>>> Part 2 of 4...
 
she had to do, and she didn't understand...she had to circle sets of 10
on this page, but the rows weren't even, and in the example shown in the
book, the sets were evenly numbered across.  So she missed all of them.
She was really upset, but I told her that just meant that *I* didn't do
a good enough job explaining it!  She gets a sticker or two, or 5 (!),
an A+ to an A++, a smiley face, and an encouraging comment on EVERY page
she does!  She'll get up in the morning and run to her workbooks just to
read what her grade was, what I wrote, what sticker and how many she got!
It's great!
 
What has Chelsea learned since I started doing this?  A lot!  And it's not
taken a great amount of effort on either of our parts...me to teach it,
or her to learn it.  I believe it is all in HOW she was taught at school,
and wonder 95% of the time if she was EVEN taught!  Here's the list of her
accomplishments:
 
Learned what the vowels were
Learned what their sounds are
Learned what a Consonant is
Learned about words ending in "e"
Learned how to sound out words from the first letter
Learned letter combinations ... oy, ay, ei, ie, ai, eo, ou (and others)
Learned one's, ten's, and hundreds... can now count PAST 100!
Learned how to space words
Learned to ALWAYS write her name on EVERY paper first
Learned to ALWAYS read the directions on any given page second
Learned to ask for help if needed
Has learned how to control letters from going above or below the lines
  in her writing tablet
Learned Capitalizing letters and which ones, and what punctuation to use
  and what they mean
Learned how to add and subtract double digits...i.e. 12 + 15 or 19 - 13
Handwriting has improved dramatically along with excellent spacing ability
Has more control when she writes
Uses Capitalization and correct punctuations on all her sentences now.
Has learned the differences between boys and girls, men and women
Has learned why we have to eat and drink, and what the food does for our
  bodies, and what happens to that which our bodies don't need
Has learned what our kidneys do
Has learned the structure of a tree, their importance, and what kinds
  there are
Has learned what drugs do to our bodies that we aren't suppose to take and
  why it is important for her to never take anything that mom/dad or the
  doctor didn't give her
Has learned the "stop, look, and listen" when crossing the road
Has learned car saftey
Has learned how catepillars become butterflies
 
We still have to work on coin values and telling time.  She's getting
better, but I think I just haven't figured out the BEST way for her to
remember what a Quarter, Nickle, Dime, and Penny are worth and how to
tell them apart.  I keep telling her and telling her, but she gets the
Quarter and the Nickle mixed up ALL the time...she still hasn't quite
mastered it.  As far as time...she knows the time on a digital clock and
understands what that time is...but still has trouble with hand clocks...
lots of work to go there.
 
I eventually want her to be thru a grade 2 workbook and entering a grade
three workbook in math, spelling, and comprehension before school starts
in the fall, along with being able to successfully count money without any
trouble, and to be able to tell time on a hand clock!  I've got a few
more weeks to go!
 
She is also in the Reading Club at our local library, and last week she
read 10 books, and this week so far she has read 6 books...we go to the
library every Monday, and she picks out her books, (I help her so that
she doesn't get something too hard for her to read), and then the library
always has a craft project, so her and I head in that direction and we
make the craft project, then she heads for the puzzles!  When we get home,
the first thing she does is read a book!  She is too the point that she
walks around the house spelling words out loud...reading labels when I'm
cooking, reading boxes, and words from the newspaper!  She's making such
progress!  I'm extremely glad that I am able to teach her as well as I
have been, but it also amazes me that her teachers gave her no credit for
anything, and just simply refused to help or explain things to her.  She
eventually will be doing independent work before school starts...but many
of the simple things I've taught her were taught in 10 to 15 minutes, if
even that, and learned just as quickly...enough that we could move on to
the next thing to learn.  You would think after 9 months in school, she
would exit first grade at least knowing her vowels...but she didn't know
them...10 minutes with me, and she knew them, and she still knows them.
It disgusts me.  I trusted her teachers to teach her the most basic of
basic aspects of beginning reading...Boy was I ever wrong!
 
 DT> But still, you are the best advocate your child has and you should 
 DT> remember that.  
 
Most definitely...and if they were sick of me last year, you just wait till
school starts this year...If I have to go to school with her EVERYDAY to
ensure she is taught, I will...If I have to go to the school board in her
defense, I will...If I have to hold an assembly in her defense explaining
her epilepsy, I will...nothing will stop me from helping my daughter or
ensuring that the school in which we pay 2.33% taxes now, teaches my
daughter in the correct fashion, rather than pushing her to the wayside
because they can't handle her shaking hands, nervousness or anxiety.  It's
time for them to grow up...my daughter is more mature than they are.  The
 
 >>> Continued to next message...
 
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