Life really is the best lesson in homeschooling

I've said it before and I'll say it again, learning while living is a terrific option for homeschooling dyslexic children. The unschooling method is really paying off for us.

Learning to live, living to learn, or both

I'm in a homeschool group and one of the other families has a dyslexic son as well. Both our sons are into game design, so we thought we'd get them together often to work on a project of their own choosing. We really didn't set up protocols or expectations or any kind of curriculum. We just thought we'd let the kids figure it out on their own. They would plan and develop their game and we would just let the whole thing be a learning experience.

At the very least, they would learn teamwork and compromise. At best, they'd create a really cool game we can sell on iTunes.

The only thing us parents did was help decide which program would be best for them to work with. We chose Blender because it is free (big plus for both families), and there are a lot of video tutorials, user forums to consult and support for the program and its users.

The first time we got the boys together, my son, Nick, showed Jacob Minecraft and Blockland. These building games are perfect for teaching physics in games and creating scenes, plot, action and other things games need. Nick has been using the games for a long time and I'm often surprised by what he comes up with. He created his own Blockland Zombies series on Youtube with the Blockland program as well as doing his own animation. He can set up situations in Blockland and Minecraft, and it's basically like an introduction to coding and design.

The second time we got the boys together, they got serious. Jacob's dad is teaching him Python, the code language Blender uses, and Jacob had written some code for the game. Then the boys discussed characters and what the characters would be doing. When Nick got home, he began working on a model for the game so the boys can have something to work with. He did this all on his own without me having to prompt him.

Truthfully, I don't know what they are doing. I'm beginning to think I need to learn more about Blender so I can at least know what they are talking about. I know that I might be of assistance with the artwork because I am a graphic artist. Nick has been talking about creating textures in Photoshop, and I know ALL about Photoshop. I know I could help there.

But I'd also like to know what's going on because I'm curious. I'd love to be able to get more creative and I've seen some of the things other Blender artists have come up with. I'm really, really amazed. Nick and Jacob are off to a good start with the paths they are choosing for careers. But I think it could also help me venture into new avenues in my own career.

A learning experience that couldn't have gone better

So this is turning out to be a big learning experience for all of us. And it is all just from living our everyday lives and following our dreams.

Dyslexic students can look forward to bright future

I found this interesting article about a study performed on dyslexic boys, following them through their lives over a 55-year period. The study confirms what I (and many of you as well) already knew: our dyslexic children are bright and have a promising future. Here's the link: Dyslexia and Adult Careers.

Back to the blogging

I haven't written in a long time and I wanted to let everyone know I'm still here. I moved and lacked Internet for a while. Now I'm settling in to my new house.

When the student becomes the teacher

One thing I really wanted to share was something my son requested. Nick and I were watching a DVD he got in the mail from the LEGO company. I am always amazed by the creativity employed by the designers and the people who love LEGOs. On the video they showed a behind-the-scenes look at how LEGOs are made as well as several snippets of master builders at work. They also showed LEGO conventions and some of the amazing work LEGO lovers around the country create.

Of course, I know LEGOs are an important teaching tool for math, science, art and history (and maybe more). I use them frequently (see my post on using them after studying Egypt) to help enhance the lesson and make it fun.

However, my son piped in with his own idea for using them in history that I never really thought of. So I'm sharing because this is right from the student's mouth. He decided history (his most disliked subject) would be more fun if we could just act out the whole lesson with LEGOs.

I learned my lesson! LEGO history acting, here we come! It would require a little more planning and some scene and dialog development, but it would certainly be fun and if my son says he would like to do it, then I'm all for it. If he helps with the scene and dialog development, then he's learning everything he needs to know even before we start the show. I told him it was a great idea.

Reading and spelling successes

We've been working a great deal on Nick's spelling using the All About Spelling program. We completed the Reading Horizons at Home program and his reading is spectacular now. He reads without being asked and he enjoys it! He's even asked me to buy him books in a series he's been enjoying.

However, his spelling was still ... hmmmm ... lacking. So we have been working through the All About Spelling program to fix that. Even though he's 13 now, we started at the very beginning because I wasn't really sure if there were some basics I might have missed in my teachings. Just trying to get him to memorize a list of words every week never worked. He'd memorize the spellings and could pass a test with a 100 percent, but never spelled them correctly in his regular writing after the test was over.

So I thought this program, which teaches rules rather than memorization and uses multisensory teaching, would be better. I had started it a long time ago, but it sort of fell by the wayside for a while. So I picked it up again and finished the first set, and started on the second. In just a few short months I've noticed a tremendous difference in his spelling skills.

What I find most odd, however, is that his spelling on those sight words, like "said", is still not there yet. We've been texting each other a lot and he spells "said" phonetically ("sed") but in the same text spelled "animation", "watching" and "video" correctly. I'm going to keep going with the program though because I know the sight words are addressed soon. I'm really impressed with how his spelling skills have improved thus far and have faith they will continue to improve.

That's all for now

Sorry to keep it short but I've got other blogs to apologize on for my absence. I also have to get some education into my boy!