Vision problems and writing

[psreit]

A while back, there was a post on convergence insufficiency. I did reply to that because of dd's eye problems at birth and continuing. She has shown some improvement since she has had glasses with prisms. She is beginning to read and has made some improvement in writing her letters on lines. She is finishing kindergarten in our Christian school and then I plan to homeschool with Beyond. Some days I wish I could just bring her home now, but I don't have peace about pulling her out before the year ends. She knows we will homeschool for 1st grade, but I don't think it would be good to make the switch on her now. She needs that consistency. Anyway, the teacher sent some papers home for dd to practice writing sentences. When writing sentences, dd does not space her words. She will just run all her words together and sometimes will miss letters in words that are right in front of her that she has to copy. She also wants to write her letters big. I think the eye teaming and eye-hand coordination has something to do with it. We just had a follow-up with dd's eye specialist yesterday and there was some improvement in visual acuity, but she still recommended the O.T. for eye-hand coordination exercises. DD's teacher just said this morning that when having to copy words, dd will sometimes try to write them according to how they sound instead of copying what is there. I think she sometimes has problems looking at a word and then copying what she sees. I've tried to explain to dd's teacher about her eye problems, but I don't think she is looking at it like it is interfering with her work, although the O.T. and I both see where this could be an issue.

I really believe I should leave dd in school until the year is over, but I'm not quite sure how to deal with this situation until then. I guess I was wondering if anyone has a child with similar problems with writing. I know some talked about vision therapy, which dd's doctor put her in prisms, which produces the same results as therapy. While there has been improvement, there still are some problems with it. Are there any techniques that anyone has used in writing with children having vision problems. If any major problems arise before the end of the school year, I want to be able to present some alternatives to the teacher for helping dd in this area. So far, dd is able to do well enough, so her teacher just hasn't taken seriously our concerns. When I mention something to her about dd's eye problems, it seems like she is ignoring it.

I know this doesn't have to do with HOD directly, but it will carry over when I do begin homeschooling again. Any suggestions are welcomed.

[inHistiming]

I'll offer a suggestion, though I haven't had to deal with your specific problem. My children were attending a private school when my dd was in K. Near the end of the year, it became apparent that she was having vision problems. After several visits to a few different doctors we were able to pinpoint her specific problems (amblyopia and astigmatism), get her glasses, begin patching her 'good' eye, and she marginally improved. This was a huge catalyst in our decision to begin homeschooling....I knew she would 'fall between the cracks' in the first grade class, even though she would have had a great teacher, just because of the sheer number of children the teacher has to teach. One thing that really helped with her writing was doing the copy work in Beyond...I don't know which guide you will be starting with, but the copying really helped. Within one month I saw improvement....she is now in 4th grade, and though her writing can still be messy and sometimes large, she is quite capable of writing smaller letters, neatly, and in cursive. When we started, I did not have her copy the entire paragraph/stanza/whatever; we just did a line a day, until eventually it became easier and she was able to copy an entire stanza or several verses from the bible in one sitting (over the course of a couple of years). Now, she doesn't hesitate if I ask her to copy an entire poem or several verses from the bible. Anyway, I really just wanted to encourage you as someone who has also struggled with teaching a child that has vision problems (though different from yours). Maybe you could try working with her copying just a few words or a line from a poem at home at night or on the weekends. Something else we did to help ALL of our kids to keep a space between words is to show them how to write a word, then place their index finger after it and write the next word. It kind of 'holds the place' for the spacing...hope that makes sense. I just noticed a week or two ago that my oldest son (12) still does this on occasion to make sure his writing looks neat. Just a few thoughts....hopefully some of it will be helpful. I'm sure others will be along to offer their suggestions as well. I'm so glad you've decided to homeschool your daughter....I think you'll have great fun and love learning alongside her!

[psreit]

inHistiming,
Thanks. I am going to be using Beyond in the fall. I could start some copywork with her now. I would probably save the Beyond work for when we actually start using it. Maybe I could get her to copy Scripture verses that she is learning in school. She is doing copywork at school, but I think she is basically doing it on her own. I don't think there is the one-on-one that she may need to really learn how to do it right. She still has some difficulties getting letters on the lines properly. DD's O.T. made a visual of the sentences on the lines so she could see what it looked like. That seemed to work well. I could write a verse on the lined paper and she could copy it. In her school work, the sentence is just plain type on no lines. The school uses ACE (School of Tomorrow) curriculum. After kindergarten, it is basically sitting at a desk and doing workbooks independently. I know that would not be a good scenario for dd. HOD is a Godsend. It's just driving me crazy waiting for this school year to end. It's teaching me a lot of patience But, it has also given me time to observe and truly become aware of what dd's special needs are and find ways to work with her. I will be better prepared for bringing her back home. Thanks for your encouragement.

[blessedwith2]

Hello! How wonderful that God has given you with the insight to find ways to help your daughter feel successful with her writing!

Here are a few tips that may help:

The idea of you writing out a model of what she needs to copy is excellent. See if the teacher will allow her to use landscape-oriented paper if she is not already using it. (This will give her more room to space her words out properly.) Also model the letters for her in the size she is expected to write them in, but still allow extra space between your words. Often, simple adjustments to the "worksheets"/examples we give our children are enough to facilitate improvement in their outcomes.

Trust that her writing will become smaller as she matures...it is a skill that is developed at different times for different children, just like reading! You can also try using paper with slightly smaller lines, or two lines instead of three...just be sure that you model for her how to write on any new type of paper you are introducing. Demonstration is key!

(My daughter's writing looked big and messy when using the K-1st grade sized lines, but, when I switched to 2nd grade lines that were slightly closer together, her writing looked better almost immediately. Turns out, she was writing her letter large to fit the lines she was given. Also, the portrait-oriented worksheets often do not give enough room for the child to space their words properly.)

If she is having trouble copying items from the board (called "far-point copying), try to see if she can sit closer to the board, or, better yet, see if the teacher can let you know what she will be copying, so you can write out a model for her to copy and put it on her desk (thus making it "near-point" copying, which is easier, especially when there is already a vision issue).

Hope this helps! Feel free to PM me if you have any questions about what I've suggested! God bless!

[psreit]

blessedwith2,
Thanks. I will PM later, but I thought I'd reply on here for now. About the type of lines. When working on her letters with the O.T., dd was doing Handwriting Without Tears. That is what the O.T. specializes in. But, when dd went to school, she had to learn how to write on the 3 lines. HWT uses only 2 lines when teaching lower case letters. She hadn't gotten to the lower case before she went to school, so I'm not sure if she would have done better with the 2 lines or not. She learned to write the capitals in boxes. So, the O.T. didn't have a chance to use the lines in HWT. Now that she is working on the 3 lines, the O.T. doesn't want to confuse her by using the 2 lines.
I don't think dd has to copy anything from the board. It is copying from her workbook. It is a sentence typed on no lines and she has to copy it onto lines in her workbook, so there isn't much room. I think having the model helped her when she worked with the O.T. I'm just not sure what the teacher will allow, because in this type of curriculum, they give a test on each workbook. When she takes the test, she has to copy the sentence as stated above. If not done a certain way, she gets points off on the test. That is what is so frustrating. It's basically, pass the test and you can move on to the next workbook or if you fail the test, you have to redo the whole workbook. Please pray that if this problem continues that I can get through to the teacher. I don't want to see dd fail a test because of her difficulties in writing. After all, it's only kindergarten. Probably pushing too fast. Pray for our wisdom to know how to deal with this.

[Tansy]

Oh my again this sound so similar to my dd1 !!!
My dd does this still and she is 10 her hand writing is getting better slowly.
her issues are tracking problems in her eyes. She has had surgery to correct it. Which helped solve the one eye looking at you and the other off in space. After surgery which we put off for years hoping the glasses would fix it, she still had problems. But hope springs eternal!

Since we have started strengthening her muscles in her hand via OT and doing simple eye exercises, correcting her when her tracking wanders (2 min 2x a day). I have seen improvement letters are smaller and she has achieved word spacing!!!! but the inconsiTaNt uPpeR AnD LowER Case letters is persisting.

Also the school is great in letting her use a slanted surface and a pencil grip that forces her to hold the pencil correctly. I'll pray for your child's teachers heart to be softened.

[my3sons]

Pam - You've already gotten very good advice here, from ladies who have had more similar situations than I have had. So, I'll just share this thought - I know very well this may not be a possibility, but you may just want to consider pulling her out of school now. There is not much left of it anyway (unless her school is a year-round school and even then...), as it may do more damage than good for her to continue to be there. However, this is totally up to you, and you'll know best what to do. I'm praying for your dd - you will be a wonderful teacher to her. I am excited for her to have you as her teacher because a mother's love is unparalleled, which makes you the best person to teach her in the entire world.

In Christ,
Julie

[psreit]

Thanks to each for the suggestions and encouragement.
Please pray for our wisdom in dealing with this issue.

[my3sons]

I just prayed for you - thanks for letting me know what to pray.
In Christ,
Julie

[blessedwith2]

Hi Pam! Please know that I am praying for you for wisdom as well. I can imagine that your dd failing workbooks simply for handwriting is frustrating for both you and her, especially at such a young age, when a love for learning about God's world should be fostered! I will also pray for patience for you both, as well as the teacher to have a desire to work with you to improve your dd's school experience and success.

(By the way, I wouldn't try the writing two lines at this point, either...not for school...there's not much of the year left and you don't want to frustrate her more...it could be a possibility for when you begin teaching her at home, though.)

Please keep us posted on what you decide regarding when to begin teaching her at home!