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Home > Support > Homeschooling > How do I know if my child is truly struggling with his schoolwork or just being lazy?
 
 
Question: How do I know if my child is truly struggling with his schoolwork or just being lazy? I have homeschooled for 11 years, and my oldest 3 children have always been at or above grade level in their work. My youngest, however, seems to be very behind in grade level, especially in reading and spelling. He is in 5th grade this year, but we are using a 2nd-3rd grade speller, and Language of God Level D for English, and Devotional Stories for Little Folks, Too for Reading. He is using Saxon 65 for Math, so he does well in that subject, except for reading word problems and writing out answers that are not numerals. He is always asking me to read or spell things for him, sometimes easy words that we have done over and over again. He tends to guess at words rather than sound them out or try to read them. I have been told this is not unusual for boys, and that he would eventually catch up, but it doesn't seem to be happening. I'd rather not get him involved with testing in our school system. Is there anything I can do at home to see if he really does need more help? Thanks!
Answer:

AMDG+

Dear Parent;

I suspect that a host of parents will be happy that you asked this question.

How does one differentiate between an unmotivated child who doesn't want to perform, and a struggling child who would like to perform but can't? 

Often, a child who is unmotivated is reluctant to work at any subject, except perhaps a 'fun' subject like arts and crafts.  A student who excels or at least performs well in one academic subject but not another is more likely a willing but struggling student, who either has a learning disability, or missed some key information early in that subject. 

In your son's case, the fact that his difficulties seem to center around reading skills provides a clue.  Note that he is on grade level for math, except for those problems that involve reading.

Is he able to read DSLF,T without difficulty, with fluency?  CHC's phonics-based reading and spelling programs are somewhat accelerated in their presentation; students who have used CHC materials since kindergarten are usually ready for DSLF in second grade, even though the reading level is higher than standard second grade material.  That is, students who were taught to read with other programs might not quite be ready for DSLF.  So, if your son struggles with DSLF, it doesn't necessarily mean that he is that far behind in reading.

I am a little surprised that he is using LoG D, as that is appropriate for his grade level and also involves quite a bit of reading.  If he is doing well with LoG D, that might actually be an indication that he is a better reader than one might think. 

So, if he is able to read DSLF,T, and do the work in LoG D without much difficulty, it is possible that he would rather ask you to do the work instead of doing it himself.  If this is the case, perhaps he would benefit from writing those missed but easy spelling words twenty times each, rather than relying on your assistance.

However, if he is struggling with DSLF,T and also with LoG D, it would appear that, somewhere along the line, he missed some key elements of reading.  [Guessing at words instead of sounding them out is another clue.  Most kids who have learned phonics-based word attack skills know that sounding out is more accurate than guessing.]

So, you probably need to back up to find out just what he is missing.  One way to do this would be to start with CHC's phonics-based My Catholic Speller, Levels A and B.  Test him on the words, lesson by lesson.  Since the lessons follow a phonics progression of short, then long vowels, etc., it should become evident fairly quickly where the gaps are.  For example, if he spells plate as plat, and bait as bat, it is likely that he never learned how to form long vowel sounds. 

Once you have discovered the gaps, you'll know where to concentrate his studies!  If the problem is, indeed, that he is missing foundational elements of reading, you might wish to have him read through Little Stories for Little Folks, practicing those key elements that are missing in his foundation, putting special emphasis on sounding words out.  Even though this remediation will take a bit of time, once he has a strong foundation on which to build, he should progress more quickly than in the past.

You are a wise and alert mom to recognize and address your student's learning difficulties; may the Holy Spirit give you insight as you homeschool your son!

Nancy Nicholson

   
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