Dumb Ox Academy

Comment by Andrea (admin)

July 5, 2006 @ 9:44 am

Just a thought here, because our house is full of ADD-types and Ron has horrible handwriting no matter how hard he tries due to lack of fine moter co-ordination… what about letting Will type his thoughts on the computer? You didn’t mention if he did any typing at all, so I thought I’d ask. I don’t mean typing lessons, I just mean time to type up whatever he wants. At the very least, it should be easier than handwriting (while he works on that) and give him the confidence he needs in writing ideas.

Have you read anywhere that I have ADD? I find I can type much faster than I could ever write, and in doing so it allows me to write down most of what I’m thinking before I forget it. :) (granted, I don’t type with much accuracy, so before I proofread this it looked pretty bad, and some typos I miss anyway.)

Comment by Cindy

July 5, 2006 @ 10:25 am

We also have a houseful of these “creative types” that are typically late readers, have difficulty with handwriting, can be poor spellers, and can struggle with math computations like memorizing their multiplication tables. That’s why I created my yahoo list called homeschoolingcreatively; to help parents see their children as “normal” . . . for creative people! And, yes, computers and video games can be very appealing to these learners. So can either drawing, music, Legos, theater, or dance.

As Andrea mentioned, it can be quite useful to work around their difficulties versus trudging through a weak area that probably will only improve minimally. By focusing on their strengths, which I see you feeling your way toward with your son, and seeking out strategies and resources that minimize the weak areas (like Andrea mentioning the computer, or calculators, or interest-based topics like you’re doing), you find a great balance for these fascinating learners who have much to offer through their gifts.

Comment by Cindy

July 5, 2006 @ 12:31 pm

Hi Faith-

I think it is awesome that you found the homeschool path and Will was the one to lead you there. My oldest also led us here b/c traditional school was not a match for him. He has me looking for creative options all the time (and I would love to know about Cindy’s yahoo list! hint hint!)

I just wonder though… did he really have any ‘failures’? Maybe the course failed him, but he did not fail it. Maybe the time is just not right for writing or what ever else did not click. It sounds like Will is a great example of one of those kids who has his own time schedule. I would be his reading success at a ‘late’ date is a real inspirtaion to other moms whose kid did not start reading at age 6 on the dot. :)

That is why I also find grade levels problematic. I understand the need for reporting, but otherwise I pretty much leave them alone. I see that like Will, my boys have their own timelines in progress… sometimes writing kicks in, sometimes reading… and I’m still waiting for math to have its day.

Enjoying reading about your kids and the ideas you come up with for them.

God Bless,
Cindy

Comment by Cindy

July 5, 2006 @ 12:34 pm

Oh.. a P.S.

I want to second the idea of learning touch typing. I had my boys do 10 minutes of Mavis Beacon a day (with timer no less) for a few months.. and now they type really fast. They write voraciously- it is one of their favorite hobbies and know it would not be if they were hand writing. I have let cursive go. My husband never writes cursive and he has had a happy life. :D

Comment by dumboxacademy

July 5, 2006 @ 2:15 pm

Wow, thanks all for the feedback! Will is actually a pretty good typist and does lots of work on the computer. I was more formal this last year than I want to be. I am trying to move in the direction of a more relaxed, unschooling approach. But this past year Will typed narrations every day on the pc. He also did his Writeguide stuff in microsoft word as well as communicated with the teacher via e-mail. When I say failures, it isn’t a reflection on the child so much as a bad fit of program vs. where the child is OR it was me falling down on the job somehow.

I still believe in the importance of being able to write things out by hand. I think it is wonderful that in this age of technology we can rely on typing and computers, but I still feel there are plenty of times when one still needs to hand write. One doesn’t alway have a laptop available. Two examples of this that I have witnessed makes me think this is so. The first involved my daughter who was in a Little Flowers group that wrote penpal letters to another Little Flowers group. Except she had always resisted writing and I hadn’t pushed it much, thinking she’d bloom in her own time. She was about ten at the time. So what she’d do is hide in the bathroom when the girls were supposed to be writing the letters, then she’d bring it home to me to write for her and then we’d get it over to the club moderator’s home to be dropped off for the other club. This did not create in her an incentive to learn to write, instead she hid from it, developed an attitude of ‘how come all the other girls can write but not me’, and anger at me because I hadn’t made her learn. Later, we had her tested by a developmental optomotrist for reading and we found out she had moderate LDs which impact her reading, spelling and even handwriting.

The second thing that happened that made me realized that to be truly literate you need to be able to handwrite is when our contractor who was finishing our basement had to write out his plans when his laptop conked out.

I think there is a difference between preferring to type but being capable of handwriting to typing because you simply can’t handwrite. My 13 yo had a really bad second grader’s handwriting skill. That makes you feel bad. He knew he couldn’t write. This isn’t just having sloppy handwriting; this is reversing letters, forgetting what letters look like, etc. It is due to a disability. If someone has an obvious physical disability, we wouldn’t hesitate to get physical therapy etc. Well, his dysgraphia is also something that is probably due to his brain wiring.

I understand that handwriting isn’t of the greatest importance and that one can choose to not learn cursive. One does need to learn to sign one’s name though and one should learn to read cursive which is a much easier skill if one has learned to write it first. But I think at least having some basic skills in this area lends itself to a feeling of competence and self-sufficiency. So I do think it is still a basic life skill. I know Will needs some accomodation for this, but I would like him to be as independent as he can be, before resorting to accomodation.

Comment by Andrea (admin)

July 5, 2006 @ 3:13 pm

Good to hear he’s been doing some all along - keep at it.

Having an accomodation is a great confidence booster while you are learning, re-learning or practising those things you aren’t so good at.

Ron and I still write - we don’t use keyboards as a crutch, but it does make it easier. Sometimes, I need to write something down fast and a notebook and pen (always handy) are just faster due to circumstances.

You can do both, it’s not an either/or. :)

Comment by Amy

July 7, 2006 @ 9:12 pm

This is so interesting to me, learning here about dysgraphia for the FIRST time! I can’t believe I never heard of it before, but it’s what my oldest (now in his 20’s) struggled with all of his homeschooling years. I often have wondered if I hadn’t stressed out, and stressed him out about writing, if he would have grown out of it. He had tremendous, almost paralytic blocks to writing anything down. His handwriting is still 2nd grade level, except I hesitate to say that even, when his 11-years-younger little sister could and can write better, more, and more legibly than he can, and did so in 1st and 2nd grade. His thoughts and conversation are not that of a 2nd grader…but even typing did not “cure” him. He resisted or disliked using the keyboard as well.

Comment by dumboxacademy

July 7, 2006 @ 9:55 pm

Hi Amy,

I don’t know if you or your son is interested in pursuing things, but for my son he had physical therapy in addition to relearning how to write. The therapy center actually use the new Handwriting Without Tears program for adults. But he had to do the strangest exercises that all had to do with crossing the midline, etc. I didn’t really get it, but after a month his handwriting ability improved almost miraculously. He stills writes very slowly, but it is so much better than it used to be!

Another minor miracle. He is currently attending our church’s jr. high workcamp. One of the things the kids do is write “care cards” for each other. Last year he wouldn’t write any. This year I came up to him sitting on his own with a bunch of cards stacked next to him. I asked him what he was doing, “Mass care cards, Mom!” he said. I about fell over. My son was voluntarily writing out 37 care cards, one for each participant in the camp!!!!

So it really helped my son. It was expensive because insurance didn’t cover it, but now after so much angst about it, I feel vindicated!

Blessings,

Faith

Comment by momof3feistykids

July 7, 2006 @ 9:56 pm

Hi Faith. I always love reading your posts. We were also led to home schooling because of a child’s “special needs.” Blessings come in unexpected ways, don’t they?

It looks like Will has had some fabulous accomplishments, including becoming a good chess player (loads of intellectual development there), gaining an amazing ability to absorb Shakespeare, and developing a gift for relating to younger kids.

My older daughter has mild dysgraphia, and I have often relied on letting her dictate narrations and stories to my while I waited for the time to be right to encourage her to learn keyboarding. I agree with you that - if at all possible - a person should become comfortable with writing by hand - at least some of the time.

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