Thursday, July 12, 2012

Review: Hewitt Homeschooling: Lightning Literature's Shakespeare Tragedies



This summer has been an unusual one for our family in that we are continuing our school studies at full speed. Since we have experienced an unusual number of medical appointments and health issues since last fall, this school year had not proceeded as I had anticipated. For one, I had intended to incorporate some Shakespearean studies into my tenth grader's schedule--yet somehow those plans were set aside. So when the opportunity to review Hewitt Homeschooling cropped up, my tenth grader and I were thrilled to review one of their Shakespearean studies.

My daughter and I received Shakespeare: Tragedies and Sonnets, which is recommended for use by students in grades 9 through 12. I would judge this recommendation pretty accurate, though if your younger child is capable of more or you yourself want to study the Bard, there is some flexibility in this. This course may be covered in a semester or as a year's curriculum, or you may modify for your own needs. We opted to cover Hamlet for this review.

We received both the Lightning Lit Guide, which is an over-sized paperback non-consumable volume 185 pages in length as well as the Teacher Guide, which is three-hole punched and stapled and runs 51 pages in length.


So, what was included?

Student Guide ($29.95):
  • Introduction: This is meaty. It really covers the philosophy behind this program. Tips on how to read and write, including reasons why they are important. Includes tips on how to use this guide.
  • Lessons: These include the Introduction, Selection, "While You Read" questions, Plot Summary, Comprehension Questions, Literary Lessons, Writing Exercises and Perspectives.
  • Appendices: Discussion Questions and Project Suggestions, Additional Reading, Movie and Video Recommendations and Schedules
  • Suggested Optional Activities to Enhance the Study

Teacher Guide ($2.95):
  • Introduction. You, the teacher, will want to refer to the Introduction in the Student Guide as you read this section, which gives you the framework for what to do with your student.
  • Grading Tips.
  • Checklists. For grading student assignments.
  • Grading templates.
  • Suggested Schedules. One semester. One year.
  • Answers to Comprehension Questions from the Student Guide.
  • Writing Exercises.
  • Discussion Questions and Project Suggestions.

Although you may opt to purchase simply these two guides, you will need copies of these four Shakespearean tragedies: Julius Caesar, Hamlet, MacBeth, and King Lear. Although you may purchase your own editions, you may also purchase a complete pack at 10% off, for only $53.92.

What did we think? Definitely challenging, interesting and college preparatory. The Student Guide is designed to be used by the student, so some of the stress is taken off of mom, which is always nice for those of us with more children to school and more demands on our time. Although the teacher-parent really does need to read a good bit of the Student Guide as well as the Teacher Guide, the student can do much of the work on his or her own, with mom grading the work.

We opted to view one of the movies recommended by the Student Guide, and although it was a good version of Hamlet, I want my readers to be aware that for viewing the films (which do contain violence) and even discussing the mature themes introduced by Shakespeare's tragedies, I would recommend the high school age unless you have a very mature middle school student.

Hewitt Homeschooling also sells other products for students aged elementary through high school. The Lightning Literature series covers junior high through high school. Be sure to visit Hewitt Homeschooling to learn more.

Disclaimer: As a member of the Schoolhouse Review Crew, I received a complimentary copy of this curriculum for review. To read further reviews of Lightning Literature or other products, be sure to visit the Schoolhouse Review Crew blog.

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Dreams

I am walking through the dense green woods, far from any city or town. I hear nothing except birds and an occasional breeze or a twig snap. I have been struggling uphill for a long time, occasionally stopping to catch my breath or re-tie a shoelace. I am bruised and bleeding a little where I slipped on some rocks a couple of hours ago. Yet I walk on, taking a break now and again to catch my breath.

The day started out warm and sunny, yet an unexpected thunderstorm cropped up. Were it not for my poncho, I would be drenched. As it is, I am perspiring underneath the smothering plastic. I suddenly realize how very quiet it is now, after the buffeting thunder, wind and rain. I decide the storm has abated, so I remove the poncho, shaking it off, carefully folding it and replacing it in my daypack. I sip water thirstily while I survey my path.

A little ahead of me, the path forks. Not once, not twice, but in several different directions within just a pace or two. I study them. Which one should I take? I carefully retrieve my map from my pack and begin surveying it. I want to choose the correct one. The stakes are high. And the path I must choose will not be a well-worn one. In fact, it will be a narrow one, overgrown by weeds, littered with broken twigs and limbs--perhaps difficult at times to discern from the encroaching woods.

And I have more altitude to climb before I reach the mountain summit.

I look to the sky, now calm though cloudy. No one visible travels with me. It is only me and my silent companion. Which path?

I wake.

Or perhaps I sleep.

Is this my dream? Or perhaps my life? Or a metaphor for my life?

At times I want to share with you, my readers, once again. But where do I begin? My life is too fantastic, too truly strange for words. Certainly not easy words. Over the past several months our family has experienced a family medical crisis. And another. And yet another.

God is leading us along yet another unusual path. Sometimes the path is hard to traverse. Sometimes it is painful. One day you wake up and you realize that not a soul on the earth can truly understand what you are experiencing. And it is wearying to even try to explain. To burden another. To confuse another. Yet you also realize that the Lord is quietly walking alongside you, gently leading your way. For today, that is all I know. All I have. The Lord is more precious to me than anything. He is truly a faithful friend, when all else have either abandoned or have lent their encouragement and prayers yet cannot walk with you. Some paths He intends for just the two of you to walk alone.

Blessings to you, my friends, on whatever path the Lord has called you to walk today. May you find Him as faithful a companion as I have. Trust Him through the storm.

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Review: Heritage History's Ancient Rome





Heritage History provides an online-accessible, traditional, narrative history approach for the homeschool. The individual curriculum guides for each time period collection provides not only classic narrative readers, but also provides supplemental resources for families to enrich the use of its readers.Our family had the opportunity to test-drive Heritage History's Ancient Rome curriculum this spring with our 10th grader and 7th grader.

History of Ancient Rome covers the historical periods of Rome from its founding in 753 B. C. through the Byzantine Empire in 1453 A. D. My 10th grader has been reading Stories From Livy by Alfred J. Church, The Story of Carthage by Alfred J. Church, Roman Life in the Days of Cicero by Alfred J. Church and The Aeneid by Alfred J. Church. My 7th grader has been reading Stories From Ancient Rome by Alfred J. Church, Story of the Roman People by Eva March Tappan, Stories in Stone from the Roman Forum and The Aeneid by Alfred J. Church. 

Both of my older children have been enjoying reading the books included within this collection. My children are discovering Roman history more fascinating than they realized. Although we have not used this resource extensively as yet, I do like the complementary resources included within this curriculum.




The Heritage Classical Curriculum User Guide offers a good explanation of this curriculum. Briefly, this curriculum is based on a narrative and Living Books approach. All reading selections presuppose at least a fourth grade reading (or listening) level, and cover fourth grade through high school levels.

One or two units per year seems to be a reasonable pace to progress through the material, though each family may choose its own pace. Families may even choose to combine the Heritage Classical Curriculum with another classical or Charlotte Mason based approach.

What is included within the Ancient Rome volume?

  • 45 traditional historical readers (including historical fiction, biography and comprehensive history) for upper grammar through high school reading level
  • study resources (such as maps, illustrations and timelines)
  • printable Study Guide
  • Curriculum Guide
  • all on one CD, including PDF, EPUB and MOBI
Ancient Rome Curriculum CD is available for $24.99. View the Heritage Curriculum Spring "Buy Two, Get One Free" sale. Also available is the World History Collection of five CDs for $99.99.

Do you have additional questions? See the FAQ page or ask me in the comments. 

Disclaimer: As a member of the Homeschool Crew, I received a complimentary copy of this CD for review purposes. Be sure to visit the Homeschool Crew blog to read additional reviews, especially of other History Collections.

Monday, May 14, 2012

Six Months . . .

Six months. So little time, and yet so much.

Six months have passed since I have been an active blogger.

Six months have passed since my life has forever changed. Since my family's life has forever changed.

How do I express what is on my heart and in my mind? Do I keep on blogging? Or not? Do I confine my scattered thoughts and emotions to my personal journal, there to shock, perplex or relieve only myself?


In the previous six months . . .

My daughter has seen more than a dozen doctors. Probably more than two dozen. Her symptoms have perplexed most of them.

My daughter has recently received a very rare genetics diagnosis. It doesn't even comprise a syndrome. Little is known about it. The doctors have told us what they can.

I have met some very good and caring doctors. And nurses.

My daughter has experienced a 12 day hospital stay. And I stayed with her.

I have learned so much about medicine, treatments, medical equipment, and my daughter's case in particular that I have confused both doctors and nurses into thinking I am a Registered Nurse. I am not.

We continue to search for answers to help my daughter. Yet I now realize that the answers will not come quickly, nor easily.

I realize . . .

That my daughter needs me so very much.

And that I love her enough to do anything for her.

That sleep truly is optional. Yet it is not completely. Sooner or later some of those sleepless nights must be made up for.

Food is optional sometimes. Yet when sleep becomes optional, a hot cup of Earl Grey tea is not.

That I am a better mother than I knew.

That God has been so very good to place me where He has, and He has placed so many of the people I need into my path right now. And I am grateful for my online friendships. Your prayer support and encouragement have meant the world to me. Blessings to you!



Saturday, May 12, 2012

Review: Amazing Science! Volume 1 DVD Set






Recently my children and I had the opportunity to view Amazing Science! Volume I from Science and Math.com. My tenth grader viewed a few of the experiments, yet my seventh grader, fourth grader, first grader and preschooler were the main ones who watched it. My seventh grade son, who is likely destined for a career in either engineering or computer science, found it especially exciting. He is the one who always wants to know how and why things work!

What did my children and I like about these videos?

  • Each experiment is explained clearly and well, with the reasons behind why the results turned out how they did.
  • Each experiment is videotaped from different angles, so that you can really see well what is happening.
  • The experiments are interesting.
  • The experiments can usually be replicated at home without too much trouble or expense.
  • Yet, although we did not really have time or in some cases the ingredients to try the experiments on our own, my children really learned quite a lot simply from viewing the experiment.
  • We were able to re-play those experiments which were favorites. Seriously, I think my seventh grader has viewed some of these experiments three times now.
Honestly, when I was recently in the hospital with my very ill child for twelve days, my husband made school subject logs for the children and oversaw their schoolwork, and if all the science they got accomplished in a day was watching one or two of these experiments, I still felt they had really used their time wisely and probably learned more than they would have by simply reading a textbook.


Wonder what supplies are used in the experiments? Download a supply list HERE.

Videos range in length from a little over five minutes to nearly twenty minutes in length, though most are around ten minutes long. I think they are just the right length for middle elementary through middle school level, with just the right interest level and right depth of explanation.


I asked my son which of the experiments were his favorites. He listed the following:

  • Building a Motor #2
  • Dry Ice Bubbles
  • Ocean in a Bottle

Although I cannot show you these three videos, you may view five of these twenty-three experiments on the Science and Math.com website to see what you think! Did you know that you can use a lemon to power a calculator? How cool is that to make a battery out of a lemon?




Amazing Science Volume 1 retails for $24.95, but is currently on sale for $19.95. It contains 23 experiments on two DVDs. Although Volume 2 is not yet available, you may want to see the other science and math DVDs which are available from this company.

Disclaimer: As a member of the Homeschool Crew, I received a review copy of this 2 DVD set for review. No other compensation was received. Visit the Homeschool Crew blog to read more reviews of this and other educational products.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Review: God's Great Covenant from Classical Academic Press

My regular readers know that I am a huge fan of Classical Academic Press. We already use a few of Classical Academic Press' other products, and my children are enthusiastic about the ones we have used to date. So, what is it about this company and its offerings that we appreciate the most?

Their logo sums it up nicely: Classical Subjects Creatively Taught.

My children love the way this company injects fun and creativity into every subject. It's simply never boring.

While we have previously reviewed this company's Latin and logic offerings, this time we are reviewing a Bible course on the New Testament.


We received the God's Great Covenant New Testament One Bundle, including a Student Edition, Teacher's Edition and an audio file download of Dr. Christopher Perrin reading thirty-two stories from the four gospels. Designed for students fourth grade and up, this study focuses on the Gospels.

What is included within the consumable Student Edition?
  • 6 separate introductions, which we covered in our first week--general, historical and political, chronological, geographical, religious and daily life topics are each covered separately
  • 36 chapters, divided into four nine week units
  • Weekly chapters contain a theme, Scripture verses, a focal memory passage, key facts and prophecy fulfillments. 
  • Maps and illustrations
  • An interesting story every lesson, based upon the gospel account
  • Review worksheets to be completed during the week, roughly 2-4 pages in length
  • Unit Memory Passage Worksheets
  • Unit Devotional Guides
  • Unit accounts from the fictional character Simon's world
  • 3 appendices
  • Glossary
  • Bibliography
  • 36 one page weekly quizzes
  • 346 pages


The maps give the right amount of detail for the middle to upper elementary crowd, while maintaining visual appeal.

The review worksheets offer a mix of fill-in-blank, matching, true/false and short answer questions. Sometimes even a crossword puzzle is added for fun, which is always a big hit with my kids.

Overall, we were impressed by the Student Edition. We chose to cover the story from the gospel on Mondays, and take a couple of days to complete the review worksheets and have quizzes on Friday, but you could choose your own method of covering the material.


The Teacher's Edition contains everything included within the Student Edition, only in smaller print. In addition, it includes lined margins in which to make notes and plenty of notes for teachers and parents. Notes cover background, textual and historical information as well as some theological points. While parents or teachers would not necessarily have to explore every one of these notes, these numbered points provide many options for further exploration of the topic, as desired--or as your student asks questions.

You can see a page sample below.
And another. The lined margins would prove helpful for the parent or teacher desiring to make her own notes for reference while teaching. Answers are included for the student review worksheets and weekly quizzes.
And the audio files? I really love the way they draw my children into the story. Since I have children younger than the recommended age, with these audio files we could play the stories for all my children and allow the younger ones (4 and 6 years old) to simply listen in to and appreciate the Bible story, while my seventh grader completed the workbook. I love Dr. Perrin's speaking voice, too. He holds my children's interest and attention.

Once again, we have been impressed with this Bible Study from Classical Academic Press. It is interesting, age appropriate and flexible for different age groups as well as how much additional discussion parents want to bring to the subject.

Dislikes?

Since I have now entered the "bifocals stage" of life and am struggling to get used to my newest pair, I did find the smaller font size of the student text reprint within the Teacher's Edition a bit small and difficult to read. When I wanted to read from the text, I found myself reaching for the Student Edition. Really, though, a minor quibble, and one that probably will not apply to many of my readers. I think the advantage of having the wide margins for making notes outweighs this minor personal inconvenience.

God's Great Covenant, New Testament 1: A Bible Course for Children         $26.95
God's Great Covenant, New Testament 1: Teacher's Edition                          $29.95
God's Great Covenant, New Testament 1 Audio Files                                    $9.95
All of the Above Bundled Together                                                                $56.95

Disclaimer: As a member of the Homeschool Crew, I received a review copy of these texts and audio file. To see what other Homeschool Crew reviewers thought about this product, please visit the Homeschool Crew blog.

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

FIRST Wildcard Blog Tour: Answers for the 4-A Epidemic

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!

You never know when I might play a wild card on you!



Today's Wild Card author is:


and the book:

Siloam (April 3, 2012)

***Special thanks to Althea Thompson | Publicity Coordinator, Charisma House | Charisma Media for sending me a review copy.***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:



Joseph Cannizzaro, MD, is the founder and managing pediatrician for the Pediatricians Care Unit in Longwood, Florida. He received his MD from the University of Bologna Medical School in Bologna, Italy, and has practiced pediatric medicine for thirty years with specialties in developmental pediatrics, nutrition, and preventative medicine.


Visit the author's website.



SHORT BOOK DESCRIPTION:


A groundbreaking integrative treatment program for autism, ADHD, asthma, and allergies.
In the last two decades, the incidence of the 4-A disorders--autism, ADHD, asthma, and allergies--has increased so drastically that many now call these four conditions "the new childhood epidemics." In this book, integrative pediatrician Joseph Cannizzaro lays a foundation for understanding the cause of all four conditions and then provides a comprehensive treatment program for each of them.

The medical community has generally overlooked the commonalities that link the 4-A disorders and, in most cases, has limited treatment to suppression of symptoms. Dr. Cannizzaro has focused his pediatric practice on the treatment of the 4-A disorders for the past five years. He and his colleagues are currently securing a research grant that will provide funding and national peer recognition of their groundbreaking treatment program, which is the first to combine traditional medical approaches with a full range of natural healing modalities.



Product Details:
List Price: $15.99
Paperback: 256 pages
Publisher: Siloam (April 3, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1616384840
ISBN-13: 978-1616384845

Since I have been in the hospital with my daughter for nearly two weeks and I do not have this book title with me now, this post will be updated with my review at a later date. My apologies to the author and the publisher.

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:


Introduction
There IS Hope!
What has gone wrong? As even a casual reader or listener of the news knows, the statistics are alarming. Autism, ADHD, asthma, and allergies––all four of which happen to begin with the letter “A”––are on the rise, especially among children. In fact, it is not stretching the definition of the word epidemic to use that term for the way these disorders are sweeping the Western world. None of them is communicable in the classic understanding of the term, but all four sets of disorders, as you will see throughout this book, share common root causes that contribute to the development of current epidemic proportions. Autism, Attention Deficit Disorder (with and without hyperactivity—ADD/ADHD), asthma, and allergies—these are the new childhood epidemics.
A tragedy of this magnitude would be overwhelming except for a salient fact: These new epidemics can be defeated. After twenty years of treating patients, I have found that beneath the surface there is an unmistakable, unshakeable web of interrelationship among the 4-A disorders, and I have learned to recognize the patterns. Toxicity in the brain and body causes metabolic dysfunction, which cascades with other factors to produce one or more of these disorders. Often they overlap with each other in the same person. By uncovering and treating the common causes of these 4-A disorders, we can embark on a common (and hope-filled) path to recovery.
You are already aware of this epidemic or you would not have picked up this book. Most likely you are a parent of a child (or more than one child) who carries a diagnosis of one of these disorders. You may be overwhelmed with your situation at home, while your search for help merely seems to bury you in information and saddle you with enormous medical bills.
I want to empower people like you—parents of 4-A children—with comprehensive and effective tools. With you, I want to advocate for the health of your kids. At the same time I want to increase your skills to recognize your own body’s ongoing responses to disorder and stress so that you can make an ongoing and accurate assessment of how you’re doing as a whole family.
Holistic-Integrative Self-Medical Care
This book is a guide, not a cookbook. It will teach you principles as well as facts and point you in the right direction as you search out the best path. Recovering from any of the 4-A disorders is a journey, replete with side trips and even dead ends. But together with others you can make tangible progress toward the healthy, even contented, lifestyle you want for yourself and your loved ones.
What you as an individual do with this information is up to you. I want to teach you how to “self-practice” self-care in a holistic, integrative, and natural way. I want to introduce you to upstream medicine, in which we all play a role in searching out the causes of disease and eliminating them at the root.
The causes of this particular 4-A epidemic (and if I were not a pediatrician, I might add a fifth and more mature “A” to the list: Alzheimer’s disease) are omnipresent in our man-made, inevitably toxic environment. The detrimental effects of our environment have been causing all sorts of damage and disorder that is initially imperceptible and can remain so far varying durations within a person’s lifetime. In the case of many of our children the damage has manifested early on as the 4-A disorders, although some children escape.
All disease processes begin with changes in functional systems, imbalances that our bodies can bring back into balance up to a point. We cannot tell at first what damage to cells and tissues may have been initiated; for a time, we remain unaware of tissue damage or dysfunction.
But after a point of saturation, months or even years down the road, a point which varies from one individual and family to another, an invisible threshold is crossed, beyond which perceptible symptoms of a disease begin to appear.
When I use the term “upstream medicine,” I’m using it to communicate two ideas: (1) the way in which we can learn to trace symptoms of a disease back to common and basic metabolic roots, so that we can weed out toxicity and improve the health-promoting aspects of our environment, and (2) the way in which we can learn to anticipate damage or dysfunction long before actual disease symptoms begin to manifest, so as to keep our lifestyles as free as possible of disease-producing contaminants. An intermediate period exists wherein perceptible signs and symptoms of a potential disease are still “brewing,” and during which, if appropriate measures are taken, the full definitive disease will never come into being.
My Unique Qualifications
I am an established medical doctor with a pediatric specialty. As the parents of young patients have come to me for answers over the years, I became convinced that my medical toolbox was insufficient. I could help but only to a degree. Why should I spend my time and the hard-earned money of my patients’ families simply trying to suppress symptoms of a disease, especially life-consuming ailments such as these 4-A disorders?
I needed to be able to do more. I needed to learn to bring together all that I had learned in medical school and in my pediatric practice along with as many other valid healing modalities as I could learn. I needed to become an integrative doctor, one who incorporates a holistic (mind, body, spirit) awareness along with a natural, nuts-and-bolts comprehension of basic biological principles. I needed to go back and relearn basic information about bodily systems (immune, digestive, nervous, etc.), in order to determine what it takes to establish and sustain the human body’s natural ability to develop, grow, and thrive. Besides all of that I needed to become aware of the bodily effects of our toxic environment so that I could make reliable recommendations to my patients.
In short I needed to learn to practice medicine in a way that actually eliminates the causes of illness.
This book reflects my journey, and I am very glad to be able to take you on board. I have written it to provide you with solid information, so that you can come to understand the causes and effects of your own child’s health concerns––and so that you can move together in the direction of healing. You will find here a detailed summary of what I have learned, and helpful applications of that information that you can adjust to suit your personal family situation.
A glance at the Table of Contents will serve as an introduction to the “menu” I have prepared for you. Some of the chapters may not apply to your situation, because you may be dealing with only one or two of the 4-A disorders in your family. But you will find that I have repeated key concepts throughout the book, so you will not miss them if you skip a chapter or two.
My desire is to put into your hands a transformational book, one that can transform your presuppositions and partial information so that, with me, we can create evidence-based solutions for some of society’s most perplexing ailments. I want to bring you to the brink of discovery, where you can survey a variety of explanations and solutions and find the ones that align with your own physical, mental, and spiritual paradigms.
Each of my own patients and their families has gained greatly from what you are about to read. Now it’s your turn to receive the same benefits!

SECTION I:
HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?
Chapter 1
Four New Childhood Epidemics
Billy was born ten days after his due date after a very long labor, and he had his umbilical cord wrapped around his neck twice. This did not seem to affect him negatively, though. At home he was a beautiful baby, always very active. All of his growth and developmental parameters were normal and on track. He was engaged with his family and communicative.
As an early toddler, however, he began to have temper tantrums and became very fearful of noises, which would make him cling to his mother for long periods of time. He gradually lost interest in his toddler play group. Billy continued to become more distant. Soon he would no longer respond to anyone calling his name, and eye contact slowly disappeared. By the time he was three, he had sustained numerous injuries while walking, running, or climbing, because he seemed to have no sense of danger.
All along his parents were reassured that their little boy’s behavior was within a normal range for his age. And yet he could not tell them if he was thirsty or hungry, happy or sad, or why he was upset––it seemed that he could not convey any emotion. Also, he had had bowel problems since he was six months old, but his mom had been told that it’s normal for children to have one bowel movement per week.
When Billy turned four, his preschool teacher suggested that his mother take him for a developmental evaluation conducted by a pediatrician. This caused her to begin to do some research on her own and her studies soon revealed that a pattern of behavior similar to Billy’s was typically seen in autistic children. Her fears mounted. Her Billy, who was once a healthy, happy little boy, now looked like a sad, helpless, clumsy boy who couldn’t express himself verbally, who would get upset very easily, and who was losing friends faster than he could make them.
Refusing to accept that nothing could be done, Billy’s mother located the website of the Autism Research Institute and found a holistic, integrative physician. He diagnosed Billy with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), with severe food allergies and constipation, and he initiated biomedical treatment. Billy started a gluten-free, casein-free, and soy-free diet along with supplements that included probiotics, enzymes, and a whole food concentrate to help turn around his “leaky gut syndrome.”
After four months, his parents could talk to Billy and he would listen. Another practitioner was enlisted and he diagnosed oral candidiasis (“thrush”) and heavy metal toxicity. As his digestive, immune, and nervous systems came into balance and Billy’s overall health improved, he gradually achieved developmental milestones in academics and social skills. Now he was able to make friends at school, to interact and play with them. He had good eye contact and his speech was clear. Remarkably, he once again enjoyed life. He was back to being a happy boy who could tell his parents what he wanted.
As time went on, however, he became overly gregarious and extremely hyperactive. His mom remarked “Well, it’s just that he likes to do so many things. He’s all over the place. He’s a bundle of joy but he can be very disruptive in a group.” By then Billy was six and had entered kindergarten. He maintained good grades. The comments on his report cards were upsetting, however, comments such as, “despite my best efforts I cannot persuade Billy to pay attention and he remains a constant disruption in class.” He was taken back to the doctor for a full evaluation. This time, the diagnosis was ADHD (attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity).
What could have happened? Were the dietary and lifestyle measures that had brought so much healing no longer working? This prompted a systems review with laboratory studies, dietary history, and supplemental program analysis, along with a measurement of his toxic burden, which revealed that Billy and his family had lapsed back into a lifestyle marked by an inappropriate diet that was devoid of proper supplementation, along with a disregard for their exposure to toxins.
I am happy to report that once Billy’s parents successfully reinstituted and maintained those lifestyle changes (nutrition, supplements, and a detox program), Billy no longer suffered from the effects of the ADHD. As long as he stuck with the lifestyle improvements, he could be considered healed and healthy.
Is This a Real Epidemic?
We are living in the midst of a colossal, quadruple epidemic. This epidemic has developed insidiously over decades and it has escalated rapidly during the past thirty years.
How is this possible? Isn’t an epidemic defined as a specific disease that spreads rapidly in a definable geographic region? How can four seemingly distinct disorders (autism, ADHD, asthma, and allergies) share the same “epidemic” umbrella?
It’s really not a stretch to call this a modern epidemic, even though the symptoms can vary greatly and even though the escalation seems to cover all of the developed nations of the world. This is because this diverse population of children (adults too, but these problems start young) are united in what underlies their many overlapping symptoms—and they face the same health-challenging environment.
We are involved in this epidemic with four faces simply because we are all exposed to the same cause. Toxicity permeates our ecosystem. The human body responds to the threat in particular ways. When you add other factors of our modern lifestyles, you get a spectrum or array of disorders that are interwoven with each other. The reason this epidemic came to light in children is because they are the most vulnerable.
Although we characterize what’s happening as an epidemic, the children themselves must be evaluated and treated as individuals, because each person is affected in his very own specific way. We can see patterns and cause-and-effect, but many factors make each child’s situation unique. Once we begin to understand where this epidemic came from, we next need to determine just where each individual fits. Only then can we pursue healing.
Definitions
ASD: Autism Spectrum Disorder
ADHD: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity
Candidiasis (oral): Commonly known as “thrush,” yeast overgrowth, or yeast infection, candidiasis indicates that the opportunistic Candida albicans fungus has caused white spots on the tongue and inside of the mouth.
Quadruple Epidemic
Within the past forty years of medical history, we began to realize that not only were rates of autism, ADHD, asthma, and allergies growing into epidemic proportions, they are also connected to each other at the root. Not only do they share overlapping symptoms, they also often appear in the same individual.
My personal experience with patients and that of all the integrative physicians with whom I have worked is that we have not met one child who came to us with just one of the four conditions. The parents of a child with allergies would describe asthma attacks as well as their child’s learning problems (problems with concentration and attention span). Children would be diagnosed with autism and then with ADHD, and we would find that these hyperactive autistics also had severe allergies and asthma. Our conventional medical categories consisted of separate diagnostic boxes. But these kids could not fit into just one of them.
We have not met one child who came to us with just one of the four conditions.
How are these disorders related? What is their commonality? What element unites them all? The answer: the state of the digestive system. Every 4-A patient has an abnormal digestive system, which in turn impacts the immune and nervous systems, producing a familiar litany of symptoms.
“All diseases begin in the gut,” declared Hippocrates 2,400 years ago. He was describing our current epidemic.
Current Rates of 4-A Disorders
How many children and adults have been hit by this epidemic? Twenty-five million individuals, and most likely more than thirty million, when psychiatric conditions and the disorders in learning, behavior, speech and language, sensory integration, and motor skills are included. This certainly qualifies as an epidemic.
Is it an epidemic of genetic origin? While autism and the three other A’s have a clear genetic component, that cannot explain everything. These are not purely genetic diseases. Undoubtedly these patients were born with a genetic predisposition or susceptibility. Yet genetics alone does not cause epidemics, and it may not be as important as we thought it was. As Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health and former head of the Human Genome Project, famously said, “Genetics loads the gun, and environment pulls the trigger.”
Environmental changes occurring to a genetically predisposed child sound like a more plausible explanation to me. But what are the specific triggers?
“Genetics loads the gun, and environment pulls the trigger.”
I believe that environmental factors are of paramount importance. Autism has increased 6,000 percent in twenty years, ADHD more than 400 percent, asthma more than 300 percent, and allergies more than 400 percent in the same time period. Two disastrous environmental changes have caused all this to happen: overwhelming toxicity and nutrient depletion.
Definitions
Commonality: A shared set of attributes or features. In the context of this book, the word refers to an aggregate of environmental conditions and influences that have caused the epidemic of 4-A disorders.
Allergy: An exaggerated response of the immune system to specific substances that normally pose no threat to the human body, involving the elevation of specific antibodies due to antigen stimulus.
Asthma: A chronic inflammation of the bronchial tubes characterized by symptoms such as wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath.
Autism: A developmental disorder that encompasses speech development, social development, physical capabilities and tendencies, and cognitive development.
Maria Rodale, CEO of the family-named multimedia healthy-living company, writes in her book Organic Manifesto:
Autism and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), diseases virtually unheard of a few decades ago, are now diagnosed regularly. Of every 100 children born today, one will be diagnosed with autism before the age of 8.* About 4.4 million children between the ages of 4 and 17 have been diagnosed with ADHD. Rates of asthma, diabetes, and childhood obesity are at all-time highs and scientists can’t explain why the number of children with food allergies has increased 18 percent in the last decade.** Is it a coincidence that the prevalence of these problems has increased as we have increased the use of chemicals to grow our food?”1
Toxic chemicals in our food chain are just one of the triggers. Let’s take a look at each of the epidemic disorders in turn before we go on in the rest of the chapters to describe all of the possible triggers, as well as specific and comprehensive strategies for dealing with them.
Autism
It would not be an exaggeration to say that autism affects everything in a child. Broadly defined, it is a severe developmental disorder characterized by significant disabilities in social interaction, communication, and behavior.
Autistic children range from those who appear to be normal to those who cannot speak at all or make eye contact, and who engage in repeated and disturbing physical actions. In less severe cases children may be diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome or one of the other four recognized disorders at the “high-functioning” end of the autism spectrum. These children may have near-normal speech capabilities, but many autistic social and behavioral problems persist.
Autism affects about five boys to every one girl, and it is usually diagnosed at a young age. Autistic children have serious social impairments, and many lack an intuitive sense about other people, misreading social cues and not being able to learn from mistakes. This seriously inhibits normal growth and development. If they are verbal, some autistic children characteristically repeat others’ words or reverse pronouns. They may have trouble engaging in imaginative play, a key aspect of normal development in non-autistic children.
Because autistic children can display such different symptoms, autism must be considered a “spectrum” disorder. Many people (and I am one of them) are convinced that ADHD carries the mildest form of the symptoms on the autism spectrum. Still milder would be “borderline ADHD,” or various learning disabilities. Autism spectrum disorder is often referred to as ASD.
Children with autism, as well as those with ADHD, tend to suffer from asthma and allergies. Many also contend with other comorbid conditions, such as depression, anxiety, mood disorders, bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, sleep disorders, and more.
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Like autism, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) affects more boys than girls. ADHD can be characterized by age-inappropriate impulsivity, inattention, and often hyperactivity.
ADHD is further subdivided into three types, as follows:
1. Predominantly hyperactive-impulsive ADHD. These children (more boys than girls) are in constant motion and find it hard to wait or listen. Instead, they act and talk impulsively.
2. Predominantly inattentive ADHD. More girls than boys have this type. They have difficulty staying focused and attentive, and they do not tend to “act out” or stir things up.
3. Combined hyperactive-impulsive and inattentive ADHD. Most children with ADHD have this type.
Inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity are the key behaviors of ADHD, although it can be difficult to draw the line at where normal levels of childish inattention and fidgety behaviors end and ADHD levels begin. These symptoms can lead to problems in academic, emotional, and social behaviors.
Sometimes other factors appear with ADHD and can make diagnosis confusing, such as depression, sleep deprivation, specific learning disabilities, physical tics, and overall behavioral issues. In fact we find that most kids who have ADHD also have one or more significant psychiatric, physical, or behavioral problem, including bipolar disorder. Because ADHD has so many different faces, parents should always seek out professional help to sort out the reasons for their own child’s behavior.
Although people with ADHD can become quite successful in life, the opposite can also prevail: school failures, discipline for unruly behavior, rocky relationships, and eventual substance abuse. Children with untreated ADHD can grow into adults who are depressed, anxious, minimally employed, and generally unhappy with their lives.
Throughout this book, when I refer to children with a kind of shorthand as “spectrum” children, I am referring to children whose symptoms put them somewhere on the autistic-to-ADHD continuum.
Asthma
The word asthma comes from a Greek word that means “panting.” It is a chronic inflammation of the bronchial tubes characterized by symptoms such as wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath. The inflammation is triggered environmentally by reactive substances or activities, including allergens, physical exercise, and cold air. The chronic inflammation causes swelling and therefore narrowing in a person’s airways. Most treatments focus on reversing this swelling to relieve the labored breathing.
When a person’s asthmatic symptoms become worse than usual, we call it an asthmatic attack. Without treatment the person’s bronchial tubes can close so that the person dies of suffocation.
Treatments include quick-acting medicines to give relief from asthma attacks and maintenance medicines to prevent symptoms over the long term.
Asthma ranks as the number one chronic illness in children today.
Definitions
Autism spectrum disorders: Five disorders with distinctive symptoms of autism: (1) autistic disorder, (2) Asperger’s syndrome, (3) childhood disintegrative disorder, (4) Rett’s disorder, and (5) pervasive developmental disorder—not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS)
Allergen: Environmental substances that are normally harmless but which provoke a range of symptoms in reactive individuals.
Anaphylaxis: A severe and rapid allergic reaction involving many parts of the body, sometimes fatal.
Bipolar disorder: A mental disease characterized by cycles of depression and mania.
Allergies
People with allergies have hypersensitive immune systems that react to outside substances in an exaggerated fashion. The word allergy indicates an altered reaction, deriving as it does from the Greek words allos (different, changed) and ergos (action).
Besides causing discomfort and illness, allergies can trigger asthma attacks and can contribute to the severity of many other disorders. A person’s immune system is supposed to fight genuine microbial threats. In most allergic reactions, however, the immune system is responding in an exaggerated way to a false alarm.
Common substances to which people have an allergic response include pollen, dust mites, insect stings, pet dander, molds, as well as specific foods and ingredients in medicines. These normally harmless environmental substances are known as allergens when they provoke symptoms such as nasal congestion and sneezing, itching or swelling, rashes, digestive disturbances, or full-blown asthma. Most of the time allergy symptoms are annoying but not life-threatening, although an intense allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis affects multiple internal systems and can result in death.
Allergies are very common in the population at large.
Putting Them Together
In the next chapter we will explore how these four seemingly unrelated disorders, autism, ADHD, asthma, and allergies––each of which has mushroomed statistically in our lifetime and which affect our children disproportionately––combine into one sweeping epidemic. I will offer encouragement to parents of 4-A children as I propose potential solutions. For the sake of our sons and daughters (who represent our future), let us not rest until we have brought this 4-A epidemic to its knees.

Friday, April 27, 2012

Reviews Delayed Due to Family Illness

The reviews I had planned to post this week have been interrupted by an extended hospital stay with one of my children. We began our stay with the ER and ICU on Sunday afternoon, and my daughter is now stable enough for me to update here on my blog.

My family appreciates all the prayers, visits, calls and extensions of sympathy at this time. I also appreciate the patience of curriculum vendors who understand my own need to focus on getting my daughter well at this time. We hope to be released from the hospital next week, and reviews will be posted as usual when I am able to do so.

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Joy and Sorrow, Praise and Pain

Although I have not written lately, many blog posts have been in my mind, awaiting an opportunity to share. Here are some highlights of the many I have wished to share lately:

My daughter, "Venturer" completed her NYLT training, had her braces removed, and just achieved very good to excellent scores on her ASVAB test. We will be going over her possible career options in upcoming months and discussing them and planning for them. She seems to have become more interested in math and science than in English since she took the ACT Explore test. She is huge blessing to me, and I thank God for her daily.



My son "Knothead" (so nicknamed due to his excellent knot-tying abilities) achieved his Star scout rank in December, and we awarded him his patch in January. He is already narrowing in on Life scout, looking forward to summer camp (especially earning the Robotics merit badge!), and contemplating working on his Eagle project this summer. He is now taller than his sister, and turning into a young man of character.

My two younger children continue to be as entertaining as always, always saying and doing funny things. They are such a joy to our family, always lighting up the room with their presence.

And my middle child, my daughter, "Princess Buttercup" has continued to be ill. She has seen many specialists and has finally been diagnosed with a very rare genetic disorder. Some similar cases exist, though hers is unique, and this week the Geneticist will tell us about other cases and what we can expect. To date, we really still don't know what to expect in terms of my daughter's health and treatment. Praise God, that she has turned to faith in Him and will soon be baptized. For now, we are all turning to Him who is faithful to walk with us down this dark road and strengthen us.

At a time like this, the book of Job has been my comfort. I do not understand why our family is undergoing this trial. I only know that He has some good purpose in it. The following verses sum up my experience of the past five months, seeking answers to help my daughter.

"But when I hoped for good, evil came,
And when I waited for light, darkness came.
My inward parts are in turmoil and never still;
days of affliction come to meet me."
Job 30:26-27 ESV

And yet,

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."
Romans 8:28 ESV

I am deeply appreciative of the many friends who have been praying for our family during this time.

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Review: Write With World


Teaching Writing. A struggle in your home or a joy? This often difficult and perplexing subject can be made at least a little easier with the folks at WORLD magazine and God's World's News. Write With WORLD is a new middle school curriculum designed to make writing enjoyable--an effort much appreciated in our household. Read Martin Olasky's recent article for WORLD magazine lamenting modern writing methods to see a little of the philosophy behind this new writing program.

My own seventh grade son was the test subject in our home for this pilot version of this program designed for 6th through 9th graders, which should be released in its final form for the 2012-13 school year. At that time the complimentary website for this curriculum will also go "live," and offer additional writing and online publishing opportunities for students using this curriculum.

So, back to my son. Writing lover he is not. Future engineer or computer scientist would be a more accurate description of him, actually. So, will this program work for a kid like him?

This program comes with a non-consumable teacher's manual and student book set. You provide your choice of notebook, binder, or journal to serve as the student's journal. We used a standard bound composition book--blue in color, to match the student book, naturally.

Although our version of Write With WORLD did not contain a table of contents or page numbers, the final version will. Suffice it to say for now, that the teacher and student books are about 3/4" thick and very substantive. It is illustrated with color photographs. This curriculum contains four units with four weekly lessons containing five daily lessons apiece. At times, you will be expected to locate magazine ads or articles, and God's World News could be used, but is not required. My son used Boy's Life magazine when necessary.

So, this curriculum could be used in a semester, with a separate semester devoted to literature. Or weeks could be alternated between writing or literature, or you could choose an alternate arrangement of the material.

What does each unit cover?

Unit One challenges the student writer to think about the writing process and pay attention to the arrangement of careful details and careful word choice. Students are challenged to ask questions and try options as they build skill in identifying strong and weak writing. This is the unit that we actually worked in for the review period, and I think it does a great job of starting at the most basic level at which students need to begin--the stage of critical thinking, observation and description.

Unit Two takes this knowledge a step further by helping students apply their knowledge to building sentences and paragraphs which logically demonstrate their ideas.

Unit Three focuses on autobiography, as well as research and organizational skills. This unit is designed to draw out reluctant writers by giving them a subject to research about which they are already familiar--themselves.

Unit Four teaches how to write narrative. Fiction is touched on toward the end, but the focus is on relaying a personal experience. Relevant, specific details are again emphasized, and the development of purpose is revisited.

Our family's verdict?

Mom likes this curriculum, but acknowledges that it will probably be most effective when the website to accompany it goes "live" in September. The first unit was not overly teacher-intensive, either, though I anticipate further units may be more intensive. It is possible that the teacher helps intended to be provided on the new website may prove an excellent help for parents.

My son really enjoyed reading the student book, but still struggled to get his thoughts onto paper. Is this unusual for him? No. He was still able to complete the assignments, with some prodding. Would the website with the opportunities to use technology and interaction have helped keep him motivated better? Probably. We are undecided as to whether to continue with this curriculum in August or not, but I tentatively recommend its use for this age student, anticipating the website to complete and complement the texts.

Write With WORLD costs:

$95 for Year One
$95 for Year Two
$165 for BOTH years

All packages include the student book, teacher's manual and an online subscription to the website for either one or two years. The publishers are considering publishing a high school curriculum for 2013-14, as well as the possibility of an electronic version of this curriculum. Interested in either? Feel free to leave a comment, as the publishers would love to know the interest level.

Disclaimer: As a member of the Homeschool Crew, I received the Write With WORLD student book and teacher's manual to review. Since the online subscription has not yet become available, I am unable to comment on it. To read other reviews of this product, please visit the Homeschool Crew blog page.

Monday, March 19, 2012

Winter Gives Way to Spring

Only five minutes later he noticed a dozen crocuses growing round the foot of an old tree--gold and purple and white. Then came a sound even more delicious than the sound of the water. Close beside the path they were following a bird suddenly chirped from the branch of a tree. It was answered by the chuckle of another bird a little farther off. And then, as if that had been a signal, there was chattering and chirruping in every direction, and then a moment of full song, and within five minutes the whole wood was ringing with birds' music, and wherever Edmund's eyes turned he saw birds alighting on branches, or sailing overhead or chasing one another or having their little quarrels or tidying up their feathers with their beaks.

Today I am picturing this scene from C. S. Lewis' The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Our Winter has been long, yet Spring is arriving. For that, I am thankful. And yet, the physical winter has been very mild this year. I am perhaps speaking more of a different type of Winter our family has been experiencing.

We have experienced a medical crisis so puzzling that numerous specialists are unable to offer diagnoses or treatments--or, at least, precious few. We have had at least 50 appointments. We have had 19 vials of blood drawn. Various tests.

While we have not given up on doctors or tests or appointments, we have had to rely daily on prayer and the strength and peace of God to get us through this time of sleepless nights and endless wondering. We have prayed for healing. At times, we have wondered how many years of Winter we would experience before Aslan would come. At times we have marched through the endless dark and cold and snow, exhausted and blind. Simply holding onto Hope.

Yet Spring is here. The cold has left. The earth has awakened from its slumber.

We do not have all our answers. We have made some unusual dietary choices of late. God has slowly led us to make some changes in this area. I now spend roughly three hours daily in the kitchen, and roughly four days weekly running to specialist's appointments. Blogging is less a part of my life now. We will soon be busy gardening. I have some topics I would like to share here. Scouting progress, gardening, our dietary adventure, some educational thoughts and more. In time.

Blessings to all my faithful readers.

Review: Progeny Press Literature Guides (The Screwtape Letters)





When I discovered that Progeny Press would be a vendor for the Homeschool Crew this year, I asked my 16 year old tenth grader which of these over 100 literature guides for all ages she would like to review. As a huge fan of C. S. Lewis, she opted to study The Screwtape Letters.

What did we receive?

Progeny Press offers both physical literature guides and electronic versions. We received a downloadable interactive literature guide. I was able to save a main copy and make a second copy, assigning her name to it in order to allow her to type in her own answers. I also received an answer key.

Progeny Press Literature Guides are designed to focus on the following skills:

  • reading comprehension
  • critical thinking
  • literary analysis
  • Christian application

Our verdict?

Progeny Press does an admirable job of meeting all these goals. I am impressed and am considering purchasing some of these.


Any problems?

I was a little surprised by some of this, but we did encounter a few small problems.

First, we have a computer down. Although I did not realize it at first, my daughter did not want to type on my computer to complete the interactive study. So, a couple of weeks before this review was due, I realized that she had not been making progress and I printed her a physical copy of the literature guide. Not a big deal. Having an electronic copy allows the flexibility of choosing between using the interactive version and printing a physical copy. Not all companies offer these options, so this was a plus.

Second, since my daughter had actually read this book nearly two years ago, her memory alone was not sufficient for her to rely on to complete the study guide. This is a good problem to have! It indicates that Progeny Press requires such a high level of attention to details and literary analysis of its students that a cursory reading or former reading is not sufficient to be able to complete the guides.

Third, I discovered that although the questions and critical thinking style required of the Progeny Press Literature Guide was very comfortable for her and even familiar to her, that she wanted to use this in a discussion format. Yes, honestly. She did not want to fill out the guide herself, but would happily sit down and discuss the book with me, answering the questions as I asked them.

Okay, she is admittedly extroverted and more used to completing this type of study in a discussion format rather than writing her analysis and thoughts down. Yet that made me consider that she probably does need more experience writing her thoughts out in this type of format. And this literature guide really required a great deal from its readers. And that can be a really beneficial thing.

I think we'll be buying some more of these.

The Screwtape Letters is available in both physical and downloadable formats:

Booklet                                     $21.99
CD                                           $18.99
E-mail .pdf                                $18.99
Set (physical booklet plus CD)  $27.99
Book (by C. S. Lewis)              $13.99

Download and view Progeny Press' full catalog. Levels are available for all ages, from elementary through high school. All guides are now available in the new interactive format, or be sure to check their specials for discount prices on the old CD versions if you or your own children would rather have printable literature guides.


Disclosure: As a member of the Homeschool Crew, I received a complimentary e-download of this product for review. No other compensation was received. To see other reviews of this product, read the Homeschool Crew blog.