Author Archives: Linda Hansen

Disciplining Your Special Needs Child

How do you deal with that temper tantrum your child displays in Wal Mart? Do you want to crawl under the table while your little angel is being obnoxious when the family is dining out? What do you do when he is misbehaving and is oblivious to your threats of punishment? There are tactics you can employ when your child is consistently disobedient. First and foremost, use discipline sensibly. Whatever method of punishment you choose, remember to enforce it firmly and dependably. Consistency is the cornerstone of discipline. Displaying overprotective tendencies by letting bad behavior go unpunished, never helps your … Continue reading →

How I Became Susie’s Mom

Susie was my best friend in school. We were very close. I spent a lot of time at her house and knew her mom and dad well. They were great parents to her, good role models for me, and I especially enjoyed her mother’s company. Mrs. Wilson was a petite woman, who put on a few pounds over the years, making her appear short and plump. She was rather frumpy in appearance and most certainly reached a point in her life where she dressed only for comfort. Susie and I were fashionable; in tune with the styles of the day … Continue reading →

Ten Tips on Organization for the Child with ADHD

Children with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) have a tendency to be disorganized. Your child may drop his backpack in the first vacant spot he finds after coming in the door. Perhaps he leaves his dirty clothing on the floor or toys scattered in his room. He may have a tendency to misplace or lose things on a regular basis. Getting your child organized and helping him stay there is not difficult. By following these ten suggestions, your child will learn simple techniques to keep his world orderly and arranged for his comfort and convenience. 1. Help Your Child get … Continue reading →

Impulse Control Disorder

Shortly after the boys moved in, the words “dysfunction” and “disorder” became commonplace in our everyday language. There were a multitude of them, some diagnosed, others lying in wait to be discovered in the boys’ everyday behavior. We were aware of Randy’s ADHD, FAE, and learning disabilities. We soon learned Daniel had real and critical problems with Attachment Disorder and hoarding issues. However, it took us awhile to realize there was a serious issue with Randy; he had been diagnosed with Impulse Control Disorder, but we weren’t aware of it until we experienced his behavioral symptoms. Our first inclination of … Continue reading →

Learning Disabled in Math

Math deficits affect about six percent of the population of school age children in our country. Struggling in math has a definite impact in our household. Our ninth grader struggles with this subject on a regular basis. He has my deepest empathy; I am no math wiz myself. Math skills and the ability to reason in this area are imperative in today’s world. Effects of failing math in school and math illiteracy in adult life can seriously handicap everyday life and most vocational prospects. Although struggling with this disability myself has hindered any stringent tutorial help on the subject, it … Continue reading →

Hearing Helen: The Wisdom of Helen Keller

As a child, I was an avid reader. A trip to the library was as exciting for me as any ride at an amusement park. I read about Helen Keller and filed her away in my memory as a hero. I was amazed at how much she accomplished with so many disabilities. Although the world is full of suffering; it is full of overcoming it. Helen Keller As an adult, I enjoy refreshing my memory on subjects that intrigued me in my youth; I recently reread a lot of material on Helen Keller, her struggles as a child, her mentor … Continue reading →

Preparing a Learning Disabled Student for College

Assisting your LD child in preparing for college can be an exciting passage into his adult life. With the proper planning it is no more challenging than any other aspect of parenting. Preparing should begin by his freshman year in high school, starting with your student’s IEP (Individualized Education Program) and incorporating an ITP (Individualized Transition Program) at a later time. Including your high school student in both meetings will give him a voice in preparing for his future. Your child should learn to be his own advocate. Part of growing mentally is understanding the extent of his disability(ies), knowing … Continue reading →

Ten Ways to Motivate Your Child to Read

Encouraging our children to read can sometimes be a daunting task. Although some of us are blessed with avid readers, many of us live with the child that would rather “wait for the movie to come out”. Listed below are ten strategies to help your child develop a passion for reading. 1. Build a Well Stocked Home Library. When the boys came to live with us, we had no children’s books in the house. Every book was geared for an adult. Since then we have added two bookcases and three very long shelving units above them to accommodate the books … Continue reading →

Interplanetary Parenting

My boys sometimes think I am from another planet, hence the title. They do not understand my logic or agree with me on clothing. Both are in agreement that I am unfashionable. I can live with that. It’s not likely you will ever run into me at WalMart wearing a baseball cap with the bill perched over my right ear. If making a fashion statement constitutes the inseam of my pants hanging just above the kneecap, a multitude of size 3X t-shirts layered on my back and adorned with enough oversized chains hanging around my neck to make me look … Continue reading →

Living the Good Life

The following is a story Randy started writing in Microsoft Word. It was only a few weeks after the boys came to live with us. The moonwalk is actually a trampoline. The dog was sixteen years old and has since died of old age and the boys now have a younger, friskier, bigger dog that loves kids and we have added one cat to the collection. Other than that, I think it is still a pretty accurate account. LIVING THE GOOD LIFE BY RANDY Hello it was hard getting here. I was not doing well before and so we came … Continue reading →