Vaccinations and medical issues

For info about vaccinations and all kinds of medical issues check this article out:
http://www.regardingcaroline.com/pubmed

First week of the 2010-2011 school year...

So we have one more day to complete our first week of homeschooling for the 2010-11 school year….I have to say it has gone pretty good. We did not start slowly- we started with all subjects, just as we will through-out the year. My schedule, which may change later but seems to be working now, requires us to get up around 8am. Chores and breakfast have to be done by 9am when school starts. We have a calendar on the wall with the lesson plans so the kids know what they are to do. The first subject is Spelling, which we do together. K is older and can do some subjects on his own. But we also do science, our last subject of the school day, together - which is usually around lunch time or right after. I know I am going to tweak a few things around. Next week K will not be doing the same spelling as the younger boys and will require a different time. I have already switched K’s history and math times so that I can instruct J in history and then K in history. The math K usually can do mainly on his own. But the structure should remain the same.


Our first day went relativity good. I jokingly told family that we had a great day- J only said he hated school twice! :-) In reality he basically had ½ meltdowns that I was able to corral before they became full meltdowns. But we still were able to get through the work and lunch by about 1pm.

The second day went better for J but not for K, the oldest. He became very frustrated with his mistakes and started saying he was “stupid”. After a break he was better. On a side note J did not want to get up this am. He was very grumpy during our chore time, but eventually got over it. I guess I wore him out on the first day of school!! :-)

The third day (today) we all slept in a little. I didn’t hear the alarm go off at 8am. K woke up around 9am, woke me up, and started his chores. J was definitely in a better mood since I “let” him sleep in! He did, though, have issues with staying on target today.

So every day is a different challenge, and requires different solutions. I am still excited about the school year and think that as long as we can stay on schedule (and get up on time! LOL) we will continue to have a great year

ADHD

I also deal with a son who has been diagnosed ADHD. We do not medicate him, instead we use behavior modification. This method has worked over the year very well for us. Let me say I have nothing against medicine...but if it is only being used to "calm" the child down I don't like it. A lot of our schools, even though it is against the law for them to even suggest it, really push meds onto the "disruptive" kids. The parents I know, who have had THE meeting, say they really feel pressured to administer meds to their kids; that they feel ganged-up on. I know a teacher who once told me "if your child had diabetes wouldn't you put him on meds? Your child has ADHD the same should apply- he should be on meds". I really took offense to that comment and totally didn't (and don't) agree with that at all. For one, diabetes is a medical condition you can die from and, as far as I know, ADHD has never killed anyone. A child who has ADHD could die due to some of the symptoms (i.e. impulse control resulting in death, depression resulting in suicide, etc) but the actual diagnosis has not, as far as I know, ever killed a child. And while I really liked this teacher, I would NEVER have allowed her to teach my ADHD son, since it was obvious to me that she already had made up her mind and would not be receptive to behavior modification. That said, putting your child on meds is your choose, not mine. I choose not to...


I really did lots of research on ADHD before my son started school. For him, the problems started in preschool. He was unable to control his impulses and was being threatened to be kicked out of preschool! I was shocked!! The child was 4 yrs old!! Having been a preschool teacher I understood the reasons as to why they would think about dismissing him but also due to that same experience I knew that there was an underlying problem to the situation. Come to find out that he wasn't the only child misbehaving and the underlying problem was that there wasn't enough stimulation being offered to the children. The talks at circle time were much too boring to the children. There were no manipulative, pictures, etc. There was not a constant adult in the room. Needless to say this was my first battle in our journey of ADHD. I fought to make the school changes some of the things they did or didn't do. These changes really helped the class as a whole. He did not get expelled and from the preschool on an upbeat note.

I plan to continue writing about this journey so stay toned...



"Why Gender Matters" by Dr Leonard Sax is a good book to read, particularly if you have boys or tom-girls, or if you have a child labeled as ADHD. If you live near me I know that the Samuels Library has a copy of this book. Dr Sax also has a new book out "Boys Adrift". This is also an interesting book to read.