The Teacher Says My Child is Struggling. Now what? When I was teaching in public school many years ago, I happened to teach in an area where most of the parents spoke only Spanish. Therefore, my parent-teacher conferences were held in my far-less-than-perfect Spanish. I remember that the parents were so gracious about it. One of the hardest things about conferences was when I had to tell a parent that their child was struggling. They looked to me to know what to do about it, but as a classroom teacher, I really didn’t know how to fix it. I didn’t…
Loving Fall but Dreading Fall Parent Teacher Conferences? The East Coast does Fall right! Crisp weather; brilliant red, yellow, and orange leaves on the tress, and pumpkins everywhere! There’s just something special about Fall. A change in the weather – in most places! (So. Cal. seems to be a bit stuck on the heat of summer). School and football well underway. Holidays coming. And parent-teacher conferences coming soon. For families with struggling students, it may be the dreaded parent-teacher conference. A great connection between a student and teacher can make a huge difference in how a struggling learner feels about…
“I hate History. It’s boring.” “I don’t want to do this homework. It’s so borrrring!” (Said in a whiney voice) If you’re the parent of a school age student, you’ve probably heard this before. If you’re the parent of a child who struggles in school, you have probably heard this, or something similar, more times than you can count. The definition of boring is: not interesting; tedious. And there certainly are assignments that are just plain boring. But for many students with learning challenges, “boring” translates as “I think this is too hard and I may not be able to…
At our Parent Information Meeting this week, a parent shared that her son spends 5 hours a night on what should be less than an hour of homework. Another parent said about their son, who also seems to do nothing but homework once he gets home from school, “We just want him to have his life back!” When my son was 8, I distinctly remember him saying to me in exasperation, “You don’t know! That’s not how my teacher says to do it!” Even when there are no learning challenges, parents doing homework with their kids can be difficult. There’s just…
Last week I met a delightful mom who was trying to understand and get help for her equally delightful 8-year-old boy. She shared that he came home from school asking “Mom, am I dumb?” I’ve heard this scenario so many times over the years. Why would a smart child or teen or adult think they’re dumb? When you’re smart but struggling, you look around the classroom and you can easily see that your peers are finishing assignments quicker or getting better grades. You’re very aware of the tremendous amount of time that it takes you to do your homework, while…
Most of the time, parents bring their kids to us because they’re struggling with reading, math, or some other aspect of school. But because the underlying skills that are needed for easy, efficient learning are the same skills that support behavior, attention, social skills, and overall functioning, there are many great changes that occur for kids and families in addition to the academics. I just have to share a couple of stories parents shared with me recently. They made my day! No More Wedding Craziness! In (happy) tears, a mom came up to me and said, “I don’t know what…
Turtle Lessons Lesson #1 Standing on the beach in one of my favorite spots in the world, Honokawaii, Maui, I saw a giant sea turtle lazily sunning on the shore. With the start of school, most families are feeling anything but lazy. But as I watched the turtle, it was a good reminder that no matter how structured or hectic life becomes, it’s important to take a time out to breathe, to have even a few minutes of downtime. When my kids were in school, it was hard as a busy mom to give myself even 5 minutes of downtime,…
Back-to-School – Excitement or Dread? Back-to-School sales are everywhere! When I was a kid, I loved the preparation for going back to school – new clothes, new shoes, and all the cool new school supplies! People like NEW! Our brains like NEW – it’s interesting and different. But for families whose children have traditionally struggled with school, the hope of a new school year and a fresh start is often mixed with dread. What if this year isn’t different? What if we’re still spending hours and hours doing homework? What if this year’s teacher isn’t as understanding? In a Back-to-School…
Today is my sister-in-law’s birthday. Growing up, my children always loved visits from Aunt Nancy because she was so much fun. She would make them laugh and they would do anything for her! Laughter makes us feel good! Laughter supports our health. Laughter is just plain fun! Victor Borge said: Laughter is the shortest distance between two people When students are starting to dig-in because something is hard for them, I often find that being playful or kidding with them, will adjust their attitude before it becomes a problem. When my son was little, the last thing he wanted…
This weekend we went to the Ringling Brothers, Barnum, and Baily’s Circus. Besides being truly amazed and a little bit terrified by some of the acts, I was struck by the incredible amount of organization involved. Everything ran like clockwork and everyone and everything was in its place, right down to the shovels and buckets to clean up after the animals. Obviously this kind of organization is critical to keeping the cast, crew, animals, and audience safe, happy, and able to have a good time. How do they keep 200 people and dozens of animals so organized? The answer is…