by Sally Shaywitz
At the end of a book like this, the question I always come to is, "Would I recommend this book? And if so, to whom?"
If you want to find out what dyslexia is and what to do about it, then yes. If you're looking for encouragement as a homeschooling parent of a child with dyslexia, not so much.
I loved the first 15 chapters. I am new to the world of dyslexia and needed a detailed, practical explanation. She gave me that, along with a step by step plan to help Raccoon become a fast and fluent reader. But towards the end of the book, I was very put off by one paragraph meant for parents of children who attend regular school. It bothered me because what she says is at the heart of my insecurities about teaching Raccoon at home, which is: can I teach him well? I felt especially discouraged because it came as such a surprise. In the beginning of the book she says, "I strongly believe that behind the success of every disabled child is a passionately committed, intensely engaged, and totally empowered parent, usually but not always the child’s mother." This is the paragraph from Chapter 16 (bold is mine):
"While a parent should not become her child’s primary teacher, she can become her child’s biggest helper. With a light hand, good humor, and the suggestions found here, you can help accelerate your child’s progress. In most instances I strongly caution parents against setting out to teach their child all of the phonics rules or a complete reading curriculum. Teaching reading is a complex task and one that should be left to a professional. Keep in mind that your child is in class for perhaps six hours a day. You will see him after school when he is tired and less receptive to learning and when you, too, are not at your most energetic or patient. I recommend that you work with your child fifteen or twenty minutes a few evenings a week; it should remain fun and not a chore for either of you. For the most part, weekends should be left for enjoyment and not to play catch-up. Focus on reinforcement. School is where new learning should take place; home is ideal for practice and reinforcement."
Later, she shares her low opinion of public schools, "...in general, public school programs for children with reading disability are failures" and "On balance, public schools are generally slow to identify a reading problem, provide too little instruction, and, worst of all, often use unproven and incomplete programs taught by teachers who may know little about teaching reading."
She also says that private schools often aren't a good fit for children with dyslexia: "In contrast to most public school settings, I have found that the children in private schools are more likely to be in lockstep with one another. Such schools pride themselves on uniformity, which often extends to the curriculum and to reading instruction. The lack of student diversity in this setting does not usually serve the interests of a student with a reading disability; the opportunities for innovation and for creating special programs are limited."
So I'm not sure which "professionals" she's referring to who aren't parents and apparently aren't public or private school teachers either.
But this point of contention aside, she did provide me with a clear plan of what to do, along with much applicable advice. I cannot compare it to other dyslexia books, having only read this one, but it felt complete enough to me that I haven't done any more research at this point.
From her explanation, I realized that Raccoon and I jumped into phonics last year, but he is missing some of the foundational pre-reading skills. From now until October, we will be focusing on one skill a month: rhyming, sound matching, segmenting, and blending. Once he has mastered these, we will move back into phonics. I expect a totally different and positive outcome for his first grade reading skills.
Many children don't receive remediation until third grade, so I am glad that we are starting now. Our goal is 90 minutes of reading and related activities 5 days a week. So far we're averaging about 30 minutes of reading a day.
Favorite quotes:
"On the other hand, dyslexics appear to be disproportionately represented in the upper echelons of creativity and the people who, whether in business, finance, medicine, writing, law, or science, have broken through a boundary and have made a real difference to society."
"Above all, do not keep the child back a year in school."
"In addition to providing the loving and nurturing that comes naturally with parenting, parents (and teachers, too) of children with reading problems should make their number one goal the preservation of their child’s self-esteem."
"Early on it is critical to help your child identify an interest or a hobby, an area in which he can have a positive experience, whether it be pure enjoyment or perhaps the ability to stand out or excel..."
"Encourage your child to view himself as a person who has something to say and whom people should respect. Discuss important decisions with him. ...As he gets older, there will be many occasions when he needs to speak up and be an advocate for himself. Getting into the habit of speaking out and being heard is invaluable preparation for that."
"...Boies’s life experience reinforces the dictum that it is not how fast you read but how well you think that counts."
I might just frame that last quote.
"As I have walked the world—a tramp for the Lord—I have learned a few lessons in God's great classroom." Corrie ten Boom
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 21, 2015
Monday, August 26, 2013
Book Project, Part II
My mom is a wealth of office supplies, so she gave me a 3 ring binder and a box of the old computer paper. Remember the kind with holes on the edges that fed through the printer in a one continuous piece? Ah, the memories.
Raccoon had fun helping me tear off the edges, separate the pages, then hole punch them. Voila! His first book was ready for inspiration.
Raccoon decided he wanted to do the illustrations first with crayons.
He likes to just go for it, then decide later what it is.
After about ten pages, he was done for the day.
Once upon a time, there was a ghost named Alfie.
Alfie wore glasses. His father was watching him.
There was a sign that said no enter. A man told Alfie he was going to hit him with his big knife.
So Alfie cut the man's blade off with his knife. Alfie's father was mad.
(I drew the right page at Raccoon's request, it's the only one
where he wanted help. I also changed his to the man's for clarity.)
"I'm glad you're safe, but don't do that ever again," he said.
(It seemed odd to me that Raccoon thought the dad was mad
so I mentioned the safe part and he incorporated it into the story.
The "...don't do it again" part is pure Raccoon.)
The man set a trap for Alfie. Traps are everywhere!
A red line told him do not enter that yard. Bad men will take your food and eat it all.
(Raccoon said red but I wrote purple since that's the color the marker was,
but I thought better of it and changed it back to red to stay true to his story.)
He crossed the line and a shark ate his food. Alfie decided to go home and eat his lunch.
(When I reread the story to Raccoon later, he told me it should be the bad men
who ate the lunch not the shark, implying that the story made more sense that
way. His first edit, such fun. I still have to go back and change the original.)
Sharing his story with Robin.
Friday, July 12, 2013
A Book Project, Part I
For about a year, I have been telling what we call "Peter and Jon" stories to Raccoon. For months now, he has been making up the stories that he wants me to tell. Sometimes, he is doing most of the telling and I just interject occasional connecting sentences.
Tonight, I was looking back at the things I've jotted down for Raccoon's scrapbook (on notebook pages ripped out of my journals). I wish I had written down more things that he said. I cannot go back, but someday when he's 18, I know I'll treasure what he said at 3, so I can start now.
To bring these two things together, I want to help Raccoon make a book. He'll dictate the story to me and we'll figure out how to illustrate it together. I got the idea from Eva Ridenhour, but it seemed like he was too young. I thought that I would save the idea for later, but I decided to try it now. We are in-between Tot School and a private preschool in the fall, so I think some book projects might be a good idea. We'll see if Raccoon thinks so too.
(This post isn't very fluid, but it's late and I don't have time to edit so I'm going to publish it as is.)
ETA: Here is Part II.
Tonight, I was looking back at the things I've jotted down for Raccoon's scrapbook (on notebook pages ripped out of my journals). I wish I had written down more things that he said. I cannot go back, but someday when he's 18, I know I'll treasure what he said at 3, so I can start now.
To bring these two things together, I want to help Raccoon make a book. He'll dictate the story to me and we'll figure out how to illustrate it together. I got the idea from Eva Ridenhour, but it seemed like he was too young. I thought that I would save the idea for later, but I decided to try it now. We are in-between Tot School and a private preschool in the fall, so I think some book projects might be a good idea. We'll see if Raccoon thinks so too.
(This post isn't very fluid, but it's late and I don't have time to edit so I'm going to publish it as is.)
ETA: Here is Part II.
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Life as a Baby in Celosia
As with most things in the land of Celosia, I'm not talking about anything remotely "schoolish" for her. At the beginning, almost everything in life helps a baby learn. But I am a fan of enrichment, so what has Robin been up to?
In Glenn Doman's book, How Smart is Your Baby? (horrible title, good book, it is available at most libraries), there are different activities to do with your baby from birth onward. I like the initial red stage activities, I've pretty much skipped the orange stage with both of my kids, and now Robin is mostly ready for the yellow stage. Find some amazing checklists here to help you stay organized and for lots of other tips, visit DomanMom's blog.
I'm just going to jump in where we are right now. Disclaimer: I don't follow the program exactly, but it does help me to be mindful throughout the day about how I can play with Robin and what to include in her environment. So what does the yellow stage look like?
1) Touching lots of different and contrasting textures
2) Learning about objects (mostly fruit) through her five senses - taste, smell, texture, seeing the real thing, a picture of it, the written word, and hearing me say its name.
3) Seeing bits of intelligence every day (large, simple, clear pictures, one per 10 in x 10 in card)
4) Balance activities - tons of fun and both my kids have enjoyed these tremendously.
General ideas from the program I also like (paraphrased by me):
1) Keep baby in the least restrictive environment possible - sitting on my lap vs. sitting in a chair
2) Lots and lots of belly time - get the whole family on the floor with the baby often, or raise the baby up to your level (belly on bed and you on the floor so heads are level)
3) The main idea is purposeful interaction to help develop awareness, mobility, and language.
4) Let the baby move, move, move!
It can be very intimidating at first, but just pick something to add to your baby's life. You don't have to do the whole thing to be successful. Even if it just encourages you to talk to your baby more, look at books together, go on walks, etc, then you're doing a great job. With Raccoon I'd always feel guilty, like I wasn't doing enough, but even from the little I did he benefited. I'm not organized enough to be a full Doman mom, but the important thing is that we like what I do.
In Glenn Doman's book, How Smart is Your Baby? (horrible title, good book, it is available at most libraries), there are different activities to do with your baby from birth onward. I like the initial red stage activities, I've pretty much skipped the orange stage with both of my kids, and now Robin is mostly ready for the yellow stage. Find some amazing checklists here to help you stay organized and for lots of other tips, visit DomanMom's blog.
I'm just going to jump in where we are right now. Disclaimer: I don't follow the program exactly, but it does help me to be mindful throughout the day about how I can play with Robin and what to include in her environment. So what does the yellow stage look like?
1) Touching lots of different and contrasting textures
2) Learning about objects (mostly fruit) through her five senses - taste, smell, texture, seeing the real thing, a picture of it, the written word, and hearing me say its name.
3) Seeing bits of intelligence every day (large, simple, clear pictures, one per 10 in x 10 in card)
4) Balance activities - tons of fun and both my kids have enjoyed these tremendously.
General ideas from the program I also like (paraphrased by me):
1) Keep baby in the least restrictive environment possible - sitting on my lap vs. sitting in a chair
2) Lots and lots of belly time - get the whole family on the floor with the baby often, or raise the baby up to your level (belly on bed and you on the floor so heads are level)
3) The main idea is purposeful interaction to help develop awareness, mobility, and language.
4) Let the baby move, move, move!
It can be very intimidating at first, but just pick something to add to your baby's life. You don't have to do the whole thing to be successful. Even if it just encourages you to talk to your baby more, look at books together, go on walks, etc, then you're doing a great job. With Raccoon I'd always feel guilty, like I wasn't doing enough, but even from the little I did he benefited. I'm not organized enough to be a full Doman mom, but the important thing is that we like what I do.
Thursday, May 16, 2013
We're Back
Hello! Life has been chaotic in Celosia, so we haven't been doing much school. We have successfully moved countries and are settling into our new house. Thanks to my parents and their church, our home has a fully equipped playroom. There are shelves and workspaces enough to satisfy any Tot School mom, I dare say!
These are the things that I want to focus on for May and June:
Raccoon
1) Books
2) Imaginary Play
3) Outside Time
Robin
1) Belly Time
2) Sitting Time (currently propped up by pillows)
3) Bits (idea from How Smart Is Your Baby)
4) Books (simple pictures with high contrast, like Eric Carle's Brown Bear, Brown Bear...)
5) Outside Time
These are the things that I want to focus on for May and June:
Raccoon
1) Books
2) Imaginary Play
3) Outside Time
Robin
1) Belly Time
2) Sitting Time (currently propped up by pillows)
3) Bits (idea from How Smart Is Your Baby)
4) Books (simple pictures with high contrast, like Eric Carle's Brown Bear, Brown Bear...)
5) Outside Time
I opened up the cupboard today and found play-doh supplies galore!
"Batman" is putting stickers on paper attached to an easel in our new kitchen.
(I now own a child-size easel! I am so excited!!)
Raccoon has never liked trains or cars much, but he enjoyed this wooden set.
(This is in our new playroom, there is a whole wall of shelves!)
Here's Robin working on some sitting time and playing with her slippers.
Raccoon is 3.5 years old and Robin is 3 months old.
Saturday, January 5, 2013
The January Plan
I wish I could say that December was full of holiday fun, but the reality is that all three of us were sick for most of it. On top of several different colds, Raccoon also had multiple allergy outbreaks which make him crankier and more sleepless than usual. The most I can say about last month is that we survived and are all still here.
Just this week things are finally feeling manageable again, but now we are only a couple of weeks away from the arrival of baby Robin. Because of this, my plan is to keep Tot School very simple this month. My mom sent me materials for an alphabet book (Aa is for apple, "always be kind"), so I want to work on that with Raccoon on Tuesdays and Thursdays. In the evenings, I would like to start reading to him from a chapter book (I got the idea from Learners in Bloom). I haven't been feeling very well this week, so one of my sister-in-laws is going to start coming over twice a week with her 4 year old son to help me out. I hope to have the two boys do things together whenever I feel up to it.
At random times during the last month, Raccoon would decide that he wanted to cut or draw. One day, he drew the picture on the left. The next day he drew the one on the right. I've mentioned being concerned about his fine motor skills before, mostly due to his lack of interest. I was very surprised to see so much improvement in his control and design from one day to the next. Way to go, Raccoon!
Just this week things are finally feeling manageable again, but now we are only a couple of weeks away from the arrival of baby Robin. Because of this, my plan is to keep Tot School very simple this month. My mom sent me materials for an alphabet book (Aa is for apple, "always be kind"), so I want to work on that with Raccoon on Tuesdays and Thursdays. In the evenings, I would like to start reading to him from a chapter book (I got the idea from Learners in Bloom). I haven't been feeling very well this week, so one of my sister-in-laws is going to start coming over twice a week with her 4 year old son to help me out. I hope to have the two boys do things together whenever I feel up to it.
At random times during the last month, Raccoon would decide that he wanted to cut or draw. One day, he drew the picture on the left. The next day he drew the one on the right. I've mentioned being concerned about his fine motor skills before, mostly due to his lack of interest. I was very surprised to see so much improvement in his control and design from one day to the next. Way to go, Raccoon!
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Books
I am reading a Parents' Guide to Raising a Gifted Toddler: Recognizing and Developing the Potential of Your Child from Birth to Five Years by James Alvino. Despite the title and perhaps the first few chapters, I think it's applicable to parenting toddlers in general. It is a bit out-dated, with references to phonographs and cleaning blackboard erasers, but it has made me reflect on some issues I hadn't yet considered with Raccoon, like gender stereotyping in the arts. For me, most of the good stuff started in Chapter 9, "The Enriched Environment."
I'm also reading How to Raise an Amazing Child the Montessori Way by Tim Seldin. It makes me want to run right out and put Raccoon in a Montessori preschool, if I could find an excellent one where I live, and if he and I were different people. Ha. But I do love the ideas on organizing spaces, the need for beauty and reality, independence and involving the child in the family.
I'm also reading How to Raise an Amazing Child the Montessori Way by Tim Seldin. It makes me want to run right out and put Raccoon in a Montessori preschool, if I could find an excellent one where I live, and if he and I were different people. Ha. But I do love the ideas on organizing spaces, the need for beauty and reality, independence and involving the child in the family.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Shopping for Materials
I squeaked a little bit of extra money out of our budget this month to spend on some learning products for Raccoon, so now I'm just trying to decide which ones. After spending an afternoon browsing online (gotta love naptime), I have narrowed it down to:
Actually purchased
Memory Lifter 199 Chinese Verbs (haven't used yet)
Emotional Intensity in Gifted Children (not as helpful for a toddler as I hoped, the solution is mostly "talking about it" in certain ways)
How to Raise an Amazing Child the Montessori Way (gorgeous pictures, some interesting ideas)
Parents' Guide to Raising a Gifted Toddler: Recognizing and Developing the Potential of Your Child from Birth to Five Years by James Alvino (pretty outdated but has a few chapters I found helfpul)
What I plan to get Raccoon for Christmas (Lord willing!!)
a trampoline (yes we did)
swimming pass for the two of us at a local pool (no, the chlorine seems to make him sick)*
Wish List for Later
Wink to Learn Read & Speak Chinese
Baby Learns Chinese
Tweedlewink
Readeez
Disclosure: I don't profit from any of these products, I'm just sharing about my search for materials in case it's helpful for someone else.
*I added in some (feedback) afterwards as follow-up.
Actually purchased
Memory Lifter 199 Chinese Verbs (haven't used yet)
Emotional Intensity in Gifted Children (not as helpful for a toddler as I hoped, the solution is mostly "talking about it" in certain ways)
How to Raise an Amazing Child the Montessori Way (gorgeous pictures, some interesting ideas)
Parents' Guide to Raising a Gifted Toddler: Recognizing and Developing the Potential of Your Child from Birth to Five Years by James Alvino (pretty outdated but has a few chapters I found helfpul)
What I plan to get Raccoon for Christmas (Lord willing!!)
a trampoline (yes we did)
swimming pass for the two of us at a local pool (no, the chlorine seems to make him sick)*
Wish List for Later
Wink to Learn Read & Speak Chinese
Baby Learns Chinese
Tweedlewink
Readeez
Disclosure: I don't profit from any of these products, I'm just sharing about my search for materials in case it's helpful for someone else.
*I added in some (feedback) afterwards as follow-up.
Monday, October 24, 2011
The "G" Word
It seems like there should be a different label for "gifted" kids, because that one seems to imply "more special or better" (based on the criticism it gets), which isn't the case. I think "talented" is even worse, since I believe that God has given each of us something unique to contribute to the world. Some children get called exceptional, but this could confusingly refer to either end of the learning spectrum. Although in some cases gifted children also have learning disabilities (therefore they are called twice exceptional - 2e). But I feel that gifted kids do need a label in order to access specialized educational services, just like kids with other labels who have different learning styles as well.
In my random blog surfing, I came across an author who wrote a book called "Emotional Intensity in Gifted Children." I don't know if Raccoon is gifted or not, but if I had to pick one word to describe him, it would definitely be INTENSE. My husband and I have used that word since he was a baby. We didn't want to be negative about our beloved son, but we also needed a way to describe our sleepless, demand for constant stimulation, fussy, no routine, and incredible child. My husband blamed our son's behavior on too much early stimulation, but I refused to believe that. I think it is something inherent in him that just makes everything he wants, needs, and does a BIG deal. The rest of the book's title is, "Helping Kid's Cope with Explosive Feelings," and that fits too. Frustration, rage, aggressiveness, a strong-will... I feel like we've seen it all. His emotions seemed off the charts for one so small and we hit the "terrible twos" around one year old. Although I've only read the first few pages, I hope to read the whole book soon.
For some reason I was thinking about all of this as I lay in bed the other night, waiting for Raccoon to fall asleep. It would be nice if there was a label that wasn't so controversial, so that one could talk about a child possibly being "______" without the negative reactions, just like one might discuss autism or diabetes. I thought of calling them "alternate learners" (too vague), "accelerated learners" (also seems to imply superiority), intense learners, and I can't remember the other ideas, but none worked. This is probably why the name "gifted" has stuck; no one has been able to come up with a better alternative.
In my random blog surfing, I came across an author who wrote a book called "Emotional Intensity in Gifted Children." I don't know if Raccoon is gifted or not, but if I had to pick one word to describe him, it would definitely be INTENSE. My husband and I have used that word since he was a baby. We didn't want to be negative about our beloved son, but we also needed a way to describe our sleepless, demand for constant stimulation, fussy, no routine, and incredible child. My husband blamed our son's behavior on too much early stimulation, but I refused to believe that. I think it is something inherent in him that just makes everything he wants, needs, and does a BIG deal. The rest of the book's title is, "Helping Kid's Cope with Explosive Feelings," and that fits too. Frustration, rage, aggressiveness, a strong-will... I feel like we've seen it all. His emotions seemed off the charts for one so small and we hit the "terrible twos" around one year old. Although I've only read the first few pages, I hope to read the whole book soon.
For some reason I was thinking about all of this as I lay in bed the other night, waiting for Raccoon to fall asleep. It would be nice if there was a label that wasn't so controversial, so that one could talk about a child possibly being "______" without the negative reactions, just like one might discuss autism or diabetes. I thought of calling them "alternate learners" (too vague), "accelerated learners" (also seems to imply superiority), intense learners, and I can't remember the other ideas, but none worked. This is probably why the name "gifted" has stuck; no one has been able to come up with a better alternative.
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