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Troubles with Math… Math-U-See? Math Antics?

My child works HARD to keep his grades pulled together in school.  Like reading, Math is also very difficult.

We have extreme difficulty with the memory skills required to master the basic multiplication tables..  Even the basic addition facts are also fuzzy- just not concrete memories.

We work through the homework that comes home from a public school.  Grade 6, I think this is all common core.  A division problem, an absolute  value problem, a couple of word problems, an area or perimeter problem, etc… we get a few pages of mixed math applications for homework on average; 3 times a week.

Some problems look like a foreign language to my son. I will ask him if the teacher went over the material; and I know he must have, but my son just looks at the problem as if it is written in another language.

Some problems he has memory of certain processes, he can recall how to manipulate the numbers and formulate answers.  It is not easy at all.  He will make simple mistakes like subtracting 6 from 13 and writing down a 8 or 9 or some other number.

He will think of the numerical answer, 13 for example.  But sometimes, when he writes the number on his paper, the 13 comes out like a 15.  He will see his mistake and then write-over the 13 to make a 15.  But now… what he has for an answer looks like an 18 and he must erase his answer and start all over.  = Frustration

He has had several years of supplemental math (& reading) instruction; I know he has used manipulatives and other visuals in learning math in the past.  When I ask about math class as it is NOW, he tells me the teacher works many problems out on the board.    T

Within the math classes that I teach… I use the website Math Antics and supplement extra practice with classroom workbooks or worksheets from the web. THERE ARE MANY COOL VISUALS, OR COMPUTER TUTORIALS THAT CAN BE USED TO TEACH OR SUPPLEMENT A MATH LESSON.

In a short visit I checked out the Math-U-See curriculum materials that many home school Moms turn to. They used 100 blocks, 10 blocks, 1’s etc… and other numerical combinations to really help the student visualize their math.  I wonder if this is the right ‘curriculum’ to help my child master his numbers.

Personally, within my math class I use the video lessons from MathAntics. Even thought I teach adults, they have great visual lessons.  I would post more screen shots; but I am not sure about copyright laws and do not want to offend. Head on over and check those out.

Good Luck with the Math Instruction!!

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What did you enjoy most? The book or the movie?

Hands-down my dyslexic child will say movie, 99.9% of the time.

It saddens me to say that books give my child anxiety, frustration and tension.  They just do.  It is who he is.  I have been slowly growing into acceptance of that fact.

Within a class of 20-something children after finishing a novel; they also watched the movie.  The majority of the children in the class voted for the book as the favorite.  My child and one other voted for the movie as the best representation.

Book reports have always been a struggle.  Anything with books really has been a struggle.  Graphic novels are a must for the vibrant illustrations are necessary to help my child build meaning to the text.

Over time, I will post several titles of juvenile graphic novels for consideration.

Only recently did the light-bulb go on- did I actually see how differently my child processes the written word.  We are in middle school now.  Had I known years ago; I would have taken a different approach to books, novels, reading, reading minutes, etc..

I would have picked up more books on tape.  I would have tried to allow him to ‘listen’ to the first few chapters and then to continue on independently with the rest.

I would have liked to choose books that had movie representations to them.

I would have spent more time learning how to use E-books effectively.

I am excited to have downloaded a graphic novel my son is interested in reading.  An option for “Word Wise” just popped up on the screen.  This is a built-in program (Kindle) that helps young readers by providing hints for the most difficult words they will encounter.  They only need to tap on the word to have it read.  How cool is that!

I see the Audible Narration is available for the book I have chosen; for a fee of $3.49.  Ok… so I guess I can buy it – I know it will help him understand the book.  I am a little dissappointed at the cost- what about ALL the other children with dyslexia?  Are their families financially stable enough to pay for a book at $6.99 plus the auditory narration for an additional $3.49?  Perhaps the library will have options; here is a link to a related article highlighting the disparity of resources and low-income families.

 

 

 

 

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What are Phonemes? What is Phonological Awareness?

They are necessary, critical components to successful reading.

Phonemes are the smallest sounds our language is broken into.  Cat has 3 sound parts or phonemes.  You can find a list of phonemes here. 

[The actual letters are referred to graphemes- if you don’t know the letters that match the word sounds you will experience difficulty spelling.

Phonemic Awareness: refers to speech (oral language); having an understanding that our language is broken into sounds.

Phonological Awareness means you have an understanding of how the words in our language are made up of sounds.

You can view a PowerPoint on the terms here. 

Teaching It:  Segmenting & Blending are Key!

To teach segmenting of words; you teach about the separate sounds of a word.  Cat has 3 sounds (phonemes), you would have the child read the sound parts of the word to segment it.   C    a     t

To teach blending; you kind of review the segmenting first, have the child speak the separate sounds, then once again have them say the sound parts quickly to ‘blend them together’ into a word.

Here is an article on tutoring Phonemic Awareness/

 

My dyslexic child has an understanding of the Phonemic nature of our language; yet he cannot memorize the rules to connect what phonemes make up certain sounds.  He will turn in an assignment on “light” for example; and have in his written answers – “light” spelled differently.  Lite  Ligt  lyte liht

I will add a photo at a future time.

 

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Dyslexia Study from 1997!! Shows the Importance of VISUALS

In my research, I found this old study rather interesting.  It presents a short article wherein it describes what it is like to think with Dyslexia.  It is a compilation of information from research from Harvard Medical Center & Central St. Martins College.

The Psychologist highlighted in the article designed a series of six tests of verbal, written and spatial ability.   She found Their visual spatial skills were also at a higher level – but they had difficulties with reading, writing and spelling.

Within this same article there is research from Harvard Medical Center.  They found “that dyslexics’ brains are “wired” differently from other people’s. “There is definite proof of a link between dyslexia and visual spatial ability,”

A researcher from Washington, named West adds the facts that the brain of a dyslexic person is wired differently.  “They lack efficiency in the left brain hemisphere which relates to language ability. But there is increased efficiency in the side of the brain which dictates spatial ability.”

A dyslexic himself, West shared that dyslexics:  “can rotate an image in three dimensions in their minds. Our educational system at the moment is based on words, books and lectures.”

A summary of my related opinions:

This heavy text-based verbal/written curriculum is not serving any of the Dyslexic students in the United States.  The work my child brings home is not very often visual in any way.  When I have asked about using visual videos to teach math I hear back, “no I haven’t ever done that.”  In today’s technology age- it is as easy as a little navigation and a click of the mouse to bring your classroom to life.  Visuals will engage both the dyslexic and non-dyslexic student and will bring new meaning to their studies.

For this reasons, I will repeatedly blog and share information about adding visualization to lessons, how to choose materials for the dyslexic child or student and more.

 

 

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Schwab Foundation: Parent Guide for Dyslexia

The Schwab Foundation has put many years of research into Dyslexia and similar disabilities. One interesting/ helpful brochure I found helpful is their Parent Guide to Life Success for Dyslexics. 

The organization outlines several “success attributes” that are shared among the most successful dyslexics. Adults and children alike would benefit from discussion on topics such as perseverance, goal setting, support systems and more!

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Teacher Tip: Use Videos, Diagrams, Smart Boards Often!

Think of the best, most memorable Super Bowl commercials. Do they have paragraphs and paragraphs of text or long dialog between characters?  No… They have studied the science of capturing your attention.

Check out this article that highlights the Importance of Using Visuals in Marketing. 

Over time; I will post some of the best ‘teacher-visual’ learning sites that I am able to uncover.  There are several safe, informational sites that I use daily within my classes.

I have found the best focus/ attention/ learning happens when I combine a 10 to 15 minute target visual/ video/ interactive lesson with small groupwork involving drill & practice.

I can see my students focusing on the lesson, then working cooperatively with others nearby; effectively teaching & learning at the same time. A win-win.

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Evaluating Textbooks: Visual vs. Text-Based

Not all textbooks are the same.  Here are two samples from Elementary/ Basic Mathematics textbooks.  The Houghton Mifflin text (above) has many more visualizations [data bars] here to assist in teaching how to add fractions.  The Scott Foresman text below has fewer visuals, but more numerical-text practice.

To evaluate supplemental materials for your visual-spatial child; seek out those with many visuals, illustrations & diagrams.

In the Adult Educational array of curriculum currently available; few if any visual offerings exist.  It is ok to look to supplement your resources with a more ‘elementary’ style of textbook like those shown here to use with an adult student.  The goal is to help them learn… if they learn more easily and quickly when visualizations are available.. then find them and use them.

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Early Signs… Reading & Writing As a Young Child

My young child never appreciated a snuggle and a good story.  He was much more comfortable ‘exploring’ his environment.  He chose toys that moved, made noise or were active.  My first child was much more welcoming to storytime… I just never had a concern.

Coloring was also something that was just not chosen for play time at home.  When I offered coloring as an activity, he would avoid it.   My child was raised in part by a nice daycare center.  I had trusted that they were helping to teach some of the preschool skills that would be necessary for entering kindergarten.

 

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Help! I”m a Teacher – Why is it my child HATES to read?

It took me years to formulate the answer to this question.  It was simple once I figured it out.  No, it wasn’t lack of attention.  No, it wasn’t a brain full of lead, mercury, etc.. No, it wasn’t a poor diet & need for probiotics & gut repair.

He has a dyslexic brain!  Once I figured it out I was astounded that it took me so long to figure out!

As I look at words (even those you see here), I see lines and circles that make up 2-dimensional letters.  I associate those letters with sounds and I can blend the sounds into words.  I then ‘think’ with those words to associate meaning to what my eyes take in.

Nothing like this entire process I just mentioned explains how my child makes meaning of the printed word.  My visual-spatial (dyslexic) child thinks in 3D where I do not.  As much as I would have like to have his brain all figured out- I still do not.  I am sure that he does take in information in 3D… I am not sure if he can visualize all of the separate letters in 3D/ or if he takes in a word through reading and processes that in 3D.