singapore and Teaching Textbooks. I'm using Teaching with Movies for the oldest for Literature, FLL 4 for Grammar, Spelling Power for spelling and IEW for writing. I'm also using ABeka for Science and History. Same for middle.

 

Youngest is Teaching Textbooks/Singapore, Growing With Grammar, Soaring With Spelling, Winning with Writing. I'm using an old State history textbook for him and Abeka Science. I use notebooking pages from Hands of a Child too. We're also loosely following MFW's ECC.

 

It's tough having an auditory learner (oldest), visual (middle) and hands on (youngest) when you're a read/write learner. :tongue_smilie:

[Dmmetler]

DD-age 7-Gifted, supposedly not Aspergers but lots of Aspie traits, SID, low muscle tone, anxiety.

 

Mostly doing accelerated academics with oral or minimal written response, gymnastics and dance classes to work on motor skills (gymnastics coach is an OT student, which is wonderful), cheer team because DD loves it with a coach who has a child with aspergers and is very understanding of DD's needs.

[DawnM]

14 (next week) Aspergers

 

Also has some LD in the areas of reading/writing/spelling.

 

We use Sonlight right now, but I am having to read way more than I would like. So we are switching soon. He is a very auditory learner.

 

Apples and Pears spelling

 

Teaching Textboks math

 

Apologia General Science (not going that well, but we are plugging along and hoping to find something more interesting.)

[Crimson Wife]

Oldest is suspected 2E with CAPD and/or ADHD and/or working memory issues (need to take her for a neuropsych eval when we finish up with all of #3's evals), and also we're on the wait-list for an OT eval for possible dysgraphia. Academically, she's all over the map.

 

2nd was a late talker and has some mild ASD symptoms but right now he seems to be doing okay.

 

Youngest was diagnosed at the end of November with high-functioning autism. She's currently in EI preschool and receiving speech & OT there.

[SuperDad]

A combination of OCD, SPD, ASD, PG, selective mutism, and low muscle tone.

:glare:

[Shellers]

11 year old son - Severe Dyslexia - labeled speech impaired when he attended public school

 

He's in 5th grade. At the end of 4th grade he was in public school and reading at a beginning 1st grade level. I started after schooling him. At the beginning of 5th grade his IEP team retested him and he was reading at a 2.5 grade level. I'm positive this is due to me working with him because the progress was made over summer, plus his IEP hadn't changed in six years! I started homeschooling him on Nov 1, and now he's reading at a beginning 3rd grade level.

 

His speech could use improvement but seems to be improving as his reading and spelling are getting better.

 

Here's some things I'm using with him:

 

 

 

• Teaching Textbooks 5 - We love TT because the concepts are explained to him by the software. Math is is favorite subject and thanks to TT, he feels smart. We will be moving onto TT6 next month.
  
• Apples & Pears - This spelling program has helped him so much with his reading!
  
• Dancing Bears - His reading is really coming along thanks to Dancing Bears. Some of the stories are extremely strange but they do keep his attention.
  
• Bear Necessities B - We use this as extra reading practice.
  
• Winning With Writing - My son has no experience with writing because last year he couldn't spell or read. We are using level 2 and he's enjoying the program.
  
• Growing With Grammar - He likes this one too. He's working on Level 3.
  
• Soaring With Spelling
  
• Handwriting Without Tears - He does this for fun.
  

 

[FairProspects]

Ds 1 - SPD dx, probable dyslexia, working memory and word retrieval issues, maybe ADD, possibly 2E, waiting for neuropsych eval.

 

We have done 3 years of OT for low core muscle tone, fine motor delays, and balance issues, and 18 months of VT for tracking issues, now graduated from both and just pursuing Tae Kwon Do which seems to function as therapy.

 

What is working well for us is AAS & Recipe for Reading, basically anything O-G. Also Supercharged Science and SOTW since ds can get high level content without having to read it himself.

 

What doesn't work is pretty much anything that works to teach basic skills to a normal kid - you know phonics programs, arithmetic, handwriting, etc.

Edited January 28, 2012 by FairProspects

[SkateLeft]

Only my youngest has special needs. He's a 6 year old kindergartener.

 

He has a large subarachnoid cyst and hypopituitary dwarfism. He had delayed milestones from birth. He was originally diagnosed with autism, then GAD, communication disorder, OCD, insomnia, developmental delay, gross motor delay, SPD, expressive-receptive language delays, etc. I'm sure I'm forgetting things. Basically, the typical alphabet soup of a kid who doesn't really fit any one box, like many others here!

 

As far as I'm concerned, his biggest issue is severe OCD and anxiety, along with processing speed and memory deficits. Uncontrolled, OCD absolutely dominates every aspect of his life, day and night. With medication, he looks a lot like a normal (although very small!) 6 year old. He spent two years in special ed preschool, but after experimenting with general ed preschool last year, we pulled him out and decided to keep him home. The teacher told us that he couldn't follow simple directions and didn't play with the other kids.

 

He's doing really well this year! He's using K12 kindergarten phonics, language arts, math and history, which is what I used with my middle two kids, and so far so good! He gets private speech, OT and feeding therapy. Sight words are very hard, and he forgets lots of the letter names, but he remembers the sounds, even though he mixes up a few! He's reading CVC words, which is awesome. :D

[lilypoo]

I'm new here. :) My 7 year old has Crohn's Disease and had a non-hemorrhagic stroke at age 2. She has hypotonia as well and was dx'd with a GDD and SID at around one year of age. She has a tremor, balance issues and some emotional/learning issues post-stroke. She's gifted and doing very well, all things considered. I was using MBTP 5-7 with her but we've recently changed to an eclectic mix of ETC, RS4K, Intellego, various math workbooks and I'm still searching out a few more materials to round out the ol' program. :) She also takes voice and piano and wants to audition for community theatre this spring!

[Ibbygirl]

DD14 Asperger's, OCD & ADHD. We work on social skills and take frequent breaks but other than that she has been able to do the coursework for her grade level without too much difficulty. She does have trouble with math. We've been working on Algebra 1 for 2 years now. Everything else she's going through at a good pace.

 

DS 10 is profoundly Autistic and non-verbal. I do a lot of therapy with him (PT, OT & ST). For school we work mainly on vocabulary, puzzles, play doh, stories, Leap Frog DVD's, computer games, music etc.

[lorrainejmc]

My 8 yr old ds never got a diagnosis; he was screened for ADHD, ASD, apraxia etc but no evaluation recommended. He had typical development until he suffered long term temporary hearing loss, looooong story. A speech therapist suspected (as did I) selective mutism, but I would go one further and call it progressive mutism as he got to the point where he would barely interact/communicate verbally with anyone. I foolishly thought unschooling would help him relax and he would come to us when he was ready but instead in enabled him to sink further into a non verbal world. This has been a very successful year for us though. We finally have heard his normal speaking volume again instead of whispering/mouthing for one. He does have some significant challenges in spoken language as well as receptive when it is more abstract. For that I have ordered Talkies and am hopeful that will help in that area.

 

We are using:

 

HWT-book and slate has been all we needed.

RS math-we have mainly been experimenting with the manipulatives but I am hoping to follow the lessons in a more structured way soon.

Phonics-until now we have played around with flash cards, magnetic letters, starfall. I think we'll be trying AAR and AAS next year and I also have plans for adapting FLL1 and WWE1 using visual aids.

Science/history/geography-FIAR, Lets Read and Find Out Science with hands on science kits etc. I repeat read in "FIAR style" for all content subject areas.

[hsmamainva]

17yo w/ Aspergers. He's completed everything listed below in my signature. The only thing left between now and graduation in May is driver's ed. He's working now on getting his learner's permit. He needs to have it by March 15th and then he's been accepted into a grant study program at the University of Virginia where they're teaching teens with Asperger's how to drive using a driving simulator. He's very excited!

 

In the past, what's worked for him was Alpha Phonics for reading, Easy Grammar for grammar, IEW for writing, Math-U-See (younger grades) and Teaching Textbooks (upper grades) for Math and Sonlight for everything else.

 

I'm also teaching my 9yo (she turned 10 Wednesday, just haven't updated my signature!). She's fairly delayed in academics. We just brought her home this school year and I started her off at the beginning with K/1st grade materials. She'd been in a self-contained autism class since the age of 3, and we finally received a much-fought-for request for an Independent Educational Evaluation. The first one (audiology) discovered a hearing loss, so we're now waiting for the speech eval, which is next week, and for the results of the occupational eval to come in the mail.

 

We know she has a speech / language delay and sensory integration disorder and she has some autistic traits, although she hasn't been formally diagnosed yet. We're concentrating on math and reading right now. She's doing well with Math-U-See (she's halfway through Alpha now) and the Reading Lesson (she's halfway through the book).

 

Wow..that turned into a mini-novel! Sorry. :blushing:

[Laura Corin]

We're no longer home educating, but I thought I'd post in case it helped people to see how things can change:

Calvin aged 5: school said that he would never learn to write adequately.
Calvin aged 6: different school couldn't work out how to teach him to form letters
Calvin aged 7-13: home educated. I used HWT cursive, giving steady but short practice every day. Meanwhile he did most of his work orally - I scribed for him and he told me how he wanted to edit. He learned to type well. Slowly his handwriting improved and he took over more writing for himself. Quickwrites/free writing made a big difference in his confidence. We then used very structured story-prompt materials to help him get used to writing at length.
Calvin aged 13-15: at school, getting very high marks for English, spending most of his spare time on writing (poetry mostly) often by hand. He still writes slowly, and has permission to use a keyboard for exams. The school is supportive and there is no stigma attached to needing accommodations.

 

ETA: Calvin took the IB with accommodations (keyboard for exams) and is now at university.  The university tested him and he came out highly dyspraxic: 99.9th percentile for verbal reasoning (or something like that) and 20th percentile for various motor/coordination skills.  He will have a keyboard for exams at university as well.

Best wishes

Laura

[kiwi mum]

DS11 is a highly gifted, visual spatial, pencil phobic Aspie with sensory processing and working memory issues. What has worked for us has been using non-levelled programs such as Apologia elementary and Mystery of History, doing lots of things orally and learning to type. More recently we have had success with Life of Fred and WWS (not WWE because of the memory issues). Academics are not so much of a problem for us but we do have to spend a lot of time working on social and life skills.

[Paisley Hedgehog]

nm

[Heathermomster]

DS is 12 yo and tested gifted with maths/reading/Hw'ing disorder. He homeschooled last year for half of 5th grade, is sitting in a regular classroom now, and will be coming home for 7th. DS has attended private Christian school since pre-K. I'm pulling him because the math pacing is getting to be too much, and the staff and school are extremely reluctant to accommodate. Quite frankly, I've lost the stomach for paying for his ed, dealing with the administration, and reteaching a couple of subjects every night from poorly written curriculum.

 

DS has been enrolled in the Wilson Reading program since 2nd grade. He will be privately tutored in Wilson next year. DH and I both have a heavy math background. Last year, I began reading to understand the maths disorder better and now tutor DS in math using rods and concrete manipulatives. DS types about 40 wpm and uses Learning Ally for downloadable books. Ultimately, I plan on following a 7th grade curriculum which follows: Math Mammoth (Littel McDougal pre-algebra book with MM7 supplements), Grammar Made Easy, WWS/WWE4, Mystery of History Vol1, Littel McDougal Life Science, some Greek mythology, and I'm undecided about Bible. DS plays trumpet and can do all of these things, though the pace is slower for grammar, reading, and math. I don't expect to get through all of this material. I want DS to develop his time management skills better, read thoroughly, and write (type it actually) about what he's read. On occasion, I still scribe for him too.

[houseofkids&pets]

DS is turning 9 next month and is considered to be third grade age. He was diagnosed last June with ADD, dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia. He was also diagnosed with social anxiety about a year ago.

 

He has really responded well to Orton-Gillingham influenced reading/spelling programs. He completed Barton Reading and Spelling Level 1 to really solidify his phonemic awareness skills. We then moved on to S.P.I.R.E., which is a comprehensive O-G based program (reading, spelling, vocab, comprehension, and fluency). He has made unbelievable gains. Not sure if it is the program, the one-on-one instruction, or the meds for ADD. It is probably a combination of all three. He is now on grade level for reading and comprehension, but spelling is still an area of weakness.

 

Math has always been his most difficult subject. We tried MM last year, but ended up switching to MUS. He finished Alpa in 4 months this year and has just started Beta. This program really seems to be helping him "see" math. I add in RS games too. His math skills are about a year behind, but when we removed him from ps in Oct. 2010 when he was in second grade, he was functioning at a Kdg level in math.

 

Writing- Diana Hanbury King Writing Skills Book A. I like that this book combines both grammar and writing. Ds seems to like it too. It is a structured, incremental approach to learning how to write.

 

We also supplement with Earobics on the computer and BBC Dance Mat typing to work on keyboarding skills (it's free). Ds loves to hear read alouds. He would listen to me read all day. Unfortunately, he is not interested in "classic literature." We are working our way through the Goosebumps HorrorLand series. He doesn't realize it, but I am using Goosebumps read aloud time to have him orally summarize, make inferences, and answer other comprehension questions. I also take sentences right out of the book and put them on our white board to analyze (depending on what we are working on in grammar/writing, such as identifying the pronoun, where to put quotation marks, etc.). He enjoys this type of sentence analysis much more than a dry workbook format.

 

Ds11 has autism and is in public school. I am encouraged by the growth I see in Ds8 and think that my older son might actually learn something if we removed him from ps, but I honestly don't know how the parents do it when they homeschool more than one child with learning challenges. How do they manage to meet the needs of everyone if no one can work independently? I'd love to figure it out since we keep thinking about giving it a try, but it scares me. I guess that is a s/o for another thread.

[Mommee & Baba]

DD 8.5 - SPD and OCD.

 

We don't do anything "special" per say. I just adjust my teaching style and her learning enviroment to her needs. She can't have loud noises, talking, and or background noises of any sort. She likes her pencil box in a certain way as well as what side of the table she sits at. We make this all available to her. She needs gum to chew on or a mint to suck on to keep her concentrating and not sucking or chewing on her fingers or shirt. When we have meltdowns or tears I squeeze her and encourage her and remind her of her accomplishments just as I do with my non special needs children.

[Murmer]

DD is 4 years old. She is ADHD, SPD (sensory seeking), epilepsy, milk allergy and High Functioning Autism. So far I am just using Before Five in a Row very gently and ABCmouse.com. She is currently in the PS special education pre-k class (50% sped 50% NT but teacher is a certified Early Childhood Sped teacher) but I am planning to pull her out after this year.

[Hwin]

I'm educating a 5yo Aspie.

 

Not doing anything too outside-the-box - SOTW, Math Mammoth, a Thinking Skills books, Handwriting Help for Kids, and How To Spell.

 

Right now we are fighting the school for services after he was illegally declassified as a special ed student. I am overwhelmed with behavior issues (that I suspect are mostly sensory) and could really use some professional help.

[cjbeach]

My guy will be 11 in a few days: dx'd with pddnos-hyperlexic trait. He was vax injured at 17mos, lost speech with the development of measles post vax. Speech returned 6 months later,slowly, but was reading, with other apparent issues. Dx'd fully at 36 mos.

LOTS of anxiety.

Gross motor planning issues.

Social issues in that his conversation is poor (but we're still working on it).

 

What worked: HWT. What's working now: Saxon Math. The math whiz kid has slowed down and suddenly needs the drill and kill of Saxon. IT works. R&S grammar drill and kill works for him. He's hyperlexic so favors workbooks.

 

Piano has helped. He needs this confidence boost. He is an amazing site reader so music theory is a breeze. His playing depends on his mood however ;)

[sparrow]

My son has been diagnosed with PDD-NOS and dyslexia. Basically, I consider him quirky with math and language LDs that we have to work through. It takes longer, but we eventually get there. We started KISS Grammar last fall and it has really clicked for him. We use MUS. He has a lint trap brain for history and science facts. He also *thinks* he knows more than he does ;).

 

He's a cool kid, but rigid when it comes to his special interests and schedules he has made in his head, of which no one else was made aware.

 

 

We're no longer home educating, but I thought I'd post in case it helped people to see how things can change:

 

Calvin aged 5: school said that he would never learn to write adequately.

Calvin aged 6: different school couldn't work out how to teach him to form letters

Calvin aged 7-13: home educated. I used HWT cursive, giving steady but short practice every day. Meanwhile he did most of his work orally - I scribed for him and he told me how he wanted to edit. He learned to type well. Slowly his handwriting improved and he took over more writing for himself. Quickwrites/free writing made a big difference in his confidence. We then used very structured story-prompt materials to help him get used to writing at length.

Calvin aged 13-15: at school, getting very high marks for English, spending most of his spare time on writing (poetry mostly) often by hand. He still writes slowly, and has permission to use a keyboard for exams. The school is supportive and there is no stigma attached to needing accommodations.

 

Best wishes

 

Laura

 

 

This was good to read. I've been doing the same things for my son and I'm seeing the same progression as we approach 12 years old. We take turns writing sometimes, sometimes he does it on his own, and there are days when I have to do it all. I have been amazed at the difference once the pressure was off him to write everything.

 

I'm trying to teach him to listen to his own voice. Literally. He often says the correct answer and writes the wrong one. It is SO frustrating to him (and me). The information is there. The problem is getting it out!

[AmyinMD]

I've got a 4 yo with Autism who is functionally nonverbal. He also has lots of sensory issues and a fine motor delay. He attends Pre-K in the afternoon and they just started him on a voice output device. I'd like to homeschool him with my other children but right now he has a pretty good placement we're going to at least leave him there for Pre-K. Since he's only gone 3 hours a day right now we still do a lot of work in the mornings. I have an ABA trainer come to the house 2 mornings a week to do work with him. We also have ABA goals we work on with him each day.

[Aoife]

Autistic 5yo DS with pretty severe SPD

 

We are starting off gently with:

saxon phonics 1 (we LOVE this!)

righstart math b

nancy larson K

atelier art

[mamatohaleybug]

I have one DD, 9. She has a congenital brain malformation, shunted hydrocephalus and many other health and developmental issues (migraines, SPD, dyspraxia, GERD, strabismus, amblyopia, anxiety, etc). Doesn't quite meet the criteria for NVLD or Aspergers. She's definitely quirky. :tongue_smilie: Our main problem regarding schooling (and life in general) is ADHD.

 

HWT has been a wonderful handwriting curriculum for her. She has fine motor delays and vision processing problems and this has worked well.

 

Mostly, I use a Charlotte Mason approach with short lessons on many subjects each day and that helps her focus better.

 

She is very creative and funny. Each day is a challenge but she is quite bright and capable so I persevere! I love homeschooling!

Edited February 2, 2012 by mamatohaleybug

[mktkcb]

20 - oldest, homeschooled all the way, undoubtedly 2e - gifted, teensy bit aspie but you'd probably never know it now, hyperactive from day 1. Used LLTL, SOTW, Sonlight with good effect. She loves books. More traditional in high school. She's an engineering major now at a Cal State uni. & doing very well. I had to keep her moving a lot, and she was very intense.

 

15 - youngest ds, also 2e, combo of (undiagnosed, but undeniable iykwim) gifted, aspergers, adhd, spd....some unique quirky swirling mild combination. Brilliant musician, loves theater, but has motor skills issues, mild but definite aspie traits, mild but definite adhd traits (horrible self motivation & organizational skills), definite sensory issues since birth, some visual processing problems, but off the charts smart. This year we're using Holt Geometry: Love it with the online videos that go with...my son loves the quirky humor; Teencoder computer programming: the jury is still out on this; Co-op history class that used BJU world history and a ton of other projects: good for him, but I want to shoot myself on a regular basis keeping him organized; an outside writing class that uses IEW/Writeshop style curriculum: It is perfect for him, and the teacher is wonderful; Apologia Biology: I think he likes the conversational style, and it is doable....we're just way behind right now. All in all this has been a difficult year with lots of transitions. Working on behavioral stuff & trying to tackle outside classes/expectations has been very challenging with a highly undermotivated kid. He does piano, taekwondo, musical theater, AWANA, and Boy Scouts as well. Sounds like a lot, but they are all very therapeutic for him each in different ways. We muddle through.

[PrincessAriel]

nt

[Tokyomarie]

My, youngest, is now 17yo and is going to school this year for the first time since pre-school. I'm still actively involved helping him keep up with his homework, getting him to his writing tutor, and I'm planning some home-based instruction for this summer (unless something else miraculous which will meet the need appears).

 

Ds is dyslexic and has executive function difficulties. ADHD of some type is debated. He has long exhibited behaviors consistent with ADHD, but his behavioral profile is changing (for the better!) and there is uncertainty about the actual source of those behaviors.

 

As for what we have used, there weren't as many options for homeschoolers when ds was a young student as there are now. These are some things we've used to good advantage:

 

Reading/spelling: Explode the Code, home-brewed multi-sensory strategies such as letter tiles, different kinds of writing surfaces & tools, etc. Decodable readers such as Bob Books; Megawords, Wizardsspell.com for spelling drill; professional tutoring

 

Handwriting: Getty-Dubay Italic- this was recommended for students with handwriting difficulty before HWT became popular. I still prefer it. I find the HWT font to be very difficult to read**, myself, and decided I didn't want to teach it to my son! The advantage of the Italic font is that formation of capital letters is not vastly different from lower-case letters.

 

Writing: We did copywork & dictation, but as ds went up in grade level, I had to shorten the piece from what was suggested. We did IEW and Home2Teach for writing during upper elementary & middle school. Winston Grammar, Easy Grammar Ultimate; SLP tutor for writing since age 15. Keyboarding all written composition from grade 5 on.

 

Math: Singapore Math (I did a lot of scribing, but conceptually it was a good fit); Tablet Class Math for Algebra I & II

 

History & Lit: Sonlight- but I did not use the LA much at all past 2nd grade; I read aloud much longer than I would have if he were not dsylexic; if I had gotten a diagnosis earlier, I would have used Learning Ally more.

 

Science- quite a variety- no one program. We did Apologia Biology and used their audio CD to help with the reading.

 

**small clarification- it's the cursive I have a hard time with- maybe because something about the lack of slant grates on my eyes?

Edited January 29, 2012 by Tokyomarie

[rafiki]

.

[amyable]

Ours our pretty mild in the scheme of things, but all piled up on top of each other it's as much as I can seem to handle anyway! :001_huh:

 

14yo - dyslexic, working memory and other memory issues, ADD, executive functioning issues, slow processing, some anxiety, vision issues that improved greatly with vision therapy but have been slipping back in the last 6 months - also deals with alopecia areata, eczema, multiple food allergies. I wouldn't say she's "2E" but her IQ is up there...

 

12yo - unilateral hearing loss. Because it's only on one side, if "we're on our game" it doesn't seem to affect her, but if we forget and just treat her as "normal" she struggles. Anxiety that presents much differently than that of her older sister, some selective mutism. Migraines.

 

8 (almost 9)yo - ADD (and multiple anaphylactic allergies, slow growth)

 

6yo - too smart for me and always bored to tears :lol:, food allergies, asthma... and the jury is still out on the 4yo although he has rheumatoid arthritis as a physical thing to deal with.

 

Educationally, only the 14yo seems to need accommodations -- things that have worked better than others for her are Apples and Pears spelling, books on tape or me reading aloud, repeating middle-school level math several times (TT, then a Key to... Life of Fred combo, and now Math Mammoth...), Netflix videos, prayer and duct tape! :lol:

Edited January 29, 2012 by amyable
too tired to remember everything, lol

[mc26]

I have a 9yo DS who is 2e with Aspergers, ADHD inattentive, and anxiety. He goes to a small, wonderful private school where I run the office. This works well since he frequently "visits" me.

 

We afterschool/enrich with LOF Fractions (he LOVES this!), Grammar Island, a variety of Critical Thinking Co books, (Math Detective, Science Detective, Building Thinking Skills). He is also working through Zacarro's Primary Challenge Math. I do not require any written output for any of our afterschool work. We do most or all of this orally, I will write for him and he also uses a white board. His reading comprehension is not great (hyperlexic) and he doesn't like to write except for sorting and cataloging Pokemon. Ironically the kid loves workbooks and often has one with him.

 

We also read living math, science and history books since he does not like fiction, and he plays semi-educational games on the iPad a bunch (Stack the Countries, etc).

 

I am thinking of adding in the Linguisystems book on improving executive functioning, since he struggles with that.

[Beth in OH]

No longer homeschooling, but my dd was diagnosed with

ADHD as a young adult (age 19). Throughout adolescence, I didn't realize what we were dealing with. A disability that had previously been high maintenance became life impacting around age 16. Things have become much better since diagnosis and treatment.

[ssavings]

DS4- SPD, anxiety (likely OCD), articulation delay, and tactile defensiveness secondary to prolonged nasogastric intubation. He also has some GI issues, and his developmental and IQ testing scores were high.

 

We've used Montessori methods, and are now transitioning to a classical curriculum. We're excited to see what works for us.

[Guest MissPaula]

What special needs and ages are you home educating?

 

What methods and materials are working?

 

Anything else you'd like to share?

 

I'm not a mom. I'm just a person who loves teaching but can't teach at school any more due to physical issues. Boring. I was so depressed without teaching that I thought hard and invented a way to teach kids with serious reading problems online.

 

It works. Most love the 'difference' of learning from an online person. I have tons of books, tons of things I've invented to learn reading from the gut up. I'm happier than I've ever been. :)

 

I'm here because I'm interested in classical education, and want to learn more about it. My techniques are not up your alley, but I'd like to learn more. I use hundreds of techniques, because every child is so unique. Luckily, I always find something to break through. I'll mostly just be reading what you guys write. But I hope you don't mind if once in a while I offer an idea. :)

 

I am NOT trained in classical teaching. I'm just a teacher obsessed with how to solve reading problems. Thanks! :D

[houseofkids&pets]

It is great to read these posts to find out what others are using successfully at home. I see that many families are home educating a child with autism. That really gives me hope that maybe it would be possible for us. Ds is still in ps, but we keep discussing how to handle his needs if he came home.

 

Thanks one l Michele for listing the games you are using with your youngest. I will definitely be adding some of those into our homeschool budget.

[HSmomNY]

What special needs and ages are you home educating? What methods and materials are working?

 

DS 2- Autism non-verbal, SPD( Sensory Seeking), ADHD - We are doing Speech, ABA ( 20 hours a week ), OT and Little gym. No real academics yet. He is a wonderful happy child with LOTS and LOTS of energy.

 

DS16 - Aspergers - Getting ready for college - BYU independent studies advanced program. It is great that he is so independent.

[momma aimee]

2 boys

 

Kindy -- 6 yo -- Moderate + speech delay articulation only (most "fixed). Eating issues. SPD. "scarey smart" according to IQ testing done by PhD. GAD. More ?? Brain immaturity. POSSIBLE processing issue -- they said that for a long time, but as he has aged that has dropped. possible NOS - PPD, again the pHd is not sure

 

Preschool -- 4 yo -- lack of core body strength. same speech delay. communication delay (brother never had THAT). Immunity issue, GI issues neither DX yet (continuing appt and testing)

 

sure i am forgetting something

[Jennifer-72]

Ds7 - PDD-NOS. Ds has challenges with auditory processing, pragmatics, motor planning and some anxiety.

 

Academically ds is doing well with a regular program of study. For the challenges ds faces he is making steady gains by being involved in karate, swimming, social skills group, weekly speech and PT and lots of daily physical activity. Along with the above mentioned, the following games, programs, and books have been most helpful:

 

Teaching Your Child the Laguage of Social Success

 

Learning the R.O.P.E.S for Improved Executive Functioning

 

Nurturing Narratives

 

Unstuck and On Target!

 

Question Challenge from Super Duper

 

No Glamour Problem solving cards from linguisystems

 

Backseat Drawing Jr

 

Keys to comprehension by remedia

[rafiki]

.

[houseofkids&pets]

Thanks for the tip! I feel like I spend so much on curriculum that I don't buy games and activities to make things "fun." If I could purchase items at a discount, that would be great!!

[akalori]

DS 9 - Dyslexia, ADD in attentive type, dysgraphia, fine and gross motor issues, and tic disorder, and enrolled in ps.

 

I'm afterschooling using a mix of ideas - some touch math. DS also sees a private tutor for Wilson Reading Program 2x per week. I lurk here a lot for inspiration.

 

I also have a DD 4, not in school yet, but is advanced (reading since age 2). It complicates everything.

 

It would be easier on my DS if DD wasn't so good at reading and math.

 

Lori

[funnygirl]

I have one dd (13) who has moderate-severe sensorineural hearing loss, severe adhd, bipolar, gad. I suspect she has Asperger Syndrome as well. We pulled her out of ps at the end of last semester (Dec '11) because the sp ed team wasn't being able to meet her needs, and we didn't want her to regress further. (This time last year she was hospitalized for a week and then spent two months in residential treatment. Didn't want to go that direction again!)

 

So I've been homeschooling for all of ONE MONTH! Woo!! She seems to enjoy computer-based learning much more than mother-taught classes, but we are making our way through it, one day at a time.

 

One thing that's working for us is a reversed daily schedule. She has pretty severe sleep issues, so I let her sleep until she wakes up, and then I let her play/read/etc until about noon, when we start school. We generally school until 4-5 in the afternoon. This seems to have cut down on the amount of "fighting" we do in order to get her schoolwork accomplished.

 

We also don't do every subject every day. She always does math (because she LOVES it) and we seem to do history every day. We do spelling/classical roots daily as well. She is having a hard time with writing (translation: refuses to write), so we are starting Linguisystems to help with that. We'll also be using Linguisystems to work on basic EF skills (time management, etc.).

 

This board has been a LIFESAVER for me over the last month. Thank you so much for your willingness to share; it has made a huge difference in my life!!

 

*Should have also mentioned that we do "full" school on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. Wednesday is therapy/library day. Friday she unschools with a nanny while I am at work.

Edited January 30, 2012 by funnygirl

[CarolineN]

7 yo ds, pdd-nos, goes to school half days (behavior issues)

5 yo ds, autism, special ed preschool, uses words for requesting mostly

2 yo ds, nystagmus, speech delay, being monitored for autism through EI

4 month old ds, hanging out and looking cute

 

For the 7 year old, I am using talkability. I'm looking at Michelle Garcia Winner's Thinking About You, Thinking About Me. It should be coming within the next week from the library.

 

For the 5 year old, I've been using the PRT Initiations manual to encourage him to ask questions. We're still at the first stage "what's that". I also bought Nurturing Narratives and am eager to start that with him. Maybe even for my 7 yo old too (especially the theory of mind part).

 

For the 2 year old I'm focusing on stacking blocks and inset puzzles. He really struggles with those. I think it's a problem with his eyes (depth perception is often a difficulty with nystagmus).

 

And, of course, I build in lots of interacting between the boys. They all need some help with that.

[Lovedtodeath]

35 yr old mom (me): ADD, sensory integration disorder, something similar to aspergers.

 

9 yr old dd: anxiety, ADD, visual perception problems and asperger type stuff too, only mostly the secondary things. We seem to be dealing with female stuff on top of the rest. :(

 

4 yr old ds: he is a 4 yr old boy and has to share his mom with his sister, need I say more?

[dsmith]

I just have my 13 year old aspie. This year has been very difficult for us and I have been changing things around. I’ve been slowly doing more and more read alouds, mostly from Ambleside. That has gone over well. Math is our biggest struggle. We are currently doing a trial of Dreambox math, and so far it is a hit. We also have been using Strayer Upton Practical Arithmetic on the white board. I had been using WWE for writing, but it started to become too difficult for him. He did make gains using up until the first half of level 3. WWS would be too difficult for him. WWW has been working well for him, so hopefully that will work out at higher levels also. We just switched to Easy Grammar from JAG, which was a disaster for him. I so wanted it to work. Science has just been reading lately, but I’m going to stick with that and add some experiments. I want to keep it very relaxed. Socially he is doing much better with everyday things like ordering food, answering questions from people when we are out and about, etc. He has done well with children younger than him and older than him, but has a very difficult time connecting with his own age group. We’ve tried some social skills groups but they start out great and eventually crash and burn. They seem to be attended mostly by ADHD kids, who have different social deficiencies than ds. We keep plugging away with social stories, modeling, books, various worksheets, stuff from Michelle Garcia Winner, etc. He loves learning about ancient Greece, mythology, ancient Rome, etc. so we spend a good amount of time learning about that. Another hit has been Intellego unit studies. They are just packed with great stuff. I use them as add-ons to American studies and Classical studies. We haven’t checked out the science ones yet. We also utilize various apps. Technology is a bit of a double edged sword around here. It can be very helpful, but ds has a tendency to head towards addiction behavior with tech. It’s been hard to find a balance. I want to play to his strengths and a tech career could be an option for the future, but if left to his own devices he would be immersed in the computer/ipad/games 24/7! He has no sense of how to limit his wants and desires at this time. This has led to conflict. Part of the conflict comes from the fact that he believes that he is equal to adults and is entitled to do as he wishes without me “bossing him around†like I always do. (So far we are loving puberty around here.:glare:) He has become stuck in rigid and difficult thought patterns lately... Anyway, I didn’t mean for this to turn into a novel.:D We just take things one day at a time, and pray for some maturity to set in eventually.:tongue_smilie:

[MeaganS]

I have a 3 yo girl who was diagnosed with autism yesterday. We've always suspected something was up with her, and lately we've been pretty sure it was autism, so it wasn't a surprise. Right now I'm researching and trying to learn everything I can so that I can have the right tools for her.

 

I also have a 1 year old girl who is as sassy as can be.

 

And I have a new baby girl due in 2.5 months!

[funnygirl]

Socially he is doing much better with everyday things like ordering food, answering questions from people when we are out and about, etc. He has done well with children younger than him and older than him, but has a very difficult time connecting with his own age group. We’ve tried some social skills groups but they start out great and eventually crash and burn. They seem to be attended mostly by ADHD kids, who have different social deficiencies than ds. We keep plugging away with social stories, modeling, books, various worksheets, stuff from Michelle Garcia Winner, etc. He loves learning about ancient Greece, mythology, ancient Rome, etc. so we spend a good amount of time learning about that. Another hit has been Intellego unit studies. They are just packed with great stuff. I use them as add-ons to American studies and Classical studies. We haven’t checked out the science ones yet. We also utilize various apps. Technology is a bit of a double edged sword around here. It can be very helpful, but ds has a tendency to head towards addiction behavior with tech. It’s been hard to find a balance. I want to play to his strengths and a tech career could be an option for the future, but if left to his own devices he would be immersed in the computer/ipad/games 24/7! He has no sense of how to limit his wants and desires at this time. This has led to conflict. Part of the conflict comes from the fact that he believes that he is equal to adults and is entitled to do as he wishes without me “bossing him around†like I always do. (So far we are loving puberty around here.) He has become stuck in rigid and difficult thought patterns lately...

 

Sounds EXACTLY like my dd13!!!

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

Ds7 (1st grade): HFA, tourettes, Sensory Processing Disorder, low tone, severe visual/spatial delays, severe eye tracking issues, ADD (he scored just 1 point below actual diagnoses, but try tell me he's not :glare:) some tummy/digestion issues we are still working on figuring out. He also started stuttering a bit the past few weeks. Not sure if that's part of his HFA or tourettes or just a new thing for him. He has been having a hard time getting certain sounds out it seems like.

 

We have been using whats in my sig with good results so far. He just started working at/about grade level not to long ago.