Blog
Cutting Through the Delusions
Many of the kids I talk to seem to be fairly delusional about school. Somehow they have gotten the notion that school should be this fun, Candyland-type of experience and when it is not, they are, well,…outraged. 13-year-old Liam offers a litany of complaints about...
My Interview With James Redford on #Dyslexia
Understanding dyslexia is challenging, primarily because of the deeply embedded mythologies that we hold, chief among them is what I call “the reversal thing.” You know, try my experiment this holiday season. With any friend or relative ask them, “Hey, Uncle George,...
Interview With James Redford – Director: “The Big Picture – Rethinking Dyslexia”
[podcast_episode episode="5349" content="player"] The Big Picture - Rethinking Dyslexia provides personal and uplifting accounts of the dyslexic experience from children, experts and iconic leaders, such as Sir Richard Branson and financier Charles Schwab. Directed by...
Turning Down the “PNQ” – Parent Nag Quotient – Part I.
If you’re a parent with kids still under your roof or you are a parent with grown children, let me ask you this. When you make comments or ask questions like the following, what kind of response do you get? "Why haven’t you started your homework?" "How come you...
“But, I Have ‘FOMO'”
Mitchell, a 16 year old boy I work with was recently found by his parents to be using their credit card, let’s just say, a bit inappropriately. In other words, he took their card without asking for permission, deciding he wanted to buy a video game to play with his...
“What’s the Ratio?”
One of the biggest challenges in this business of struggling children is deciding what’s the ratio between a legitimate disorder of some kind or another and a child's choice. For example, homework or chore avoidance is frequently explained due to a disorder not...
Part II: Gina, The Inefficient Reader
Last week we discussed Gina, a frustrated 17 year old who was not getting the results she had hoped on tests like the SATs, in spite of her putting in a great deal of effort prepping for the test (Gina, Part I). Gina had been previously evaluated by the school’s...
Gina, The Inefficient 17-Year-Old-Reader
Gina is a frustrated 17 year old junior in high school. Feeling that she’s done everything people have asked of her and more to prepare for the SAT’s, have left her frustrated with not great results. Putting in practically an hour a day studying for the SAT’s (in...
Rushing As a Style
In these more clinical times where most child behavior is ascribed to a “diagnosis” of one sort or another, we don’t often think about rushing as a style. I know…I know…in modern parlance the word “impulsive” is much more acceptable, as opposed to “rushing through...
Writing Deficits on the Rough Road (Part One) – Two Minute Tidbit Tips
In today's Two Minute Tidbit Tip, part one of his series on writing for struggling kids, Dr. Selznick focuses on writing deficits. https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=265159591580774
“A ‘Tin Ear’ for Music”
Years ago I had the privilege of being in an audience of about 500 participants listening to a lecture on learning disorders from the renowned neurologist, Dr. Martha Denckla. As Dr. Denckla noted, “It’s like these kids who are struggling with reading, spelling and...