The Lesgaux School

I’ve often wished I could post more frequently. I envy those who can. It’s just that, life gets in the way. I constantly remind myself that it is the living and the teaching that are the priorities in life.

I have been enjoying being with my husband and boys. School has been going almost flawlessly. All subjects have been completed with minimal fuss. Ditto with housework. The yard needs work, but we’ll get caught up. The van is fixed. The dryer we thought we’d have to fix has mysteriously fixed itself.

When things are going well, I just have less to say.

The news on the van is bad. It needs a transmission rebuild, or a rebuilt transmission, or whatever… to the tune of more than we can afford. I’m not sure what we’re going to do. Though going without a car is rough, it’s not so bad. The downside is continuously coordinating with DH whenever I and the boys have to go somewhere. No more daytime or weekday groceries when the store is quiet. No more impromptu library or park trips. Everything has to be perfectly planned. Yuck! We’re still talking the financing over, so there may be hope yet. I have not found a vehicle, other than a minivan, that can comfortably carry 5 adults, some of whom may be over 6 feet before you know it and will still be in the back of the van. We drive our cars into the dirt and do not buy brand new ones. This latest van is a ’98 Dodge Caravan. We’ve had it for 7 years. In another 7 years, T will be 16. It’s quite possible that he will be 6 feet, with the others following close behind him.

School is going fine. The last two schooldays were finished completely without any whining or complaining. Nothing broken except a few pencil leads. Bliss. I wish all days could be like that. I am going to take in a deep breath of what this feels like so that I can duplicate it as much as possible when I need it.

Today I gave T the placement tests for Explode the Code. There is a huge disparity between T’s reading skills and his spelling skills. He tests out of the series for word identification. He does need to work on syllables, so book 4 would be a good fit; but I want to make sure he has the concepts that are in Book 3 down pat. To that end, I have decided to start T with Book 3 1/2. He could almost start with Book 4, but might get too frustrated if he encountered something he hasn’t covered. Frustration is a biggie with him. He totally melts down with too much. I’d rather slow things down a bit so that he can be successful before moving on.

Unfortunately, we’re not better yet. But…

We went today to the pediatric opthamologist to get D’s eyes checked. He has been wearing glasses since age 4 to correct a wandering eye. It’s great news! Fortunately, his right eye has improved and is now 20/50. His left eye is now 20/20. That’s a huge improvement. On his last visit, his right was 20/60 and his left was 20/30. It has been improving steadily since the beginning. We’re gradually reducing his prescription to strengthen the muscles in his right eye. No change to his prescription. In 6 months, he’ll get checked again and possibly start wearing a patch for a few hours a day to speed up his progress. His eye needs to be corrected before age 9 because that is when glasses/patching are no longer viable options and surgery and/or long term glasses may become necessary. My hope for him is to eventually be able to leave his glasses behind. This is a great improvement. I’m so happy!

Unfortunately, during the ride across town, the check engine light came on and the RPM’s seemed to be running a little high. Fortunately, we made it home without incident. Unfortunately, I had to cancel T’s appointment for tomorrow lest we all get stuck on the highway. DH will take it in on Friday, since he, too, has appointments that can’t be missed tomorrow. Sigh…

Maybe T will feel like doing some school tomorrow, specifically, the Explode the Code placement tests. We’ll see. Fortunately, while he was puny, I did catch up on housework and laundry. And finally, fortunately, all boys had baths and washed their hair this morning, so I don’t have to bother with that this evening.

OK. This has gone too far. T is feeling super crummy today. He has a tickle in his throat and feels "terrible".  He woke up at 11! He usually rises at 7. Just now, he moved from my bed to the couch. The little boys are coughing from the same tickle and R also has a runny nose. I was going to go out to get cough syrup, but since I now have 3 sick boys, I asked Daddy to bring some home so they can sleep. I am so thankful that I am feeling better. On the up side, I am catching up on some housework. Laundry should be done well before 4. I also spiffyed up the little boys’ room.

 As for school. I hope to do a little with D. after lunch. I’ve decided to use Explode the Code for phonics. Originally, I had planned to use it for D only, but after some consideration, I decided to use the placement tests for T as well. He may test out of the series, but there is a higher series, called Beyond the Code, that I think will be helpful. I had planned to start testing today, but, alas, I have to wait until health is better.

Update: D finished his placement tests for Explode the Code today. It will be Explode the Code Book 1 for him. He also completed his math and handwriting with much encouragement.

I just haven’t felt much like blogging lately.  I’m feeling much better, though still a little down. T and D both have needed a lot of encouragement to do their schoolwork. R has the sniffles. D, R and I still have a bit of a cough. I’m bummed because what I really want is to go outside and mow and weed and fuss around in the yard. I just don’t feel like it.

We’ve also been inundated with appointments, from dental visits for all three boys, to general practitioner for myself and DH, to others. For one upcoming appointment, I’ve been filling in the longest case history ever. I finally finished it and sent it in.

School has been happening, though not as smoothly as I like it to be. We’ve started Getty-Dubay Italics. T likes it. D is very resistant to trying anything new. As he is a fairly new writer, though, he’ll adjust. R has been enjoying his school desk, which we rescued from the black hole we call "the office".

I’ll write more later. I’m just feeling pooey.

The creeping crud I have been afflicted with is still with my, though to a much lesser extent. I just feel weak and cough a lot. My read aloud stamina has really suffered. It would probably help if R allowed me to sleep. At 3am, after suffering his kicks and breathing noises, not to mention, the pokes and jabs, I finally carried R back up to his bed. A more coherent Mama would have done this hours ago. By the time I settled back down into bed, I discovered that I was now wide awake. Great. Now I can ponder the whys and why nots of standardized testing.

As a homeschooler, I have always been ambivalent about testing. It is not required in our state. However, I have a new challenge. I am now teaching a boy that very may well have been put in a Special Education class were he in public school. In fact, he was. At age 6, it was determined that he would benefit from a self-contained special ed classroom due to his diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome. He attended that classroom for two days, during which he would not leave the door mat. Needless to say, I could do that at home. We have been homeschooling ever since. It is my belief that he would not be doing as well if we had kept him at that school.

His diagnosis has now been changed to High-Functioning Autism. He is 9 and would be in the 3rd grade if he were in public school. While he is struggling in some areas, he is ahead in others. In still others, he seems to be right on target. However, he has become concerned that he is "behind". I’ve tried explaining that he is on the right levels for him and that, since we school year round, he has plenty of time to "catch up". I, too, am curious. I feel that I am teaching far and above what I signed on for. I am not ready to quit, however. I just need to do even more research and work even harder to teach T what he needs to know. I am, in effect, a special ed teacher – one who has only one student (plus two regular students). Now I know where my teaching degree has led.

So, last night, I did a little more research. I remembered this website. They do standardized testing for homeschoolers. They offer the California Achievement Test, Fifth Edition – Complete Battery, and the Wide Range Achievement Test – Expanded Edition. I haven’t decided which one I’ll use, though I’m leaning towards the CAT. If you have experience with either of these or another you use, please drop me a comment. It would be greatly appreciated. I still have to talk to DH about this, though no doubt, he’ll be reading this post before I can get to him.