• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Luv'N Lambert Life

Luv'N Lambert Life

A blog about living with Epilepsy, IBHS, Homeschooling and so much more

  • A Bit About Me
  • Epilepsy Awareness
  • Contact

Struggling reader

Homeschooling with God’s Blessing {Epilepsy Awareness}

August 7, 2013 by Dana

Nine years ago around this time, it was time to enroll my sweet baby boy, my oldest into public school.  I totally wasn’t feeling it.  It just seemed wrong to me to send my sweet and curious boy away to someone else all day.  So this lead me to research.

I immediately got online and began researching our schooling options.  I had come across Homeschooling somewhere on a parenting board.  It intrigued me and I wanted to know more.

We {my now ex-husband and I} had just went through a long ordeal of beginning our journey into Epilepsy with Emmalee.  She was still just a baby, around a year old and had been doing great on her medicine though she would have the occasional breakthrough as the dose grew weak during her growth spurts.  School would be coming up for her before long too, as time has a way of flying.  I knew I did not want her to go through the same things I had as a child in public school with Epilepsy.   I researched homeschooling even more.

I prayed.  I remember I actually got down on hands and knees for this one.  I continuously prayed.  I’d look at my children and say a prayer, “God just show me what to do”.  I’d be in a store and think, “what should I do about school for them?”

It didn’t take long for the answer to come.  One day, I was shopping in a thrift store and came across some How to Homeschool books.  I grabbed them up.  A few days later I was dropping off some unwanted items into the local swap building and discovered a stack of homeschooling curriculum someone had dropped off.  Since it was free swap, I grabbed it up too.

I came across our homeschooling association.  I put off calling.  After finding the items mentioned above, I decided to give them a call.  They were absolutely wonderful!  So caring and so helpful.

I went to the local library the association had suggested.  I spoke in person to the lady in charge of curriculum materials for homeschoolers.  She was a blessing to me!  God was providing just the people I needed.  She showed me so much that day and taught me lessons I still give to others today.

I attended the New to Homeschooling class from our local association.  It was an “Ahhh” moment.  I left there still nervous and scared but so much more prepared for this journey than I ever realized I could be.  God had  more than answered my prayer over that few months.  Homeschooling was exactly what we were going to do.

We started homeschooling Winston immediately.  Emmalee would join in later.  I was prepared for only one kid.  I had invested in a Bob Jones curriculum from the local Homeschool Used Book Store.  I was determined this was going to be done right and that meant Public School at home.  No one would say I’m not teaching my kid!

Boy, how little I knew then!  It immediately failed.  We struggled.  Win hated school.  And those lessons have stuck with him for life.

Win is my hardest student.  He excels at Math.  He loves going outside to learn science and is hands-on about history.  He hates and is not good at reading.  We have used almost every program imaginable and still he struggles.

Emma excels at reading and trust me, I often question how.  We have used so many varied programs that she really should be struggling with it herself.  With all the time I have spent focused on her brother’s reading, she has really taught herself what she wants to know about the subject.  Sure the curriculum was there and it helped but the learning was all her.

{I am honestly proud, not only of her but she has shown me that I’m not a failure as a teacher after all.}

Over the years, we’ve kept plugging along with homeschooling.  There was a brief period in the midst that I enrolled the oldest two in Public School at the insistence of others.  I immediately regretted that decision when Emma began having migraines and seizure activity after being seizure free for a year.

And it was in that period of time that Win’s esteem suffered because the school made him realize what he never had: he couldn’t read at age 8.  Many boys don’t read at that age but they never explained that to him.  I’ve spent many a day trying to rebuild that destroyed esteem and let him know it’s ok that he struggles with something and it’s not the end of the world.  He will get it and he is getting closer to where he should be each and every day.

I pulled the kids back out of public school.  Emma’s health recovered almost immediately when we returned to our normal routine and she was able to rest and not stress.  Win and I are still working on the issues he gained while at public school but we are getting there.

Now here we are, 9 years later.  Over time, I have questioned our reasons for homeschooling.  I wonder if it was the right decision but then there is always something that confirms it was God’s will to me.

Just today, I thought about it.  I realized there is no way I could even begin to raise and care for four kids with three that have Epilepsy if I wasn’t homeschooling.  The schools in our area are not equipped for them.  Then there would be the issue of keeping up with their public school lessons, missing days, taking time off for rest and doctors, etc.  The truancy officer would surely be knocking on my door every week!

God knew just what His plans were for me as a Momma of children with Epilepsy.  He planned ahead, allowing me to Homeschool.  He blessed me with great children who love and listen and help each other along with Momma when she needs it.  He prepared us with a way to bond unlike any other and a way to learn that brings us even closer together.

As you consider your own journey into homeschooling, with or without medical reason, remember to pray.  Remember to ask God for direction.  Sometimes He will point you to Public School because He needs disciples to light candles in the darkness there too.  Sometimes He will lead you into Homeschooling because He knows it is what’s best for you, as has been our case.  Either way, the results will always be to Glorify God in the lessons and in Life.

Filed Under: 2013, blessed, Epilepsy Awareness, gift, god's blessing, homeschool, homeschooling, medical, our journey, reason, struggling learner, Struggling reader

Scaredy Cat Reading System Level One {Crew Review}

May 24, 2013 by Dana

Over the years, I’ve heard a lot about Joyce Herzog and her amazing educational products.  A dear friend began using the Scaredy Cat Reading System with her son this year and I thought to myself, “I wonder just how well it works”.  I was excited to find that Mrs. Herzog was to be one of our review vendors with The Old Schoolhouse Magazine this year and my product choice was, of course, the Scaredy Cat Reading System.

I chose the Scaredy Cat Reading System Level One – Letter Names and Sounds for my review product simply because I wanted to start from the very beginning with it.  This program is for both beginning and struggling readers, both of which I have at home.  I can tell you, it works amazingly well for both types of readers.

The Scaredy Cat Reading System is fun and not overwhelming for the student or the parent to use.  Lots of fun game activities keep the child intrigued and involved in their lessons, instead of allowing them to become bored and ready to quit.  It honestly reminds me a lot of school work when I was a child, before children were required to sit at a desk for most of the day.

The Scaredy Cat Reading System Level One comes fully equipped with an extensive teacher’s manual which explains how the program works, what is needed for the program and it’s exercises/activities/lessons, and printables which can be reproduced for use with the lessons throughout the program.  This guide prepares the teacher for what’s to come and gives a good start to being prepared to use the Scaredy Cat Reading System the best way possible.

The Scaredy Cat Reading System also introduces the Story of the Letter Master, which children must know to understand the purpose of the system.  The Story of the Letter Master is introduced in Comic Book style to the readers.  Included as a bonus is a CD with the story and other important level one songs.

Other things included with this program are the ABC Reader which is written in an easy form for children to absorb and understand.  Letters are introduced in fun fonts and styles.  Song lyrics are included in this reader for the student to follow along.  Stories and bible verses are also provided for the little readers to see the words in print.

The student activity book for this program is HUGE.  It’s jam-packed full of activities and lessons.  Much like the reader, the activities come in differing fonts and styles to keep the student intrigued.  Stories are kept simple for early readers and many lessons focus on letter introduction, allowing the student to really grasp each letter they are learning.  Lessons are easy to teach and follow along with, allowing the student a firmer understanding of what they are learning throughout the program.

Additional things included with this program are Reversal Prevention Charts which come in a clear page protector for your use. Letter charts to cut out and use with your student.  The games needed to complete the program and a game spinner for needed activities.

The Scaredy Cat Reading System is extensive and thorough.  It doesn’t take long to put it together and put it in place in your educational programming.  It’s a complete program and well-worth it’s investment at $75.  Additional student books can be purchased for $30 each which is a steal considering the size of the book and the extensiveness of the program.  Sample downloads are available on JoyceHerzog.com.

This is a program that we have enjoyed.  I worked with both my struggling and my new reader on this, which they really enjoyed doing together.  Several times a week, we’d pull out the reader and student book but what they really loved was the games we played.  Even my advanced reader enjoyed joining in with us on those.  This is something we will definitely be continuing to use in our homeschool.

To learn more about Joyce Herzog and her amazing educational tools and programs, please visit www.joyceherzog.com.

Photobucket 


 photo DisclaimerGraphic1_zpsf612f371.gif

Filed Under: 2013, crew review, Herzog, Joyce Herzog, level one reading, reader introduction, reading, Scaredy Cat Reading System, Schoolhouse review, SCRS, Struggling reader, TOS Review

Reading Kingdom {Crew Review}

September 6, 2012 by Dana

I cannot express how much I love this product!!  It is simply amazing.  When this review became open, I was unsure who I really wanted to use it with.  I thought it would be great for all three of my children but my son stood out the most since he’s my struggling reader.  So, of course, I chose him to use Reading Kingdom and it’s surpassed my expectations and his too.

Winston’s preferred method of learning is digital through video games and websites online, videos and lots of hands-on activities to bring things to life.  He struggles with reading simply because books are boring to him. Reading Kingdom has changed all that simply by making reading fun!!

Reading Kingdom helps promote reading skills and build reading strengths by using reading games, online incentives, and progressing at a child’s skill level.  Reading Kingdom teaches important skills such as sequencing, sounds, meaning, comprehension and more with it’s program.  It is super easy to use.  My son was able to work through the program on his own with sound cues throughout the program prompting him to move forward in his learning.  Nothing was over his head in terms of learning either, all adapted to his skills through assessment in the beginning of the program.  Lessons are a short 15-30 minutes each, allowing a child time to adjust to things he’s just learned about.

Reading Kingdom is definitely a program we will be sharing throughout the future.  It’s perfect for leveled readers as well as struggling ones like mine.  It captivates the child and keeps them interested in learning to read in a fun way.  My son absolutely loved the program which says a lot to me since it’s so hard for us to find a program that keeps him interested and fits his learning style.

Reading Kingdom is available risk-free for free for 30 days.  A subscription is available for $19.99 a month or $199.99 a year for the first reader and additional readers can be added $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year. Additional products are also available through the website for learning to read.

For more reviews of Reading Kingdom, please visit the Schoolhouse Review Crew blog!!

*Disclaimer – This product was provided to me free for a blog post review by Reading Kingdom and the Schoolhouse Review Crew.



Filed Under: 2012, crew review, kids reading, reading, Reading Kingdom, Schoolhouse review, Struggling reader, TOS Review

Read Naturally: One Minute Reader {Crew Review}

November 20, 2011 by Dana

The One Minute Reader from Read Naturally is an at home reading program developed to help build reading skills for children who may be struggling with reading and concepts in school.  One Minute Reader offers the extra practice that is often needed to build strength and fluency in reading. Simple, yet efficient, the One Minute Reader program is a blessing to any child.

The One Minute Reader provides materials based upon the average reading levels of E- Early First Grade through 5 Mid-Fifth Grade level.  Each reader provides a series of short minute long stories, an audio CD, a red and blue double end pencil, and a one minute timer specially made for the Read Naturally program.

While using the One Minute Reader the student marks off words they do not recognize the first time through with the blue pencil giving them a cold score.  They then listen to the story and read along with the provided CD.  Next they read the story again on their own.  They take a quiz to see what they have learned from the story, testing comprehension.  After that they read the story to an adult of their choice.  And finally they go through and mark the reader with the red pencil to gather their hot score showing how much improvement has been made while reading.

We really love the concept of the One Minute Reader in our family, though my children didn’t care a lot for the stories that were included.  However, this concept could be easily adapted to our own story books and probably will be in the future.  My children did enjoy having the questions to answer at the end of the stories, as well as the fun activities and stickers that were included for use with the program.  I also think had I been able to review a full set of the One Minute Reader instead of just a sample of this program we may have enjoyed it a lot more.  Still this particular program would make a great addition to those homeschoolers using a more formal type of curriculum, aiding in fluency and strengthening reading instruction.

You can purchase One Minute Reader through Read Naturally for $99.95 for the full bundle per grade level.  It is also available in a starter pack for $24.95 and per book for $12.95 each per grade level.  Extra timers, pencils and other accessories are also available through the website.

You can read more reviews of Read Naturally’s One Minute Reader and their other program, Read Live, on the TOS Homeschool Review Crew blog! 

Filed Under: 2011, crew review, fifth grade, first grade, One Minute Reader, one minute reading, Read Live, Read Naturally, Reading curriculum, reading fluency, Struggling reader, TOS Crew, TOS Review

A Quick Update: July 11, 2011 {Thoughts from Me}

July 12, 2011 by Dana

I know I haven’t been posting a lot lately but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been writing.  I think I have a half dozen or more posts just waiting to be finished.  I manage to get half-way through before becoming unable to finish because of children needing me or writers block on how to end the post and idea.

There is so much that I want to write about and say that it sometimes becomes a jumbled mess.  I am wondering if becoming a public reviewer was a good idea for me after all and I find it affects a lot of my thinking.  I know I’m going to love it in the end but I want to write things that my readers enjoy and get something from.  I don’t always feel I do a good job of that.  My decision to review publicly has left me thinking a lot about that.  I will say that I, like all  new reviewers, am anxious to get started and I am thankful for the opportunity to share my opinion with others on what I use and read.  I just pray my readers are able to get something from my reviews, to walk away wanting to try that product and find my opinions useful to their final decisions.

There are a LOT of life changes coming our way that I cannot talk about right now but they will majorly affect how we live now, how we go through our days and weeks.  One of them is reviewing materials.  Another is anxiously awaited and exciting our whole family.  One is changing how we learn, grow and share with each other.

The kids have started using their newest bible addition and are really enjoying that time during our day, though they don’t always want to listen – typical them.  Laycie is LOVING doing “kool” herself.  She wants to learn numbers and say sounds.  She does NOT want to learn letters and say numbers.  She is so sweet and has a mind totally of her own.

Winston is going back to 100 Easy Lessons and enjoying it this time.  I used it years ago and it did nothing for him but now he’s really liking it a lot and is flying through the lessons pretty quickly.  My plan is to let him get at least 1/4 of the way through the book, then start him on the Funnix program again (which coincides with 100 Easy Lessons) for “extra” practice in reading.  He already has much of the needed concepts, he just struggles with his secureness in them.  I’m hoping working through this program will give him the confidence he needs to take off in his reading.

He and Emmalee will both continue using Pathway Readers as their reading curriculum this year.  Emmalee is secure enough in reading that she will fly through it.  I’m hoping with the 100 Easy Lessons/Funnix instruction Winston will follow right along with her.

They are both helping to instruct baby sister in her daily lessons, teaching her the Alphabet and it’s sounds as well as counting, adding and subtracting.  She absolutely loves the attention from them and it is helping them to become stronger in their own skills.  Its a beautiful thing to watch your children learn and teach one another!

There is much to come for us.  For now though, we must remain patient and let God continue his work in our life.  Soon I will finish those half-written posts.  Soon there will be many reviews coming from me from various places.  For now though, we are just enjoying our Lambert Life.

Filed Under: 100 Easy Lessons, 2011, Funnix, preschool, Review, school, sibling love, Struggling reader, thoughts from me, writers block

Primary Sidebar

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Archives

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy

Facebook

Facebook

Copyright © 2023 · Genesis Sample on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in