Blog
Does Your Child Have W.B.D. (aka “Worksheet Burnout Disorder”)?
This week’s post was prompted by parents who brought me reading material their child had to manage in school and with homework. They were concerned that their child, young Brody, a seven-year-old second grader was starting to hate reading. "We don't understand," said...
Our Explanations & Theories of Struggling Children
While meeting with parents to discuss the concerns they have regarding their children’s struggling, numerous theories and explanations are often offered as to why children do what they do. Typically, the theories are linked to medical explanations or what I refer to...
Reaching “Decoding Nirvana” – Stage III
If your child is reaching Stage III of reading development, congratulations, you’ve reached the Promised Land!!! You’re in Decoding/Fluency Nirvana. Typically, Stage III corresponds to about the middle of third grade continuing through the upper grades, when the...
“Further Down the Road” – Stage II
Stage II of reading development is an exciting period of time, especially if the child is in this stage at the expected time - usually beginning in the second grade and ending in the middle of the third grade. In this stage your child has mastered most of the high...
Getting on the Bike: Stage I
Those of you who have read the last few posts, know that we have been talking about the Stages of Reading Development as a type of “road map” that helps you know where your child is at any given time (Getting a Roadmap). Understanding the Stages also helps with...
“Moving Down the Road: (Stage 0)”
In the previous blog post from 9/17/2 , we introduced an “old school,” but still very relevant, concept - “The Stages of Reading Development,” developed by Dr. Jeanne Chall in the 1960’s (Getting a Roadmap). Knowing the stages and what is expected typically at a...
Getting a Roadmap
When it comes to their children struggling with reading, parents could use some road maps. An “old-school” concept not discussed much anymore, but that is still quite relevant has to do with the “stages of reading development.” The stages provide a type of road map,...
Feeling the Twinge
Sometimes I can feel the twinge coming on. It usually occurs when I hear the misinformation parents are given from schools or have heard through the grapevine. Here’s a small sampling of what parents are frequently told regarding dyslexia: “Well, we really don’t know...
“My Child Doesn’t Pay Attention – Do You Think He Has ADHD?”
Practically every week I hear an array of concerns regarding distractibility and inattentiveness. There's always the question of, "Does my child have ADHD/ADD." In the discussion with parents a lot of territory is covered and I do my best to broaden the narrative...
Executive Functioning & the Goldilocks Standard
My overall mission on www.shutdownlearner.com is to present to parents in down-to-earth, understandable terms, concepts that I think have become unnecessarily complicated. “Executive Functioning” is a term I hear parents use a great deal, but when I ask them what they...
“Just Use Spell Check”
Let’s say your 12-year-old sixth grader, spells the following words: bref (brief) susess (success) edcccate (educate) resolt (result) kicten (kitchen Then he writes the following story to a picture prompt: “Once a o pon a time there was a kid that was a...