compiled by Beth Probst, At The Core [some national, some Ohio] The “dog days” of summer are a great time to explore a student’s interests away from the daily grind of school–what do they like to do, what skills do they want to explore–all great stuff when thinking about their future! We’ve gathered up a few of our academic/career-minded favorites to share with you. Important quote we read from one college admissions counselor…“It’s not the program/job/internship/experience – it’s what the student takes from it. There is no ‘hierarchy’ that says one experience is ‘better’&n ..read more

(Amy Matsushita-Beal/For The Washington Post) BY PHYLLIS L FAGELL  January 10 at 9:00 AM Washington Post . Brian and Daniel raced down the sixth-grade hallway, scribbling on anyone they could ambush with Sharpies. By the time they got hauled into the main office, they were covered in ink. The principal let them have it, then paused to answer his phone. That was when Brian noticed the stamp. By the time the call was over, Brian had branded Daniel’s forehead with the words, “From the Desk of Principal Brent.” Brian had been impulsive in elementary school, but sixth grade brought bigger ch ..read more

MAKING SENSE: The Glamorous Story of English Grammar, by David Crystal 281 pp. Oxford University, $24.95. . Peter Sokolowski, NY Times: “The indefatigable linguist Crystal’s latest book, “Making Sense,” is a surprisingly entertaining historical and scholarly tour of the mechanics of English. . Grammar can seem as technical and off-putting as math or physics to many people who nevertheless can speak, read and write very well, and while some books on language prey on readers’ insecurity with lists of word-choice peeves and classist language shibboleths, Crystal efficiently punctures such snobber ..read more

by Liz Evans, Huffington Post This year, Simon is in fourth grade and Grace is in first grade, and I find myself asking them every day after school, “So how was school today?” And every day I get an answer like “fine” or “good,” which doesn’t tell me a whole lot. AND I WANT TO KNOW A WHOLE LOT!!!! Or at least get a full sentence. So the other night, I sat down and made a list of more engaging questions to ask about school. They aren’t perfect, but I do at least get complete sentences, and some have led to some interesting conversations… and hilarious answers… and some insights into how my kids ..read more

By Marilyn Zecher, M.A., CALT June 2017 Students with learning challenges begin to fall behind in math quite early, often before third grade. We know that learning to recognize and use quantity patterns is a core deficit in math. Students must learn the composition and decomposition of basic quantities such as what makes seven and what makes nine. They also need to understand how our place value system is organized and then to apply those early patterns across place value. If two plus three equals five, then twenty plus thirty equals fifty. By the time our students with dyslexia are in eighth ..read more

EXECUTIVE FUNCTION suggestions: * ask teachers to check if child wrote assignments in agenda * post schedules and directions and SAY THEM OUT LOUD * give step by step directions and HAVE CHILD REPEAT THEM * use checklist and color-coded supplies * break projects into smaller pieces with OWN DEADLINES * use graphic organizers or mind-mapping software * follow daily schedules with built-in times for breaks * with your doctor, consider ADHD medication   source: http:www.understood.org, adapted from Thomas E Brown PhD Reading / writing tutor in Columbus OH: Adrienne Edwards 614-579-6021 or em ..read more

IDA FACT SHEET  (International Dyslexia Association) The application process for individuals planning to enter college can be a daunting experience. For individuals with disabilities who are requesting testing accommodations, this can be even more challenging, as it often requires assembling necessary documentation, completing additional paperwork, and anticipating deadlines. This IDA Fact Sheet gives a broad overview of the process in order to assist individuals who are requesting test accommodations on high ..read more

by Michelle Garcia Winner, Social Thinking Over the years, I have observed so many students get upset by the fact they had “autism” or “Asperger syndrome” or “ADHD.” While they could verbalize these terms aloud, they still didn’t seem to understand what their learning challenges actually were. I have also observed many adults explaining to students that the reason they were having difficulty socializing, studying, and learning was because they had “autism” or “Asperger’s syndrome”, or “ADHD.” I thought this was a really abstract way of explaining to students with limited abstract thinking how ..read more

by Michelle Garcia Winner, Social Thinking.com … Discuss why people ask for help and give examples of the types of people who ask for help. Many of our students choose not to request help because they think it means they’re not smart. Many individuals have been told they are smart for years and feel that smart people don’t need help. What they often don’t realize is that the most successful students are the ones who regularly ask for help/clarification when unsure. These individuals will benefit from observing other students asking for help and then watching the teacher’s response. The reality ..read more

by Arika Okrent A, E, I, O, U and sometimes Y is not all you need to know about vowels. There’s more to these workhorse members of our linguistics inventory than you might think.   ENGLISH HAS MORE VOWELS THAN THERE ARE LETTERS FOR THEM. A, E, I, O, U and sometimes Y are the letters we define as vowels, but vowels can also be defined as speech sounds. While we have six letters we define as vowels, there are, in English, many more vowel sounds than that. For example consider the word pairs cat and car, or cook and kook. The vowel sounds are different from each other in each pair, bu ..read more