Posts Tagged ‘learning problems’

I am very grateful to Pat Wyman for her guest article below. – Doc Meek

Pat Wyman, M.A.

Lanshan Middle School No. 2 is in an agricultural area in the southern part of Hunan province, China; Hunan province is highlighted in red on the map of China above; image from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunan ………………………………………………………………………………………

I am grateful for today’s guest article from the Winnipeg Free Press in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada:  http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/fyi/why-chinas-passing-us-84291977.html

About one-third of the students live in dorms on campus. Many of their parents work in factories in another province or their farms are too far from town to commute to school every day.

The high school students do their own laundry near a cold-water tap beside one of the dorms, using a basin and wringing their clothes by hand before hanging them up to dry.

On Saturday mornings, when classes start later and the school day is shorter, a student clean-up crew armed with straw brooms and garbage bags, pails of cold water and rags cleans the school.

Once a month, students have to take their turn, working in groups of three. They sweep the grounds and wash the windows.

They do it freely, while they talk and joke around.

“It’s our duty,” said Gina, a girl in Grade 10 who wants to join the military. When they had a freak snow storm in Lanshan two years ago, it was the military that rescued people in buses in the ditch and the military that went to help earthquake victims in Sichuan.

She wants to be a soldier so she can travel around China and help people. She’s never seen the military in the bad light of Tiananmen Square or Tibet.

The upbeat optimism of Gina and her schoolmates overshadows a lot of darkness — like when the power goes out. Or the garbage dumpster is filled to overflowing by week’s end.

Or when students fall asleep in class because they’ve stayed up all night studying.

The new boys’ dorm looks like a palace for little princes compared to the grungy, gray girls’ dorm.

In class, there’s a lot of rote learning and memorization, as opposed to creative writing and critical thinking.

And if you’re not up to speed, you get left behind.

Middle School No. 2 is for the smartest and hardest working kids in the region. The less-skilled teachers and students are at Middle School No. 1. There appears to be no place for students with disabilities or behaviour problems.

Self-discipline, hard work and proper deportment are the norm.

Teachers say it only takes one meeting with parents to correct a student’s misbehaviour.

When a Grade 10 girl got caught putting a note on a boy’s back that said “sex monster” she panicked and pleaded with her Canadian English teacher not to tell the principal.

The school doesn’t practice corporal punishment — but parents might. Getting called down to the principal’s office because your kid was acting up is a major disgrace in a culture that intensely values education.

In the last 60 years, China’s illiteracy rate has dropped to 9.1 percent from 80 per cent in 1949, according to the World Bank. The enrollment rate for primary-school children rose to 99.3 per cent from 20 per cent, and high schools and universities are booming.

We can shame China for its human rights record and feel superior, but that’s not going to stop its 1.3 billion people from getting ahead of us, educationally and economically.

The number of Canadians who earn bachelor’s degrees is below the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development average and well behind many other nations, the OECD 2009 report Education at a Glance said. Even the number of PhDs has fallen.

The Chinese have a saying “fu bu guo san dai” which means “wealth does not pass three generations.” The first generation works extremely hard, the second generation reaps the benefits. The third generation arrives — and squanders the wealth.

The forces of globalization aren’t going to give our kids a break. If we don’t equip them to compete with the hundreds of millions of kids schools like Lanshan are turning out, there may not be any wealth to squander when we’re gone.

[This is the 2nd of 2 parts; the 1st part was published in the previous post, dated Tuesday, July 27, 2010]

– Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition February 13, 2010 H1

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I am writing a book that will encourage Chinese teachers and students to involve themselves more in active learning, so that the school work they do will be more meaningful to each of them personally. I would like them to learn to love active learning, not just rote learning, so that they can enjoy life-long learning, not just factual memorizing. However, it is clear that they will teaching me about active learning too, from their example of self-discipline and hard work. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. – Doc Meek, Calgary, Alberta, CANADA, and South Jordan, Utah, USA  …………………………………………………………………………………………

Doc Meek, Wednesday, July 28, 2010, at South Jordan, Utah, USA

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J. Collins Meek, Ph.D. (Doc Meek)
“What if you are smarter than you think?”
Learning Specialist https://docmeek.com

For brain health, ensure heart health (short video):
http://www.amiraclemolecule.com/themeekteam
More on heart health http://www.themeekteam.info
Ph (801) 971-1812 (Jeannette); Fax [801] 282-6026

THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE, INC.
CANADA: P.O. Box 3105, Sherwood Park, AB T8H 2T1
TONGA: Mele Taumoepeau, P.O. Box 60, Nuku’alofa
USA: 3688 W 9800 S, #138, South Jordan, UT 84095

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Lanshan Middle School No. 2 is in an agricultural area in the southern part of Hunan province, China; Hunan province is highlighted in red on the map of China above; image from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunan …………………………………………………………………………………………

I am grateful for today’s guest article from the Winnipeg Free Press in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada:  http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/fyi/why-chinas-passing-us-84291977.html

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• E–mail
• Share This
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I am writing a book that will encourage Chinese teachers and students to involve themselves more in active learning, so that the school work they do will be more meaningful to each of them personally. I would like them to learn to love active learning, not just rote learning, so that they can enjoy life-long learning, not just factual memorizing. However, it is clear that they will teaching me about active learning too, from their example of self-discipline and hard work. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. – Doc Meek, Calgary, Alberta, CANADA, and South Jordan, Utah, USA  …………………………………………………………………………………………

Doc Meek, Tuesday, July 27,2010, at South Jordan, Utah, USA ——————-

J. Collins Meek, Ph.D. (Doc Meek)
“What if you are smarter than you think?”
Learning Specialist https://docmeek.com

For brain health, ensure heart health (short video):
http://www.amiraclemolecule.com/themeekteam
More on heart health http://www.themeekteam.info
Ph (801) 971-1812 (Jeannette); Fax [801] 282-6026

THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE, INC.
CANADA: P.O. Box 3105, Sherwood Park, AB T8H 2T1
TONGA: Mele Taumoepeau, P.O. Box 60, Nuku’alofa
USA: 3688 W 9800 S, #138, South Jordan, UT 84095

Bud’s Grade 5 class, in disguise; photo from: http://momnos.blogspot.com/ …………………………………………………………………………………………….

I am grateful for this guest article I am borrowing again today, Friday, July 23, 2010. This is Part III of a 3-Part series about Bud, a 10-year-old with learning differences.

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If you missed Part I or Part II of Bud’s Mom’s poignant story, you can click on the titles below to read them now:

Autism: “A hair-dryer kid in a toaster-brained world” (Part I of III)

Autism: “A hair-dryer kid in a toaster-brained world” (Part II of III)

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Bud, who has been labeled autistic, has been placed in a regular Grade 5 classroom. His Mom’s brilliant interactive discussion with the kids in his class (with Bud absent of course) is detailed here.

This is the best description of autism I have read anywhere

.

Thanks Mom! We are grateful for your creativity, your courage, and your willingness to share!

Excerpt from: http://momnos.blogspot.com/2010/03/on-being-hair-dryer-kid-in-toaster.html

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What is autism? (Part III of III)

{If you missed Part I or Part II of this Mom’s poignant story, you can click on the titles below to read them now}

Autism: “A hair-dryer kid in a toaster-brained world” (Part I of III)

Autism: “A hair-dryer kid in a toaster-brained world” (Part II of III)

Bud’s Mom is interacting with Bud’s classmates at school:

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“But, remember how there were some things that the hair-dryer brains could do better than the toaster brains? There are ALSO things that Bud’s brain is really GOOD at doing. There are things that HIS brain can do better than a lot of our brains can do.

“I bet you can guess what some of those things are. Can you?”

Hands flew up all over the room, and without my prompting, they recreated the list I had written in the notes in front of me.

“He’s really great on the computer. He’s better at it than LOTS of people.”

“He has great hearing.”

“He can remember lots of lots of things.”

“He can remember all the words to TV shows.”

“And he can remember the words to songs.”

“He is very musical.”

“He’s a great speller, too,” I added. “Once he learns a word, he usually remembers how to spell it.”

“If I had a brain like that,” said Nathan. “I’d read the whole dictionary and learn all the words.”

“That would be a great thing to do,” I said. “And it reminds me that Bud is also a really good reader.”

Molly raised her hand. “And he has a great sense of humor, too.”

“He does have a great sense of humor,” I said. “And that’s one of the ways that his brain is a lot like other people’s. What are some of the other ways that Bud is just like everyone else?”

Again, the hands flew up.

“He can see just like everyone else.”

“He looks just like everyone else.”

“He’s human.”

“Yes! He’s human – which means that he has all the same feelings that everyone else does. And he loves the people in his life. And he likes to play and have fun. He likes to laugh, he likes to swim, he likes to eat pizza. In lots of ways, Bud is just a regular kid.”

I looked around the room at the smiling faces of Bud’s classmates – his friends, with their toaster-brains firing.

Photos by Bud, from:  http://momnos.blogspot.com/2010/03/on-being-hair-dryer-kid-in-toaster.html

I posted a comment on this Mom’s blogsite:

Doc Meek said…

Does anybody know the tune for “A hairdryer kid in a toaster-brained world?” I predict that, like “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer,” this Mom’s “Hair-dryer kid in a toaster-brained world,” will go down in history. I’ve been helping kids mitigate learning and attentional problems for over thirty years now, and it is an axiom with me that “Mother knows best.” This Mom makes that point sharper than a surgical needle, right? – Doc Meek, Learning Consultant, May 7, 2010, Sherwood Park, Alberta, CANADA

May 07, 2010 11:38 AM

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Doc Meek, Friday, July 23, 2010, at South Jordan, Utah, USA ————————————————

J. Collins Meek, Ph.D. (Doc Meek)
“What if you are smarter than you think?”
Learning Specialist https://docmeek.com

.

For brain health, ensure heart health (short video):
http://www.amiraclemolecule.com/themeekteam
More on heart health http://www.themeekteam.info
Ph (801) 971-1812 (Jeannette); Fax [801] 282-6026

.

THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE, INC.
1. P.O. Box 3105, Sherwood Park, AB T8H 2T1, CANADA
2. Mele Taumoepeau, P.O. Box 60, Nuku’alofa, TONGA
3. 3688 W 9800 S, #138, South Jordan, UT 84095, USA

Bud’s Grade 5 class, in disguise; photo from: http://momnos.blogspot.com/ …………………………………………………………………………………………….

I am grateful for this guest article I am borrowing today, Thursday, July 22, 2010. This is Part II of a 3-Part series about Bud, a 10-year-old with learning differences.

.

If you missed Part I of Bud’s Mom’s poignant story, you can click on the title below to read it now: Autism: “A hair-dryer kid in a toaster-brained world” (Part I of III)

.

Bud, who has been labeled autistic, has been placed in a regular Grade 5 classroom. His Mom’s brilliant interactive discussion with the kids in his class (with Bud absent of course) is detailed here.

This is the best description of autism I have read anywhere

Thanks Mom! We are grateful for your creativity, your courage, and your willingness to share!

.

Excerpt from: http://momnos.blogspot.com/2010/03/on-being-hair-dryer-kid-in-toaster.html

.

What is autism? (Part II of III)

{If you missed Part I of this Mom’s poignant story, you can click on the title to read it now} Autism: “A hair-dryer kid in a toaster-brained world” (Part I of III)

Bud’s Mom is interacting with Bud’s classmates at school:

“So, in our pretend world, even though Bud has a perfectly wonderful hair dryer brain, it’s going to be hard for him, because we toaster-brained people have decided that the most important thing that people do in our world is make toast. And Bud probably can make toast with his hair dryer, right? But he is going to have to work a lot harder to make toast with his hair-dryer brain than we will with our toaster brains. It will probably take him a lot longer to make his toast. And no matter how hard he works, his hair-dryer toast will probably always look different from our toaster toast.”

The room filled with murmurs of understanding.

“But, on the other hand – think about THIS! When we toaster-brain people have wet hair? We are REALLY going to hope that Bud and his hair-dryer brain are around.”

Nathan piped in. “Because we could get ZAPPED if we tried to use our toasters!”

“Exactly,” I continued. “And the same thing is true in the real world with our real brains, that are made of tissue and neurons and grey matter and, uh…”

“And important stuff,” offered Travis.

“Yeah, and important stuff,” I said. “Because for most of us, when that important stuff gets put together, we have a certain type of brain. And we have created a society that says the most important things are the things that most of our brains are really good at – things like:

“Talking and communicating with people;

“Making friends and spending time with people;

“Doing lots of different kinds of things, having lots of different kinds of interests, and trying new things.

“Because our brains are really GOOD at those things, we try to spend most of our time doing them. But those are all things that, because of his autism, Bud’s brain has a really hard time doing.

“Language is difficult for him and he doesn’t talk the same way as other people.

“Being social and knowing how to interact with people is difficult.

“Changing his routine and trying new things is difficult.”

The classroom resonated with affirmation. Bud’s classmates knew exactly what I was talking about. They knew, without me explaining any further, what kinds of behaviors I was talking about. I could see the understanding in their faces.

Photos by Bud, from:  http://momnos.blogspot.com/2010/03/on-being-hair-dryer-kid-in-toaster.html

I posted a comment on this Mom’s blogsite:

Doc Meek said…

Does anybody know the tune for “A hairdryer kid in a toaster-brained world?” I predict that, like “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer,” this Mom’s “Hair-dryer kid in a toaster-brained world,” will go down in history. I’ve been helping kids mitigate learning and attentional problems for over thirty years now, and it is an axiom with me that “Mother knows best.” This Mom makes that point sharper than a surgical needle, right? – Doc Meek, Learning Consultant, May 7, 2010, Sherwood Park, Alberta, CANADA

May 07, 2010 11:38 AM

Blessings, Doc Meek, Thursday, July 22, 2010, at South Jordan, Utah, USA ——————————-

J. Collins Meek, Ph.D. (Doc Meek)
“What if you are smarter than you think?”
Learning Specialist https://docmeek.com

For brain health, ensure heart health (short video):
http://www.amiraclemolecule.com/themeekteam
More on heart health http://www.themeekteam.info
Ph (801) 971-1812 (Jeannette); Fax [801] 282-6026

THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE, INC.
1. P.O. Box 3105, Sherwood Park, AB T8H 2T1, CANADA
2. Mele Taumoepeau, P.O. Box 60, Nuku’alofa, TONGA
3. 3688 W 9800 S, #138, South Jordan, UT 84095, USA

Bud’s Grade 5 class, in disguise; photo from: http://momnos.blogspot.com/ …………………………………………………………………………………………….

I am grateful for this guest article I borrowed today, Wed, July 21, 2010. This is Part I of a 3-Part series about Bud, a 10-year-old with learning differences.

Bud, who has been labeled autistic, has been placed in a regular Grade 5 classroom. His Mom’s brilliant interactive discussion with the kids in his class (with Bud absent of course) is detailed here.

This is the best description of autism I have read anywhere

Thanks Mom! We are grateful for your creativity, your courage, and your willingness to share!

What is autism? (Part I of III)

Bud’s Mom is interacting with Bud’s classmates at school (with Bud absent):

“Now, we all know that your brain is a machine that’s made of tissue and neurons and nerve cells. But let’s pretend it was a more simple machine. Let’s pretend your brain wasn’t made of tissue and neurons and nerve cells, but instead, it was made of metal and plastic and electrical wires. And let’s pretend that when you put that metal and plastic and electrical wire together, it turned into a toaster.”

Here, the class laughed – the good kind of laughter. I carried on. They were with me.

“And let’s pretend that MOST of us had toaster brains. Some of us might make white toast and some wheat toast or rye toast, and some of us might make light toast and some of us dark toast. Some of us might only toast bagels, and sometimes we might even burn the toast, but for the most part, all of our brains would be able to do the same thing: make toast.

“Now, think about the pretend world that we have just created. In our world, MOST people have toaster brains. So, when we make the rules for our world and decide how we want to spend our time, what do you think we’ll decide is the MOST important thing a person can do?”

Nora raised her hand. “Always try hard and do our very best?”

“Yes!” I said. “And WHEN we do our very best, we will be doing a great job making…”

“Toast!” they responded in unison.

“Yes! Because we have brains that are really GOOD at making toast – so we will want to have a world where it’s REALLY important and REALLY valuable to make toast. Right?”

Heads nodded around the room.

“Now let’s pretend that Bud’s brain is ALSO made of metal and plastic and electrical wires, just like our brains, except that when HIS metal and plastic and electrical wires get put together, they turn into a totally different kind of machine. Instead of being a TOASTER, Bud’s metal and plastic and electrical wires turn into a HAIR DRYER.”

I swear, I heard gasps.

“Now, there’s nothing WRONG with a hair dryer, right? Hair dryers are great! There are some things that hair dryers are really good for. There are some things that a hair dryer can do even BETTER than a toaster. But it is REALLY, REALLY hard to make toast with a hair dryer.”

They laughed again, and nodded, and totally, completely got it.  …………………………………………………………………………………………

So did I!

I will publish the continuation of this welcome guest article in the next post (July 22, 2010);  this article is an excerpt from Bud’s Mom’s blogsite: http://momnos.blogspot.com/2010/03/on-being-hair-dryer-kid-in-toaster.html

I posted a comment on this Mom’s blogsite:

Doc Meek said…

Does anybody know the tune for “A hairdryer kid in a toaster-brained world?” I predict that, like “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer,” this Mom’s “Hair-dryer kid in a toaster-brained world,” will go down in history. I’ve been helping kids mitigate learning and attentional problems for over thirty years now, and it is an axiom with me that “Mother knows best.” This Mom makes that point sharper than a surgical needle, right? – Doc Meek, Learning Consultant, May 7, 2010, Sherwood Park, Alberta, CANADA

May 07, 2010 11:38 AM ………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Blessings, Doc Meek, Wed, July 21, 2010, at South Jordan, Utah, USA ——————————-

J. Collins Meek, Ph.D. (Doc Meek)
“What if you are smarter than you think?”
Learning Specialist https://docmeek.com

For brain health, ensure heart health (short video):
http://www.amiraclemolecule.com/themeekteam
More on heart health http://www.themeekteam.info
Ph (801) 971-1812 (Jeannette); Fax [801] 282-6026

THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE, INC.
1. CANADA: P.O. Box 3105, Sherwood Park, AB T8H 2T1
2. TONGA: Mele Taumoepeau, P.O. Box 60, Nuku’alofa
3. USA: 3688 W 9800 S, #138, South Jordan, UT 84095

In addition to all the things we need to learn in school and in life, one important topic may need priority attention: our ANGER!

Image from: http://fromyourdoctor.com/ext/heart_damage.gif

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Today, July 3, 2010, we are publishing the first 1/2 of a guest article by Dr. Joseph Mercola, one of the internet’s most popular sources for solid knowledge about healthy lifestyles. Entire article from: http://www.healthiertalk.com/anger-can-be-deadly-2008

First 1/2 of Our Guest Article: Anger Can Be Deadly, by Dr. Joseph Mercola

The feeling of anger, like all emotions, is not isolated in your mind. The mental reaction triggers a cascade of physical reactions that extend throughout your body, including:

• Increases in heart rate, arterial tension and testosterone
• Decreases in cortisol (the stress hormone)
• Stimulation of your left brain hemisphere, which is involved in experiencing emotions related to closeness

Interestingly, the last finding, uncovered by researchers from the University of Valencia, suggests that although anger is perceived as a negative emotion, it actually prompts you to become closer to the object of your anger, likely as a means to stop the conflict. And when it comes to anger, resolving the upset is a very wise decision.

Why Unresolved Anger Can be Deadly

Anger is a normal emotion, one that all of us experience from time to time. It’s a feeling that evokes that well-known “fight-or-flight” response, preparing us to defend ourselves physically and psychologically in a conflict. Back when anger corresponded to real threats, this response could be lifesaving, but today it pushes your body into an overdrive mode that is almost always unnecessary.

As soon as you start to get “hot under the collar,” your body starts preparing for a “fight.” Your muscles get tense, your digestive processes stop and certain brain centers are triggered, which alters your brain chemistry.

The feeling of anger may actually help you make better choices — even if you are normally not great at making rational decisions — because anger can make you focus on that which is important, and ignore things that are irrelevant to the task of making a decision.

In the long run, and sometimes even the short term, however, this automatic response to anger can weaken your immune system and lead to a variety of health problems such as:

• Headaches
• Problems with digestion
• Insomnia
• Increased anxiety
• Depression
• High blood pressure
• Skin problems, such as eczema
• Heart attack
• Stroke

Not only that, but anger can lead to other negative emotions like bitterness, hopelessness, futility and overall sadness. Let’s face it — it’s hard to have a good time if you’re holding on to anger.

Feelings of Anger Damage Your Heart

It does not feel good to be angry, and this is a clue that this emotion is also likely damaging your body on a physical level.

This is especially true of your heart, and one study from Washington State University found that people over the age of 50 who express their anger by lashing out are more likely to have calcium deposits in their coronary arteries — an indication that you’re at a high risk for a heart attack — than their mellower peers.

Letting your anger out explosively may be harmful because it triggers surges in stress hormones and injures blood vessel linings.

However, simply holding in your anger isn’t the answer either; this has been linked to increases in blood pressure and heart rate. A new study even found that suppressing your anger may triple your risk of having a heart attack.

Since it’s a given that you’re going to experience anger from time to time, it’s very important for your health to have a healthy form of release. You don’t want to lash out violently but you don’t want to hold it in either … turns out the best solution is actually somewhere in the middle.

– Dr. Joseph Mercola (“Anger can be deadly” article to be continued)

I commented on Dr. Mercola’s article: “Dr. Mercola, I am very grateful for your article, “Anger can be Deadly.” As a learning specialist with THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE, I’ve been writing about and teaching anger management for many years, and I’m glad to see that you are documenting the medical damage anger can cause. Thank you! – Doc Meek.”

Doc Meek, Saturday, July 3, 2010, at Sherwood Park, Alberta, CANADA

P.S. The second 1/2 of this guest article from Dr. Joseph Mercola is now available on THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE blog, posted Sunday, July 11, 2010. If you wish to read that second 1/2  now, just click on the this URL:  “Anger Can Be Deadly [the solutions].” – Dr. Mercola

P.S.S. For more information on how to have a healthy heart, click on the associate links in my signature block below:

Associate Links: http://www.amiraclemolecule.com/themeekteam; PROTECT YOUR HEALTHY HEART: http://www.themeekteam.info

—
J Collins Meek, PhD
Email: docmeek@gmail.com
THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE, INC.
>>> “What if you are smarter than you think?” >>>

THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE blog: https://docmeek.com
Associate Links: http://www.amiraclemolecule.com/themeekteam
PROTECT YOUR HEALTHY HEART: http://www.themeekteam.info

THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE (Dr J Collins Meek)
CANADA: PO Box 3105, Sherwood Park, AB T8H 2T1
US: 3688 W 9800 S, #138, South Jordan, UT 84095-3260
Phone: (801) 971-1812 (Jeannette); Fax : [801] 282-6026

International callers first enter the country code (+1)
and then enter the Phone and/or Fax number above
=====================================

Tuesday, June 29, 2010, Sherwood Park, Alberta, CANADA

The brain can be likened to a multiple-drawer steel filing cabinet

– PICTURES in the top drawer of the brain

– SOUNDS in the middle drawer of the brain

– FEELINGS (tactile) in the bottom drawers

– FEELINGS (emotions) in the bottom drawers

This is part (4a) article in a series of 7 articles, designed to help us work with our very own brain more easily, and to encourage our children or our students to learn how to work with their very own brains more easily.

If you missed the Introduction to this series of 7 articles, or the first 3 articles , simply click on the titles below:

(Intro) Learning to run our brain: 10 minutes daily

(1) Learning to run our own brain: Fear of failure

(2) Learning to run our brain: Vital need for HOPE . . . always

(3) Learning to run our brain: What are qualifications for the daily “brain coach?”

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The brain can be likened to a vertical multiple-drawer filing cabinet

If we want to easily retrieve a specific file folder from the filing cabinet, we have to make sure we put that specific file folder securely in the filing cabinet in the first place. 😮

OK, if my brain is a “filing cabinet,” how do I get the needed stuff . . . in and out of it . . . easily . . . every day?

Well, for one thing, we might prefer a “softer,” simpler image of the brain-as-filing-cabinet analogy. How about this approach . . . this gentler image?

Our brain can be likened to a vertical 4-drawer wooden filing cabinet; photo at: hayneedle.com

To get stuff in and out of our filing cabinet (brain) easily, we need to remember two major things:

A. Our brain is immensely complex, with extensive storage capacity

B.  Our brain–despite enormous complexity–mainly does four (4) things

So what are the four (4) simple things my brain does?

(1) Our brain brings in information

(2) Our brain moves information around, organizes it

(3) Our brain stores information

(4) Our brain brings information back out, brings information to our attention

Can be more complicated in my private practice

The problem is that each of our brains is unique, and each of us does these four (4) things in thousands, perhaps millions, of different ways. 😮

However, that is my problem really, when I am working with a particular client in my private practice. Or, more accurately, it is a joint effort, a partnership between myself and my client.

As a learning specialist, when I am working with clients to help them overcome learning problems, we need to figure out, jointly and specifically, some of those thousands of ways in which their brain is working uniquely for them.

Less complicated in regular daily life

For our everyday purposes, knowing those four (4) simple things, and learning how to manage them more easily, is straightforward. Let’s check on some simple and easy things we can do with each of these four (4) processes our brain uses all the time.

(1) Our brain brings in information

Some people call this “registration.” In other words, how do we “put in” information when we first encounter it? Sometimes this is “done for us,” by the brain’s various subsystems, if the input is dramatic enough. Most of the time, however, this registration process is very much up to each of us, individually. Our personal choice entirely. All we have to do, really, is consciously think about what we want to input securely on the “first pass,” so to speak.

The classic example of remembering names will be presented in part (b) of this fourth (4th) article.

For a colorful review of ways to improve this process of “registration,” see my previous article. Just click on the title:

The learning brain needs “uprightness” for greatest efficiency

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

So, now that we’ve looked at brain “registration” or brain “inputs,” let’s move on to the second (2nd) of the four (4) macro processes the brain uses.

(2) Our brain moves information around, organizes it

The brain is doing this all the time, especially at night, while you are sleeping. This is one of the most important functions of our brain. And this is why it is imperative that you get a decent night’s rest. A “sleep-deprived” brain is not just going to have problems with registration and memory, it will produce all manner of dysfunctions: mental, emotional, social, physical, spiritual, etc.

Get enough sleep deprivation, and your brain is sure to find dis-ease, and follow up with disease. Not funny.

More about this aspect of our brains in future articles.

(3) Our brain stores information

Again, our brains are doing this all the time, especially when we sleep. Get a good night’s rest, eh? 😮

More on this in future articles.

(4) Our brain brings information back out, brings information to our attention

Ah . . . retrieval of the information we need . . . the bane of our existence . . . especially as we grow older, eh?

This is the “relax . . . and it will come out a lot easier” game. You know this. When you are tense, anxious, depressed or stressed, information is not as readily available to the “surface,” as when you relax . . . take it easy . . .  and let the brain’s subsystems dive deeply and easily for important things. More on this in future articles.

To having a fun run at managing our brain more easily!

Doc Meek, Tues, June 29, 2010, Sherwood Park, Alberta, CANADA

P.S. Hey, my writer friend, Richard Paul Evans, just told me:

“Today is GratiTuesday!” This is the day we can express gratitude for all those things for which we are grateful. The thing for which I am most grateful — besides my wife Jeannette of course 😮 — is that I am able to feel gratitude. This has not always been so, so I am doubly grateful. 😮

—

“What if you are smarter than you think?”

https://docmeek.com

THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE, INC. 

CANADA: Dr. Meek (587) 400-4707, Edmonton, AB

TONGA: Mele Taumoepeau, P.O. Box 81, Nuku’alofa

USA: Dr. Meek (801) 738-3763, South Jordan, Utah

For optimum brain health, get optimum heart health:  

Photo from Workshop Way (TM): http://www.workshopway.org/faq_1-7.htm …………………………………………………………………………………………….

Previously I wrote about those yearning to change the world. If you wish to review those articles, click on the two titles below:

Sunday . . . a sunshine day? Maybe a family day?

“I wanted to change the world.” – Unknown Monk

Try Love instead

“Instead of  trying to change the world [or change others or change yourself] try loving the world instead.” – Sri Chinmoy.

See Chinmoy’s website for several quotations and poems about changing the world: http://www.shortpoems.org/blog/2010/03/06/quotes-to-change-the-world/

How does this relate to learning?

I listened to a lecture by a counselor. He was telling about a mother who was ready to commit suicide (literally) because she could not control her children. The same story could be told about teachers who are in despair because they cannot control their students.

This counselor urged us to recognize that it is not our job to change our children or our students.

This comes as a great surprise to most parents and teachers.

What is our job then, in relation to our children or students?

Our job is to love them.

Not necessarily with the “feeling state” kind of love, although that can be very effective. The problem with feelings as the only guide is that, in the heat of anger (brought on, say, by children or students who don’t perform, or who flout rules), feelings of love are often lost. Certainly the child or student has difficulty feeling them when our anger is boiling and our words are accusatory or mean or even just unkind.

Our job is to care about them enough to respect them, specifically and especially when they don’t deserve our respect.

Kids have pretty good “personal radar.” They know when we respect them, despite our satisfaction or lack of it in the moment.

It’s a cinch to love a kid who is performing and obedient to rules

Being loving (caring) when someone is doing what we want, or what we say, is pretty straight forward.

Being loving (caring) when someone is behaving in a manner that is not appropriate, is a real challenge.

Can it be done?

Emphatically yes. No name calling. No lecturing. No put-downs. Repeating (paraphrasing) what that person says, even if it is negative and about me! 😮  Why? Why should I do that? S/he insulted me for pete’s sake!

That is just the point. No point in me reacting to their problem (negativism, anger, whatever), which in the final analysis has nothing to do with me anyway. It is their problem. They are obviously having a bad day. Or a bad year. I am just the target at the moment.

Sometimes I have to find excuses to care about them! 😮

Grace Pilon did it. Dr. Merrill Harmin did it. Martin Luther King did it. If they can do it, I can do it. Less well perhaps. Still I can do what I can. That is all anyone can ask of me.

Or a child.

Don’t take the “bait”

If I react to the negative content of what the child/student is saying, I am acting exactly the same as they are (out of control). That means I am no better than they are! Sometimes I have to leave the room! 😮

As my Dad used to say: “What can you do? Just love them.”

That’s all we can do. They will change in their own time and in their own way.

To respect, when not deserved (that’s what I want for myself isn’t it?).

Doc Meek, Wednesday, June 23, 2010

At Sherwood Park, Alberta, CANADA; not at South Jordan, Utah, USA

I just published my first article for today (Saturday, June 12, 2010, in the morning), entitled: “Brains love movement & ‘take-a-break’ music (and maybe even a power nap?). If you wish to review that article, simple click on the title immediately below:

Brains love movement and “take-a-break” music (plus . . . maybe even a power nap?)

Someone reminded me that that is true for working brains. They do need a break from working and learning.

What about a learning brain in the very act of learning?

Herewith, my second article for today (Saturday, June 12, 2010, in the afternoon), entitled: “A learning brain learns best with color, movement, and gentle music.”

A brain that is actually in the process of learning–a learning brain–also likes movement, even while engaged in the very act of learning. Complex as the brain is, it still loves the simple things (color, movement, and gentle music), to help it learn more easily and remember better, stronger, longer.

What do you mean by color?

If you study and learn using pastel-colored paper with regular pens and pencils, or using multi-colored pens or pencils on regular white paper, you engage a part of the mind that loves color and enhances learning. Working on a blackboard at school (if it is colored green, as most are nowadays), with or without colored chalk, also stimulates the brain for most efficient learning.

Teacher Helping Student at Blackboard – bonniej; image from the following website:

http://teacher-mentorship.suite101.com/article.cfm/reflective-teaching-strategies-for-more-effective-k-8-instruction ……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

What do you mean by movement?

If you can find ways to move your body while learning or studying, you will jump ahead of the class. 😮 An example at home might be jumping on a rebounder (mini-trampoline) while memorizing something you may have found not easy to memorize before. An example from the classroom might be squeezing a small soft sponge ball in your left hand while writing with your right hand (or vice versa if you are left-handed), which engages a part of your brain that loves physical movement and will help you learn better if you move part of your body in some way. Even chewing gum is helpful, although most teachers prefer this to be done at home. 😮

What do you mean by gentle music?

Not rock. That will just make your body want to move, while nullifying your thinking brain. 😮

The learning brain loves music that is swinging low and easy, about one beat per second or 60 beats to the minute, sometimes called “baroque” music. This engages a part of the brain that amplifies learning. Hey, you zing to the head of the class.

“Uprightness” is also needed for most efficient learning

This is a good topic for a future article. [See P.S. below for future article.]

Blessings and Friendship,

Doc Meek, Saturday, June 12, 2010 (2nd post, in the afternoon)

At Sherwood Park, Alberta, CANADA; not at South Jordan, Utah, USA

P.S. Click on the title below for this future article, published Thursday, June 24, 2010:

The learning brain needs “uprightness” for greatest efficiency