Festivities!

It is closer and closer to the holidays, some have already begun, and others are only a matter of days away. At this point I would like to direct your attention to the corresponding facebook page, to this blog, whatever for? Because with the amount of unschooling that takes place in our home, particularly as the boys mature, and I learn more about being a teacher.. this place (here) is where I share meme's, homework activities, crafts, and overall philosophical goodies that truly define what homeschooling means to us, right NOW.

Gift of Curiosty is my go-to stop for free printables that are so well done, I recommend them to everyone. If it works for two different boys on the autism spectrum, there can't be many kids it won't appeal to!

 Gift of Curiosity - Christmas Printable Pack

This is an example of the basic language and logic skill sheets.

 Gift of Curiosity - Christmas Printable Pack

This is an example of the fine motor, cutting with scissors activities.

With our weekly trips to the library for books and primarily educational videos, with seasonal shows in between, we sure have been learning daily about science, social studies, and culture. 

So with that, I would like to remind anyone who is facing questions from themselves or others.. .

Busy Busy December

I have been, or simply felt very busy over the last many weeks, allergy season is upon us, and now the holidays season as well! So I don't have much to write here at the moment but I would like to share some of my collection of resources that support my needs and probably the needs of many other parents of children with things to learn.

1. Learning to read readingeggs.com
2. Well-Trained Mind support forum WTM
3. Integrative Computer curriculum technokids
4. IXL online math for all ages IXL Canada
5. occupational therapy (fine motor) planning system otplan.com
6. Learning to read starfall.com
7. Math for Boys smartstarts
8. Practical Language development ESL printables
9. Music Theory printables
10. Nutrition for pre-k homegrownfriends
11. Anxiety CBT
12. Speech development speech therapy ideas
13. Good quality behaviour charts kidpointz
14. Printable packs for Pre-K/K developmental skills gift of curiosity
15. Learn anything, credible and recognized resources no excuse list

Facebook Groups or Pages (open)
1. Sensory Processing Disorder - support and awareness group
2. Gifts of Autism
3. Crafts for Boys
4. A great homeschooler/philosopher TLH
5. Educated and Practical Autism Advice in General ADP
6. Dyslexia dyslexic kids
7. Special Needs Homeschooling
8. A special place for all kids Surviving your spirited child

 Last but not least ! Sensory Homeschooling (moi!)

Environment Changes

Let's start this blog off with a chat.. I have always been changing 'something' in our home for the sake of easier access to better alternatives to safe play.

Wall of books:
- Sensory Seeker: loves the sight of favourite characters strung along a bare wall.. he previously showed us that the bare walls are a problem by drawing all over them!
- Sensory Avoider: loves this simple storage idea that is free from swiped off a shelf, scattered on the floor, and the minimal work needed to attain a storybook

Bookcases are climbing apparatus in worst case scenarios, best case scenarios they are cleared off and used as a display shelf and play area for trains.
Bins are routinely dumped and left as a mess for the noise it makes, it helps Seeker alter auditory perceptions.

There were few alternatives left! it has been nearly a week so far, and this stays up, and lined with books. I'm going to change the selection with the holidays or with our needs and interests so its also a good place to showcase what we are learning.. and aids in them looking at academic books at their own leisure.. and also for me to pick up on unspoken interests!

Learn to Dress.. Easy Peasy Closet:
- Sensory Seeker: is understimulated here, and has little need to explore unless looking for clothes. (being its his closet, Avoider isn't relevant here..)

Dressers are climbing apparatus in worst case scenarios, best case scenarios the drawers are emptied and filled with toys.
Closets are too high for him to reach on his own, and therefore become simple nuisances and messes. This is short, and easy for him to see all his things without climbing, or having to open doors to find things.

This didn't leave many options! He is fantastic and independent at undressing, however.. since he doesn't love to be dressed, he is lagging behind in getting dressed independently. His bins are clearly labeled so putting away laundry is a task we can easily do together; there is a mirror so he can see what he is doing, and can stay self-aware; some toys and posters to fill the empty space; last but not least, there are no hazards if he does decide to climb. The bottom bin is held up by picture hooks, and the curtain rod is spring loaded. The mirror has tape over the glass, and is nailed to the wall. His 'nicer' clothes hang above, and his everyday clothes are in easy reach.

Buoyancy for SK

I recently met up with a few ladies from the local homeschool group, and had a reality check. Despite the challenges to 'educate' and 'therapy' Mr. 'A' , I have something that not everyone gets to experience; a child designed for unschooling. We talked about our children's learning preferences, and what we are interested in doing with our kids, how they differ from one another, and the various approaches we want to try. It got me to thinking though, maybe I was handed an easy answer.

Bill Nye the Science Guy - Buoyancy

So today I got real about homeschooling with him. 

First thing I have wanted to teach him, is the scientific process of testing and tracking. He has invested so much time and energy into the act of science, but has always resisted any structure around it. He was playing with bowls of water, and little blocks. This can be rather messy, and typically we'd try to follow some ABA and redirect his actions in some way or another, clearly it hasn't been helping much. Instead I quickly cleared out all clutter, save for five objects to find out if they sink or float. I already know he is aware of buoyancy, and loves to experiment, but truthfully he seems scattered, so here I am introducing a systematic approach.  

By the end of the activity, he had really liked all the Bill Nye references I had made, and that I know more about what kind of teacher he needs me to be. It also cut back on the mess! Despite the simplicity of this activity, I do have to start somewhere, and work my way up to where I think he may be at in his mind. I hope that taking the scientific process seriously from the bottom up, will help him organize his thoughts in general.

Magic School Bus - Ups and Downs

Halloween brings mom some treats and tricks.

This was a fantastic year for our family, we had a small party with a few friends, and found something we all enjoyed about the festivities.

Gift of Curiosity

This site, has free holiday-themed printable resource packs for kids 2-7 years old and my new favourite resource for fine motor and early math and language skills. If you check it out, it is FANTASTIC

This autumn, puzzles have become a significant focus with 'A' and he loves it! currently working on 3+ year old puzzles, with 15 and 24 pieces. It also gives me the opportunity to observe and understand more on how he figures things out, so I can better help him along.

THE BEST PLACE FOR SPEECH DEVELOPMENT RESOURCES >> here

AN AMAZING AND VIBRANT PLACE TO GET BEHAVIOUR CHARTS >> here
A WEBSITE THAT WORKS WITH YOU TO WORK ON OT GOALS >> here
AN AWESOME PLACE FOR KIDS TO ASSESS or PRACTICE MATH >> here

As of late we have taken a very unstructured approach to our homeschooling, with so much on the go, and the weather changing, the boys have had needed some space to adjust to new routines, and juggle their wants to be indoors and outdoors. We have had many successes, and here are a few other resources we have been enjoying lately.

the Letter School app for the ipad

shanesh colours 'what's the expression' app for the ipad

Here, children are expected to match labels and facial expressions.

Leapfrog's Talking Words Factory - on dvd

The next video after 'Letter Factory', here they show how letters are put together to make words.

Rock-n-Learn - Multiplication Rap

In this video, multiplication table 0-12 is covered, as well as skip counting, and some trips for memorizing math facts.

Life Skills: Trailer!

These are the steps I take in every aspect of decision-making and trouble shooting daily living skills:

1. - test out sensory provocations (what is too much?)
2. - try out rewarding aspects, and discouraging aspects (how much of each is tolerable?)
3. - determine comprehension of tasks (receptive language style, retention)
4. - acknowledge/address health concerns (sensitivities)
5. - educate the child (purpose, consequences, benefits, supports)
6. - decide on motivational strategy (reward charts, etc)
7. - establish a time frame (note that mastery is a step by step process)

Daily life skills 

Teeth Brushing:

This is an ABA approach to brushing teeth >> chaining
The tools I am using are:

• - chattering teeth toy (for modelling, and desensitizing)
• - themed toothbrush (angry birds, thomas)
• - non-fluoride toothpaste
• - personal cup for rinsing
• - kids floss sticks
• - Dr. Seuss's The Tooth Book
• - educational videos for young audience, on the human body
• - electric tooth brush
• - supplements for maintenance and strength of tooth enamel
• - charts for tracking successes

So far, in using the steps noted above, and these tools, the oldest started having serious interest in tooth care after losing his first baby teeth, since then we have been focused on motivation and sensitivity. We occupy ourselves in the meantime by practicing on the toy, reading books, and working on handling the brush against his teeth. My little one, yet to lose his baby teeth and have adult teeth come in, is still desensitizing  to having anything near his mouth. He has a lot of interest in teeth so we will be exploring and reading/watching more about that over the coming months.

Other areas we are working on are toileting, bathing, pet care, chores, and playing together.

New Goals, New Page

Today we got an updated autism assessment for 'A' on it there were some clear cut recommendations on areas that need the most work. On top of that, we also had some good insight into his demonstrated 'cognitive skills'... I put quotes because I question the value of measuring intelligence and cognitive abilities based on a few select milestones, meanwhile it is common on the spectrum for children to skip milestones and move on without having actually attained the skills prior to where they are at now. I digress, this is a baseline assessment, not intended to measure strengths, only weaknesses.

my sample IEP for homeschool kindergarten

Here are some tips when assembling hands-on learning activities for your young learners:

* include two elements that are appealing.. these should be the child's 1st and 3rd senses to be triggered. I say this because a) it gets their attention right away, b) by the time frustration hits, the other element should keep them engaged for some more time, if not then guide their attention to these elements to ensure they are remaining systematic.

* include two challenging elements.. one of these should be the goal you wish to accomplish (which should be moderate on the list of tasks involved in the activity, not profoundly challenging or too basic). The other element should be a secondary function, if you can challenge the mind and the motors, engagement and retention of skill or experience at least seems to be higher.

* do NOT forget that any hands-on activity that you or a peer is present for, is also effecting their social energy, schedule your activities for when you want them to develop more work ethic. Perhaps during a hectic period of time, you want your child to function multisensory and calmly, that is a great goal, often times a good place to start is quiet, calm, and one-on-one without interruptions.

Repetition, Consistency, and Habit-forming are KEY. That being said! do not waste too much time on activities that are not working out in a positive manner, it is not worth the inevitable conclusion of burning bridges.. your child may avoid particular themed activities, or whatever factor of this experience they found the most challenging to deal when faced with their breaking point. It is not necessary for every child in every situation to be expected to persist in an activity if it is not doing them any favours on the surface that you can see through behaviour. Sometimes, myself included, we have to learn the hard way that when it comes to supporting and parenting, principle is usually more of a weapon than a solution.

Socialization and Integration

I am often asked.. don't I worry about socialization? when someone hears that I am homeschooling. The question is then repeated with a clearly more emphasis on the word 'worry' when someone hears that I am homeschooling children with autism. My answer? well of course not, No.

It's a myth that school is good for socialization

When a child is enrolled in public school, he or she is under the guidance of an adult instructor and expected to follow a set of rules set in stone, and to behave accordingly. Disrupting the learning of classmates is a serious offense. Indeed the definition of socialization is the development of group-based functional social skills, towards an end. Oddly enough, if you remember your time in public school, sans-bias its very likely you remember partaking in very little of this. In order for true socialization to occur, the rules and structure would need to be decided upon by the collective of students as a whole, socialization is the ability to navigate the challenges of working together. Most schools do not offer that opportunity. In many cases a child can successfully graduate from all levels of public education without making a single friend, saying hello to their peers, or working collaboratively at all with other classmates. If public school were the true source of development for social skills in our youth, it would not be following the structures it continues to maintain today.

Furthermore, a homeschooled child is expected through nature to participate with their instructor and any other learning partners, develop plans and advocate for themselves on their needs, or to express their needs. A one-to-one home-based educational platform regardless of ability or philosophy does require the child to adapt socially, to function on a constantly social basis of interaction. In a public school the child can zone out, or so long as they are interacting with the manipulatives handed to them, or the tools provided, they are considered to be sufficiently socialized for remaining well behaved in a classroom of 10-30 other children. Those who are struggling to remain diligently focused on their tasks, and obey the rules of socialising are said to be performing poorly.

In my experience as a mother, the friends my children were making at school lacked the social skills outside of the controlled environment to function comfortably in a socially-focused scenario. They were uninterested in their environment, and constantly waiting on adult intervention to dictate what was right or wrong. If a child is able to exist comfortably within the unrealistic confines of the classroom, how are they to expand and generalize these things to the outside world where many people work, live, and exist.

It is in my autistic child's best interest, if they are to smoothly transition into an independent living situation, to be able to maintain a job while remembering to pay their bills, maintain a healthy social life, eat well, and be diligent in all manners of self-care.. to have role models in their social environments who have the most opportunity to excel in these ways. The most socialized students are often the homeschooled students, and this intensity in naturalistic intervention is a non-intrusive, and most typical path of growth that a child with ASD can experience akin to their neurotypical peers.

There are of course exceptions to this concept, children in public school can develop good socialization skills, particularly through an intensive extracurricular schedule, through play-based learning environments, Montessori-styled early years centers, and kindergarten programs. The challenge to this however, is that they do not remedy the ill effects experienced in the containment of the mainstream classroom itself, it lends itself to putting a band-aid over it, masking it, or worse generalize the bad habits. Often times a student from a Montessori-styled program may struggle transitioning as they go up through the grades, particularly a child with ASD. Integration is of course a favoured option over segregation in most communities, however the individual child's well-being needs to be prioritized above the rest of the class when considering their personal development, needs for success and expectations. In a truly socialized classroom, the idea of independent learning plans, is a given.

a Bittersweet farewell letter to the school system.

homeschooling rocks. In all honesty, public school doesn't work, if my kids did not have a diagnosis, I still would have struggled a great deal with the matter, but as luck would have it, the school told me to homeschool, and that's fine by me.

However, here are a few of my experiences I had while in the current school environment, I had the privilege to witness firsthand many different incidents, policies, and procedures:

my primary observation was that the equipment used was not age-appropriate, and in many cases developmentally underwhelming, which to some people who have knowledge on childhood development, realize this is counterproductive and in extreme cases (none in this case that I saw, fortunately) harmful.

secondarily, there were only limited visual supports in the environment, and none whatsoever to encourage pairing between the child and environment, this can cause discrepancies between therapists even with a single student, this causes drastically more issues with efficiency, prolonging the periods between IEP re-evaluations, which causes plateaus to occur.

last but not least, it is a clinical environment, modeled by a former IBI therapist, who's program is a great deal different than the IBI program that is experienced by young kids nowadays, even in this community.

my beef? is that stuff happens at schools, and parents don't know about it, especially in these contained classrooms where on one hand they must follow school policies on a whole, but in reality, just be quiet, go along with your eyes and nose on your own education, career, or employment situation, because they are not open to change. This was a pilot program, with barebones to start and was estimated to be at least 5 years before the school would catch up to what would be considered a fluid transitional environment from preschool to IBI.

The great challenge to a person who has home-cared for their child up to school-age is that others have already accepted the values and principles of the school system, they have been in it since their children were young, the transition to school as a parent is harder, you may ask more questions, you may make requests to smooth out transitions, and you may wish to remain on the same page as your child, and keep more of a watchful eye on changes in your little one. I'm not saying this is everyone, it is certainly not the majority either, but ...

I'm proud to say I did try public school, I would be lying to say we experienced it, we did wind up with a middle to lower grade elementary school, in a pilot program, for a contained classroom ASD program, which has been quickly becoming obsolete in many parts of the province, country, and continent. It is becoming more reasonable to expect aspies and auties to integrate, regardless of how much experience they have in a clinical environment, they are in other places, being aided in social skills development, and carried along academically, making transitions from other environments a breeze.

I'm routinely confused why parents allow schools to make their own choices about a child's care, education, or belief structure and growth. I'm frequently bewildered by the claims of service providers and heartbroken to learn they couldn't incorporate strength based and deficit based formats, or move from one to the other depending on the need of the individual child. I'm astounded at the lengths to which some school board officials or school administration will go to protect their fragile world within the four cinder block walls. I'm saddened to see my stories go in one ear and out the other of other parents whom I hold a great deal of respect of for various character traits or achievements, I'm disappointed in myself for hoping that these other parents would stand with me for some change, I'm frazzled at the stories I hear, or the claims made, by my own children's former classmates' parents about an environment that I'm not sure if they know very well, but I certainly made an effort to sit in and observe as much as possible.

An ASD contained classroom, with limited resources, limited experience, and limited accommodations.. is not what you are dreaming it up to be.

However, thank you. Thank you for showing me how different programs produce different children, how to confuse children and avoid complicated issues, to see and ignore a need because of structure and the importance of conformity. Thank you for offering me all the excuses under the sun why my questions cannot be answered, why the paperwork I request could not be produced, and why my son suddenly hated school. Thank you, so very much for bringing me to tears, for reminding me of my own elementary school experience, and why I hoped to never go back to that. Thank you for discounting the abilities of my children, and of me as a mother.

Thanks a bunch. I wasted my children's time, with plans for integration, with social skills opportunities, to work on their autism challenges with the idealistic belief that their academics could catch up while in school. Thanks for being the exception to the rule of all the fantastic accommodations I have read and heard about at schools across the continent, where a child's medical needs, came first. To think, how does a child's autism needs come in last as a priority in an autism program?!

Well anyway thank you for showing me how homeschooling doesn't have to be. I am done modelling my home education after the supposed best of the best in the 'integrative' stream. If it was integrative, neither of my children would have started out in a contained classroom.

signed.

- a freeschooling mom

P.S. Thank you, for discouraging me from fighting 'the good fight' within your system, for leaving me hanging when change was needed, for helping me to realize, that my heart is with their continued overall well-being, and not with changing society. Society will not and does not change, but I fortunately have.

Happy Back-to-School Everyone!!
May your report cards gleam, and the germs stay away.. <3

"Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer / The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, / Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, / And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep; No more"

Wordy Wednesdays

Fine motor skills is the theme for this day. We have seen so much progress since I started schooling in this way, with regards to motor skills and following routines. A year ago I saw my oldest writing on his own, independently with the use of a magnetic doodle pad, this was during his enrollment at public school. He had since refused to even try, but with all of the unschooling he has experienced since January, he is now willing and able to practice writing, and in conjunction with spelling and reading! 'A' prefers to work with markers, and on a whiteboard. His technique and dexterity is wonderful and has come a long long way in such a short time of unschooling.

 Choiceworks app - schedule board

On Wednesdays we focus on activities that help to practice fine motor movements, and I customize the selection of available toys to meet and challenge these skills. It is the day where I guide writing and drawing pieces, and we explore the text around us.

Epic Reading Adventures - Tuesday

Today is Tuesday, which is playgroup day. Although my boys are a little older, over the summer its still a great place for them to play with other kids (neurotypical ones especially) and interact with some that are their own age. However, their maturity or developmental ages, emotional development, whatever you want to call it, is slightly less than their biological age, so hanging out with preschoolers serves as a therapeutic intervention of its own kind. Normally this has a calming and positive effect. Some days, there are older and don't have positive social skills. Today was one of those days! When this happens, it takes the whole afternoon for us to unwind, and bring sensibility back into the moment.

Choiceworks app - schedule board

Tuesdays are otherwise known to me as days of exploring the potential of literature in our every day lives, and practicing those same skills. No writing is allowed, fine motor work is focus on holding books and turning pages, using playdough, and every day tasks. All focus is on understanding how to spell, how to eventually read, and naturalization.

In this, 'A' is an independent learner when it comes to books, 'D' is too, but slightly more accessible if the book is interactive in format. I use the tag reading system, both the regular one and the junior, put the books out, and encourage them to use it. story reading without the personal space being invaded, and with them holding the control in their own hands. Again, I use language development apps with 'A', and charts or flashcards with 'D'.

Today's little successes: found a sentence structure app that is perfect for 'D' and he loves it! at playgroup 'A' managed to hear me say to watch out for a little one near him when he was running!

Mathematical Mondays are back!

Over the summer I have played with routines, schedules, new habits, expectations, and goals, in all areas of life, from chores, to therapy, to family life. I have developed some areas I have to work on myself to make sure I can really do this. I am not just saying hello to homeschooling, but also good bye to public school ways of teaching, at least with regards to 'D', who has moved on entirely from his interest in playing school, and is now concentrated on learning, for the sake of learning and growing. Because he wants to again!!!

Choiceworks App - Schedule board

Mondays I focus all therapy on math skills. I take a therapy and skill building format to push ahead academic growth. I follow this to-do list for both kids regardless of ability or age. I aim for 'A's cognitive strengths, 'D's verbal strengths, and paired with my enthusiasm, we get-er done! I often finish it off with testing the waters out on other activities I hope to try the following week, to gauge their impression and reaction to the material, task, and medium.

'D' likes to be guided, and when it comes to math and language, prefers social interaction as a means to learn and practice. Here we used math charts for pre-algebra, played some games of ring-toss and catch outside, prepared some vegetables for dinner, and used puzzles that were appropriately challenging and not intimidating. Both kids have mastered the <2 year old puzzles, of any kind. 'A' works on his math and language skills through ipad apps, and hands-on support, meanwhile in cooking he helps prepare simple drinks, and picking out the right dishes and utensils. When he plays outside he loves to be in the sand and feel the wind through his hair.

Puzzles are a big hit. Here's why: 

- I use any kind they are interested in interacting with, and mix it up at the time. The idea is to keep them trying to sort out the pieces and putting them together, regardless the level of difficulty, and as they are comfortable, present the more challenging ones. 'A' is working on 3-piece puzzles. He is a very 'outside-the-box' type of personality, so puzzles also serve that role of teaching that some natural laws or common sense rules are a good thing!

Today's little successes: Learned that 'D' has a good grasp of how to tell time, he corrected me in my explanation of minutes and hours on the clock face! -- 'A' let me put my hand over his while using the ipad, first time in months!

low-impact school days

Here's a sampling of what we have going on in our magic witch's brew for homeschooling. With 'D' likely entering therapy in a few months, I have been working with him to put together an in-depth curriculum and solidify the other supports he's getting, as well as preparing his other affairs for the transition.. if there is one. Maybe he won't like it at all, Maybe I can wrangle it to be only part-time (ideally). Either way, finding his strengths and measuring his abilities is slowly becoming priority one.

Wishbone

This show promotes sensitivity to nonverbal beings, interpretive reading styles, and drawing correlations and noting parallels between imaginative experiences and the tangible environments in which we live. Offers new perspective, and most exciting, encourages you to navigate through various perceptions of your own reality.

Little Einsteins

This show is a little older version of the baby einstein series, for my boys the way they try to attack different subjects at the same elevated understanding is too challenging, however it does encourage them to attempt to excel in multiple areas and grow in more than one direction at a time. Multitasking intellectual development, is not something that the autism spectrum facilitates.

Labels

When I look online for curriculum material, I often like to attach labels, how do you ensure what you find is going to suit your style, how do you avoid the stress of implementing strategies and goals that may not even fit your family's needs?

When I hear the term unschooling I imagine gifted young teens working together as a team, bouncing ideas off of one another and sharing what they learn in their spare time. I love the principles of naturalistic learning, letting what occurs in the day-to-day life to be the foundation for education, the focus of growth and desire for enlightenment. When I leave the kids to do what they want, more often than not I find them shifting from casual play, to a serious study, and cycling through these phases over and over, as they get older, the transition is smoother and more pronounced. We don't look at 'stimming' in our house, we see it as experimentation and inquisitive play. Or maybe because of this take on education, we see less Need for stimming entirely.

When I hear of others struggling through lessons of a pre-set curriculum and schedule, I find myself trying to understand what the problem is. To my mind, if you are comfortable in your knowledge of your children's abilities and believe that a fully structured curriculum is the best option, then surely there must be some grounds to stand on, why not return to the basics of the plan, and work back up again.

For us, I have set tools, activities, and a structure of life skill habits that we maintain. Meals are generally held at the same time every day, snacks are opportunities for communication growth and development, while bedtime routines are cozy and when I feel most like a mom.

I am moving slowly into a more structured homeschooling arrangement with 'D' with the hopes of using a few different methods of employment for math and logic than from language and arts. He is open to timed drills, and is interested in lists. Language and arts are a more sensitive matter, where he needs more freedom and calm to think through his ideas.

With 'A' I am incorporating his needs and abilities into the hands-on activities set up for his brother, and focusing most of our time on maintaining learned skills and knowledge, while focusing on mindfulness and managing his own sensory needs in appropriate ways as possible.

So I may be an unschooler, I'm not sure yet, but when you include therapies into the mix.. labels become meaningless and disempowering.

My Pretty Kitten

Today I write about reading skills and language usage. Kindergarten Reading Expectations

With a child who is not taking initiative due to anxiety, work backwards through his favourite reading material right through to infancy if you have it. They have already developed a sentimental attachment to the object itself and therefore the amount of anxiety that is typically present with any reading session will be severely diminished. My idea is to focus on reading the same books nightly, and only as long as he is enjoying it. Bring him back to his love for stories.

Next I like to use pre-reading readiness paperback books that use pictures with the words for symbolism. Again it takes the stress off and stick to only the themes he is interested in, unless he wants a particular book, even better, let him make all of these decisions for you. Not only should you use subjects he is interested in, but something he is confident in his knowledge of the subject, this is important. A child with autism spends much time decrypting the language, intention, and imagining it being told by someone else, these are easier to do if you know the story, or subject quite well, and can focus finally on the actual text.

Now be ready for the next step at all times, never rid yourself of the earlier material until he has gone a few levels above without turning back. Next is to follow the leveled readers as they are listed. To save stress and hassle, I like to focus instruction on these books, and let other books simply live within the environment.

With a child who is learning phonics still, another approach is to simply keep picture books of his favourite playtime activities, shows, or subjects. Don't restrict the level of language, but ensure there is plenty of images. Concentrate on story time, and pretend play, narrate activities and comment on everything.

Verbally - AAC app for the iPad.

Summer Schooling

It is blasting hot here. We have just settled into our new place, finally access to a backyard, and a gorgeous neighbourhood. We have many new faces we see on a regular basis, and a great deal of respect to the other residents of the area. Opportunities abound in outdoor activity, we are in walking distance to all shopping needs, we are in the core of the community but off to the side in a quiet corner tucked away near a college campus. Freedom from the concrete jungle, we are all feeling grateful. Both boys immediately settled in, the calm of the area, the etiquette of the social people around us, the understanding offered for eccentric behaviour is more pronounced in these neighbourhoods than where we started out from. A great sigh of relief moved through our family.

It is still quite hot. We spend our days simply remaining cool, waiting out the hottest parts of the day, saving up for aquatic adventures in the new outdoors, focusing on our lifestyle challenges, of seizures and hydration. Moodiness and lack of sufficient heat-beating nutrients always catches me off guard in July, I don't know why.

There is a tree outside my window!!

Smule's Piano app for the ipad

I have been working on cause and effect training with 'A', building more on the basis that sensory needs are to be understood, respected, and fulfilled but in appropriate ways. Working towards the goal of summer field trips and errands on a more age-appropriate level of behaviour expectations. This is something I find we take two steps back and three steps forward, in every issue, obstacle or challenge. With each move ahead, we gain wisdom and insight. I offer alternatives, but he truly wants to focus on understanding self-regulation, through his own nervous system and neurology, through his eyes not just ours. For this I feel grateful, because you know they have the desire and intention if its something they truly wish to change their vision to. I respect and acknowledge this wish to be integrative in this sense, a want to be like others. Getting him there, is a complex emotional balance for myself, goes against everything I was ever raised with; an assimilation or GTFO sort of attitude. For our connection however its beautiful. My son has taught me what it means to educate someone like him, what it means to be responsible for another human being, and insists out of simple maternal protective instincts, to help him in his survival education. Survival of sensory deficits, of motor delays, and most significantly help him to save himself from the appearance of intellectual deficit.

I have aided, and accommodated his special interest lately, otherwise considered stimming by the pseudo behaviour analysis community. It's how I establish their current focus, and teach through and around it. 'D' loves angry birds, so what if his writing prep, math and language skills are developed through activity and sticker books. For 'A' he takes after his brother's lead a great deal. In this instance however I learned that he is adept at measurement, analysis, trends and statistics, as well as an amazing grasp of physics principles, yet he does not read or write. With these things in mind, I have been pondering how to bring all of these things together, not interfering with his project, but maybe allow the energy to flow to sophistication not overwhelming his options and causing yet another destructive scene to our home after an epic fail of a tower or experiment goes wrong. I love to help him refine and practice his abilities, I mean.. it works.

He is designing his own ingenius understanding of math and patterns of measurement. he uses series of similar items to map out a curve or diagram that represents a physics principle. He's almost 5 years old. So my summer efforts are to find the tools he needs to do so. I wonder where he is going with this! He doesn't approach math from a cookie cutter learning style like his brother does. He is creative, meticulous and insightful. I learned math the way of 'D', recognizing trends and memorizing them.. our creative outlets being language and our designs being through stories or constructions, again for the purpose of story. 'A' however is in love with music and the math or science behind it.

Books To Read

Storytelling and book-reading is building up momentum in our home, not only is it sometimes more fun than bedtime cartoons, but we have a good collection, I slowed down because they were not interested, but am getting excited about books again.

 this one is easy to read, and makes statements about accomplishments in daily self-care routines! fortunately for us, most of it was true.

 Milo's eyes and mouth change with a spin of the dial, to match the situation he is in.

 Princess CleoTasha is bossy, unappreciative, and never says please or thank you.. until the end.

As you can safely assume, the little brother in this story, is loud, has screaming fits, sometimes takes precedence over family activities, and makes messes, shows the older boy how to look past these things.

The wonderful Mind

Today's fine motor work and introduction of new concepts! Not only did he organize them, and his thoughts, but combining the playdough with the straws is a new idea. 'A' also loved having help with this. Why do we need hand over hand unless you need help in Doing it!

'A' has an amazing eye for measurement and detail. This was a full fun Friday, where we listened to culinary documentaries, and worked on personal projects all day. 'A' created this series of masterpieces.

smoothing out the borders of chaos

We have been laying the foundation for appropriate times to be silly and goof around. Now 'D' seems to be more comfortable expressing himself to the best of his abilities. Short videos of his favourite shows serve as a current future reward for practicing writing skills. I guide him along and use quantity in short spurts to encourage him to discover his proper pen grip. I aim to take it one practice session at a time, and at the same time extending the seated-time for each. We follow what he is okay with at the time, and I simply take the most opportune times of the day for it.

Right now we are working with mazes and numbered dot-to-dot books. He is finding more comfort in simply getting it done, and when we learn he is struggling with his motor strength, we find fun ways to guide his fingers to something more comfortable. I often will ask him to do 10 pages in one sitting. It's working wonders, he does have to remain aware so that he doesn't make obvious mistakes, and train himself to hold a writing tool in an efficient manner.. he picks and chooses what his work is, he gets rewards for pushing himself, and not for what he accomplished on the paper. We add stickers to his collection simply for sitting down and doing it, and for a fun break afterwards he usually gets to watch a video on the computer.

I'd like to point out that, a) he chose the workbooks, b) we discussed what I hoped he would be able to do, and what he wanted to get out of it, c) this way allows him to express his creativity gradually, and with a lot of help.

Tool Upgrades

It came the time to spoil myself and make our lives simpler, by moving on to tools that encourage generalization of skills. Particularly to something that our beloved service providers could see and accept.

Miniland Toys are found at Scholar's Choice. These cost roughly $10 each. and come in various fine motor/academia games

We started with the one on the left, as 'A' loves it, and has made a great deal of towered patterns already. It will be great for 'D' to refresh himself on his pro-sorting abilities he had as a preschooler.

Bill Nye The Science Guy: Gravity

A few episodes on Youtube and voila, both boys are huge fans of this show. What can I say, this is a grown man in a lab coat, throwing watermelons and TVs off the roof of a building, driving a car over a lake, etc. It gets them engaged and something they can easily relate to in their young exploration of the world around them.

Last but not least, 'A's magnetic train set has been a huge attention grabber for so many months, so this past week when I picked up a set of magnets with two opposing poles, he has been going crazy experimenting with them. 

De-Schooling the little one

Here are the things that took place over the past 5 months, that lead me to believe that we have re-written the concept of learning back into a language he easily understands and enjoys:

- we tried to follow the material they had provided him in the classroom, tracing manuscript lettering, and cutting various squiggles and shapes on plain paper. He freaked out. So we used it for scribble paper and I made a large mess over the work, his immediate reaction was shock, horror, and to tell me I was wrong.
- we tried to follow the pre-K activity books I had in the house, which I assumed were friendly and fun, but again this was a mistake, so instead we practiced drawing angry birds scenes over the images and colouring pages, much to his surprise; however this time no shock or horror.
- I've asked him to write his name on greeting cards, which turned out to be another big no-no.
- I attempted to encourage him to practice cutting paper, for crafts and with different designs. Nope, didn't happen.

What we DID do:

- he was given an opportunity to draw his thoughts about what he wanted to relate to me, in regards to his playtime with angry birds toys. he didn't like his work, so I gave him a new sheet, and a new sheet, and another until he was content with his drawing.
- we moved on from the leapfrog writing tablets to the vtech doodle pad, which gave him physical guides to follow for drawing pictures.
- I started asking him to describe what he was imagining and I would draw it for him.
- I changed the writing tools often, toddler markers, pens, crayons, pencil crayons, shapes, colours, size of tips, til eventually he chose his own grip cushion for the pen. Which is now his.
- He draws what he wants, he will write eventually, but right now, he is content to practice his steadiness, and coordination through doodling.
- we work with very brief moments of paper and pen time. increasing at his discretion, not mine.

We talk about school, and he refuses to even  consider the idea of going back.
We talk about friends, and so long as they are actually friends who will visit him outside of school, he is interested.

Socialization, well him and his brother have quite a bit of catching up to do, and are learning to do it together, as well as making friends their own age.

'D' prefers to be read to, as opposed to sensing the pressure to read on his own. This is okay for now, I have a suspicion his literary skills are more adept than he lets on they are. 'A' prefers to hear singing, and to read on his own. I hope to show him poem books and children's stories and rhymes that have tunes I am familiar with!

When I told Darus he is doing school with mommy, I don't think he expected that he would be able to make his own dinner, learn about offices and errands, where foods come from, what doctors are all about, and how he can develop real skills for living independently, while seeing where math matters, how others see science, and that communication and language are about being considerate, and sharing your imagination with others.

Randomness

Talking about sensory issues, and helping the boys work through their over or under stimulation challenges, balancing it all, and accommodating everyone at once is a bit of a process. I find that the more they are aware of what it looks and feels like to have a sensory processing 'moment' the more likely they are to communicate it and attempt to correct it, if I'm lucky even find a socially appropriate fix for it. Discussion, basic experiences, and slowly working on exposure as well as diet is turning out to be a huge undertaking, so I am finding it necessary to show them more about the human body and how it works. They are understanding it and learning what they themselves can do, but I am loving all of the questioning looks, questions, and experience of working on fine and gross motor skills again. Coincidentally, sensory integration strategies work on smaller scales, and carefully upgraded challenges work with independent play.

The Human Body by Pascale Hedelin

how to become a teacher

I have been technically homeschooling since January, it does not look like it. I have barely even sorted out a system or schedule. I have done nothing but worked on family connections, playing with the cats, going to parks, enjoying the spring weather, making the most of SO being home from work, and progressing with menu changes, and finding new goals for life skills programs.

I recently found a new tool to help come up with effective ideas to use sensory integration with achieving developmental goals. NeuroNet shows you how to maintain growth at home in the 20 minutes that is suggested by therapists to develop communication, coordination, and awareness. You can find their free videos on youtube under the channel neuronetlearning.

These are the farthest you can get from natural learning, and integrative activities, but they do offer some awesome strategies that you can customize to be comfortable for yourself and your kids.

The greatest part about unschooling is that you can offer tools and toys that have an intended purpose, and use it for more creative and care-free exploration. 'D' and I spent yesterday discussing how to doodle Angry Birds characters on the doodle pad. I had to follow his guidance in what scenes to create and how much detail to use. He's tough, but it made a great difference in changing roles, him teaching me something he knows a great deal about.

Where do I start, what do I do?

Unschooling sounds very simple, you let them play and explore, and offer teaching opportunities along the way. This is autism though, and in school your child would likely be receiving therapy. Here is how you can do physio, occupational therapy, speech and language all at home, every single day.

In Canada, we have something called NDDS; this is what our children's agencies use to measure the abilities of kids on and off the spectrum. When a child is referred to be assessed for spectrum disorders, the child is typically behind on their milestones. I measure my kids' well-being and regressions based on how many checklists they have fallen back on, and in what areas.

Now that my children are no longer receiving preschool services, or school board services, we are in limbo waiting for the paperwork to catch up. I am grateful however, as now I am able to comfortably return to the basics of autism therapy and treatment that I used to focus on when they were toddlers. Which is following these guidelines and helping them achieve growth from whatever developmental 'age' they seem to be at.

The areas on this checklist cover all developmental areas a child generally possesses by the age marked at the top. If your child is performing less than their age, you can find ways to practice these skills. It's a good idea to start from the beginning, when you saw problems and go from there. If your child isn't performing half or more of these skills, try the milestone sheet that came prior. Work on skills he is able to generalize first, and new skills secondarily. If your child is appropriate for his age, you can still look beyond if you want to keep them on track.

we have a new doctor!!

Today, is Wednesday. Which for us is reading day. Usually a struggle, as they are not the types to sit down and  read books when the weather has changed to simply lure them to the windows to stare at the pool and sunshine. However storytelling is something they are both fond of. For a long time, they never met in the middle when it came to compromising on auditory input of any kind. Even each others voices were irritating to them. I'm glad that seems to be over. Perhaps it was all of that time apart, who knows.

Dr. Seuss

Tonight was the first time I was able to read a book that wasn't simply from a movie or video game he liked. Actually it's the first time I was able to read a book and have him engaged. He wasn't feeling well and was more interested in distracting himself with the ipad, but he enjoyed it a great deal. Reading is a tool still to him, I'm not sure how or if he will find enjoyment, I know most people do, even casual readers, will eventually find a reason to use their abilities to read in a recreational way. However, his (acknowledged) need for practice with speech and sentence structure made this a fun evening. 'A' on the other hand, was so frustrated at trying to listen to the stories I read while watching his bedtime shows, he turned off the tv and flopped on some cushions on the floor! He loves music, and has had more experiences with story time than his brother had in a while. Both have always been thrilled to dig into books, but refused to let me read them. 

closure

First of all: I would like to give thanks to the wonderful people who did their best to support and integrate my children into the public school's ASD program. The teachers, program coordinator, support staff, EAs, administration, special needs officials from the board, the ABA consultant, speech pathologist, occupational therapist, pediatrician, bus driver, friends, family and other parents.

Now I have learned a few vital lessons about the school environment, and the children in it. When I sent my two severely-language impaired children to school, I had hoped they would receive services sooner, and at an equal quality to that which is advertised as waiting for us at the end of the tunnel, in a few years time. They have been on a wait list to receive intensive behavioural intervention since a few months post-diagnoses.

Here is what I feel to be the checklist for special needs children prior to entering the school system:

• no more than a mild language impairment
• a completely documented and signed portfolio of known medical issues.
• formal recommendations from current service providers and therapists.
• a detailed behaviour management plan.
• a daily communication notebook 

Sitting back to look over the time 'D' spent in school, I wish I had decided to homeschool full-time a little sooner. He had a full year and a half, including some summer school. Sometimes I find myself tearing up, what did I do wrong for him to not fit in at school? What happened there? I have so many questions that will never have tangible answers to, yet it is written all over his face, whenever the subject comes up. Seeing his school-friends was his single motivator for attending school for so long. He came home burnt out, and unwilling to be part of any family activities. He shut down. His communication skills still quite limited for his age, so the sudden disconnection was worse than ever. He was happy, yes of course. He enjoyed many moments at school, indeed he did. 

For some time, my visits to the office or with the staff was pleasant, social, and informative, all of my questions were being answered diligently. Then it happened. My son's eagerness to make friends was turning into a disruptive behaviour. An oversight on everyone's part I'm sure, I had a suspicion that school had taken a turn for the worst when he didn't want to get out of bed in the morning, and showed pent up rage and confusion after getting off his bus. Not until the weekends when he was happy again, did I get to spend time with my little boy. My baby came back out of himself during these times.

Summer school hit. He did well, but for the first time, I could communicate with him about school. The routines had changed, his needs for understanding became more severe, his ability to integrate with NT children had gotten better outside of school. The hours were shorter. The expectations had changed radically. The staff that was to care for him was not all the same. I was advised it was just to make transitions back to school in September that much easier and smoother for everyone. There wouldn't be any academics or therapies offered. So, I took it upon myself to explore his recent report cards and see what we could do to keep his skills up as well, and without interfering with the processes or routines at school. We asked him a great deal about his time at school, with very little success in learning actual context, simply able to see the feelings he was willing to show. During the summer the children brought home a journal every day, which gave us the ability to talk about the events of the day more easily. (I had asked for this during school but they  kept giving us the run-around; ironically this year the ASD classes did implement it).

What happened is this: the school's ASD program was unwilling to budge on standardized care, strategies, or implementations that are used for Every single child within the confines of the contained classroom. I spoke of staggered integration into the mainstream class, and faced looks of concrete expressions.

I am glad I brought my son home to learn and grow, to make his own friends, and to access better therapy interventions not available in the school.

Introduction....to Music Theory..

I love how this company really understands what an autistic child's experiences can be like, and a simplistic, inviting, yet transparent teaching tool their apps have been. We have taken a break from their math and alphabet series' and exploring life and social skills apps. Today we learned that 'A' loves the sound of the washing machine, and frowns at the sound of the coffee maker. I find his most sensitive days to be associated with the fridge, computers, and furnace (these are days we do our best to get out more often or find constructive things to focus on). A favourite temporary solution or emergency prevention tool is my stereo haha! a single overwhelming sound with melodies he is used to hearing, or likes, helps pass the time until we move on from the environment, or the appliances turn off.

Shanesh Colors: Sounds of the House -- ipad app

Recently, 'A' became bored with counting to 20, his first number recognition and sequential learning games. So we have taken a break from focusing on him, and have turned much of the math attention towards his brother, of course, nobody is left in the cold here, so it turned to be a fun math lesson for everyone.

This gave us the added benefit of incorporating our recent phonics activities and awareness, with simple numerical recognition, speech, and taking turns... and learning that its okay to have shared special interests. Learning to spell the written label for numbers was a highlight to our day, full of giggles and near squabbles.

Math Puppy ipad App

LMFAO - Party Rock Anthem

Last but not least, I am trying out music keyboard apps for the ipad, he loves dance music, instrumental, folk, all sorts of things. He also likes to dance.