Psyched About School

This feels like a different world that we are living in recently!  Stay at home orders, distance learning, social distancing, mask wearing, etc. are different for all of us, and can be particularly challenging for young children or kids with autism. Children with autism often struggles with changes in routine, or things that are unexpected.  Social stories can help kids be prepared for things that could be different or new experiences  A social story is described by Carol Gray, creator of Social Stories, as a “social learning tool that supports that safe and meaningful exchange of information between parents, professionals and people with autism of all ages.”  More simply put, for many children, a situation that is difficult to understand can be made more clear with the help of a simple story, with pictures and told in the first person.   In a typical situation, for example, a child might need help understanding how he or she needs to behave in the cafete...

The start of a new school year seems like a great time to talk about the importance of regular attendance.  Perhaps that's why Attendance Works, a national and state initiative that promotes better policy and practice around school attendance, chose the month of September as School Attendance Awareness Month. Did you know that absenteeism in the first month of school can predict poor attendance throughout the school year?  Half the students who miss 2-4 days in September go on to miss nearly a month of school.  Absenteeism and its ill effects start early.  One in 10 kindergarten and first grade students are chronically absent.  It probably will not surprise you to learn that poor attendance can influence whether children read proficiently by the end of third grade or be held back.  By 6th grade, chronic absence becomes a leading indicator that a student will drop out of high school.  Research shows that missing 10 percent of the school year, ...

We recently came across this article on the concept of academic 'red-shirting' as it relates to Kindergarten students and, with the end of the school year fast approaching, it seemed like a good time to pass this information along to parents who may be in the process of making decisions about Kindergarten for next school year: Is Your Child Ready for Kindergarten? If you are not familiar with this concept, it refers to the idea of delaying Kindergarten enrollment with the idea that this improves overall student outcomes.  However, as the article notes, there isn't a clear research consensus on the pros or cons of this academic red-shirting practice.  The author offers the following advice for parents who are currently facing this decision: "Despite the weightiness of the decision, rest assured that a child is likely to be successful whichever path his parents choose."

It is difficult to know how to  motivate kids to be readers.  For some children, it seems that reading is easy, natural and fun.  However, for some children, it is more like having to push a large rock up a  hill repeatedly.  We know that kids need to be readers in order to be successful in school. We also know that people don't like to do activities that make them feel bad or that they just don't find interesting.  So, how do we make reading feel good for everyone?  The publishers of Reading Rockets have compiled a listing of articles to give ideas to both educators and parents.  Check it out. Ideas to build love of reading

In the recent years students have become bombarded by numerous assessments and tests at all levels. It is imperative that teachers and school personnel are able to explain to parents the meaning of the tests and test results. According to Rebecca Brown from Fast Bridge Learning parents need to understand: the purpose of the assessments, when assessments will be administered and what the test results mean. She recommends sending parents a summary of the planned assessments, reminding them of testing dates during the school year, and sharing information about how to interpret score reports. For more information on ways teachers can help parents make sense of the assessments and build better communication and parent-school partnerships follow link to the full article at the website below entitled  "Strategies for talking to parents about student assessments" By: Rachel Brown, Ph.D., NCSP. Strategies for Talking to Parents about student Assessments

Are you the parent or guardian of a child with special needs? If so, you probably know how stressful IEP meetings can be. Those meetings often involve lots of paperwork and terminology that can be confusing. This article from The Mighty suggests 10 important questions parents and guardians should ask during IEP meetings. https://themighty.com/2016/09/questions-every-parent-should-ask-at-an-iep-meeting/

Although many people know that both an IEP and a 504 plan are designed to help a child succeed in their education, fewer people are clear on the differences.  According the authors of this article, " Both Individual Educational Programs (IEPs) and 504 plans can offer formal help for K-12 students with learning and attention issues.  They're similar in some ways but quite different in others."  In this article on understood.org, the differences are clearly compared in a side by side table.  https://www.understood.org/en/school-learning/special-services/504-plan/the-difference-between-ieps-and-504-plans

Returning to school after summer break can evoke lots of emotions in kids and adults alike.  Our kids may have anxiety about starting school again, and all that experience entails.  As parents we may experience anxiety as well during this time of transition.  This article provides tips on how to make this transition from summer to school a smoother and more enjoyable one for the entire family. http://www.pbs.org/parents/education/going-to-school/back-to-school/transition/

As we enter the last few weeks of school, parents and teachers alike often want a conference to review progress as well as to develop a plan for how to support the child over the summer.  We have posted on this topic before http://schoolpsychws.blogspot.com/2015/10/having-collaborative-conversations.html  because the collaboration between home and school is critical for the success of the student. This article, written by a school psychologist for the Child Mind Institute, has practical suggestions for how to prepare and what questions to ask.  The ideas are helpful for both teachers and parents.  To read the article, visit  http://childmind.org/article/teacher-conferences-a-guide-for-parents/

Do you ever ask about their school day and get nothing?  It is so important to keep the lines of communication open, but how do you respond when they give you such a vague response? Sometimes it is just a matter of asking the right questions.  This guide from Understood provides a list of things you should keep in mind, after-school conversation starters, and key takeaways.  I love the way the list is divided into academic and social questions to try, as well as questions to avoid.  To read the article, visit  https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/understanding-childs-challenges/talking-with-your-child/how-to-say-it-questions-to-ask-your-child-about-school

There are many models that discuss the impact of students daily routines on their path to success. Since most students spend the majority of their day within the school setting, the CDC coordinated a school health approach that combines the fields of health, public health, education and school health to improving learning and health in our nations school. There has always been a link to health and learning ability. To find out more information on this initiative check out the links below! Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child WSCC fact sheet

We posted about the Screenagers Documentary last month.  If you would like the opportunity to see it, Sherwood Forest Elementary School will be showing it this Thursday night (4/21/16) at 6:30 p.m. in the gym.  Screenagers is a new documentary developed by Dr. Delaney Ruston, the mother of teenagers who has lived with the struggle over screen time herself.  "Screenagers" explores the science of how the use of devices can affect young brains.  In the documentary, one researcher cites information about how dopamine, a pleasure-producing brain chemical, may be released whenever people find or seek out new information on their devices.  Although it is wonderful how we can "google" unknown information whenever needed, what is happening to the brains of teenagers who spend an average of 6.5 hours on devices each day?  To learn more about the documentary or to watch the trailer, visit http://www.screenagersmovie.com/

It seemed like a long winter and the warmer days we've seen recently have many of us - students and educators alike - wishing we were outside enjoying the weather!  While this article on motivating reluctant learners may be helpful at any of time year, this seemed like an especially good time to pass along these ideas: 20 Strategies for Motivating Reluctant Learners The author, Kathy Perez, is a proponent of frequent "brain breaks" - which we've mentioned on this blog before - to help keep students actively engaged in the learning process.  There are lots of great ideas in Ms. Perez's article.  One activity that caught my attention was the "Snowball" brain break; I can see why the author reports that students love this one!

So, should children do chores?  There are many people who feel that children should do chores, while there are others who feel that having children complete chores is far more troublesome than it is helpful.  According to this article by CHADD, it is worth it to make the effort, both in providing parents with much needed assistance, as well as in developing responsibility/life skills in children, with and without ADHD, who will be adults someday.  According to CHADD "Are chores worth it?  Is it helpful? Ever feel it's easier just to do the household work yourself? Change your game plan! The right accommodations can help your child with ADHD to gain both skills and confidence."  Check it out! http://www.chadd.org/Membership/Attention-Magazine/Attention-Magazine-Article.aspx?id=66

When I came across this article in the Winston-Salem Journal, I had this "why didn't I think of this" moment.  During my years in this school system, I have worked with many families who wanted to be involved in their children's education but numerous obstacles stood in their way.  Thanks to an amazing idea from Javier Correa-Vega and Denise McCoy, those families will find it a little easier to support the educational needs of their children.  To find out more about this idea and how the school system hopes to implement it, visit  http://www.journalnow.com/news/local/no-ride-no-problem-renovated-bus-brings-school-to-the/article_d31ed780-da0a-5375-b765-e5703a9130a9.html

Now that my first-born child is finishing up middle school, I can hardly remember how difficult his toddler years were.  Although he was a pretty easy-going little guy, those years were still challenging as a new mom.  Since he was my first born (I still call him my "trial and error baby"), I tried to learn as much as I could ahead of each stage.  When we got to middle school, I realized there were many challenges, really big ones, I had not anticipated.  According to this article from the Arizona State University Department of Psychology, many mothers feel the same way.  The article reviews a recent study suggesting that the middle school years are actually the most difficult stage for mothers. To learn more about that study, visit  https://psychology.clas.asu.edu/content/moms-you-think-babies-are-tough-wait-until-middle-school Fortunately, many parents have forged the way for us and have wonderful advice to share.  I particularly like this article ...

Lately, it seems like many students referred for academic concerns also have chronic absenteeism.  I often feel like a broken record when I stress to caregivers how important attendance is for student motivation and learning.  Just as alarming as the high absenteeism rates is the significant number of tardies accumulated by many students.  When a child comes in late, they often miss important information and find it difficult to get back on track for the day.  This article in the Huffington Post reviews a study of kindergarten students who rode the bus in their first year of formal education.  The findings suggested that riding the bus can improve the student attendance in families of all income levels.  To read the entire article, visit http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/school-bus-study_us_56d49dc8e4b0871f60ec46c3  

It was tough returning to work and school yesterday, not only for me but also for my children. Having two weeks without homework or any scheduled afterschool activities was absolutely wonderful.  Unlike most years, we did not travel to visit family so we found ourselves with lots of time on our hands.  Although that unscheduled time initially had me a bit stressed, we quickly discovered how important it is to just be together as a family.  Did my kids plug-in to their new Christmas devices?  Sure.  Did they fight some? Absolutely!  However, we also spent time playing games together, taking walks as a family, playing outside, and eating dinner together without being rushed to get somewhere.  Until I read this article yesterday, I had not thought about the importance to this unstructured time.  Even during summers, I tend to fill up our calendars with camps and activities.  During this break, there was none of that and it was great.  This ...

A child's development is fascinating but may also be concerning for some parents and adults. Many times we question whether a behavior is normal, or we wonder about appropriate developmental milestones and whether our children are achieving them at the appropriate rate. If our children seem behind others, where do we turn? and what does it mean? These questions go through every parents mind, even if they are involved in education. The link below provides information about milestones from ages birth to 5 years, when caregivers should make referrals, and identifying disabilities in early childhood. At the end of the article there is also great resources for parents and educators, to further investigate! http://www.nasponline.org/Documents/Resources%20and%20Publications/Handouts/Families%20and%20Educators/Early_Childhood_Disabilities_and_Special_Education.pdf

The United States Department of Education has released data on graduation rates for children with disabilities.  Historically these students have not been as successful as their non-disabled peers in achieving high school graduation in four years.  While there is still more work to be done - for both disabled and non-disabled peers - this is a positive trend that we hope will continue in the coming years.  Additional information about these findings can be found at the link below: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2015/10/20/graduation-rates-rise/20889/