My little homeschoolers, Goober & Bub, are almost in seventh and third grade, respectively. Bub also has Asperger's which definitely affects how we do our schooling. If Bub is having a difficult day or being "spastic" (my term for how he gets when he's out of control), we typically pare down our day and make up the work another day. We do what I have coined "Literature-Based Homeschooling". We use a good piece of literature as our base and all our subjects are worked in our this book. For example, if we are reading The Secret Garden and the main character comes across a snake, we look it up and learn about that snake and/or other reptiles. For that same example book, it is set in India in the beginning so we gather all the information we can about that country. We do most of this from our couch and we truly love and have joy in schooling now. Incorporating science, social studies, history, bible, and more in with a book we love keeps us happy and focused and we don't suffer as many burnouts as we did when we stuck to a rigid schedule.
We do use a grammar curriculum (usually Grammar by the Book), and math is not included in our regular program either (we use an online curriculum for math: Goob uses Thinkwell, Bub uses CTC Math).
We love homeschooling and I cannot say enough good things about our style of learning. It wouldn't work for everyone but it certainly works for us. :)
Your Bub sounds just like J. If his schedule or order gets even slightly changed he has a meltdown (yes, even at the age of 14). J has never been diagnosed with anything more than ADHD, Tourette's and slight OCD, but he did have a teacher that used to work with Asperger kids that said he fit the criteria almost perfect. I wouldn't change him, after all he is exactly what I asked God for when I prayed for patience.
ReplyDeleteIf you ever have the want to have him diagnosed (or evaluated, I should say), I can give you the name of the child psychologist we used. She was amazing and really did a great job of making sure she got a good feel for who he is and what he struggles with. She was wonderful.
ReplyDeleteYou're right about patience! God works in mysterious ways, and I've always been very impatient. Bub teaches me every day what it means to be patient and find it when I have none left.