Helping Struggling Readers Focus

Summary:  Here is a help that I found for children and teens who struggle with reading.  It is called the Reading Focus Cards and there is also an app that can be used on computers, too. It has already helped 1,000's of kids/teens.  #readingfocuscards #strugglingreaders


Do you have a child or teen who struggles with reading?

Do they forget what line they are on, or have trouble concentrating?  

Or does your teen get distracted by the other words on the page?

I have recently found out about a helpful and clever device that could help your reader, called the Reading Focus Cards (Patent 7,565,759).

These specially designed cards help eliminate distraction, and improve reading in a number of ways, by guiding your reader to focus on just the words at hand.  

This device has helped 1,000's of kids and teens with: 

-ADHD 
-dyslexia 
-autism 
-visual processing issues 
-and other learning issues.  

They are made to work with all kinds of books, from picture books to novels,  and come in two different sizes, with filters included.

Below is a picture of one of them.

The Reading Focus Cards are specially made with specially made filters to help the reader focus.  

They were developed by Mrs. Joan Brennan, a special education teacher who has worked with kids and teens for over 20 years.  She is a big supporter of homeschooling and started Brennan Innovators, LCC.  

With these tools, her challenged readers significantly improved a number of reading skills, including their:

-focus 
-tracking
-fluency
-reading rate
-comprehension 
-word attack
-and retention.

The way this reading tool works is simple.  

It is designed to train the reader to focus on individual words and text lines, guiding the eye appropriately from left to right. 

In this way, this educational tool helps promote more focus, improve important reading skills and eliminate distractions such as other text lines on a page and the white page backgrounds.

from Mrs. Brennan @ Focus and Read Blog, where there is much more information on the Reading Focus Cards and how to use them.

She also offers an app that works on computers.

To read more about that and how it helps with digital reading, please click here - Reading Focus Cards App. ((Patent 8,360,779) 

I have a complete review of the Reading Focus Cards on Tricia's site called The Curriculum Choice.

What have you found that helps your kids who struggle with reading?  Please share in the comments.

This post was shared on What to Read Wednesday and was featured!  Thanks!!

Thanks for stopping by BJ's Homeschool,

Betsy

Betsy is mom to her now college grad, whom she homeschooled through high school.  She blogs at BJ's Homeschool, about the early years, highschool, 
college, gifted/2e and wrote -Homeschooling High School with College in Mind, 2nd Edition,   She offers homeschool help through messages at BJ's Consulting,  and has had some of her articles picked up by the Huffington Post.

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Make Your OWN Homeschool High School English Course - and Follow Your Teen's Interests

Affiliate links to products that we used or would use in our homeschool may be included in this article.  Please see my disclosure policy. #homeschoolhighschool #homeschoolhighschoolEnglish #choosinghighschoolcurriculum

There are many ways to homeschool high school English.  Many families use established courses by homeschool publishers like IEW  or Apologia. 

Another way is to make your own course.  I like how you can use whatever books your teen is interested in reading when you make your own homeschool high school English course.

That can be so wonderful, instead of having to use whatever the prepared curriculum says they need to read.

Talk about following your teen's interests.  That way, they will likely be much more motivated to read and then analyze what they have read. 

But what is needed in a homeschool high school English course?  

Today, I'd like to share seven things that we included in our homemade English course.  

We focused on literature and composition, but you could add in grammar review and vocabulary, if you like. Some teens do well to also have spelling in their courses.

Most colleges tend to look for literature and composition in an applicant's high school English courses, but don't specify what type of lit to include.  That gives us homeschoolers lots of leeway.  

Our homemade English course was accepted by each of the colleges that our daughter had on her list.  And she was well prepared for college writing.  (Even though I worried about that during high school, lol)

Making your own Homeschool High School English Course

1.  Choosing Literature or Books

Choosing your own literature, ie books to read can really be fun, and that can include some free reading books, too. It all depends on what your teen needs and where you think they are heading.  The reading does not need to be only typical high school literature selections. 

We focused on what my teen was interested in reading.

2.  Include lots of Writing Opportunities

I encouraged my teen to write..a lot!  

First, I assigned essays to write, related to her reading.  But we did a variety of other writing, too, when she wanted to do something else.  The important thing is to help your teen get comfortable with the written word.

Sometimes I gave her the choice to write in whatever way that she felt motivated to do....such as:  Write about a newspaper article, write some dialog to a short story, write how to's - such as a recipe, or how to find a good deal on cell phones, etc.  You

If your teen is interested in writing fiction, I would encourage that. 

Writing fiction is a great way for kids to learn the components of literature - setting, point of view, characters, plot, etc.  That is the basis for literary analysis, discussed below! Resources for creative writing are here.

It is also helpful to introduce your teen to different types of essays, if they are college bound, eg, narratives, expository essays, persuasive essays, etc.   

The topics were always teen-led in our house. If you want a guide for what is involved in high school writing, Oak Meadow and 7 Sisters Homeschool also offer lots of resources for writing, if you are looking for some guidance on that.

3. Practice the Steps of Writing

Time for Learning has a simple outline of these steps here, which include:

1.  Prewriting/Making an Outline 

2.  Drafting 

3.  Revising 

4.  Editing 

5.  Publishing 

Taking writing projects step by step gives your student a structure to follow, from start to finish.

4.  Do Literary Analysis

Why do literary analysis?  

..Because it is a great way to teach critical thinking skills which will be needed for whatever your teen will be doing.  And that is especially important for our college bound teens.

 But what exactly is it?  

"Literary Analysis is the practice of looking closely at small parts to see how they affect the whole. Literary analysis focuses on how plot/structure, character, setting, and many other techniques are used by the author to create meaning....." from Arrowhead High School.  Click on this title for more info on literary analysis.

Below are some homeschool high school resources that can help you teach literary analysis, if you like.  These are not needed if you feel comfortable with literary analysis.

-- 7 Sisters Homeschool English and Writing Courses

If you want to use a prepared course for help with teaching literary analysis, I invite you to check out 7 Sisters Homeschool, as they have lots of literature courses using a variety of literature.  

7 SISTERS LITERATURE GUIDES

They offer both complete year long English courses and also separate Literature Guides for over 40 novels as well.

 We loved using 7 Sisters Homeschool for English, with so many quality choices there.

American Lit by 7 Sisters

This American Literature course is a full year long course which included both literature study and composition. 

They offers a number of other year English courses including:

-  Chronicles of Narnia

-  British Lit

-  Great Christian Writers

-  Lit and Composition I and II

-  British Poetry

-- Rainbow Resource English Resources

Rainbow Literature Guides
Resource

 Rainbow Resource also offers tons of literature guides for specific literature and books as well. Also frugally priced, like 7 Sisters guides.

The best thing about our homeschool high school English courses was the time we spent together, discussing literature.  

That is how my kiddo learned the critical thinking skills that she later needed in college.  Join your teens in pondering the why's and how come's of the story, the plot line, how the setting impacted the plot, etc. 

 

5.  Write Research Reports

Knowing how to research and write up one's findings is of course, important to most careers.  

Research reports are just an extension of book reports, using more than 1 source.  One year my daughter was very interested in airplanes, so we made her research report all about that.  

It doesn't matter what the report is about. 

If you are looking for help in doing that, I recently looked at and loved how Vicki Tillman, MA, put together her course on research writing.  Click here- 7 Sisters Research Writing to get this resource..

6.  Take Inspiration Breaks

Taking a break not only helps with writer's block, it also can give your teen something new to write about.

Recipe writing is good practice for writing, too.  One day we made applesauce together.  

Learning to write the procedures needed in a recipe is good practice for other "how to" writing assignments, such as writing out the steps for a plumbing problem, or how to repair an air conditioner, or a business email at work.

7.  Add in the Fun with Movies

Would you like to add movies into your Literature course?  

Or do a movie based English course for your teen?

7 Sisters has a super easy way to do just that. Movies as part of high school Language Arts credits not only add in the fun, but can add depth to your teen's studies. Lots of options here!!

More Resources for High School English:

Here are 4 fun high school writing projects that you could show your teen, and let them pick their favorites to do:  

4 Yearly Writing Projects, by our friend, Vicki

The homeschool moms and curriculum writers at 7 Sisters Homeschool have a great practical guide to high school English called - An Authoritative Guide to Literature for Homeschool High School English.   

Are you not yet feeling confident about making your own English course?  
If not, there are a lot of well done complete English programs out there. 

 

You already know about 7 Sisters and you can get their all in one year long English courses from them, too, right here: 7 Sisters Homeschool High School English. 

They are called High School English - All in One Bundles and include all you need for a one year high school English course for your teen.  

Plus they are frugal and avoid any busywork. And they come as PDF's, easy to access and use.

OR, would your teen prefer an online course with a teacher?

My friend Meryl, a veteran homeschool mom of 4 from Funda Funda Academy has 3 online English courses available online.

Are you homeschooling high school and wondering about transcripts, and credit

After helping my teen get into each of the colleges she applied to, I wrote the book below - that guides you through planning high school at home.

Homeschooling High School with College in Mind

 2nd Edition 

The Kindle edition is on SALE through the end of August!

Thanks for stopping by BJ's Homeschool,

Betsy

Betsy is mom to her now college grad, whom she homeschooled through high school.  She blogs at BJ's Homeschool, about the early years, highschool, 
college, gifted/2e and wrote -Homeschooling High School with College in Mind, 2nd Edition,   She offers homeschool help through messages at BJ's Consulting,  and has had some of her articles picked up by the Huffington Post.

Want to stay in touch?

Subscribe, Pinterest, Facebook 

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Just encouragement for your homeschool 
in your inbox on occasion.

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 Revised 2025 @ BJ's Homeschool

Copyright - All Rights Reserved

9 (Fun) Ways to a Mature Grasp

Summary:Many kids struggle with grasp.  Sharing playful and fun activities to help teach your child to use a mature grasp.

Does your child struggle with handwriting?  

Or do they hold their pencil with their whole hand, hold their pencil tightly, or just in an awkward manner?  

Many kids struggle with grasp, but there are also many ways to help.

Today, I would like to share 9 playful activities to develop a mature grasp. 

Hi, I am Betsy from BJ's Homeschool, a veteran homeschool mom of one homeschool and college grad, and a retired O.T. 

But first, let's talk about grasp.

How Kids Develop Grasp Skills 

Little ones will naturally begin coloring by holding the crayon with the whole hand.  This is normal for preschoolers and for some kindergarteners, too.

Some kids gradually move to a mature grasp pattern over the years, as they grow.....but some kids don’t.  But there are many ways to encourage a more mature grasp. 

What is a Mature Grasp Pattern?

As you see in the photo below, a mature grasp looks like this:

photo credit - Draw Your World

Holding the tip of the pencil or pen with the tips of the thumb and first two fingers – that’s a mature grasp or a tripod grip.

Now, there are many different ways to hold the pencil.  My daughter's grasp is not the same as mine.  

But once your child has some type of mature grasp pattern, writing will be a lot easier.

Using other grasp patterns are common as your child begins to learn a mature grasp.  

Theses often occur from using excessive effort.  As they practice, they will most likely begin to relax.  

Now let's go on to look at 9 FUN and Easy to Do activities to build a Mature Grasp

Here's 9 Fun Ways to Encourage a Mature Grasp: 

1.  Color Crayon Trick

Coloring with very short crayons can encourage your child to use his first three fingers, instead of the whole hand! 

When coloring with short crayons, there is more of a chance that your child will grip with the first three fingers only.  

There is no room for the other fingers to fit on the crayon!

2.  The Puff Ball Trick

First, get a pencil and a little puff ball, or a cotton ball, or even a small eraser.

  

- Have your child hold the puff ball with their little and ring fingers, curling the ball into the palm.

3.  Add a Pencil to Puff Ball Trick

 Then give them a pencil, and they will likely grasp it with the thumb, and next two fingers. 

4.  Alligator Fingers

Make "alligator fingers" using the thumb, index and middle fingers to make an alligator's mouth, as in the picture below.

5.  Clothes Pins Play

Grasp a clothes pin, then line them up on a string, or make little puppets with them, and use them in play. 

Pinch the clothes pins with your alligator fingers!  

6.  Tweezers Play

Pick up little things with tweezers, using the first three fingers. Use them to pick up small pieces of macaroni, beans, etc.  

OR Squeeze glue onto a paper plate, and add macaroni with the tweezers, to make a design!  

7.  Playing with Tongs

Kitchen Tongs are great for strengthening the muscles for a mature grasp.  Have your kids use their alligator fingers.

OR With an egg carton, pick up the objects such as and small toys,legos, beads, or beans.  Then put them into the egg carton, with the tongs.  

8.  Push Pin Play

 
Above, I just placed a paper napkin onto a piece of cardboard. 

Then, with the index finger or the thumb, the child pushes the pins into the napkin to make a design.  This is great for strengthening.   
 

9.   Play Pinching with Clay

Photo Credit - www.oakmeadow.com

Pinch the playdough or clay, using alligator fingers. (see # 4.)  Make a pinch pot!

OR Make a clay pizza, and adding small shapes to it, by squeezing clay to form pepperoni, onions, etc.

One more idea:

Writing on a slanted surface, also can help kids use a mature grasp pattern.  Here's an extra idea to try. 

Use a large ringed notebook on a table, so that it creates a slanted  surface, facing your child.  

Writing on a slanted surface naturally places the wrist so that it is straightened out, just where you want it for ease of writing.  

Some kids enjoy having their paper taped to the frig, above shoulder height, and writing there. Really!

This helps to not only place the wrist properly, it also helps to strengthen the wrist muscles!

Thanks for stopping by BJ's Homeschool,

Betsy

Betsy is mom to her now college grad, whom she homeschooled through high school.  She blogs at BJ's Homeschool, about the early years, high school & college and wrote Homeschooling High School with College in Mind.   She offers free homeschool help through messages at BJ's Consulting,  and has had articles picked up by the Huffington Post.

Copyright, 2022 All Rights Reserved