The Art of Learning

On Saturdays, it's my job to teach my 11-year old son, because my husband does it all week.  I teach Language Arts and Art.  Language Arts is fine - I'm pretty comfortable with that - but Art is another issue.  I am creative, but not artistic.  I can craft, but don't make me draw a picture.  There is a lot of picture drawing involved in this class.  There are no patterns involved.

As part of this teaching gig, I'n learning about elements of art.  Line, color, shape, texture, are part of my vocabulary now, but only to the extent of appreciation.  Today we were learning about balance.  The easy type of balance is "formal."  It's the easiest to understand because it's simple symmetry.  We also learned about radial balance, in which items "radiate" from a single point, frequently unseen.  The best example I can give is a fan.  Finally, the last form of balance we learned about was "informal" or asymmetrical balance.  That one was the most interesting, but also the most difficult to understand.

As part of the lesson, Christian and I had to walk around the house looking for examples of each type of balance so he can sketch them.  Here's his example of formal balance (symmetry):

What I realized is that there is a natural sense of balance in all kinds of things.  I didn't realize that what I find myself doing when I take pictures is trying to achieve a type of balance, especially asymmetrical balance.  (Photography is the closest I get to being an artist, and I'm hardly a good photographer.)  But, I will say that learning some of these elements of art might make me a better photographer, so at least my scrapbooks (if I ever make them), will be more interesting.

One of the best things about working with my son is that I get to channel my inner teacher.  I've taught a bit, mostly informally.  I really like it.  If I weren't a lawyer, I would like to be a teacher.  But doing this one-on-one with my son is a great opportunity to connect with him on a totally new level.  It's awesome to see the lightbulb go on when he grasps a new concept.  So, with something like art, we're learning together.  Cool.

cindy

Back to School

You would think when you live in one of the hottest places in the United States that schools wouldn't get started until after Labor Day.  Nope.  School started yesterday - it was 114 degrees.

Ahhh, well, summer in Phoenix.  Here are my lovelies on the first day of school:

Can you tell which one is going to a brick and mortar school and which one is going to an online charter school at home?

A year ago I wrote about my son's ADHD and his difficulties in school due to deficits in executive skills.  In January I wrote about how we were trying to address his issues through a 504 plan.  Those two posts basically summarized our difficult experience last year and our attempts at the beginning of the school year and the middle of the school year to find a way to deal with the problems.  It didn't work.  By the end of the year he was failing nearly every subject.  Funny thing is, based on his test scores in class, he was a B or C student.  He was failing because he couldn't turn in the homework we worked on for hours the night before.  He couldn't remember where papers were, or what he was supposed to do on assignments.  He had no organization, sense of deadlines, executive skills.  I'm sure it sounds like most boys, but for our guy it's making him think he's a failure.  If you want to understand more about what a lack of executive skills can do to a child, check out this article from WebMD.

This year we're trying a different approach.  He is starting 6th grade and we knew there was no way he would be able to handle different subjects with different teachers with different expectations and teaching styles.  By the end of the last school year, we made the difficult choice to take him out of a traditional school, opting instead for an online charter school.  It's a lot like home schooling, but with a very structured curriculum.  My husband is taking on the big task of being my son's learning coach, sitting with him every day while he goes to school.  It's a bold experiment, with the goal of getting his executive skills up to par in time to return to traditional high school.  This timeframe is not random - research shows that children with ADHD who have deficits in executive skills (also known as executive function) are usually about 3 years behind their peers in this important aspect of learning.  It poses a direct risk and obstacle to learning in a classroom environment.  In addition to the curriculum through the online charter school, we will be working on exercises and practice on learning executive skills - how to prioritize, organize, focus on a task, use notes, planners and a calendar to know what is coming and summarize what you have learned.

I hope this isn't going to be a post I have to repeat this time next year.  I do hope that by January I will be able to report some progress and a more motivated and positive kid.

cindy

The Disorganized Child

At the beginning of the school year I wrote about my ADHD child that was lacking executive functioning; that is, he can’t organize himself or remember what he needs to do.  It has been a real struggle in school, especially as he approaches junior high school age.  We went into this school year with an elaborate system how to get him organized and help him get past this lack of executive function.  Well, that didn’t work so well.  At the end of the first semester, he is struggling academically, not because he can’t grasp the subject matter, but because he doesn’t do or turn in homework.  The good news is I have learned to accept the temporary academic shortcomings because I know he is a smart and capable kid.

We recently initiated the 504 process with our school.  The 504 plan is a guarantee under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that a child with a disability receives accommodations to “level the playing field” with children who don’t have that disability.  Disability is defined as anything that affects essential life functions, including learning.  A 504 is different from an IDEA that addresses children with learning disabilities so they can have equal access to education.  It’s a subtle difference, but basically a child with an IDEA needs special education or learning resources, where a child with a 504 needs circumstantial accommodations within the classroom.  

The school has been very helpful in working with us to choose accommodations, but we did have to be firm, advocating for the help we need.  It has been especially helpful to have the school psychologist assist us.  She understands that the problem isn’t that my son is lazy, but rather that he can’t follow a series of directions.  We are trying very hard to keep it simple – a translucent folder for “turn in” work and a manila folder that stays in the backpack for “bring home” items.  The teacher and parents are responsible for getting things in and out of the folder.  In addition, the school has agreed to publish homework assignments on the web and accept assignments that are late for full credit.  The hope is to enhance my son’s self confidence and generally improve his academic reports.

It’s still very scary, especially as we approach the grade level when he will have multiple teachers.  However, it is vital for us to have a 504 plan so there is no confusion about what the accommodations will be.  Whether it is ultimately as successful as we hope it will be, remains to be seen.  We intend to keep trying.  I would highly recommend that anyone in a similar situation seek out a 504 plan with the school.  This website has some great FAQ and more information about a 504 plan.

cindy

Homework

So school has been in session for several weeks now and it's starting to get difficult for my dear son.  Maybe that's not quite right - it's starting to get hard for ME.  We have been trying to work on our routines and coping strategies and it has worked somewhat.  However, he is still having problems getting the homework turned in and assignments written down in his planner.  With activities getting into full swing, it's getting frustrating for both of us.  (When activities get going, that means Kentster is not home in the evenings because he has rehearsals and meetings.)

To add to the frustration, dear daughter wants more attention while she does homework.  She doesn't have the attention problems dear son has, but she does resent the amount of time her brother gets every night.  (You really have to sit on him so he stays on task with the homework and his sister is a serious distraction if she is in the same room.)

I'm trying to regroup on the strategy while I write this.  We have eliminated television during the week already, but I think Kentster and I need to eliminate computer time until all homework is completed.  We also need to keep the bedtime routine on schedule, beginning at 8:00 p.m.  It's all written out on laminated papers stuck to the bathroom mirror - each of them has a schedule that goes in the opposite direction:

Shower (wash & brush hair)
Brush teeth
Lay out clothes for tomorrow
Get backpack together (binders, homework organized)
Put shoes and backpack by the door

It's much easier than nagging because all you have to say is:  "Look at your list."

I think something else we should try is to specifically schedule homework time for timeframes between school and bedtime.  What I mean is everyday has a different schedule of activities - performing arts, choir, instrument lessons, Girl Scouts, etc.  If we have set times on each day, it might make it easier for me when I'm sitting here at 8:29 and dear son hasn't started his bedtime routine that was supposed to begin at 8:00 p.m.  We can also give him a sense of time so he has a better concept of how long it takes him to do his homework (and everything else).

Breathe deep and count to 10 . . .

cindy

School for the Disorganized Child

Most people make resolutions in early January.  In our house we make resolutions in August and September.  Our son CJ will begin 5th grade in less than 2 weeks and he's not the only one dreading it.  CJ has ADHD and struggles with focus even with medication.  He seems to float through the day, more comfortable in virtual reality worlds of games and TV than in real life.  It's challenging for parents who are highly motivated overachievers.

At the end of the last school year, I found myself in tears in front of Kentster, CJ's teacher, the school speech pathologist and school psychologist.  While the teacher shared our serious concerns about CJ's inability to keep up, the psychologist was more interested in telling us what they couldn't do for him.  I begged for guidance, a clue, SOMETHING that would help us unlock what CJ needed to succeed.

So here we are again.  It's almost August and we have resolutions to find a way to help our son.  Over the summer we unlocked some answers in great books about executive functioning:  "Organizing the Disorganized Child" by Dr. Martin Kutscher and Marcella Moran, and "Smart but Scattered: The Revolutionary 'Executive Skills' Approach to Helping Kids Reach Their Potential," by Peg Dawson and Richard Guare.  As I've read these books I've been wondering how these people snuck into my house because they are definitely describing my kid.  The basic premise is that some kids (especially ADHD kids) lack the "executive skills" (not CEO skills, but more like the basic organizational skills to get from point A to point B) to organize their desks, much less their cluttered minds.  As a result, we now have some new resolutions which are developing into strategies to get this school year off to the right start.

I'm convinced that resolutions are a sign of faith and hope that all things are possible with God's guidance.  However, I'm a little skeptical about our ability to perservere when the school year (and church year and legal year) gets more hectic.  Check back with us after the first quarter is over and let's see how we're all doing with our "executive skills" :)

cindy