Hey, Rose!
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Hey, Rose!
| Fri, 11-09-2007 - 10:24pm |
In swtpickle's post you wrote:
Hundreds of years ago, they wouldn't have tried to force him into that mold.
| Fri, 11-09-2007 - 10:24pm |
In swtpickle's post you wrote:
Hundreds of years ago, they wouldn't have tried to force him into that mold.
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Why do the schools continue to have such %$#@! tunnel vision?
"Kids who struggle academically NEED to have those experiences that they're good at, where they fit in, in order to have the personal strength to deal with the academic struggles of life IMO."
That is so true. It is exactly what we tell parents during an initial consultation. It is the tenet behind the "simple-to-complex" sequence of each lesson plan, and the "simple-to-complex" sequence of introducing concepts in O-G based tutoring. Our students may never become great readers, but they all experience more self-confidence, less frustration and an overall feeling of success with language arts. Regardless of their test scores, it is those gains that we see in our students that keep us tutors motivated. Our goal is to give them skills they can use throughout their lives to make reading and writing easier.
I like labeling problems. That is the first step toward a remedy. I don't know about ADD, but dyslexia is a neurobiological disorder. Just as a 65-yr old stroke victim's brain is rewired with OT using multisensory methods similar to those O-G tutors use, so are children's brains rewired with the right methods. (If the label for the biological disorder "hypothyroidism" didn't exist, I'd be freezing worse than I do, greasing my hands and feet with vaseline 3X a day instead of just at night, and have perpetually swollen ankles and brain fog. I need that label and I think dyxlexics need theirs.)
I think the larger schools do NOT try to fit us square people in round holes. I've seen some try rather hard to change the shape of the hole. In a smaller school/community,the staff may be less aware of ways to adapt lessons to fit the individual student, and without a label for a student's difficulties, it just depends on the individual teacher's knowledge of, and belief in, making accomodations. It's good how your son's history teacher allowed him to do the project his way, and too bad all his teachers couldn't do the same. I think it is dumb to have mandatory reqmts for graduation, when no allowances are made for differences in learning styles. The administrators always use the "no money in the budget" alibi, and perhaps it is valid, but it is also an easy out when they've simply got too much on their plate. Sometimes the push for higher, more rigid academic standards comes from businesses who hire our kids, and they have more clout with our legislators than we do. Mabye we need to speak up to get the laws changed. Maybe we need to pay more attention to whom we cast our votes for in local/state elections.
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http://www.pnhp.org/news/2009/october/meet_the_new_health_.php
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQTBYQlQ7yM
You make some very good points Janet.
I have been signing Blake up for a variety of electives, including woodworking which means he will need to be transported to the other high school for the class. The counselor tried to talk me out of it and I understand we may do it and regret it(transportation means they lose a few min of the classes before and after)but I feel we need to try out all the options
But, hey, hows about having those classes at both schools, like the good ole days? Its not like we had the option of going to the other school FT since high school here is based on where you live.
Since he did not get the history I specifically requested at his IEP this semester, Im betting this is going to be 'forgotten' as well. Next semester will tell!
Knowing how challenging it is as a parent to give up having the 'valedictorian with 6 scholarship options' chat at the water cooler, it amazes me that WE get it, WE are comfortable and ready to do what it takes, and the educators are the ones in denial!
"I rely on him to help me with the heavy stuff, and I help him with the reading stuff. So what's wrong with that?"
For tough-skinned people, there's nothing wrong with it. Unfortunately there are a lot of people in our world who think they are perfect, and make fun of those who are not. It burns me up when I see those ahead of me in line at the bank, or at a store, who are treated with less respect than I am simply because they are of a lower socio-economic class or because they are foreign, or because they appear to be unkempt or uneducated. (In fact, I am sometimes treated that way when I run an errand in my sweats, looking pretty scuzzy after housecleaning.)
We are all handicapped in some way. I have an inability to make small talk, I guess you could call it a socializing disorder. I rely on DH for that when we meet new people. DH has a listening disorder. And he's got a Ph.D. in engineering (metallurgical)and cannot fix anything, I mean ANYTHING, around the house. When the siding contractor came to do an estimate, DH called me 600 miles away to make sure we got all our questions answered. Geez! While on the phone, when I asked about covering the sills, DH asked the contractor who told DH, "You did not listen to me. I said that was included as well as x, y and z." Humbly, DH just replied, "You're right, you did say that." In spite of incidents like this, and his coworkers making fun of him for his unhandiness, DH does not want to put the effort into improving his listening skills or learning to fix things. He relies on me for that. If your DH (or T)doesn't mind comments or attitudes others have about his slower reading or writing, and he wants to rely on you (or dd)for that, I agree, there's nothing wrong with it.
Sometimes though, even though we appear to be getting along fine with our handicaps, the reason we don't try to improve is that we've been told for so long that we are incapable. We're too afraid of failure. If we'd only receive some encouragement, we'd have the guts to try. About 10 years ago a speech therapist decided to become a volunteer tutor at the center where I used to work. Then she got more involved and became a trainer, now she is education director at the center. Her dad had been with the same employer for a long time and was satisfied. He knew that his lack of reading & writing skills kept him from being promoted, but he'd never been encouraged to seek help, and he'd learned to accept his handicap--it was never discussed within his family. A couple of years ago, she figured out that her dad is dyslexic. When they had a discussion about it, he decided he wanted to try tutoring. So she's been tutoring him the past two years and he's made good progress. And even though he's 60ish and too close to retirement for it to benefit his career, he's feeling a lot better about being able to read the newspaper and exploring new territory. Not being able to read fluently and write clearly cuts out an awful lot of options career-wise, as well as for daily activities of life. We can learn to live with our handicaps, or we can try to overcome (or at least lessen) them. There is nothing wrong with the former, it's just that a lot more doors could be opened with the latter.
-----------------------------------------------
http://www.pnhp.org/news/2009/october/meet_the_new_health_.php
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQTBYQlQ7yM
For tough-skinned people, there's nothing wrong with it. Unfortunately there are a lot of people in our world who think they are perfect, and make fun of those who are not. It burns me up when I see those ahead of me in line at the bank, or at a store, who are treated with less respect than I am simply because they are of a lower socio-economic class or because they are foreign, or because they appear to be unkempt or uneducated. (In fact, I am sometimes treated that way when I run an errand in my sweats, looking pretty scuzzy after housecleaning.)
I so know what you're saying.
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