Pinterest has the cutest ideas for Valentine’s Day cards! When I was in elementary school, my mom always made sure that I took a Valentine’s card (you know, the silly little cards you buy in a box) for every child in the class. I think that’s the rule now in most classrooms, but back then, there were always some kids who got tons of Valentines and others who got only one or two. Of course, the kids with overflowing Valentine’s pouches hanging on their desks felt very special (and a little smug??), but those who had only a few felt…
Yep! We all do it! Every January, adults the world over make resolutions to eat better, get more exercise, and appreciate themselves and others more. We seem to inherently know that these things are important to our health. Did you know these things are exactly what kids need, too? What is frequently overlooked is the tremendous impact that diet, movement, and feelings of appreciation have on attention, and learning. As a parent or teacher, it isn’t too late to think about adding these things to your student’s daily routine. Some small changes today could bring about major changes in your…
The holiday season is a time of transformation. The landscape turns into a winter wonderland (more naturally in some parts of the country than others)! Attitudes and outlook are transformed. My living room has been transformed into a display case for a miniature winter village. Transformation is a hopeful idea. It means that things that are difficult can change. At SLC, we get to see transformation everyday. I am so grateful to the dedicated staff and parents that make this possible, and to all of the clinical researchers in the field of learning that contributed to our understanding of learning…
It’s the holidays, and along with the fun comes a whole other set of stressors that may cause already inflexible children (and their families) to miss the magic. Why Does My Child Act This Way? A big snowstorm near one airport can cause flight delays and cancellations all over the country. While people got to their destinations eventually, this causes a great deal of anxiety and disruption to people’s lives, especially during the holidays. Just as air travel is dependent upon an organized system of flight patterns, our nervous system is organized around a system of reflexes. Primitive reflexes support…
It’s coming! It’s inevitable. So we might as well get on board and enjoy it! I love the winter holidays, but they do come with their own special set of challenges. For kids with learning challenges, the excitement of the holidays may be laced with anxiety. Schedules and activities at home and at school are different and often more frenetic than usual. This can be very unnerving to kids who depend on structure and routine to feel secure and in control. For those bright, creative, dyslexic students, the holidays open the door for all kinds of fanciful daydreams! Keeping…
I can’t tell you how many times I hear this phrase! “We’re spending 4 hours a night in tears over homework. I’m at my wit’s end!” “I see how hard she tries, but no matter how much we study, she still fails her tests. I’m at my wit’s end.” “My son hates to read and gets stomachaches before school everyday. I don’t know what to do. I’m at my wit’s end.” Parents at their wit’s end over their child’s struggles in school feel alone. They feel like the only one. Relatives and friends often simply don’t understand. “He’ll grow out…
I remember going to a “Haunted House” on Halloween when I was in the 6th grade. At one point, we were given peeled grapes in the dark and told that they were eyeballs. It was so deliciously creepy! What is it about that little thrill of fear that is so fun? Maybe it’s that we get to experience that little adrenaline rush while knowing deep down that the fear is temporary and not real. Fear causes our senses to elevate to high alert: Our pupils get large to take in as much light as possible. Our ears become hyper-sensitive to…
Have you been to a pumpkin patch yet? When my kids were young, this was one of our favorite Fall activities. Such excitement and such a hard choice – picking exactly the right pumpkin! In addition to pumpkins and Breast Cancer Awareness, October is Dyslexia Awareness Month. I find that our dyslexic students are some of our most creative and talented students and at the same time, often the most angry and defeated when faced with reading and writing. In spite of good intelligence and strengths in many other areas, dyslexic students can be completely confused or overwhelmed by print. …
David Letterman and Jay Leno both used to do “man-on-the-street” interviews. In spite of all kinds of documentation on the contrary, a “man-on-the-street” interview would reveal that many people equate a learning disability with low IQ. Parents with smart but struggling students see far too much evidence of their child’s ability to accept the low IQ theory. Learning Disability Defined: According to the U.S. government, “specific learning disability” means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, that may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen,…
Chris Botti is one of my favorite artists. When asked the key to success as a musician, he said, “Four things – Practice, Practice, Practice, and being friends with Sting!” It is generally accepted (and generally true), that if you want to be good at something, you have to practice, practice, practice. In his book, Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell says that for someone to become really expert at something, they have to put in their ten thousand hours. When students have trouble reading, most people believe that more reading, more practice, will solve the problem. If only the student were more…