Dayton is very pleased that the homeschool picnic we are going to in just a few weeks has a time for presentations. He has been trying to think of something that he can present. Last night he was talking about it as he went to bed.
I think he is going to try an idea that he had, but that he said half joking. He is planning to take magnets and make a baseball glove and ball that make it easier to catch the ball. I picked up the supplies for him today. I am anxious for him to give it a try. He will be so proud of one of the younger kids is able to use it to play ball!
I'm also going to have him do a little research on magnetism in the process. Maybe that can help him decide if it is better to use two magnets or if he should use metal and a magnet. I'll let you all know how it turns out!
I am wondering if other children will choose to do projects. The deal is they have to get there other work completed and use the extra time to do this. I guess we will see, but I am glad that Dayton is ready to take on the challenge!
Saturday, August 21, 2010
The Three Homeschooling Nightmares (Oh Wait Those are My Kids! roflol)
Oh yes, the beginning of the homeschool can be interesting. Jose has never homeschooled before. Crystal and Andrew both homeschooled for the end part of last year, but also both have Reactive Attachment Disorder. Those three have all decided to be upleasant for the moment.
First there is Andrew. Andrew is delaying any writing assignments right now. He just never finishes them correctly. He has several ways of doing this. He will refuse to write about the topic and instead write about something competely off the wall. He won't relate a topic to himself that is supposed to be about him. (An example of this is when we read a Berenstein Bears book individually and then they were to write about what the bears learned in paragraph one and then in paragraph two write about how that applies to them personally. He will only write about how it applies to someone else.) Then if those two means won't work for a specific topic then he writes 2 or 3 of the four sentences EXACTLY THE SAME. Oh yes, Andrew is quite a trip. He is now writing the sentence "I will quit acting ridiculous because I am loved." over and over as well as writing words that he needs to learn to spell. It is very hard to pull those tricks with that, but I'm sure he'll figure something out.
Next, let's discuss Crystal. See Crystal is showing huge improvements in her academic abilities. The problem now is that Crystal doesn't tell me when she is done with an assignment or ask for anything that she needs. If she needs assistance, then she says NOTHING. If her pencil breaks, then she doesn't get a new sharpened pencil that is sitting on the table. She also doesn't go sharpen her pencil in the electric sharpener or even ask me to sharpen the pencil. She just sits there and does NOTHING. If she gets to something and gets stuck, she doesn't ask for help. She once again does NOTHING. Now do you see how this could be a problem? I have asked her over and over. I have explained over and over that she is important and should care enough about herself to ask, speak, or do. She still does NOTHING. She is now writing about that, because it is keeping her from completing her work. She is writing the same as Andrew.
Last, let's discuss Jose. He does everything except math for the most part. He's doing the same things that he caused grief with on homework last year. He will do about half of the problems on a page right on the first try and do the rest wrong about 5 times (I promise that I'm not exaggerating) before he does it correctly. I was sitting at the table with him to keep him going on Friday, because he was very close to getting done. I was prodding him a little to keep him moving. I guess the fear of getting done and being able to feel accomplished over came him. Next thing I know, he has a problem like 65 x 28 and he has written 65 eight times down his paper and is going to add rather than multiply. He kept looking at me to make sure that I would notice. I know he wanted me to argue with him. Instead I told him that I understood that he wanted to go sit in his bed. He is now writing the same sentence and multiplication facts for his weekend activity. He admits that he knows those facts and thinks that admitting it should be enough to keep from writing them. I told him that now he will know them better.
Now, you may wonder if any of this makes me crazier or angry. The answer is NO. I have had a lot of things bigger than this in my parenting journey. I know that I am being tested. I am ok with that as long as they are ok with the answer to the test. YES, I LOVE THEM ENOUGH TO GIVE THEM LOGICAL CONSEQUENCES AND NOT GIVE THEM A NEGATIVE EMOTIONAL RESPONSE. I wonder if this test will restart on Monday? lol
Just laugh. It is healthy to laugh.
First there is Andrew. Andrew is delaying any writing assignments right now. He just never finishes them correctly. He has several ways of doing this. He will refuse to write about the topic and instead write about something competely off the wall. He won't relate a topic to himself that is supposed to be about him. (An example of this is when we read a Berenstein Bears book individually and then they were to write about what the bears learned in paragraph one and then in paragraph two write about how that applies to them personally. He will only write about how it applies to someone else.) Then if those two means won't work for a specific topic then he writes 2 or 3 of the four sentences EXACTLY THE SAME. Oh yes, Andrew is quite a trip. He is now writing the sentence "I will quit acting ridiculous because I am loved." over and over as well as writing words that he needs to learn to spell. It is very hard to pull those tricks with that, but I'm sure he'll figure something out.
Next, let's discuss Crystal. See Crystal is showing huge improvements in her academic abilities. The problem now is that Crystal doesn't tell me when she is done with an assignment or ask for anything that she needs. If she needs assistance, then she says NOTHING. If her pencil breaks, then she doesn't get a new sharpened pencil that is sitting on the table. She also doesn't go sharpen her pencil in the electric sharpener or even ask me to sharpen the pencil. She just sits there and does NOTHING. If she gets to something and gets stuck, she doesn't ask for help. She once again does NOTHING. Now do you see how this could be a problem? I have asked her over and over. I have explained over and over that she is important and should care enough about herself to ask, speak, or do. She still does NOTHING. She is now writing about that, because it is keeping her from completing her work. She is writing the same as Andrew.
Last, let's discuss Jose. He does everything except math for the most part. He's doing the same things that he caused grief with on homework last year. He will do about half of the problems on a page right on the first try and do the rest wrong about 5 times (I promise that I'm not exaggerating) before he does it correctly. I was sitting at the table with him to keep him going on Friday, because he was very close to getting done. I was prodding him a little to keep him moving. I guess the fear of getting done and being able to feel accomplished over came him. Next thing I know, he has a problem like 65 x 28 and he has written 65 eight times down his paper and is going to add rather than multiply. He kept looking at me to make sure that I would notice. I know he wanted me to argue with him. Instead I told him that I understood that he wanted to go sit in his bed. He is now writing the same sentence and multiplication facts for his weekend activity. He admits that he knows those facts and thinks that admitting it should be enough to keep from writing them. I told him that now he will know them better.
Now, you may wonder if any of this makes me crazier or angry. The answer is NO. I have had a lot of things bigger than this in my parenting journey. I know that I am being tested. I am ok with that as long as they are ok with the answer to the test. YES, I LOVE THEM ENOUGH TO GIVE THEM LOGICAL CONSEQUENCES AND NOT GIVE THEM A NEGATIVE EMOTIONAL RESPONSE. I wonder if this test will restart on Monday? lol
Just laugh. It is healthy to laugh.
Destiny's "Non-Bubbliness"
Destiny is my BUBBLY child. She is always happy (well unless you make her mad, but that is another post and something we try not to have happen lol) and bouncy. She is like the girl version of "Tiger"! She is "SO EXCITED!" about nearly everything. She is very confident, secure, and comfortable in her own skin. Since she got to that point we have seen such wonderful bubbliness, that it is now hard to live without it.
She was very excited about her first day of school. She hopped off to school and was not at all nervous when I left her in her 1st grade room. She knew the teacher from when Andrew was in there a couple years ago. She told me not to worry that I could homeschool her in 3rd grade. lol
Imagine my surprise when I got back to pick her up and her bubbliness was gone. I asked her about her day expecting to hear all of the wonderful details that she so loves to give. All I got was "It was ok maybe". I was crushed. To see my little girl not at all herself was heartbreaking. I immediately asked if she got in trouble. I mean, I could see her talking too much. She said that she didn't get in trouble and she had a "sticker" in her behavior book. I told her that was great and continued to try to find out more about her day. She just wouldn't say much though.
The thing about Destiny is that she has trouble with saying anything "negative" at all. I guess that since her day wasn't positive and she couldn't find anything positive to say, then she really couldn't think of anything to say at all. This broke my heart. I thought to myself that what caused it wasn't even that important, but if we couldn't get her back to bubbly in the next few weeks then she would join the ranks of the homeschool kids. lol NO WAY AM I GOING TO LET HER PERSONALITY CHANGE BECAUSE SHE HAS A VERY GREAT ONE!
The next day seemed a little better. I messaged with her teacher by computer to see how she was doing. She did mention that she seemed to be having some trouble getting her morning paper done, but did fine on it later. Destiny also seemed happy that she got a "stamp", which is what they normally get for good behavior.
I decided that the "sticker" on day one was probably not what she thought she should get for good behavior therefore it stressed her a tad. When you add that to all the other changes that she was having and the fact that she has high functioning/asperger autism then it made a little more sense. On top of that she is adjusting to getting up earlier and not having time to get going before that morning paper, which falling behind on it could be enough to not have a very good day.
I made some changes and her teacher is awesome to work with her. I did her shower first thing on Friday morning instead of just doing it the night before like we normally had. She was "bouncing" in no time! She was joking and kidding before she even left for school. She was "so excited" again. When I picked her up she skipped all the way to the van! She is getting "stamps" too which is helpful. lol
I am very ready to have the great year that I was expecting!!! God is so good!
She was very excited about her first day of school. She hopped off to school and was not at all nervous when I left her in her 1st grade room. She knew the teacher from when Andrew was in there a couple years ago. She told me not to worry that I could homeschool her in 3rd grade. lol
Imagine my surprise when I got back to pick her up and her bubbliness was gone. I asked her about her day expecting to hear all of the wonderful details that she so loves to give. All I got was "It was ok maybe". I was crushed. To see my little girl not at all herself was heartbreaking. I immediately asked if she got in trouble. I mean, I could see her talking too much. She said that she didn't get in trouble and she had a "sticker" in her behavior book. I told her that was great and continued to try to find out more about her day. She just wouldn't say much though.
The thing about Destiny is that she has trouble with saying anything "negative" at all. I guess that since her day wasn't positive and she couldn't find anything positive to say, then she really couldn't think of anything to say at all. This broke my heart. I thought to myself that what caused it wasn't even that important, but if we couldn't get her back to bubbly in the next few weeks then she would join the ranks of the homeschool kids. lol NO WAY AM I GOING TO LET HER PERSONALITY CHANGE BECAUSE SHE HAS A VERY GREAT ONE!
The next day seemed a little better. I messaged with her teacher by computer to see how she was doing. She did mention that she seemed to be having some trouble getting her morning paper done, but did fine on it later. Destiny also seemed happy that she got a "stamp", which is what they normally get for good behavior.
I decided that the "sticker" on day one was probably not what she thought she should get for good behavior therefore it stressed her a tad. When you add that to all the other changes that she was having and the fact that she has high functioning/asperger autism then it made a little more sense. On top of that she is adjusting to getting up earlier and not having time to get going before that morning paper, which falling behind on it could be enough to not have a very good day.
I made some changes and her teacher is awesome to work with her. I did her shower first thing on Friday morning instead of just doing it the night before like we normally had. She was "bouncing" in no time! She was joking and kidding before she even left for school. She was "so excited" again. When I picked her up she skipped all the way to the van! She is getting "stamps" too which is helpful. lol
I am very ready to have the great year that I was expecting!!! God is so good!
Jose's War with Me
We've had this war before, but not for a few months. Jose will have what we call "food wars". In the beginning these wars really brought out my desire to convince him to eat or eat and not vomit. I no longer play the game with him and so he doesn't choose to play as often. He was mad at me for not allowing him to play until he is willing to finish his school work.
So he came to the table for dinner last night and began his "food war". Everyone else was done with their meal and he had barely taken a bite. He was really hoping that my "mothering" worries would over ride my brain that understands how kids with past trauma can behave. It wasn't a good moment for him when he realized that I wasn't playing. I told him to go ahead to bed and the meal would be waiting for him for breakfast. He looked very forlorn as he headed to bed and hadn't been able to have his drama.
Today he got up and ate that meal for breakfast. He is still mad over not being able to play until he completes his school work. He has however given up on that war. lol
I hope we can make it without another one. lol I sure do love the little guy and I'm so glad to be his mommy. I am glad that he doesn't have these behaviors very often any more.
So he came to the table for dinner last night and began his "food war". Everyone else was done with their meal and he had barely taken a bite. He was really hoping that my "mothering" worries would over ride my brain that understands how kids with past trauma can behave. It wasn't a good moment for him when he realized that I wasn't playing. I told him to go ahead to bed and the meal would be waiting for him for breakfast. He looked very forlorn as he headed to bed and hadn't been able to have his drama.
Today he got up and ate that meal for breakfast. He is still mad over not being able to play until he completes his school work. He has however given up on that war. lol
I hope we can make it without another one. lol I sure do love the little guy and I'm so glad to be his mommy. I am glad that he doesn't have these behaviors very often any more.
Friday, August 20, 2010
So Much to Say, but I am so Tired
I am exhausted and I have tons to blog about. I guess this can be a reminder post to me. I need to blog about our science lesson on observation, inference, and opinion. Wow, that was exciting and I learned so great stuff about my kids. I also need to blog about the nonsense that 3 of my kids are trying while we homeschool. That blog won't be about "great" stuff, but is comical once you are removed from the situation. I also need to blog about Jose's new war with me, but I'll hope that this war is over before I blog about it. I need to blog about what I think may be the reason and answer to some of Destiny's "non bubbliness" here at the beginning of school, which is so not like her. I need to blog about Dayton's ideas for a project to present at the homeschool picnic that is upcoming.
Right now though I need to get ready for bed. Saturday is the day that I usually get to do some major sleeping in. It is not going to happen tomorrow though. I am supposed to meet a friend of mine at 8 am and follow her to a Ladies Conference that we are going to at a local church. I am excited to go, but already mourning that chance to sleep in and catch up on the sleep that I am always trying to catch. lol I am very excited to see what God has in store though!!
Off to bed and I'll try to catch up on all the things that I need to blog and remember tomorrow!
(I guess I'll categorize this as "only at my house" probably since "only at my house" would there be that many things that need written about at once. )
Right now though I need to get ready for bed. Saturday is the day that I usually get to do some major sleeping in. It is not going to happen tomorrow though. I am supposed to meet a friend of mine at 8 am and follow her to a Ladies Conference that we are going to at a local church. I am excited to go, but already mourning that chance to sleep in and catch up on the sleep that I am always trying to catch. lol I am very excited to see what God has in store though!!
Off to bed and I'll try to catch up on all the things that I need to blog and remember tomorrow!
(I guess I'll categorize this as "only at my house" probably since "only at my house" would there be that many things that need written about at once. )
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Homeschooling/Higher Expectations
There is a part of homeschooling that some of my previously "public schooled" children are having some major issues with right now. See in our homeschool I only give out A's. If you don't have an A paper then we need to work more on it. I give them back to them to redo until it is an A.
I tried explaining it to them all today. I don't give them back because I want them to sit at my table longer. I don't give it back because I expect anyone to be "perfect". I don't give them back because I want to be a pain in their necks either.
I give them back because I LOVE THEM. I want them to do well. I don't want to have missing blocks in the foundation to their futures. I know that if they can't do a problem or figure out an answer then they need to get to the point that they can. I know that if they can't do the lower level work great, then how can they do the work at the next level. If a kid doesn't know EVERY multiplication fact then how can they do double digit multiplication or division? How will they work equations later? It is that way with most everything.
The fundamentals of learning are way too important for me to let them "pass" or get a "B" or any other lowered expectations. I know that they either need to work more on it or pay closer attention to what they are doing if they aren't getting things correct. Either one of those are problems that will compounded if they aren't corrected.
I do understand that in a public school setting it isn't possible to keep a child on a certain part of learning until they master it for the most part. I understand that they have a whole class full of children. I understand that not all children will get A's in school nor do I think that any child should feel pressured to do so.
I do however know that here we will get one thing done to mastery before we move on. I know what each of my kids are capable of and I won't accept less. A few of mine still need to figure that out. I am hoping they do soon too. lol
Lots of fun awaits us in homeschooling, but first we have to get the mentality that learning is a prize all of its own. I love to give rewards. I love to have fun stuff going on and explore interests. Many are hoping to learn some Spanish soon. I just hope they realize that their math, reading, and english have to be done well first.
I have lots of goals for this year. One major goal is to make sure that they realize that they CAN do GREAT!
I tried explaining it to them all today. I don't give them back because I want them to sit at my table longer. I don't give it back because I expect anyone to be "perfect". I don't give them back because I want to be a pain in their necks either.
I give them back because I LOVE THEM. I want them to do well. I don't want to have missing blocks in the foundation to their futures. I know that if they can't do a problem or figure out an answer then they need to get to the point that they can. I know that if they can't do the lower level work great, then how can they do the work at the next level. If a kid doesn't know EVERY multiplication fact then how can they do double digit multiplication or division? How will they work equations later? It is that way with most everything.
The fundamentals of learning are way too important for me to let them "pass" or get a "B" or any other lowered expectations. I know that they either need to work more on it or pay closer attention to what they are doing if they aren't getting things correct. Either one of those are problems that will compounded if they aren't corrected.
I do understand that in a public school setting it isn't possible to keep a child on a certain part of learning until they master it for the most part. I understand that they have a whole class full of children. I understand that not all children will get A's in school nor do I think that any child should feel pressured to do so.
I do however know that here we will get one thing done to mastery before we move on. I know what each of my kids are capable of and I won't accept less. A few of mine still need to figure that out. I am hoping they do soon too. lol
Lots of fun awaits us in homeschooling, but first we have to get the mentality that learning is a prize all of its own. I love to give rewards. I love to have fun stuff going on and explore interests. Many are hoping to learn some Spanish soon. I just hope they realize that their math, reading, and english have to be done well first.
I have lots of goals for this year. One major goal is to make sure that they realize that they CAN do GREAT!
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Julianne May Not TALK, but She Can Communicate!
Julianne cracks me up! She doesn't say many words. Many people look at her and assume that she is 18months to 2 years old. She's not though, she's 4!
She sure does get her points across! Here are some examples of just her communication skills from today.
She took us to the refrigerator numerous times today to let us know that she wanted her drink.
She took me to the refrigerator once today and didn't want a drink. She made it very clear that she wanted banana peppers. (Yes, my little angel is just like me and eats them a lot with me, but this is the 2nd time that she has taken me to the refrigerator for them herself.) She was so glad that I got her point that she did a little jig!
She brought us toys several times as she normally does and puts our hand on the on/off switch to let us know that she needs it turned on.
She woke up from her nap crying which never happens. I went is saying "Oh angel baby what is wrong?". She looked at me very serious and gently bumped her head on her crib. She moves around in her sleep a lot. I guess she woke up crying because she bumped her head. She got that point across too and then went right back to crying.
As I was putting her to bed and kissing her cute little bridgless nose, she let me know what else she wanted very plain. She took my hands and put them under her arm pits. This always means to pick her up, except there. She then began to thump her feet on the bed. You may be wondering what on earth she wanted, but I knew very well. :) She wanted me to bounce her on the bed. No one else probably teaches their kids to jump on the bed. Its another one of those "special needs mommy" kind of things. She sure does have fun with it too!
I do have to say that if I could accomplish all of that without words, then I might not talk either. I can't though. I have to tell people things over and over and I still don't get that good of a turn out sometimes. :)
She sure does get her points across! Here are some examples of just her communication skills from today.
She took us to the refrigerator numerous times today to let us know that she wanted her drink.
She took me to the refrigerator once today and didn't want a drink. She made it very clear that she wanted banana peppers. (Yes, my little angel is just like me and eats them a lot with me, but this is the 2nd time that she has taken me to the refrigerator for them herself.) She was so glad that I got her point that she did a little jig!
She brought us toys several times as she normally does and puts our hand on the on/off switch to let us know that she needs it turned on.
She woke up from her nap crying which never happens. I went is saying "Oh angel baby what is wrong?". She looked at me very serious and gently bumped her head on her crib. She moves around in her sleep a lot. I guess she woke up crying because she bumped her head. She got that point across too and then went right back to crying.
As I was putting her to bed and kissing her cute little bridgless nose, she let me know what else she wanted very plain. She took my hands and put them under her arm pits. This always means to pick her up, except there. She then began to thump her feet on the bed. You may be wondering what on earth she wanted, but I knew very well. :) She wanted me to bounce her on the bed. No one else probably teaches their kids to jump on the bed. Its another one of those "special needs mommy" kind of things. She sure does have fun with it too!
I do have to say that if I could accomplish all of that without words, then I might not talk either. I can't though. I have to tell people things over and over and I still don't get that good of a turn out sometimes. :)
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