Rexanne's Web Review - Issue #27

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We had a lovely dinner Sunday for Grandpa Frank and Grandma Bobbie. (Thankfully, Grandma Co was in Europe or we would have had to choose! LOL!) The girls decorated the table with pretty flowers and Best Grandparent pictures. This was the first year we celebrated Grandparent's Day. I'm so happy we did. We not only had the pleasure of their company, but were able to honor them in a way we never had before. This will become a tradition in our family from here on.

This week's parenting topic is on learning disabilities. Next week, we will discuss school over-placement. Both issues I feel strongly about. (Oh gee ... what else is new, huh?)

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"You inspired me to celebrate Grandparents Day. You could tell that all four (grandparents) didn't know what it was. I sent out invitations with information about it from the National site you included. I'm having a luncheon just for them about them."

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Thank you for sending this, Rina. Our smoking readers appreciate your effort. Smokers ... eat lots of apples! It couldn't hurt and just might counter some of the serious side effects of our habit.

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Quote of the Week: If you want to succeed you should strike out on new paths rather than travel the worn paths of accepted success. John D. Rockefeller

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There are so many learning labels floating around these days ... A.D.D., A.D.H.D., Dyslexia, etc. Basically, these are labels pinned on kids who are in some way learning disabled. I think most of these kids are learning advanced, but I'll try to stick to the facts ... somewhat ... ;-)

Children who can't sit still or are disruptive in a classroom environment are sometimes suffering from Attention Deficit Disorder (A.D.D.) When they are also extremely hyper, they earn the tag of Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (A.D.H.D.) When children are prone to twisting their letters and numbers around, they are often called Dyslexic.

There are definitely some children among us who need medication to control their out-of-control emotions or actions. There are some who have a serious chemical imbalance, preventing them from blending with others in a socially acceptable manner. And there are the kids who really have a hard time keeping numbers straight or learning to read in a typical classroom setting with standard teaching methods. These children are learning disabled in that they do need resources and other methods to help them learn basic lessons and needed skills such as reading, writing, adding and subtracting.

These wonderfully different kids are also usually very bright, artistic and unusual in amazing ways. They can be willful, temperamental and sad or they can be sweet, loving and joyful. I believe they are what we, their parents and care takers, teach them they should be. I also believe they are a big part of our future, among the children of this world who will be our brightest stars. They are the kids who do not see everything in terms of black and white or up and down. They see blue, purple and fuschia where everyone else sees the norm. They hear melodies not yet created. They envision buildings not yet designed. They are learning disabled only because they do not learn as the majority of us do. They see life through a set of eyes and ears not limited by structure or regimentation. They feel and capture life with fingers that expound the essence of velvet and toes that glorify the silkiness of sand. They feel sadness and joy through hearts that swell with the beauty of sunsets and melt with compassion for the underdog.

These children are the different ones among us. They should be honored for their uniqueness. Unfortunately, they are more likely to be labeled and boxed into a problem corner, snuffing out their bright lights and destroying their self esteem at a tender age.

We have known and still know quite a few of these different kids. I don't know one who is not amazingly bright in one or more areas of life that most of us are stymied by. They are exceptional artists, musically genius, enormously big-hearted or mature beyond their years. One is on Ritalin and thanks his mother daily for giving him the chance to get straight 'A's as he always knew he could. One is an outstanding athlete who will most likely make the Olympic team in the not-too-distant future. Another is an accomplished pianist and song writer at 12 years of age. All of these children have some pretty wicked learning disabilities and they are all just the best kids one could hope to know and love. They are awesome!

Some public schools have excellent resource programs for the learning disabled child. Most private schools do not have the room or the inclination to support a resource curriculum. There are private schools that cater only to learning disabled children. These schools can be frightfully expensive but many are the only hope some children will ever have for academic success. One girl we know came home from her first day at one of these high-priced schools elated and said: "I'm finally learning something!" Wow ... her mother told me this with tears in her eyes. Got me welled up, too. This school has a variety of classroom environments, each supporting a different learning style. Their philosophy is that children learn differently, be it auditory, visual (the normal school methods cater to visual) or tactile. The children are grouped with other like-learning kids to create auditory, visual or tactile-learning classrooms. Obviously, they are on to something.

Parents with learning disabled children need to work with their kids and help with homework and assignments more than average. If you are the parent of a learning disabled child, there are resources available today that were not around just a few years ago. Know that there is help for your child and for you. Ask your child's school about resource programs, recommended methods of working with your child at home and any other useful information they can and will give you. And remember that your child is probably going to grow up to become one of the more valued members of society if they are guided and helped through the beginning years of academic training.

The Internet has many resources for learning disabled children and adults. Here are a few excellent sites:

The next article has excellent tips for parents with children who are learning disabled: Tips for Parents

The third link is to a great article about learning styles and how to identify which one fits your child: Styles of Learning

The last link is to my own Kid Link's page. A good one to book mark (add to favorite places) if you don't have it already. Hundreds of super links to everything for children on the Internet. I'm adding it here for the poem at the top of the page entitled "Kids Who Are Different." I love this poem and feel it applies to this topic beautifully: Rexanne's Kid Links

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Rexanne Mancini is the mother of two daughters, Justice and Liberty. She is a novelist, freelance writer and maintains an extensive yet informal parenting and family web site, Rexanne.com – http://www.rexanne.com -Visit her site for good advice, award-winning Internet holiday pages and some humor to help you cope. Subscribe to her free newsletter, Rexanne’s Web Review, for a monthly dose of Rexanne: http://www.rexanne.com/rwr-archives.html

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This article is available for reprint at no charge providing the resource box with the writer's information is included and remains intact.

Have an opinion about this topic or a story to share? Please send it: My Opinion

Here's a great site for kids and adults. Kids get to cook, adults get to not cook ... the best of both worlds!

Kid's Microwave Cooking has many kid-tested recipes and detailed instructions for children ages 8 to 14. Each recipe is graded with either a red, yellow or green light that serves as an indicator of the degree of difficulty or a child's ability to make the recipe with or without the help of an adult. If a recipe could possibly be dangerous for a younger child, it is accompanied by a red light, etc.

Very cool site. The kids will love it and you can begin to make headway in teaching them to fend for themselves in the kitchen. There are some pretty tasty-sounding recipes here so feel free to tap the inner child in you and discover a new one that even you could make every now and then.

There's something about gorillas that makes my heart melt. If I wasn't doing what I do online, I would definitely pursue working with gorillas in some way. Yeah, yeah ... I can hear some of you now ... start dating! LOL! Seriously, they are amazing, wonderful and loving creatures, closer to human than some of us would like to believe.

Koko for kids is a wonderful web site about Koko, the famous gorilla who has learned to communicate with her care takers through sign language. Nurtured and taught from early in her life by Dr. Penny Patterson, Koko has astounded the world with her ability to act more human than anyone ever thought possible. She has a gorilla companion, Ndume. Together they live and learn in northern California at The Gorilla Foundation.

There are many gorilla facts and fun things for kids to read and learn at Koko for Kids. Little ones who are too young to read would love the pictures and possibly to have an adult or older sibling read the pages for them. Older kids can write to Koko and learn amazing gorilla facts. Gee, bet you didn't know that Koko engaged in an online chat with more than 20,000 participants!

This week, as promised, I am passing on a few tips and tricks for organizing kid's stuff from readers. Some great ones here! Thank you to all who submitted ideas and tips to share. Keep them coming! I'll post them as they arrive.

1.) "Peg boards! My dad thought I was crazy when I asked him to hang one for my children's rooms. Not only does it get the stuff with hooks off the floor, I added some shelves to hold their videos. I love the fact that it will always be useful - today toys, tomorrow who knows." (From Cathy)

2.) "Go through all your kid's toys once a year. Throw out everything broken and unusable. Everything the kids have outgrown, but can still be used, bag up and take to a shelter near you (some shelters will pick up the stuff at your house). You may even be able to take it off your taxes as charity. We also do this with outgrown clothes. It helps make room for the new toys they're sure to get at Christmas and birthdays. I know it isn't really a tip to store toys, but it helps keep the rooms cleaner! Another idea for all those stuffed animals and dolls is to put up a shelf all the way down one wall and put them all up there. Some of them can even be hung from hooks, if you use the wire shelves." (From Jeni)

3.) "I hang all my daughter's hats and purses on the walls of her room for decorations and also to have a place to store them. They look really pretty. We also have a wire rack with little hooks on one wall for her necklaces and other jewelry she can hang. Works great!" (From Tamara.) - (I hang my daughter's hats and purses on the walls, too Tamara! Especially here in earthquake country, I know nothing heavy will fall on them in the event of another big one!)

Got a tip or trick your fellow readers would enjoy or could use? Please send it here for possible publication in one of the next issues: Tips

This survey, from SmarterKids.com, is designed to explain your child's learning style. Fill out the questionnaire (it goes fast!) and they will tell you how your child learns best and why.

This will give you priceless insight about your child and help you understand why your child learns and functions the way they do. Some children are mathematical, or logical thinkers, others can be interpersonal, musical, visual, etc.

Weekly Time Waster: Movie Cliches
(Because life is supposed to be fun!)

This is a pretty silly, fun site. The Movie Cliche List is all about movies and the crazy way they have of stereotyping and stating the obvious. This site will point out how movie makers (writers?) throw cliches into their film making without a second thought to reality ... sometimes. ;-)

Here's one of my favorites on car chases: "No one ever runs out of gas (even in long car chases). Corollary: every stolen car has a full gas tank and gets great gas mileage." Or the pretty annoying way films have of stereotyping women: "All movie women must be pulled along by their hands, even if the male puller is short & fat and the woman is a track star." LOL! Pretty funny stuff, considering movies are a big part of our culture.

You can also send in your own particular rants about movie cliches and get your voice heard. Enjoy!

LOL! Oh dear ... how many times have you thought about doing this? I know I think about it almost daily, wanting nothing more than to crawl back to the days of zero responsibility and ignorant bliss. Well, it ain't gonna happen but we can dream and read a page like this one and giggle at our fate, can't we?

Hope you get a big smile from this like I did. It just might make the day's chores and tedium a little easier to bear.

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I have personally checked out the links provided here but they could possibly lead you to any number of bizarre and/or offensive sites. Surf at your own risk. The DIRECT links on this page are all family friendly unless stated otherwise. While this newsletter is family friendly, it is not necessarily intended to be read by children. Parents should always monitor their children while they are on the Internet.