New Here with questions

Quick reply because I am on my way out the door-I would use Wilson Reading or Project Read for the dyslexia. Wilson could require some training, so you might be better off with Project Read. Both are Orton-Gillingham based, systematic, explicit, direct-instruction programs that are successful in helping dyslexic students.

I think homeschooling is a great solution for a child with a reading disorder or learning disabilities! They need one-on-one specialized instruction, and you aren’t likely to get that in a school.

I think it is fine to use the curriculums you mentioned for science and social studies as long as you will read the selections to her and supplement with visual and hands-on activities that she’d enjoy.

I usually recommend Math-U-See for children with LD’s. Be sure you watch the lessons on DVD/video with her before each unit. That is one of the valuable things about MUS. They have placement tests on the site and sometimes it is best to go backwards as far as necessary until a mastery level is discovered. Then you can move as fast as she can go. If she does not know facts, you’ll probably be going back to Alpha, but it’ll be worth it. And fortunately, MUS does not label books with grade levels. An excellent supplemental program for learning math facts is called Mastering Math Facts (scroll down until you see that):

http://www.oci-sems.com/bookstore/prod_teacher_resource.htm

Reading is another story. She most definitely needs a specialized program. In my tutoring and teaching LD children, I use a program called ABeCeDarian (www.abcdrp.com). It is similar to Phono-Graphix and Lindamood-Bell, but is FAR easier for a parent to use and it is not very expensive. It also has some components that each of those does not. If it were me, I’d probably take her through Levels B1 and B2 or Short B, depending on how her decoding skills are, and then I’d go on into REWARDS Intermediate (from Sopris West) for decoding multi-syllable words. There is a yahoo group for support with ABeCeDarian if you decide to use it. I just know of nothing better at this time for a parent to try. This will incorporate spelling, and you can use some of the sentences in the fluency part for dictation. I would wait on formal writing skills until you get the reading skills improved.

This is enough to start with!

Wilson and Project Read (Language! is another) are good programs, but I wouldn’t consider those without training. Plus, I will tell you that they are generally slower than Phono-Graphix or ABeCeDarian in teaching decoding skills in most cases.

Homeschooling is only a temporary solution (maybe avoidance) of dealing with the complex self-esteem issues. You need to treat the self-esteem issues as aggressively as the LD.

I would also recommend taking her to the doctor for a diagnosis. If she really has depression/anxiety, she needs treatment.

I’m afraid I don’t agree with the previous post. Homeschooling can be a wonderful way to educate and meet the needs of a child with a disability, or any child, for that matter! And homeschooling is one of the only ways to give the intensive remedial instruction an LD child needs.

Very often simply removing the child from the environment causing the anxiety and depression will solve the problem. If she remains anxious and depressed after settling in to homeschooling, then by all means please see a psychologist or doctor. However, all they will likely tell you now is that she is unhappy and stressed at school because she cannot do the work her peers are doing, etc. I think I would consider taking her out now, though, if she is really depressed.

Homeschooling *can* be a great way to deal with self esteem issues - but I very much agree with that post. The self-esteem issues should be dealt with as aggressively as the LDs.
It really sounds like she is in a very good environment now… but for some reason (scars from previous education would be a high contender) she is still having these significant issues. THerefore, logic says that changing the environment to a healthy one is probably not enough (though it’s more complicated than simple logic, of course).

I didn’t mean to sound like I disagreed with being concerned about her self esteem. My main point was to remove the cause of the problem (the inappropriate school setting) as the first course of action. Then you work on healing the self esteem and any remaining issues.

With my son, I have noticed how drastically his self esteem and pleasure in school can plummet when there is even a little bit of bullying going on ie) you have to use a computer to produce written work, ha ha. Luckily our school is very responsive when I raise these issues and once the comments stop , my son is fine again.

If you daughter has enjoyed this year until now , Maybe something specific is happening in the classroom that is negatively impacting on her.
She may not let you know, as there is shame and fear associated with being bullied.

I just lost a long post and this is my second try for the re-do. Sure hope it goes through this time!

Wanted to recommend, though, that you incorporate a cognitive skills training program into your homeschool curriculum. For a 10yo, the best choice would be BrainSkills (http://www.brainskills.com). This requires an hour of one-on-one doing the exercises with the student, but it is usually *very* helpful for dyslexics. You usually start seeing gains in academics after about 40 hours of one-on-one work. The most common side effect of this program is improved self-esteem. This is a result of the gains in skill levels acquired, which tend to make academics easier.

I also like Math-U-See. The website is http://www.mathusee.com. There are placement tests on the website.

I would do math facts drill separately using QuarterMile Math software. Website for this program is http://www.thequartermile.com. Call or email the company for a demo disc first, as some children do not react well to the racing aspect of the program. Best way to use QMM is to sit with your dd and do the keyboarding for her, 10 minutes per day (set a timer). If you are consistent with this, you should see steady and significant gains in math fact fluency.

For reading, if your dd reads on a solid 2nd grade level or better, I would consider trying Rewards Intermediate. This is a scripted program, so it is very easy for a parent to sit down and do with no prep work. It also tends to be highly effective. Website for this is http://www.rewardsreading.com. There is a sample lesson posted on the website. Just make sure your dd can handle the vocabulary. If not, then you might want to do AaBeCeDarian first.

Nancy

If your child is making progress in her current setting, I would look to social problems being the root of her hating school. I too would be concerned about bullying. Have you tried talking to the teacher?

Beth

Beth,

I am thinking that since she is about 2 years behind in reading, there is no way the current teacher would be able to meet her needs. Not to mention the fact that there are children of all levels in the class. That can only work well if all the kids are pretty independent learners.

Janis