Freak Parade

I need to ask a tiny blogland favor. I have started a blog for The Boy. Yeah? So? I need to solicit some comments from any kind souls who can spare a minute or two. Some background on The Boy….

The Boy has Sensory Integration Dysfunction. It seems to have gotten much milder as of late….it was much worse as a newborn, infant, and toddler. When The Boy started school, he hated it from the minute he started. HA. TED. IT. We managed Kindergarten. First grade was worse. Second grade worse than that. Third grade was unbearable. Starting in first grade, homework took hours. HOURS. Sometime 4-5 hours to finish 30 minutes worth of work. There was crying, screaming, hiding under the table, and wailing from The Boy. Pleading, cajoling, bribing, rewarding, and crying from myself. The nightly battle consumed our lives. We always thought it was due to the SID. This year, as he began third grade, things really went downhill. He couldn’t keep up in class. He didn’t know cursive. He was failing spelling. He was miserable. He began acting out. He began to say “I’m stupid.” and “I suck at this!” At the end of our rope, we had him asessed. He was diagnosed with dysgraphia, processing and sequencing problems. Writing wasn’t just a pain to him, it was a huge battle. An uphill climb. We decided to homeschool. His hatred of school has clouded his love for learning. Since November, I have been trying to reclaim that. It has involved a lot of thinking outside the box. I was looking for a way to encourage him to write. Something that inspired him and sparked a desire. I came up with the blog idea and presented it to him. He was intrigued by the thought that people all over the world would read his words and see his pictures. He grinned at the prospect of someone he didn’t even know writing a response.  And so we blogged. He composed the first post with not one complaint. I helped him make his thoughts clear…reminded him to use complete sentences…and encouraged him to keep on track. The next entry went the same way. Woot! Grammar, creative writing, and communications class all in one package! As of now, I am typing, while he dictates. (He is learning to type). Today I had him type the first two sentences himself. He painstakingly searched out the letters…losing his train of thought and forgetting his sentence at each new word. It was a struggle. He resisted and complained…there were almost tears, but he did it. The first two sentences on his own! Baby steps. The words are his and are awaiting an audience. A word of encouragement. A connection.  I am asking anyone who loves nine year old creative writing to take a peek and leave a little hello. It sounds so overly dramatic, but your brief comment really will make a difference in the self worth of a boy. A boy who really needs to feel like he can be good at this whole writing thing. So could you? Would you? Please pay him a visit?