Cross Training Your Brain

“Too often, parents and experts look at behavioral and learning disorders as if they existed separate from sensory impairments; separate from attention difficulties; separate from early childhood deprivation, neurological damage, attachment disorders, post-traumatic stress, and so on.”

Dr. Karyn Purvis “The Connected Child”

What are the right tools and instructional methods to train the brain?  This is a question we address daily at our center.

Many children and adults tried tutoring, medication, speech therapy, occupational therapy, and vision therapy.  However, they typically have done these in isolation and were only seen twice a week for 30-60 minutes. While there has been some improvement, we have seen that the combination of “cross training” the brain in many areas five-seven days a week for an hour a day over three-four months allows the neuropathways to connect.

When cross training the brain, you should:

1. Begin each day with primitive reflex exercises for 10-15 minutes. An excellent program is Maintaining Brains Everyday at Pyramid of Potential.
2. Include sound therapy.   Sound Therapy Synergy can be used when doing regular activities and has been used successfully for over 20 years. 
3. Eye training exercises are often beneficial too.  Eye Q Advantage and Eye Can Learn provide visual processing exercises for all ages.  
4. Implement cognitive exercises that increase working memory, comprehension, attention, processing, and thinking skills.  As an added benefit you can continue to wear your sound therapy while doing cognitive exercises. 

We know that physical, cognitive, behavioral, and relational skills develop together rather than in isolation. Providing a more holistic approach to build challenge areas and enhance strengths increases confidence, communication skills, memory skills, comprehension, processing skills, and relational skills. Treating the whole person through a multidisciplinary approach will give the best results. Contact us for more details about our approach and cognitive development curriculum for children and adults.

Carol Brown

Equipping Minds
www.equippingminds.com

Using Assistive Technology on the College Campus

For college students with diagnosed learning disabilities, the use of assistive technology both in and out of the classroom can have a profound effect on their opportunities for success.  While not all college disabilities services programs will have all of newest software and programs for students, it is important that students are aware of the options that exist.  Whether the student's area of difficulty is reading, writing, or organization and executive functioning, there are a number of options worth exploring.

            Different assistive technologies can assist students at any level of their education by helping with the following:

• Allowing for more accurate work to be turned in.
• Increasing the speed with which students are able to complete work.
• Providing for increased independence.
• Serving as a means to help students review materials from class and study sessions.

            Some apps that may prove useful for students who have difficulty keeping their work organized include Dropbox (www.dropbox.com/mobile) and Corkulous (www.corkulous.com). Dropbox allows students to organize and access their files, while Corkulous gives users the chance set goals and organize their ideas.

            For students who are challenged by note-taking in their classes, the Livescribe Smartpen is an option that may help.  Used with special paper for note taking, the Livescribe Smartpen allows students to coordinate their written notes with the words spoken by their professor (www.livescribe.com) so that at a later date they can listen to any part of the class lecture for review or to fill in missed information into their notes.  In addition, handwritten words can automatically appear on a Ipad or Iphone and easily be converted into typed text.

            Finally, a variety of speech-to-text software options are available for students looking for help with producing their written work.  Programs such as Siri or Dragon NaturallySpeaking (http://www.nuance.com/dragon/index.htm) have become so popular with the non-LD population that the stigma that may have existed once for LD students who used such programs has all but vanished.

            The assistive technology options continually develop, and I have only touched on a few of the outstanding resources that are available to the public.  So, for students who understand their challenges and take the time to research their options, they will find a world of assistance at their fingertips.

Thanks,

Kristen

Changing the Chronic Literacy Issues in American Schools

Here at Easyread we've been honored to take part in creating a new mini documentary exploring chronic literacy issues in American schools and what can be done to change this.

Rather than focusing on the problem alone, the documentary aims to shed light on the solutions that are already out there helping children. So often we can get wrapped up in diagnosing the problems, but then the process seems to halt. In our experience, once you have pinpointed the underlying cause of difficulty, then applying the targeted solution is so much easier - not to mention more effective! We would always advise looking into possible causal issues in the visual, auditory or memory spheres before launching into a remedial program.

Take a look at the video below to see information from developmental optometrists, reading specialists, parents and children -- all of which gives hope for every struggling reader.

We've poured our heart and soul into helping put this together, so please do share it on your social media pages if you feel its message is a good one!

Sarah Forrest and David Morgan work with children through the Easyread System, an online program for struggling readers with dyslexia, auditory processing weakness, highly visual learning styles, and more. www.easyreadsystem.com

How to Use Praise

Parents often have similar goals for their children, including shaping their behaviors and developing positive self-esteem. Praise can actually be an important tool for influencing both of these areas, if the praise is delivered appropriately. Here are tips for what to do (and what not to do!) when praising:

1. Do be specific: One of the most popular phrases that is used when praising a child is a simple, “Great job!” While it is nice to recognize a job well done, this is a prime example of non-specific praise. When children hear this type of feedback, they have a more difficult time linking the specific behavior with the praise. Children get a much different message when they hear, “I like how you’re keeping your hands to yourself,” or, “Way to keep working even though it was hard!”

2. Don’t reward only results: Think about what you’d like your child to learn from your praise. It’s not important that a picture was colored within the lines; however, it is important that your child exerts effort. “Wow, I like how you’re really concentrating on your work,” puts a value on the work, while, “Your picture looks great!” focuses on the final product.

3. Do ask your child to self-appraise: Ultimately, most parents want their children to feel good about themselves and make their own judgments about their work. Before jumping to praise, ask your child, “What do you like about this picture?” or “What do you think?” This teaches the child to evaluate themselves and find value in their labors.

4. Don’t insult when you praise: When you’ve been working on a skill with a child, it can be tempting to want to point out how present efforts are better than previous attempts. The problem arises because once the comparison is made, the child is likely to focus on the negative. For example, if you’ve been trying to practice putting dishes away after eating and your child (finally!) does this chore, restrain from remarking, “This is great, why can’t you always put your dishes away?” The child ends up feeling badly about himself or herself and will not likely follow through next time. A better comment would be to point out the positives of this choice, such as saying, “Wow, when you put your dishes away, you have much more time to play.” This builds esteem and allows the child to remember for next time why the choice was positive!

Although it may seem like the semantics are unimportant, try paying attention to the way you praise and see if it makes a difference in your child’s response. You may find that using specific praise helps to get the results you want.

Emily Herber is a child and family therapist at The Center for Psychological Services

Fear is a Lie

Fear. I was reminded today how powerful fear can be. My father had been “invited” to the doctor’s office. No one likes that invitation, especially if you have been healing from cancer surgery. My logical mind said, “They have been discussing his healing, it probably has to do with that…” but my emotional brain was saying “OMG, what if “it” is back! I’m SCARED!!! And so it went…bigger and scarier as my mind ran with the story of what “could be”.

Somewhere during this difficult day, it occurred to me I had the same feeling when our son was diagnosed with a learning issue. At that time my mind was saying, “How was he going to complete high school, get through college, what would he do to feel good about him self, find a career and be a contributing part of society?” The story I was making up was based in fear and getting worse every time I thought about it.

WHAT DOES FEAR FEEL LIKE?

Fear feels like it crashes down on you. The weight can be unbearable. You start shaking (maybe literally), your thinking goes foggy and perhaps you say some things you wish you hadn’t. What is important to know is this is what fear feels like. You have to hang on until it passes. It will. It always does. All those fearful (full of fear!) thoughts are at the heart of the unreal part of the story you are telling yourself.

DISABLE THE FEAR!

Instead of making up our story from a place of Fear, why not choose another perspective? We make up stories of how our life is going every day and then live those stories in just that way.  It isn’t as simple as Think Like a Winner, Be a Winner, but starting from a place of fear, your story has a much greater chance of having a less than optimal ending. 

To disable your fear take a couple of simple steps:

•   Don't avoid Fear! That's right, don't try to pretend its not happening! Avoidance makes   the fear monster grow! Instead, label it FEAR. Say to yourself I know this is fear. Only by becoming familiar with it can anything be done about it. Familiarity allows you the power to make the choice that it isn’t real!

•   Recognize the flight or flight response that is beginning to flow in your body. Turn that response around by saying: “I am safe. I am calming down.”

•   Practice a simple technique of 3 Deep Breaths which will focus your attention on something other than the fear. Deep breathing, fully expanding your lungs to bring life giving oxygen, counter balances the stress hormones that run through our bodies during the fight or flight response. 

•   Make a choice to review other possibilities for how you could write your story. Right there, in the moment, think to yourself how else may this story play out. Many times we don’t realize we have not given the positive choices an equal amount of time in our thoughts!

CREATE A LESS FEAR-FILLED FUTURE

As an exercise, develop a daily practice of 5 minutes of quietly watching your breath flow in and out of your body.  This simple practice will make the 3 Deep Breath technique easy to access when needed. Research shows this daily practice helps train the mind to an awareness of our thoughts, physical sensations and emotions allowing us to calm down and refocus when under stress.

Have you felt fear around you or your child’s learning issue? Are your emotions in charge or are you making choices on how to write your story? If you are feeling fear it is likely your child is feeling it too. Try these techniques that will allow you to model behavior that will greatly reduce fear. This will allow your family to write a story with a happy ending!

Parents, do you have doubts raising your child with learning issues? You can raise confident capable kids despite learning issues. Reach out for answers to your most perplexing questions today!

Becky Scott

www.TheNavigatorsWay.com 

BScott@TheNavigatorsWay.com 

610-783-5676 

What it Takes to be a Good Reader

What Does it Take to be a Great Reader?

What a great question for any parent or educator to ask!  We know the answer.  The National Reading Panel (NPR), after looking at all the research, concluded that effective reading instruction addresses five areas of necessary skills.  Every child needs to develop this core foundation to experience reading success. When parents understand what these are they can better assess the quality of their child’s reading curriculum and work collaboratively with the school and teachers to ensure that each element is being addressed.  Here they are:

           1)  Phonemic Awareness

Words are made up of speech sounds, or phonemes.  Phonemic Awareness is the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate the individual sounds in spoken words.  These skills are a precursor to print awareness; before a child can identify the sounds of letters (which are presented through print), (s)he must become aware of how the sounds in words work.  An example is the ability to recognize words that begin with the same sound (e.g., bat, bike, and ball all start with /b/).  Another is blending, recognizing that /c/ + /a/ + /t/ = “cat”.  You can make up games pertaining to these skills at home with your child. 

Parents will often hear the term phonological awareness as well.  Broader in nature, phonological awareness includes phonemic awareness, but expands to incorporate the child’s understanding that there are patterns within words that can aid in both reading and writing.  Children use phonological awareness skills to rhyme and manipulate syllables as they learn to play with the sounds of words. 

            2) Phonics

It is very common for parents to confuse Phonics with Phonemic Awareness, but they refer to two different sets of skills.  As you just learned, Phonemic Awareness refers to the child’s understanding of the auditory elements of language, distinct phonemes.  Phonics is the relationship between a specific letter and its sound; it pertains only to written language.  

When a child “sounds out” a word, she is engaging phonics.  For example, for the word desk, the child decodes each individual sound /d/ /e/ /s/ /k/, this is employing phonics.  She then blends those sounds to create the word desk, thereby using Phonemic Awareness as well. 

Phonics is used in reading and writing.  In the first instance the child decodes words: goes from letter to sound.  In the second, he encodes, going from sound to letter representation. 

            3) Fluency

Fluent readers can read text with speed, accuracy, and proper expression.  Fluency depends upon well-developed word recognition skills, but such skills do not inevitably lead to Fluency.  Fluency develops from reading practice.  Classroom practices that encourage repeated oral reading with feedback and guidance leads to meaningful improvements in reading expertise for students—for good readers as well as those who are experiencing difficulties. 

           4)  Vocabulary

Reading comprehension is largely comprised of two skills: vocabulary and reasoning.

Vocabulary is essential to a reader’s understanding of text.  The broader one’s word knowledge, the more readily they comprehend what they read (and what they hear).  

Vocabulary needs be taught both directly and indirectly, while being incorporated into reading instruction.  The more connections that can be made to a specific word, the better it is learned.  Making connections with other reading material or oral language in other contexts has a better effect than learning a word in isolation.  It is also best for a student to encounter vocabulary words often and in various ways, rather than in regards to only one reading passage or lesson.  Students should be given items that will be likely to appear in many contexts, not just reading.  The context in which a word is learned is critical.  It is essential that vocabulary words are useful to the learner in many contexts.  

How can you help to broaden your child’s vocabulary?  Easy, talk to him/her, lots (!), and read to him/her, daily! 

          5) Comprehension

This is the goal!  We teach reading so that the student has access to material, vast and deep, through printed text.  The NRP concluded that these seven comprehension strategies are most effective and promising for classroom instruction:

·         comprehension monitoring

·         cooperative learning

·         summarization

·         graphic and semantic organizers including story maps

·         question answering

·         question generation

·         “multiple strategy,” where readers and teachers interact over texts

For more information on reading development or to see the full report of the National Reading Panel, go to www.nationalreadingpanel.org.

And be sure to take some time to read with your children today!

Be Well,

Jennifer

Cognitive Exercises that Develop Reading, Writing and Math Abilities

Difficulties in tracking, sequencing, and visual discrimination can get in the way of the learning process for reading, writing and math. Furthermore, letter, number and word reversals can make school a chore.  However, these are core skills, and many students need to strengthen these cognitive areas before they can manage language and numbers with success.  To help students strengthen these areas and allow teachers and parents to try activities, Dr. Warren is now offering a sampling of her workbooks, Reversing Reversals Primary, Reversing Reversals and Reversing Reversals 2. Through fun, game-like activities such as coloring and mazes, students quickly master the skills necessary for improved decoding and comprehension.

To learn more about these products,  Click here 

To go to a direct download of this sampling:
Click Here

Helping Your Anxious Child

When kids show signs of anxiety, it impacts the entire family. Parents often talk about their concerns for the child and want advice about how to help. Here are a few tips I frequently give parents in distress:

1. Is it Fear or Anxiety? Help your child to distinguish the difference between fear and anxiety. Fear is defined as the feeling that occurs when there is a legitimate threat to one’s safety, such as being in the street when a car is coming. Anxiety, on the other hand, is the feeling that occurs when the body reacts to a stressful situation that is not truly dangerous, such as being in the dark. Our bodies are programmed to react to fearful situations with a burst of adrenaline so we’ll have the energy to outrun a predator. Unfortunately, we often have similar reactions to our modern day fears, like giving a presentation, where we no longer need this type of energy! Start by helping your child determine if they are reacting to a true threat.

2. Slow the Body Down: Once the situation is identified as anxiety, the next step is to slow the body back down. Help your child practice taking deep breaths from the abdomen, in through the nose and out through the mouth. If your child does this quickly, aim for a count of 3 in and 5 out as you count aloud to cue the breathing. 

3. Talk through the problem: Try to have your child identify the specific worry. Once it is identified, it is much easier to talk through and determine how to proceed. For example, one child I worked with in my practice worried that he would trip and fall in school. After the worry was shared, I asked, “What is the worst thing that could happen?” The boy explained that if he fell, he might hurt himself and others might laugh at him. He then thought about if this were to happen and realized that although that might hurt or feel embarrassing, he could tolerate these scenarios. I then ask children, “What’s the best thing that could happen?” Kids with anxiety almost never think of this! In this case, the boy smiled and said that he could go through his day without tripping. I always follow this line of questioning with, “What’s the most likely thing that will happen?” This boy thought about the question, then admitted that he rarely falls and it was not a likely possibility. It’s important to help kids not only explore the fear, but also measure the likelihood of it occurring. An anxious mind will fixate on the negative and see no other possibilities, even when the situation is not likely to cause the anticipated problems.

These are just a few of many ways that can help your child overcome anxiety. If the worry persists or keeps the child from participating in activities, consider asking for outside help.

Emily Herber is a child and family therapist at the Center for Psychological Services.

Students with learning disabilities may be eligible for specific private scholarships to help finance their college educations.  Below are samples and descriptions of some of the more popular scholarship opportunities for LD students:

Marion Huber Learning Through Listening Award:

Sponsored by Learning Ally is the Marion Huber Learning Through Listening Award.  High school students with diagnosed learning disabilities who are members of Learning Ally may be awarded gift money ranging from $2,000 to $6,000 for demonstrating excellence in their academics, leadership and service. (https://www.learningally.org/about-learning-ally/awards/)

RiSE Scholarship Foundation, Inc.:

Students who have shown perseverance in dealing with their learning disabilities may be eligible for scholarships awarded through RiSE Scholarship Foundation, Inc.  Candidates must have a high school GPA of at least 2.5 to apply. (http://risescholarshipfoundation.org/)

Shire ADHD Scholarship Program:

If a student's diagnosis is ADHD, the Shire ADHD Scholarship Program should be considered.  In addition to the $2,000 scholarship awarded, recipients receive a year of ADHD coaching provided by Edge Foundation.  (http://www.shireadhdscholarship.com/)

P. Buckley Moss Endowed Scholarship:

Aspiring artists with an LD diagnosis may be eligible for the P. Buckley Moss Endowed Scholarship.   Candidates should be able to demonstrate their artistic talents and plan to pursue a career in art. (http://www.mosssociety.org/page.php?id=69)         

Anne Ford and Allegra Ford Thomas Scholarships:

Finally, a $10,000 award, provided by the Anne Ford and Allegra Ford Thomas Scholarships is available for LD students who serve as role models and are committed to improving opportunities for all those with LD diagnoses. (http://www.ncld.org/about-us/learning-disability-scholarships-awards/anne-ford-allegra-ford-scholarships)

These are just a few of the more popular scholarships for students with learning disabilities.  Students are encouraged to also explore scholarship clearinghouses such as www.fastweb.com for additional scholarships.

Thanks!
Kristen

Listening Differently to Help More

This week I spoke with a mom of three kids who all have learning disabilities. What a busy household! To top it all off, she has learning issues herself.  Listening to “everyone’s everything” can feel a bit overwhelming to her at times. No doubt it feels that way to you sometimes too. 

Listening differently to learn more

Learning issues can make an average challenge into a super challenge in the blink of an eye. How we listen to a challenge is the first step in handling the challenge in a positive way. Listening creatively and with clarity set us up to help in the best way possible.

Think about the last time you listened to a challenge your child, your spouse or a friend shared with you. What is the first thing that happened as you were listening? The most common answer is, “ I began to think of how I could help the person solve their problem”. This is a noble answer. However, what it really does is take your “ears” and mind away from the job of listening. This noble answer maybe not the best answer. 

Even a good listener can amp up the quality of listening by learning how to use Level 1, 2 & 3 listening. Use the skills below to hear more of what is happening whenever you find yourself listening. Each of the 3 Levels of Listening will provide different information. Try all three for a few minutes as a part of each conversation you engage. What different information do you learn as a result listening in different ways?

Listening at Level 1, 2 and 3

Level 1 listening puts attention squarely on us listening to our own thoughts judgments, feelings and conclusions about the conversation at hand. Is that what your conversation partner really wanted? Maybe not! Maybe they wanted help thinking through THEIR questions! What were their questions and their interpretation of what is happening? You don't really know if you are lost in your own interpretation. There is much to learn with greeting a story with questions instead of “telling” what you think. Level 1 listening only shares your thoughts about what you think is happening.

Level 2 listening, in contrast, has the attention of the listener with a sharp focus on the other person. Every word, emotion and shifting energy of the speaker has an impact on the listener. A great example of Level 2 listening is two lovers talking on a park bench. They appear as though the rest of the world has melted away. There is a lot of learning by the listener happening in this scenario.

Level 3 listening has the listener aware of everything that is happening in the space where the conversation is being held: the conversation at hand, sounds and actions around the conversation and how the listener and speaker are thinking and feeling. In other words, Level 3 incorporates parts of all three levels. There is a softer focus than the intensity of Level 2 and a partial attention to self as in the Level 1 conversation. Level 3 focus allows for non-verbal cues to be center stage and intuition to play a vital role. 

Improve your communication capacity by becoming familiar and actively engaging in level 1, 2 & 3 listening.  It will not take long to see the impact on how children, spouse and friends make choices, move themselves toward what they want and what they value all because of being heard differently. Listening deeply and creatively will better prepare you to truly make a difference. 

Parents, do you have questions raising your child with learning issues? We can help you raise confident, capable kids despite learning issues. Reach out for answers to your most perplexing questions today!

Becky Scott 

BScott@TheNavigatorsWay.com

www.TheNavigatorsWay.com