Guest guest Posted May 29, 2003 Report Share Posted May 29, 2003 > I've seen alot of talk of how most of our children sem to suffer from > both handwriting as well as writing issues. This again describes my > oldest son. Yet the technology people would not recommend the use of > a computer because his typing skills are worse than his handwriting > skills. And the school does not provide typing lessons. Anyone else > run into this? Also what can I do in the way of other modifications? > My son will have to take SOLs again next year. And right now he can > not write what I think is a decent paragraph. > > Thanks, a It does take awhile to learn keyboarding skills well enough to be able to use the keyboard effectively in the classroom. My son is going into eighth grade, and the school may provide him with a laptop next year. Meanwhile, he has had accomodations in his IEP for years. He is not required to copy work of the board or to take notes. As an alternative, the teacher provides him with a cope of the notes, or his aide takes notes for him. He is not penalized for spelling and punctuation mistakes, except in the cases where that is specifically being tested. He is given modified writing assignments - he often has to write less and is given alternative subjects He is allowed alternatives to writing in essay tests - such as giving the answers orally It's helpful to understand that Aspies have a lot of problems with multi-tasking. Taking notes from a board, a talking teacher, or - as I learned the hard way this year - off a video, can be difficult to downright impossible. Kathy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 29, 2003 Report Share Posted May 29, 2003 In a message dated 5/29/03 11:04:03 AM Eastern Daylight Time, rybabysmom@... writes: > And the school does not provide typing lessons. Anyone else > run into this? Also what can I do in the way of other modifications? > My son will have to take SOLs again next year. And right now he can > not write what I think is a decent paragraph. > > Thanks, a > Oh yes, yes, yes. I actually got typing put into the IEP and they still did not bother to teach him to type. Now he's 14 yo and doesn't want to learn to type because he likes how he does it. I had a list of modifications a while back. I will look up where I stuck the list and send it to the list shortly. Roxanna ò¿ò It makes sense to go up the molehill dressed for the mountain Nan, the Wiser Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 29, 2003 Report Share Posted May 29, 2003 In a message dated 5/29/03 6:58:14 PM Eastern Daylight Time, lbohn@... writes: > I would have it written into his IEP that the school use Mavis Beacon > (typing > tutor program on the computer) to teach him keyboarding. If he needs it, > they > need to provide it, don't they? Roxanna? Pam? > Liz > Oh yes, you are right Liz. If he needs it then they need to teach him. The fact that he doesn't know how to type is no reason to not provide a keyboard. Most logical people would think, " So teach him to type! " but not some schools. lol. Roxanna ò¿ò It makes sense to go up the molehill dressed for the mountain Nan, the Wiser Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 29, 2003 Report Share Posted May 29, 2003 I would have it written into his IEP that the school use Mavis Beacon (typing tutor program on the computer) to teach him keyboarding. If he needs it, they need to provide it, don't they? Roxanna? Pam? Liz rybabysmom wrote: > I've seen alot of talk of how most of our children sem to suffer from > both handwriting as well as writing issues. This again describes my > oldest son. Yet the technology people would not recommend the use of > a computer because his typing skills are worse than his handwriting > skills. And the school does not provide typing lessons. Anyone else > run into this? Also what can I do in the way of other modifications? > My son will have to take SOLs again next year. And right now he can > not write what I think is a decent paragraph. > > Thanks, a > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 30, 2003 Report Share Posted May 30, 2003 Liz, we have Mavis here at home, and that's where learned to type. 15-20 minutes a day, June, July, August, and he is quite proficient. / 4makelas@... Way, Way Up in Northern Ontario Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 31, 2003 Report Share Posted May 31, 2003 > What's the most appropriate age to teach a child to type? > > Alison Hmmmm...good question. I'm not sure if there is a particular age, since readiness will vary from child to child. Nowadays, in our school, the kids are using Alphasmarts in first grade. Of course, they aren't being taught the official finger positions. They let them hunt and peck, but after all those years with computers and Alphasmarts, my son who is completing 5th grade is a darn fast hunt and pecker. I think that, at almost 12, he is ready to learn, from a physical standpoint, but I don't know if he'll have the self discipline to spend some time each day on it. That's what his brother did last summer (at my constant reminding, of course) which put him in a good position to start taking keyboarding classes, which were taught in 7th grade for him. He was 13. He now knows all the finger positions and the school is pushing him (at my request) to use the computer for more and more of his classwork. We all would like to see him be able to use a laptop for notetaking eventually. I hope it happens, but I also am aware that there is more to the matter of notetaking than just typing out the notes. He also has to listen and process and sort relevant from irrelavent information, or copy information off a board. All of this may be beyond his abilities due to difficulty with multi-tasking and problems with visual/motor integration. There are good, fun computer programs available that can make learning to type fun. At a recent IEP meeting, the school suggested I go to Zany Brainy where you can try out a program before you buy it. Kathy Kathy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 31, 2003 Report Share Posted May 31, 2003 Hi, Our school district starts teaching keyboarding in 1st grade. They have a target of at least 15 words/minute by end of 1st grade. I have no idea if starting at that age is a good idea. My daughter's testing by a developmental pediatrician put her in the 1th percentile in ability to imitate with her fingers and I think her ability to isolate each of her fingers is right around there, too. I fear that trying to learn keyboarding could be very frustrating for her right about now, but it is ultimately a useful skill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 31, 2003 Report Share Posted May 31, 2003 Alison, At 's school, they started teaching keyboarding in sixth grade. They used the computer program Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing. They worked more on keyboarding in middle school. (In our district middle school is 7th and 8th grade) Liz Alison T wrote: > What's the most appropriate age to teach a child to type? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 31, 2003 Report Share Posted May 31, 2003 Last year, when used Mavis Beacon to learn to type, he would do 15-20 minute as soon as he returned home from his day out (school or camp). So long as he had access to the computer immediately when he came home, he had a routine going and didn't forget. I think it's a mistake to let them hunt and peck and then expect them to do it properly. It's like learning to type on a regular keyboard and then switching the positions of the letters around ... with , the first time learning anything it needs to be done the right way. After he's done it one way, there IS no other way! He has had innumerable problems with fine motor skills. Many exercises and OT visits to the school esp for printing. He's cursive exempt for high school. He had an awful time learning to use scissors and has an occasional tremor, too. But learned to type quite handily and is quite satisfactory now. He can type right from his thoughts to the keyboard, too. / 4makelas@... Way, Way Up in Northern Ontario Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 1, 2003 Report Share Posted June 1, 2003 In a message dated 6/1/03 11:56:54 AM Eastern Daylight Time, rybabysmom@... writes: > Thanks! I always say though their are two battles. One is to get > stuff into the IEP. The second is to see that the IEP is actually > carried out. Sometimes it's easier to do it yourself or go private. > > a > > >Oh yes, yes, yes. I actually got typing put into the IEP and they > still did > >not bother to teach him to type. > Definitely. There are definitely two battles to wage in this business. And at first, I kept pushing that they had to teach him to type because his IEP said they had to. Yep, they had to...they had to...they had....ugh. They never did and time marches on. I learned a lesson there. <G> I bought him two typing programs at home to use. One is a typing game called, " Typing of the dead " (ha!) and dead mummies walk towards you and you have to type the letters over their heads to make them go away. Now he did like that except he didn't type well enough and didn't want to practice...he is a tough customer. I stillwant to work on it this summer. My 6 yo is going to be using an alphasmart too and I want him to practice too. Roxanna ôô What doesn't kill us Makes us really mean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 1, 2003 Report Share Posted June 1, 2003 In a message dated 6/1/03 12:33:06 PM Eastern Daylight Time, rybabysmom@... writes: > Ok I have to ask: what is alphasmart?? The list of what I do not know > seems never ending. a > <A HREF= " http://www.alphasmart.com/ " >AlphaSmart, Inc.</A> Stick around with us and you will soon solve that problem! Roxanna ò¿ò It makes sense to go up the molehill dressed for the mountain Nan, the Wiser Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 1, 2003 Report Share Posted June 1, 2003 Roxanna, Thanks! I always say though their are two battles. One is to get stuff into the IEP. The second is to see that the IEP is actually carried out. Sometimes it's easier to do it yourself or go private. a > Oh yes, yes, yes. I actually got typing put into the IEP and they still did > not bother to teach him to type. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 1, 2003 Report Share Posted June 1, 2003 Ok I have to ask: what is alphasmart?? The list of what I do not know seems never ending. a > Hmmmm...good question. I'm not sure if there is a particular age, > since readiness will vary from child to child. Nowadays, in our > school, the kids are using Alphasmarts in first grade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 1, 2003 Report Share Posted June 1, 2003 > Our school district starts teaching keyboarding in 1st grade. Is this for everyone in first grade?? They have computer class here, but typing has yet to come up. And my oldest is in 4th. I complained about that just the other day. And the teachers agreed w/ me. It should be taught much earlier. a Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 1, 2003 Report Share Posted June 1, 2003 You just described my oldest to a " t " ! a with , the first > time learning anything it needs to be done the right way. After he's done it > one way, there IS no other way! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 1, 2003 Report Share Posted June 1, 2003 > > Our school district starts teaching keyboarding in 1st grade. > > Is this for everyone in first grade?? Yes, except perhaps the special day class. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 15, 2003 Report Share Posted June 15, 2003 In a message dated 5/29/2003 6:57:37 PM Eastern Standard Time, lbohn@... writes: > > I would have it written into his IEP that the school use Mavis Beacon > (typing > tutor program on the computer) to teach him keyboarding. If he needs it, > they > need to provide it, don't they? Roxanna? Pam? > It needs to be an identified need and then the team has to agree on how it will be worked on..either through a typing program or alterative means. Pam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 16, 2008 Report Share Posted January 16, 2008 Thanks, Val, I just sent a note to my Congressman and both senators. I appreciate your efforts. ~Haley madeskv <madeskv@...> wrote: Hi everyone, I would like to let everyone know they are in my thoughts and prayers, especially Sharon C and Vicki right now. I hope that everyone will be doing better soon. I also wanted to let the group know that I have finally received my reasonable accomodations from my employer. I have been transferred to a different department where I will not have to work in the sickest building. For the new members of the group, I had to wear an N95 mask while in the building in order to keep somewhat safe. I just finished a course where I wrote a research paper on the Americans with Disabilities Act. What I found was very disturbing. 90% of the requests for accomodations are denied. There have also been studies that show that the average accomodation costs just $500. I am glad I didn't know the first statistic prior to asking for mine. There is currently an effort to have the Act restored to what was originally intended by Congress - before the Supreme Court made decisions that have supported businesses over the disabled. Please (if you are able) contact your representaives and ask them to support this effort. Info is below- * THE ADA (Americans with Disabilities) RESTORATION ACT (HR 3195, S 1881) would reverse recent Supreme Court decisions, such as the one which ruled that people who use medication to manage their condition are no longer protected by the law. Val Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 17, 2008 Report Share Posted January 17, 2008 Hi Haley, Thank you! I think the whole thing is disgusting. So many people would love to be able to work and maybe they just need some small accommodation to do it. The companies don't seem to want to bother. My research found a few experts suggesting this attitude may have to change due to the changing demographics of our society, especially the baby boomers retiring. take care, Val Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 17, 2008 Report Share Posted January 17, 2008 I also sent it to the advocacy group of the Kindey Foundation... I haven't seen them DO anything with it, but, I put it out there. ;-) Appreciated the heads up. ~H. Madeska <madeskv@...> wrote: Hi Haley, Thank you! I think the whole thing is disgusting. So many people would love to be able to work and maybe they just need some small accommodation to do it. The companies don't seem to want to bother. My research found a few experts suggesting this attitude may have to change due to the changing demographics of our society, especially the baby boomers retiring. take care, Val Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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