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Different Learners: Identifying, Preventing, and Treating Your Child's Learning Problems
"My child is having trouble in school.
What should I do?"
When parents are told that their child is having difficulty in school, they often don’t know where to turn for reliable information and advice. They may be confused by conflicting claims of "cures" or may mistakenly think that, because some learning problems are genetically based, they can do nothing to help. Even the terminology of learning disorders is dyslexia, dyscalculia, ADD, ADHD, autism, Asperger’s syndrome, NVLD, executive function disorder—what are all these conditions, how do they differ from one another and, most important, what practical steps should parents and teachers take to remedy the situation?
This comprehensive, practical guide to children’s learning problems should be the first resource parents and teachers reach for when a child shows signs of difficulty in academic, social, or behavioral learning. Drawing on her decades of experience, educator Jane Healy offers understandable explanations of the various types of learning disorders. She distills the latest scientific research on brains, genes, and learning as she explains how to identify problems—even before they are diagnosed—and how to take appropriate remedial action at home, at school, and in the community.
Today’s fast-paced, stressed-out culture is hazardous to growing minds, says Healy, and a growing "epidemic" of children’s disorders is the result. Different Learners offers a complete program not only for treating the child, but also for making more beneficial lifestyle choices at home and improving teaching techniques at school. It shows parents and caregivers how to prevent some learning difficulties from ever happening in the first place. It explains how to have your child evaluated if necessary, and, if a problem is found, how to evaluate various treatments. Different Learners explains how medications for attention and learning work in the brain and why they should not be the first step in most treatment programs. It shows how schools can actually worsen a child’s learning difficulties and how to make sure this doesn’t happen to your child. It even offers a program for "brain-cleaning" that will help any child perform better in school.
Jane Healy draws on stories of real children to offer sympathetic as well as practical advice for children—and parents—who are struggling in an overstressed environment. She provides reassurance that parents and teachers can have dramatically positive effects on every child’s ability to learn.
What should I do?"
When parents are told that their child is having difficulty in school, they often don’t know where to turn for reliable information and advice. They may be confused by conflicting claims of "cures" or may mistakenly think that, because some learning problems are genetically based, they can do nothing to help. Even the terminology of learning disorders is dyslexia, dyscalculia, ADD, ADHD, autism, Asperger’s syndrome, NVLD, executive function disorder—what are all these conditions, how do they differ from one another and, most important, what practical steps should parents and teachers take to remedy the situation?
This comprehensive, practical guide to children’s learning problems should be the first resource parents and teachers reach for when a child shows signs of difficulty in academic, social, or behavioral learning. Drawing on her decades of experience, educator Jane Healy offers understandable explanations of the various types of learning disorders. She distills the latest scientific research on brains, genes, and learning as she explains how to identify problems—even before they are diagnosed—and how to take appropriate remedial action at home, at school, and in the community.
Today’s fast-paced, stressed-out culture is hazardous to growing minds, says Healy, and a growing "epidemic" of children’s disorders is the result. Different Learners offers a complete program not only for treating the child, but also for making more beneficial lifestyle choices at home and improving teaching techniques at school. It shows parents and caregivers how to prevent some learning difficulties from ever happening in the first place. It explains how to have your child evaluated if necessary, and, if a problem is found, how to evaluate various treatments. Different Learners explains how medications for attention and learning work in the brain and why they should not be the first step in most treatment programs. It shows how schools can actually worsen a child’s learning difficulties and how to make sure this doesn’t happen to your child. It even offers a program for "brain-cleaning" that will help any child perform better in school.
Jane Healy draws on stories of real children to offer sympathetic as well as practical advice for children—and parents—who are struggling in an overstressed environment. She provides reassurance that parents and teachers can have dramatically positive effects on every child’s ability to learn.
420 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2010
22 people are currently reading
352 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
September 25, 2010
A good overview of learning issues facing children today. I don't know that I learned anything desperately new about our situation with Marcus, but it helped me feel we're following the right course for now and that, all in all, we've done the basics for him to give him a good foundation. Since that's something I worry about, it's good to feel like we're aren't failing him terribly.
May 6, 2011
A fairly informative and easy-to-read book about kids with "alternative" learning styles. I've read enough about this subject that this book didn't really add a whole lot to my outlook, but there were some good nuggets for me to think about. It was fairly practical, but again, I feel like I've done a lot of her suggestions. I did find myself taking notes about books she referenced that might be worthwhile reading.
January 13, 2012
I really liked reading this book, even though it was mostly for my class on child development. I really would love to buy it to add to my reference collection for when I become a teacher. :)
July 9, 2013
Key quotes (just a sampling of what I highlighted):
1.
Back in the twelfth century, a poet and philosopher named Hildegard of Bingen came up with a metaphor that remains relevant today. At birth, each child comes equipped with a golden tent of creative potential all folded up inside. It is the task of the individual, throughout life, to unfold that tent—and to the adults in each child’s life to assist that process. Nine centuries later, I seriously wonder, how well are we doing?
4 months ago
2.
Quick Take: What This Book Is About 1. Learning differences, which are the cause of many school and personal problems, are variations in the way the brain processes information. They include academic, personal (as in attention or motivation problems), and social skills. 2. These patterns are caused both by genes (“nature”) and the environment (“nurture”). Both can be influenced by a child’s experiences before and after birth. Just because something is genetic, or inherited, does not mean that it is either inevitable or unchangeable. Nor does it mean that when problems arise, medications are the only solution.
4 months ago
3.
Medications may be helpful in some cases, but probably should not be the first or only approach used. Many proven therapies are available, and many of them start right in your own home or classroom. 4. Emotional development, which is one important aspect of learning, is tightly intertwined in the brain with academic and social learning. Stress is a significant and often underestimated contributor to children’s learning problems, and love is a powerful remedy. 5. Every child—and every child’s problem—is part of a much larger system of home, school, community, and culture. It is short-sighted simply to label and treat the child without examining how the larger system may be contributing to the problem. 6. Today’s lifestyle habits can cause problems and make existing ones worse. Fortunately, many of these negative outcomes can be prevented or reversed. 7. Learning “disabilities” and special talents often come in the same package. It is important to nurture the abilities at the same time we help with the difficulties. 8. “Late bloomers” are easily misidentified as “learning disabled.” Often the children with more leisurely developmental timetables turn out to be the smartest of all. Parents and schools that push
4 months ago
4.
too hard cause problems. 9. In our efforts to make kids “smarter,” we must not forget that brain development is closely tied to the development of the body. Neglecting play and perceptual and motor skill development may endanger foundations for other types of learning. 10. The human brain is wonderfully “plastic” and can be altered by experience. The more we understand about the way it works, the better we can help each child unfold his or her own tent of potential talents. 11. There may be positive reasons for certain types of learning differences. Unique thinkers could have important future roles. 12. Never give up. The brain retains its ability to change throughout a lifetime.
4 months ago
5.
Yet progress sometimes goes too far. Now we need to be concerned about categorizing too many youngsters who fall outside rigid expectations as “disordered” and in need of “fixing” rather than as “different” and in need of patient, effective teaching within an understanding and flexible system.
4 months ago
6.
The more inflexible the system, the more kids will find themselves with a label.
4 months ago
7.
The term learning disabilities usually refers to specific problems with school subjects such as reading, writing, spelling, or math. These problems have nothing to do with overall intellectual capability. Many learning disabled individuals are very smart or even gifted.
4 months ago
8.
Learning problems are fundamentally about a mismatch between the child and the learning environment.
4 months ago
9.
A Glitch in Learning.
4 months ago
10.
Medications may help, but they may also mask critical and treatable issues—either organic or environmental—that should be attended to sooner rather than later.
4 months ago
11.
Most organic learning disorders show up early in life. 2. Certain warning signs should prompt further evaluation. 3. A misfit between child and school can cause problems or exacerbate existing ones. 4. Diagnosis is useful only if it leads to effective treatment. 5. Overlabeling wastes time, money, and children’s potential. 6. “Differential diagnosis” is a useful starting point.
4 months ago
12.
a “learning problem” to be any innate or acquired characteristic that consistently interferes with one or more aspects of learning. In its purest form, a learning disorder involves some variation in the wiring of the brain—often, but not always, inherited—that makes it harder than “normal” for an individual to master one or more of the following:
4 months ago
13.
traditional academic learning such as language, reading, spelling, writing, math (these are termed learning disabilities) • social skills, such as understanding and relating to others • language development • perceptual-motor and sensory skills, such as balance, athletic ability, eye-tracking, using markers and pencils, copying geometric figures, keyboarding, coping with sudden sensory changes such as unexpected touch or flickering visual stimuli • executive or personal skills, such as paying attention appropriately, managing one’s behavior, organization, planning ahead, motivation
4 months ago
14.
Most true learning disorders are neurodevelopmental in origin, meaning that they involve the brain and nervous system and that they “came with the package”—i.e., that whatever is causing the problem is an intrinsic part of the child’s nature
4 months ago
15.
Inform yourself. You do not need to be a helpless consumer of other people’s judgment or advice about your child.
4 months ago
16.
his mother admitted that her son had been difficult even since infancy. While his twin sister slept, ate, played, and learned mostly in the expected ways, Jared cascaded unpredictably through each day, leaving behind a trail of frazzled adults. “This sounds terrible,” confided Pam, his mother, “but my son reminds me of those cartoons of ‘Pigpen’ in Charlie Brown. Except it’s not only dirt around him, it’s this major cloud of disruption. We just love him so much, but we never have known what to expect. When he was little he’d throw a fit about the smallest things—like a label in a shirt that ‘hurt his neck’ or some food he didn’t like. We do our best to set limits, but he is just an exhausting child.
3 months ago
17.
Warning Signs: Risk Factors for Learning
3 months ago
18.
Many if not most learning disorders come with overlapping diagnoses, and it is often difficult to affix one accurate label or a single treatment to the child’s difficulties. For example, reading and attention disorders often overlap. The best evaluations come with a descriptive analysis of your child’s relative strengths and weaknesses. They avoid one-size-fits-all
3 months ago
19.
structure a program for behavior self-management. The purpose of such programs is to support the child as he learns to take better control of his own actions and reactions. This type of cognitive behavioral therapy is an important adjunct to treatment for attention problems whether or not medications are used. It may even improve brain
3 months ago
20.
A huge percentage of diagnosed learning problems involve some aspect of language learning, because language skills are needed for most
3 months ago
21.
Language Skills: A Foundation of
3 months ago
22.
Students who lack good listening skills often appear to be inattentive, which may be mistaken for an attention
3 months ago
23.
Linking language to “mind movies” to improve memory and understanding • “Seeing” the story or the math problem (“Sue had ten apples in a basket. Seven fell out. How many does she have now?”). Children who can’t create their own mental pictures are likely to add 7 + 10 because they can’t imaginatively represent what happened. • Picturing the action in a history text, or visualizing the steps in a science experiment are effective methods of understanding and remembering content in high school subjects, which are often taught through either textbooks or lectures with no pictures
3 months ago
24.
Language Development: Red
3 months ago
25.
According to neurologist Martha Denckla, who was instrumental in first describing “executive function disorder,” there are at least two conditions that can mimic the symptoms of this disorder and create what she terms “pseudo-ADHD” and “pseudo-dysexecutive” conditions. They are (1) a language-based learning disability, such as expressive language disorder or dyslexia, and (2) “a kind of overload/exhaustion phenomenon,” which she attributes to “performance anxiety” that reduces the child’s ability to tolerate stress. Such anxiety is exacerbated, she finds, by increases in “high-stakes testing and overzealous homework assignments.
3 months ago
26.
When analyzing what is going wrong with a child’s learning, it is a mistake to look for a problem only within the child. There may also be a problem at some level of the system or environment in which the youngster is expected to
3 months ago
27.
analyze exactly what is going wrong. This process, called differential diagnosis, means becoming a careful observer and asking the right questions to uncover the real roots of the
3 months ago
28.
Many children who have eased through primary grades suddenly confront a wall when they hit fourth grade. Schools should—but don’t always—teach students these more complicated processes of learning and guide them through each step in, say, how to organize their assignments or follow specific timetables in preparing a long-term project. Very often parents end up having to pick up the
3 months ago
29.
“Calvin can’t pay attention.” By now you may be able to come up with the first questions we should ask: “What is it, specifically, that Calvin, an eighth-grader, can’t pay attention to? Can he pay attention to anything?
3 months ago
30.
There is a fine line, however, between accepting (or even celebrating) a child’s uniqueness and ignoring a significant and treatable problem. On the other hand, I have known families who became so overinvolved with the problem and a “sickness” model of learning that they lost sight of their whole child. Maintaining perspective while slogging one’s way through this emotional and technical swamp is not an easy
3 months ago
31.
Although attention deficit disorder is an accepted term, many experts are now sure that the problem is not a deficit of attention at all, but rather a difficulty deploying it
3 months ago
32.
Expose your child to rhyming words. Inability to think of rhyming words at ages four or five is a sign of phonological problems that predict reading difficulties. The ability to match and blend rhyming sounds comes partially from children’s experience with rhyming words. Yet teachers tell us that today’s kids are unfamiliar with poetry, nursery rhymes, or rhyming word play—inexpensive, fun, and a proven means of building reading readiness. The rhythm of poetry may also help reading
3 months ago
33.
It is estimated that 10 to 20 percent of children are naturally gifted readers who will learn to read and comprehend if they are given adequate exposure to books. Another 20 percent are at high risk for a disability unless they receive specialized, targeted instruction by well-trained teachers. The remaining 60 percent or so are not at special risk, but may develop reading problems unless they receive an adequate language environment at home and good instruction at
3 months ago
34.
One specific human talent that is notably deficient in autistic syndrome disorders (ASD) is called theory of mind or intersubjectivity. It involves being able (a) to understand that other people have minds and feelings, and (b) to be able to empathize or relate to the other person’s point of
3 months ago
35.
Touching, feeling, and manipulating objects is probably the best way to internalize these abstract
3 months ago
36.
Mathematics learning is highly dependent on teaching; if a child has missed out on appropriate instruction, she may not truly have dyscalculia. Math disability overlaps with reading disability, executive function disorders, including ADHD, and is one symptom of nonverbal learning disability
3 months ago
37.
NVLD was first described by Byron Rourke as a “right-hemisphere” disorder, meaning that, unlike dyslexia, it is not centered in the primary language areas of the brain
3 months ago
38.
major symptoms include difficulties with math concepts, social skills, perceptual-motor development (e.g., delayed ability to copy geometric figures or alphabet letters) and a tendency to focus on details instead of extracting meaning from a situation.
3 months ago
39.
“SELI kids have trouble with understanding three things: spaces, faces, and places,”
3 months ago
40.
No scientific or medical tests are approved to diagnose attention deficit disorder, and thus far no specific genetic or neurological cause has been agreed on.
3 months ago
41.
Executive function disorder is a more general term, which incorporates problems in planning, organization, study skills, self-control, and self-monitoring/self-checking skills. It obviously overlaps with or is a feature of many other types of learning problems and is a useful diagnosis only if specific recommendations for treatment are part of the package.
3 months ago
42.
Dr. Posner is developing training programs that help children learn to manage their attention;
3 months ago
43.
The three-dimensional architecture of the brain can be viewed and described from several different perspectives, which relate to learning differences. For example, side-to-side differences between the right and left hemispheres are important in determining a child’s best methods of
1 month ago
44.
the frontal lobe; it includes the prefrontal cortex. These areas are key control centers for learning and behavior and have been implicated in attention and “executive”
1 month ago
45.
academic achievement depend on “connectivity”—how well developing brain circuits have strengthened through being used. Certain types of cells, called white matter, are especially important for
1 month ago
46.
quality of connectivity holds the key to many learning disorders as well as to creative accomplishment. Parents and teachers can help children achieve strong
1 month ago
...Step 5: Teach Self-Regulation, The Key to Success
18
234.
Its ingredients are • a strong belief in one’s own abilities and potential • self-control • positive relationships with others • motivation and persistence
18
235.
Self-regulation is an “executive” skill that depends on a widespread system of brain connections dominated by anterior (frontal) brain areas.
18
236.
executive skills are very susceptible to environmental influence. Frontal lobes are very plastic up until eight years but continue to mature throughout the teens. Here are some of the factors that impede their development:
18
237.
stress overload from unsafe or disorganized environments, which block the brain’s ability to utilize higher cognitive and control centers
18
238.
media that pull the child’s attention and control out of her own brain and hand it over to whatever is on the screen
18
239.
intrusive sensory environments (e.g., noise, visual stimuli, too many toys and excitement, pushy adults)
18
240.
adults who are unable or unwilling to spend the time to model and teach self-control, attention, thoughtful behavior, forward planning, delay of gratification, persistence
18
241.
schools that focus on the back of the brain (memorizing information, academic acceleration, scores) at the expense of the front (how to learn, reflect on ideas, and develop positive strategies when confronted by a problem)
18
242.
overmanagement that reduces a child’s personal sense of control
18
243.
surprises and upsets are part of any normal life, but chronically hectic, unpredictable, or even dangerous lifestyles make it very difficult for youngsters to mobilize both self-control and academic learning abilities.
18
244.
even low-level stress, particularly if it is outside the child’s control, has a profound negative impact on learning and general well-being.
18
245.
Instead of “Write the rhyming words in neat rows, like this” (adult’s brain does the organizing), try “Show me how you could arrange your words on the paper to make it look neat” (child is invited to develop an organizational strategy).
18
246.
attribution theory helps explain a great deal of life success as well as academic achievement.
18
247.
Emphasize hard work and persistence (“You really tried, and look how you improved”) rather than intelligence (“You’re so smart!”).
18
248.
Focus more on the value of learning than on grades. “What did you learn that was interesting/important/useful?” gets better results in the long term than “What did you get?”
18
249.
children take medication for attention problems, encourage belief that the medication helps them manage their attention rather than that the medication does it for them.
18
250.
Be a “social skills coach.” Try to help children with social skills
18
251.
Help children set realistic goals for continued improvement (“This week I will master five words from the spelling list; when I can do five, I’ll go for six”).
18
252.
Kathy Hopkins, director of the National Institute for Learning Development, calls this “helping the child frame, focus, and filter” experience.14 She confirms that many of today’s children badly need to be taught how as well as what to learn
18
1.
Back in the twelfth century, a poet and philosopher named Hildegard of Bingen came up with a metaphor that remains relevant today. At birth, each child comes equipped with a golden tent of creative potential all folded up inside. It is the task of the individual, throughout life, to unfold that tent—and to the adults in each child’s life to assist that process. Nine centuries later, I seriously wonder, how well are we doing?
4 months ago
2.
Quick Take: What This Book Is About 1. Learning differences, which are the cause of many school and personal problems, are variations in the way the brain processes information. They include academic, personal (as in attention or motivation problems), and social skills. 2. These patterns are caused both by genes (“nature”) and the environment (“nurture”). Both can be influenced by a child’s experiences before and after birth. Just because something is genetic, or inherited, does not mean that it is either inevitable or unchangeable. Nor does it mean that when problems arise, medications are the only solution.
4 months ago
3.
Medications may be helpful in some cases, but probably should not be the first or only approach used. Many proven therapies are available, and many of them start right in your own home or classroom. 4. Emotional development, which is one important aspect of learning, is tightly intertwined in the brain with academic and social learning. Stress is a significant and often underestimated contributor to children’s learning problems, and love is a powerful remedy. 5. Every child—and every child’s problem—is part of a much larger system of home, school, community, and culture. It is short-sighted simply to label and treat the child without examining how the larger system may be contributing to the problem. 6. Today’s lifestyle habits can cause problems and make existing ones worse. Fortunately, many of these negative outcomes can be prevented or reversed. 7. Learning “disabilities” and special talents often come in the same package. It is important to nurture the abilities at the same time we help with the difficulties. 8. “Late bloomers” are easily misidentified as “learning disabled.” Often the children with more leisurely developmental timetables turn out to be the smartest of all. Parents and schools that push
4 months ago
4.
too hard cause problems. 9. In our efforts to make kids “smarter,” we must not forget that brain development is closely tied to the development of the body. Neglecting play and perceptual and motor skill development may endanger foundations for other types of learning. 10. The human brain is wonderfully “plastic” and can be altered by experience. The more we understand about the way it works, the better we can help each child unfold his or her own tent of potential talents. 11. There may be positive reasons for certain types of learning differences. Unique thinkers could have important future roles. 12. Never give up. The brain retains its ability to change throughout a lifetime.
4 months ago
5.
Yet progress sometimes goes too far. Now we need to be concerned about categorizing too many youngsters who fall outside rigid expectations as “disordered” and in need of “fixing” rather than as “different” and in need of patient, effective teaching within an understanding and flexible system.
4 months ago
6.
The more inflexible the system, the more kids will find themselves with a label.
4 months ago
7.
The term learning disabilities usually refers to specific problems with school subjects such as reading, writing, spelling, or math. These problems have nothing to do with overall intellectual capability. Many learning disabled individuals are very smart or even gifted.
4 months ago
8.
Learning problems are fundamentally about a mismatch between the child and the learning environment.
4 months ago
9.
A Glitch in Learning.
4 months ago
10.
Medications may help, but they may also mask critical and treatable issues—either organic or environmental—that should be attended to sooner rather than later.
4 months ago
11.
Most organic learning disorders show up early in life. 2. Certain warning signs should prompt further evaluation. 3. A misfit between child and school can cause problems or exacerbate existing ones. 4. Diagnosis is useful only if it leads to effective treatment. 5. Overlabeling wastes time, money, and children’s potential. 6. “Differential diagnosis” is a useful starting point.
4 months ago
12.
a “learning problem” to be any innate or acquired characteristic that consistently interferes with one or more aspects of learning. In its purest form, a learning disorder involves some variation in the wiring of the brain—often, but not always, inherited—that makes it harder than “normal” for an individual to master one or more of the following:
4 months ago
13.
traditional academic learning such as language, reading, spelling, writing, math (these are termed learning disabilities) • social skills, such as understanding and relating to others • language development • perceptual-motor and sensory skills, such as balance, athletic ability, eye-tracking, using markers and pencils, copying geometric figures, keyboarding, coping with sudden sensory changes such as unexpected touch or flickering visual stimuli • executive or personal skills, such as paying attention appropriately, managing one’s behavior, organization, planning ahead, motivation
4 months ago
14.
Most true learning disorders are neurodevelopmental in origin, meaning that they involve the brain and nervous system and that they “came with the package”—i.e., that whatever is causing the problem is an intrinsic part of the child’s nature
4 months ago
15.
Inform yourself. You do not need to be a helpless consumer of other people’s judgment or advice about your child.
4 months ago
16.
his mother admitted that her son had been difficult even since infancy. While his twin sister slept, ate, played, and learned mostly in the expected ways, Jared cascaded unpredictably through each day, leaving behind a trail of frazzled adults. “This sounds terrible,” confided Pam, his mother, “but my son reminds me of those cartoons of ‘Pigpen’ in Charlie Brown. Except it’s not only dirt around him, it’s this major cloud of disruption. We just love him so much, but we never have known what to expect. When he was little he’d throw a fit about the smallest things—like a label in a shirt that ‘hurt his neck’ or some food he didn’t like. We do our best to set limits, but he is just an exhausting child.
3 months ago
17.
Warning Signs: Risk Factors for Learning
3 months ago
18.
Many if not most learning disorders come with overlapping diagnoses, and it is often difficult to affix one accurate label or a single treatment to the child’s difficulties. For example, reading and attention disorders often overlap. The best evaluations come with a descriptive analysis of your child’s relative strengths and weaknesses. They avoid one-size-fits-all
3 months ago
19.
structure a program for behavior self-management. The purpose of such programs is to support the child as he learns to take better control of his own actions and reactions. This type of cognitive behavioral therapy is an important adjunct to treatment for attention problems whether or not medications are used. It may even improve brain
3 months ago
20.
A huge percentage of diagnosed learning problems involve some aspect of language learning, because language skills are needed for most
3 months ago
21.
Language Skills: A Foundation of
3 months ago
22.
Students who lack good listening skills often appear to be inattentive, which may be mistaken for an attention
3 months ago
23.
Linking language to “mind movies” to improve memory and understanding • “Seeing” the story or the math problem (“Sue had ten apples in a basket. Seven fell out. How many does she have now?”). Children who can’t create their own mental pictures are likely to add 7 + 10 because they can’t imaginatively represent what happened. • Picturing the action in a history text, or visualizing the steps in a science experiment are effective methods of understanding and remembering content in high school subjects, which are often taught through either textbooks or lectures with no pictures
3 months ago
24.
Language Development: Red
3 months ago
25.
According to neurologist Martha Denckla, who was instrumental in first describing “executive function disorder,” there are at least two conditions that can mimic the symptoms of this disorder and create what she terms “pseudo-ADHD” and “pseudo-dysexecutive” conditions. They are (1) a language-based learning disability, such as expressive language disorder or dyslexia, and (2) “a kind of overload/exhaustion phenomenon,” which she attributes to “performance anxiety” that reduces the child’s ability to tolerate stress. Such anxiety is exacerbated, she finds, by increases in “high-stakes testing and overzealous homework assignments.
3 months ago
26.
When analyzing what is going wrong with a child’s learning, it is a mistake to look for a problem only within the child. There may also be a problem at some level of the system or environment in which the youngster is expected to
3 months ago
27.
analyze exactly what is going wrong. This process, called differential diagnosis, means becoming a careful observer and asking the right questions to uncover the real roots of the
3 months ago
28.
Many children who have eased through primary grades suddenly confront a wall when they hit fourth grade. Schools should—but don’t always—teach students these more complicated processes of learning and guide them through each step in, say, how to organize their assignments or follow specific timetables in preparing a long-term project. Very often parents end up having to pick up the
3 months ago
29.
“Calvin can’t pay attention.” By now you may be able to come up with the first questions we should ask: “What is it, specifically, that Calvin, an eighth-grader, can’t pay attention to? Can he pay attention to anything?
3 months ago
30.
There is a fine line, however, between accepting (or even celebrating) a child’s uniqueness and ignoring a significant and treatable problem. On the other hand, I have known families who became so overinvolved with the problem and a “sickness” model of learning that they lost sight of their whole child. Maintaining perspective while slogging one’s way through this emotional and technical swamp is not an easy
3 months ago
31.
Although attention deficit disorder is an accepted term, many experts are now sure that the problem is not a deficit of attention at all, but rather a difficulty deploying it
3 months ago
32.
Expose your child to rhyming words. Inability to think of rhyming words at ages four or five is a sign of phonological problems that predict reading difficulties. The ability to match and blend rhyming sounds comes partially from children’s experience with rhyming words. Yet teachers tell us that today’s kids are unfamiliar with poetry, nursery rhymes, or rhyming word play—inexpensive, fun, and a proven means of building reading readiness. The rhythm of poetry may also help reading
3 months ago
33.
It is estimated that 10 to 20 percent of children are naturally gifted readers who will learn to read and comprehend if they are given adequate exposure to books. Another 20 percent are at high risk for a disability unless they receive specialized, targeted instruction by well-trained teachers. The remaining 60 percent or so are not at special risk, but may develop reading problems unless they receive an adequate language environment at home and good instruction at
3 months ago
34.
One specific human talent that is notably deficient in autistic syndrome disorders (ASD) is called theory of mind or intersubjectivity. It involves being able (a) to understand that other people have minds and feelings, and (b) to be able to empathize or relate to the other person’s point of
3 months ago
35.
Touching, feeling, and manipulating objects is probably the best way to internalize these abstract
3 months ago
36.
Mathematics learning is highly dependent on teaching; if a child has missed out on appropriate instruction, she may not truly have dyscalculia. Math disability overlaps with reading disability, executive function disorders, including ADHD, and is one symptom of nonverbal learning disability
3 months ago
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NVLD was first described by Byron Rourke as a “right-hemisphere” disorder, meaning that, unlike dyslexia, it is not centered in the primary language areas of the brain
3 months ago
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major symptoms include difficulties with math concepts, social skills, perceptual-motor development (e.g., delayed ability to copy geometric figures or alphabet letters) and a tendency to focus on details instead of extracting meaning from a situation.
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“SELI kids have trouble with understanding three things: spaces, faces, and places,”
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No scientific or medical tests are approved to diagnose attention deficit disorder, and thus far no specific genetic or neurological cause has been agreed on.
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Executive function disorder is a more general term, which incorporates problems in planning, organization, study skills, self-control, and self-monitoring/self-checking skills. It obviously overlaps with or is a feature of many other types of learning problems and is a useful diagnosis only if specific recommendations for treatment are part of the package.
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Dr. Posner is developing training programs that help children learn to manage their attention;
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The three-dimensional architecture of the brain can be viewed and described from several different perspectives, which relate to learning differences. For example, side-to-side differences between the right and left hemispheres are important in determining a child’s best methods of
1 month ago
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the frontal lobe; it includes the prefrontal cortex. These areas are key control centers for learning and behavior and have been implicated in attention and “executive”
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academic achievement depend on “connectivity”—how well developing brain circuits have strengthened through being used. Certain types of cells, called white matter, are especially important for
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quality of connectivity holds the key to many learning disorders as well as to creative accomplishment. Parents and teachers can help children achieve strong
1 month ago
...Step 5: Teach Self-Regulation, The Key to Success
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Its ingredients are • a strong belief in one’s own abilities and potential • self-control • positive relationships with others • motivation and persistence
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Self-regulation is an “executive” skill that depends on a widespread system of brain connections dominated by anterior (frontal) brain areas.
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executive skills are very susceptible to environmental influence. Frontal lobes are very plastic up until eight years but continue to mature throughout the teens. Here are some of the factors that impede their development:
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stress overload from unsafe or disorganized environments, which block the brain’s ability to utilize higher cognitive and control centers
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media that pull the child’s attention and control out of her own brain and hand it over to whatever is on the screen
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intrusive sensory environments (e.g., noise, visual stimuli, too many toys and excitement, pushy adults)
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adults who are unable or unwilling to spend the time to model and teach self-control, attention, thoughtful behavior, forward planning, delay of gratification, persistence
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schools that focus on the back of the brain (memorizing information, academic acceleration, scores) at the expense of the front (how to learn, reflect on ideas, and develop positive strategies when confronted by a problem)
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overmanagement that reduces a child’s personal sense of control
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surprises and upsets are part of any normal life, but chronically hectic, unpredictable, or even dangerous lifestyles make it very difficult for youngsters to mobilize both self-control and academic learning abilities.
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even low-level stress, particularly if it is outside the child’s control, has a profound negative impact on learning and general well-being.
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Instead of “Write the rhyming words in neat rows, like this” (adult’s brain does the organizing), try “Show me how you could arrange your words on the paper to make it look neat” (child is invited to develop an organizational strategy).
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attribution theory helps explain a great deal of life success as well as academic achievement.
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Emphasize hard work and persistence (“You really tried, and look how you improved”) rather than intelligence (“You’re so smart!”).
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Focus more on the value of learning than on grades. “What did you learn that was interesting/important/useful?” gets better results in the long term than “What did you get?”
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children take medication for attention problems, encourage belief that the medication helps them manage their attention rather than that the medication does it for them.
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Be a “social skills coach.” Try to help children with social skills
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Help children set realistic goals for continued improvement (“This week I will master five words from the spelling list; when I can do five, I’ll go for six”).
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Kathy Hopkins, director of the National Institute for Learning Development, calls this “helping the child frame, focus, and filter” experience.14 She confirms that many of today’s children badly need to be taught how as well as what to learn
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October 26, 2021
Another research book I just finished reading for my work-in-progress is Different Learners: Identifying, Preventing, and Treating Your Child’s Learning Problems by Jane M. Healy, Ph.D. I wished there were books like these when I was in the trenches trying to help my special needs daughter. But then again, I had no time to read these pithy volumes what with five young children, the oldest being the special needs child.
Different Learners is a comprehensive study in brain and learning development with countless case studies. Dr. Healy includes brain diagrams and picture examples of students’ works. She includes “Quick Take” and “In a Nutshell” lists to help the reader understand the material and understand the points of each chapter. She offers well-researched tips about child stress, sleep and food requirements and learning styles and nature versus nurture.
Dr. Healy offers other experts’ research and theories. Everyone learns at his or her own pace. The brain has a plasticity, Dr. Healy says, that allows for continuous learning throughout life. That being said, we can help our children learn and continue to learn right along with them. Different Learners: Identifying, Preventing, and Treating Your Child’s Learning Problems by Jane M. Healy, Ph.D. is a great reference book to keep close at hand.
Different Learners is a comprehensive study in brain and learning development with countless case studies. Dr. Healy includes brain diagrams and picture examples of students’ works. She includes “Quick Take” and “In a Nutshell” lists to help the reader understand the material and understand the points of each chapter. She offers well-researched tips about child stress, sleep and food requirements and learning styles and nature versus nurture.
Dr. Healy offers other experts’ research and theories. Everyone learns at his or her own pace. The brain has a plasticity, Dr. Healy says, that allows for continuous learning throughout life. That being said, we can help our children learn and continue to learn right along with them. Different Learners: Identifying, Preventing, and Treating Your Child’s Learning Problems by Jane M. Healy, Ph.D. is a great reference book to keep close at hand.
January 16, 2019
What a phenomenal book. This should be a must read for any expecting parent and educator. Full of wonderful information from the current world of medicine, as well as a great layman's teaching guide to how the brain grows and functions.
March 14, 2019
Spoiler alert: Over and over, environment is indicted as a main source of learning problems. While non-environmental neurological differences are touched on, Healy focuses on persuading readers to set up healthy environments for children.
July 13, 2020
Informational while still being an engaging and easy read. It was a good overview of information, definitely recommended it for teachers, childcare workers, or parents/caretakers who want to brush up on child development.
November 2, 2024
A good read if you are just learning about different learning styles.
September 10, 2024
NONFICTION In our country we mistakenly expect the child to match the school when we should be matching the school to the child. ❤️
May 12, 2011
3.5 stars. I liked the main message of this book: That all children are "uneven" in that they have different talents, strengths, weaknesses, etc., and that simply chalking up their potential to nature OR nurture is damaging since both have influence over a child's learning. Unfortunately, many children are left with a "standardized" education that is a "one size fits all" model, and therefore "different learners" are often written off as "disordered."
However, there were many assertions here that were not backed up with evidence (despite the lengthy reference notes in the back of the book). I have a problem with "research" that gives me three pages of an argument (in favor of, or against something) that ultimately ends with "the effects of [fill in the blank] are not known (or have yet to be investigated), but they could potentially be BAD!"
Lots of good, in-depth information here, but probably only recommended if you are extremely interested in children's brains (and how they work and develop), or are a parent with a child who has learning differences, or perhaps a Master's student in Education.
However, there were many assertions here that were not backed up with evidence (despite the lengthy reference notes in the back of the book). I have a problem with "research" that gives me three pages of an argument (in favor of, or against something) that ultimately ends with "the effects of [fill in the blank] are not known (or have yet to be investigated), but they could potentially be BAD!"
Lots of good, in-depth information here, but probably only recommended if you are extremely interested in children's brains (and how they work and develop), or are a parent with a child who has learning differences, or perhaps a Master's student in Education.
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August 15, 2015This book caught my eyes on the library shelf because my research focus was on learning styles and learner differences when I was in academia. I want to know what has been updated since I left grad school, especially with children - I have never heard so many cases of learning disabilities in the old days.
My two kids are doing very well in school, but knowing what could be wrong will help me to catch any alarming signs before it becomes a real problem. Preventing is always easier than repairing.
My two kids are doing very well in school, but knowing what could be wrong will help me to catch any alarming signs before it becomes a real problem. Preventing is always easier than repairing.
September 2, 2013
I like all of Healy's work (especially since she takes into account the diet, family situation, media use of a child) with regards to learning differences. She gives a lot of practical recommendations and there is a lengthy discussion about brain development. This is a good book to read early - before any learning difficulties come up. Many of her recommendations are preventative measures.
May 13, 2012
This book was okay. Most of the information was basic information that I already knew. However, this is because of my educational background. For the average parent or teacher without an ESE degree this book would be more useful.
October 31, 2012
Excellent overview of learning differences and how to create an environment that helps your child's brain develop rather than assault it. Some pretty pointed studies about how misuse/overuse of media can interfere with learning.
November 1, 2015
Read for November's Parenting by the Book - Very interesting. Well researched. While it addressed learning disabilities in one chapter, it offered explanations and solutions to learning problems all students encounter, making it a great read for all parents.
March 27, 2010
Reviewed for Library Journal
October 21, 2010
a must read for all parents and educators - very easy to read and packed with information!
March 30, 2012
Excellent book. Checking out other books by the same author.
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