Worried about how far behind your special needs child might have fallen after this year of online/hybrid/homeschooling, maybe even NO schooling at times? You're not alone. But take heart--no one had good schooling this past year--so even typical children have fallen behind at this point. It was unfortunately inevitable.
So, What Can You Do?
Take Stock of Where Your Child Is Right Now - Is your child still doing the same math as the grade before? Has your child moved ahead in reading, or possibly regressed? Look up what your child should have learned in the grade just completed--then you can see how much you might need to catch your child up and in what exact areas there is a need for help.
If Your Child Is Behind From This Past Year, Consider Hiring a Special Needs Tutor for Summer - It's not too late to start catching your child up! But you need a special needs tutor who knows how to pinpoint the issues a child has, then create specific targeted individualized lessons that will enable your child to move ahead quickly. Most tutors and tutoring centers have "one size fits all" programs they try to pull your child through--but from being a mom of a special needs child myself, I know that our special children all learn differently and thus need a tutoring method created especially for each of them. I've been creating individualized specially targeted lessons for my special needs students for 25 years (including my own son when I had to homeschool him at one point)--I can do the same for your child as well. Have a FREE 1hr chat with me so I can hear all about your child and your concerns, and I can fill you in on how my special needs tutoring can work to help your child too! click here OR go to www.tutorpaulabcba.com
Read With Your Child Every Single Day - I can't stress this one tip enough! As a special needs tutor, I see a lot of students who have difficulty reading, and I can always help unlock the block that's causing them not to be able to move forward in learning to read. But the one thing all good readers have in common is that they read a lot. Reading is like any other skill--you need to practice practice practice in order to get better! You couldn't learn to ride a bike by just doing it sometimes, it takes consistent practice--and so does learning to read. So make time every day, every night, to read with your child. Even if he/she cannot fully read just yet and you'll be hiring a special needs tutor to help--the exposure to seeing the words and hearing you read will help your child! Keep up that reading time, all through the summer!
Explore the World and Do Natural Science and Math - Did your child learn money this past year? Then make sure you let him/her help count out the change to pay for that ice cream from the ice cream truck when it comes around this summer! Ask your child how much money you need for the parking meter--can you figure it out together based on the hours you're going to spend at the beach? Find and use natural opportunities to reinforce and teach math! And science--it's ALL around us--on walks, at parks, up in the sky at night, and even on our driveways! (I know of some families in our area who have encountered rattlesnakes and even tarantulas on their driveways!) Follow the phases of the moon, learn how it affects the tides, maybe go to a beach at lowest tide to explore what's uncovered when the moon pulls the water away from the shore (Leo Carrillo Beach in my area is great for this!). Have fun discovering science in nature, and all around us, all summer long!
And remember--not all tutors are the same. A special needs tutor is like a specialist--she has more experience with our special needs children and knows how best to teach them and reach them, when other tutors/teachers have failed to help them learn. She goes above and beyond what the regular tutor does, which for me means spending extra time to personalize and individualize each lesson, not just to adapt to the specific way your child learns, but also to bring in your child's unique interests so he/she stays engaged and motivated. I have spent the past 25 years helping many special needs kids and individuals, when other teachers and tutors failed to move them forward--I can help your child get back on track and loving learning again too! Don't waste the time the summer gives us--use this opportunity to catch your child up by using a special needs tutor. Talk to me for a FREE 1hr chat (click here to sign up)--tell me all your concerns and goals, and we'll create a plan together for moving your child forward academically! www.tutorpaulabcba.com