An Important History: Our Story
When I sent my oldest son off to kindergarten at our local public school, he was a bubbly, talkative, outgoing child who loved learning. He was a walking encyclopedia of Science. He loved learning about animals, nature, and all things dinosaur.
After five years in public school, my son was depressed. He cried in the evenings after school. He wouldn't look anyone in the eye, and he hardly spoke a word to anyone. He was convinced he was incapable of learning.
What happened between Kindergarten and the end of fourth grade? My son was diagnosed with learning disabilities. He was kicked on the playground, had his head bashed into the concrete to "knock some sense into him", was called moron by his peers, and told by his teacher not to bother to do assignments because he couldn't do them anyway. The administrators and teachers said my son would never learn to read well. They literally laughed aloud in an IEP meeting when I said I thought my son was actually gifted and he wanted to go to college. They told me I needed to lower my expectations, and said, "He is NOT college material."
My son was bullied, belittled, and devalued by children and adults virtually every day at school. He made no meaningful educational progress during his five years in public school and my son's joyful, eager-to-learn spirit was crushed by the time we began homeschooling.
Although I had no background in education, I figured I could do no worse than the public school. I read everything I could about my child's disabilities, his learning style, and about the best way to teach him. I knew my son was able to learn. I believed in him. Educationally, he needed what every child needs:
- to feel encouraged,
- to be seen as capable,
- and to be taught according to his unique needs.
You may wonder how well homeschooling works for kids with Learning Disabilities..
After eight years of homeschooling, my son is now enrolled at a Georgia University where he received an Honors Scholarship. On the ACT college entrance exam, my son's composite score was at the 95th percentile. He scored at the 97th percentile in math and at the 99th percentile in Science. He started his freshman year with 39 credit hours earned while he was in high school, and he currently has a 3.75 GPA. **CLEARLY**, My son is a gifted learner. He just needed to be taught with love, encouragement, patience, and compassion, just like every other child needs.
Ownership of the need to help kids, and my personal passion, drove me to start helping other children too. I founded Learning Abled Kids to provide information, support, and assistance to parents who are homeschooling their children with learning disabilities. There are over 1500 parents in the Learning Abled Kids' support group. I earned a Master's Degree in Instructional Design so I would be well qualified to help parents develop educational plans for teaching their children.
We should all be concerned that children with learning disabilities are belittled and educationally neglected in our public schools because my story is not a unique one. There are roughly 6,000 homeschoolers in our county. Approximately two thirds were previously in public school, and they homeschool because their child's needs were not properly met in public school. About half of those have learning disabilities.
Kids with learning disabilities are all of **average**, or **above average**, intelligence because by definition a child must have an average or above average IQ to meet the criteria for having a learning disability. These children are quite capable of learning. Like my son, these children need encouragement and to be taught properly. Every one of these children needs someone to believe in him.
There is no doubt in my mind I rescued my son from a terrible educational outcome. Whether you help parents, schools, communities, or work directly with the kids, you will save lives through your work. If you save even one child from the kind of educational neglect we experienced, you will give that child his very life--A life full of hope and a future where the sky is his limit. Your passion and ownership of educational solutions will make a
difference for tomorrow's kids.
Please become an advocate for kids in your care, believe in them, and teach them according to their needs--not by doing what is easy. Each child is a gift from God and an opportunity for you to learn and grow. I know I have grown in countless ways by teaching my child. You too will grow in compassion, patience, love, and understanding if you look at each child as a precious opportunity to build a future citizen for our community. ;-)
Best of Luck and HAVE FUN! :-D
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Sandy Cook has two children with specific learning needs including dyslexia, dysgraphia, attention deficits, and executive dysfunction and is webmaster of Learning Abled Kids. She has completed 56 hours of Orton-Gillingham training, is a trained Special Education Advocate, and will complete her master's degree in Instructional Design in Fall 2006.
Article published October 7, 2005 at:
http://reliableanswers.com/hs/learning_challenged_child.asp