Are you searching for guidance regarding expectations and how to advocate for your child with an IEP?  The Dyslexia Network of Forsyth County is holding a workshop to clarify this process.  Parents and administrators will be present to share stories of their journey and answer questions.  It’s sure to be a meaningful and empowering experience for all attendees.  I have featured the meeting details below.  I would love to hear of your experiences after the meeting!

                                Tuesday, September 23, 2014  at 7:00pm
                                Forsyth County Board of Education, Drive Lab 1 & 2
                                1120 Dahlonega Highway, Cumming, GA 30040 

    Children will naturally visit their writing area once they are inspired and ready to begin the process.  I highly encourage parents not to force this process as children are likely to become resistant to writing if they are forced to begin this process before they are ready.       For some the act of writing will simply flow naturally with very little guidance.  For others however, they may require assistance in collecting their ideas.  For those children requiring further guidance, may this post provide you with guidance in the process.

    This process begins by simply allowing all ideas.  The brainstorming process can be a simple one if all of the ideas your child shares are encouraged without labeling ideas as “good” or “bad.”  In writing, there are no truly “good” or “bad” ideas, they are simply ideas.  During this initial stage, it’s important to allow the child to creatively brainstorm all the ideas possible.  You may find your child needs assistance with recording these ideas.  For others, they may be quite comfortable with recording, but need an organizational tool for doing so.

    I highly recommend Thinking Maps for collecting and recording ideas.  For further clarity, I have featured a Thinking Map called a bubble map on the topic of Spotted Salamander.  As is evident, the central topic is located in the center circle.  All supporting ideas are recording in the surrounding circles.  For further ideas regarding brainstorming tools, take a peek at this site.

    Throughout the brainstorming process, I encourage you to guide your child.  At times, your child may have a plethora of ideas for recording.  At other times, they may require questions to probe further into the topic.  While these questions vary depending on the topic, it is essential that answering the question extends beyond “yes” and “no.”  For instance, in the exploration of lizards, I might pose the question “how do lizards differ from other living things?”  I may also guide using the question “what aspect of the lizard do I find fascinating?” Guiding, simply put, allows the child to formulate their own ideas without having a required outcome.  This allows children to fully express themselves.

"Throughout the process, it is essential to take time to recognize your child for their effort, creativity and enthusiasm. "

     The final idea I wish to share is simply to enjoy.  Writing can be an exciting, invigorating, and fun process when the ideas are generated and flow naturally.  Throughout the process it is essential to take time to praise your child for their efforts, creativity and enthusiasm.  Enjoy all your child brainstorms as a representation of them.    Please take a moment to share your thoughts and questions by commenting on this post.  I would love to hear what you have to share!

    I have had the opportunity to work with many families searching to provide authentic opportunities for their children to write.  Often, a journal is implemented to provide this opportunity.  While I applaud the implementation of this tool, some students require
further inspiration to write.  In these instances, sensory rich experiences can be used. 
I have outlined several types of these experiences below. 
 
     One of these experiences is nature immersion.  Throughout the Atlanta, Georgia area there are various parks and nature preserves. Within these special spaces lay a variety of animals, insects and plants to be discovered.  Leading your child in a guided
exploration of these areas can provide a truly fulfilling experience.  All senses are engaged as nature naturally unfolds before you.  This experience can also lend itself to the opportunity for your child to research further about the living creatures you encountered while exploring.  In the slideshow below, I have featured a few pictures from my favorite spots around Atlanta!

    I also encourage you to establish shared experiences with your child.  During one summertime lesson, I created ice cream with a student. This experience later motivated the child to write about the steps in the process.  She also wrote a beautiful story about
a town made solely of ice cream. It was a true delight!  A favorite trip or vacation spot can also lead itself to wonderful stories.  Often, I will use treasured storybooks to provide a catalyst for writing. Providing students the opportunity to rewrite the end of a familiar story, create an original version,  or change the setting excites students and inspires writing.  

    I firmly believe, tapping into children’s interests brings learning alive for students.  One of my favorite writing activities to provide students with an interest in the arts is “Scribble Writing.”  As the name implies, students are given the opportunity to construct a large scribble on a blank paper.  Using their creative talents, they form a unique picture depicting an object based on the scribble.  The picture is then used as a catalyst for writing. Many of the students I guide enjoy Legos.  I recently came upon art and writing projects incorporating these toys at Homegrown Learners. 
   

     Guiding children in becoming inspired writers can be facilitated by sensory rich experiences.  Allowing the child to fully experience the enjoyment of the trip,
activity, and craft facilitates the natural flow of future writing ideas.  Guiding child to enjoy rather than mandate a piece based on a specific writing topic lays the foundation for
students to become lifelong writers.  What activities do you enjoy establishing to facilitate writing inspiration for your child?

    Writing provides a foundation for communication.  Through writing, authors are able to share ideas and vivid details that may escape the conventions of casual conversation.  Due to the nuisances of language and grammar, I have guided students who carry a fear of writing.  For some, this fear of writing is ingrained; others simply find the process tiresome and dull.  Therefore, in the next few blog posts, I will provide ideas to guide children into becoming better equipped and more inspired writers. 

Create a Space

    Creating a space is essential for guiding budding writers.  One would not think of going to the hardware store to read a novel or visit the library to practice their drum solo.  Creating a space for writing is equally as important.  I have had the opportunity to guide several students in the process of strengthening their writing skills.  I found providing a means of collecting all their brilliant ideas centering on a specific topic to be an essential first step.  Therefore, having 2-3 favored brainstorming tools available for the writer is important.  I will explain in further detail in my next post directions for guiding students in the use of both the Circle Map and Bubble Map featured in the picture below.   

    I also ensure that colorful, developmentally appropriate writing paper is available.  I have noticed colored paper excites and motivates students.  However, the hue of the paper can influence the writers’ mood.  Research suggests that colors including light blue and green create a mood of calm and centeredness.  While red and orange create moods of vibrancy and excitement.   Check out the University of Georgia article on the impact of sensory details on student learning.   http://sdpl.coe.uga.edu/researchabstracts/visual.html

    It has been my experience that including in this space a personal word wall is beneficial.  This word wall can be centered on a specific topic including “Water Words.”  It may include words that the student has struggled to record previously.  Grade level sight words may also be featured.  Displaying this word wall in a prominent location is essential to facilitate its use.  I encourage the creation of the word wall to be a process shared between you and the writer.  When children are actively involved in the process of creation, they are more likely to use this tool.

    Including within this space the opportunity to fidget is also important.  Many students require movement while brainstorming and explaining their writing ideas.  Squish balls, balance ball chairs, and visuals can be used to provide opportunity for movement and tranquility within the space. 

    A carefully planned and well-organized space is ideal for guiding children into becoming inspired writers.  When the writing process is looked upon with excitement and passion, students are more likely to write with eagerness.  The space provided for children lays the foundation for future writing experiences.

      Are you interested in learning more about how the brain impacts your child’s behavior at home?  Are you looking for methods to assist you in guiding your child to become a hard working and responsible adult? The Dyslexia Network of Forsyth County is holding a workshop lead by Mary Hynes Danielak, Psy.D.  This workshop offers parents a 5-step parenting program for enhancing their child's behavior in the home based on brain research.  Further information can be obtained by visiting www.dyslexiaforsyth.com.

      Many meaningful report card comments have been lost once this report has been read.  This can be attributed to students difficulty with connecting these comments to work completed daily.  While the teacher’s relationships with the student does have an impact on the likelihood that these comments will shape the child’s performance, often this is alone is not sufficient.  In these cases, a simple post-it can make all the difference!

      As I mentioned in a previous post, a student that I work with on writing recently received his report card.  We discussed the comments recorded on this report.  Using this conversation as a catalyst, we drafted a checklist of 5 areas to be edited upon his completion of a piece.  He was excited and motivated by this idea.  Through this conversation and tool, he was able to implement the daily directive given by his teacher to edit his writing.  He heard and understood the importance of this request however he struggled to implement a plan for completing editing.  As Paula Moraine states in her text, he could see the big picture, needing to edit his writing, but struggled to pinpoint specific traits to check.  Therefore, this tool provided him a method for doing so. 

      This tool is not simply limited in its use to editing writing pieces.  For example, while reading, a post-it can be created featuring a specific type of comprehension question, including main idea and details.  This post-it can be placed on each page read.  After reading a given page, the child needs to answer a main idea and details question given by the adult.  Some students struggle to recall the steps in a math problem.  A post-it featuring the steps in order can be placed at the top of a page of math homework to assist with ease of completion.  Once the child gains confidence and ease in completing the problem, the post-it can then be removed. 

      Beyond the vast array of experiences this tool can enhance, the discussion and active involvement of the student in the learning process is essential.  The better a child understands him/herself as a learner, the better equipped they will be to use this tool and others like it to assist their learning.  Empowering students to take ownership for their own learning is the key to the successful implementation of any new tool or strategy.   

      During an initial consultation, I always present families with a learning styles inventory.  Due to the nature of the information yielded from this tool, it proves invaluable as the sessions begin.  This inventory helps guide strategies and tools presented, methods for lesson instruction, and reinforcement.  Using this information, I have found the use of visualization to be beneficial in assisting students with a visual-spatial learning style to build comprehension.  However, it is an invaluable tool for all students.  To begin, I often present a striking image such as shark posing at an interesting angle or a valley with vibrant fall colors.  The student is then asked a very general question, “What do you notice?”  The answers yielded from this question are as diverse as the learners I guide.  This question and the responses are then used to introduce and discuss the strategy of visualization.  This strategy allows the reader to create images of the characters, setting and other contents of a book studied in their minds.  While many readers are able to complete this skill automatically, the value of this skill is often overlooked.  With a visual image created in one’s mind, or better yet drawn on paper, comprehension skills relating to main idea and details, inferences and vocabulary are all made much easier to complete.  In implementing this technique with a student who was able to read fluently, yet struggled to comprehend what he read, visualization proved to be the key to unlocking his ability to comprehend the text.  His ability to draw the images, later automatically creating these images in his mind, allowed him to understand the main idea and details in the text.  He was able to articulate vividly the important details and how these ideas related to the main idea.  The question then becomes how can this technique be used at home to assist students?  Follow these steps for easy application:

1.        Allow the child to read a self-selected yet, on-level text aloud.

2.       Select one particularly vivid or exciting sentence or paragraph to reread.

3.       Once a single reread has been conducted, encourage the child to close their eyes and reread the selection 2-3 more times. 

4.       Once the passage has been reread, with their eyes closed, encourage the child to share what images have been created in their mind.  For instance, What characters do you see?  Where are these characters?  How are these characters behaving? 

Keep in mind, this technique is applicable to both fiction and non-fiction texts.  While the images created during visualization may vary, the effect remains the same.  The child is able to “see” what is occurring in the text.

My hope is the implementation and continued use of this technique will help build your child’s understanding of the text.  Equally as important however, this technique helps to foster imagination and creativity.