Cultivating a growth mindset in my kids has had an amazing impact on our day-to-day interactions. Where I used to hear a lot of negative self-talk, I now hear my kids actually coaching themselves to use another strategy or telling me to wait while they 'find the...
I loved going to school everyday as a kid. I loved the tidy rows of desks and the matching textbooks and workbooks. I loved completing assignments and checking of all the boxes. When I first began homeschooling, I set out to create this same environment for my own...
I've been cutting back on speaking a bit as I try to be mindful of balance in my family life. However, I am super excited about these 3 conferences coming up! Click on the links for more information or to register. Modesto,...
Teaching kids with dyslexia to read at home has never been easier thanks to the development of parent-friendly Orton-Gillingham programs. The programs in this comparison of the top 4 Orton-Gillingham reading programs were chosen because they are affordable and...
There's not a mom out there that doesn't desire a more productive homeschool day. Juggling the many needs of running a home, caring for family needs, and nurturing a marriage can often leave us out of time or out of energy when it comes to teaching our kids at home....
One thing I've always loved to read is homeschool day-in-the-life posts. There's just something fascinating about seeing how other families teach their kids at home. I've been writing my own day-in-the-life posts since 2012. I just went back and read some of them and...
Several years ago, one of our kids was majorly struggling with learning to read, despite 3 years of intense professional Orton-Gillingham (OG) reading instruction. In fact, at 11-years-old, he was still struggling to do much more than sound out three letter words! It...
Does your child think that a square and a circle look the same? Does he bump into things, spill things, or seem unaware of where objects are in relation to his body? Does he skip words or entire lines when reading, or read the same sentence over? All...
Do you have a child that has trouble following directions, keeping up with conversations or understanding jokes, or has trouble with reading, spelling, speaking, or rhyming? These could be a sign of auditory processing weakness or auditory processing disorder which...
What is Executive Function? Executive Function refers to the set of mental skills that help people plan, organize, remember things, prioritize, pay attention and get started on tasks. They also help people use information and experiences from the past to solve current...
Do you have a child who fails to follow directions despite repeated instruction, has difficulty staying on task, has a poor attention to detail, or often looses track of their belongings? Weak working memory may be at the root of their struggles. What is Working...
Phonemic Awareness is a foundational skill necessary for reading. Using apps to teach phonemic awareness is a fun way to sneak some learning in while you and your kids are having fun. What is Phonemic Awareness? Phonemic awareness is a foundational skill for reading....
One of my goals for this year is to read more. Not with my kids - but for my own learning! Coincidentally, I have stacks of books around our house that have been recommended to me as a dyslexia tutor/advocate. I'm plowing through some of these now by reading a little...
I read a beautiful blog post last week from Sara at Classically Homeschooling that really got me thinking. Sara is a classical educator (as is my family) and was writing about homeschooling 'non academic' kids with the classical method. The classical model is known...
Finding the best dyslexia-friendly homeschool curriculum is an ever changing process. Kids change, needs change, subjects change, finances change. Fortunately, finding the best deals on dyslexia-friendly homeschool curriculum is easy if you know where to shop. ...
Parents can struggle teaching writing to kids with dyslexia because although our kids usually have lots of creative ideas and could talk all day about them, the ability to write and spell those amazing words is often limited. Personally, I have often struggled...
Taking time each quarter to plan for and organize your homeschool will help you have the most successful homeschool possible. After more than 20 years of teaching my kids at home, I've finally got to a place where I can set goals, make priorities, and avoid many of...
Teaching reading to a dyslexic learner takes time, dedication and hard work. There is no quick fix and if anyone tells you that there is, they are probably trying to sell you something that you don’t need.  It was once believed that a child may outgrow his or her...
You've done the research. You've chosen your homeschool reading curriculum. How can you best prepare to use the information and tools you've acquired to have a great year of reading? Teaching reading to kids with dyslexia isn't exactly easy, but spending an hour now...
Teaching reading to kids with dyslexia, especially a houseful of kids with dyslexia, can seem to take all day. Here are my top tips for getting more done and making time for some extras. We've all been there. We've done the research, purchased the curriculum, and...
Teaching kids with dyslexia can be expensive with tutoring costs, special curricula needs, and technology needs. I compiled this list of free dyslexia resources that I have used and appreciated. Check back often as I will be updating this page regularly. Free Ebooks...
Welcome to the 5th and final post in the Understanding Multiple Intelligences 5-day series! Read the whole series from the beginning here. In the first post of the series, we talked about what the theory of Multiple Intelligencesis and how it can transform the way you...
Welcome to the 4th post in the Understanding Multiple Intelligences 5-day series! Read the whole series from the beginning here. In the first post of the series, we talked about what the theory of Multiple Intelligences is and how it can transform the way you and your...
Welcome to the 3rd post in the Understanding Multiple Intelligences 5-day series! Read the whole series from the beginning here. We talked about what the theory of Multiple Intelligences is and how it can transform the way you and your kids look at intelligence. We...