Sherry Walker: A true expert on parenting Sherry Walker impressed me when I met her. She exuded quiet wisdom with a twinkle in her eye at age 75. I learned later that Sherry’s long list of credentials includes 35 years in private practice as a psychotherapist. She was a Clinical Instructor and Supervisor in the […]
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Studying? Let’s Embrace Distraction
A DTK Book Review: How We Learn, by Benedict Carey Learning to Study Benedict Carey’s book, How We Learn: The Surprising Truth About When, Where, and Why It Happens deserves a look by serious students and teachers. Students at all levels of education spend a lot of time in the classroom and the library. They […]
5 Temperament Traits for Tutors
Why Temperament Awareness is Important for Tutors Often children who come for tutoring exhibit temperament traits that make classroom learning difficult. Tutors, because they work one-on-one, can adjust teaching style to temperament style. Thus, both learning and enjoyment increase. Activity Level Affects Classroom Learning High energy children need to move as they learn. This need […]
Tutoring Tips on Sensory Comfort
What does Sensory Comfort Mean? Sensory comfort refers to providing for student needs related to sounds, light, smells, textures, and tastes. Why Sensory Comfort is Important in a Tutoring Session Setting the stage for the best possible tutoring session involves helping the student become aware of his or her sensory environment. Sights or sounds that […]
ADHD or ACCD? (Active, Creative, Curious, Distractible)?
Is ADHD a Child Problem or a School Problem? Children who don’t sit still and work quietly at school often earn labels such as ADD or ADHD. A few children really do peg the unnaturally active meter, but in most cases, I believe the sedentary, indoors school setting carries most of the blame. Many children […]
Help! My Kid Hates School!
Dyslexia and ADHD Can Produce School Trauma When a student hates school, wise parents take notice. As an academic tutor, I find that most children who hate school exhibit dyslexia or ADHD. Both of these learning differences affect reading, writing, and math. This does NOT mean the children are defective! It does mean the classroom […]
Non-Readers: What Can a High School Teacher Do?
The Problem: High School Students Who Can’t Read These students sit in the back of every classroom, zoning out or mouthing off. They hide a secret and do whatever it takes to keep it under wraps. They can’t read. The Teacher’s Dilemma: No Training, No Time for Non-Readers High School teachers are neither trained nor […]
Cognitive Skills Training
Thinking Can Be Taught! Weak thinking skills may cause or add to a child’s school failure. It’s tempting to jump straight to the “problem” such as reading or math skills without looking for more foundational weaknesses. But, while teaching academic skills is often our first objective, we must also look for ways to strengthen the […]
Touching and Moving to Learn
Touching and Moving Learning Techniques are: Ways tutors incorporate the dyslexic student’s strong kinesthetic (body-related) learning skills into academic work. Background: Many dyslexic students learn best while moving, and remember best if the material is practiced while the body is feeling weight or impact. This is hard to achieve in a classroom. Some students are […]
Chess Improves Attention
Chess Improves Attention and Focus One way to improve attention and focus is to teach chess; research shows that learning chess raises testable IQ by an average of 15 points! It helps the student gain control of his or her own attention. Chess increases cognitive skills such as logic, working memory, problem-solving, and visual processing […]