First time Homeschooler here and I have a ??

[NoraDun]

Hi Ladies! My name is Laura-Ann. I am a mom of 3. My oldest is 7 and going into the second grade. He begged me all of his 1st grade year to homeschool him. He has been diagnosed with ADHD and has tested in the autistic spectrum. He is not diagnosed with aspergers or austism however at this point. He had hearing loss until he was 3 1/2 and the Dr believes that his social and comprehension delay is due to his hearing loss and delayed speech. So they believe he will out grow and test out of the autistic spectrum but we are still up in the air about that.

So here is my concerns....I work with my kids on a regular basis anyway. But I worry about falling behind  where he SHOULD be. I feel like I need a lay out, of step by step what I should be working on. What do you ladies do to make sure your on track? 

Also what exact steps do I need to take to make sure that I am doing everything that I need to. I know I need to go to my county and let them know I am homeschooling, but is there anything I should be concerned about, or anything that I should have a heads up about??

I will also be working with my 3 and 2 yr old. My 3 yr old Malachi (4 in Sept) is testing on a Kindergarten level. (My mom is a teacher and tested him) So I really want to start him homeschool K in the fall. Does anyone have experience with starting them slightly early. Did it work out to benefit the child? Malachi is extremely smart and very hungary for knowledge. I feel like I could do the same thing with my daughter who is at pre-k level. Any thoughts?? 

Also does anyone have any online suggestions for the kiddos or myself. I have tons of stuff from my Mom...(I mean TONS) but I would always love more. 

Sorry ladies there is so much info...I am excited but super nervous too :) Thanks for any advice suggestions etc.

[romacox]

Oh Nora, it is my pleasure to help. You see games and real life experiences reduces stress (Total Physical Response).  That is why your son does so well when you have him read in real life experiences..he is physically involved in the learning process. 

Let me give you an actual example that should help with his reading.  A child was given to me right after Christmas because the teacher had decided to fail her. The first thing I did was to ask her how she pronounced the most commonly mispronounced letters.  She had all of them correct except W, and she too freaked out when given a book to read.

I began playing the game Ring Around The Phonics reteaching her the letter W, reviewing some letters, and teaching blends.  She became confident with reading anything I put on the board, but when she was given a book, she became very frustrated proclaiming "I can't".  She had gotten it in her head that the other kinds could read, but she could not...a self fulfilling prophecy. 

So after I knew she was very confident on the board,  I stopped playing the game.  But when she got stumped in the book, I put that word on the board (for example: see the word "when" in picture below:).   I then pointed back and forth from the board to the book, and the book to the board.  It took a a few times doing this exercise, but it finally clicked (If I can read on the board, I can read in the book).  This child went from failing to top reading group, and the teacher said it even improved her spelling.  Needless to say the little girl advanced to the next grade. 

Quoting NoraDun:

OH my goodness the info. You are definately educated on the subject I can tell. I greatly appreciate it. One thing that stood out is your mentioning problems getting my son to read. My son has a huge issue with ready. He CAN read. But in his mind it takes forever and it is very stressful for him. It makes it very difficult. He will read things on the computer if he likes them, or road signs, or grocery's etc. But when you put a peice of paper infront of him or GOSH FORBID a book. He falls to peices. I would love any suggestion you may have to help me work with him on this as it is a BIG concern with homeschooling him. He definately dislikes school because he feels so much pressure on him, and so much anxiety. So I am trying to learn ways to help that. Hopefully he will do well.Thanks again for everything I am going through looking at the sites now!!! 

Quoting romacox:

Hi again NoraDun,

This is romacox again. I have been thinking about you and your children all morning.

Virginia's home school association is HEAV There you will find a link to your  state laws, and be sure to check out the support groups near you.  They can provide you assistance with the legal paperwork,  support, field trips, co-ops, ext.

• You mentioned that your oldest had a hearing loss until 3 1/2.  Because his brain was sound deprived he is likely not hearing some of the sounds as you might be. His brain is having to catch up.   If he watches your lips instead of your eyes while you are talking, that is a good indication that he is not hearing all of the sounds correctly.  For example he might not  be able to distinguish between  f, s, and th unless reading your lips (it could  be those sounds or others) .  So sun can sound like fun.   He can also deduct what you are saying by the sentence.  For example; when you say, "did you have fun yesterday?", he can deduce that you said fun and not sun. 
  
• Important: So make sure he is pronouncing all the phonic sounds correctly. You may have to make sure he is watching you lips as you enunciate the sounds. It is also important not to teach d as du, b as bu, ext.  Hear Phonic Sounds Free on line.  If he is pronouncing them incorrectly, it can give him problems with blending them to form words. This is important to correct as early as possible.
  
• Take turns with him reading out loud as he watches each word you read.  This creates sound pathways to the brain, and improves his comprehension of the sounds. You will want to do this 20 minutes ever day.  If he gives you any resistance to doing this, feel free to call me at [phone] EST, and I would be more than glad to help you (no charge).  There are several ways to make him look forward to doing this with you.
• You mentioned the fear of falling behind: I am going to give you a link that tells you what the public schools expect at each grade level. But keep in mind that each child is unique.  Contrary to popular public school propaganda, one size does not fit all.  "Better Late Than Early" is a very good book on this subject.  Grade Level Requirements (to be taken with a large grain of salt)
  
• You mentioned that he begs to be homeschooled.  That is a good indication that he is feeling stress at school.  Most of the children I tutor do much better when I tutor them at home rather than at school because they are more relaxed.  So you may find your son is more capable than the teachers think.  Also long periods of stress is one of the major causes of learning disabilities including ADHD.  More information on this at this link:   Conditions That Cause Or Mimic Learning Disabilities
  
• The conventional method of teaching (flash cards and workbooks) teach only to the left brain.  This works fine with about 45% of the population.  I am able to reach 99 % of the kids by using Total Physical Response to teach.  TPR teaches to the left and right brain.  So I recommend reading this article: Total Physical Response .  Computer GAMES are a good resource for TPR, but not for teaching phonics.  The electronic games teach some of the phonic sounds incorrectly causing many children problems when it comes time to blend the sounds to form words.  So  I recommend you teach your children the sounds yourself.  Ring Around the Phonics is all I use to teach reading and Phonics...it is TPR.
• If you younger children show a desire to learn early, that is just fine. It is not necessary to hold them back.  But  many parents are led to believe that their children are in some sort of a race, and if they don't learn certain things at certain times, they are falling behind.  This article explains more:  How To Teach The Pre-K Student
  

Quoting NoraDun:

I live in Virginia and they didn't have VA there. Any other sites I can check? Thank you so much for the info!

Quoting romacox:

Welcome NoraDun,  I am a home school workshop leader and tutor (children are all grown now).  So I get asked many questions like yours, and work with many children like your oldest one.  My success rate with them is unusually high.  What I do is so simple anyone can do it.

Before taking any actions,  know your State Laws, because some state make curriculum mandates...Every state is different.  Your state home school association is an excellent source for this information, and it is free: 

State Home School Associations

Your questions are many, and I have an appointment to run to.  But when I return, I will answer each one.  Meanwhile here is a free web page that I put on line to answer the most common questions newbies have.  How To Home School

[romacox]

P.S. I forgot to tell you one more detail about the little girl.  It is not something I do with every child.  But in her case I stopped having her read in books until she became very confident that she could read on the board.  In fact, on the board, I took her beyond grade level so as to build her confidence.

[NoraDun]

Is this game one I could purchase somewhere with the directions on how to play it??

Quoting romacox:

P.S. I forgot to tell you one more detail about the little girl.  It is not something I do with every child.  But in her case I stopped having her read in books until she became very confident that she could read on the board.  In fact, on the board, I took her beyond grade level so as to build her confidence.

[romacox]

Yes it can be purchased through Amazon (Ring Around The Phonics levels I, II and III) This link takes you to the review page, but you can order the game by clicking the Add To Cart button to the upper right side of the page.

Directions come in the box along with everything you need to teach reading and phonics including 14 early reader books. However there are many ways it can be used  (see  How It Works for more creative ideas to use the game.)

Quoting NoraDun:

Is this game one I could purchase somewhere with the directions on how to play it??

Quoting romacox:

P.S. I forgot to tell you one more detail about the little girl.  It is not something I do with every child.  But in her case I stopped having her read in books until she became very confident that she could read on the board.  In fact, on the board, I took her beyond grade level so as to build her confidence.

[HarrisonMD]

You are headed in the right direction and even though my kids are 2yrs and 2 month...I homeschool everyday with educational videos, books, playtime...am always trying to show her something new, even if I do the same thing a hundred times a day...it will stick! lol...one of the best websites I like to get free worksheets and ideas is http://www.education.com/ it's AWESOME! Good luck to ya!

[romacox]

Nora, please keep us informed.  I had a hearing problem as a child, and it was not detected until in my 30s.  So I have a lot of empathy for what your Son is going through. 

My struggle is what gave me such a passion for what I do.  I hope my passion wasn't overwhelming.

[calusari]

I am so glad that I found this post; I am going to be homeschooling my 6 yo autistic son beginning this fall, and I am very nervous...at least I was until I read some of the posts regarding how it all works and being able to work at the pace of your child...that takes the pressure off!

I would love for my son to be able to go to public school, but he would not be getting the attention that he requires, and he has a lot of quirks that would make it difficult for him. I think he will thrive better at home...I just hope I'm not being selfish. It's so difficult to let our kids go out into the world, our "normal" kids...but when they are so vulnerable, it makes it SO much harder.

[romacox]

Hi calusari, I have very little experience with children diagnosed with aspergers. I have tutored only one child with that learning challenge.  In the public school system, he was regressing because he was not receiving the attention he needed because of the large class size filled with children who had little understanding of what he was experiencing

There were days he was able to do well beyond the grade they had placed him, and other days he wasn't.  One day I said to him "you are capable of much more than the teachers think you are, aren't you"?  He replied, "Yes".  I asked him why he did not let his teachers know, and he said, "Because they don't believe in me."  :- ( So based on that experience, I would say you will do a much better job than the public school system  is capable of.  I  located this blog site that might be of help to you and your son:  Homeschooling As[ergers

[KickButtMama]

Quoting calusari:

I am so glad that I found this post; I am going to be homeschooling my 6 yo autistic son beginning this fall, and I am very nervous...at least I was until I read some of the posts regarding how it all works and being able to work at the pace of your child...that takes the pressure off!

I would love for my son to be able to go to public school, but he would not be getting the attention that he requires, and he has a lot of quirks that would make it difficult for him. I think he will thrive better at home...I just hope I'm not being selfish. It's so difficult to let our kids go out into the world, our "normal" kids...but when they are so vulnerable, it makes it SO much harder.

Welcome! As I've said HS my Aspie. It is so rewarding for the both of us. He can relax and learn in an environment that he knows is perfectly safe. I see the situation of PS as a special form of torture for him. It would exacerbate all his 'quirks' to be in an unpredictable environment, and I'm sure he'd be picked on. But because we HS he is confident and outgoing. He is still innocent in so many ways..but I'm so proud of him. A great example of his success in HS - he is putting together a class for our co-op this fall based on the Roman/Greek myths and the Percy Jackson series. He will be the assistant teacher. He has zero fear of being singled out or picked on. He is so excited to help run this class - which is so contrary to how most Aspies in the PS system are conditioned to react.

So, good for you in jumping into the deep end of the pool for your son!

[4YOurKids]

Hi Nora,

I am a homeschool parent and I have an online homeschool www.4yourkids.org.  I work with kids at every level and parents who are pretty progressive about developing an impressive academic portfolio.  While my son does homeschooling online, he also participates in other programs like John Hopkins CTY and SIG.  

I think you should always be concerned about the curriculum to ensure your children reach their full potential and that they can compete to get into the college of their choice and have the career of their choice.  

I just started live online web chats and while the intended purpose is to answer questions and chat with parents who are evaluating the school, I WELCOME ALL PARENTS because it just makes for a rich discussion.  Perhaps it will be great to even open up a chat time just for parent chat.  Just a thought.  

You know every state is different when it comes to requirements for homeschooling, etc.  Stay in contact.  You're lucky to have your Mom helping out.  Look into HORIZONS because the younger students at my Brooklyn Learning Center do extremely well with it.  If you think it will work for you, let me know, I'll get you a good discount.  (PS-I even used Horizons for special needs students and it was fabulous in the speech skills).