I’m going to being this blog with a story…
The Mouse and the Cat
Once there was an old house and a little mouse lived in its walls. One day the mouse woke up and thought” I’m hungry”. As it got to the hole in wall it heard “meow meow”.
Oh oh – a cat. I’ll get eaten if I go out there.” So it went back inside the wall and went to sleep. A few hours later the mouse woke again, thought “I’m really hungry now” and went to the hole in wall. Again it heard “meow meow”.
Visual aids and visual imaging - what's the difference?
Visual aids are tools such as Lego blocks, pictures, plastic letter shapes which are used to help a child grasp a concept or put together the letters of a word correctly. Children can handle or look at these visual aids and work out where to put the pieces for the best outcome.
Visual imaging is using the inner regions of the brain to create an inner picture or movie….
I was working with a seven year old boy today who is struggling to spell well. During our half hour together it became clear that he talked to himself in patterns of ‘I can’t’, ‘It’s hard’ and ‘it’s a problem’.
I could have responded with words such as ‘yes you can’ or ‘it’s really easy if you try harder’ or ‘don’t think like that.’ We say these phrases with good intentions. Yet the words do not always shift the learner into a more positive place or affect their learning or behaviour...
Have you ever noticed the behaviours of children in a playground or at the beach? When we are on the beach I love watching people, particularly children. From a distance I play little guessing games – are these friends or siblings and how do they all get on together in this setting of sea, sand and open space.
Have you ever been addressed by a name that wasn’t yours? Ever had someone call you a name that was close to your name and wondered whether to correct the person or not?
I was in a stationery store yesterday and couldn’t help noticing how many parents with children were there. Each parent was reading a stationery list and the children were treating it like a treasure hunt...
In a recent article in NZ Listener Marc Wilson writes about peope “suffering panic attacks”. I oftenhear people talking about “panic attacks.”
There seem to be a lot of them around. I’ve never actually seen one myself.
