Category Archives: Uncategorized

2021

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With the beginning of the New Year, many are looking for an uneventful year in 2021.  However, the fallout of the Covid 19 pandemic needs us to look carefully at the reading progress of students. In order to close the reading gap, regardless of how it happened, we need to shift our focus on reading instruction that follows the Science of Reading. But what is the Science of Reading?

The Science of Reading is a body of scientific research that reaches across interdisciplinary teams and studies how reading and writing, which are complex human behaviors that are impacted by biological markers, are learned. The research has occurred over almost a century and continues to evolve around the world and the U.S.  The research should inform teaching practices to help all students, and especially those that are struggling.  Dr. Louisa Moats states “The body of work referred to as the ‘science of reading’ is not an ideology, a philosophy, a political agenda, a one-size-fits-all approach, a program of instruction, nor a specific component of instruction.”

If you want to learn more about the Science of Reading, consider joining one of the numerous Facebook pages.

‘Minnesota’s Science of Reading – What I should have learned in college’ which focuses on educators.

‘Science of Reading (SOR) Parents’ Group’ which is directed toward parents.

The ‘Science of Reading – Kindergarten/First Grade Discussion Group’ for Kindergarten & 1st-grade teachers,

or any of those managed by “The Reading League”, a non-profit organization out of NY.

 

Be healthy, happy, and at peace.

Success in Online Learning

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       These past few weeks have looked considerably different than at the beginning of the school year. Tutoring Duluth has spent the week doing on-line tutoring sessions with much better success than we even hoped for. We have great families and students with tremendous patience, as we all learn new skills.  The students have been fantastic!!!  If your child had a tutoring session with us this week, we would like to have an end of the week treat bag on the front porch. For those in the neighborhood, it can be a great reason to get outside and walk to get it. If your child will be stopping by, please text us at 218-340-7393, so we can prepare a treat bag. Take the brown bag with your name on it and ring the bell as a signal that you’ve been here. Each treat bag will have a name on it, so please only touch those with your name. Thanks for your support over this challenging time.

We are attempting to post interesting activities, blogs, and video links on Tutoring Duluth’s facebook page daily for families for both parents and students.

~ May we all be safe ~

~ May we all be healthy ~

~ May we all be happy ~

~ May we all be safe. ~

 

Tantrum or Meltdown?

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While I was at the mall this weekend, I saw a beautiful toddler having an all-out — tantrum or was it a meltdown.  To my eyes, it was a meltdown, and the dad was doing a great job being calm and lovingly while he carrying him out of the mall. So, what is the difference between a tantrum and a meltdown? And then, is there a difference in how to handle them?

Here is a nice chart from understood.org….

Scientifically Based Reading Instruction

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This is a nice comparison from Dr. Louisa Moats in her article The Whole-Language High Jinks: How to tell when ‘scientifically-based reading instruction’ isn’t. We need Scientifically Based Reading Research driving our reading instruction.  (Moats. L., 2007, pg 18)

Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD/Dyspraxia) Survey

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If your child has been diagnosed with Developmental Coordination
Disorder (DCD/Dyspraxia) please consider sending [email protected]
an email requesting that you be added to the next round of individuals
that will be sent the survey.  We have very little information that is
being shared in the field of education. 859982_10208631322569974_2534831610474259

IDA Conference

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After returning from the International Dyslexia Association Conference, I’m again struck by the importance of understanding the individual child’s needs and responding with solutions that are customized to the individual student. This can’t be done with packaged programmed, no matter how good it is. Packaged programs ask the student to fit into the curriculum, versus identifying a student’s needs and designing lessons to meet the their specific needs.  Thank you, Virginia Berninger, Ph.D., and others for these reminders.

The latest research at MIT suggests that the movement of water through the myelin sheath might be related to dyslexia and it will require more study on my behalf – I love learning!  The fact that the right side of the brain is responding to the interventions we are delivering to change the left side of the brain reminds us that for each action is an equal and opposite reaction.  And that the right side of the brain might hold a link to how a child will respond to various inventions.  Current research shows that the brains of dyslexics are in fact built differently, not that the brain develops differently because of lack of reading. Thank you, John Gabrieli, Ph.D., and those that spoke on twice-exceptional children. (Meet John at http://video.mit.edu/watch/meet-john-gabrieli-4984/ )

Over the course of the conference I reflected on a comment from Jerome Schultz, Ph.D., that excellence is the new average. No wonder our children are feeling more stress. I’m looking forward to reading his book “Nowhere to Hide” and integrate some of his thought on ‘Save FASE’ and DE-STRESS.  Students need tools that will help them understand their stress and ready their mind for learning.  Students that shut down due to stress are unable learn, yet they are so often mislabeled so that the correct instruction isn’t even delivered.

“Start of the School Year: The Pit in the Stomach Comes Back”

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From Dr. Richard Selznick’s (www.drselz.com) most recent blog….

“So with the start of the school year, here are a five guidelines to get you through:

1.      Breathe deep a lot – meditate – calm it down.  Look, homework is going to make you crazy.  Try not to bite on the hook.  For the child who has boring homework, seeing you go off is entertaining.  Don’t give it to him.

2.      Ask yourself, is the work in the kid’s zone of competence?  If it is not, if it is simply too hard for the child even with some parental  support, then send it back to the teacher with a polite note saying that the work is above the child’s head.

3.      If the answer to #2 is yes, then it’s the child’s problem.    Repeat after me the following mantra to say to your child, “You’re a big boy (or girl).  You can manage your homework.  If you choose not to, that’s your choice, but I will have to write a note to your teacher telling her what you chose.”

4.      Pecking doesn’t work.  Pecking, badgering, cajoling, nagging, yelling generally do not work.  Focus on the mantra in #3.  If the child chooses not to do the work, don’t  get caught up in it.  Put the problem where it belongs – on the child.

5.      Link “give and you get” messages.   Do you think like I do that modern kids are living pretty comfy lives?  It strikes me that the arrangement we have with our kids is pretty one-directional (in the kid’s benefit).  Start changing the direction by stating,  “This year I am tracking you each night on the calendar.  It’s either ‘yes’ or ‘no’ in terms of effort and taking care of yourself.  Good things come to people who have a lot of “yes” showing up on the calendar – we do fun things. When there is a lot of ‘no,’ it’s going to be very boring around here.  Which do you prefer?”

So, pour yourself a glass of wine, put your feet up and remember…summer’s not all that far off”

http://www.drselz.com/blog/2015/08/start-of-the-school-year-the-pit-in-the-stomach-comes-back

Handwriting Fluency

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Many students struggle with handwriting – you can see the labor in each
letter they write or the illegibility of letters. Non-fluent readers
often struggle with comprehensions.  Non-fluent hand-writers often
struggle with the writing process. If handwriting is difficult it will
impact the writing process.  Just like reading has fluency benchmarks so
does writing.  Below is a chart from a 2008 article – What to Improve
Children’s Writing? – Don’t Neglect Their Handwriting, by Steve Graham.

 

Handwriting Fluency