In the introduction you will learn different meanings of what "special needs" can mean for your family.  Even though I am homeschooling a special needs child (AS and ADHD) I learned something about the words "special needs" that I had never considered before. Next you will hear the stories of individual families with children that where diagnosed as ADHD, Dyslexic, Deaf, Asperger's Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome, Gifted, Lupus, Sensory Processing Disorder or a mixture of these. You will learn of how they came to homeschool them, their struggles, and successes. There is so much encouragement in these stories I'm sure you can relate to some of the things they experienced.  I want to take a moment now to share some things they said that I can really relate to…

Julia said:

"There has been more than one occasion when she caught her daughter “teaching” her toy dragons the subjects they had been discussing. This allows her brain to reprocess the information and allows for long-term retention. A good thing! Imaginative play is something all ADHD children need a little bit more of than the average child. Their brains work in a more imaginative way."  My son has done this countless times with his toy bear.  We listen in without him knowing it.  It's not only cute but it brings a smile to our faces when we see that he really took in what he was learning.

Michelle said:

"We soon discovered how far behind our children were in their math skills. The problem with public school was that the teacher had to keep going and move on to finish her curriculum by the end of the school year. That left our children behind, and they did not receive the extra help that they needed—nor were we informed of the problem. As a result of the teacher moving forward, my children could not understand the next concept because it was built upon the previous concept—one that our children had never been given time or help to grasp."  I found this same thing happening with my son when he was in public school.  It upset me because I knew he was capable of doing better had they taken my suggestions seriously.  I'm so glad we brought him home to learn because he too is "thriving at home instead of floundering in the public school system where he was lost and being left behind."

When Anita started talking about her daughter and Asperger's Sydrome, she practically took the words right out of my mouth...LOL!!!  Rachael was so right when she said "The real world will not adapt to fit my son. I must teach him to adapt to it, using his strengths to support his weaknesses. I always keep in mind that I need to work now to teach the skills he will need in the next 3 to 5 years."  She also said "I am my children’s teacher, but I am also a student. I study my children as they study their lessons."  I find myself doing this with my son too.  I also was amazed at what I learned from Thereasa about gifted children.  I assumed I knew what gifted was until she shared her story.  Thank you Thereasa for clarifying that for me.  Everyone shared such amazing stories and I felt like I was sitting right there with them listening to them talk while drinking a cup of tea.

After you read these awesome stories you will learn the Ten Reasons to Homeschool Your Child with Special Needs.  This is a great list to keep on hand when in doubt even if you have been homeschooling a while. There is also a section with questions commonly asked when dealing with the special needs of our children and homeschooling them.  IEPs are also covered, including a discussion of what they are and whether or not they are necessary for homeschoolers.  At the end is an explanation of each disorder that was discussed in the book.

I learned so many helpful things from reading "Someplace Called Special".  Some things were a reminder of what I had already known and others were things I never knew.  Stop by The Old Schoolhouse and grab your copy today.