Nine million prescriptions were written last year in the United States for school-aged children for Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD). In 1975 roughly 150,000 children were taking Ritalin. In 2003 about 6 million American children took Ritalin. Drugging children to get them to behave seems to be the trend. What we have learned in the […]
The Three C’s of Motivation
”The manager’s job, then, is not to motivate people to get them to achieve; instead, the manager should provide opportunities for people to achieve, so they will become motivated.”~Frederick Herzberg Charlie walked over with the teaching clock. ”I’ve learned to tell time. Do any time, and I can tell you.” Five-year-old Charlie sat down with […]
Real Toys for Real Kids
“What do you want for Christmas?” I remember asking my fourteen-month old. Since she could say “momma” and “dada,” I thought, for some unknown reason, she could communicate her perfect Christmas gift as we walked down the aisles of the toy store. There have been many gift-giving holidays during which I’ve watched children play with […]
Creating Phonemic Awareness
Around age two-and-a-half to three, your child becomes aware that words are made up of individual sounds. This skill is called phonemic awareness. “Phonemic” comes from the word “phonics,” which means sounds. When you help your children become aware of the individual sounds in words, you are helping them develop a very important skill for […]
Truth in Numbers: Count to Ten
“It’s not fair. He has more than I do.” Bryan and Dana had started out with identical candy canes. Dana’s had dropped and broken into three pieces. There was no convincing her that Bryan had the same amount as she did. She wanted the long peppermint stick. It was more. Bryan, then six-years-old, traded his […]
How to Help a Child Learn to Read
Observing a child learning to read words and numbers is one of my life’s pleasures. These two skills, literacy and numeracy, are critical to a person’s reaching his or her fullest potential. Numeracy is the ability to read, write and speak the language of numbers. By the time a child is six years old, he […]
Be Prepared for Cousin Chaos
Holidays are times for large family gatherings. Often times family get-togethers have mild to horrible cases of cousin chaos. Cousins, who may see each other infrequently, vie for adults’ attention along with trying to figure out who’s who in the pecking order of the family. Little wonder that craziness can ensue. More than once, my […]
Boys and Girls Learn Differently
In his book Boys and Girls Learn Differently, Michael Gurian cites 20 years of brain research to highlight the differences of how males and females learn. In the past few years, being a boy seems to be a pathology as more boys are being diagnosed with ADHD, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and undergo drug therapy, […]
Help Your Child With Brain Gym
“Floyd acts as if he’s missing part of his brain,” my grandmother commented on the behavior of a neighbor. Recent discoveries from neuroscientists let us know that when certain parts of the brain do not communicate effectively, it may appear that someone has “lost” his or her mind. As a Montessori teacher, I’ve had the […]
Five Steps to Problem Solving with Children
“Stop!” I heard six-year-old Alan tell a couple of three-year-old girls. “I think you’ve got a problem.” Lila and Susan, the three-year-olds, were tugging and grunting to see who would get possession of a puzzle. Alan continued, “I think you both want to do this puzzle by yourself. Do you want to work this out?” […]