Podcast: Exploring Learning Differences
Today’s homeschooling families are often well-versed in their children’s special needs: whether the child is struggling to read due to dyslexia or struggling to handwrite due to dysgraphia or needs to hop on one foot to learn math because of ADHD!
This episode of the podcast explores the ways you can create an environment that supports those differences. I also give you some tips on what to do if you would like expert support.
A disclaimer for this episode: we are not trained experts and our specialty is not special needs, and anything we share today is based on our own experiences and research. So nothing in this episode should be considered clinical diagnosis or expert referral – this is all parent-to-parent sharing.
Tips to Keep in Mind
- All learning differences and all learning styles deserve a unique parent! If you have five kids, you’ll have five approaches.
- When we look at a child and think something doesn’t match the preconceptions we have, what we’re doing is comparing that child to traditional education standards.
- You may notice that when a child has difficulty with one thing, they compensate in other areas. So how are your kids expressing their learning in a way that you can validate?
- If your child is challenged by speaking or writing, you want to foster an intimate dynamic so that your child has an opportunity to feel emotionally safe and take risks. Julie absolutely recommends supporting them by being a transcriptionist, hired hand, and secretary.
- Catch your children in the act of thinking!
- If your child is uncomfortable around other people, consider finding them support in the form of pets.
- Put your children in environments that show them themselves, show them their strengths! That may be a camp, a sport, or even a game.
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Help a homeschooler like you find more joy in the journey. Thanks!
