• Nov. 22, 2009 - Listening Therapy is Over - and Successful!
Ten weeks ago, my daughter was still struggling to read Dick & Jane books. She wrestled with words like "this" and "then." If she asked me what a word spelled and I told her, she would remember it the next time she saw it but not the third time she came across it. Even though she enjoyed writing, she couldn't spell much of anything, nor could she read back what she wrote because it was so badly spelled. When I asked her a question, she would often disappear into a blank stare for close to a minute before answering.
Much of this stemmed from an auditory processing difficulty.
Last Friday, I watched her work on the beginning of a phonics curriculum with a tutor during the last session of her Listening Fitness Therapy. She read about 40 words on cards, one after the other, no problem. She had to stop and sound out a couple of the words, but most were as easy for her as they would be for me. Then she worked on spelling several simple words - again, no problem. She could sound them out and use the right letters for the sounds. Last night she read half of Dr.Seuss' One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish to me, easily recognizing many longer words. And the blank stares are gone.
If I didn't understand some of the science behind the Listening Fitness Therapy, I would think this was a miracle. In only ten weeks, she has accomplished things we've been working on for 3 years. We still have some ongoing work to do at home, including using Anna Buck's Anna's Sound Bits phonics/language arts curriculum. But now I'm expecting she can succeed instead of continuing to struggle in her schoolwork.
What a blessing to find the right key to unlock my child's learning. I am beyond thankful! |
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• Nov. 20, 2009 - Joshua's Bible Reading Challenge
Posted By fulltime mama
My husband Fabio challenged our oldest son Joshua (7yo) to read through the whole Bible, from Genesis to Revelation.
Joshua likes to read. A lot. He generally reads about 2-3 hours a day, and goes through books like water. We have always been very careful about what he reads, but Fabio still thought he could and should be spending more time reading God's Word. So, he told him that if he finished reading the Bible through before we left for Brazil, he would buy him a watch that he had been wanting. That was on September 8th, of this year!
I was skeptical. I was afraid he would be too overwhelmed and get discouraged. But Fabio believed he could do it! That first day, he finished reading Genesis, and I thought, "Well, maybe!"
He put his other beloved books aside for the most part and took his Bible with him everywhere. He spent naptime reading the Bible and time riding in the car. He would fall asleep at night on the floor in front of the crack in the door where he had been reading his Bible.
Fabio had him keep a log of what he read each day, and we questioned him about it frequently to make sure he was really digesting and not skipping anything! We continually reminded him that, while it would be nice to get the watch, the most important treasure he would get was God's Word hidden in his heart, and what we hope will become a life-long habit of Bible reading.
He hit a lull after he got to the New Testament, for some reason. He just lost motivation for a couple of weeks and stopped reading so much. We encouraged him to keep going, without forcing him to do it. And, eventually, he regained momentum and finished the last page of Revelation on November 15th, just over two months from the time he started!
We are proud of you, Joshua!
Someone asked me today how we did this? I decided to include my answer here. :-)
First of all, we cannot take credit for the mind the Lord has given him and the grace of God on his life. We thank God for what HE is doing in Joshua's life.
But, if I were to boil it down to three things we may have done to encourage him in this area, it would be:
1) Read lots of book. From birth on, we have always read a lot of books and all of my children love reading. Yes, even Johann. :)
2) Not indulge in much media entertainment. We don't have a tv, and we greatly limit movies we watch. No video games either. There is a lot of research that has been done showing how these types of media (regardless of wholesome content or not), greatly effect the brain's ability to "picture" what one reads in a book, and also is detrimental to attention span development, etc.
3) When it comes to God's Word, children learn a lot from what they see modeled in their parents, when they love the Bible and read it daily, talking about it enthusiastically and teaching it to their children. |
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• Tuesday, November 17, 2009 - On the road again...
I only have a just a second here, but wanted to say that we will be driving to Trujillo again tomorrow and next. So, anyone who reads this blog can pray! For a little more current info on our life work, see our ministry blog here:
http://thetuttletribe.blogspot.com
For the latest learning at our house, go here:
http://fisheracademy.blogspot.com
And I have a couple of meaningful posts from my personal study that maybe someday I will have time to post right HERE! :)
Don't get too hopeful though... I'm too busy to be so serious of a blogger!
I am my Beloved's and He is mine. |
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• Nov. 8, 2009 - My First Contribution to Heart of the Matter Online!
Posted By fulltime mama
Once a Homeschool Kid, Now a Homeschool Mom
I have been asked many times to compare what it was like being a homeschool student to what it is like now being a homeschool mother – what I do the same, what I do differently, and how my experiences as a child have helped me now that I am homeschooling my own children......
YOU CAN READ THE REST HERE!
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• Nov. 2, 2009 - Homeschooling at its Best
Posted By fulltime mama
We have had an old computer lying around for years, too old to be worth using - probably from about 1996 or 1997. So, we let the kids take it apart. They had SO much fun! It was like a week-long project for them. I eventually had to make them take it to the garage to prevent them from scattering small and potentially dangerous parts around the baby, but I think there is just no better education than this! It is one thing to read about the way a computer is made, or look at diagrams or photographs, but it is just immensely better to see it in person, feel it, discover and explore. Hands ON! Actually, it was fascinating for me too!
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What's the weather like in Sobradinho?
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