Hi all! Alyssa...my 7 year old...for those who remember me...hee hee...can you believe she is 7! I started coming here before she was born! Anyway...she has been diagnosed with dyslexia..which came at no surprise to me. So...right now I am looking for curriculum and ideas for helping her. Any ideas or suggestions??
Did you check Heads Up Now? I'm sure she might have some ideas for you.... YOU LIE!!!! :love: There's NO WAY your little peanut can be that old!!!
My dd (now 10, dx'd at 7 1/2) has dyslexia and dysgraphia. 80% of dyslexics are dysgraphic. So keep it on your radar. I would recommend several avenues. 1) Head over to Homeschool Buyers Coop and buy the Reading Assistant. This is a program for students with reading issues that used to only be available to the schools but, through the Buyers COop, you can log in as a school through the coop and use the program. Your child will need a headphone with a microphone on it (I think this is included with the subscription). Then your child will log in, pick the subject for reading (all kinds from fiction to science to history, etc) at different grade levels, from kindergarten to high school. You, as the teacher, will only make available to her the grade level you feel she should be reading. Next your child reads into the microphone. The program gives you a copy of the words that were correctly read (green), the words that your child stumbled on but eventually got (blue), and the words that the computer had to give them a prompt on (red). It also gives fluency, correct words per minute, etc. The child also takes a short quiz at the end so that you are assured of comprehension. Remeber, one of the hardest skills for a dyslexic is reading out loud. THis program will shore that up through practice. My dd did about 500 words/day for about 6 months. The program did wonders. 2) Read the Dyslexic Advantage. It will change your perception about dyslexia and help you realize that dyslexia is not a learning disorder. It is a different way of processing material. Present the material in the way the child is processing the information, and your child will sail through the information. 3) My dd also did the LIndaMoodBell program for her phonics. While this gave her a good start, I have hit phonics hard through How To Teach Spelling through Educators Publishing. It has all the phonics rules as well as a list of words, K-12. 4) Head over to the Barton Reading program website and watch the video about accomodations for dyslexics in the classroom. In short, my dd learned to type so that learning her handwriting was seperate from her other academics. SHe did her latin translations, paragraph writing, etc on an ipad/desk top and had a set time of day to practice her handwriting. Her vocabulary, while being tested on the spelling as well as the definition, was about the only thing she wrote out, outside of math. When we do science, history, or anything that she will need notes on, I give her a copy of my notes for the day or I make her study cards for her (math mainly). She has found Quizlet to be very useful for structured curriculum lists/flashcards/quizzes for her to study. (Constitutional Ammendments, Visual Latin Vocabulary, etc). HTH's. My dd is doing well with accomodations. Kim
I'm not a homeschooler (yet), but my seven year old son is dyslexic. He's currently going through Barton Reading and Spelling program with a tutor, and it has helped him immensely. I seriously recommend checking out the site and considering using it as a full reading and spelling program for your daughter. Since my son is currently in public school he's been doing the program after school with a tutor, but it's set up to be usable by just about anyone. I have a friend who is using it at home with her daughter with great success. Many bright dyslexics (my husband and brother among them) learn to read sometime in second grade with no special help, but struggle all their lives with spelling. What I love about the Barton program is that it combines the two. By the time he's finished the program, my son should be a much better spelling than his father.
I might add that Avi, the children's author, is dyslexic. I know this, because the (former) Children's Librarian at the library we frequent most often is dyslexic, and Avi is her "hero" for that very reason.
My friend (parent of 2 dyslexic children, one much worse than the other) says that diet makes all the difference for her boys...I can't remember all the specifics, so you should maybe spend some time googling it, but I do remember fish oil & lethicin supplements, no processed foods, low/no sugar. She said the difference was night and day. Good luck!
