From the article: Autism Homeschooling Resources
Parents helping parents... Sharing your story can be encouraging to other parents that are homeschooling their autistic child or are considering it. Do you have a "golden nugget" to share or maybe an encouraging word? What advice would you give to someone considering homeschooling their autistic child? What methods have worked for you? What has been your biggest obstacle? Share Your Story
Legal assistance for HS parents
- (Denise) - Do not allow ANYONE to bully you out of homeschooling your child. Contact HSLDA at 540-338-5600. You can join the organization for about $115 per year (or less if you qualify) and their attorneys will take care of everything at no additional cost. I was told about HSLDA by another homeschooling parent who was being harassed by anti-homeschooling mongers. Homeschooling children with autism is an act of desperation triggered by the inadequacy of the available educational programs. Our children need much more than 'any' special education teacher and 'any' special needs classroom and no one wants to invest the time and the money. Hence, we take matters into our own hands. After endless useless meetings with schools and school district officials I realize their only interest was to have my child endure the pain and suffering till he aged out of their system AND they kept blaming the problems on autism rather than on the inadequacies of the programs and set ups at large.
- —Guest New Paltz, NY Parent
Better Than Ever
- My 8 year old with Autism and Mitochondrial Disease is doing better than ever being homeschooled. We work at his pace, are able to build on skills so we can head off regressions and his health is so much better not being exposed to the latest virus at school. I worried about socialization with his autism, but positive behavior modeling works much better when you control who the behavior model is. It was hard in the beginning but when you learn your child's strengths and weaknesses and what to expect from them it gets easier.
- —Guest JennyGA
Homeschooling Autistic Child
- While homeschooling my autistic grandchild has been a challenge it is well worth it. We go to Lowes on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays of each month for free woodworking class and that is incorporated in his class work. We do videos and computer learning games.He is very visual and this is great. We have a very flexible schedule and when any kind of weather change happens his schedule changes. He seems to have trouble with atmospheric changes are problematic. We do frequent field trips. He also learns thru music and has very good pitch. We often return to the basics for reinforcement and to boost his confidence and helps him want to advance. We have added a life skills class to help him get ready for adulthood since is will turn 12 this month. Life skills include kitchen skills, cleaning skills, even keeping his room up by himself. Progress is slow but celebrated at every step and when we fall behind we go over past skills to help with self esteem and reinforcement. He is doing well considering autism.
- —Guest Pam Rodriguez
Go with the flow
- This has been the first year homeschooling since my boy is in Kindergarten & it's come with challenges, but oh what rewards!!! People ask what curriculum I use, & I say "none". I use a mix of workbooks from various places (dollar stores, Scholar's choice, Walmart, etc), educational games & flashcards (homemade & store bought) & print out worksheets from online that build vocabulary. To heck with traditional curriculum! Do what works for YOUR child because all children with Autism are different. Work with their strengths & then work on their weaknesses & never never NEVER give up! It's worth it.
- —Guest Lara
One out of our 5 is autistic
- All my kids were home schooled from preschool to high school graduation. All are grown up now. Judah did not relate to text books like the others. Instead, when I'd read a paragraph, he would race around the room and act it out. For him, I switched to library books and unit studies that worked for him. Videos, more discussion- less reading, more hands on activities, lots of copying out of spelling words, he would learn by doing. What worked was sticking with his interest areas- mainly animals to begin with. So we delved into the rainforest, the ocean, the desert, etc. I got him an animal atlas and he just about memorized it all. Home schooling is not the end goal. The end goal is life-long learning. So your main job is to motivate your child to want to keep learning. Judah is an adult now, working in a special program, living at home. He has gained comprehensive knowledge of the human body, nutrition, geography, world politics, weather systems, all from researching on his own.
- —Guest Joymarie
Homeschooling our Surprise Package!
- I have 4 kids and my husband has 4. Together we have 7. 4+4=8 right? In our case, wrong. We share our youngest, the 9 yr old. The rest of the children are 19-29, all of them have a disability of some sort. I should have homeschooled my oldest and wish I had continued with my youngest. Our 9 yr old has autism & dyslexia, loves dinosaurs and does therapy. We do a lot of reading with math, geography, science, and penmanship thrown in. We have our good days and bad. On the bad days, we take a break and learn or read about dinosaurs. If we're having a really bad day, we watch a movie about dinosaurs! On the good, we do our homeschooling. One day at a time, one step at a time. I mix something he doesn't like to learn first with something he likes every day and it works pretty good. Now if I could just get rid of my husband's hand held games!
- —Guest Familytreeclimber
14 yr old son NC with Aspergers
- My child mainstreamed till middle school. Then he not only digressed but mentally shut down . As we got over one hurdle, the hurdles doubled, then tripled. When they took out his extra EC assistance last year in our county to mainstream all children, all day, it was a huge blow. Add to that a bully that had been unstopped for the second year in a row and had increased his aggressiveness toward my very unassertive son and we knew we had to get him out of the situation. I never realized just how far they had allowed my very bright child to fall behind until I was given the opportunity to teach him first hand. As a former preschool teacher of 13 years, I have to admit teaching a teen with special needs was a bit intimidating at first. Still is actually, and we have been doing it for 8 months. But his growth academically, mentally, and socially has made it a choice I would NEVER reconsider at this point in his life!
- —Guest Brenna T
Homeschooling - you can do this!
- I've been homeschooling since the first grade. My son had early intervention in preschool & kindergarten. He is now a teen, in 11th grade. It's the best decision you'll ever make. We started with Sing,Spell, Read & Write. What a wonderful program! An Autistic child has a connection with their mother. You may not always feel that way, because they can't always express it. But the bond is there. Who better to teach your child than YOU?! You will see better results at home. If I can do it, you can too! Some programs that have been successful for us... Sing,Spell,Read & Write - Autism & PDD products from Linguisystems, You Can Do ( math DVDs) multi-sensory, exercising, musical , touchmath , Math u see by Steve Demme, software & books from Mayer-Johnson, a website with Picture symbols, news, recipes & more ( www.symbolworld.org ), hands on science models & kits. Getting involved in Special Olympics, Easter Seals & homeschool groups has also been a blessing. God bless you
- —gohealthgirl
Homeschooling for kids with autism
- We are the parents of child with autism. He was in special education for 5 years in USA along with home based program. But after five years of ABA, it was not effective for him although it will work for some kids. So we changed the program to verbal behavior which again not successful. He was having issues in schools especially in small groups as he is very sensitive to sounds. Later we moved to India and we were not quite happy with the programs there. So we did homeschooling for our son. We took him for Speech therapy and OT twice a week. At home we were working on his language, potty training, feeding etc. We also used tread mill, swing, rocking chair as calming strategies. So it really worked for him and we saw improvements in language, potty and feeding issues. But he is still sensitive to sounds. We take him to parks frequently for role model and socializing. There seems to be a long waiting list (2 years) in schools in Singapore. So homeschooling is the only option for some.
- —Guest raravi
Homeschooled with autism
- I'm not a parent, I'm a teen that's 13 in the 8th grade and homeschooling has been a great asset for me. In the public school, I had to deal with teachers who underestimated me. I needed help in literature. I'm great with reading itself, but understanding the reading can be a hit or miss. My teachers underestimated me. I'm a really smart person and people don't understand. In homeschooling, I can do what I want when I want, without any restrictions. I can explore and take my education completely in my own hands. There was a lot of stress and drama in school and I was having trouble functioning socially. I wanted to make a friend, but I didn't have the social skills to make a friend. In the public school, I was unhappy with the services and my program so I wanted to be homeschooled and I was very angry. In homeschooling, the teachers are not stopping me from learning what I want and doing things my way. In school, I was confined to what they were giving me. That stinks.
- —Guest Jeffrey Martell
I wish I would have done this sooner!
- I'm a single working parent with a 12 year old son with autism and sensory integration disorder. I do not have an extended family to lean on. When I tell you I took my son out of school, you must know it was an act of sheer desperation; and the best thing I've ever done for my son! The sum of: schools and school districts with their political decision making, inexperience and/or uncaring and/or clueless classroom staff (I have come across some amazing teachers but they are an endangered species!), therapists, etc, all contribute to create school environs that make our kids crazy. Since I took my son out of school everyone involved in his care (dentist, orthodontist, music teacher, etc) have told me this boy has changed radically for the better. He can focus better, stay calm, is a lot less anxious, learns faster, speaks better, sleeps better, etc. If you can manage the logistics, please go for it. It will be the single most wonderful thing you'll have ever done for your child.
- —Guest Membername
Mom
- My daughter Crystal is in the 8th grade she has HFA, Tourette’s and severe anxieties. I tried public school but teachers didn’t seem to know how to educate her. Crystal scored high in Woodcock Achievement Tests yet would be failing in class. Diagnostic Testing showed my daughter had processing delays and written expressive language difficulties, along with autism. By Jr. High, classes were just too overwhelming and she continuously zoned out. I refused to allow my child to fail, so I began taking the work that was given in school and proved I could teach it to her at home. I worked one on one with her and refused to allow her to give up. I realized if the work was given in small chunks she did not feel so overwhelmed. Also, I read Crystal’s educational books with her, we would take turns reading out loud and discussed a paragraph at a time, that allowed her to stay focused and helped with comprehension.
- —Guest April Markham
Home schooling autism
- Well done to all of those with patience enough to home school these amazing children. Learning in their home environment can only be a positive step. Having worked as an Integration Aide in primary schools and being aware of the disruptions that so often occur in a school room situation...I say keep up the good work all of you.
- —Guest caroline
Court ordered to attend public school
- We were homeschooling until the state got involved 2 years ago, now our son, who has Autism and is non-verbal, is court ordered to attend public school and we cannot homeschool him any longer. Yes, it is an outrage and we are at a loss not knowing how to get our freedom back from the state. We desperately need to be able to homeschool him again.
- —Guest Denise
One day at a time
- I am raising my grandson who has been diagnosed with Asperger's. Homeschooling him was the best choice for him, especially once he reached Middle School. One thing that was difficult in the beginning was the changing from one subject to another, especially if it was from one he liked to one he didn't. Now, we study only one subject a day and the ones he likes least of all, like History is done early in the week, "Over and done with" he says. Also, we have found is pick the details he will retain is easier. Nothing long and lengthy. He seems to retain more that way. We end the week with spelling, his easiest and his best. I also make sure he gets lots of short breaks.. and he gets extra credit for staying on task and for doing his best.. This may not work for all, but it sure helps us get through the day faster and easier.
- —Guest LauraP
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