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[PREMIUM] Realistic Confidence

[PREMIUM] Realistic Confidence

by | May 23, 2018 | , , , ,

We know that confidence can make a huge difference in course of people’s lives, but the question is how to avoid the extremes of underconfidence, which might lead to avoidance and underachievement, and overconfidence, which can also result in going off the rails. It was Albert Bandura, a founding father of scientific psychology who found that the best predictor of an individual person’s success is whether or not they believe they will succeed. But there’s an important caution here. There’s a difference between believing you will succeed and believing you will succeed easily…or to put it another way, there’s a difference between an unrealistic optimist and a realistic optimist. A realistic optimistic (or what some call a pessimistic optimist) anticipates that the path to success […]

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[PREMIUM] Big Picture and Dyspraxia

[PREMIUM] Big Picture and Dyspraxia

by | May 7, 2018 | , , , , ,

The good news about dyspraxia is that there are many positive strategies that can significantly improve functioning. #1. SELF-AWARENESS – Self-awareness is the most important tool of children and adults with dyspraxia. There are many everyday classroom and real world tasks that can be extremely difficult or even impossible for a person with dyspraxia. Without being aware that something being asked of you is impossible, it’s easy to slide into negative thinking and self-deprecating behaviors which can pull you away from things that could actually help, like self-advocacy, technology, or training. #2. COORDINATION AND STRENGTH TRAINING – Coordination and motor strength are highly trainable, so it’s important to recognize that there’s a lot one can do to improve symptoms of dyspraxia. A common mistake is […]

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RESILIENCE

RESILIENCE

by | Apr 23, 2018 | , , , , , , ,

Resilience is a popular topic among today’s educational leaders, and for good reason. If you grow up with significant academic, social, or socio-economic stress, you’re more likely to still grow up as a happy, successful, and adaptive adult if you are resilient. Many external factors support resilience, like a supportive family or caregiver and stable home life, but individual factors are also important – and importantly there is substantial evidence that these can be learned. Studies of dyslexic children and adults almost universally show the significant degrees of stress that dyslexia can have in the school setting. In general, the period leading up to a formal ‘diagnosis’ or identification is especially stressful as individuals don’t know why school tasks are difficult or they are underperforming. […]

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Never Give Up [PREMIUM]

Never Give Up [PREMIUM]

by | Apr 17, 2018 | , , , , ,

“Throw your soldiers into positions whence there is no escape, and they will prefer death to flight. If they will face death, there is nothing they may not achieve. Officers and men alike will put forth their uttermost strength.” – Sun Tzu, The Art of War   Ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu recognized that extraordinary feats of courage and bravery can happen when it seems as if there is no escape. Battles are not all of the military kind, of course. Recently, real estate mogul Barbara Corcoran shared her experience when she first got contacted for starring on Shark Tank: After she had shared the news with everyone she knew, she got a call that said they had changed their mind and invited another […]

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The Mislabeled Dyslexic Student [PREMIUM]

The Mislabeled Dyslexic Student [PREMIUM]

by | Apr 2, 2018 | , , ,

“In the course of the 11 years of the family genetics project, many parents whose children had superior or very superior verbal reasoning shared with the research team how difficult it was to convince educators that their child had a learning disability. Frequently they reported being told that their child was bright and the problem was just a matter of motivation and their child not being willing to work hard. “ – Drs. Virginia Berninger and Robert Abbott, 2013 If you have the means to get IQ testing for your student for dyslexia, do it. The biggest reason is that it’s very common to underestimate intelligence in the setting of dyslexia. This sad fact can lead in gross underestimations and inappropriate classroom placements Giftedness can […]

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[PREMIUM] Dyspraxia and Independence

[PREMIUM] Dyspraxia and Independence

by | Mar 19, 2018 | , , ,

Dyspraxia (DCD) has its impact in childhood, but recently researchers have been looking more into the challenges that young adults face in higher education, general life skills, and the workplace. Dr. Amanda Kirby, who we interviewed in the last issue, did her thesis work in the area of 16-25 year olds with dyspraxia. Based on her interviews for the project, over half reported some ongoing difficulties whether it was learning to drive a car, writing by hand, or organizing their household. From our perspective, the information should be seen as helpful information that recognizes extra challenges that a young person with dyspraxia might face as well as the benefits of extra supports as this young person heads into full adulthood and independence. Some Findings re: […]

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How to Encourage Dyslexic Students in Engineering [PREMIUM]

How to Encourage Dyslexic Students in Engineering [PREMIUM]

by | Mar 13, 2018 | , , ,

1. PROTECT THEIR TIME. The best time to introduce students to engineering and technology is when they’re young – but young dyslexic students are often overwhelmed by academics which may leave them with little energy or time for building and making. Often active efforts must be taken to protect relaxing downtime, family time, and time for hobbies. 2. THINK LIKE AN ENGINEER. Encourage students to ask good questions and propose different solutions – in the process, you’ll also encourage resilience and productive responses to failure. Ask good questions of your student – like “What’s the problem with this?” and “How can you make it better?” 3. TAKE THINGS APART. Grace Hopper (a pioneer in computer programming) took apart alarm clocks when she was a kid, […]

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[PREMIUM] The Truth About Lefties (Left-handed)

[PREMIUM] The Truth About Lefties (Left-handed)

by | Mar 6, 2018 | , , ,

By the gestation age of 10 weeks, doctors can see that 85% of human fetuses prefer their right hand over their left. This preference (along with motor asymmetry) usually persists later in life The idea that dyslexics were often left or mixed-handed was first raised by Samuel Orton in 1925. Subsequent studies have suggested that left-handedness is indeed more common in dyslexics compared to controls, although a great deal of conflicting data exist, and a majority of dyslexics are right-dominant. Recently, researchers at Oxford performed genetic analysis on families with at least two sibilings who show symptoms of dyslexia. They found that the PCSK6 gene is associated with both dyslexia and mixed- or left-handedness. The PCSK6 gene is interesting because it interacts with another protein […]

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Processing Speed & Writing [PREMIUM]

Processing Speed & Writing [PREMIUM]

by | Feb 28, 2018 | , , , , , ,

Question: I know my son’s processing speed is slow from his testing, but how slow should his speed on something like writing take? My son has slow processing speed, dyslexia, dysgraphia, and a loose attention control system – but how long should it take him to write a 5 paragraph academic paper… after which the paper still needs revisions? It takes him hours to complete assignments.  This is a great question…but of course, the answer depends on a lot of individual factors regarding your student. When essay or paper writing takes so long, it’s good to try to troubleshoot ways to make the process quicker. If the delay occurs at the beginning, before any ‘writing’ occurs, then maybe he doesn’t have a template in which […]

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Creativity Boost, How? [Premium]

Creativity Boost, How? [Premium]

by | Feb 19, 2018 | , , ,

From Dr. Robert Brooks: “If someone approached you and said, “I have a recommendation that will require only 10 minutes of your time each day, it poses no risk and will increase your creativity and your overall health,” what would you guess was involved in the 10 minutes? Or, if you were between 70-89 years of age and someone suggested you set aside approximately three hours each week for a couple of activities that would significantly decrease the likelihood of physical disability, what do you think you would have to do to realize this benefit? And, very importantly, once you had this knowledge, how likely would you be to put it into action? From a Stanford Report: “Creative thinking improves while a person is walking […]

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[PREMIUM] Gifted with ADHD: How We Asked for Extended Time & a Better Schedule

[PREMIUM] Gifted with ADHD: How We Asked for Extended Time & a Better Schedule

by | Feb 16, 2018 | , , , , , , , ,

The road to advocacy has many twists and turns so if your student has moderate to severe difficulties with processing speed, be prepared to be nimble and responsive to challenges that arise. In our previous newsletter, we mentioned some of the advocacy that Laura and her son John took on his path as a 2E (gifted, dyslexic, dysgraphic, and ADD) high school student. Here are some additional problems that arose and ways Laura and John responded: PROBLEM: LOW GRADES WHEN DENIED ACCOMMODATIONS D’s in AP English Class (no accommodations for tests) although a strong score on the AP exam. Although John’s dyslexia has been identified since elementary school, the school suggested he no longer needed accommodations. SOLUTION: ACCOMMODATIONS Laura and John appealed the zeroes given […]

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Fighting February Blues [Premium]

Fighting February Blues [Premium]

by | Feb 13, 2018 | , , , , ,

FIGHTING FEBRUARY BLUES There are seasonal issues that can make February an especially difficult month for everyone. The holiday rush and start of the new term are over, the daylight hours are shorter, and midterms are looming large. Work may pile up as students fall increasingly behind. They may no longer have the positive input or feedback that good parents may have provided when they were younger. Seasonal Affective Disorder is fairly common. Symptoms of seasonal affective disorder tend to begin in the teen to early adult years and affect 5-10% of the population. Symptoms may include: increased feelings of stress or anxiety, oversleeping, lowered mood, more irritability, appetite changes, changes in school performance. If students are away at college or if adults work in […]

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