Summer is just around the corner….

 

     The summer schedule begins on Monday, June 9th.  About a third of my students will be new which is always exciting for me.  It’s a great time to work on skills that are lagging behind their peers, without the fatigue created by spending a day in the classroom.  We have a marvelous opportunity to make strong gains. 

     Whether you’ve planned some “academics” for your children or not, below are some ideas for summer activities. In addition, you could consider rewarding your child with an end of the week treat if they read at least 30 minutes for at least five days in the previous week (an old fashioned chore chart works for this).  Some ideas for treats are: a DQ, a new book, a special dessert, and a favorite at our house – have a picnic dinner.

     1.    Find a movie based on a book.  Watch the movie, then read/listen to the book.  Talk about the differences and similarities.

     2.    Go to the library and borrow some books and games.

     3.    Pre-read some of the books that will be part of next year’s reading.  (Get that list from the teacher before school ends.)

     4.    Do a read-out-loud book.

     5.    Make dinner together—read the recipe, measure the ingredients, learn about the chemistry of cooking.

     6.    Play board games and card games. 

     7.    Encourage your child to read to a pet or younger sibling/neighbor.

     8.    On a rainy day, have your children curl up with comic books or magazines. 

     9.    Have your child plan a dream day somewhere. Be creative: they could write about it, make a collage, research with a travel book, or just talk about their ideal day.  Make sure you share your ideas, too.  

    10.  Have a TV/technology free day. 

    11.  Once a week, “drop everything and read” for 15 minutes … everyone in the house has to participate.

    12. CREATE A READING HABIT!!!

Struggling Students

Struggling Students: What a Parent Should Consider

 

Tuesday – April 28, 2015

 

6:30 pm – 8:30 pm

 

Denfeld High School

 

Duluth, MN

 

Why has this year been so hard for my child at school? This class will include an overview of some warning signs of dyslexia (difficulty reading) and dysgraphia (difficulty writing), current research, assessment, ideas on how to help, and some of the advantages of this type of thinking.  Class is offered through Duluth Community Education.  Registration fee is $15.00. To register contact Janis Kramer 218.336.8760 x2 or instructor Deb Dwyer @ [email protected] or 218-340-7393

Dysgraphia

Many of the learners I work with struggle more with writing than they do with reading.  Although dyslexia and dysgraphia often coexist, children with motor and spatial dysgraphia, more than dyslexic dysgraphia, need Occupational Therapy. In addition to Orton-Gillingham tutoring, which provides solid instruction in language, Occupational Therapy helps with motor planning and an overall understanding of space in general.   A combination approach results in the strongest outcomes for struggling students.

From Dr. RIchard Selznick Blog: “School Struggles, Learning Disablities and Other Kid Stuff” from March 6, 2015.

When children struggle with written expression, “OT,” or Occupational Therapy appears to be the go to recommendation that is often given.

Writing has been shown to be the single most complex skill domain of the academic process.   The following quote from “Developmental  Variations & Learning Disorders” says it well:

“The transmission of thoughts onto paper calls for a delicate and highly complex process of neurodevelopmental integration.   Writing necessitates synchronizing all of the developmental functions (described in part I).  Writing is a final common pathway of these functions, a confluence of processes demanding attention, spatial and sequential production, mnemonic facility, language ability and motor skill.”

Motor skills (the skills targeted in OT) are the tip of the iceberg.   It’s a good first step.  What’s the next step?  Most of the time, I am not hearing the next step.  I only hear about the child getting, “OT.”

Beyond OT, a child needs much more remediation to address their deficits in writing (which are becoming more and more pervasive with the kids I am seeing).

For some time I have been beating a drum (although I understand no one is really listening), that a child struggling with writing needs to work first at the sentence level and master the skill of writing a good sentence before moving on to more complex operations.

Analogous to reading remediation, a child needs to work at very simplistic levels initially, derive a sense of mastery and then move forward to higher levels of complexity.

Most of the kids that I assess have little ability to understand what goes into writing a sentence or a paragraph, so to have them writing lengthy essays is way beyond them. It’s somewhat like asking someone to lift 25lb weights when they can barely lift 10lbs.

Takeaway Point:

Once your child has a had a good dose of “OT” to address his or her writing, ask, “Now what?  What’s next?”

What’s next needs to be the heavy lifting of writing remediation.

New Tutor Consortium

Tutoring Duluth is joining a new group of area tutors.  This new cohort is a group of like-minded tutors meeting the needs of students on an individual bases. Most important, for us as tutors, this will help us help our students, but we will also be able to support each other and grow as tutors.  In addition to the reading and writing support I offer, one of the cohort tutor’s does high school and college level support for students in math and science and another is a professional writer.  These tutors will be able to support students in preparation for the ACT/SAT as well as day-to-day academia.  We are scattered around the Duluth-Superior area and the Arrowhead region making it easier for families to find conveniently located services.  Look for the new website….

TwinPortsTutoring.org …..coming soon.

I’m so excited to be part of this group.

Parents Advocating for Student Success in EDucation (PASSED)

Lunch Gathering

Wed. June 26, 2013

Vineyard Church ~ 1533 W. Arrowhead Rd ~ Duluth, MN 5581

This group meets monthly to share ideas and support one another.  If your child struggled last year in school this may be a good opportunity to hear what others in our community are doing to ensure their children’s success in learning.   Occasionally, a speaker joins the group to cover a specific topic.  All  families are welcome.

Vineyard Church offers a lunch for $5.00 made by the members of the congregation, or you’re welcome to bring your own.  Lunch is served at noon until they run out.

We also have a monthly evening gathering at Barnes and Noble 7PM on Thursday, June 27, 2013 for those that can’t make a noon time.

Our lunch gatherings are usually the third Wednesday of the month (June is an exception) and the evening meetings are usually on the fourth Thursday of the month.  Email [email protected] if you’d like more information.