Mom vs. the Dot: Making it COUNT!

After talking with some knowledgeable people and reading lots of blogs, state education websites, and Overcoming Dyslexia by Sally Shaywitz, M.D., I have decided sending the letter is the right thing to do. As my hubby and I were signing it the other night, I said I was still nervous about it.  He said, "Honey, you've been writing this letter for the last 6 months.  I have full confidence in you.  Send it!"  Okay - point taken (had it really been 6 months?  yep, it had.)  My sister and my cousin encouraged me to get the ball rolling, too.  It was time. And so, this morning, at the crack of 11:00, I loaded up my sickly crew (2 of the 3 have some sort of nasty cold - yuck!) and we trudged through the slushy snow and biting wind to the minivan.  We made the short drive to our local teeny tiny post office, rounded the block until a spot opened up (there are only 3 spots available), and led my 3 little ducks into the building.  Everythi...

What do you do when you homeschool and you are concerned that one of your children may have a learning disability? I have struggled for months, trying to decide whether or not to have my child evaluated.  I would have to send a formal, certified letter to our public school basically demanding that my child be put through a battery of tests to determine where the problem lies. I don't feel qualified to make this demand of my local school district.  I don't even know exactly what I'm asking for, or what I need.  When a child is in public school and his teacher notices he's having some problems, the special education teacher is consulted and testing may or may not follow.  It's all in house - easy peasy!  (I've never actually been through this process myself, but this is how I picture it.)  The support staff are there, the psychologists and special education staff are there.  This is what they do. When you homeschool, you have to figure it all o...