Fowler’s Findings

1. Hopeful Parents
At Hopeful Parents, you’ll find “grassroots support for parents of kids with special needs.” And incredible group of parents share their stories, which will have you laughing and crying and nodding along in recognition. You’ll also find a great community, and an open invitation to join in the conversation.

2. 5 Minutes for Special Needs
Part of the 5 Minutes for Mom family, 5 Minutes for Special Needs offers “support, insight, and inspiration.” It’s another collaborative blog, with distinct voices and stories that will remind you of your own, and at the same time drive home how unique each family is.

3. Support for Special Needs
That theme — playing on our shared stories, rather than our differences — is at the heart of Support for Special Needs. “We have more in common than separates us,” say the site’s founders.

4. Parenting Isn’t Pretty
Parenting Isn’t Pretty is the personal blog of Terri Mauro, About.com Guide for Special Needs and author of the fantastic 50 Ways to Support Your Child’s Special Education. Terry and her husband are the proud parents of two teenagers adopted from Russia as young children. As she says, “Life is… interesting.” Is it ever!

5. MOM – Not Otherwise Specified
When a woman titles her blog MOM – Not Otherwise Specified, you know you’ve found a keeper. If you’re going to raise a child with special needs, you’re going to need a sense of humor, and you’re going to need to be an advocate. MOM-NOS is an advocate extraordinare — and she does it with grace and style.

6. Love That Max
Speaking of grace and style, few bloggers have as much as Ellen Seidman over at Love That Max. She is also all about commitment — when the woman says she blogs daily, she isn’t kidding. Every morning, I look forward to reading her post with my first cup of coffee.

7. Shut Up About Your Perfect Kid
Months ago, I heard about a book called Shut Up About Your Perfect Kid. Um, YES! And they have a BLOG, too? Sign. Me. Up. Sure, it’s sporadic, but that’s all part of the imperfect philosophy. It’s intentional. And funny.

8. Fighting Monsters With Rubber Swords
If you want to read posts while pumping your fist in the air and cheering and then posting your own entry that just links over and says, Yeah, ditto — then go read Robert Rummel-Hudson’s Fighting Monsters With Rubber Swords. Also, be sure to get yourself a copy of Rob’s book,Schuyler’s Monster. And a box of tissues, while you’re at it.

9. Winter Ramblings
Another amazing author, Judy Winter — who wrote Breakthrough Parenting for Children With Special Needs — shares her thoughts at Winter Ramblings. Judy is a woman of incredible courage: she finds the strength to get up every morning even though her son passed away seven years ago, at age 12.

10. Wrightslaw
Wrightslaw is an amazing resource for parents of kids with special needs. If you want your child to get what he or she deserves from your city, state, and school district, this site is the place to go. And the blog is full of informative — and interesting — posts.http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/parenting/10-blogs-for-special-needs-parents-2396805/

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School is in full swing and midterm reports are due to go home this week. Continue to support your child in his or her education!

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20 Ways for Parents to Encourage Reading

Source: RIF Parent Guide Brochure

Ages: 9-12, 13+

Summary: Browse 20 suggestions for turning your reluctant preteen or teen into a reader.

The following are some ways to turn a young reader’s reluctance into enthusiasm:

1. Scout for things your children might like to read. Use their interests and hobbies as starting points.

2. Leave all sorts of reading materials including books, magazines, and colorful catalogs in conspicuous places around your home.

3. Notice what attracts your children’s attention, even if they only look at the pictures. Then build on that interest; read a short selection aloud, or simply bring home more information on the same subject.

4. Let your children see you reading for pleasure in your spare time.

5. Take your children to the library regularly. Explore the children’s section together. Ask a librarian to suggest books and magazines your children might enjoy.

6. Present reading as an activity with a purpose; a way to gather useful information for, say, making paper airplanes, identifying a doll or stamp in your child’s collection, or planning a family trip.

7. Encourage older children to read to their younger brothers and sisters. Older children enjoy showing off their skills to an admiring audience.

8. Play games that are reading-related. Check your closet for spelling games played with letter tiles or dice, or board games that require players to read spaces, cards, and directions.

9. Perhaps over dinner, while you’re running errands, or in another informal setting, share your reactions to things you read, and encourage your children to do likewise.

10. Set aside a regular time for reading in your family, independent of schoolwork, the 20 minutes before lights out, just after dinner, or whatever fits into your household schedule. As little as 10 minutes of free reading a day can help improve your child’s skills and habits.

11. Read aloud to your child, especially a child who is discouraged by his or her own poor reading skills. The pleasure of listening to you read, rather than struggling alone, may restore your child’s initial enthusiasm for books and reading.

12. Encourage your child to read aloud to you an exciting passage in a book, an interesting tidbit in the newspaper, or a joke in a joke book. When children read aloud, don’t feel they have to get every word right. Even good readers skip or mispronounce words now and then.

13. On gift-giving occasions, give books and magazines based on your child’s current interests.

14. Set aside a special place for children to keep their own books.

15. Introduce the bookmark. Remind your youngster that you don’t have to finish a book in one sitting; you can stop after a few pages, or a chapter, and pick up where you left off at another time. Don’t try to persuade your child to finish a book he or she doesn’t like. Recommend putting the book aside and trying another.

16. Treat your children to an evening of laughter and entertainment featuring books! Many children (parents, too) regard reading as a serious activity. A joke book, a story told in riddles, or a funny passage read aloud can reveal another side of reading.

17. Extend your child’s positive reading experiences. For example, if your youngster enjoyed a book about dinosaurs, follow up with a visit to a natural history museum.

18. Offer other special incentives to encourage your child’s reading. Allow your youngster to stay up an extra 15 minutes to finish a chapter; promise to take your child to see a movie after he or she has finished the book on which it was based; relieve your child of a regular chore to free up time for reading.

19. Limit your children’s TV viewing in an effort to make time for other activities, such as reading. But never use TV as a reward for reading, or a punishment for not reading.

20. Not all reading takes place between the covers of a book. What about menus, road signs, food labels, and sheet music? Take advantage of countless spur-of-the-moment opportunities for reading during the course of your family’s busy day.

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It is hard to believe that another year has come and gone and we are already in the swing of a new year. I hope everyone had a wonderful, relaxing summer. As we start a new year, there are a few things to keep in mind:
1. Be patient…it takes all of us to get back into a daily routine.
2. Be positive…we all need to refresh our skills.
3. Be proactive…our teachers are here to help so make sure if you have any questions, comments of concerns, please know that we welcome those.

As we get back into the groove, make sure to be actively involved in your childs education. Read to them or have them read to you, talk about what they did each day in school, and make sure they get plenty of sleep in order to perform at their highest abilities.

If you have any questions regarding any special services the district offers, please feel free to contact me at anytime. My number is 859-234-7120 Ext 3232….

Have a great school year~

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It’s hard to believe that another school year is almost over. It is important to continue reading with your child over the summer break. Encourage your child to read for interest as to keep up those reading skills and abilities. Have a great Spring Break!

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The Stages of Spelling
by Vito Perrone

Teachers typically get children started writing in kindergarten. If children had to concentrate on correct spelling in the early years, however, they would do very little significant writing. Spelling is the last of the teacher’s concerns as a child’s writing moves from scribbles and pictures to actual letters. “The bebe is hape” (the baby is happy) has to be seen as a wonderful piece of writing.

The period of transition from inventive spelling to traditional spelling is generally about two to three years. By the end of the second grade and certainly in the third grade, most children are well along in conventional spelling. But pushing them there too soon will likely diminish their enthusiasm for writing.

In the transitional period, teachers will send notes to children using correct spelling without stressing the difference. For instance, a child’s entry in her writing journal might be: “I hve a cat. He ets gras. I lik him.” The teacher’s response would be: “It is funny to see a cat eat grass. I wish my cat would eat grass. I like my cat. He drinks milk and eats cat food. What color is your cat? What other funny things does your cat do?” Notice that the teacher’s response spells have, grass, eat, and like correctly, while accepting the child’s work as it was written. The teacher also invites the child to write more about her cat, with her questions serving as a structure.

Reprinted from the series 101 Educational Conversations by Vito Perrone, published by Chelsea House Publishers.
Copyright 1994 by Chelsea House Publishers, a division of Main Line Book Co. All rights reserved.

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Dyslexia has been around for a long time and has been defined in different ways. For example, in 1968, the World Federation of Neurologists defined dyslexia as “a disorder in children who, despite conventional classroom experience, fail to attain the language skills of reading, writing, and spelling commensurate with their intellectual abilities.” According to the U.S. National Institutes of Health, dyslexia is a learning disability that can hinder a person’s ability to read, write, spell, and sometimes speak. Dyslexia is the most common learning disability in children and persists throughout life. The severity of dyslexia can vary from mild to severe. The sooner dyslexia is treated, the more favorable the outcome; however, it is never too late for people with dyslexia to learn to improve their language skills.

Children with dyslexia have difficulty in learning to read despite traditional instruction, at least average intelligence, and an adequate opportunity to learn. It is caused by an impairment in the brain’s ability to translate images received from the eyes or ears into understandable language. It does not result from vision or hearing problems. It is not due to mental retardation, brain damage, or a lack of intelligence.

Dyslexia can go undetected in the early grades of schooling. The child can become frustrated by the difficulty in learning to read, and other problems can arise that disguise dyslexia. The child may show signs of depression and low self-esteem. Behavior problems at home as well as at school are frequently seen. The child may become unmotivated and develop a dislike for school. The child’s success in school may be jeopardized if the problem remains untreated.

http://www.medicinenet.com/dyslexia/article.htm

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For more information follow the link below:

http://www.mathacademy.com/pr/minitext/anxiety/

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http://www.aps.edu/aps/eldoradocluster/satp.html

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