Writing, grammar, dyslexia, IEW

[Dobela]

My ds is 9. 1 expert says yes dyslexia, 2 say on the spectrum, one says no. He has fine motor delays and profound visual tracking problems. He has been in OT 2 years, VT 3months. He will likely not qualify for OT at the end of the summer due to gains.

He is doing 2nd grade grammar and really has a good understanding of it. On his own he is punctuating sentences, identifies noun, verb, adjective, types of sentences, and writing paragraphs on his own. Since he is reading on a 1st grade level I do all the reading for him. The spelling is atrocious though but I don't grade it since we haven't addressed it formally. He is using correct punctuation and capitalization. (He will begin tutoring for reading in July)

We have been using a public school curriculum for grammar and writing and he has done well with it. I bought BJU because it is most similar to the other program. I keep reading about IEW and wonder if that is where I need to be heading. When you started your children in IEW, were there skills they needed as prerequisites? How do you decide with a child that has delays and is dyslexic? I have been looking at the website and admit I am just lost.

[TraceyS/FL]

I'm doing IEW with my oldest a rising 8th grader, my middle one is doing BJU 2nd English & reading. We are on our first writing lesson right now - lesson 17 i think. For her, the IEW would be wayyyyy too much. I think IEW recommends 3rd grade level to start, but you could get TWSS and start going thru it yourself and incorporating parts of it into your writing instruction now (we are using Homesat). TWSS teaches YOU how to teach the program, the SWI-A is video instruction direct to the kids. The oldest is always laughing during them - he's great!

But mine is in no way ready for IEW - i'm hoping at the end of the 2nd grade book she will have gained enough to do it, but i won't worry if she hasn't. Like yesterdays struggle with her to read her story to her sister for revising help. Not pretty.... she says that it is perfect as it is! LOL!!

[Laurie4b]

My ds is 9. 1 expert says yes dyslexia, 2 say on the spectrum, one says no. He has fine motor delays and profound visual tracking problems. He has been in OT 2 years, VT 3months. He will likely not qualify for OT at the end of the summer due to gains.

He is doing 2nd grade grammar and really has a good understanding of it. On his own he is punctuating sentences, identifies noun, verb, adjective, types of sentences, and writing paragraphs on his own. Since he is reading on a 1st grade level I do all the reading for him. The spelling is atrocious though but I don't grade it since we haven't addressed it formally. He is using correct punctuation and capitalization. (He will begin tutoring for reading in July)

We have been using a public school curriculum for grammar and writing and he has done well with it. I bought BJU because it is most similar to the other program. I keep reading about IEW and wonder if that is where I need to be heading. When you started your children in IEW, were there skills they needed as prerequisites? How do you decide with a child that has delays and is dyslexic? I have been looking at the website and admit I am just lost.


If he's doing well with a program like BJU, and you own BJU, go for it. What is good about IEW is that it breaks down the writing process into very simple steps, and a child experiences success. It also has a DVD series that teaches the parent how to teach writing in a very positive way. If your child can punctuate and write a paragraph, he could certainly use IEW, but why switch if what you are using is working?

[Dobela]

If he's doing well with a program like BJU, and you own BJU, go for it. What is good about IEW is that it breaks down the writing process into very simple steps, and a child experiences success. It also has a DVD series that teaches the parent how to teach writing in a very positive way. If your child can punctuate and write a paragraph, he could certainly use IEW, but why switch if what you are using is working?
You switch because the grass always looks greener :D And I keep thinking ahead. If this stops working, what would I want to consider KWIM?

[TraceyS/FL]

For me it isn't necessarily a "quit working" type of thing, I do like the way IEW breaks down writing and embellishing, and want that aspect in addition to the variety of assignments that BJU has to offer. So when i do IEW with her, i have no plans to stop doing BJU - just like the DD that is doing IEW is going to do BJU Writing and Grammar too.

Does that help? See, you can get both! LOL!!

[Dobela]

Tracey, you make me laugh! Yes, do both, but will I make myself crazy?

Would I need to start with the Prepatory Level?

[home2333]

You might get on the IEWfamilies loop and ask this question. Several of the moderators have dyslexic children and have found a way to start IEW with their youngers. I know that Susan Barton (author of Barton Reading and Spelling) recommends IEW once a child completes Level 4 of her program.

Grace

[Dobela]

You might get on the IEWfamilies loop and ask this question. Several of the moderators have dyslexic children and have found a way to start IEW with their youngers. I know that Susan Barton (author of Barton Reading and Spelling) recommends IEW once a child completes Level 4 of her program.

GraceThank you! I will look that group up. I forget to check out yahoo groups.

[Mandamom]

Generally if a child can comprehend at a 3rd grade level they are old enough to begin the Key Word Outline (KWO) stage.

I think that instead of the writing and grammar that you might want to increase work in the phonics/spelling so that he knows the rules of phonics/language, the letter sounds and he has increased fluency and making sure that his comprehension is a little higher (if it really is on a first grade level). If you have the right tutor they'll be able to help you with this.

It sounds like once you get his reading level a bit higher he'll advance quickly through IEW because he already has a lot of the grammar and it sounds like he has a willingness to write which is one of the hardest things to get :).

Good luck. It sounds like he has made a lot of progress.

[Dobela]

Generally if a child can comprehend at a 3rd grade level they are old enough to begin the Key Word Outline (KWO) stage.

I think that instead of the writing and grammar that you might want to increase work in the phonics/spelling so that he knows the rules of phonics/language, the letter sounds and he has increased fluency and making sure that his comprehension is a little higher (if it really is on a first grade level). If you have the right tutor they'll be able to help you with this.

It sounds like once you get his reading level a bit higher he'll advance quickly through IEW because he already has a lot of the grammar and it sounds like he has a willingness to write which is one of the hardest things to get :).

Good luck. It sounds like he has made a lot of progress.Thank you. His reading tutor will be doing the Scottish Rite program called Take Flight with him. So far I like what I see.

I will just give him another year to grow and focus on reading. We have done some spelling, but it just didn't stick. I think part of it was his visual perception, part was his phonemic awareness issues, and how all that was worse than I thought.