Evergreen Academy
09-12-2009, 02:50 PM
Our ds6.5 came to us through international adoption at age 3. He was waiting due to speech and developmental delays (as well as being a 31 week premie), and when he came home, he had maybe 8 words total in either language that he could say - mostly unintelligibly. He was obviously bright and had good problem solving skills, which we observed as he cleared dishes and picked up and threw away trash, solved mechanical problems in putting things together, toys, puzzles, etc. We started sign language and he began using signs right away, started speech therapy, and in two years he had tested out and according to the therapist, was on target. He did K last year in our homeschool, and as we start 1st this year, in some ways he is on target, and in others, not where I think he should be. I am wondering if any of you may have experience with his sort of issues, or have advice or curriculum helps you might recommend. Here's what I'm seeing:
He is pretty much on target with math - not a whiz, but moving along in CLE 1st grade. Simple stuff so far. He is doing very well in phonics, tries to spell things on his own, and is reading well from the Pathway 1st grade pre-primer. Likes letters and words and seems to comprehend what he's reading, will giggle as he reads the story if it's funny, etc. BUT, his listening skills are truly not where they should be, and I see holes in his language comprehension in areas that my others - even though two arrived home at age 2 and 3 - just naturally picked up.
For example, we are using FLL, and a lesson was about common nouns. We are reciting the definition of a noun every day, which I don't know if he really gets, and on that day we talked about common nouns for family members. It became clear in asking questions that he had no clue who his grandmother and grandfather were, though if I had used their names, he'd have known. We just spent a week with various aunts, uncles and cousins, and when I used those terms to ask (rather than their names) who his aunt, etc, is, he was totally unable to come up with any of them. Using the program may not give the results intended, but it may help me uncover holes in his learning that I wouldn't have guessed were there.
He also has trouble with multi-step directions - like "choose the word you have written the best, and circle it. How about this one here?" Yesterday he circled multiple things I HADN'T asked him to circle, even when I pointed right at the one he should circle.
We are also using WWE, in which I read a paragraph to him and then ask a few questions. It is very difficult for him to pay enough attention to my reading to retain anything. I pretty much have to read the sentence containing the information - sometimes twice, after telling him to pay attention - before he can get it. Again, this is good because it is showing me where holes are - he really zones out and has trouble paying attention to auditory things - and it makes him answer me in complete sentences, which is good for his speech. But I don't know if this is the best thing for him. Sometimes I think I should consider him a three-year-old language wise, since he started from scratch at three, and help him build from there. He loves being read stories with pictures - I think he is a visual learner for sure - and will sit and listen to as many as I will read. And if there are pictures he is able to attend and retain information from the story, and answer questions. Interesting...
My questions are, is there something that would be more effective? How concerned should I be? A good friend, who has an internationally adopted child with significant PI delays, advised me to observe him through the year and in the spring, take him to a developmental pediatrician. In some ways he reminds us of a child with aspergers - hyperfocused on trains, knows every road or train track in the region, a bit spacy about other things. And yet he is ok with eye contact, has excellent small and large motor skills, is able to play cooperatively, and deals well with change. I have a feeling in the system he might slip through, but I would like to help him be the best he can be.
Thanks for any input or ideas.
Blessings,
Aimee
Mom to 6 great kids ages 6-19, schooling grades 1, 3, 3 and 6
He is pretty much on target with math - not a whiz, but moving along in CLE 1st grade. Simple stuff so far. He is doing very well in phonics, tries to spell things on his own, and is reading well from the Pathway 1st grade pre-primer. Likes letters and words and seems to comprehend what he's reading, will giggle as he reads the story if it's funny, etc. BUT, his listening skills are truly not where they should be, and I see holes in his language comprehension in areas that my others - even though two arrived home at age 2 and 3 - just naturally picked up.
For example, we are using FLL, and a lesson was about common nouns. We are reciting the definition of a noun every day, which I don't know if he really gets, and on that day we talked about common nouns for family members. It became clear in asking questions that he had no clue who his grandmother and grandfather were, though if I had used their names, he'd have known. We just spent a week with various aunts, uncles and cousins, and when I used those terms to ask (rather than their names) who his aunt, etc, is, he was totally unable to come up with any of them. Using the program may not give the results intended, but it may help me uncover holes in his learning that I wouldn't have guessed were there.
He also has trouble with multi-step directions - like "choose the word you have written the best, and circle it. How about this one here?" Yesterday he circled multiple things I HADN'T asked him to circle, even when I pointed right at the one he should circle.
We are also using WWE, in which I read a paragraph to him and then ask a few questions. It is very difficult for him to pay enough attention to my reading to retain anything. I pretty much have to read the sentence containing the information - sometimes twice, after telling him to pay attention - before he can get it. Again, this is good because it is showing me where holes are - he really zones out and has trouble paying attention to auditory things - and it makes him answer me in complete sentences, which is good for his speech. But I don't know if this is the best thing for him. Sometimes I think I should consider him a three-year-old language wise, since he started from scratch at three, and help him build from there. He loves being read stories with pictures - I think he is a visual learner for sure - and will sit and listen to as many as I will read. And if there are pictures he is able to attend and retain information from the story, and answer questions. Interesting...
My questions are, is there something that would be more effective? How concerned should I be? A good friend, who has an internationally adopted child with significant PI delays, advised me to observe him through the year and in the spring, take him to a developmental pediatrician. In some ways he reminds us of a child with aspergers - hyperfocused on trains, knows every road or train track in the region, a bit spacy about other things. And yet he is ok with eye contact, has excellent small and large motor skills, is able to play cooperatively, and deals well with change. I have a feeling in the system he might slip through, but I would like to help him be the best he can be.
Thanks for any input or ideas.
Blessings,
Aimee
Mom to 6 great kids ages 6-19, schooling grades 1, 3, 3 and 6