Reading Together

I have found that one of the most effective and least stressful ways to improve a child's reading ability is to read together. Reading with the child helps the child learn words in context, increases sight words and vocabulary, helps them learn the patterns of language and stories, and is fun!

Once I tutored a girl who was not up to her third grade reading level. After reading together for several months, she was reading at a sixth grade level! Reading with a child is one of the most effective ways I know to not only help children learn to read, but to love reading.

Choosing the Right Book - Lists and Guides

Here are some great resources to help you find just the right book for your child. Remember that one of your greatest resources is your librarian. They can be a great help in directing you books your child will love.

• Know your child's interests and how they read*
• Bring your child with you and allow them to help choose the books
• Allow plenty of time to choose books
• Choose several books so that if he doesn't like one, he can try another. 
• Remember pictures books read quickly; get several
• Even older children can enjoy good picture books
• Try a mix - stories and non-fiction books on that topic
• Allow time to read their new books to them soon.
• If you can't stand a story, try a substitute. Your child will sense when you don't like something, so be honest and work it out. I never could get into "Captain Underpants", but "Commander Toad" books were fun. Find something you can enjoy together.
• Have Fun!

Choosing Books for Your Child

After raising four children and being a professional tutor for 40 years, I've learned that if a child is forced to read books he doesn't like, then he will hate reading and do as little of it as possible. So how do you help your child find the right book for him and become a lover of reading?

In school, most children are placed in reading groups with other children at their reading instructional level.

Instructional reading level is the highest level at which a reader is not independent, but has adequate background knowledge for a topic, and can access text quickly and with no or few errors. Think of independent level as the highest level you would ask a child to read with only a small amount of assistance. http://www.uurc.utah.edu/General/ReadLevels.php

Surviving Math Class--Just Barely!

Surviving Math Class– Just Barely!

Well I made it, but I have been reduced to a tearful puddle. I feel tired and stressed. What happened? I just spent two days in a math class. I took it to keep up my elementary teaching credential. It was a worthwhile class with knowledgeable teachers, and everyone there was kind and friendly. We even spent much of the time playing games, then why am I so stressed?

Helping Your Struggling Student - Characteristics of a Visual-Spatial Learner

Characteristics of a Visual Spatial Learner

This is a style of learning.

Often visual spatial learners use the right side of their brain to gather and process information.

Though people use both hands, they prefer to use one hand over the other. This is their dominate hand. It is the same with our brain. We use both sides of our brain, but usually we have a dominant side we prefer to use to deal with life.

Helping Your Struggling Student - Visual Spatial Learning Approach

Visual-Spatial Learners Approach to Learning

A visual-spatial learner is a person who predominate uses sight as their preferred way to learn. They learn by seeing things. It can involve sight only, or they can “see” and understand a concept through their experiences.

Helping Your Struggling Student - Lectures

Coping with Lectures

They will not be able to learn easily from lectures, but if the lectures use pictures and charts etc. it will help the child visualize the material.

It will also help if

Helping Your Struggling Student - Reading

Phonetic reading requires the ability to sequence small sound groups to form a whole word, then words into sentences. Visual-spatial people learn best when they learn works in context (in sentences).

It is crucial to have

Helping Your Struggling Student - Math

Visual-spacial learners need to experience math. They need to be able to visualize what each number means. They need to “see” the story problem. Drawing pictures, using manipulate (things to count etc), charts, graphs, and pictures can help them learn.

Helping Your Struggling Student - Spelling

If their visual memory is strong enough, have them visualize the word in their mind, then write what they see. Others may need more help such as:

Helping Your Struggling Student - Test Taking

Visual-spatial children may have considerable difficulty with tests in school since most are designed to evaluate auditory-sequential strengths.

Visual-spatial students can improve in their test taking results if they

Helping Your Struggling Student - Reports

Some may be able to do written reports, but may need help in writing down their information and organizing it. Here are other ways to help them with a report:

Helping Your Struggling Student - Handwriting

Often the visual-spatial child’s handwriting is poor. Sometimes they “hook” their hand around when writing. This is not a matter of physical coordination

Helping Your Struggling Student - Creative Writing

Almost all creative writers are visual-spatial people. They have the ability to “see” a story, idea, place, or character in their mind and use words to enable others to become a part of that world. They can become adept at sharing their experiences through words.

Since creative writers are visual-spatial people they need

Helping Your Struggling Student- Books to Read

Books for Parents to Read to Help Your Struggling Student

Though I don’t agree with everything in each book, on the whole I found their ideas very helpful.

Right - Brained Children in a Left - Brained World
Unlocking the Potential of Your ADD Child
by Jeffrey Freed, M.A.T. and Laurie Parsons

Helping Children Write Creative Stories

Helping Children Write Creatively

A few days ago a mother asked me for ideas on how to help her child write creative stories. This is the approach I have used with third grade students for the last seven years. I’ve learned that children love to write. I’ve even had many children beg to remain in during recess so they could finish writing their story! I feel these principles could be adapted to any age.
The most important thing

Books to use to Motivate Children to write Creative Stories

Suggestions of Some Picture Books to Use
in Motivating Children to Write

It usually is easiest for children to start writing by sharing their own experiences, but some children enjoy writing poetry, fantasy stories, or even reports. Allow the child to start with

Helping "Active" Children Learn

“Active”
If you have this last basic type of student, you probably get to visit with his teacher often.
You also have probably heard enough about how he doesn’t hold still, concentrate, finish his work, and is disruptive. Trying to fit these people into a quiet, orderly life is like

Helping Scientist type of Children Learn

“Scientist”
If your child is an endless series of “Whys?”, then you have a budding “Scientist”. These independent, logical souls may take apart anything to see “how it works”. After they understand the underlining principles of something, they are done with it. They are impatient with

Helping "Communicator" Children Learn

“Communicator”
If your child loves to talk, thrives on personal attention, wants to be appreciated, makes up their own stories, daydreams, loves fantasy, and always wants harmony both at home and at school, they may be a “Communicator”. They seek not to set the world in order, but to understand it. Since they are most interested in