Benefits of Homeschooling

Deciding whether or not to homeschool can be a difficult decision for parents.  It’s hard to know what the benefits of homeschooling are if you have not experienced it for yourself.  If you are like me, you went to public school and feel like you got a decent education.  There is also something to be said about the public school experience…riding the bus, a classroom full of kids, and later prom and varsity sports.  We want to do what is best for our child and it is difficult to know whether the answer is for her to go to public school just like you, or to venture into unknown territory and  try homeschooling.  I’ve come up with a list of pros and cons that will hopefully get you thinking and maybe help with your decision.

Pros to Homeschooling:

1.       Your child’s education can be customized to meet her specific needs and learning style. As we know, every child is different.  No person has the same interests, abilities, or learning style.  So why does our public education system put children into the same class primarily based upon age, rather than by ability or learning style?

For example, in the public school system, why isn’t a 6 year old able to take a science class with 8 year olds if she is capable of comprehending the material and shows a natural ability in the area of science?  With homeschooling, this is able to be done because each child is able to explore her particular interests and set the pace of instruction.

Just as with interests, every child also has a different ability level in each subject.  Why do most public school systems expect children to be at grade level in every subject area?  As in the example above, the girl has a natural ability in science, but maybe she struggles with spelling and grammar.  With homeschooling, the pace can be adjusted for each subject to meet her needs.  This flexibility is especially helpful with children who have learning disabilities and/or special needs.  The curriculum can be designed and adjusted specifically for each child.

Every child has a different learning style, also.  Some children rely mainly on visual input to learn, while others rely on auditory input, and yet others rely on a kinesthetic mode of input.  Usually a child will be a combination of the three, with one mode being the strength.  (Read more about AVK  learning styles.  You can also take the VARK test to determine your own learning preference.)  In the public school system, what do you do if a teacher uses mostly visual and auditory methods of teaching, and your child is mainly a kinesthetic learner?  With homeschooling, the teaching style can match your child’s learning style.

2.       The world is your multisensory classroom. With homeschooling, teaching a child is a part of daily life.  Your child learns from everyday people and experiences.  A child can learn to interact with people of all age groups, rather than just her peers.  Multisensory opportunities are abound, as any day of the week can be a trip to the zoo, art or science museum, monument, or nature walk.  School can become like one big “field trip”, which unfortunately is not the case in most public schools.

3.       Ability to control the content taught to your child. With homeschooling, you are able to incorporate art, music, history, science, and geography into the curriculum which may not otherwise be taught in the public school system.  Also, you are able to instill your family’s beliefs and teach your life philosophy to your children.

4.       Ability to spend quality time with your child. As every parent knows, children grow up so quickly.  With homeschooling, you are able to spend precious time together with your child every day while learning and creating new memories.

Have I left any benefits of homeschooling out?  Please let me know in the comment section below.  Also, stay tuned for my next post on Downsides of Homeschooling.

How to Teach the Concept of Time at Bedtime

Understanding the concept of time is an important milestone in language development and early learning .  So after my daughter learned the 7 days of the week, I wanted to teach her how a calendar works so she could start learning about the year, months, days, and holidays and start to grasp how a calendar can be useful.  I hung the calendar in her room where we would see it and not forget it at bedtime.  As part of our nightly routine she puts an “X” in the box to cross off the day.  I ask her questions such as, “What day (number) is it on the calendar?”, “What day of the week is it today?”, “What month is it right now?”, “What year is it?”, and “What is today’s date?”  Sometimes we review the days of the week and months of the year.  Initially I started off with only one or two questions until she started to get the hang of what I was asking for and got the answers right.

I also found it extremely helpful to use stamps to represent birthdays, holidays, and weekly events on the calendar.  For example, I have a stamp that says “Happy Birthday!” with balloons on it, so I use that to represent each family member’s birthday.  She enjoys looking ahead to see who’s birthday is coming up next, and looking to see how far away her birthday is too.  I have a pumpkin stamp for Halloween and a bunny for Easter, but also use a bear stamp to represent our “Special Saturday Breakfast” (where I make whatever she wants…the request is usually chocolate chip pancakes!) and a butterfly when we go to visit the local butterfly garden.  You can even draw simple shapes to represent each activity, no stamp required.  For example, I drew waves to represent the swimming lessons she is taking twice a week.

The only thing that matters is using the same stamp or shape consistently for an activity.  By doing this you are providing a visual representation of the activity for your child, which he can use to help recall information about his day.  You can then ask even more questions like, “What did you do yesterday?” and “What will we be doing tomorrow?” and your child will be able to tell you based upon the stamp or picture you used to represent the activity.  This time also gives you a chance to review the day’s activities and discuss tomorrow’s activities.  Discussions like this will give him a better understanding of the concept of time and what ambiguous words like yesterday, today, and tomorrow mean.  Children enjoy this type of discussion and crossing off the calendar may quickly become one more thing that is required by your child before falling asleep!

Have you tried this yet or do you do something similar?  If so I’d love to hear how it’s working for you!

Better Speech & Hearing Month (BSHM)

The month of May is Better Speech and Hearing Month (BSHM), which was started by the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA) to raise awareness about communication disorders and to promote treatment that can improve quality of life for people experiencing difficulty hearing, understanding, or speaking.

Hearing loss can be caused by genetic factors, illness, and even ototoxic drugs (drugs that damage hearing).  But now one of the biggest concerns is the rapid increase in Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL) in children, mainly due to headphones from portable music players and other similar devices.  NIHL is painless and caused by exposure to loud sounds, usually over a period of time.  Occasionally NIHL can occur from only one exposure to an extremely loud noise.  Some examples of noise producers are personal headphones attached to games and portable music devices (the volume is too loud if you can hear music coming from the device), household appliances, musical instruments, toys, power tools, lawn equipment, and concerts.

You Know An Environment Is Too Loud When:

• You have to raise your voice to be heard.
• You have a hard time hearing someone only 2-3 feet away.
• You have ringing or buzzing in your ears, or another person’s speech sounds muffled to you.

What You Can Do To Prevent NIHL:

• Avoid or limit exposure to loud noises.
• Protect your hearing. (Ear plugs and ear muffs can reduce noise by 15-30 dB if worn properly.)
• Teach your children good hearing habits such as keeping the volume down (aim for half the volume of the device), limiting listening time, giving ears some quiet time, and knowing when an environment is too loud and may be causing hearing loss.

Hearing loss can cause problems in school, not only academically but socially.  The good news is that NIHL is preventable, so talk to your children and educate them about how to protect their hearing.  For more information about NIHL for parents and educators, and interactive games for kids, go to ASHA’s Listen To Your Buds!

Why Isn’t My Baby Doing the Signs?

You may be thinking to yourself…I’ve read your articles, I’m  following your 8 key tips for successfully teaching my baby to sign,  I’ve read other books…I think I’m doing everything right.  So why am I not getting the same results as you?!!!

Don’t worry, you are not alone!  Here is an excerpt from an email I received from a mom who is using sign language with her 11 month old daughter.

“I loved reading about everything on your site, but feel overwhelmed.  I’ve been signing milk, up, mommy, daddy, dog, cat, bear, horse, (several other animals because of her favorite book “Brown Bear”), baby, beautiful, sleep, dirty diaper, more, thank you, food and possibly a few more.  However she’s only somewhat got milk and that’s about it.  I’m consistently doing it and my husband is pretty good at remembering to sign too, but she’s not there yet.  It’s been 4 months since I started signing and she’s physically really advanced but I’m wondering if I’m doing something wrong.  As mentioned before, I feel overwhelmed.  I don’t want to home school, however I don’t want to stifle her growth either.  I feel like I’m doing a good job as a mother, but then I see your daughter speaking and using so many signs or a baby on a video who is reading at 15 months.  My daughter is only 11 months old and hasn’t clearly said her first word yet.  She’s walking already, but should she be doing more as far as signing, speaking, etc.?”

Just the fact that this mother is so concerned about her child lets me know she is a great mom.  It sounds like she is doing everything right when signing with her daughter too…using developmentally appropriate signs and using them consistently.  It is VERY common for parents to say the exact same thing this mother has expressed to me.  I think this often happens because babies are actually getting their needs met so well that they simply have no need to use the signs they know!  So the good news for this mom and others out there is that you are no doubt great parents and doing everything right.

I believe the difference in outcome comes down to two things: different babies and different approach.  What I mean by different babies is that every child has a different personality and will respond in a different way when exposed to sign language.  One child may pick up sign language very easily, whereas another might need more exposure and practice before he picks it up.  Or another child may be the observant type and will watch you do signs for months before finally making the sign himself.  It does not mean he cannot or will not ever sign, but for whatever reason is just not ready to sign yet.  Yet another child may simply not want to sign at all and will fight or even struggle with you because you want him to make the sign and he simply refuses.  With children like this I tell the parent it is not worth it in the long run if it causes unnecessary stress with your child.  Signing is supposed to be fun for both of you and if it ever gets to the point where it’s not, then I recommend you stop.  It may be something you can retry in a few months when your child may be more receptive, or may not be worth pursuing again at all.  Your child will not be harmed or unintelligent just because you do not sign with him.

For example, I have seen a difference in personalities and communication styles between my own two daughters.  The oldest is more willing to please but cautious, whereas the youngest is more stubborn and an adventurer.  When observing their communication styles, my oldest was talking much less but using more signs at 15 months old.  My youngest (currently 15 months old) is much more verbal and depends on speech to communicate just as much, if not more, than sign language.  My oldest was interested in learning about letters in the bathtub, whereas my youngest does not show that same interest.  Instead she is intrigued by dumping water from a container back into the tub.  Does this mean my youngest is not as smart as my oldest?  No.  She just seems to be more interested in the physical world and how things work, whereas my oldest is (and has been since a young age) more interested in the idea of reading and writing.  What this means is that my youngest may not be reading by 3 years old like my oldest or even care to read until she is 6 years old.  Every child is unique and different, so it does no good to compare yours to mine or any other child.

The other main difference in outcome is my approach to communication due to my background and training in speech therapy.  Communication is the exchange of information or ideas, which means at least two people must be involved.  What this means is I desire a response from my children (whether signed or verbal) before giving them what they want.  When teaching my daughter sign language, I want for her to do SOMETHING before I give her the food or object she wants.  For example, I may know she wants a cracker and even have them out.  I do the sign for ‘CRACKER’ and say the word “cracker” while holding up the cracker.  I then wait for her to do something…whether it is make a noise or do something with her hands.  What she does may not sound like the word “cracker” or look like the sign for ‘CRACKER’, but she gave me a response in order to get her cracker.  This exchange is actually teaching the foundation of communication.  Basically, you tell me what you want and then I can give it to you.  Or you say something, then me, and the exchange continues back and forth.  Only once your child understands that this back-and-forth exchange is important and needs to take place, will she use sign to communicate with you.

One important caveat to the paragraph above is when you are looking for a response from your child, make sure the situation and timing is appropriate.  Use common sense.  You do not want to make your child sit in a dirty diaper all day until he tells you it is dirty, or not give him anything to eat for several hours until he does a particular sign.  Also if your child is tired, hungry, or already upset then you do not want to force him to do a sign before you will meet his needs.  It should be done when you have a happy, well-rested, content baby who just wants another cracker.

In the end, the best advice I can give any parent is to trust your intuition.  As long as you feel you are doing what is right for your child, you probably are.  And your idea about what is right may change as you gain more information about a topic or even with the addition of another child who reacts in a completely different way to the things you do.  Your instincts are usually right, and I believe your child is yours for a reason…because you are the best mommy or daddy out of all the others for your child and you will instinctively know what is best.

Are you having any difficulties signing with your child or getting your child to sign back to you?  Or maybe you have questions about my approach?  You may comment below or contact me at karianne@earlybirdeducation.net.

Learning at the Grocery Store

The grocery store is a great place for children to learn different concepts.  Initially trips will revolve around being able to label or identify different types of food, but then trips to the store can be expanded to include numerous math concepts.  Ideas are listed by age group.

Toddler/Preschooler:

• Labeling/identifying foods- (”What is this?”) It makes it easy to learn all the different types of fruit, vegetables, etc. when the objects are right in front of them as compared to say a picture in a book. Let your child hold the fruit or vegetable even!
• Learning about categories- Mention how the store is set up…all the fruits are together (see how many you can see/think of), the vegetables are together, the meats, different types of crackers, cookies, etc. Visually seeing how all the items are grouped together helps solidify this concept.
• Types of jobs- Different people work in the store…baker, stock person, cashier, etc.
• We buy things- Introduce the concept that we have to pay money and buy things from the store before we are allowed to take them out. The cashier is the person we see at the end who sees what we are buying, tells us how much it costs, and takes our money.

Elementary:

• Prices- Point out that everything in the store has it’s own price, and that’s what the label is underneath each item. If you haven’t discussed money (dollars and cents), this is a good time to start doing so. Then as you shop, have your child practice reading the amounts on some of the labels ($2.99= “Two dollars and ninety nine cents.”)
• Price per unit- Show how (in most stores) the label has a price per unit, such as cents/ounces. Teach how to compare different products to determine which one is the better deal. Your child will first need to understand the concept of higher and lower numbers (e.g. 55 is bigger than 49).
• Reading- Practice reading signs and product names on packaging throughout the store.

Middle/High:

• Volume and weight- Identify what a gallon looks like compared to a half-gallon compared to a quart. Estimate the weight on something, and then check the package label to see how close you got. Usually in the produce section a scale is available too!
• Budgeting- Set up a budget. Plan a meal or shopping list within that budget. Are there any good deals at the store? How much can you save?

Also, I never leave home without a travel sized Magna Doodle but it is especially handy in the grocery store.  My oldest daughter loves to draw and write on it, so it makes the trip go much more smoothly (for me anyway!).  If you have one handy, then here are a few extra ideas.

• Letter ID- You write a letter of the alphabet and he tells you what it is. Once he is good at this, you say a letter and have him write it.
• Number ID- You write a number and he tells you what it is. Once he is good at this, you say a number and have him write it for you.
• Reading- You write a word down and have him read it to you.
• Writing- You say a word and have him spell it for you, or have him spell different items he sees in the store. This could be a fun way to challenge a reluctant speller.
• Play Tic-Tac-Toe! This is a good game to introduce the idea of strategy. Not only that he has to get three in a row, but he has to try to stop you from getting three! Until he gets the hang of it, point out that you’ve got two in a row, and then ask where he wants to go next to stop you. Do this game enough times and he will start to catch on. (This is also a great game to do in restaurants while waiting for your food to arrive!)

Have fun learning while you shop!

Why I Love Being a Speech Therapist

Simply put, I love being a Speech-Language Pathologist because it is such a gratifying career.  In high school I thought I wanted to be a physical therapist (PT), and even observed PT’s at the local hospital several times so I would know what I was getting myself into.  I should have known after watching a wound debridement (clearing away dead skin tissue) from a man who had severely burned his hand from hot roofing tar, that it was not my thing.  The thought of someone else’s pain and I don’t get along too well.  (So how I was able to give birth without meds is a different post!)   I started college on the PT track since it sounded good that I had direction and knew what I wanted to do with my life.  It only took until my second semester Chemistry 2 class that I realized it wouldn’t happen.  I struggled and made it through Chem 1, but after only a couple classes of Chem 2 I knew I would never be able to wrap my mind around the material.  I think I am a smart person, but chemistry and I don’t mix.  I ended up taking a Linguistics course instead and really enjoyed it.  So I took a Phonetics course, which led me to all the other courses in the Communication Sciences & Disorders field.

Unfortunately you have to get into a Master’s program before you are really allowed to start working with people which is pretty crazy since a big part of the SLP gig is being able to work well with people.  Fortunately for me I found I could quickly establish rapport with others, so combined with my interest in the field it was a good career choice.  It was only until after I graduated and started working in the real world did I appreciate how much I enjoyed being a SLP.  I have worked with young children in schools and adults in rehab/nursing facilities and love both, which is unusual in this field because most SLPs find they either enjoy working with children or adults…not both.  I  have found with children my job is to teach them how to do something new that has likely been a struggle and source of frustration, so they gain confidence and hopefully are more successful down the road.  With adults I have found my job is to help them relearn how to do something which is a new frustration for them, so they can successfully gain independence once again.  With children I get to play and with adults I get to listen to their life stories.  The common thread for me between children and adults is that every person just needs someone who cares about them and is genuinely invested in their future.  How easy is that?!  So you tell me that I have to wake up every day, help make another person’s life better, and you will pay me to do it?  Okay… I’m there!!

Have questions about being a SLP?  I’d love to answer them.

Monster Steam Mop

With my oldest daughter having contact allergies and my youngest still in the crawling stage, I decided that I wanted to reduce or eliminate the cleaners I used while mopping my floors. I just didn’t like the idea of my youngest crawling around on a floor mopped with cleaner and then sitting up and eating some crackers with cleaner still on her hands. So for Christmas last year I asked for a steam mop (and then thought only a mom would ask for this as a gift!). I did research on all the steam mops out there, with getting the best quality for the best price being my main goal. I settled on the Monster Floor EZ1 Steam Mop because: 1) it created the hottest steam of all mops out there (which is important for killing bacteria and makes getting dirt up off of the floor easier); 2) it came with 3 reusable/washable mop pads so I wouldn’t have any added expense; 3) it could be used on tile and hardwood floors, as well as carpet; and 4) it was easy to use.

I did get the Monster steam mop as a gift from my parents and have really enjoyed using it. For assembly from the box all I had to do was clip on the handle. I use distilled water in order to keep impurities from clogging the mop which will hopefully prolong it’s life. The directions recommend washing the mop pads by hand, but I throw them in the washer and let them air dry and they have continued to work fine. The steam mop has so far easily picked up juice, ink from markers, and dirt on my tile. I have also spot cleaned carpet (rather than dragging out my big carpet cleaner!) and it got dirt and juice out. The most noticeable thing was that after using the steam mop for the first time, our tile felt clean on my feet. The best way I can describe it is that the residue cleaners leave on tile makes it a bit slippery, but the slippery feel was noticeably absent after using the steam mop. I vacuum my tile first as the mop is not made for picking up large pieces of pet hair, food, and other debris but that is what I always had to do before mopping with any other mop. The electrical cord on the mop is not as long as my vacuum, so I do have to unplug it and move it once in order to mop all of my tile (so if that is something that will bother you plan on getting an extension cord). Lastly, there is a warm up period in order for the mop to heat the water into steam (about 5 minutes- so I plug it in while I finish the last bit of vacuuming) and if you need to refill the mop you will have to wait a few minutes for it to cool off before you are able to take the top off and add more water (watch out for the steam- it’s hot!). With all that said, I am extremely pleased with my Monster and highly recommend it!

Melissa & Doug

I pretty much like any product Melissa & Doug comes out with.  I have several puzzles (farm, pet, and safari animals, 51 piece floor puzzle of the United States) and two boxes of wooden blocks my daughters got for Christmas last year.  My oldest daughter has also played with the magnetic dress up dolls and enjoyed that.  The products are wooden and high quality.  Most products have a low rating on HealthyToys.org, although I found a few (specifically the plush/stuffed toys) that have medium ratings.

We also have the Melissa & Doug responsibility chart for my 3 year old.  We use some things that she can already do independently (like brush teeth and get dressed) for freebie smileys, and then a couple things that she is working on (like no complaining/whining, keep hands/feet to yourself, and my favorite house rule LISTEN & DO which we wrote on the extra empty magnet).  We review her behavior at the end of the day, and she has to earn a certain number of smileys by the end of the week in order to get a reward.  Rewards vary from a new book, puzzle, DVD, trip to the zoo or movies, or spending special time with a certain parent doing something fun…like a bubble bath with mommy or playing a board game with daddy.  The daily smiley reward and the end-of-week reward system has worked well for us.

BNL Snacktime!

Bare Naked Ladies have been a favorite since my college days, so I was surprised to learn that they had come out with a children’s CD.  After listening to a sample of a few of the songs I decided to purchase the CD.  We really like most of the songs, but could do without the “Food Party” and “Canadian Snacktime Trilogy” songs. My daughter’s favorite song is “Pollywog In a Bog” which inspired our multisensory learning experience about pollywogs.  I also found the “Crazy ABC’s” song smartly written and think it would be really fun for middle to high school aged kids to dissect the song and learn the spelling and vocabulary for all the words mentioned!  The BNL keep to their typical humor and cleverness throughout this fun CD.

Phonics Music

I happened upon this CD by accident, because I purchased a phonics workbook for some speech therapy students and the CD was included. As it turns out, my oldest daughter really likes the songs and learned her long and short vowel sounds from this CD. It also has other great songs about rhyming, ABCs, long and short vowel sounds, hard and soft sounds (c and g), silent-e, digraphs, qu- (stick together like glue!), and tongue twisters to name a few. I believe songs are an easy way for kids (and adults) to learn and try to incorporate them into whatever I’m teaching. I would recommend this to any elementary teacher or parent!

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