Learning to write his last name

One thing that I was embarrassed about during testing, was that Big Brother didn't know how to write his last name. He's known how to write his first name since he was about 4. I was going to make sure by the end of the year that he knew how to write his last name, his address (we recently moved, he knew his old address), and his phone number. I guess this gave me a push to do what needed to be done. This is what a visual/spatial does after learning how to write their name. They do what else...turn it into block letters. Sometimes he writes words like Speed like it is moving in the wind. I'll have to find that one. It's pretty cool.

The Results Are In

Thursday I went in for the results of Big Brother's testing. He is severely dyslexic, but I wasn't so upset about that. I knew his strengths and weaknesses, and the tests captured them accurately. I was upset that they tested him on things that I haven't even taught him yet. I was a little embarrassed, and because I'm his teacher, I felt like a failure. I cried....right there in the office in front of the psychologist. I couldn't hold it in. I explained that I was upset because they tested him on things that I haven't even taught him yet, and that made me feel like a failure. When I said that we were doing 1st grade curriculum at home and some of these things haven't come up yet, the psychologist mentioned that my homeschool curriculum was "too light". (In defense of Heart of Dakota, it is not light. It doesn't follow Florida's FCAT standard, and if you live in Florida, you know that Florida schools are failing miserably and the FCAT is making it worse)I asked what he suggested, and then my mouth hit the ground, he suggested a curriculum that is for the auditory/sequential learner. It is traditional school to the Nth degree, implementing worksheet after worksheet without any multi-sensory input.

I've done a lot of reading on dyslexia lately, and all the scientific research shows that children with dyslexia need to learn with a multi-sensory approach, not more of the same repetition and drill like what he suggested. What help was he? I felt I already knew more than he did and he's the psychologist. So, now I was mad. I sent him an email detailing my thoughts on his curriculum suggestion. I asked if I was missing something he was trying to tell to me, because his suggestions on curriculum were contrary to the current research on how dyslexics should be taught. He did reply that his recommendation was just one of many options I could use.....blah, blah, blah. The psychologist was full of contradictions. He suggested I use the Barton system, but then wondered why my son wasn't writing in sentences. The Barton Reading system doesn't implement sentences at this stage. We are listening to sounds in words at this point. He liked Handwriting without Tears, he thought it was one of the best. When I told him that in Handwriting without Tears they are still forming letters at this level he seemed confused. I think the problem is that he follows a public school model. We don't follow a public school model, don't want to, don't need to, don't ever care to. That is one reason I homeschool. Public school may be able to teach children what a noun or a verb is in first grade, but they don't seem to be doing a great job when it comes to teaching children how to think critically.

Some good did come out of my little tiff with the psychologist. I think I may have been a little lax in some areas, I figured Big Brother was only six. So now, I will step it up a bit, but I will continue to use my current curriculum, because I know it reaches the heart of my child, and we will continue on teaching him to read with the Barton System. It's working and my son is finally enjoying school.

Testing Begins

On Monday this week, I went to speak with a psychologist that specializes in psycho-educational testing. He asked me lots of questions about Big Brother's developmental growth, his social skills and behavior. He looked at Big Brother's art work, school samples and my current curriculum. I was happy to hear that he was impressed with my curriculum choices. He believed we were on the right track with his curriculum. On Tuesday, I was to bring Big Brother in for his testing portion.

On Monday night, I started to prep Big Brother as to where we were going and why. Per the doctor's request, I told him we were going to see someone who would find out how Big Brother learned best, so I could teach him effectively. That seemed to go over alright, so early the next morning we were off to see the doctor. A little apprehensive at first, Big Brother seemed to really open up after just a couple of minutes, and I knew he would be fine. His siblings and I were right around the corner and the door was made of glass.

After 2 hours, Big Brother emerged. Hmmmmmmm, this wasn't the bleary-eyed child that I usually see after 30 minutes of "doing school" He was happy and enjoyed the whole experience. He informed me that he wanted to come back, but on the ride home, he let me know that he didn't need to do anymore school work for the day.

Still needing to be reassured that there IS some learning difference going on, and it wasn't just my poor teaching skills, I asked the doctor if he saw any of the things I was noticing, and he agreed that yes, he was seeing everything that I saw. He didn't say much more. We still have one more session, and I'm sure everything will be noted in an official report.

Naturally, I don't want things to be more difficult for my son, but I relieved to know that I wasn't crazy and it wasn't my overactive imagination. I wasn't happy that something was wrong only that we are finding out what it is and how we can help Big Brother succeed.