Help me find a curriculum for my AS son!

[Sue G in PA]

My almost 8yo 2nd grader has Aspergers. For the first half of the year, he sat and did his work w/out much of a fight. Then we hit January. It's like pulling teeth to get him to sit and do his work (and there isn't much). Most days I just give up b/c the fighting bothers my other kids and just sets a bad tone for the day. He's a smart kid and I think part of the problem is he is bored. We are going through the LLATL Red book and he is bored. He knows how to read very well so the phonics stuff in there is boring to him. He doesn't like to write so I only make him do what is necessary and have him do much orally. He is on Singapore Math 1B right now and that is easy for him, but he doesn't have his facts down yet. Some days he looks at the math and laughs and says its too easy. Other days he whines and complains that he can't do it b/c it's too hard! ARG! I'm at a loss. Does anybody have a suggestion for a good curriculum for a kid who doesn't like to write, can read well, needs short lessons w/ lots of breaks? He really is a bright kid and I'm failing him right now. He just needs to be engaged and I'm not sure how to do that. Next year, my 3 older kids will be in school so I'll have more one-on-one time with him, but there will still be his 3 younger sibs, too. Ugh. Can anybody help?

[klmama]

My reluctant writer is now 11 and still resists most writing assignments, struggling to get thoughts on paper, despite being an eloquent speaker. However, if I allow imagination to flow, my dc decide together to do wonderful projects that will get my 11yo writing: a newspaper, a family history book, a book about their pets or other favorite animals, etc. Is there anything your ds really loves that might lead to a related writing assignment?

[chiguirre]

If he doesn't need work on reading comprehension (a very common problem with spectrum kids), I'd use WWE and FLL. If you still need to work on reading comprehension, check out Jane Ervin's stuff. We're using Right into Reading 2 which still has lots of 2nd grade level phonics work. The third grade still has some phonics topics, but almost everything is reading a 1 or 2 page passage and answering comprehension questions.

Good luck!

[Jill]

My almost 8yo 2nd grader has Aspergers. For the first half of the year, he sat and did his work w/out much of a fight. Then we hit January. It's like pulling teeth to get him to sit and do his work (and there isn't much). Most days I just give up b/c the fighting bothers my other kids and just sets a bad tone for the day. He's a smart kid and I think part of the problem is he is bored. We are going through the LLATL Red book and he is bored. He knows how to read very well so the phonics stuff in there is boring to him. He doesn't like to write so I only make him do what is necessary and have him do much orally. He is on Singapore Math 1B right now and that is easy for him, but he doesn't have his facts down yet. Some days he looks at the math and laughs and says its too easy. Other days he whines and complains that he can't do it b/c it's too hard! ARG! I'm at a loss. Does anybody have a suggestion for a good curriculum for a kid who doesn't like to write, can read well, needs short lessons w/ lots of breaks? He really is a bright kid and I'm failing him right now. He just needs to be engaged and I'm not sure how to do that. Next year, my 3 older kids will be in school so I'll have more one-on-one time with him, but there will still be his 3 younger sibs, too. Ugh. Can anybody help?
I really don't know if I can offer anything new and while my ds shares some attributes I only have one child, him, so the considerations for other children aren't something I have to factor for. I don't use one curriculum But here I go, my ds is 7.25. I separated out phonics/spelling from printing practice from narration from grammar from anything else. And really I sort of ditched phonics. My ds reads very well also. So I'm using a spelling list for 1st grade, having him do it orally and in the manner of AVKO. I write out whatever he spells outloud and then I show it to him, ask him if it is the word, ask him to try again if he's wrong (his minor dyslexia/dys-whatever means he often mixes up the middle letters and sometimes can see it and sometimes can't), and I may end up writing out the correct spelling and then that is a word that we will come back to for a while. He is practicing printing from HWOT for first grade, about 2 pages a day. I wish I had used it earlier. We use one of HWOT's "Draw and Write" notebooks for a bit of copywork daily. He still reverts to all caps and things when he writes is own sentences. I don't correct that writing if I asked for original work. Much of grammar is oral response. So is much of History. We use SOTW and the activity and test book. I allow him to use the book for the tests and also we discuss or look up any he gets wrong. He narrates the short essay answer to me. So with the above, I may not have to be right there beside him for the printing book or when he's working on a map or test but there is also a lot of one-on-one. Math is similar. I get him logged into Aleks and then butt out unless he's having an "it's too hard" day. Then I sit in front of the computer with him in front of me or in my lap and we work on Math. I may have to write out some problems for him and then he writes/works thru the answer, or he may launch into writing for himself. It's hard to stay flexible but I'm getting a bit better practiced at it. He was blanking the other day on multiplication and I turned off the screen and pulled out the manipulatives. and then of course he says, "it's so easy this way!" I suspect by the time he is 8 this sort of thing will still be going on at least somewhat.

[homeschool_mom]

What is his learning style? That might help determine what curriculum would work best for him.

For writing, I would suggest Imitation in Writing or IEW. I think these programs work well for reluctant writers. You could take turns writing –he could do one sentence, you do the next. Or you could start out writing for him, and slowly have him do more.

A slant board is helpful for some kids.

I would suggest working on other types of small motor skills to help build strength and coordination. Draw circles, fringe, etc with very thick lines and have him cut them out. Slowly reduce the size of the lines. Use a blunt scissors to cut clay. Do dot-to-dots. Write words with dotted lines and have him trace them. Play with legos, do crafts, color. Do finger shadows. These fun activities are great for breaks.