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Showing posts from June, 2015

100 Powerful Learning Specialist and Educational Therapy Materials

This week I wanted to tell you about my online store, Good Sensory Learning. I’m Dr. Erica Warren, and I established this site so I could share all the materials that I have created over the last 20+ years as a learning specialist and educational therapist. When I first began my private practice, Learning to Learn, I had great difficulty finding fun and multisensory materials for my students that were effective and engaging. So back in 2005, I made it my mission to design and distribute high-end, remedial products as well as memorable, motivating lessons that bring delight to learning. If you would like to try a free sampling of my activities , CLICK HERE . How Are the Products Organized at Good Sensory Learning? You can download my Free Printable Catalog or you can browse the site using the grey “search all products” bar in the top right of any page with keywords such as dyslexia, working memory, and executive functioning. What’s more, drop down menus in the red banner allow you t
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Fast Remedial Results for Dyslexics: Creating Mindful Language Arts Handbooks

Do your students have trouble remembering all the phonics, grammar, and spelling rules? Do you have to continually review past lessons to assure that struggling readers know the foundational skills? Do you find that one day a student has mastered a concept and the next day you have to start at square one? Having to continually review the same old stuff can be a boring chore for everyone involved. However, one of the most effective methods I have employed with my students is helping them to create their own colorful, language arts handbook. What’s more, this activity can be fun, engaging, and memorable. What Format Should be Used? I find that it is best to be flexible. Let each student select from doing his or her handbook on a computer or by hand in a photo album, blank book, binder or a notebook. What are the Secrets to Making a Student Created Handbook Work? Make this project exciting and be enthusiastic! Let each student come up with their own fun name for the
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12 Summer Activities that Nurture Cognitive and Academic Growth

Over the summer, many students experience the "summer slide" phenomenon and lose both cognitive and academic gains from the prior school year. In fact, those who are already behind can be the ones that stand to lose the most. However, this doesn't have to be the case! With as little as an hour a day, students can maintain and even improve their knowledge and abilities. So what can we do to help our young learners fight the slide and make significant gains while having fun? 12 Activities that Help Children Improve Learning and Cognition Over the Summer Design a fun learning nook with your house for your children, and have fun coming up with an imaginative name for this magical space such as Penelope's Princess Palace, Bobby's Boisterous Bungalow, Hal's Happy Hideout, Amy's Adventure-filled Attic, Ian's Imaginative Igloo... This can be created in a loft, in a tent, under an elevated bed or table etc. Use pillows, drapes, Christmas lights, stuffed
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Multisensory Teaching Accommodates the 12 Ways of Learning

Teachers are always trying to reach more learners and improve retention. One of the best ways to do this is to employ a variety of teaching methods. This involves integrating the 12 ways of learning into instruction. Here is an infographic that reviews the 12 ways of learning and provides some statistics on how learning improves when teachers implement multisensory instruction. How Can I Learn Multisensory Teaching? The Eclectic Teaching Approach unites the theories of information processing, cognitive styles, multiple intelligences, and multisensory learning to reveal 12 diverse and unique ways of processing or encoding information. All of these learning modalities lie on a continuum and individuals have preferences based on their cognitive strengths as well as their exposure to each methodology. Eclectic learning helps teachers, therapists, parents and even employers to be more mindful of their instruction and work expectations. Then, by evaluating preferences with the contai
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15 Ways to Nurture a Growth Mindset in the Classroom

How can we nurture resilient, active learners that embrace challenging academic material and become successful lifelong learners? Carol Dweck suggests that what we need to do is help students shed a fixed mindset and adopt a growth mindset. What's more, Dweck contends that developing a growth mindset will also result in less stress and a more productive and fulfilling life. What is a Fixed and Growth Mindset? In a fixed mindset, students believe that their abilities are dependent on fixed traits that can not be changed such as intellect or talent. Individuals that think this way, often cultivate a self-defeating identity, feel powerless, and many struggle with a sense of learned helplessness. In contrast, students with a growth mindset accept that abilities and aptitude can be developed with persistence and effort. As a result, these individuals are not intimidate by failure, because they realize that mistakes are a part of the learning process. They continue working hard de
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