jamiejo Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 HELP! This is our first year hsing. Its been rough, but we were holding our own until I got pregnant and very sick. Then we moved. We pretty much had our summer vacation in Nov/Dec. We've started back this week and he's making it VERY well known that he hates phonics. He's reading quite well on his own, he can sound things out easily. The code work honestly seems un-necessary altho the phonemic awareness built in has been helpful. He says it takes too long, its boring and its too much work. It;s not "fun." Some of this is attitude that needs addressed, maybe some of it is my technique. But could changing to a different phonics program help? We also have Saxon math, and he does fight some with it, but as its much more hands on for him he likes it much better. FWIW, he is borderline ADHD and has an extremely hard time doing seat work unless its art or something he LIKES. I want phonics to be something he likes. I don't really know what to do at this point. The move has been difficult for him as well. Altho we are closer to our family, we left his best friend, who has not returned his call. We moved less than 2 weeks ago. By the end of the day I'm pulling my hair out. This cannot be good for any of us, as part of the point in hsing is to remove the stressful learning environment. Thats not the case right now. I realize that its just going to take some time to get back into a routine that works, but honestly the problems with phonics were there before. He just wasnt as loud and blatant about hating it. I'm trying to listen and make changes, but what? I am frustrated and I KNOW he is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heritagelearningacademy Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 I am not familiar with Saxon phonics. My youngest is using All About Reading and it has great focus on blending. Next year we will do All About Spelling with her and again phonics plays a role. So, i think the reality is that phonics need to be a part of learning at the young age of your son. You acknowledge Attitude and Change. I think that is great that you are aware of these things. Giving time could help, but maybe the approach of the curriculum just isn't the right fit. That is possible too. I think one of the reasons my daughter likes AAR is that it has some hands one, some flash card work on saying the phonics and sight words, has workbook pages and books to read for fluency. That combination keeps her moving and it keeps her from feeling it is the same. I also have a friend who is using it with her 8 yr old (level 2) and they are finding it is good to work some remedial issues. He likes it and is a boy who cannot sit very well unless he likes the subject. While I am not suggesting you need to switch, if you are thinking about it, I am offering something for you to look at as a possibility. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamiejo Posted January 16, 2013 Author Share Posted January 16, 2013 I am not familiar with Saxon phonics. My youngest is using All About Reading and it has great focus on blending. Next year we will do All About Spelling with her and again phonics plays a role. So, i think the reality is that phonics need to be a part of learning at the young age of your son. You acknowledge Attitude and Change. I think that is great that you are aware of these things. Giving time could help, but maybe the approach of the curriculum just isn't the right fit. That is possible too. I think one of the reasons my daughter likes AAR is that it has some hands one, some flash card work on saying the phonics and sight words, has workbook pages and books to read for fluency. That combination keeps her moving and it keeps her from feeling it is the same. I also have a friend who is using it with her 8 yr old (level 2) and they are finding it is good to work some remedial issues. He likes it and is a boy who cannot sit very well unless he likes the subject. While I am not suggesting you need to switch, if you are thinking about it, I am offering something for you to look at as a possibility. I am leaning very much toward switching at this point, and have no idea what to look at, so your suggestion is most welcome. I mostly went with Saxon because I was so familiar with the math, as its what we used when I was homeschooled. I want him to have a solid phonetic foundation. Today he wrote a sign to hang on our new school room wall, he wrote "fonix is terabl" I had to laugh, one at his phonetic spelling of phonics and terrible, but that he could communicate so clearly how he feels about it. He seems to dread it so much that its difficult to accomplish anything in phonics, or in anything else. I've been using a puppet that helped for a couple of days, but today.... it didnt work as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamiejo Posted January 16, 2013 Author Share Posted January 16, 2013 About how long does a lesson take you with All About Reading? I looked at the website, and he passes the qualifiers for level 2 pretty easily. Saxon is taking us an hour or more to complete a lesson, and the book itself says it will take 45-an hour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 I cannot imagine Saxon math or phonics as a good fit with an ADHD student. :blink: The math pages just have so much on them, and cover snippets of so many topics... VERY distracting! As far as Saxon Phonics -- I have only seen a worksheet (from a friend's child) -- I was overwhelmed and confused by it, with all the marking of sounds! It meant nothing to me, at least, much less could I imagine it working for a 7yo! But that's JMO! However, ADHD students tend to be very "right brain" or "visual spatial learners", so you may need something that visualizes vowel pairs and letter sounds. (See an example of a visual, mnemonic type of instruction here.) For phonics you might look at All About Reading/All About Spelling. For phonics workbooks, Explode the Codewere doable for my DS with LDs and high distractability at that age. For more hands on for phonics and reading, might also find the games in the (very pricey!) Sing, Spell, Read, Write to be fun. Or check out the games in the do-it-yourself Happy Phonics kit. It took us 4 years and 5 different math programs to finally find a good fit for him. (Saxon was one that bit the dust.) Other math programs that are very hands-on: Miquon; Right Start; Math-U-See. - Consider switching curriculum (but research first to know that it is the right move). Take a look at Cathy Duffy's 101 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum: Choosing the Right Curriculum and Approach for Each Child's Learning Style to see if there might be some ideas that would better fit your DS's learning style AND your teaching style, and make schooling more enjoyable. :) - Or, if that's not feasible right now, just do 10 minute, NO more than 15 minute concentrated "bursts" of math or phonics at a time to keep the frustration level down and the focus high. You can do 2 bursts for each of math and phonics a day. - Try having your DS stand up while doing his worksheets, so he can be moving his whole body. MANY students with ADHD and other concentration issues find this VERY helpful. Other ideas to try -- sitting on an exercise ball with while doing the worksheets, so he can move around; or have some tactile/sensory items handy that can give him needed tactile input to help him focus. (That's why things like the letter tiles in All About Spelling can be such a great help to students who need kinesthetic or tactile input for learning and concentration.) - Be sure to start the day with burning off some energy. Also do a 3 minute morning left-right marching or crawling (alternate leg and arm movements -- left arm forward when right leg lifts to step) to increase brain hemisphere connections. (Check out the Dianne Craft website for more info on ADHD, learning/concentration, and many other topics.) - Have a mid-morning protein snack to keep blood sugar level. (peanutbutter on celery sticks; cheese and crackers; scrambled egg; cottage cheese; a handful of nuts; a meat kebab -- cooked mini meatball, chicken, shrimp or fish; chicken nuggets (bits of chicken breast met, dipped in olive oil and Worcestershire sauce, rolled in dry bread crumbs and grated parmesan and baked); salted edamame (soybeans); etc. - Try incorporating some educational games of various types (board games, manipulatives, computer games, etc.). What about some educational videos? Don't forget to have fun with regular walks or field trips, and other things to liven up the types of educational input. What about incorporating some of the ideas from the Family Math book series? BEST of luck in finding what will be the best help and restore some enjoyment to your homeschooling day! Warmest regards, Lori D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 If he is already reading well, I'd "drop phonics", but use AAS for "spelling" (nudge, nudge, wink, wink). My oldest taught himself to read, but didn't have a strong phonics base. We did AAS levels 1-3, and his reading jumped beyond 4th grade level (multisyllable words) because of the instruction in AAS. AAS is probably a LOT more interesting than Saxon. ;) Just be mentally prepared for the tiles to make a lot of explosions... Sigh. I would not recommend AAR, since only the first two levels are out. Keep reading for "reading time", and use AAS to sneak in phonics, but call it "spelling". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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