• 24Oct

  Homework Tips, Myths and Helicopter Parents

  Sparks of Genius, homework, parenting, school, social skills 1 Comment

  I came across a new term last week — helicopter parents. It describes baby boomers that started families as thirty-somethings. They evolved a more involved parenting style, which has persisted into elementary school, high school, and even college. Bostonia, the alumni magazine of Boston University, describes this new breed of parent this way:

  “…helicopter parents, moms and dads, who hover over their college-age children, chiming in on everything from housing assignments to homework.”

  No, they’re not actually doing the homework for the “child,” but they’re still involved in the process.

  Lately homework has become a big issue. In the past twenty years, the tendency has definitely been to pile more and more homework on younger and younger children. Alfie Kohn identifies five themes about homework complaints:
  1) A burden on parents
  2) Stress for children
  3) Family conflict
  4) Less time for other activities
  5) Less interest in learning

  Let’s take just one finding from the latest research:

  “there is no evidence of any academic benefit from homework in elementary school.”

  For more information, go to http://www.alfiekohn.org/books/hm.htm. or check out The Homework Myth: Why Our Kids Get Too Much of a Bad Thing.

  The key is to rethink homework, says Kohn. Instead of schools and teachers automatically assigning homework on a regular basis because “it is the policy to do so,” he suggests that the regular condition should be no homework. Homework should be given only if it is beneficial to the student.

  Another person re-thinking homework is Richard Lovoie, who agrees with Kohn on this point and also believes that as students move towards high school that “well planned, appropriate homework can have motivational and academic benefits.” Go to http://www.ricklavoie.com/motivationbreakthrough.html

  In either case, we can now move on to a few homework tips.
  1) Use trial and error to determine the best time and place for your child to do homework.
  2) Prepare a homework toolbox or kit with all basic, essential tools and supplies.
  3) Ask the teacher for an acceptable example of your child’s homework that has been corrected and is neat and legible. Use this as an example to show your child what to aim for. Consistency is important.
  4) If your child is very disorganized, go to http://www.organizedstudent.com/ and read and implement suggestions from “The Disorganized Student.”
  5) If your child is overwhelmed by too much homework, clear everything away except one assignment. When it is completed, give him another one.
  6) Many parents and professionals believe that homework should be done where it is quiet, but the fact is that many students are more productive listening to music in the background – especially instrumental music.
  7) If your child has attention, distractibility and impulsivity issues, read and implement strategies from “A Homework System That Works” at http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/1034.html
  If your child is very intense, sensitive and needy, go to http://difficultchild.com/ and learn how to apply the Nurtured Heart Approach to help your child.

  We see a lot of students at Sparks of Genius (www.sparksofgenius.com), especially elementary school students, and I have to agree that homework is a major issue for all of them and their parents. And parents, by the way, means mothers. Right?

  I know homework is an issue when the mother says “We have a lot of homework tonight.” So here’s another homework tip. When you check your child’s completed homework, look for neatness and completeness. Look over a few answers, but do not get caught up in going over every item.

  Too many parents get overly involved in their elementary school student’s homework. Remember, you do not want to become a helicopter parent.

  Recently I asked a mother of two, a dental hygienist, how she successfully got her son do complete his homework independently. She said “Look, I spent a lot of years teaching him how to have a positive attitude about homework, how to manage his time, how to complete his homework at the same time and place, how to use his homework toolbox, how to be organized and how to take responsibility for doing homework that is neat and complete and for handing it in.”

  “When he entered seventh grade I told him he was on his own,” she continued. “What happened?” I asked. “Nothing,” she said. “He just started doing it.”

  Remember, you do not want to become a helicopter parent. Or do you?

  –Dr. Rohn Kessler

• 24Sep

  Teacher Missing in Action

  ADHD, ADD, aspergers, homework, learning disability, social skills, teacher No Comments

  Hello all!

  It’s been a while since you’ve seen an entry by yours truly and there’s a good reason: I’m now working full time as a teacher for students with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and other Learning Disabilities.

  So far, it’s a blast! My class is very manageable, and the staff and parents have been very supportive. My wife has been teaching at a public High School for the last four years, so we are regularly comparing notes to see how our teaching experiences differ.

  First, I have the same fifteen students all day. She has 150 who are with her for about an hour per day.
  Second, my school has a process in place to handle students who have episodes that disrupt the classroom. They can easily be separated until they are classroom ready again. There are solid consequences that are not arbitrary punishments. At my wife’s school, there is little she can do about a student who is chronically disruptive.
  Third, the school’s focus is on input–learning–and the output expected of each child is customized to match their circumstances and ability.

  I could go on but it is gratifying to find a place where their philosophy matches my own. Look for more updates in the future, along with some humorous anecdotes.

  Good luck!
  Allen Dobkin

• 28Aug

  A Parents’ Dilemma: Where to send my child to School?

  ADHD, ADD, aspergers, homework, learning disability, parenting, school, social skills, stress, teacher No Comments

  Is my child going to the right school?

  Deciding this seemingly simple question can be agonizing for parents. Not only are some schools “objectively” better (lower teacher student ratios, more enrichment programs, etc) but one kind of child could fail in the same school where a different child would thrive. It happened to Albert Einstein. He hated school in Munich because of its rote memorization and constant drills. He prospered at a Swiss school where they taught visual thinking. The things that he learned there enabled him to be……well, Albert Einstein. Visual thinking enabled him to create experiments in his head. Einstein was probably a visual learner and this school played to his strength, enabling him to develop his spark of genius.

  There are some things to look for when you are school shopping and these criteria can be helpful in assessing whether your child’s needs are being met in his present academic environment.

  First of all, what are the strengths of your child’s school? Do they foster independence or provide adequate structure? In an extreme example, a bright motivated student like Einstein might benefit from a Montessori type open classroom with resources for him to explore his own interests and to progress at his own pace.

  But this type of approach could leave an autistic child staring at the lights. For these children, one of the most successful approaches is called Applied Behavioral Analysis, with constant repetition, positive reinforcement and prompting. Additionally a child with attention issues can be overwhelmed if too much is happening in the classroom.

  It’s also important to assess how much individual instruction is available. An introverted, introspective child who could get lost in the shuffle or for a child with attention problems who needs more redirection can really benefit from customized attention.

  Then you need to know your child’s strengths. Is there a match? Does this school stimulate your child’s spark of genius? It can be helpful to ask the school who would be a successful learner there.

  Of course, your child’s teachers make a difference here too. Sometimes a child will do poorly one year and really come around the next because the teacher understands what the child needs to succeed. Parents and teachers are the most important part of any child’s learning team, and it’s important that they work together. Find out the best way to communicate with your child’s teacher and stay abreast of what’s happening in the classroom.

  Now I am thinking about this at the beginning of school here in Florida and I don’t want parents to second guess themselves and wonder if they made the right school decision. I believe that everything happens for a reason and that we can learn something from every experience. Remember that Einstein was at the “wrong” school in the beginning, but maybe memorizing equations gave him the building blocks he needed for revolutionizing physics.

  Remember that finding the right education for your child is a process. Any steps that you take to ensuring a better fit between your child, the teacher and the school will benefit your child’s sparks of genius.

  By Ninah Kessler, LCSW
  Life Coach

• 08Aug

  Taking the work out of Homework

  ADHD, ADD, aspergers, homework, learning disability, parenting, school No Comments

  The days are getting shorter. School is starting. Homework is coming. Arguments about homework generate anger and frustration for parents and children. It’s easy to understand the child’s perspective. They’re in school all day and then they are free – BUT WAIT – there is homework to do. As parents we know that homework not only gives the kids an opportunity to practice what they have learned in school but also teaches skills like organization and setting priorities that are essential in the “real” world. Not to mention the scholastic consequences of incomplete assignments

  So how can we make it a little easier this year?

  How much homework is too much?

  Your child, especially a young child, shouldn’t be spending his life on homework. There needs to be a balance. The experts agree that a kindergartener or second grader shouldn’t be spending more than about 20 minutes a day on homework, and even older elementary school kids benefit most from spending an hour at most. After 4th grade, it is important that your child practice math, because since math builds on itself, deficits here can mushroom. When your child is in middle school more homework is appropriate.

  If your young child is routinely spending hours completing his work, something needs to be done.

  Simple Steps can help

  There are some very basic things that we can do to make homework easier. You have probably thought of them but may not have gotten to implement them. Some simple steps from pediatrics.about.com include:

  • Provide your child with a quiet, well lit place to do homework with materials such as pens and a dictionary available.
  • Establish a set time for doing homework, not right before bedtime. Think about using a weekday morning or afternoon for working on big projects, especially those that involve working with others.
  • Help your child figure out what is easy homework and what is hard homework. Encourage your child to do the hard homework first when he is most alert.

  How much should I help my child with homework?

  We all know that it is your child’s homework not yours. You want to give your child as much independence as you possibly can but if the child is floundering, you don’t want him to sink.

  Even if your child is doing ok, it’s good to acknowledge him when he is doing his work and to reward any accomplishments. “Johnny, I like the way that you’re concentrating on your math problems.” “Wow, Helen, you worked really hard on your science project. Let’s celebrate with a trip to the park.” As important as acknowledgment and rewards are when your child is doing well, they are ESSENTIAL when your child is struggling

  When your child is struggling.

  If you child is spending 3 hours on 6 math problems or can’t organize his thoughts to write and essay (see our blog on how to write an essay), then you know there is a problem, and you need to find ways to intervene without taking over.

  For example, if difficulty paying attention is the problem with the math, you can cut a whole in a piece of paper so your child only sees one math problem at a time. This is a very low tech solution, but some of the new technology can also be helpful. For example, there is a program called Inspiration (which Dr Rohn used to help teachers teach science) which maps out your thoughts. Once your child’s thoughts are mapped out, it’s much easier for him to write that essay. If writing itself is a problem, your child may benefit from typing his assignments on the computer.

  You want to be available for your child, especially when they are having a hard time, because you don’t want them to get so frustrated that they don’t do their homework and then they fall behind in school.

  When is the help you do too much? Remember that interference is when you do what the child could do by himself. Additional suggestions can be found at about.com or here.

  My child says he finished his homework

  Some children who are frustrated with homework will just tell their parents “I already did my homework” or “I don’t have any homework tonight.” In the old days the main way a parent could verify this statement was to work with the teacher to create a homework pad where the teachers would write down the child’s assignments. You could also call a friend.

  While there is nothing wrong with this approach, today many teachers will post homework on a web site or will email assignments to parents.

  When you need a professional

  If there is a problem the first person to go to is your child’s teacher. It is important that parents and teachers can work together on this. The teacher may be able to make accommodations for the child. For example, the teacher may allow you to cut assignments short when the child is having an especially difficult time. If the child does not complete assignments because he can’t write, the teacher may allow you to write down your child’s answers. That relationship with the teacher apprises you of what’s going on, so you don’t get a big surprise at report card time.

  The teacher might recommend a tutor, and there are many good ones out there. Sometimes the difficulty doing homework may reflect a deeper problem. For example, if your child just cannot focus or pay attention that could be the issue. Please take the free 39 point learning assessment at our website (SparksofGenius.com) to see if an attention or focusing issue is the problem.

  Make sure the homework is in the backpack

  My friend would sit down with her son night after night and go over his homework. Then he would forget to put it in his backpack and get an incomplete. She finally helped him organize his backpack and checked to make sure the assignment was there. It must have worked, because now he is going off to college to major in computers. He is a smart kid, just disorganized.

  I hope that this makes homework a little easier. If you are frustrated, remember that you are not alone. Another friend of mine thought that having a child was like having a very intense cat. Boy was she wrong. Every problem has a solution, but that doesn’t mean that finding the solution doesn’t require some work. Hang in there and have a great school year.

  By Ninah Kessler, LCSW
  Life Coach

• 07Aug

  Want Your Children to be Smarter in School This Year?

  Sparks of Genius, homework, intelligence, learning disability, parenting, school, teacher No Comments

  Tell them to Think of Their Brain as a Muscle

  Research shows that students do better in school when they are told they can get smarter by training their brains to get stronger— like a muscle.

  Article here.

  Does your child see intelligence as something fixed or something expandable?

  Students who think intelligence is fixed become preoccupied with whether they look smart or dumb. They also tend to avoid difficult tasks. |Not good!

  But students who believe they can develop and expand intelligence usually like being challenged. They try harder, are more persistent and worry about making mistakes and looking dumb. This is good.

  In one experiment of 12 year old students with similar math achievement scores, those with a fixed mindset did worse in math than those who were taught that the brain is a muscle. And, the gap between the two groups widened over the years.

  Carol Dweck, a psychologist and researcher at Stanford University said:

  “We taught them that the brain forms new connections every time they applied themselves and learned,” she explained. “It gave them a new model of how their minds worked, and how they had control of their brains and could make it work better. The idea is to free them from the tyranny of fear of looking dumb. The name of the game is learning.”

  Students need to understand that their intellectual potential is not fixed. So do parents and educators.

  Some games that exercise the brain to get stronger can be found here.

  Moreover, there are many ways to be smart that are undervalued in school and at home—so-called multiple intelligences.

  Students at Sparks of Genius learn that their brain forms new connections when they work hard to learn and learn. They also learn how to take full responsibility for learning buy controlling their mind and their brain to work better.

  Sparks of Genius personal trainers use a high tech (software) high touch (character development) formula to help students train their brain for success

  We identify, ignite and nurture many intelligences. It’s a great way to increase student achievement.

  To learn more about your child’s learning potential

  fill out the FREE 39-Point Learning Assessment now. http://sparksofgenius.com/screens.html.

  Dr. Rohn Kessler

• 06Aug

  What’s wrong with teachers?

  ADHD, ADD, homework, parenting, school, teacher 1 Comment

  In my opinion, there is a real problem when the need for teachers to feel like they are the master of their domain is more important than the mission of preparing students for academic and real life. Here is a perfect example.

  Mr. Lampros’s introduction to the high school’s academic standards proved a fitting preamble to a disastrous year. It reached its low point in late June, when Arts and Technology’s principal, Anne Geiger, overruled Mr. Lampros and passed a senior whom he had failed in a required math course.

  That student, Indira Fernandez, had missed dozens of class sessions and failed to turn in numerous homework assignments, according to Mr. Lampros’s meticulous records, which he provided to The New York Times. She had not even shown up to take the final exam. She did, however, attend the senior prom.

  Through the intercession of Ms. Geiger, Miss Fernandez was permitted to retake the final after receiving two days of personal tutoring from another math teacher. Even though her score of 66 still left her with a failing grade for the course as a whole by Mr. Lampros’s calculations, Ms. Geiger gave the student a passing mark, which allowed her to graduate.

  So here we have a student who missed many classes, didn’t do (hardly) any homework, and of course the teacher gave the student a failing grade. The teacher quit because the principal changed the grade to a passing grade, following all the correct procedures, allowing the student to graduate.

  There are three things that stand out to me as a problem:

  First, the student passed the final exam with a 66. Not an academic whiz-kid, certainly, but she demonstrated that she had mastered the material. Or was the final exam a poor measure of mastery? Or are grades less about mastering the material and more about following the rules: completing classwork and homework, obeying school and disciplinary rules? In my view, the grades should reflect the students’ mastery of the material.

  Second, I think the administrator’s priorities were spot-on correct. Protecting the teacher’s ego is nowhere near as important as seeing that the student is graded appropriately. It is a math class. Who cares if homework was completed or that her attendance record was swiss cheese? She demonstrated mastery of the skills required to pass. Failing her in spite of that mastery is unfair and probably reflects a disparity in the backgrounds of teacher (white) and student (latino). In this case, the student would not have graduated without this passing grade. So what is more important: making sure nobody hurts the teacher’s feelings or refusing to graduate a student despite her mastery of the material?

  Third, the attitude of entitlement (”I set the grading policy for this class”) that teachers have is, according to my anecdotal experience, pandemic. Many teachers, probably because of the bureaucratic nature of public schools, have become bureaucrats themselves, more concerned with protecting their work conditions, benefits, power over their classrooms than they are with helping students. I don’t think it is a matter of character: anyone under rotten circumstances will lose their sense of mission, eventually. The sad part is that the teacher in this case is so young (judging by his photo) that it wasn’t a slow ride down.

  I was horrified to hear the story of a student who earned college credit for a high school class that he failed.

  It is easy to forget that the decisions a teacher makes can easily throw a student’s life off course. I am reminded of a recent conversation with a talented, hard-working, intelligent and experienced teacher who happens to be a friend I respect. I was horrified to hear her story of a student in her Advanced Placement (AP) science class who earned an F every quarter because he would not study or complete homework but then scored a 4 on the AP exam. That is sufficient to earn him college credit, but not high school! Do you hear the flushing sound? That’s his scholarship opportunities going down the toilet due to an F on his record and the hit to his GPA. That is so wrong.

  The point here is that parents cannot simply trust teachers and administrators to do the right thing by your child. You have to be involved. You have to watch. You have to look for signs of trouble. And you have to speak loudly, so that you’ll be heard over the whining.

  Good luck!
  Allen Dobkin

• 17Jul

  Myth-Busted: Einstein on Education

  homework, parenting, school, spatial intelligence, teacher No Comments

  You probably know how Einstein was a horrible student, was forced to wear a dunce cap, failed at math and was repeatedly told by teachers that he was hopeless.

  All wrong.

  In a new biography, “Einstein: His Life and Universe,” Walter Isaacson explains how good a student Einstein actually was. He was a good student, did not fail math and in fact had mastered differential and integral calculus before he was fifteen.

  But he did not like the mechanical regimentation and mechanical learning of the German schools, comparing elementary school teachers to “drill sergeants” and high school teachers to “lieutenants.”

  When he moved from Germany to Switzerland at the age of sixteen, Einstein spent a year at a school that emphasized independent thought, free action and personal responsibility. He thrived in a learning environment without rote drills, memorization and force-fed facts.

  Based on the philosophy of a Swiss educator named Pestalozzi, the school helped students move through a series of steps from hands-on observations to intuition, conceptualization, imagination and visual imagery.

  “Visual understanding is the essential and only true means of teaching how to judge things correctly,” wrote Pestaslozzi, and “the learning of numbers and language must be definitely subordinated.”

  Spatial intelligence has been defined as “the ability to think in pictures and to perceive the visual world.” Dr. Branton Shearer, a member of the Sparks of Genius Community, explains it as using the imagination to think in three-dimensions, transform one’s perceptions and re-create aspects of one’s visual experience.
  One with high spatial awareness can solve problems of spatial orientation and moving objects through space.

  http://miresearch.org/mitheory.php

  Remind you of anyone? It was at this school that Einstein, age sixteen, started picturing what it would be like to ride along a beam of light.

  To learn more about the 9 intelligences in our 5-4-9 formula, visit http://sparksofgenius.com/sparks.html

  -Dr. Rohn Kessler

• 10Jul

  Gaping Flaws in Standardized Testing

  homework, school, teacher No Comments

  1. Mandated exams take away from limited teaching time.

  Don’t just count the time required to actually take the exams, include the time to prepare students for the logistics, endless faculty meetings, time to take practice exams. SAT and ACT testing takes place on Saturdays…so why not FCAT (Florida’s Big Test) testing, too?

  2. The Tests do not provide the intended measure.

  What each test measures is how well a student took that particular test. Period. Claims that the exams measure reading ability, math mastery or science proficiency are all disputed.

  Here in Florida, we have a huge immigrant population who speak English as a second language. Since the government must acronymically label everyone, these students are referred to as ESOL – English Speakers of Other Languages.

  What’s the problem? These students must take their exams in English, not in their native language. Thus, their exam grades reflect a combination of their English Mastery and the subject matter. Imagine having to take a Science test in French. They can’t win. If I had to take a reading test but in Spanish, they’d say I was illiterate, too!

  3. Exams are skewed by culture.

  The standards, questions and priorities are all set by primarily middle-class white people. They assume a certain set of background knowledge that is common among middle-class white folk, and since the impoverished, minorities and immigrants have a different background, they are penalized.

  4. High-performing schools are penalized.

  An ‘A’ rated school will have a tough time showing any progress or improvement. They may have the ‘A’ but the law of diminishing returns increases the difficulty and expense in terms of resources to push scores even higher.

  5. Poor schools are penalized.

  If we are going to make an apples-to-apples comparison, we can’t ignore the impact of having the right, and enough, tools for the job. If there are not enough teachers, text books, classrooms, or computers at a particular school, learning achievements will naturally falter when stood side-by-side with an affluent school that has their own T.V. studio. That problem is doubly compounded when you consider that students at those poor schools are poor themselves and thus face the socioeconomic disadvantages that come with that dilemma.

  6. “Improvements” are baloney!

  How can you tell if a school improved? Compare this year’s score with last year’s, right?

  WRONG!

  The students who took the exam last year are not the same students who take it this year. They are different people. It’s an entirely new student body! Think how this might apply to real life. At work your boss sends group 1 to a leadership seminar, then he sends group 2 to the seminar. Everyone then takes a quiz on the material covered. Group 2 scores higher…the seminar must have improved!

  There is–maybe–a way around this: the growth model. Under the growth model, reported by the NY Times, schools are evaluated at least in part by how individual students progress on exams. So little Susie is no longer compared to Johnnie, who is a year behind her. Instead Susie as a fourth grader is compared to Susie as a 7th grader. This makes more sense, but still won’t save us.

  7. Exams ignore student effort.

  This won’t be popular, but let me be honest for a moment: some kids fail because they don’t make (enough of) an effort. You can’t teach the unwilling. Why they are unwilling is important yes, but is a completely separate issue from school/teacher efficacy. Again, poor students are prone to find school useless.

  There are students with Christmas tree attendance, who drop out to sell fruit and run cock-fights, who have to miss two weeks to watch their siblings while their parent is gone, who live with a distant cousin because mom and dad are stuck back in Haiti. They can’t make enough of an effort. They’re just trying to live. But standardized tests insist on cramming them into the middle-class white mold in which they so obviously do not fit.

  8. Testing decisions are made by unqualified bureaucrats.

  We’re talking about government agencies from the White House, Department of Education, State Government, School Districts, Administrations and advisory boards and committees. The government is the body which cannot deliver your mail on time and buys $800 hammers, remember? Why would we trust that they can deliver high-quality education?

  Elected officials and appointed officials have their own agendas. Academics have their own agendas. Teachers have their own agendas. Yet the more contact, training and experience with students one has, the less influence one has on the big decisions. This guarantees that education is used for political gain, with education taking a back seat.

  These people decide when, how, who, what, and where testing takes place. They decide what is on and off the test. They call the shots, and most have little or no experience actually teaching.

  9. Testing ignores parental involvement.

  Along with hundreds of additional factors that impact student performance, parental involvement is completely ignored. On one end of the spectrum are the parents who are in regular contact with teachers, who hire private tutors, who help with homework and maintain a great learning environment at home. At the other end is an unrelated guardian who demands that the student drop out and get a job so they can help pay the bills. That has a real impact, as do all the intermediary positions, yet are totally ignored.

  ---

  I’m sure you can come up with dozens of flaws I missed. But all hope is not lost! Next time I’ll be writing:

  Why Standardized Testing Is So Desperately Needed!

  Good luck!
  Allen Dobkin

• 15Jun

  How to Boost Your Child’s Self-Esteem

  ADHD, ADD, Sparks of Genius, aspergers, auditory, cognitive decline, homework, music, school, teacher No Comments

  Self-Esteem is always a hot topic: what does it really do for people? How is it developed? Is it good to have a lot, or can you have too much? What effect does self-esteem have on school performance? It isn’t always easy to spot. Why?

  “A given person with high implicit [or inner] self-esteem may be outwardly self-promoting or may be outwardly very modest,” said study team member Anthony Greenwald, a psychologist at the University of Washington.

  Full Article Here

  Low Self-Esteem is often confused with learned helplessness. Learned helplessness develops when a child is in school and has difficulty with, say, math. He struggles in math, possibly due to a weak teacher or just doesn’t have the same internal aptitude that others do. Maybe he was sick for a key week at school. For whatever reason, the child does poorly. Spurred on, the child decides to try his best for the next exam. Math being recursive, his lack of understanding of the prior material keeps him from really understanding the new stuff, and he gets a bad grade again even though he tried his hardest.

  The child concludes, “I’m bad at math.” That is learned helplessness.

  Contrast that experience with low self-esteem. A child goes to school and, despite good grades and many friends, feels like he or she isn’t any good in general.

  Both conditions can lead to lack of effort in school and reduced performance, but one is based on a faulty conclusion drawn from real evidence while the other is a conclusion drawn despite external evidence (or due to internal evidence only).

  The outward symptoms may look and sound the same, and the two issues are very similar, but they require a different touch to handle effectively.

  This is where Sparks of Genius shines. What we do in our Electronic Playground is help children uncover hidden strengths, then we leverage those strengths to make improvements in other areas. How do we create total transformation? Through the 9-5-4 Program.

  Even though there are 9 Intelligences, schools only care about one or two; Sparks of Genius taps into all 9.

  • Verbal intelligence
  • Mathematical intelligence
  • Spatial intelligence
  • Musical intelligence
  • Kinesthetic intelligence
  • Interpersonal intelligence
  • Intrapersonal intelligence
  • Spiritual intelligence
  • Naturalist intelligence

  Increase three or more [Cognitive Skills] and you’ve got a Total Transformation.

  There are 5 Cognitive Skills. Increase one of these, and you increase cognitive ability. Increase three or more and you’ve got a Total Transformation.

  • Attention
  • Memory
  • Learning
  • Thinking
  • Processing Speed

  Finally, there are 4 Executive Functions. These are higher-order functions and essential for long-term success.

  • Organization
  • Planning
  • Prioritizing
  • Decision-Making

  Students come to us, go through fancy, high-tech evaluations, and Dr. Kessler puts together a customized work-out regimen that plays on the student’s strengths and pumps up the areas that are weakest. 2-3 hours per week on a home computer, plus an hour in our high-tech, high-touch playground is usually all it takes. The results last, and they generalize to school, athletics, home, and the social realm.

  Good luck!

  Allen Dobkin

• 10Jun

  Tips on Parenting and Homework

  ADHD, ADD, anger, aspergers, homework, learning disability, parenting, school, teacher No Comments

  10 Steps to Argument-Free Homework

  Get homework done quickly and efficiently without wearing out your vocal cords.

  1. De-escalate.
  2. Use positive reinforcement.
  3. Express interest in homework, schoolwork and grades.
  4. Treat homework time like it is a big deal.
  5. Do your homework visibly.
  6. Spend 15 minutes negotiating Homework Expectations.
  7. Write down and post the Homework Expectations.
  8. Give your child three free passes.
  9. Reward a Perfect Homework Record.
  10. Email the teachers!

  What about kids with Learning Disabilities?

  Challenged Children, those with any kind of learning disability, need the exact same treatment. They need all the rules, reminders and rewards even more! Don’t let their disability fool you: expect them to perform to their 100% capacity. If we settle for less, we do them a disservice.

  -From www.whyschoolsux.com

  Read the article here.

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