Blog

Why Handwriting Is Just as Important as Keyboarding

By Mike Flynn on June 26, 2016 0

Why Handwriting Is Just as Important as Keyboarding

Handwriting is being dismissed as a nonessential skill as classrooms are gradually shifting to online learning. The reasoning is simple: why teach cursive if everything will be done on a screen? While that logic seems simple enough, new research may make you think differently.

Several studies recently have reported how beneficial handwriting, specifically the forming of letters, can help students learn written language. One study identified that typing did not generate the same level of brain activity as writing did. The actual process of writing, no matter how messy, was more beneficial for the student.

In addition to the levels of brain stimulation writing can provide, there is also proof that students who took handwritten notes were more likely to remember the content than students who typed their notes. The process of writing could be considered multi-sensory, and the benefits of multi-sensory learning are well understood and documented.

Though cursive may seem to be outdated, there are a number of benefits that can help your child learn.

Read the original article here.

Common Core Is Failing Your Child!

By Mike Flynn on June 14, 2016 0

Common Core is failing your child. Yes, you read that correctly. The Common Core State Standards Initiative, designed to develop college and career ready students, is not working according to 84 percent of college instructors.

A study just released by the ACT (the national testing company who competes with the SAT) reveals that more college professors are finding incoming freshmen not prepared for college-level work. The recent study cited only 16 percent of college instructors felt their students were ready for the rigors of freshmen year.

The move to the Common Core curriculum developed to ensure all students are ready for success after high school. The CC focuses on critical-thinking, problem-solving, and analytical skills students will need to be successful. This shift in focus was a significant change in the way curriculum was taught to our K through 12 students.

While the CC may have overhauled the curriculum, it had no ability to dictate what college instructors taught. College professors still assign extensive readings from Shakespeare, Steinbeck, and Hemingway, along with critical-thinking and problem-solving skills. The CC’s focus on alternative skill building is very useful for those looking for immediate entry into the job market but is shortchanging our college-bound kids.

While there are many critics of the Common Core and much debate about repealing it, this current trend in American education won’t be going away soon. If you are fearful that our schools aren’t doing enough to prepare your college-bound child, you do have options.

First, ensure that your child is an analytical reader and writer. Several first-year college courses require extensive reading with writing requirements that far exceed typical 12th grade English classes. Second, in addition to the higher levels, ensure your child can focus for extended periods (a term known as engagement). While reading for 20 minutes may be enough to complete an assignment in high school, college students may need to devote several hours at a time to a single task. This aspect of extended focus is challenging when students have been conditioned to focus for only 10 seconds at a time on their friends latest Snapchat post!

Besides analytical reading and writing, make certain your child possesses the essential study skills to be successful. Don’t wait until high school, however, to work on these skills. Several studies have revealed that college success can accurately be determined in middle school. Read more about The Forgotten Middle.

Original Common Core article here.

What do you think? Is Common Core failing our students?

∑merging Readers Need Help Now!

By Mike Flynn on May 25, 2016 0

Young or ∑merging Readers need to develop their understanding of letters and sounds, phonemic awareness (how sounds work together) and reading fluency. For students who are at risk of retention in the early years of school, teachers will often suggest an early reading intervention method (ERIM). Though this sounds like a disability, most often young readers struggle because they have not developed at the same rate as others. Just like some kids growing later than their friends, some readers take a bit more time to start reading than their classmates. Taking action now is critical for a young reader who is late developing. These students need extra time and help to catch up to avoid further struggle or worse, labeling by teachers and schools.

If you have a young reader who is struggling, your first steps should be to focus on alphabetic principle and phonological awareness, followed by fluency with connected text.

To continue reading…

60% of High School Graduates Not Ready for College

By Mike Flynn on May 17, 2016 0

Did you know that 60% of high school graduates are not prepared for college? It’s true. Several studies show that a high school diploma is no longer enough to properly prepare students for college. This “college preparation gap” is the widest it has been since 1992.

The College Board, makers of the SAT, found that the majority of university professors viewed incoming college freshmen students are “ill-prepared and over-stimulated.” Professors stated that students lacked the analytical reading skills and attention span to be successful in their classes. Professors have noted that students can’t go more than 15 or 20 minutes without picking up their cell phone. In fact, experiments have been conducted that show heart rates and blood pressure spike when students hear their phone ring but can’t answer. Some professors have attempted to incorporate games into their lectures where using a cell phone is required. Other professors have simply given up and provide technology breaks every 15 or 20 minutes in order to keep students focused.

Do you think our schools are doing enough to prepare our children? Are we naive by thinking that our kids are ready for the next step?

Read the original article.

Blog

Why Handwriting Is Just as Important as Keyboarding

Make a Change for the Better