Dealing with memory problems

Hi Malissa,

Are you saying that she has clinical memory problems or that she is just not practiced at memory work? In either case, I would work at her level, give her opportunities to do some different kinds of narration (Sonya has a list on this site), and perhaps work on some sorts of projects that have more to do with a ‘flavor’ of the story versus detailed narration, like character analysis (I liked this character because….he showed great ______ when he did this…). You can also let her ask you one or two questions about the reading and then she can see if you are correct. I know others will have more suggestions.

Blessings,

Cindy

Hi Malissa,

I was very interested in your post. My daughter (12, next month) also has memory problems. She has trouble recalling the names of familiar places and people, sometimes even objects (for example she’s looking at the dishwasher and says “Do you want this dish in the, the, the,….oh, Mom, what’s that thing called again?”) She gets really irritated with herself when it happens but usually can laugh about it. She often looks to her 9-year old sister for help with a word or name. She EASILY forgets directions, especially if they are rather long or have more than one or two details to remember. Four and one half years ago, we found her having a seizure in her bed (about 1/2 hour after tucking her in for the night). She has been on medication for benign rolandic epilepsy ever since. She has some difficulty learning and reading has come very slowly for her. She is just beginning to enjoy reading more. She still spells terribly. We are sort of at a loss as to what to do to help her and aren’t sure what her problems exactly are. Many of her struggles sound to us like dyslexia too. To our knowledge, she has been seizure-free for just over two year. In fact, we just took her to the neurologist yesterday for an EEG and consultation. If her EEG results are normal, they will begin weaning her off the medication to see if she has outgrown the seizures or not. They expect that she will, as that is the usual course of this type of epilepsy. What is it that makes you suspect your daughter may be having seizures? If I were you, I would continue to push for some answers. It’s very hard as your child’s parent and teacher to keep in mind that their memory problems cannot be helped…especially when you JUST told them something and they can’t remember it. I feel for you. I’d love to hear any suggestions you might have that have helped you. I held my daughter back the first year we began homeschooling (also about four years ago!) so she is in fifth grade. She just completed the CAT standardized test and scored in the 69th percentile. We were SO THRILLED about this small victory. It’s been a long time coming. Hope things get easier for you and your daughter both.

Rachel

Malissa, you may have already tried this, but I thought I’d mention it just in case. One idea is before you read the passage, write a key word or two on a little white board or sheet of paper. Then read the passage and ask for a narration, allowing her to look at the key words as she narrates. Those key words can give little mental hooks to hang her narration on and prompt her memory. Does that sound like something that might help?