So, the Girl Scouts have been working hard all year for their Bronze Award, and really working towards in this past month, trying to get all of their hours. Their final project was to be an education booth at the local Pet Fair -this weekend! So, tonight was our final night to finish all we had to do for the booth...and they CANCELED the Pet Fair! Well, actually, they moved it - to May 22nd. Not going to work for us! Our Award Ceremony is May 14th!! The Pet Fair was called off for this weekend due to the weather forecast (supposed to be BAD!) BUT, the Animal Shelter will still be participating in Adopt-A-Thon this weekend and so we are going to go ahead with our education booth there...will be a little cramped, and probably not as many visitors -but that's not my problem! My girls are doing what they are supposed to be doing!!
I will have a blog post this weekend to share what all we have done and the girls in action! Stay tuned for that!
You will be happy to know that they DID manage to complete EVERYTHING that they had set out to do!! They have worked hard and I am proud of them!
I have a couple of girls that are not returning, so I need to take some time and update all of their paperwork (badges and such) so I can give them a copy in case they ever return to another troop. *Reason number 546 to stay on top of things :)!
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
CREW: Lesson Planet
Lesson Planet is an interesting site, that is for sure. We were given a free trial membership for our review. I happened to be researching some Unit Study ideas and have been looking for lesson plans, so since I was in the process of reviewing Lesson Planet, I started there.
*Disclaimer: This membership was given to me free in exchange for this review. For more reviews on Lesson Planet, please visit the Crew, linked above.
Running all day...
We had tons to do today and we got started on it early! We got to pick up our troop TShirts (you will be able to see them after we wear them to the Pet Fair on Saturday!). We had to hit a few schools to deliver interest fliers for our spring recruitment event. We grabbed Burger King for lunch and went to a local lake for a picnic -and a fight with the ducks! Samantha had piano - her teacher thinks she is completely ready for her recital this weekend! After piano, we ran to Toys R Us and they spent their gift cards from their birthday. Samantha got a car charger for her DSi and some Zhu-Zhu Pets (Moo and Tex if I am correct) and Riley bought G-Force Wii game. He had guitar lessons and then I took Samantha to the Animal Shelter for volunteer time. Ry had ball practice so he didn't get to stay. Practice went ok and we got done just in time to get Samantha from a friend who picked her up from Church.
Whew....time for bed!
Whew....time for bed!
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Destination Disney: Education
There have been a couple of changes take place at Heidi's - the original home of Destination Disney. The great thing is - Destination Disney can now be found in two places!! Heidi's and another friend of ours Becky @ There is Hope.
Now, on with the show!
This weeks' topic is EDUCATION! Now, as a homeschool mom...you know we search out the educational value in everything we do!! Disney trips are no exception!! I will have to say that I do think EPCOT is the most educational park of the four...but that doesn't mean the others are not.
My favorite place at EPCOT for educational experiences is Innovations East and West. They are like huge science rooms!
My next favorite would be traveling the world - all of the culture that is among the countries around the lagoon. It seems as though you are traveling worlds away when you are visiting there.
Now, on with the show!
This weeks' topic is EDUCATION! Now, as a homeschool mom...you know we search out the educational value in everything we do!! Disney trips are no exception!! I will have to say that I do think EPCOT is the most educational park of the four...but that doesn't mean the others are not.
My favorite place at EPCOT for educational experiences is Innovations East and West. They are like huge science rooms!
My next favorite would be traveling the world - all of the culture that is among the countries around the lagoon. It seems as though you are traveling worlds away when you are visiting there.
Game night...
Today was kinda quiet...we did some more *Titanic* stuff (will share our entire study when we get done- I am working an a blog post daily to share).
We met Rog and the guys he works with at the local BBQ for lunch and the kiddos read while we were waiting on lunch.
Samantha had speech at a different time today, but at least she had it! We have been hit and miss lately with end of the year testing and conferences.
We ran and grabbed Em from school and the kiddos all played outside for a while, then they wanted to play Wii...
Dinner was homemade pizza and then we headed out to Ry's game! They played good the first few innings - held them off for a while, but in the end, ended up losing. Ry was up to bat twice and struck out both time - strikes he swung at - so he's getting there!
We met Rog and the guys he works with at the local BBQ for lunch and the kiddos read while we were waiting on lunch.
Samantha had speech at a different time today, but at least she had it! We have been hit and miss lately with end of the year testing and conferences.
We ran and grabbed Em from school and the kiddos all played outside for a while, then they wanted to play Wii...
Dinner was homemade pizza and then we headed out to Ry's game! They played good the first few innings - held them off for a while, but in the end, ended up losing. Ry was up to bat twice and struck out both time - strikes he swung at - so he's getting there!
Monday, April 26, 2010
Hello Monday...
I was so drained this morning that once I finally did get up, I put in one of the Titanic videos for the kiddos to start watching, then I dozed on and off in the chair as it played. They were taking notes on it, and when we get completely finished with it, we will do a report - newspaper style I am thinking. The video is 300 minutes long - so watching it will be a few days in the making!!
After lunch, we loaded up and headed to the pool...one of the mom's in our HS group planned an impromptu trip to the pool, so we decided to swim the afternoon away! (Well, they did - I didn't get in the water). There were 5 or 6 families there, so about 15 kiddos - they had a lot of fun!
Neither one of them were very hungry for dinner, so they kinda snacked a little. Riley had ball practice and I had a VBS meeting at church. The kiddos both went with mom and dad to ball practice. Mom and dad both said he is doing really well!
VBS ~ we will be *setting sail* sometime this summer to teach the kiddos about Jesus! Looking forward to helping out and to reaching out 'across the street and around the world' to help do my part in sharing the word of the Lord.
Home just in time to watch my normal Monday night shows and hit the bed... I am tired, so I hope I will make it thru CSI: Miami!!
After lunch, we loaded up and headed to the pool...one of the mom's in our HS group planned an impromptu trip to the pool, so we decided to swim the afternoon away! (Well, they did - I didn't get in the water). There were 5 or 6 families there, so about 15 kiddos - they had a lot of fun!
Neither one of them were very hungry for dinner, so they kinda snacked a little. Riley had ball practice and I had a VBS meeting at church. The kiddos both went with mom and dad to ball practice. Mom and dad both said he is doing really well!
VBS ~ we will be *setting sail* sometime this summer to teach the kiddos about Jesus! Looking forward to helping out and to reaching out 'across the street and around the world' to help do my part in sharing the word of the Lord.
Home just in time to watch my normal Monday night shows and hit the bed... I am tired, so I hope I will make it thru CSI: Miami!!
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Boy, Am I tired...
This has been the LONGEST weekend....I was hurting and tired and wasn't sure if I was going to make it to church this morning. Roger got up and headed to his parents - they took the boat to the lake! YAY! And I went ahead and headed out to church. Loved the message! Across the street and around the world - that is where we are to start with spreading the word! Across the street. We were challenged to just invite someone to church. He read some statistics that a certain % say they would go to church if they were just asked...so - ask someone! I challenge you this week - invite someone to your church with you. I have invited two people so far...will let you know how that turns out.
I came home with intentions of working on this house, but I didn't get very far!! I was sooo tired...I did, however, make a chocolate cake! I have a new recipe (will share in a few) that is really yummy - especially fresh from the oven!!
Dinner was at Chelle's - she made cheesy enchilada rice- a staple when we go to her house. We had cake and ice cream for our friend Billy then played Skip-Bo - long and boring...
I came home with intentions of working on this house, but I didn't get very far!! I was sooo tired...I did, however, make a chocolate cake! I have a new recipe (will share in a few) that is really yummy - especially fresh from the oven!!
Dinner was at Chelle's - she made cheesy enchilada rice- a staple when we go to her house. We had cake and ice cream for our friend Billy then played Skip-Bo - long and boring...
How Do You Tuck in a SuperHero by Rachel Balducci
Baker Publishing sent me the book How Do You Tuck in a SuperHero by Rachel Balducci to review. This was a super cute book that was fun to read! I recommend this book for any and every mom of BOYS!!! I don't think I have ever read anything more accurate about raising little boys!
Except from website:
When Rachel Balducci looks for material for her writing, she doesn't have to look far. Her subject matter can be found climbing through the window, hanging on to the edge of the roof, and rummaging through the refrigerator. Here she chronicles the exuberant, awesome life of boys through bizarre conversations overheard, unbelievable rules she's been forced to make, and the many episodes of boy behavior that continue to mystify mothers worldwide. From the care and feeding of her team, to travels out in public, to their wide-eyed adoration of Chuck Norris, this laugh-out-loud celebration joyfully explores the sweetly wild side of boyhood.
**Disclaimer: This book was sent to me free of charge in exchange for my review.
Except from website:
When Rachel Balducci looks for material for her writing, she doesn't have to look far. Her subject matter can be found climbing through the window, hanging on to the edge of the roof, and rummaging through the refrigerator. Here she chronicles the exuberant, awesome life of boys through bizarre conversations overheard, unbelievable rules she's been forced to make, and the many episodes of boy behavior that continue to mystify mothers worldwide. From the care and feeding of her team, to travels out in public, to their wide-eyed adoration of Chuck Norris, this laugh-out-loud celebration joyfully explores the sweetly wild side of boyhood.
**Disclaimer: This book was sent to me free of charge in exchange for my review.
Friday, April 23, 2010
CREW: Super Star Speech
Talk about timing... Some of the Crew Members were on the list for Super Star Speech by Debbie Lott. We were fortunate enough to be one of those!! Seeing as how we have been dealing with speech issues, the timing was great. There were a few downloads that cane with ideas and helps for us at home to work with our speech issues. Samantha is in speech therapy, so we haven't been using these like we should have. But, we have been using the games! She is in therapy through the school district, so that will soon be coming to an end for the summer and we will carry on with Super Star Speech. I can tell the therapy is helping her and she enjoys playing the games...I don't think she realizes they are 'helping' her - she thinks that they are just cool games that I found to play!
If your child doesn't need speech - check out the site anyways...some fun homeschool games can be found there!
For more reviews and opinions of Super Star Speech, please check out the Crew, linked above.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Typical Tuesday
Nothing extremely special happened today! We watched the movie The Black Stallion while I priced some items for garage sale. The kiddos played outside after Chunky got here - until time to get ready for baseball. We had hot dogs for dinner and headed out to ball.
The Yankees played a pretty good game...we lost again, but they played some good defense. Our team made 7 runs and 2 of those belonged to Riley!
I got all of our Girl Scout prizes picked up and need to sort them...ugh! I am super tired so I am headed to bed.
The Yankees played a pretty good game...we lost again, but they played some good defense. Our team made 7 runs and 2 of those belonged to Riley!
I got all of our Girl Scout prizes picked up and need to sort them...ugh! I am super tired so I am headed to bed.
Monday, April 19, 2010
The Black Stallion
We have spent the past few weeks reading The Black Stallion by Walter Farley. We signed up as part of a literacy program for 4th & 5th graders through the Black Stallion Literacy Foundation. Today was the show that is put on by the foundation.
We were not sure what to expect...we were kinda expecting the show to be the story - that follows the book. It wasn't. It was a show with horses promoting reading with the kiddos...It was a good show, but we were dissappointed that it wasn't from the story.
We were not sure what to expect...we were kinda expecting the show to be the story - that follows the book. It wasn't. It was a show with horses promoting reading with the kiddos...It was a good show, but we were dissappointed that it wasn't from the story.
Friday, April 16, 2010
CFBA: Sworn To Protect by DiAnn Mills
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Award-winning author, DiAnn Mills, launched her career in 1998 with the publication of her first book. Currently she has over forty books in print and has sold more than a million copies. DiAnn believes her readers should “Expect an Adventure.” DiAnn Mills is a fiction writer who combines an adventuresome spirit with unforgettable characters to create action-packed novels.
Six of her anthologies have appeared on the CBA Best Seller List. Three of her books have won the distinction of Best Historical of the Year by Heartsong Presents. Five of her books have won placements through American Christian Fiction Writer’s Book of the Year Awards 2003 – 2007, and she is the recipient of the Inspirational Reader’s Choice award for 2005 and 2007. She was a Christy Awards finalist in 2008.
DiAnn is a founding board member for American Christian Fiction Writers, a member of Inspirational Writers Alive, Romance Writers of America’s Faith, Hope and Love, and Advanced Writers and Speakers Association. She speaks to various groups and teaches writing workshops around the country. DiAnn is also a mentor for Jerry B. Jenkins Christian Writer’s Guild.
She lives in sunny Houston, Texas. DiAnn and her husband have four adult sons and are active members of Metropolitan Baptist Church.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Border Patrol Agent Danika Morales sends illegal immigrants back to Mexico; a job she's paid dearly for. Her husband, Toby, was murdered two years ago trying to help and his murder's never been solved. Now a string of attacks and arrests leads her to believe that someone from McAllen profits from sneaking undocumented immigrants into the country and somehow this illegal activity is tied to her husband, Toby's death.
If you would like to read the first chapter of Sworn To Protect, go HERE.
Watch the book trailer video:
WHAT I HAVE TO SAY: LOVED this book!! DiAnn Mills does such a good job of making you want to keep reading and see what happens next! It is a #2 in a series and I am ready for the #3 one!!
Thursday, April 15, 2010
CREW: Sneak Peek ~ Lobster Network
In my quest to find a place on the web to list all of my extra books and such for sale, this opportunity from the Crew fell into my lap!
Lobster Network is a FREE site that you can list all of your stuff for sale, give away, borrow or trade! The site is really new, so their are not a ton of listings yet, but I think once it catches on - it will be great!
One cool thing about Lobster, so far, is the ability to set up communities. I have set up one for my local homeschool group - it is private so no one but us can join up. On these communities, we can list EVERYTHING we have...and mark it with a LOAN tag. So, I can search through my local hs community and find if something I need is on loan...saving me the money from buying it myself!
If you join Lobster, please feel free to friend me - dartwns - just let me know you found it through my blog!
Monday, April 12, 2010
CREW: All About Spelling Reader 2
All About Spelling has been a great company to work with this year.
We started off with a spelling program - been back and forth with it and I think after what I have learned this month about Samantha, we may be going back to it. We were also on the list for the first reader they sent out. Loved it, it was cute and simple. My nephew has it right now and is reading it and he loves it as well. Our most recent product from them was their recent reader What Am I? A Collection of Short Stories. 
We grabbed it as we were walking out the door one day for lessons and Riley read through the whole thing during Samantha's piano lessons. Which was odd, because he doesn't seem to care about reading. Samantha has picked it up a time or two and I think she has read a few of the stories, but I know she hasn't read the whole book.
There are 10 silly short stories that are fun to read. This is a level 2 book, so geared for late first grade early second. For more reviews and opinions on it, please visit the Crew, linked above.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Sunday was....
BUSY!
We all went to church and heard a great message. Brother Paul talked about Ascension Day. He really got into the message. It was one I had never heard - sad to say...I didn't know about Ascension Day. We welcomed a new member to the church family as well.
Riley left church with Gramma and Chunky, Samantha and I came home and had a quick lunch and I got dinner started. Crock-pot Enchiladas! Yummo! Our Girl Scout Co-Leader and her daughter came over and we finally took our Gift of Caring cookies to the place the girls chose as a recipient. Open Arms Shelter. We took them 18 boxes of Girl Scout cookies...they were so thankful for them.
We all went to church and heard a great message. Brother Paul talked about Ascension Day. He really got into the message. It was one I had never heard - sad to say...I didn't know about Ascension Day. We welcomed a new member to the church family as well.
Riley left church with Gramma and Chunky, Samantha and I came home and had a quick lunch and I got dinner started. Crock-pot Enchiladas! Yummo! Our Girl Scout Co-Leader and her daughter came over and we finally took our Gift of Caring cookies to the place the girls chose as a recipient. Open Arms Shelter. We took them 18 boxes of Girl Scout cookies...they were so thankful for them.
Once we all got home, we were hanging out waiting on dinner time. I had Roger's fire department pager on, so I knew there was nothing going on, however, we heard an awful wailing siren noise. We ran out to the front to see what it was...
It was a friend of Roger's from the fire station. He has this demo-model to compare something or another on the front of a truck. They were out, full of kiddos, for his son's birthday. He stopped and asked if Samantha and Riley wanted to go for a ride on it. They were excited about that!
Dinner was here, we had crockpot enchiladas and I made a yummy chocolate cake! After dinner, we played cards.
Great weekend...hate that it is ending...
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Saturday was....
CRAZY!
Saturday was a completely crazy day! Riley was with Ryan, and they were going to meet Roger at the ballfield for his noon practice. Samantha was with Gramma and she was going to Chunky's game. I had a meeting from 9-noon and was supposed to go to the ball park afterwards. My meeting ran long, so Rog just told me he would meet me at the house...
I was almost finished with my grocery list when he left on a fire call...the kiddos were all fighting, so I sent them to their room so I could finish up my list. Riley fell asleep!! He slept for 2 hours, so I helped Samantha sort thru some of her clothes and pull out some summer stuff. Right as we were walking out the door, Roger returned home...so Samantha and I went without the boys!
Dinner was burgers - super late because of my late grocery trip! Everyone is tired and headed to bed...
Saturday was a completely crazy day! Riley was with Ryan, and they were going to meet Roger at the ballfield for his noon practice. Samantha was with Gramma and she was going to Chunky's game. I had a meeting from 9-noon and was supposed to go to the ball park afterwards. My meeting ran long, so Rog just told me he would meet me at the house...
I was almost finished with my grocery list when he left on a fire call...the kiddos were all fighting, so I sent them to their room so I could finish up my list. Riley fell asleep!! He slept for 2 hours, so I helped Samantha sort thru some of her clothes and pull out some summer stuff. Right as we were walking out the door, Roger returned home...so Samantha and I went without the boys!
Dinner was burgers - super late because of my late grocery trip! Everyone is tired and headed to bed...
Friday, April 9, 2010
CREW: Terrestria
We were sent The Terrestria Chronicles. We ended up getting books 1 & 2 in the series...which is a good thing around here...Riley has a bit of OCD and he wouldn't have read them out of order!
I am not a big fantasy fan, but since we were sent the books for review, I thought I would attempt to read for an honest review. I guess that these were OK...but I am still not a fantasy person...
Riley is in the middle of the first one still, and I guess he is liking it ok. I see him reading it, but he has not finished it and he has not been telling me much about it. I have asked him a time or two, but not overly excited about the story.
*Disclaimer: This product was sent to me free of charge through the Crew in order for my review.
Ultimate Blog Party ~ Party Post
This is my first year to participate in the Ultimate Blog Party! I have recently really started focusing on my blog and keeping up to date with it and adding in other fun stuff...not just our daily, boring lives!
Welcome to my small space on the WWW!
About me: I am married to my best friend for almost 14 years. We live in the same community that we grew up in. He is a firefighter for the city not to far from here and we are both involved in our local volunteer fire department (that is also where we met!). We have 2 kiddos ~ twins ~ 10 years old. Samantha and Riley. I homeschool them. We are members of a small family oriented church here in the area as well. We are very involved in the church, attending services, bible study and other activities as they come up. Samantha is very involved in Girl Scouts - I am her troop leader. We have 10 girls in our troop and they are all the best of friends. The girls are in the process of earning their Bronze Award!! (Keep watching, details will be posted when we complete it)! Riley has been active in Cub Scouts and has recently started baseball. They enjoy being a part of and helping out at the Fire Department as well as many other avenues of volunteer work and community service.
My blog was started as a way for me to keep up with what we were doing in school each day, but has since evolved into something bigger and better! I have enjoyed reading and sharing books through reviews, I have spent the last year on TOS Homeschool Crew and I made many friends throughout the bloggy world!
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
CREW: Media Freaks
Media Freaks let the Crew have a free membership to their program Wiglington and Wenks. There is a free area for the kiddos to play in, as well as a paid membership place. I signed myself up for the paid membership and allowed the kiddos to sign up under the free part. Mainly so we could compare the differences in the two. For the most part, I cannot tell what extra I am getting as a *paying* member in comparison to what the freebies have access to.
On the other hand, one thing I am not crazy about is the kiddos having access to open chat. I think being able to post smileys is great, but the actual *chat* should be limited or restricted. My kiddos are only 10 and they would be fine with some pre-decided terms that can be used as choices for chat. I know when we play Internet checkers, you have a choice of dialog that you can use that is only relative to the game. I think the Wiglington and Wenks would benefit from a chat style such as this. Seeing as how I don't know who else is signed up (read: how old they are) it makes me a little un-easy about them being on there without me being close by.
*Disclaimer: We were given access to this game free of charge in exchange for our review. Please visit the Crew, linked above, for more reviews on this product.
Friday, April 2, 2010
CREW: Critical Thinking
Critical Thinking sent us Balance Benders! At first, I wasn't sure what to expect from this company, but the kiddos and I both have been impressed with the product we received! We were sent Balance Benders. It is a challenging book for all of us...definately makes you think!
The kiddos and I have enjoyed doing these challenges and we will be going back to Critical Thinking for more challenging books!
*Disclaimer~ this book was sent to us free of charge in exchange for our honest opinion and review. For more reviews of this product, please visit the Crew link above.
CFBA: As Young As We Feel by Melody Carson
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
She has two grown sons and lives in Central Oregon with her husband and chocolate lab retriever. They enjoy skiing, hiking, gardening, camping and biking in the beautiful Cascade Mountains.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Once upon a time in a little town on the Oregon coast lived four Lindas—all in the same first-grade classroom. So they decided to go by their middle names. And form a club. And be friends forever. But that was forty-seven years and four very different lives ago. Now a class reunion has brought them all together in their old hometown—at a crossroads in their lives.
Janie is a high-powered lawyer with a load of grief. Abby is a lonely housewife in a beautiful oceanfront empty nest. Marley is trying to recapture the artistic free spirit she lost in an unhappy marriage. And the beautiful Caroline is scrambling to cope with her mother’s dementia and a Hollywood career that never really happened. Together, they’re about to explore the invigorating reality that even the most eventful life has second acts … and friendship doesn’t come with a statue of limitations.
If you would like to read the first chapter of As Young As We Feel, go HERE.
Watch the Video:
WHAT I HAVE TO SAY: This was a really cute story...it was an easy read and I enjoyed the story.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
A step in the right direction
I just wanted to check in with you all as to where we are with Samantha and her *issues*. We spent 4+ hours at Dennis Developmental Center, which is a branch of Arkansas Children's Hospital, with a *TEAM* for her. There was a Learning Disiabilities Doc, a Speech Threrapist, a Physc Examiner and one other guy (not sure what his role/title was -but he never spoke ust observed).
The TEAM has diagniosed her with a Learning Difference. They think that we are dealing with Written Expressions Disorder. Which, from all of her testing over the past 6-8 months, along with her tests from today, basically means she gets it, she know it, she just has a bit of problem in commmunicating it back. Both verbally AND especially in written form. She has trouble structuring a sentence- from beginning it with a captial letter, transposing words/letters, misusing capitals, misspelling words, down to unsure of how to use correct punctuation. They said she had a bit of problem verbally, but not enough to 'label' that part of it, and being in speech should help with that as well. But the written part was pretty low, causing her overall IQ score to be below average.
The phsyc examiner said that he would recommend expanding her IEP and getting more services from the school district - is recommending at least OT and maybe a reading resource if available. He also said as far as general learning, keeping her home will be her best bet. She has issues spelling, writing (both penmanship as well as skills and formation of sentences/paragraphs). If she goes to school now, then it could lead to her getting *failing* grades, which causes a list of things- depression- drop-puts - low self esteem - but her testing scores shows she KNOWS things. Keeping her home where I can accomadate her learning and testing enviornemnt would be the best thing for her. He also suggested that I get accomadations made for testing next year (I think we are too late this year, since she tests next Wednesday).
Her visual/spacial scores were high and they said that any kind of chart/map/graph style learning would be best for her. Anything she can do on the computer, let her. Use things like dry-erase, magnetic letters, mainly visual learning skills, to help her with learning. And to lower my expectiations when it comes to anything that has to be handwritten - if I can't change it completely.
Which leads me to ... Is this God giving me permission, or even a push if you will, to let go and relax our learning enviornment? I so want to, I would love to do more hands on things, but I have always felt like if I step back from the *bookwork* then we won't know where we are, or if they are learning, or if we are doing what we need to be doing...
Please keep us in your prayers as we make the next step down this journey with her. That if God wants our lerning to be more relaxed and natural, that ways for me to do this will show, that I will learn to let go and that others will as well (parents- extended family) and see that they can learn if they are not sitting at a table doing bookwork for 6 hours a day (Not that we are - but you get my point with that).
We did lapbooks and stuff when they were younger, but felt like we needed more as they have gotten older... maybe not...
I am going to try to relax, more games and what I call fun stuff - that can be counted as learning (cooking comes to mind) and more computer type things. They gave mean Inspiration C D that has a 30 day free trial that is something to try with her - going to go check out the website and such before I put it on either computer.
So, we shall see how it goes from here.
The TEAM has diagniosed her with a Learning Difference. They think that we are dealing with Written Expressions Disorder. Which, from all of her testing over the past 6-8 months, along with her tests from today, basically means she gets it, she know it, she just has a bit of problem in commmunicating it back. Both verbally AND especially in written form. She has trouble structuring a sentence- from beginning it with a captial letter, transposing words/letters, misusing capitals, misspelling words, down to unsure of how to use correct punctuation. They said she had a bit of problem verbally, but not enough to 'label' that part of it, and being in speech should help with that as well. But the written part was pretty low, causing her overall IQ score to be below average.
The phsyc examiner said that he would recommend expanding her IEP and getting more services from the school district - is recommending at least OT and maybe a reading resource if available. He also said as far as general learning, keeping her home will be her best bet. She has issues spelling, writing (both penmanship as well as skills and formation of sentences/paragraphs). If she goes to school now, then it could lead to her getting *failing* grades, which causes a list of things- depression- drop-puts - low self esteem - but her testing scores shows she KNOWS things. Keeping her home where I can accomadate her learning and testing enviornemnt would be the best thing for her. He also suggested that I get accomadations made for testing next year (I think we are too late this year, since she tests next Wednesday).
Her visual/spacial scores were high and they said that any kind of chart/map/graph style learning would be best for her. Anything she can do on the computer, let her. Use things like dry-erase, magnetic letters, mainly visual learning skills, to help her with learning. And to lower my expectiations when it comes to anything that has to be handwritten - if I can't change it completely.
Which leads me to ... Is this God giving me permission, or even a push if you will, to let go and relax our learning enviornment? I so want to, I would love to do more hands on things, but I have always felt like if I step back from the *bookwork* then we won't know where we are, or if they are learning, or if we are doing what we need to be doing...
Please keep us in your prayers as we make the next step down this journey with her. That if God wants our lerning to be more relaxed and natural, that ways for me to do this will show, that I will learn to let go and that others will as well (parents- extended family) and see that they can learn if they are not sitting at a table doing bookwork for 6 hours a day (Not that we are - but you get my point with that).
We did lapbooks and stuff when they were younger, but felt like we needed more as they have gotten older... maybe not...
I am going to try to relax, more games and what I call fun stuff - that can be counted as learning (cooking comes to mind) and more computer type things. They gave mean Inspiration C D that has a 30 day free trial that is something to try with her - going to go check out the website and such before I put it on either computer.
So, we shall see how it goes from here.
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