Invitations to read, write, spell

In much the same way a set of tiles on the fridge can quietly alleviate fraction woes, a set of Bananagrams* tiles can introduce a lightness to the realm of spelling, writing, and reading for kids who are timid about any or all.  There are many ways to use these and other letter tiles beyond [...]

Tools for writing

Let’s say I decide to build a house.  I go to my father (who built the one I grew up in) and tell him my intentions.  And he says “Good for you.  Here are the tools you’ll need,” handing me, say, a screwdriver, a hammer, and a handsaw. My face falls a bit, because I [...]

Word art

One of my favorite publishers of math materials (Key Press) has been clearing out their warehouse and in so doing reminded me of Scott Kim’s book Inversions. They’ve apparently run out of their copies, but you can get it from amazon.  Scott’s work is very cool; the inversions are word designs that flip around a [...]

Calligraphy change-up

I noticed something a few years ago in many of the kids I work with who are struggling with writing (and when I say they were struggling I mean they weren’t meeting adults’ expectations of their writing; they didn’t seem to mind so it’s maybe more accurate to say they were struggling with and not [...]

Both, and; Milo

Two either-or traditions in education – that one must identify with one discipline over another, and must choose between learning for practical reasons and learning for its “own sake” – can really undermine progress toward the secure livelihood and fulfilled life most people want for their children.   In Adam Gopnik’s recent New Yorker piece [...]

Another good typing program, this time free…

When I’m asked for recommendations for typing programs, I often send people to Ten Thumbs Typing Tutor, because I know several young people who find the Viking mascot entertaining as he traipses about giving posture instructions and such.  I’m still a fan; even typing programs (or maybe especially?) are better with humor.  Ten Thumbs is [...]

Kicking the correcting habit

I got this question recently from a young writer: “How come when I ask my parents to read something I’ve written they immediately start correcting it? I asked my mom to read a first draft and she covered it with marks.  It makes me want to stop showing her stuff.” Here’s what I told her: [...]

How do I get my child to…

How do I get my child to __________? I hear this question a lot, with varying contents filling in the blank.  For example, …hold her pencil right? …read more? …practice his violin? …keep her room clean? …spell better? In some ways these are all really different questions.  The bedroom and violin and the spelling are [...]

By hand

One of the casualties of the standardization of education and learning is the personal connection to learning and work.  I spoke recently with two families whose children struggle with writing by hand. One sits every day and makes his way through the practice, with an occasional eruption of dismay, but the result is considerably less [...]

Beauty, utility, and the 3Rs

One of the tragedies of being forced into academic study (particularly when you’re very young, and particularly if you happen to be initially drawn to pursuits that don’t occur on paper like building, climbing, or singing) is that it bypasses and undermines your opportunity to discover these things in the context of your own experience [...]