OK, I am trying to edit the English curriculum into the Seneca language and trying to figure out how to type umlauts and other special characters.  Thank you. 

Maybe try and let your daughter create mini books using little reader.  Let her create the sound files and type the words.  Start maybe with a favorite book - and do a page or two a day.  Then maybe create a reward system - earn stars and trade those in for something she likes.  She would be creating playlists for her siblings and working on her reading and typing at the same time. 

Another thought I had - maybe let her listen to music using headphones.  If her attention span is small and there are lots of distractions, headphones help.  My oldest son had auditory processing difficulties (background noise was really loud to him)  He couldn't focus at all with the littles distractions.  Earobics helped with that - that program is phonics based as well. 

Does she flip bpqd?  Visual spatial kids have a harder time because of their flexibility in thinking - letters and words jump all over the page.  I have some resources for visual spatial learners (ie Upside Down Brilliance http://www.visualspatial.org/udb.htm)  if you think that might be helpful. 

What about using books-on-tape with the books?  She would be able to see and hear the words and not have to struggle to sound out every word. 

www.readplease.com is another good resource I found - copy text from a favorite website and then the software reads and highlights each word. 

Playing Baroque music in the background while working on reading helps make more neural connections and might help integrate the sounds she knows into words.  www.monroeinstitute.com has a CD for attention and Baroque Garden which I found helpful.  Hemi-sync music is unique in that it alternates between the left and right ear creating a third tone.  It is a bit complicated, but basically tricks the brain into various states to optimize learning, attention, rest, etc. 

How many computers can you use the license for Little Reader?  I have 3 computers that I switch between and was only able to install the software on 2.  Is there anyway to install on three?

I use the Teach Me (French, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, etc) Series www.teachmetapes.com to expose my children and dayhome kids to a variety of languages.  The songs and phases are in English and the foreign language.  Nice introduction.  I can't remember the research - but what I remember is that as long as a child is exposed to various languages at a young age, their brains will be prewired to learn languages later if they choose to study them. 

Rosetta Stone has a very good CDRom program for various languages (geared towards older children 4+)

With my older son - I taught him Latin and Greek prefixes suffixes and roots (flashcard format).  Helped a lot with his vocabulary and comprehension. 

Another possibility...teething.  I had one little boy whose checks would turn red when he was teething. No fever, no fussing...just the red cheeks. 

My 1st son had food allergies - milk egg,soy corn and peanuts.  Didn't find out until I started introducing foods.  His face would get a rash at times.  There is a blood test to see if allergies are a program.  I can't remember the name - your Dr. should know.  Allergy skin tests don't start until age 2.  You could eliminate the main foods that cause allergies - wheat, soy, milk, eggs. .. and see if that helps.  Some kids are sensitive to food additives and preservatives.  There are food allergies and food sensitivities - so it's sometimes hard to pinpoint.

Could also just be dry skin or reaction to laundry detergant or soap.   

Sorry - I posted the wrong like regarding Montessori and art.  Here is the link with materials for age 1-3:

http://www.michaelolaf.com/08JC13art.pdf
 
One thing I never thought about with art and young children was perspective and the limitations in using a crib.  I used a floor bed with my second son and he is a lot more perceptive of things in his environment and explores a lot more.  http://www.michaelolaf.net/

RE: trouble for reading at school.  My son would have 2-3 books with him, usually sci-fi - not related to school work.  He would read during math and other subjects and get in trouble for not paying attention.  He actually received detention for reading a few times. 

He tends to get absorbed in books and will not stop until he gets to the end - even the end of the series of books.  When I take away his priviliages - he doesn't care about TV, computer, ipod, gaming system.  I have to take away his books.  Now he just sneaks off to the library or the school library.  At least I have a teenager who loves reading. 

Gluing idea - use a paint brush instead. Dental flossers and q-tips.  I use small bathroom cups.  Good for painting as well.  Try taping down the paper - makes it a little easier. 

Painting in the bathtub and shower walls is fun and easy to clean up.  Add bonus of color blending when you rinse the walls.

Corn startch and water play is always a hit.  Wait until the mixturers dry and just sweep them up for an easier clean up. 

Paper mache - tearing paper

My older son hated coloring.  He worked on his fine motor skills by peeling the paper off the crayons.  Ended up melting the crayons and blending colors.  I would let him stick toothpicks in the wax to make drawings.

A tray of flour, salt, sand is fun to draw in - adding water with eye droppers

In the winter time, spraying the snow with colored water bottles. 

When kids are young it is more the sensory experience and process than creation.  Using a sponge, hand broom, laundry are practical life skills that can be added to any art experience -- hanging up laundry with clothes pins is a good fine motor activity.

http://www.michaelolaf.net/1CW36art.html

RE: How do you discipline/hard work?  When I was teaching my first son, I was alway there for him, guiding him the whole way, making sure he was having fun and being successful.  He never learned to tolerate failure or boredom.  He has yet to memorize his math facts or formulas.  Kids absorb everything they are exposed to before the age of six - the sponge effect.  Learning comes so easy.  If they are exposed to a lot at such a young age - they can coast through highschool.  This is what I am struggling with - trying to help my first and prepare my younger son for the future. 

I'm am lacking in the discipline area - I managed to coast through college - finishing major papers the night before they were do, studying for a test the day before, completing a course in the first week if it was interesting, barely passing courses after getting A's at first then losing interest.  I racked up lots of college credits - over 300 before getting my first degree, because I never followed the degree requirements, just wanted to learn, not jump through hoops. So I guess I'm not a vary good role model in that area. 

I used a variety of materials: Teach You Baby to Read (tried the flashcards, I lost interest in making them). Then Hooked on Phonics (made it though Deck 1 only).  Next I tried Romalda Spalding The Writing Road to Reading (used the record with the 70 phonograms of the English Language with flashcards) Always lots of reading everything from Dr. Suess to my college textbooks (I would always point out the words as I read).  And lots of listening to books-on-tape (from the junior great books and great books).  He was also obcessed with the computer.  So I bookmarked 5 sites a day he could explore and let him use Read Please to cut-copy-paste and read the text himself. Somewhere along the line, he figured out how to read.  The first book he read was Hop on Pop - so I'm thinking the phonics experiences helped. 

I am a childcare provider - most kids who start before a year are reading by three.  I use the same resources.  I've added some more Montessori materials (whole language and sensory based) - but that is the only difference.  I like using the phonics - sounds like baby babble anyway - just gives a visual representation to natural sounds.  I have found it helps a lot with listening skills and speech.

I also use the accelerated reader books - with books-on-tape.  That way if a child understands basic phonics and can follow along with the text, they do not have to struggle to sound out words.  They see and hear the words in a greater numbers and at a faster rate.  Reading comprehension and speed increases dramatically.  It takes a bit of work to pair the books with their audio companions, but it is worth the effort. 

I have the signing time DVD's - use them in my dayhome (mostly just play the songs from the DVD).  The first volume of DVD's held the interest of my toddler group (12-19 months) - so I never ordered the baby signing time.  I use the DVD's to learn the signs myself and teach parents and helpers.  Then we just add 10 signs or so a week to our everyday activities.

The CD's are just the songs from the DVD.  Under the menu you can just play the songs. 

You might want to check your library.  Sometimes you can get the staff to order the collection.  Also check with daycare centers or schools.  They might have some to borrow. 

What about the Math-U-See manipulatives?  Instead of counting by 1's, there are a lot more possibilities.  The manipulatives are different colors for the 1,2,3...blocks.  Makes counting by 2's, 5, 10s easy to see and will not lose count as easily.  The program is good for pre-k to algebra.  I used in when I homeschooled.  http://www.mathusee.com/index.html

I do simple algebra as well:  X + 1 = 2,   A + 1 = 2  .... teach letters and number concepts at the same time.  I usually use building blocks for the letters and math-u-see manipulatives to show the numbers.  What number vcan u put where the block is?  What does that equal?  Then I say 'too big'  or 'too small'.  They catch on really fast at 2. 

Montessori gives children materials that are their size so they can have success.  Kids like to copy what their parents do in general.  The hard part is finding a way for them to particiapate in a huge world.  I found a sweeper vacuum where I could take out the middle section of the handle so my son could use it.  I put a handbroom and dustpan and child level for easy access.  A crate full of cleaning items: dust rag, water bottle, sponge, etc.  He has a small basket of hand towels he tries to fold while I'm doing laundry. Making it child size and realistic is key.  My son will not touch the toy cleaning tools at all, he wants the same as mom. 

For cooking, my son is still too young to really help out.  I just call it sensory experience time.  I let him play with flour or other ingredients I am using.  Play with measuring cups and spoons.  He is really into pouring water and transferring marbles from bowl to bowl with a spoon. 

I teach about money the same way I teach about animals and sounds.  This is a quarter is is worth 25 cents.  4 quaters make a dollar -- like stacking blocks -- more coins more monitary value.  Just point it out in everyday activities (ie grocery shopping, renting a movie, etc)  they learn -- they also start to ask about debit and credit cards and how much those are worth.  That's when the real fun starts.