CA-HEAL -California Home Education for Alternative Learners (CA-HEAL) is for California families who are (or interested in) homeschooling their special needs and uniquely different children.

The Complete Guide
to Successfully Homeschooling
the Child with
Learning Differences

Not Just About ADD!

Read the Introduction

Common Childhood Disorders

This section is comprised of resources that are either specifically for homeschooling families, or those which have been highly recommended by homeschoolers in working with their own special needs children. Please check the general SPED resources page for nonprofit organizations that address specific disorders.

Attention Deficit Disorder
with or without Hyperactivity

Online Articles

Karen Hoogland, Home Education Magazine, 2001
Education Without Medication: Why I Chose to Homeschool My Son

Kathy Ward, Gentle Spirit, 2000
Unschooling With ADD

William B. Carey, M.D.
Is ADHD a Valid Disorder?

Books

The Myth of the A.D.D. Child by Thomas Armstrong, Ph.D. Dutton Books, 1995.
While I do not subscribe to Dr. Armstrong's belief that ADD is a nonexistent disorder, I have found many of the ideas in this book to be helpful.

Thom Hartmann's Complete Guide to ADHD: Help for Your Family at Home. School, and Work by Thom Hartmann, Ph.D. Underwood Books, 2000.

Email Lists

ADHD & Gifted
For those who have chosen to homeschool their ADD/ADHD, gifted child. Share the joys, challenges and frustrations of homeschooling/unschooling your child with other families. A place to share resources, tips on what you find works for you and what doesn't. I would like to promote the positive side of ADD/ADHD and what great kids these are.

Websites

Born to Explore!
The Other Side of ADD
A Clearinghouse for Positive and Alternative Information

The Gift of ADD
Thom Hartmann's page of resources

Autism / Asperger's Syndrome / Pervasive Developmental Disorder

Online Articles

 I Am What I Am by Anne E. Ohman

Quirks of Fate: A Homeschooling Look at Being Different
by Jeff Kelety, Home Education Magazine,
March-April 2000, Notes from A Dad column

Autism and Speech Therapy by Jennifer Mitchell, M.S.Ed., CCC-SLP

Email Lists

AS You Like It
A secular list for parents who homeschool, or who are thinking about homeschooling, children with Aspergers Syndrome, HFA, or PDD. Friends and relatives of these children are encouraged to join AS You Like It. People of all religious faiths and personal philosophies are welcome. We are an open-minded, forward-thinking, mutually respectful group of individuals, with diverse belief systems, who share the challenges and successes of parenting and homeschooling children on the autism spectrum. We share available educational and medical information, and reference materials. Our guidelines are simple--no religious references or signatures, and no soliciting in any form. Welcome all!

Homeschooling Aspies
A list for primarily Christian families homeschooling Asperger's Syndrome (AS) children.

Autism
We are a group of diverse families who have chosen to homeschool their child(ren) with autism.  We recognize and honor that each family unit has its own unique logistics, beliefs, perspectives and experiences that shape their lives and decisions.

Communicative Disorders

Online Articles

Is Speech Therapy Really Necessary? by Lenore Colacíon Hayes, Summer 2000

Email Lists

Homeschool Language-Impaired Forum
Open to people who have an interest in educating language-impaired or learning-disabled children. This mailing list is a place where you can contribute your ideas & practical educational techniques which you've found to be successful & fun for your children. It is also a place where you can find support & share your ideas & concerns.

Websites

California University Communicative Disorders Clinics
A listing of websites (if available) and telephone numbers of northern and
southern California universities that serve their communities with a speech-language clinic. Many of these clinics utilize a sliding scale for services provided.
A cost-effective alternative to private speech therapy.

Jennifer Mitchell's Speech Therapy Activities
Ms. Mitchell is a Speech-Language Pathologist (M.S.Ed., CCC-SLP) who has provided an exceptionally helpful website! There are a variety of resources, including PowerPoint games, how-to articles, free downloads, and more. The website is a treasure trove of activities that parents can do to work with their children's speech. They have affordable CDs, cards, puzzles, and other products available for purchase online.

Homeschooling Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children
Homeschooling parent, Barbara Handley's website which includes a section for those parents who may be in crises mode. Lots of helpful resources and links.

Carol's Speech and Language Disorders Professional Resources
A comprehensive website of sites that will give you information about specific speech and language disorders. Also, articles, lesson plans, and materials.

Difficult Temperament

Books

The Highly Sensitive Child: Helping Our Children Thrive When the World Overwhelms Them by Elaine N. Aron, 2000.

The Highly Sensitive Person by Elaine N. Aron (1996). Birch Lane Press, 1996.

Strong Willed Child or Dreamer? by Ron L. Braund & Dana Spears. Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1996.

The Indigo Children: The New Kids Have Arrived by Lee Carroll and Jan Tober. Hay House Publishers, 1999.

The Explosive Child: A New Approach for Understanding and Parenting Easily Frustrated, "Chronically Inflexible" Children by Ross W. Greene. Harper Collins Publishers, 1998.

The Difficult Child by Stanley Turecki. Bantam Books, 1985.

The Care and Feeding of Indigo Children by Doreen Virtue, Ph.D. Hay House Publishers, 2001.

The Crystal Children: A Guide to the Newest Generation of Psychic and Sensitive Children by Doreen Virtue PhD

Websites

Indigo Children Based on the book, Indigo Child: The New Kids Have Arrived
This site provides updates, resources and a calendar of seminars on Indigo Children. If you've not read the book, you can read a synposis of it on the website.

The Highly Sensitive Person
Great website by Dr. Elaine Aron, author of the books! There are self-tests for adults and children, articles from the Comfort Zone newsletter, and links!

Learning Difficulties

Online Articles

Dyslexia - A Gift? by Lillian Jones.

Learning Disabilities: Myth or Reality? Doesn't Matter When Homeschooling
by Lenore Colacion Hayes, California Homeschooler, June 1999.

Books

In Their Own Way by Thomas Armstrong, Ph.D. Jeremy Tarcher Publishers, 1987.

Awakening Your Child's Natural Genius by Thomas Armstrong, Ph.D. Jeremy Tarcher Publishers, 1991.

The Gift of Dyslexia: Why Some of the Smartest People Can't Read and How They Can Learn by Ronald G. Davis. Perigee, 1997.

Teaching Reading to Children with Down Syndrome: A Guide for Parents and Teachers by Patricia Logan Oelwein. Woodbine House, 1995.

How to Identify Your Child's Learning Problems and What to Do About Them: A Practical Guide for Parents by Duane A. Gagnon, 1990. Published by Pioneer Press, P.O. Box 328, Young, AZ 85554

Other Resources

Colored Overlays

Sensory Integration

Books

Sensory Integration and the Child, by Jean Ayres. Western Psychological Services, 1979.

The Out-of-Sync Child: Recognizing and Coping with Sensory Integration Dysfunction by Carol Stock Kranowitz. Perigree, 1998.

Other Resources

Brain Gym Edu-Kinesthetics, P.O. Box 3395, Ventura, CA 93006-3395. Phone: 888/388.9898.

Educational Kinesiology Foundation, 1575 Spinnaker Drive Suite 204B, Ventura, CA 93001, Phone: 800/356.2109.

Vision 

Online Articles

Taking a Look at Vision Skills
by Lillian Jones

Parents Active for Vision Education (PAVE)