Help! I really want to homeschool...but...

[BrooklynsMom03]

I was just looking at that book to order! We have done alot of attachment work though...and we are Rythmetic Movements ...vs Neuro...Reorganization...and that has helped alot....do you know of Nancy Thomas? We have gone to a couple of her conferences as well as a week long camp with her...which was LIFE changing! We also went to a wonderful attachment conference not far from our home put on by one of the families who was at the camp....it was so good too! We have been very involved with different things since our daughter was about 3....she has healed SO much....and yes ....home schooling seems to be the thing that keeps her closer to a path of healing...She is fully attached with us now....but still has some trauma issues...We go to one of the top therapist in the country and travel 7 hrs one way....once a month....LONG trip but whew...so worth it!!
It is so nice to meet you!!! Our daughter had /has some sensory issues as well! Those are fun to work thru! RMT helps pretty quickly with that....or it has in her case so that is nice....I find it really interesting how many bio children have some of the same issues my daughter has! It isnt just an *adoptive* issue...It is so good to hear your story! Thank you for sharing!! I look forward to hear how your daughter is doing with being at home.....When we did it last year...I saw such improvement but my focus got a bit confused for awhile...now I am back on track! Gods track!! I will put that book in my shopping bag at Amazon! Beth in Idaho

[Tansy]

ahh Nancy Thomas we have her purple book it was very helpful but strong. The connected child is much more gentle. Great book Dr. Karyn Purvis was just here at a great Adoption Conf. the sessions were so packed we opted to get copies..

[BrooklynsMom03]

Oh the purple book!! It is funny because we went to a Nancy Thomas conference 3 yrs before going to her camp in Oregon....and we bought lots of things...and the purple book was one of them...we never even opened it I dont think....than we went to her camp...and it all sunk in what she was saying..and what it looked like...when we got home...my husband carried that book around with him! We were like...oh this is what she means! That book has been a life saver to us! As well as all the other stuff we have done...she is the most amazing and loving person....at camp....I got to know her well...she would just sit with us for hrs and talk...and was so hands on....and approachable...and one of *us* it was awesome...Brooklyn took so much away from the camp...I know what you mean though...it does seem strong...but watching it in action...it is like watching a miracle happen right before your eyes!

Were you able to see Karen at the conferences? That is so amazing! I have heard great things about her! I think some things work well for some children and not others....Are you with an attachment trauma trained therapists? They are so hard to come by...we feel so grateful to have ours...I am so looking forward to starting this homeschooling program! It seems to be the perfect fit to go along with all the work we have done with Brooklyn so far! Beth

[Samuel'sMommy]

Hi Beth! I'm a little late seeing this but wanted to welcome you to the boards! You will find the ladies here to be so helpful and encouraging.

I just wanted to comment on homeschooling an only child. My son is 5 and is an only child and we have been homeschooling him for preschool and then this year for Kindergarten. I know you were asking what to do the rest of the day so I'll just give you a picture of what my day looks like. I give him time to get up and play a little in the morning and then we start school around 10am. That also gives me time to get some of my cleaning chores done in the morning. We usually finish up around lunch time. Most days if the weather is nice we take a walk through our neighborhood after lunch. Once a week - usually Monday, we go grocery shopping, he loves going with me and pushing the cart or helping to put things in it. On Friday afternoons we go to the library. The rest of the week we usually just stay home in the afternoon. We don't watch a lot of TV either and he and I usually play games, read, or he just entertains himself for a while. He loves to play with his legos and build elaborate tracks for his trains. You will probably find that once your daughter adjusts to being home, she will find lots of creative ways to entertain herself. I very rarely ever hear my son say he is bored and if he does, I can find a job for him to do and he'll be ready to find something to do on his own very quickly. We are involved in alot of activities at our church so he is around other kids pretty often. He is in children's choir on Sunday nights and AWANA on Wednesday nights and looks forward to both of those as well as church on Sunday mornings. About a month ago we signed him up for karate because he has been begging for awhile. He absolutely loves it! He wakes up every morning and asks me if it is "karate day". We basically only have 1 day a week when we do not have something to do. Originally I had planned to do a field trip once a week on that day, but we actually haven't done very many because neither of us really wants to. We just enjoy being home. That's one of the things I love most about homeschooling and it's something I never expected. I find myself happier and more content at home. I also find that I really love and enjoy being with my son. Not that I didn't before, but it has really made me appreciate who he is as a person, how he learns, his personality, etc more than I think I would if he was gone for the majority of the day at school. I love the discussions we have about things - not just during school time but throughout the day. Sorry for getting so longwinded! I hope this has encouraged you a little.

[BrooklynsMom03]

Stephanie...

Thank you for sharing such an encouraging reply. It is so helpful to know that others are homeschooling an only child and having great success! I appreciate you sharing what your week looks like. I think you are right too....that once my daughter gets home...and settles in we will both enjoy...just being home...alot! Beth in Idaho

[tnahid]

Just wanted to chime in as well. Beyond has worked out great for my 6 year old (now 7). I think you will really enjoy it, and with the ease of use that HOD provides, you will have more time to focus on just "being" with your daughter and bonding. I cannot recommend HOD enough. I pray that you will experience His Peace as you move forward in this journey. I do believe the TIME we get to spend with our children is one of the most important (not the only) but one of the MAIN assets to homeschooling. The bonding factor is so crucial. I also have an adopted daughter who is 4, and since she has been home with us (she went to Christian preschool last year) she has FLOURISHED so much. She is so much more at peace and not angry. She and I are growing so much closer to one another, we are enjoying one another more and more. I am so thankful for these precious years.

May the Lord bless you. I believe you will enjoy it.

Tina

[BrooklynsMom03]

Thank you Tina for sharing ......I did notice this with my daughter when we took her out of school last year...she was not so angry! That tells me she was under ALOT of stress in school...I am so happy your daughter is flourishing at home!!! Beth in Idaho

[BrooklynsMom03]

So I have all the items ready to purchase but the reading part really has been baffled...My daughter...can read...not real smoothly and she forgets alot of words that she knows....but not a total beginner reader...I am wondering if I should purchase the phonics program as well as the emerging reader books? Can these both be done at the same time? Thanks so much! Beth in Idaho

[pjdobro]

Typically, one would do phonics or the emerging readers, but I know some people, including myself, have done a little brush-up phonics work while doing the emerging readers. I actually used more of a follow-up sort of phonics program at that time, not really a beginning one. Do you have an idea what phonics your dd has covered and how well she remembers them? The emerging readers are great for building reading fluency and cementing the dc's reading skills. It also helps so much in reading comprehension. It's a great reading program! Do you have any idea at what level your dd would be reading? What sort of books has she been reading? I'm thinking you might be fine to just do the emerging readers. I'm thinking that any gaps in her phonics instruction will become apparent as you go through the books and you can address them then. One really nice thing too is that as you go through the spelling lists in Beyond, you will be studying a list of words based on a phonics rule each week with two exception words. That will give you another opportunity to review some phonics along the way. I'm not for sure if that helps or not.

Btw, I did used to live in AZ, ages ago. Could you be the Beth I met when I lived in Tucson, many moons ago?

[BrooklynsMom03]

Okay Patty that is good to know....I will order...the emerging readers and check out the phonic gaps if there is any we will just address them as we go....Yes it was many moons ago we met in Arizona...Beth in Idaho

[pjdobro]

Okay Patty that is good to know....I will order...the emerging readers and check out the phonic gaps if there is any we will just address them as we go....Yes it was many moons ago we met in Arizona...Beth in Idaho

That is so neat that it is you! We've been using HOD for 3 years now and loving it more each year. I'm sure you are going to love it too. It's nice to "see" you here!

[mrsrandolph]

YOU CAN DO THIS! Not only that, but this board of women is here to help you!

One unusual thing about HOD that you won't get with another curriculum is that the writers ans owners themselves are available to you by email and phone when you need them. Mike and Carrie are such a blessing.

You can do this!!

[Kathleen]

Popping in to welcome you, too, Beth! Sounds like you've got a good plan in the works for your homeschooling. We're another family that has been sooo blessed by HOD in our home. Love it! Love that I get to spend my days with my kids! (Well...most of them....there are days... ) Love that we spend so much invaluable time in God's Word! Love the great page-turning books! Love the balance built into the guides that lets us cover everything without me going overboard on any one day! HOD keeps me from burning out and enjoying homeschooling - which is what I need to stick with it in the long haul. Praying that the same is true for you! (And I agree with Liz - you most definitely learn as you go! )

Kathleen

[Tansy]

Our nuro developmental therapist is not a "trauma trained therapist" but she is "Jan Bedell" the one who started the whole approach. That the brain can be healed and LD do not have to be permanent. She was so fed up with people telling her to institutionalize her daughter, that she got a special Ed degree then did piles of research. Nothing Phases this woman. Not even my dd1 ripping one of her fingernails off. (it was slightly damaged and dd1 finished the job). She treats my dd as a whole person and won't stick any labels on her. She just gives me just the right therapies to do with my child for what she needs that quarter. I absolutely love her. My hubby bought me the purple book because he though my discipline technique was all wrong and I needed to be a better parent... Poor guy God so spanked him... I read it and I was like ok more positive, less lecture, and keep doing all my weird stuff that works... I swear I could have written 90% of that book just through my trial and error of keeping my sanity. So i finished reading it left it on hubbys pillow and said "yup good book time for you to read it dear..." he got to about chapter 5 before he was apologizing to me. *insert bittersweet laughter* but that book is what led us to experiment with p/s for dd1 and it has helped having that experience. She loves being home right now <3 Yeah!!!

At least the purple book got us on the same page. I love Purvises book because it helps me be so much more gentle, since I have a too authoritarian past, and Hubby loves the purple book because he has a too permissive past with her.

My dd2 from China is sooo different much better transition (bit of a pleaser tho) since she had a Mom and a Dad till she was 4, we know her traumas were handled really well in China. And she talks and talks about her birth parents, and foster mom. She doesn't "get it" all yet but we keep everything open and on the table.
I did get to meet and talk to the woman who wrote 20 things your adoptive kid wants you to know. Her testimony was like she was telling my dd1's story with a few facts changed. I totally button holed her and said HELP! what Did you want from Mom as a child... tell me now! it was an eye opening conversation.

[BrooklynsMom03]

Wow I just cant express how grateful I am to hear all your stories and the encouragement I have received is overwhelming! I ordered our package last night and can not wait for it to arrive! If I had any doubts this was the right thing to do....they have all been put to rest just from the input I received here! I am excited to bring my daughter back home and for us to have this precious time together!
Again thank you all!!! I am sure I will have more questions once our stuff arrives and we begin this journey!!

Patty....we have come a long way baby!!! Amazing we are on a homeschool board together...talking about homeschooling OUR LITTLE ONES!!!! Who knew!!!!! God answers prayer in the most unique ways! Beth in Idaho