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Kathryn Forum All-Star
Joined: April 24 2009 Location: N/A
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Posted: Aug 31 2012 at 3:01pm | IP Logged
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I'm not really sure if this is the right area to post so please move if more appropriate elsewhere. Anyway, DS who struggles so much with traditional learning LOVES being on the computer and any electronic format. For the most part, this has been games and we do limit that. However, I have wanted (and tried in the past as well) to explore giving him the opportunity to be more independent in his work while using a medium he loves...computer. Instead of having him hand-write some of his work, I've given him the chance to type it out. However, it drags on and on and then I usu. come and find him playing games!
Then, with his reading program, they have on-line games to play but again, if I'm not sitting right next to him then he either "cheats" to get the answers or starts looking at google earth. Not that I oppose goggle earth but it's completely unrelated to his learning to read.
Now I was going to sign up for this Learning Ally program that has audio books for listening to keep me from having to read everything to him for his co-op class and again, today, he was on games when he was supposed to be typing his assignment!
I'm so frustrated and don't know how to approach this. If he would use this for his benefit, it would allow him to actually grow in his education instead of moving at a snail's pace. I can no longer sit and do and read every.single.assignment with him.
__________________ Kathryn in TX
(dd 16, ds 15, dd 8, dd 5)
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JodieLyn Forum Moderator
Joined: Sept 06 2006 Location: Oregon
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Posted: Aug 31 2012 at 4:01pm | IP Logged
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ok not a lot of help on the full issue but as far as the audio books.. if you need to play them through the computer.. you can password your user ID and then "switch user" without signing off and the audio will keep playing with the computer locked.
__________________ Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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Kathryn Forum All-Star
Joined: April 24 2009 Location: N/A
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Posted: Aug 31 2012 at 6:03pm | IP Logged
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Ok...so how does that work? I am just not very tech savvy. Would that also work if I had him in an area where he was to type his work then it would lock off everything else? That wouldn't keep him from looking at answers on his reading site but if I could lock off everything else that would help but I don't know how to do that. ?
__________________ Kathryn in TX
(dd 16, ds 15, dd 8, dd 5)
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JodieLyn Forum Moderator
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Posted: Aug 31 2012 at 6:57pm | IP Logged
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No it doesn't lock out programs.. it locks you out of the computer in such a way that the audio keeps playing. We do it while listening to online radio so that the littles can't mess with it. But you have to type in your password to get on the computer anytime it's off or locked.
__________________ Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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Kathryn Forum All-Star
Joined: April 24 2009 Location: N/A
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Posted: Aug 31 2012 at 7:36pm | IP Logged
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He's supposed to "read along" with the program though. I wonder if that would still work or lock out the script too?
__________________ Kathryn in TX
(dd 16, ds 15, dd 8, dd 5)
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JodieLyn Forum Moderator
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Posted: Aug 31 2012 at 8:01pm | IP Logged
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it would lock out the script too
__________________ Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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Kathryn Forum All-Star
Joined: April 24 2009 Location: N/A
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Posted: Aug 31 2012 at 9:00pm | IP Logged
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Well boo hoo! No other ideas?! You always have good ideas... I just don't know what to do with this child.
__________________ Kathryn in TX
(dd 16, ds 15, dd 8, dd 5)
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mommy4ever Forum All-Star
Joined: April 08 2011 Location: Canada
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Posted: Aug 31 2012 at 11:18pm | IP Logged
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Passwords!
I use Microsoft Family Safety on the computer. I can completely lock out things online. And only approve certain sites.
Like you I have kids that work well on the computer, but get distracted. So, for the school year, I'm putting passwords on their logins, and for school they use a school log in that is very restricted. They will only have access to their screens once work is done. It's not perfect, but it will limit the distractions. ipods and phones are mine during the day as well.
Only approved sites. It takes a bit of time to get settled, lots of approving different sites when it's research time,etc, but social media and games never make it on our school user login.
__________________ Mom to 4,
1 graduated June 2012
1 in Catholic school
2 homeschooled(one considering art school!)
ardently praying for a new addition to our family.
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mommy4ever Forum All-Star
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Posted: Aug 31 2012 at 11:21pm | IP Logged
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Just adding you can also limit what programs a user can access as well. I didn't realize that.
__________________ Mom to 4,
1 graduated June 2012
1 in Catholic school
2 homeschooled(one considering art school!)
ardently praying for a new addition to our family.
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CrunchyMom Forum Moderator
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Posted: Sept 01 2012 at 6:32am | IP Logged
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mommy4ever wrote:
Just adding you can also limit what programs a user can access as well. I didn't realize that. |
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Yes, you can create seperate users with seperate passwords and limit what programs are available to a particular user. This would work well if your son's reading program is seperate but it might not help if he has to be online in a browser that itself is the distraction.
__________________ Lindsay
Five Boys(6/04) (6/06) (9/08)(3/11),(7/13), and 1 girl (5/16)
My Symphony
[URL=http://mysymphonygarden.blogspot.com/]Lost in the Cosmos[/UR
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mommy4ever Forum All-Star
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Posted: Sept 01 2012 at 9:33am | IP Logged
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CrunchyMom wrote:
Yes, you can create seperate users with seperate passwords and limit what programs are available to a particular user. This would work well if your son's reading program is seperate but it might not help if he has to be online in a browser that itself is the distraction. |
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But you can completely block all sites except the one he needs to work in, if necessary. You can also block games.
__________________ Mom to 4,
1 graduated June 2012
1 in Catholic school
2 homeschooled(one considering art school!)
ardently praying for a new addition to our family.
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SallyT Forum All-Star
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Posted: Sept 02 2012 at 10:30pm | IP Logged
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There's also the Self-Control app, which locks you out of any sites you put on the "blacklist" for however long you want to be locked out of them. As far as I can tell, there's no getting around it, either -- I lock myself out of a number of sites (including this one) while we're doing school, so I'm not tempted to get too sucked in while I'm sitting with my younger kids as they do independent work.
Of course, if you also use the computer, you'd be locking yourself out of the sites as well, but if it's only games and other distractors for your kids, that wouldn't necessarily limit you. And you don't have to deal with passwords.
I love Self-Control, because *I* don't have any!
Sally
__________________ Castle in the Sea
Abandon Hopefully
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Kathryn Forum All-Star
Joined: April 24 2009 Location: N/A
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Posted: Sept 03 2012 at 9:56pm | IP Logged
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Ok...so I guess I need to ask DH to help with that creating separate users and passwords. Is that a particular program or something within the computer system already? I don't think he needs to be in any particular browser (like browsing around researching?) He wouldn't do any of that. It would be specific sites.
I guess the self-control app would be for a smart phone or kindle etc?
__________________ Kathryn in TX
(dd 16, ds 15, dd 8, dd 5)
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SallyT Forum All-Star
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Posted: Sept 03 2012 at 10:08pm | IP Logged
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It's for Mac or PC, just a free download. I don't know if there's a version for a phone or a Kindle -- we don't have either -- but there might well be. My college daughter introduced me to this little gem last year, and it's great . . .
It wouldn't block other apps on the computer, I don't think, but does block anything online for however long you set it to (you can't vary the time -- everything you put on your blacklist is locked for that length of time. NOT a good idea to blacklist your own email, for example -- just ask me how I know this!)
Sally
__________________ Castle in the Sea
Abandon Hopefully
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mommy4ever Forum All-Star
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Posted: Sept 04 2012 at 3:42pm | IP Logged
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The program is a free download at http://fss.live.com
It's not included in the software, but something you need to set up and install. You can control it from any computer, you'd log in, and you can see where they have been going, what programs they're using, etc.
__________________ Mom to 4,
1 graduated June 2012
1 in Catholic school
2 homeschooled(one considering art school!)
ardently praying for a new addition to our family.
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