By Yvonna Graham, M.Ed. Ken Robinson Did a Wonderful TED Talk Whether you read this book or not, please watch the 20 minute TED talk: Ken Robinson: Do schools kill creativity? Twenty minutes feels like about 5 minutes. Sir Ken Robinson is a profoundly good speaker. He’s funny. He delivers on real information about improving […]
Dr. Sam is a Wonderful Reading Teacher Resource Thanks to Dr. Sam Bommarito, I was alerted to an incredibly important 2022 paper on reading — full citation included at the end of this blog. One reason I blog is to read research papers and simplify them for those who need the info but don’t have […]
Kids Teaching Kids I came across this great teaching resource on peer-assisted learning in a podcast by Dr. Sam Bommarito. The book is available in both the UK and US. Peer Assisted Learning: A Practical Guide for Teachersby Keith ToppingCambridge, MA: Brookline Books (2000) What is Peer-Assisted Learning? Topping defines peer-assisted learning as the “acquisition of knowledge […]
School Choices As a dyslexia tutor, parents often ask me what schools are best. It’s helpful to map out the choices. Depending on the community, choices might include public, private, parochial, specialty school for dyslexia, online school, free schools, home-school with various curriculums, unschooling, co-op or micro-school, or a combination. The first task: discuss what’s […]
You Keep Saying That Word… I hear “science of reading” everywhere in education lately. It’s used to stop conversations about outcomes: “I’m using the science of reading in my classroom, so if they don’t learn to read it’s not my fault.” I see it in papers and professional development materials: “Buy and use only this […]
Find out Why Public School is Attractive Home-educated children sometimes decide they want to try public school. This can cause a hard-working homeschooling parent to wonder why. In fact, that’s the first question to ask. The student has a reason, and that reason is the most important piece of the puzzle. It may take time […]
Answers or Assumptions? A dyslexia diagnosis sends parents looking for answers. Often, the people with the answers are also the people with a program to sell. A common assumption is that children need to do well in school in order to do well in life. Another assumption is that the only way to succeed in […]
Online School is Hard on Kids with Dyslexia Obviously, online school work presents special challenges for all students and teachers. But there’s an extra challenge for students with dyslexia and the teachers who are doing their best to provide a great education under difficult circumstances. Students with dyslexia often depend on classroom discussion to correct […]
Should I Homeschool My Dyslexic Child? Are you wondering if homeschooling your dyslexic child is a good idea or the worst idea you’ve had this decade? In this post, I cover four great reasons to consider homeschooling as an educational option, and one overpowering reason not to. Here’s what I cover in this post. Experts […]
A DTK Book Review: How We Learn, by Benedict Carey Learning to Study Benedict Carey’s book, How We Learn: The Surprising Truth About When, Where, and Why It Happens deserves a look by serious students and teachers. Students at all levels of education spend a lot of time in the classroom and the library. They […]