tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80975543596853047702024-03-09T21:46:19.167-05:00The Yellin Center BlogBlog of The Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Education, a New York City clinical practice dedicated to understanding learning disabilities and learning variation through a constructive, neuroscience-based approach. Information on issues of relevance to our constituency: learning disabilities, learning variation, young adult and college learning issues, education, education reform, education technology, strategies for success, ADHD, dyslexia, attention, study habits, advocacy and more.Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.comBlogger1127125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-83570230422282566562023-08-15T11:37:00.002-04:002023-08-15T14:39:46.884-04:00 A Student’s Perspective on Seeking Help<p><i>The Yellin Center is delighted to welcome guest blogger Annabel Bayer to our blogging family. </i> </p><p></p><blockquote><br /></blockquote><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">As a young student in a classroom, you are not always aware when something is taking a
toll on your learning. You may not understand why you are struggling to comprehend material as
well as others, finish your assessments in the time given, or perform efficiently on in-class
assignments. This can lead to frustration and self-doubt, as you question what seems wrong with
you that isn’t wrong with others. Students can easily lose their confidence and motivation as
confusion and anger build in regards to schoolwork. This may have an academic impact, but also
impacts the mental health of the child in their daily life. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">As a student, I struggled with the challenges of slow processing. During my freshman
year of high school, I began to realize that I was not understanding the material in class at the
same pace as other students. In addition, I noticed that I was using all of the allotted time to
finish my tests, which usually still wasn’t enough. I began to doubt myself and my capabilities to
perform and succeed academically. I became frustrated and angry as I compared myself to others
and my grades remained below average despite so much effort. This took a toll on my mental
health as my confidence suffered. As I advanced into sophomore and junior years, these issues
and feelings persisted, leading me to lose more and more motivation.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">This frustration escalated to a point when my parents recommended that I get a
neuropsychological evaluation to help me understand and address how I learn. I had never heard
of a neuropsych, and it sounded scary, but at that point I wanted any help I could get. The
neuropsych process was fascinating and enlightening. One conclusion is that I discovered was that I
had slow processing. Having this knowledge about my brain gave me a sense of comfort; I
understood that my processing was different from other students, but not because I was any less
intelligent. Heading into my senior year, I became eligible for accommodations, permitting me to use extra time when taking tests. I performed significantly better in almost every course and my
confidence and motivation as a student grew. I felt at peace discovering how many other students
also struggle with learning differences and my confidence and motivation as a student grew. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">The neuropsych
process helped me to recognize my ability to feel in control of my own academic success, and
had such a positive impact on my mental health. In college, I continue to use my
accommodations with great success, alongside many classmates from around the country who’ve
experienced similar situations.
My parents played an important role in helping me gain back confidence and motivation
as a student. When I expressed frustration and struggles in my classes, they listened to me and
tried to understand my challenges. They encouraged and supported me, even when my grades were below average, recognizing that I was always trying my hardest. </p><p style="text-align: justify;">What mattered the most
was that they prioritized my emotional well-being, and paid attention to my feelings rather than
focusing on my grades in my classes. They sat with me, listened, tried to understand my
experience, and wanted to help. Getting a neuropsych ended up changing my academic career for
the better, and I could not have done it without the support of my parents and their validation of
my frustration.
In writing about my experience, I hope to make students and their families feel more
comfortable embarking on the neuropsych process to hopefully end any cycle of frustration and
discouragement. I want students and families to realize and accept that having a learning
difference does not mean that there is something wrong with you, and that using
accommodations like extended time is not a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of taking agency.
Accommodations can change your entire academic career for the better. Sometimes a little bit of
help can go a long way</p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjevdLoub56YnmtK_xbQLKH0QNRa382w1pc4uk79C7EVWKobQgveWBPnEmOcIU0v5IzOvIc_buZQqj-vH4a8kAU34ialkj42x-dsFUZonEVg_pslT5JI5fkRPox0irLcmCJG1cTYuSRiakWYOBw6d7Iq5xMawdGDueJc0pXA0Pu6_A_FDEHtHmNakz5czOR" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1463" data-original-width="2048" height="143" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjevdLoub56YnmtK_xbQLKH0QNRa382w1pc4uk79C7EVWKobQgveWBPnEmOcIU0v5IzOvIc_buZQqj-vH4a8kAU34ialkj42x-dsFUZonEVg_pslT5JI5fkRPox0irLcmCJG1cTYuSRiakWYOBw6d7Iq5xMawdGDueJc0pXA0Pu6_A_FDEHtHmNakz5czOR=w200-h143" width="200" /></a></div><i><div style="text-align: justify;"><i>Annabel grew up in New York City. She is currently an undergraduate at Lehigh University majoring in Psychology. </i></div></i><p></p>Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-57928970402904190452023-02-14T10:27:00.000-05:002023-02-14T10:27:00.598-05:00The Lead Domino Series: Part 3 - When Students Feel Stuck<p><i style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;">Today we conclude our three-part series by guest bloggers </i><i style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;">Brandon Slade and Katie Zak of <a href="http://untappedlearning.com/" style="color: #2288bb; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Untapped Learning</a>, who have explored how the concept of Lead Domino can help students and others move ahead when Executive Function issues complicate their progress. Check out the first two parts of their series <b><a href="http://blog.yellincenter.com/2023/01/the-lead-domino-unique-way-to-look-at.html" target="_blank">here</a> </b>and </i><i style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;"><a href="http://blog.yellincenter.com/2023/02/the-lead-domino-series-part-2-beyond.html" target="_blank"><b>here</b></a>.</i></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">We know lead dominos come in all forms. Sometimes they
take the form of a task, other times the form of an action, or even a process.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">For many of us, work or school is the driving force behind
our "overwhelm". There’s often a big project to start, a paper or proposal to
write, or a test to study for. We have to remember—the lead domino for any of
those scenarios is just the </span><i style="color: #222222;"><b>one thing</b></i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">
we can do that will give us some momentum.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">Here are some frequent scenarios our students encounter:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1in;"><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #222222; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;"><i><span lang="EN" style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;">There’s an assignment due at the end of the week and
you’re confused about the instructions. What’s the lead domino?</span></i><span lang="EN" style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;"> <b>Send an email.</b><o:p></o:p></span></li>
</ol>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in;"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">Teachers and professors want to help you
succeed. They definitely don’t want to see you fail just because you
misunderstood part of an assignment. Reach out to ask for clarification, come
into office hours, or even schedule a Zoom call if that would expedite the
process and be more convenient. (Side note: make sure the clarifications around
the instructions are documented somewhere, like in a notebook or on a Google
Doc—you don’t want to have to email them a few hours later to ask again.)
Asking clarification questions can save you from HOURS of work wasted on
guessing. Not emailing, on the other hand, could cost hours of your future time
as you redo the assignment, or the cost could be the hit your grade will take
due to the points deducted. By sending this email, you’re also showing the
instructor that you care about their class and your academic success overall,
helping to establish a positive student/teacher relationship.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div> </div><div><span style="color: #222222;"> </span><br />
<ol start="2" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #222222; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;">You have a test coming up and you need to focus and
study. What’s the lead domino? </span></i><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Create
a clear workspace</span></b><span lang="EN" style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;">.<o:p></o:p></span></li>
</ol>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">Notebooks, textbooks, flashcards,
slideshows on your laptop—you have so many materials to sift through when
preparing for an exam. They may all be helpful and necessary, but you know
what’s not necessary? Yesterday’s half-full cup of coffee, the balled-up, dirty
workout clothes on your chair, and pieces of an unfinished art project strewn
across your desk. There’s no room for the materials you need, so take a minute
to clean your space before you jump into studying. This will save you from
wasting time searching for missing flashcards in the midst of scrapbook paper,
or frantically cleaning up cold coffee when it inevitably spills on your notes.
Take a minute to set yourself up in a clean environment, void of distractions.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<ol start="3" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: #222222; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;">Tasks are piling up, but you’re just spinning your
wheels. Where do you start? What’s the lead domino?</span></i><span lang="EN" style="background: white; mso-highlight: white;"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Write everything down.</b><o:p></o:p></span></li>
</ol>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">It’s hard to prioritize effectively if
you’re not looking at a full list of the things you have to accomplish. If you
have limited time to complete a number of tasks, you can’t always dive in
blindly and hope for the best. Write down every task, assignment, or action
that needs to be done. Once it’s all written down, you have a clearer idea of
what things already have fixed times (class at 12:30, soccer practice at 4),
providing structure to build around. At that point, you have everything you
need to map out a realistic plan!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">Planning is the first thing we do at Untapped when we sit
down with students. We take every assignment, test date, dentist appointment,
and violin lesson of the week and assign them to the appropriate days. If we
don’t write down a test date, we might forget to account for study time in the
days leading up to the test. If we don’t write down a violin lesson, we could
incorrectly assume the number of hours available to do homework that night.
Creating a plan is one of the best lead dominos, on both micro and macro
levels, when you find yourself needing to get started. Whether you’re looking
at your week as a whole, or you just can’t bring yourself to get to work on a
specific project, take a moment to make a plan and organize your thoughts.</span><span lang="EN"><o:p></o:p></span></p><br /><p></p><p></p></div>Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-62274030417360906392023-02-06T09:11:00.001-05:002023-02-06T09:11:25.848-05:00The Lead Domino Series: Part 2 - Beyond Academics<p> <i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;">We are pleased to share the second part of a three-part series by a new team of guest bloggers, Brandon Slade and Katie Zak of <a href="http://untappedlearning.com/" style="color: #2288bb; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Untapped Learning,</a> whose <a href="http://blog.yellincenter.com/2023/01/the-lead-domino-unique-way-to-look-at.html" target="_blank">first post for The Yellin Center Blog</a> explained the concept of the Lead Domino as a way to look at Executive Functioning.</i></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">When we talk about the lead domino with our students, it’s
often in the context of school.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;"><o:p> </o:p></span><i><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222; mso-highlight: white;">If you can
finish the missed homework assignment in math from Monday, you’ll have a
better, more complete understanding of that section, then you’ll be able to
finish your review packet, which will set you up for focused studying material
for the chapter test next week…</span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">However, we sometimes face situations where our lead domino is
something outside of academics or work; it’s actually just a small change we
could implement in our everyday lives that would make things run more smoothly.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjWPc45JtizdBBOw_Ai5DyZxBHN7O4gLdkjZ6CXqAs9IxeEdABSDDqHpb9-QMTMdihMAAsFVzJbfAXTnYTc7scPNJRUUecyZVfwM4fbduuqwZEdnUKLul8drHsx35nSnNWBMI9mGbGGjl3tdB-bC7kc5nBUKAZ560ZfRiLhGvfaoX4XjAb3w_eIDu25Q/s2876/blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2876" data-original-width="2533" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjWPc45JtizdBBOw_Ai5DyZxBHN7O4gLdkjZ6CXqAs9IxeEdABSDDqHpb9-QMTMdihMAAsFVzJbfAXTnYTc7scPNJRUUecyZVfwM4fbduuqwZEdnUKLul8drHsx35nSnNWBMI9mGbGGjl3tdB-bC7kc5nBUKAZ560ZfRiLhGvfaoX4XjAb3w_eIDu25Q/s320/blog.jpg" width="282" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">One of our favorite lead domino examples to help people
start their day off on the right foot is the </span><u style="background-color: transparent;"><span lang="EN" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #1155cc;"><a href="https://untappedlearning.com/parent-resources/launching-pad/"><span style="color: #1155cc;">landing/launching pad</span></a></span></u><span lang="EN" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">. For adults, the
landing pad is where we drop our wallet, keys, and sunglasses as soon as we
walk in the door. When we leave, it becomes our launching pad. Because we’re
taking the step to place our necessities in the same spot every time we come
home, we aren’t scrambling the next time we head out the door. Everything is
right where we left it, every time. We can simply scoop up those essentials and
leave on time. For students, a launching pad can be an organized backpack
sitting by the front door each morning. At night, if you and your student can
take the time to pack their laptop, chargers, pencils, all binders, etc., and
even make lunch before heading to bed, you can prevent the majority of
conflicts that usually take over your mornings.</span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;">Another lead domino that can positively affect our day is
exercise—we know that exercise is the miracle drug. Exercising helps us
activate neurotransmitters like serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine. When
we find ourselves stuck, unmotivated, or overloaded, getting up to go for a
20-minute walk can change the trajectory of our whole day and our productivity.
This exercise increases blood flow to the brain, triggers those
neurotransmitters, and helps us concentrate. When we return to our to-do list,
workload, or whatever it is that’s overwhelming us, we’ll find that our focus
has improved significantly thanks to that exercise and its impact on our brain.
When students are stuck on a homework assignment and have been sitting in front
of a computer for too long, the action they need to take is entirely
non-academic; they just need to get up and move.</span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222;">One of the most important, and hardest, lead dominos that
sets us up for success, is sleep. Sleep can dictate almost every aspect of our
lives: focus, mood, energy level, etc. It has the power to positively or
negatively define a day, or even a week. However, getting more sleep is never a
quick fix. Behind better sleep is a </span><u><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #1155cc; mso-highlight: white;"><a href="https://untappedlearning.com/parent-resources/back-to-basics-routines/"><span style="color: #1155cc;">routine</span></a></span></u><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222;"> that must be
developed and maintained.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN" style="background: white; color: #222222;">The lead domino can be, but does not always need to be, an
action or a task that defines your whole day. It may simply be a choice that
can help you move forward in a small series of events, and you probably have a
few lead dominos that you could choose from that would all result in the same
outcome—</span><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222;">you just have to get
started. Common examples of this include: jumping in the shower, making a cup
of coffee, or choosing to face the one task you’ve been putting off that’s
hanging over your head. All of these actions can help you move forward in a
small way, but that little bit of momentum can make it easier to tackle the
rest of your day. Two hold-ups we see, in both adults and in adolescents, are:
struggling to follow-through with the lead domino, and getting caught between
two actions and not being able to decide the best way to move forward.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #222222;">For example: You’re
trying to brush your teeth and get out the door to go grocery shopping. As
you’re putting toothpaste on your toothbrush, you realize you have a load of
clean laundry that needs to be moved from the washer to the dryer. So you put
down your toothbrush to go flip the laundry, but on your way to the basement
you stop to pick up and put away shoes that were a tripping hazard. As you’re
putting them away, you notice some empty mugs on the coffee table, which
reminds you that you haven’t had a single sip of water all morning. You pause
for a minute to go grab and drink a nice, big glass of water. As you set the
glass down, you remember the laundry, but you also remember that your
toothbrush is sitting on the bathroom sink, locked and loaded for you to brush
your teeth. What’s your next move?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #222222;">Brush your teeth, flip
the laundry—you just need to decide. Committing to that decision and moving
forward will help propel you to achieve your original goal: getting out the
door and making it to the grocery store.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222;">Does this series of events sound familiar?</span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #222222;">As parents, educators,
or just trusted adults, we can get </span><span style="background: white; color: #222222;">so focused on helping students succeed that we forget that everything we
relay to our students also applies to us. We’re not above facing those daily
challenges, they just typically don’t come to us in the form of math
assignments. When we can apply our own advice to ourselves, we model real-world
efforts and accomplishments for our students, showing them the effectiveness of
our lead dominos outside of school.</span></p><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;"></i><p></p>Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-9295338614509203722023-01-30T09:39:00.001-05:002023-01-30T09:39:33.267-05:00The Lead Domino: A Unique Way to Look at Executive Functioning<p><i>We are pleased to welcome a new team of guest bloggers, Brandon Slade and Katie Zak of <a href="http://untappedlearning.com" target="_blank">Untapped Learning,</a> who today begin a three-part series, introducing a new way to look at Executive Functioning.</i></p><p><b><u>Introduction</u></b></p><p>Some days, we feel stuck. Maybe we have a clear to-do list with reasonable tasks, maybe we
have a full page of high-priority items. In both scenarios, we can feel overwhelmed and find
ourselves spinning our wheels. Why can’t we just pick something from the list and get to work?
In these moments, we debate if we should choose the easiest tasks just so we can knock them
out quickly, or if we should start a harder, longer task that’s the source of some tangible anxiety.
Instead of getting caught between these two options, we have a third: Find the lead domino. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG9ku-H5V8c6wsptHxxl_gvmPzxgv91-u9TZDcLCxz-ISZFOWERCwcPrljazizYEVdxKq7I9NzsLpUvS-J2MpUU08sRShoDAYRi3ZctjGusLnO-I8vTPs8vNPr7PWIwUFg1zY3kxZPXT7U9gOUcKO3gsLgD1R0O_6DqdYSvnALrapLMx_fC7moMI1ZRw/s3711/closeup-wooden-dominoes-falling-white-surface.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1915" data-original-width="3711" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG9ku-H5V8c6wsptHxxl_gvmPzxgv91-u9TZDcLCxz-ISZFOWERCwcPrljazizYEVdxKq7I9NzsLpUvS-J2MpUU08sRShoDAYRi3ZctjGusLnO-I8vTPs8vNPr7PWIwUFg1zY3kxZPXT7U9gOUcKO3gsLgD1R0O_6DqdYSvnALrapLMx_fC7moMI1ZRw/s320/closeup-wooden-dominoes-falling-white-surface.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><b><u>Part 1: Identifying the Lead Domino</u></b> </p><p>Take a step back. Look at your list. Maybe even look beyond your list. What one thing could you
do that might positively impact the rest of your day? Maybe it’s not a work or school task, maybe
it’s just jumping in the shower. Maybe it’s pausing to really prioritize your to-do list. Maybe it’s
committing to not checking your phone, email, or other distractions that can pull your attention,
until the task with the closest deadline is complete. Regardless of what your specific “lead
domino” is, it has the power to positively impact your day. By knocking it down, you’ve opened
yourself up to a strategy and system that can more easily carry you through the rest of your
responsibilities. One domino knocks over the next, and the next, and the momentum is
perpetuated in a chain reaction.</p><p>If you begin with a “lead domino” task, you can build the momentum needed to cross off the rest
of your list items more easily—even if they are exponentially larger. Often, by achieving one key
task on the list, the rest of the tasks will be significantly easier. </p><p>If you set up 13 dominos in a row, each domino one and a half times bigger than the one before,
the first domino could be five millimeters tall and the last domino could be more than one meter
tall and weigh 100 pounds. If you knock the first domino over, after just 13 “reactions,” the
largest domino would topple over easily. We can apply this idea to our lists. The “lead domino”
task is like the five millimeter domino; if you get this one accomplished, toppling the 100 pound
domino at the end will be much easier than trying to push over the heaviest domino first.
How can we identify the lead domino? </p><p>● Slow down: This may feel counterintuitive when the goal is to accomplish your long to-do
list, but by slowing down and taking the time to examine which tasks will help achieve
other tasks, you will make your systems more efficient. Taking the time to identify the
lead domino allows us to re-evaluate priorities, reorganize your list, and maximize
efficiency. </p><p>● Ask yourself: How do these tasks relate to one another? How can you shift the order of
your tasks to best maintain your momentum? </p><p>● Make a new list: Based on the information you’ve observed, make a fresh list. For
example: As a busy college student, creating an email template will help you cross off
the three emails that you need to send to professors, allowing you to figure out what
your missing assignments are, which then will let you get to work on those assignments.
All of those tasks are grouped together and they depend on tipping over that lead
domino: creating the email template. </p><p>Completing your lead domino may take awhile and be more tedious than you’d like, but by
tackling this task first, the other tasks will be easier to complete going forward. Your lead domino
could be anything from outlining a paper to going to the gym for a workout! Both of these
activities are examples of lead dominos that give you the momentum to get your work (or your
day!) started.</p><p><br /></p><p><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">image by <a href="<a href="https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/closeup-wooden-dominoes-falling-white-surface_15671221.htm#query=dominoes%20falling&position=1&from_view=search&track=sph">Image by wirestock</a> on Freepik" target="_blank">wirestock on Freepik</a></span></i></p><p><br /></p>Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-25485921957111073092022-10-18T14:19:00.000-04:002022-10-18T14:19:53.809-04:00It's FAFSA Season - And We Have a Guide to Recommend<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /><div style="text-align: left;">The Free Application for Federal Student Aid -- FAFSA -- is the universally used form for obtaining federal and other sources of student aid for college. These can include scholarships, loans, and work-study jobs. The FAFSA application is used by colleges as well as the federal and state governments -- and the new form became available on October 1st.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaJv4ZWvnWxwg8mJG37ThTJ_CQ4cAjayfUNC7bNvep3bdTJwHOKmpd4Kg7aaoJgNPQHVf6jJPV9A7CKDTUQ0Ph2jumAg5MW1uGn2j991gxphzMAQ65TVvw3mxg2k2keXV_VXC1GwETTNFsUd3wHH9oXDT5xKcvwNmKSbZNxFyDRjLw36GbIDZMex4SXA/s255/download.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="255" data-original-width="197" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaJv4ZWvnWxwg8mJG37ThTJ_CQ4cAjayfUNC7bNvep3bdTJwHOKmpd4Kg7aaoJgNPQHVf6jJPV9A7CKDTUQ0Ph2jumAg5MW1uGn2j991gxphzMAQ65TVvw3mxg2k2keXV_VXC1GwETTNFsUd3wHH9oXDT5xKcvwNmKSbZNxFyDRjLw36GbIDZMex4SXA/s1600/download.png" width="197" /></a></div><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: left;">One very useful resource for those dealing with the FAFSA form for the first time -- and for those who have tackled it before -- is the book </span><a href="https://insideschools.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a6170fa466dd7c8eed0aab6be&id=6612b3f117&e=f88e929fd8" style="text-align: left;">FAFSA: The How-To Guide for High School Students (And the Adults Who Help Them)</a><span style="text-align: left;">. The book is available in </span><a href="https://insideschools.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a6170fa466dd7c8eed0aab6be&id=b87f858c72&e=f88e929fd8" style="text-align: left;">ten languages</a><span style="text-align: left;">. -- from Arabic and Bengali to Urdu, and plenty in between. This guide is downloadable for free and has a highly accessible approach that deals with a wide array of questions that students and parents may have. It is written by college professionals and comes from </span><a href="https://insideschools.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a6170fa466dd7c8eed0aab6be&id=cbb7f5a6c0&e=f88e929fd8" style="text-align: left;">UnderstandingFAFSA.org</a><span style="text-align: left;">, which is a partner of the well regarded InsideSchools.org, which we have long used as a resource for information about NYC Public Schools. Both organizations operate under the nonprofit umbrella of </span><a href="http://www.centernyc.org/about" style="text-align: left;">The Center for New York City Affairs</a><span style="text-align: left;">.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoNormalTable" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 0px;"><tbody><tr><td style="padding: 0in 0in 0in 0in; width: 6.25in;" valign="top" width="600"><div style="text-align: center;"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoNormalTable" style="border-collapse: collapse; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 0in 0in; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; width: 100%px;"><tbody><tr><td id="templateHeader" style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; background-position-x: 50%; background-position-y: 50%; background-size: cover; background: cover; background: white; padding: 6.75pt 0in 0in 0in;" valign="top"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoNormalTable" style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; min-width: 100%; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 0in 0in; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; width: 100%px;"><tbody><tr><td style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; min-width: 100%; padding: 6.75pt 0in 0in 0in;" valign="top"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoNormalTable" style="border-collapse: collapse; margin-left: -2.25pt; margin-right: -2.25pt; text-size-adjust: 100%; width: 100%px;"><tbody><tr><td style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; max-width: 100%; min-width: 100%; padding: 0in 0in 0in 0in; width: 6.25in;" valign="top" width="600"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoNormalTable" style="border-collapse: collapse; text-align: left; text-size-adjust: 100%; width: 100%px; word-break: break-word;"><tbody><tr><td style="padding: 0in 13.5pt 6.75pt 13.5pt;" valign="top"><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"><strong><span style="color: #202020; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 150%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></strong></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center;"></p></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr><tr><td id="templateBody" style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; background-position-x: 50%; background-position-y: 50%; background-size: cover; background: cover; background: white; padding: 6.75pt 0in 0in 0in;" valign="top">
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<!-- // END TEMPLATE -->Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-45355265134424705022022-08-16T15:11:00.000-04:002022-08-16T15:11:07.893-04:00What Does a Speech-Language Therapist Do?<p><i></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><i>We are delighted to welcome a guest blogger, <a href="https://brooklynletters.com/craig-selinger-speech-language-therapist/">Craig Selinger</a>, M.S. CCC-SLP, Speech Language Pathologist, who will share important information about speech-language therapy. Craig has </i><i>nearly 20 years of experience in the field and is presently CEO and Founder of <a href="https://brooklynletters.com/">Brooklyn Letters,</a> serving NYC metro area families with at-home in-person 1:1 specialized services.</i></i></div><p></p><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBwd7YX5ln2II1bPEUQle05xUuOTvtmzUAqZHP9U1Z5yMkgIjhVCHlIuI5jfsRJaLhDqd6GcpcLotgK9_OJCiY9YPmp-C-HAWNJxXiUYoHz0xVu6gGgxjoy-eDVwz3hOUPPpmHCRpSP1JCMZlm2KwtlhoyQn8r8aLug-sNFHCJuOCDi9VNn0aICw2kxg/s200/download.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBwd7YX5ln2II1bPEUQle05xUuOTvtmzUAqZHP9U1Z5yMkgIjhVCHlIuI5jfsRJaLhDqd6GcpcLotgK9_OJCiY9YPmp-C-HAWNJxXiUYoHz0xVu6gGgxjoy-eDVwz3hOUPPpmHCRpSP1JCMZlm2KwtlhoyQn8r8aLug-sNFHCJuOCDi9VNn0aICw2kxg/s1600/download.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />A speech-language therapist (SLT), speech-language pathologist (SLP), or simply language therapist is someone who specializes in human communication and how it impacts individuals at school, home, and work. It is a licensed field governed by the state. To become a <a href="https://www.usa.edu/blog/how-to-become-a-speech-pathologist/">licensed SLP,</a> one must complete a masters in Communicative Disorders, pass a national examination, and complete a Clinical Fellowship Year. Many people don’t realize the breadth and scope of what SLPs do. Some SLPs are also trained in <a href="https://www.momtastic.com/parenting/781817-top-tips-for-raising-bilingual-children/">bilingualism</a> and multilingualism. A speech-language therapist’s main responsibility is to prevent, assess, diagnose, and treat speech, language, cognitive-communication, social communication as well as voice and swallowing disorders. <br /><br /><a href="https://brooklynletters.com/what-is-a-speech-language-therapist/">Speech-language therapy</a> involves evaluation, assessment, and treatment of communication and speech and language disorders in young children, school age students, including working with <a href="https://brooklynletters.com/speech-language-therapy-for-teens/">teenagers,</a> and adults. Speech language disorders may begin during infancy and progress into adulthood. In other instances, certain impairments may have resulted from a sudden injury or illness. <br /><br /><b><br /></b><div><b>WHAT ARE SPEECH DISORDERS?</b><br /><br />A speech disorder is characterized by difficulties with speech production, including articulation and enunciation. These include:<br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Articulation disorders - Difficulties producing the correct sounds, such as consonants or vowels, in the beginning, middle, or end of words.</li><li>Phonological disorders - Refers to systematic speech production error. A common example of this in children is the dropping of the /p/ sound at the beginning of words or substituting sounds, like /w/ for /r/.</li></ul><br />On the other hand, communication disorders, which are not considered speech disorders, include:<br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Fluency disorders also referred to as <a href="https://brooklynletters.com/fluency-stuttering-therapy/">stuttering</a>: These difficulties include partial-word repetitions (“t-t-two”) in which the flow of speech is interrupted by unusual stops, prolonging syllables and sounds (s-s-s-s-shape), and sometimes<a href="https://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/stuttering/#:~:text=They%20may%20repeat%20parts%20of,how%20you%20talk%20to%20others."> blocks. </a></li><li>Voice resonance disorders: Problems with <a href="https://brooklynletters.com/voice-therapy/">voice </a>resonance make it challenging for someone to be understood by listeners. These involve difficulties with pitch, volume, or quality of the voice.</li></ul><b><br />WHAT ARE LANGUAGE DISORDERS?</b><br /><br />A language disorder refers to difficulties or problems in understanding spoken language compared to peers. It also involves trouble with putting words or sentences together to communicate ideas. A language disorder can impact individuals at various levels such as slow acquisition of grammar, word-finding difficulties, and telling less coherent narratives.<br /><br />Language disorders involve vocabulary, grammar (verbs and sentence construction), and social language use. They are classified as:<br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><a href="https://brooklynletters.com/expressive-language-disorder/">Expressive language disorder</a> – Refers to difficulties with finding the right words and using age-appropriate grammar when speaking with others or expressing oneself compared to peers. It can also include children who produce less robust narratives, have reduced vocabulary, and demonstrate difficulties with social language. </li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Mixed expressive-<a href="https://brooklynletters.com/receptive-language-delay-disorder/">receptive disorder</a> – A combination of expressive and receptive language disorders characterized by difficulties in listening, understanding, and expression. Someone with a mixed expressive-receptive disorder will typically have trouble, compared to peers, following directions, listening to stories, and understanding sequential information.</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Cognitive communication disorders – These are difficulties in communication skills that involve attention, memory, perception, regulation, organization, and problem-solving.</li></ul><b><div><b><br /></b></div>WHAT ARE DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES?</b><br /><br />Someone with a developmental disability is born with it and it is hopefully discovered in early childhood development. Developmental disorders become more apparent when a child has a significant delay compared to peers and doesn’t seem to outgrow it. Some of the most common developmental disabilities are:<br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><a href="https://brooklynletters.com/speech-language-therapy-autism-spectrum-disorder/">Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) </a>– A neurodevelopmental disorder that affects social communication and interaction and involves restricted and repetitive behaviors. People with autism will often have trouble with joint attention, responding to social situations, and using verbal and nonverbal communication compared to peers. </li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><a href="https://thembatutors.com/attention-deficit-ADD-ADHD-hyperactive-coaches-tutors/">Attention-deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)</a> – A neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by lack of attention, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness, ADHD is diagnosed in childhood but also occurs in adults. ADHD interferes with how a student regulates their attention in a variety of settings.</li></ul><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>WHAT DOES A SPEECH-LANGUAGE THERAPIST DO?</b><br /><br />A speech-language therapist provides speech-language therapy to individuals of all ages, from babies to adults. They conduct therapy sessions on a one-on-one basis as well as provide information to families, support groups, and the public.<br /><br />A speech-language pathologist is equipped and licensed to perform a variety of therapies or treatments to address a patient’s difficulties. These include:<br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Language Intervention Practices: For younger patients, the SLP uses play, casual conversation, illustrations (such as pictures, books, objects), or on-going events to stimulate language development. A speech language therapist will teach and model the proper use of grammar and vocabulary and use repetition exercises to build up language skills. These interventions are targeted at students who struggle with their<a href="https://brooklynletters.com/developmental-language-disorder-therapy/"> language skills.</a></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Literacy: SLPs help students with all aspects of literacy: reading <a href="https://brooklynletters.com/reading-listening-comprehension-tutoring/">comprehension</a>, decoding, spelling, and <a href="https://brooklynletters.com/writing-speaking-therapy-tutoring/">writing</a> skills. Many students who need help with their reading comprehension and writing skills also receive <a href="https://brooklynletters.com/what-is-executive-functioning/">executive function</a> support from their SLPs as well. </li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Articulation Treatment: <a href="https://brooklynletters.com/what-is-speech-therapy-pronunciation-enunciation-articulation/">Articulation </a>or sound production exercises involve having the therapist teach and model the correct sounds in sounds, syllables and words during play activities. The level of conditioning and exercises is individualized, age-appropriate, and targeted.</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Swallowing and <a href="https://brooklynletters.com/feeding-evaluation-therapy/">Feeding Therapy</a>: The SLP teaches how to use the lips, tongue, and jaw to handle food and liquids. The SLP can also introduce different food textures and temperatures to extend a child’s oral awareness during eating and swallowing. </li></ul><b><div><b><br /></b></div>WHO NEEDS SPEECH-LANGUAGE THERAPY?</b><br /><br />An individual with the following conditions may consider speech language therapy:<br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Learning difficulties</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Difficulties with producing age-appropriate vocabulary, sentences, stories, social language use.</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Difficulties with understanding age-appropriate vocabulary, directions, understanding stories, misinterpreting social language cues. </li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Students who struggle with reading comprehension and their expressive writing skills. </li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Articulation issues</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Cleft lip or cleft palate</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Fluency e.g. stuttering</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Cognitive (intellectual, thinking) or other developmental delays</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Autism</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Hearing impairments</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Traumatic brain injury</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Feeding and swallowing disorders</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Respiratory problems (breathing disorders)</li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Chronic hoarseness (voice)</li></ul>And more! <br /><br />Many students with speech language disorders also demonstrate co-morbity with other disorder, such as <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4260529/">ADHD. </a><br /><br />Therapy should begin as soon as possible. Children who receive speech language therapy early on (before five years old) demonstrate more progress or results than those who begin therapy at a later stage.</div><div> <br /><b><br /></b></div><div><b>HOW CAN PARENTS HELP?</b><br /><br />Parents and family members play a vital role in the success of a child’s speech or language therapy. When parents are actively involved, children will progress more than when parents are less involved in speech language therapy. <br /><br />With the SLP’s guidance, parents can further support their children by doing exercises and activities at home. Finally, it’s essential for parents and household members to understand that overcoming speech and language disorders will take time, effort, and patience. Many students with language disorders will struggle with language throughout their lifespan but language therapy will offer strategies to help overcome these language challenges. <br /><br />Finally, parents who are concerned about their child’s speech, language, and communication development can seek the help of a speech-language therapist.<br /><br /> To learn more about speech language therapy, contact the American Speech Language Association (<a href="https://www.asha.org/">ASHA)</a> for more information. You can also contact your insurance for in-network and out-of-network options as well. Each state also offers free Early Intervention services (birth-3 years of age). For children three and older, find out about free services can be provided through your child's school for children who have IEP's or Section 504 Plans. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div>Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-46180138188804288752022-04-24T11:18:00.000-04:002022-04-24T11:18:24.095-04:00Letting Students Struggle May be the Key to Academic Success<p> A piece earlier this month in <i><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/05/science/education-learning-challenge.html?searchResultPosition=1" target="_blank">The New York Times</a> </i>looking at research in how to maximize learning after the disruption of the pandemic examined the work of several educators -- and led to an interesting conclusion.</p><p>When students, especially students with learning challenges or those for whom teachers may have had historically low expectations, are not challenged, they do not get the depth of understanding that they would gain from strugging to master material. The article describes a number of ways of thinking about the process of struggling to learn material that can result in deeper learning and more complete understanding. </p><p>Some educators use the metaphor of a "learning pit", a place where students can visualize the fact that they need to ask for help, work on the material, and through serious effort eventually "climb out" of the learning pit to a place of understanding. This process encourages students to become "comfortable with being uncomfortable". Another metaphor that has been used when students are encouraged to work through their discomfort with not understanding a lesson or subject is that of learning to ride a bicycle. If a teacher holds firmly to the back of the bicycle while the student is learning to ride, the student avoids the "cognitive wobble" that requires them to think more deeply. </p><p>Dr. Manu Kapur, an educational psychologist whose meta-analysis of studies looked at how students learn best, found that simply teaching a topic was not the most effective method for achieving student mastery. Instead, students who had to struggle to solve problems before being taught precisely how to solve them learned better than when they were first taught a concept and then given a chance to practice it. </p><p>For this "productive failure" approach to work most effectively, students should work collectively and should know that the goal of the lesson isn't to get to a specific correct answer. In addition, the problems presented should be difficult but not impossible and should have a number of possible solutions.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8oNkyCrPPXMmVwHJD3Lejqy0sJJNWaOg7py-bFcZIkrniMgjgbSs9lK6q2JsRKR9S5Rwuk-pia9v2xZNhzRaaEuI35i0rzhudXB_z_tz1k1q5BVhUAqT1iicI_tCucJlZVW9kvF1ytnuvXjTqMGoLk7GRtvWRW_SqlVXGglwTB3is26skAIOeAvNlZg/s2308/shutterstock_4479652-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1802" data-original-width="2308" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8oNkyCrPPXMmVwHJD3Lejqy0sJJNWaOg7py-bFcZIkrniMgjgbSs9lK6q2JsRKR9S5Rwuk-pia9v2xZNhzRaaEuI35i0rzhudXB_z_tz1k1q5BVhUAqT1iicI_tCucJlZVW9kvF1ytnuvXjTqMGoLk7GRtvWRW_SqlVXGglwTB3is26skAIOeAvNlZg/s320/shutterstock_4479652-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /> All of the educators mentioned in the <i>Times</i> discussion noted that when work is too simple, and students do not have to struggle to understand and master material, they do not have the opportunity to deepen their learning. Especially now, when many students have been derailed by pandemic learning loss, it is important to make them aware that working hard, seeking help from their teachers and fellow students, and being comfortable with being uncomfortable can all contribute to better, deeper learning. <p></p>Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-32283058220207030572022-01-14T14:28:00.005-05:002022-01-14T14:28:32.109-05:00Using visual routines to help toddlers learn new daily life skills<h2 dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;"><b>Former Yellin Center Learning Specialist Renée Jordan is back today with more tips from her work with younger children .</b></i></h2><br />Kids have so many routines to learn in the early years. Whether it is potty training, washing their hands or getting out the door in the morning, there is a stepwise process that they need to learn. However, the <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/childdevelopment/positiveparenting/toddlers2.html" target="_blank">CDC</a>, in looking at developmental milestones by the age of two, notes that two or three-step directions are all that most kids that age can hold onto. But most of these routines require kids to master way more steps than that. Kids simply don’t have the active working memory to navigate these routines yet, which often results in tantrums and resistance. <br /><br />One way to help these pre-reader aged kids learn these routines, and stay on track during the process, is to use a visual routine. Each step is represented by a visual so they don’t need to be able to read the word. As they go through the routine, if they forget the next step they can independently look at the routine and figure out what they need to do next.<div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhv586xmYukrHpLt3Fn4QB4XcMb-xqguOkOrIoPEqCREbPUq_t1dfmXCdBTMUf59uCW7L81FDsId-hR7a9C4FOpoxKvFtAL-dfiYovWXPIQnc0UtL76SIk6_pyCpx_lUzIHJetiz1lV-lWRvIYfAJBJ0NCGt_HmgkRvgDfFmG5FBsW8jnMve9hLUt1y=s2048" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhv586xmYukrHpLt3Fn4QB4XcMb-xqguOkOrIoPEqCREbPUq_t1dfmXCdBTMUf59uCW7L81FDsId-hR7a9C4FOpoxKvFtAL-dfiYovWXPIQnc0UtL76SIk6_pyCpx_lUzIHJetiz1lV-lWRvIYfAJBJ0NCGt_HmgkRvgDfFmG5FBsW8jnMve9hLUt1y=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>The first few times a visual routine is used, you will do it with the child and teach them the steps of the routine. However, after a few uses, they will be able to look at the chart and follow the routine on their own. Over time, they will internalize the routine and no longer need it. They will have learned the steps, and be able to navigate the process independently. <br /><br />On the <a href="https://learnwithearlybird.com/" target="_blank">Earlybird</a> platform you can find cut & paste versions of helpful visuals that let you personalize routines to your child, or you can print several of their premade routines for bedtime, laundry, morning, hand washing or learning to use the bathroom. Or, you can create your own visuals, perhaps using characters from your child's favorite book or video. </div></div>Renée Jordanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042631599435130698noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-51561880027108170982021-12-17T09:23:00.000-05:002021-12-17T09:23:06.516-05:00Early Childhood Education Increases Academic and Professional Success<p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><b>Today w</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><b>e are concluding our series on early childhood learning by former Yellin Center Learning Specialist Renée Jordan.</b></span></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><b><br /></b></span></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #282934; font-family: inherit;">In the 1960’s, a pilot project, called the </span><a href="https://highscope.org/perry-preschool-project/" style="font-family: inherit;">Perry Preschool Project</a><span style="color: #282934; font-family: inherit;">,
was conducted that gave children access to a preschool experience and
supplemental home learning using high-quality programming that was designed to
develop their cognitive, motor and social-emotional skills. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #282934; font-family: inherit;">Initial participants in the Perry Preschool
Project showed greater academic achievement, as well as higher income earning
later in life when compared to a control group (those who hadn’t had access
to early learning). Participants also had higher graduation rates and IQ
scores, as well as reduced incarceration rates and a higher likelihood to own
their own homes.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #282934; font-family: inherit;">Recently, <a href="https://www.ffyf.org/new-data-reveals-lasting-intergenerational-benefits-of-preschool-in-children-50-years-later/" target="_blank">researchers followed up with participants</a> (now in their 50s) to see if these significant positive outcomes held
-and they did. Not only that, but when researchers looked at the participants'
children, they saw generational gains in terms of academic achievement and income. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #282934; font-family: inherit;">One interesting element of the Perry Preschool
Project is that it included home learning support using the same rich
educational programming. When parents and childcare providers provide
developmentally appropriate materials and time for children to play with them,
children reap immeasurable benefits that set them up for success in school and
in life. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #282934;"><br /></span><span style="color: #282934; font-family: inherit;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj3LXsDruUzc7JJXTKFNRA3U3jSvBCXNZ3bZjnwcGIYnxCNg0s8CKDJ2Oe8VpLkYW4tZWsceNDyekAMF6j1sU9VMJW7JdleMD12jsnkZgXxysf9pq3YiNXd6sjowL3yISn7sytz00oO9bEsBA1-3NMOcz_jyf-og51y08jkjvj5DTUIHkXPIgZRtNxc=s6000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj3LXsDruUzc7JJXTKFNRA3U3jSvBCXNZ3bZjnwcGIYnxCNg0s8CKDJ2Oe8VpLkYW4tZWsceNDyekAMF6j1sU9VMJW7JdleMD12jsnkZgXxysf9pq3YiNXd6sjowL3yISn7sytz00oO9bEsBA1-3NMOcz_jyf-og51y08jkjvj5DTUIHkXPIgZRtNxc=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: #282934; font-family: inherit;">However, it can be tricky as a parent or care
provider to know what early childhood skills your child should be developing.
Thankfully, there are resources, like </span><a href="http://www.learnwithearlybird.com" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #1155cc;">Earlybird</span></a><span style="color: #282934; font-family: inherit;">, that give you the information you need about child
development, and the no-prep activities and materials you need to apply that
learning. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #282934; font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #282934;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@sdb_sjbc?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Andrew Ebrahim</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/reading?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></i></span><br /></span></span></p>Renée Jordanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042631599435130698noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-16516933982100395952021-12-06T11:21:00.000-05:002021-12-06T11:21:45.571-05:00The School Readiness Skills Your Child Needs<p><i><b>We are continuing our series on early childhood learning by<span style="font-family: inherit;"> former Yellin Center Learning Specialist <span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Renée Jordan.</span></span></b></i></p><p>If you have a child under the age of five you may be wondering what skills you need to be working on to ensure they are school ready and set up for success upon starting kindergarten.</p><span id="docs-internal-guid-56928632-7fff-1e0a-5b36-1b7abe3603ff"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.44; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 10pt;">School readiness skills are the cognitive, social-emotional, motor, and attentional skills that lay the foundation for future school success. The thinking used to be that all your child needed was to recognize a few letters and numbers. However, current research shows that school readiness goes beyond just the basic literacy and numeracy skills. Motor and social-emotional skills are critical. Higher thinking skills such as creativity, problem solving, and imagination are of equal importance to academic skills <i>(</i><a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/336966268_School_Readiness_Profiles_and_Growth_in_Academic_Achievement" target="_blank"><i><b>Pan, Trang, Love & Templin, 2019)</b></i>.</a><br /><br />Sesame Workshop, the educational research organization behind Sesame Street, commissioned the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study to examine school readiness skills in today’s children. Their findings were released in the<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b> </b></span><a href="http://www.sesameworkshop.org/wp_install/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Kindergarten-Skills-Report-2014.pdf" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #2288bb; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Kindergartners’ Skills at School Entry</b></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #2288bb; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">report. The study found that 44% of children enter school with one or more developmental risk factors that have the potential to impact their success in school.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.44; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 10pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The good news is that you can develop these skills at home or childcare while your child plays, using the materials you already have around. Children are "hands-on" learners. They acquire knowledge through playful interactions with quality materials and meaningful interactions with their caregivers (<i>Hedges, 2000; Whitebread et. Al., 2009</i>).</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.44; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 10pt;"></p><p style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 10.0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222;">Painting, play dough, and coloring build motor
skills. Letters, colors, numbers and shapes can be reinforced while children
play with their toys. Dramatic play is grounds for rich social-emotional
learning. Higher thinking skills are cultivated as a child builds puzzles,
solves mazes and engineering towers out of their blocks.</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCRYsl1vyiqGNGxWU7TSuAUpvjNzYOAW3pz-eHvQ_FMN5m7b9BcYg0aj2jNf9vg1LLO2owT3RH7rbXydK-kgko9RhNa1MvUviVXHAWXLhyMP1GXX_XGmDaclVcrs6xSzzWY3yMJfL8eIM/s1840/use+in+blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1840" data-original-width="1745" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCRYsl1vyiqGNGxWU7TSuAUpvjNzYOAW3pz-eHvQ_FMN5m7b9BcYg0aj2jNf9vg1LLO2owT3RH7rbXydK-kgko9RhNa1MvUviVXHAWXLhyMP1GXX_XGmDaclVcrs6xSzzWY3yMJfL8eIM/s320/use+in+blog.jpg" width="303" /></a></span></div></span><p></p><p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 10.0pt; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;">One great resource
that makes sense of the early years for parents and caregivers is <a href="https://learnwithearlybird.com/" target="_blank">Earlybird.</a> Beyond providing fun,
engaging play-based learning activities, Earlybird will also teach you what </span>developmental skills each activity is
targeting, giving you the knowledge, confidence and resources to ensure your
child is school ready. </span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p></o:p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.44; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 10pt;">
<span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span>
</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p> </o:p></p><br /><p></p>Renée Jordanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042631599435130698noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-69368199900010725902021-11-29T13:21:00.008-05:002021-12-06T10:53:11.391-05:00Making Sense of Early Learning for Parents and Childcare roviders<p><b><i>Today we welcome back blogger Renée Jordan, who last wrote for us in 2016. We are delighted to have her contributing to our blog once again. Read about her story and hear about the exciting learning resources she has helped create.</i></b></p><br />I used to be a learning specialist at The Yellin Center. I eagerly joined the incredibly talented team as soon as I finished grad school at Columbia. My years at the Yellin Center are where I grew my knowledge of child development and how a child’s brain learns and grows. Working alongside Dr. Yellin deepened my understanding of the neurodevelopmental constructs that are fundamental to the work of The Yellin Center and my commitment to helping families and children make sense of their cognitive strengths and challenges to ensure they find success in school and beyond. <br /><br />I left the team in 2016 to return to my hometown to focus on fertility treatments in hopes of starting a family. Leaving NYC and The Yellin Center was one of the hardest decisions we have made to date. But finally, in 2018, we welcomed our son Anderson. While on maternity leave, I began creating and doing easy activities with Anderson that targeted the core neurodevelopmental domains. When I began sharing them on Instagram I generated a following of fellow parents and childcare providers who were looking to make sense of the early years for their own kids.<div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBMihgdhhqJoYzhUiPC-9Jzrrz-0d-rAy80WiDeSPhHDXxy1M7Mk_xOp1BGRvcij1saaB6gXHTxCMCpOi1YjF2B-SJy0LcvBiyCvTrX5OSz58d8hhRD-lREZuEMiPZolZJJjVfgX0DFJs/s1400/renee-jordan.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1400" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBMihgdhhqJoYzhUiPC-9Jzrrz-0d-rAy80WiDeSPhHDXxy1M7Mk_xOp1BGRvcij1saaB6gXHTxCMCpOi1YjF2B-SJy0LcvBiyCvTrX5OSz58d8hhRD-lREZuEMiPZolZJJjVfgX0DFJs/w274-h320/renee-jordan.jpg" width="274" /></a></div><br />It was during this time that I met Sarah, the other half of <a href="https://learnwithearlybird.com/" target="_blank">Earlybird</a><a href="http://Earlybird.">.</a> Sarah is an entrepreneur with a robust business knowledge and incredible sense of design. After we both had our second children, we decided now was the time to partner and build a platform outside of social media where parents and childcare providers could come to find the information they needed to know about child development, as well as the evidence-based activities and materials they needed to apply that knowledge. So in the middle of the pandemic, with four kids under three-years-old between us, we launched <a href="https://learnwithearlybird.com/" target="_blank">Earlybird</a>. <br /><br />Earlybird’s goal is to nurture every child’s intellectual, physical and social-emotional development to ensure they are ready for school and life. Anyone caring for children will find that <a href="https://learnwithearlybird.com/" target="_blank">Earlybird</a> equips them with the confidence, knowledge and resources they need to create child-centered and developmentally appropriate play-based learning experiences that build a child’s literacy, numeracy, motor, social-emotional and creative thinking skills. <br /><br />We keep it simple for you by using everyday items in our little to no prep activity ideas. On the platform you can filter resources by subject, specific skills, and ages. Then do the activities now, or save your favorites to your saved folder for later. We take the guesswork out of the early years for you. <div><br /></div><div>Stay tuned for more posts looking at the research behind the early childhood tools we have developed. </div></div>Renée Jordanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042631599435130698noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-75136516458715231252021-07-29T13:31:00.000-04:002021-07-29T13:31:08.355-04:00ACT Exam to Use IEP/504 Accommodations <p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Last week, the ACT Exam announced a change to how they would offer accommodations to students with learning, attention, and other disabilities. They now align with the College Board, which administers the SAT, AP, and other exams, and which implemented changes at the beginning of 2017. The College Board uses a "two question" inquiry for students seeking disability accommodations: 1) does the student's IEP or 504 Plan contain the accommodation they are seeking and 2) has the student used the requested accommodation for school exams?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjod7Lt_a-Qaj86KiKDELtlP6eI161u6vQWcAzid20u_yNNU6_3yTE5g-p7KEOP3aO0YiTWz86PxGsryrSfgipT9yV_O5cpSu0qu2S1z6s2WK26DmBvaMHc4oho17F_mY-jIoqPigxeh6Sd/s289/imagesact.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="174" data-original-width="289" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjod7Lt_a-Qaj86KiKDELtlP6eI161u6vQWcAzid20u_yNNU6_3yTE5g-p7KEOP3aO0YiTWz86PxGsryrSfgipT9yV_O5cpSu0qu2S1z6s2WK26DmBvaMHc4oho17F_mY-jIoqPigxeh6Sd/s0/imagesact.png" width="289" /></a></span></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i> </i>As the ACT noted in a press release,<i> "</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #042e60; font-style: italic; letter-spacing: 0.4px;">Beginning with the 2021-22 testing year, students who already receive accommodations at their school under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act will automatically be eligible to receive the allowable testing accommodations when they register for the ACT with accommodations."</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #042e60;"><span style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: 0.4px;">This means that students no longer need to go through a separate process of providing evidence of their need for accommodations, such as extended time, to the ACT. If a student's school has approved accommodations as part of an IEP or 504 Plan, the ACT will simply require that for<span style="font-family: inherit;"> "</span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #042e60; letter-spacing: 0.4px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">examinees who have a valid, current Individualized Education Program (IEP) or Section 504 Plan (504 Plan) a copy of the IEP or 504 Plan will be sufficient to demonstrate eligibility and need for the same allowable accommodations on the ACT test." </span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #042e60; letter-spacing: 0.4px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Note that the ACT still will exercise some oversight into which accommodations they will allow; they discuss certain <a href="https://www.act.org/content/act/en/products-and-services/the-act/registration/accommodations/policy-for-accommodations-documentation.html" target="_blank">Guiding Principles</a>, which require that any accommodation should be reasonable and not fundamentally alter what the test is designed to measure. </span></span></p><p><span style="color: #042e60;"><span style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: 0.4px;">This is a welcome change, but it raises some questions. Among these are:</span></span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="color: #042e60;"><span style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: 0.4px;">What about students who don't have an IEP or 504 Plan?</span></span></li></ul><p></p><p><span style="color: #042e60;"><span style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: 0.4px;"><span>The ACT still will consider the needs of such students for accommodations. The "shortcut" they have announced doesn't change that and they will continue to apply the "reasonable accommodation" standard of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that they have always used. </span><br /></span></span></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="color: #042e60;"><span style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: 0.4px;"><span>What about students who have "informal" accommodations?</span></span></span></li></ul><div><span style="color: #042e60;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.4px;">If students are enrolled in a public school, we urge them to formalize their accommodations via a 504 Plan or even an IEP, if appropriate. For most private schools, a 504 Plan is not an option, but private schools should consider creating a more formalized plan memorializing accommodations they provide. </span></span></div><div><span style="color: #042e60;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.4px;"><br /></span></span></div><div><br /></div><p></p>Susan Yellin, Esq., Advocacy and Transition Serviceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00520056610650965932noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-84395287513228509232021-07-19T15:25:00.000-04:002021-07-19T15:25:19.916-04:00Getting Ready for the New School Year - A Webinar<p>Last week, Dr. Paul Yellin and Susan Yellin, Esq. presented a webinar for <a href="https://www.additudemag.com/" target="_blank">ADDitude Magazine</a> on “9 Ways to Prime Your Child for a Positive School Year." The discussion, with slides and a Q&A session at the end, focused on using the remainder of the summer to prepare for a return to what for most students will be in-person learning this fall. More than 700 attendees watched live and over 6,000 more signed up to watch it later</p><p>The Yellins' recommendations included both steps that parents should take and those that were more focused on student readiness - all keeping in mind that it's been a rough year and a half and that students and their families need a chance to engage in summer activities that are enjoyable and that build social as well as educational skills.</p><p>Parents were reminded that this summer would be a good time to review their child's IEP or 504 Plan, and seek to make changes to it, if needed, before school begins in the fall. For children who are taking ADHD medication, Dr. Yellin discussed the importance of working with your child's doctor to monitor the effectiveness and side effects, if any, of medication and to keep a "medication diary" to share with your child's prescribing physician. Dr. Yellin spoke about the importance of frontloading and having a "growth mindset'" as discussed by Dr. Carol Dweck in her book, <i>Mindset. </i><br /></p><p>Both speakers mentioned a number of tools, apps, and websites that could build skills that may be needed to begin the next school year primed for success. These included those that were free and fun, like <a href="https://bedtimemath.org/" target="_blank">Bedtime Math </a>to others that are more focused in their approach, such as <a href="https://www.ixl.com/" target="_blank">IXL</a> </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8GJJa45AA5vv18WArY8p_lVbxcVSqtJYEWVWS91VFLGM36S4vPcwabM_2EZGG4128Pvykq0XThDaJqgA2vMBG7ex-fm69yDrPViUnVpW2-_A-hBjQCoMBgmprM23TvJGY66L7Tf8g6V2b/s321/download+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="157" data-original-width="321" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8GJJa45AA5vv18WArY8p_lVbxcVSqtJYEWVWS91VFLGM36S4vPcwabM_2EZGG4128Pvykq0XThDaJqgA2vMBG7ex-fm69yDrPViUnVpW2-_A-hBjQCoMBgmprM23TvJGY66L7Tf8g6V2b/s320/download+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />You can <a href="https://www.additudemag.com/webinar/return-to-school-preparation-podcast-363 / " target="_blank">access this presentation</a> as a video replay, listen to the podcast episode (#363), and download the slide presentation, with numerous slides and suggestions, from ADDitude, all at no charge. <br /><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Susan Yellin, Esq., Advocacy and Transition Serviceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00520056610650965932noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-31879142154293466102021-06-24T12:14:00.000-04:002021-06-24T12:14:10.344-04:00Back to Basics - Tuition Reimbursement<p>When we began this blog back in the summer of 2009, we wrote a number of posts about the basics of special education law and how families could navigate the laws that would provide services and support for their children. We addressed all sorts of topics --<a href="http://blog.yellincenter.com/2019/08/paying-for-iees-revisited.html" target="_blank"> How to get your district to pay for an evaluation</a>, <a href="http://blog.yellincenter.com/2017/03/understanding-federal-disability-laws.html" target="_blank">How federal disability laws differ from each other </a>, <a href="http://blog.yellincenter.com/2013/12/related-services.html" target="_blank">What are Related Services? </a>and many others. </p><p>Parents sometimes have questions about these or other subjects related to special education and we often find that the best way to answer their query is to share our blog(s) on the subject. But, as you might imagine, our readership has grown and changed over the past 12 years and parents' questions have made us realize that it might be time to address some old and new topics that are fundamental to understanding students' rights in special education. </p><p>One question that has cropped up recently is whether a Committee on Special Education (CSE), the team that creates the Individualized Education Program (IEP) for a student with disabilities under the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) can place a student in a non-approved school and order payment for the tuition at such school. Parents have heard about getting their tuition paid at a private school and some assumed that this was how the process worked. Nope, it's much more complex than that. Let's look at the process, understanding that it can differ a bit from state to state.</p><p>First, parents can always place their child in a private school, whether a specialized school or one that offers a general curriculum and no significant supports. This discussion is about whether payment for a private school will be made by the public district.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixjqrQt98zPHF5Be4jQHBDtFMKswz3XLGWfUkv_kwkMsoAH5gkgzNYCQPkIk4p4-5vuguEek4pX46scRUoG-OkOVXv3eCFuuoTAbAR1-MtD7-TBunurst4Maj3mlsEmje1Z2xScx1PBKL0/s612/istockphoto-160142915-612x612.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="459" data-original-width="612" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixjqrQt98zPHF5Be4jQHBDtFMKswz3XLGWfUkv_kwkMsoAH5gkgzNYCQPkIk4p4-5vuguEek4pX46scRUoG-OkOVXv3eCFuuoTAbAR1-MtD7-TBunurst4Maj3mlsEmje1Z2xScx1PBKL0/w320-h223/istockphoto-160142915-612x612.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p>The first step in that process is for a school district to be unwilling or unable to offer a child who is classified under the IDEA an appropriate IEP -- school setting, services, accommodations. This can be in the child's regular school or a non-public school that is "approved" by the state (a subject for another discussion). But here we are assuming that the parents do not find the proposed setting appropriate. </p><p>The CSE, even if it finds that the school that the parents want is an excellent setting, does <u>not</u> have the authority to pay tuition at such school. The parents have to give the district notice that they are unilaterally placing their child in the private school, and then file for a hearing before a state hearing officer, who will look at several criteria, including whether the IEP was really not appropriate and whether the placement the parents have selected is, indeed, an appropriate setting. At a minimum, the parent's choice must offer the special education services the child needs (so not just any private school will do).</p><p>The process takes months to complete and in almost all cases requires the parents to pay the tuition to the school and then get reimbursed if they are successful at a hearing. And the process must be repeated for each school year. </p><p>Many parents are successful and have worked out a system so that their child can attend a specialized private school offering special educational services. But it is not a simple process and success is not guaranteed. We recommend working with a special education attorney to make sure all the 'i's' are dotted and the 't's' are crossed. </p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p> <br /></p><p> <br /></p>Susan Yellin, Esq., Advocacy and Transition Serviceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00520056610650965932noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-25636032954642403932021-06-08T13:59:00.000-04:002021-06-08T13:59:21.046-04:00Summer Tools to Prepare for School in the Fall<p> As the age for vaccine eligibility falls and COVID rates decline, schools throughout the U.S. are moving away from remote instruction to in-person learning this fall. Here in New York City, all public schools will be fully in-person in September and there will be no remote learning options.</p><p>A year and more of online instruction has made it difficult for many students to make the kind of progress they would have made if they were attending school in-person every day. Some students were able to thrive during online instruction, but for those who struggled, we have some suggestions for tools that can be used during the summer to build skills in math and writing and get ready for the fall.</p><p><u><b>Math </b></u></p><p>We often recommend two software programs to help children build math skills. </p><p><i><b><a href="https://www.dreambox.com/" target="_blank">Dreambox</a>,</b></i> <i>for grades K-8 </i> adapts to your child's skill level. Using your child's answers to
different kinds of problems, DreamBox detects which skills a student has
mastered and which need more work, then provides instruction and
practice in the form of games. Parents can use the Dashboard feature to
monitor their child's progress. Note that the lessons in Dreambox may not align exactly with what your child is doing in school, but can help prepare your child for math lessons when school begins in the fall.</p><p><a href="https://www.ixl.com/" style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">IXL</a><b style="font-style: italic;">, </b><i>for students from pre-K through high school</i> helps students master individual math concepts and lets parents track student progress. Students learn at their own pace and can prepare for the math skills they will need once back in school.</p><p><b><u>Writing</u></b></p>The best way for students to improve their writing is to write more. By using creative formats, supported by artwork, younger students will be motivated to express themselves in writing and be better prepared for the writing assignments they will face in the fall. We recommend:<p><i><a href="https://storybird.com/" target="_blank"><strong>Storybird</strong></a> </i>- <em>grade 1 and up</em><br />This
beautifully crafted, aesthetically pleasing website-based app provides
support for writing and an avenue for self-publishing.</p><p><i><b><a href="https://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/student-interactives/comic-creator" target="_blank">Comic Creator</a></b> </i>- <em>grades 3 - 8</em><br />Students
can design and save or print comic strips with this user-friendly site.
In addition to creating stories, it is an inviting tool for summarizing
books to help improve reading comprehension. Comic Creator keeps it
simple with very basic graphics and pared down options, making it great
for students who may find flashy extras distracting.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt91qBJCtt5vK-oVOiTXEgKtyDHyUXCEQJ0PIKg8FM32bWIJYgvb4hIZAHV4ULBvCv_khVJWcZJU9idaJdTOlU8CUGGdiYpdU3MRLUoLbr9vmujrWr6pL47__voqt9aBorSb2NYMMSszbE/s261/index.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="193" data-original-width="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt91qBJCtt5vK-oVOiTXEgKtyDHyUXCEQJ0PIKg8FM32bWIJYgvb4hIZAHV4ULBvCv_khVJWcZJU9idaJdTOlU8CUGGdiYpdU3MRLUoLbr9vmujrWr6pL47__voqt9aBorSb2NYMMSszbE/s0/index.jpg" /></a></div><br /> <i><a href="http://storyjumper.com/" target="_blank"><strong>Story Jumper</strong></a> </i>- <em>grades 1 - 5</em><p></p><p>Younger
students can choose between a seemingly limitless array of formats and
pictures to supplement the stories they write. Books can be saved,
shared, or purchased in hardcover form.</p><p>It hasn't escaped us that after more than a year, we are recommending more online instruction. But limited screen time and targeted lessons can be worth the "sitting still" time these programs require. We hope you and your student find them fun and helpful.</p><p><br /></p>Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-61106215421328914132021-05-25T15:59:00.000-04:002021-05-25T15:59:11.270-04:00Moving Towards NormalThe announcement this week that New York City schools will be open for in-person instruction in September, with no remote learning options, is one more step towards a post-pandemic world. But make no mistake - things aren't going to be the same. Even without the heartbreaking loss of life, this pandemic changed us all, in ways large and small, and it is unlikely that our families, our city, our country, and the world will go back to what some have called "the before times" any time soon.<div><br /></div><div>Even as more of us are vaccinated, there still remain many Americans who cannot or will not get vaccinated, at least in the near future. The ages at which the vaccines are deemed safe and effective keep dropping, but young children still cannot receive the vaccine, which means that in families in which everyone 12 and up has received their shots, there may still be younger children who are not protected by these scientific miracles. And there are still folks who haven't gotten the vaccine and who may not be planning to. Some may have medical conditions that make a vaccination problematic. Others are skeptical for a wide array of reasons. We'll leave the reasons for this aside, but note that reaching "herd immunity" is going to be a stretch in many areas.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-UGphAcetwBsOuRJ4Z55onRy3_kSIwZjUO3f5XGxWw6sCXVP_61zL0RTeBqZsnUMNjHaXDhHVQYbR1cZDALHOSFaqF_uPqBZP_qzVUovD63sTOy5_i8hXh8eWrY8C-G6KWuuiYtuCTaq3/s2048/steven-cornfield-jWPNYZdGz78-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1648" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-UGphAcetwBsOuRJ4Z55onRy3_kSIwZjUO3f5XGxWw6sCXVP_61zL0RTeBqZsnUMNjHaXDhHVQYbR1cZDALHOSFaqF_uPqBZP_qzVUovD63sTOy5_i8hXh8eWrY8C-G6KWuuiYtuCTaq3/s320/steven-cornfield-jWPNYZdGz78-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Our workplaces, too, have changed and it is not clear whether people will return to their offices on a regular basis, or whether a large number will continue to work remotely either full or part-time. Here at The Yellin Center we are thinking about what our offices will look like in the months to come. At some point, but certainly not yet, we won't need the plastic screens between our clinicians and our students. We will be able to take down the signs reminding everyone to keep their masks on. And we will even be able to put the magazines back in the reception area and the toys back in the family rooms. But not yet...</div><div><br /></div><div>Students have missed so many of the learning opportunities and social rituals that being together in a classroom, in a school building, or in a school community provide. Goofing around in the hallway, lunchroom, or playground; graduation and proms; and creative classroom play for the youngest of students all have been lost for more than a year and it will take time for students and teachers to get used to them again. Learning loss over the past year and more has been significant. While some children (often those in private schools) had a good deal of in-person instruction, most students dealt with remote schooling most or all of the time. Students with learning or emotional difficulties were often especially challenged by sitting in front of their computer all day, lacking the level of support they had been used to receiving before the pandemic hit. </div><div><br /></div><div>Your blogger, too, temporarily lost her writing muse and is just now emerging from a pandemic funk to look around and see things she wants to share with readers. As we spend time with family and friends and start to share hugs with those we have missed, as families send children off to summer camp, and as students think about buying school supplies for in-person education in the fall, things will slowly, slowly head back towards a new kind of normal. We look forward to plotting the way forward to post-pandemic life and learning with you.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>Photo credit: <a href="https://unsplash.com/@stevencornfield" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #767676; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif; text-decoration-skip-ink: auto; transition: color 0.1s ease-in-out 0s, opacity 0.1s ease-in-out 0s;">Steven Cornfield</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif;"> on Unsplash</span></i></span></div><div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div>Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-83632628923350732462021-03-22T17:25:00.001-04:002021-03-23T07:48:15.854-04:00New Data Confirms Emotional Toll of Virtual Learning<p>There has been much conversation over the past year about the impact that virtual learning has had on children and families. The ways that virtual learning has been used during the pandemic have varied -- sometimes abruptly -- as school systems and families have reacted to infection rates, clusters of outbreaks, and the availability of vaccinations for faculty and staff. But almost all students have faced reduced class time and many have dealt with the unavailability of effective online learning as well, when families lack computers or efficient high speed internet connections.</p><p><a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7011a1.htm?s_cid=mm7011a1_w">A new study released by the CDC</a> has examined the impact of virtual learning on the mental health and well-being of children aged 5-12 by looking at almost 1300 families. Of those families, approximately 46% had children receiving only virtual instruction. Another 31% received in-person instruction and approximately 23% received hybrid instruction, both virtual and in-person.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaHEhaszNNuhoiRSUx7W_uTqQTW2ZhKMEFlOSl22RvTq8XYdZAe61hvRCXCdsIKBvMPFlmheICXnNJ0L2AU8h7znLGs1flRWeleALr0WTL5VJytMGHFZr5n_avxJF6PqxVdydXv_SS8knI/s311/index.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="162" data-original-width="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaHEhaszNNuhoiRSUx7W_uTqQTW2ZhKMEFlOSl22RvTq8XYdZAe61hvRCXCdsIKBvMPFlmheICXnNJ0L2AU8h7znLGs1flRWeleALr0WTL5VJytMGHFZr5n_avxJF6PqxVdydXv_SS8knI/s0/index.jpg" /></a></div>The study looked at 17 indicators of child mental health and found that children who were getting virtual instruction scored worse on 11 of the 17 mental health indicators. In addition, children learning virtually full or part time spent less time outdoors, spent less time with friends (both in person and online), and reported decreased physical activity. And it wasn't only the children who were affected by virtual learning. The study noted,<p></p><p><i>"Parents of children receiving virtual instruction more frequently reported their own emotional distress, difficulty sleeping, loss of work, concern about job stability, child care challenges, and conflict between working and providing child care than did parents whose children were receiving in-person instruction." </i></p><p>None of the statistical findings of the CDC study will come as a surprise. Hopefully, with increased vaccination of teachers and school staff and lower Covid rates as more of the general population gets vaccinated, in person instruction will increase and families and schools can turn to addressing the academic and emotional challenges that have affected children and families during the past year. Making up for the impact of the pandemic will not be easy.<i> </i><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span face=""Open Sans", apple-system, blinkmacsystemfont, "Segoe UI", "Helvetica Neue", arial, sans-serif" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span> <br /></span></span></p>Susan Yellin, Esq., Advocacy and Transition Serviceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00520056610650965932noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-34772444798409325652021-01-13T13:01:00.002-05:002021-01-13T13:01:25.842-05:00Watch Dr. Yellin Discuss How to Help Struggling Learners<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-left: 40px; text-align: left;">In case you missed a terrific discussion with Dr. Yellin, you can catch the video below. In a conversation with Laura Hart of <a href="https://www.robofun.org/" target="_blank">Robofun</a>, Dr. Yellin gives a clear explanation of the evaluation process and how it can help students of all ages. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-left: 40px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SoG2esPZjXc" width="320" youtube-src-id="SoG2esPZjXc"></iframe></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-left: 40px; text-align: left;">The "call in hour" Dr. Yellin mentions in this video is scheduled for every Thursday morning (EST) from 8-9 am. Our office telephone number is 646-775-6646. If you can't get through, just leave a message and someone will get back to you.<br /></div> <p></p>Susan Yellin, Esq., Advocacy and Transition Serviceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00520056610650965932noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-29626969355694458942020-12-22T08:23:00.000-05:002020-12-22T08:23:22.542-05:00Our Traditional Holiday Poem - For an Untraditional Year<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2CPXHRIM58yZ8WzC5hQPsKGa2Z7Ox7fQeIZvcNuFT1AFeKsZkQ8jAZsHGatbrKnXtiyrrPaNJ9CXkNUgwL11XOLZEfG-QRBaj6dF-Kf0HM2QLmOoB4f-E3ObaNV9GqRjlk67Zn3VKuOOO/s2048/ruy-albcrem-_M1Sd3hW8F0-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2CPXHRIM58yZ8WzC5hQPsKGa2Z7Ox7fQeIZvcNuFT1AFeKsZkQ8jAZsHGatbrKnXtiyrrPaNJ9CXkNUgwL11XOLZEfG-QRBaj6dF-Kf0HM2QLmOoB4f-E3ObaNV9GqRjlk67Zn3VKuOOO/s320/ruy-albcrem-_M1Sd3hW8F0-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> <p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">This terrible, horrible, no good year is coming to an end</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">It has broken our hearts and made things so hard</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">We’ve almost gone way ‘round the bend</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">But there have been some glimmers, some real rays of hope</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">That have helped us to power on through </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">And as we close out our year, we thought we would share </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">A few of these glimmers with you</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">Our office is open and our staff has stayed well</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">(And we pray will continue the same)</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">We’ve taken precautions, with distance and masks</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">We’ve removed all our books and our games</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">We’ve used telemedicine, Facetime, and Zoom</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">And can do many meetings online</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">We’ve been doing in-person assessments</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">And these are all working out fine</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">As kids work from home, with learning remote</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">Some challenges rise to the fore</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">We’re glad we can work with these students</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">Giving strategies, insight, and more</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">The election’s behind us, democracy holds</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">Though our system has been sorely stressed</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">As a new term begins, let’s hope justice wins</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">And our country can be at its best</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">In this year of great loss, there are new babies too</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">Arriving amidst the pandemic</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">Two new Yellin boys have brought us great joy</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">Though visits and hugs are too few</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">The vaccine is here and it brings us all hope</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">Though we’ll have to all wait for our shot</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">Still, it remains our best path </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">To go back to our lives</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">The very best chance we have got</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">So deep in this season of hunger and loss </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">We wish you some moments of light</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">With good things to come, good health, and warm homes</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">And may everything turn out all right!</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>The Yellin Center will be closed beginning December 25th, reopening on Monday, January 4, 2021.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i>We wish you all a happy, healthy 2021! </i><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo Credit: https://unsplash.com/@racphoto </span> <br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-67625077103843460132020-11-23T12:05:00.000-05:002020-11-23T12:05:08.239-05:00Still Thankful<p>Every year around this time we have posted a Thanksgiving blog, <a href="http://blog.yellincenter.com/2019/11/thanksgiving-thoughts_27.html" target="_blank">noting all the ways in which we are thankful </a>and sharing<a href="http://blog.yellincenter.com/2018/11/thanksgiving-books-new-and-old.html" target="_blank"> suggestions for children's books about Thanksgiving. </a>We remain thankful this year but, as with so many aspects of our lives, in very different ways than we could have imagined even just a year ago.<br /></p><p>We are thankful that The Yellin Center is able to be open and that we can see students in-person in our spacious, COVID-modified office space. We have found that many parents have seen new aspects of their child's challenges and strengths while watching them learn remotely, and we are glad that we can help support both students and their parents in these unique learning times. </p><p>We are incredibly grateful for the dedication and skill of our
clinical and administrative staff, whom have kept us going through these
difficult months. We are thankful that our staff has stayed safe and well and that our own kids and grandkids have too. Both family members and dear friends have lost parents to COVID and we have shared in their sorrow. And we know that so many others have also suffered losses. Our thoughts go out to them all.</p><p>We remain grateful for the front line medical workers - and the folks who work in the grocery stores, deliver our mail and packages, and do so many other things to keep us going in these difficult times. We are glad to see that here in NYC, wearing a mask and keeping distance is very much the standard, but we remain alarmed to see that these simple steps to protect ourselves and others are not universal, and certainly not once you get outside of our New York bubble. Why is it that our not-quite-three-year-old grandson <i><b>always</b></i> wears a mask when outside, but so many grownups still haven't learned this lesson?<br /></p><p>We are thankful for the light at the end of the tunnel - the excellent news about soon to be available vaccines that can eventually bring this national crisis to an end. We are enormously grateful to the scientists whose tireless work and dedication will make this possible and look forward to this "shot in the arm" for all of us.</p><p>We are thankful, too, that our nation seems to be slowly moving past a gut-wrenching election process and that the path to presidential transition seems to be growing clearer. We continue to hope that everyone involved puts the good of our country first, and that January 20, 2021 dawns clear and sunny, with blue skies ahead. </p><p>So, as your blogger plans a Thanksgiving feast for our immediate family, with a break for a Zoom call with the multitude of Yellin relatives who usually make our holiday so wonderful, we wish you all a happy, healthy Thanksgiving!<br /></p><p> .<img alt="LIST: Local Thanksgiving meal giveaways | WSAV-TV" class="rg_i Q4LuWd" data-atf="true" data-deferred="1" data-iml="941" height="169" 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" width="300" /> </p><p><br /></p>Susan Yellin, Esq., Advocacy and Transition Serviceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00520056610650965932noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-34450991341232758212020-10-19T09:09:00.000-04:002020-10-19T09:09:46.901-04:00Take N.O.T.E. - A Tool for Parents<p>Two of our favorite organizations - <a href="aap.org" target="_blank">The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)</a> and <a href="understood.org" target="_blank">Understood</a> - have teamed up to create a tool for parents to help them recognize when and how their children may be having learning difficulties and the steps to take to help them.</p><p> </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ7_vd2BAWfF_ilocyImy99SjkVpyWXONVjfvwSXcG3HhF2b9iFNWoZQm-I_zrtCvvdeIxlWogPHg8K4SSuywCsmqPpqYdn3miQYZd3hSs79ZdCToJovP4iZhNkoUt-1CrMF0JW4h2l59u/s248/index.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ7_vd2BAWfF_ilocyImy99SjkVpyWXONVjfvwSXcG3HhF2b9iFNWoZQm-I_zrtCvvdeIxlWogPHg8K4SSuywCsmqPpqYdn3miQYZd3hSs79ZdCToJovP4iZhNkoUt-1CrMF0JW4h2l59u/s0/index.png" /></a></div><br /><a href="https://www.understood.org/take-note" target="_blank">Take N.O.T.E</a>. breaks learning issues down into four steps:<p></p><p><b>NOTICE</b> is the first step, with subject by subject guidance on how a parent can be certain there’s something going on with their child that’s out of the ordinary. Areas of concern need not be academic and include:<br /></p><ul class="pl-sm-4 f-sm-4 f-md-5 mb-sm-0"><li class="pb-sm-4">Reading and writing</li><li class="pb-sm-4">Math</li><li class="pb-sm-4">Focus and organization</li><li class="pb-sm-4">Self-control and hyperactivity</li><li class="pb-sm-4">Frustration, stress, and anxiety</li><li class="pb-sm-4">Developmental milestones</li></ul><p><b>OBSERVING</b> comes next. Once parents notice a problem, the program guides parents in how they can learn how to find and keep track of patterns in their child’s behavior with downloadable observation tools.</p><p>The third step of the process is <b>TALKING</b>. The program includes tips and conversation starters for parents to use when talking with those who know their child best, like teachers, aides, and other caregivers, as well as talking to their child about what they are observing.</p><p>The final step is to <b>ENGAGE</b>, helping parents figure out how and when to connect with experts like pediatricians and school
specialists, who can help you figure out if your child might have a
learning and thinking difference.</p><p>The Understood site includes links to helpful articles and videos designed to illustrate the issues in each of the steps involved. So far, so good, since Understood is known for its helpful information for parents. But Take N.O.T.E. goes further, and that's where its partnership with the AAP comes in. The AAP urges pediatricians to be familiar with the steps in the Take N.O.T.E. program and shares links to information from Understood. Furthermore, it offers guidance to its members on how to discuss learning and developmental issues with families, including suggestions to start with open-ended questions, asking for details, and getting more information. </p><p><a href="https://web02.understood.org/en/about/our-experts/paul-b-yellin" target="_blank">Dr. Yellin serves as one of Understood's "Experts"</a> and is a resource for numerous pediatricians who seek to refer their patients for a better understanding of their learning, behavioral, and related difficulties. Parents and professionals are welcome to <a href="http://www.yellincenter.com/contact.html" target="_blank">contact</a> our office for more information.<br /></p>Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-11457935136769079902020-10-01T10:51:00.000-04:002020-10-01T10:51:54.728-04:00Looking at the Election Through the Lens of Time<p>One of the interesting things about having written this blog for eleven years, starting in August 2009, is that we can sometimes look at a topic through the lens of time, seeing what we thought and wrote about something over the course of a number of years. </p><p>As we thankfully put the first Presidential Debate behind us and as many folks around the country have begun to vote, by mail or through in-person early voting, we took a look back at some of the blogs we have written about past presidential elections. </p><p><a href="http://blog.yellincenter.com/2012/01/teaching-kids-about-politics.html" target="_blank">In 2012</a>, we wrote about bringing your child with you when you vote, something we took very much for granted at that time. We also directed teachers to the<a href="https://www.teachervision.com/search/elections" target="_blank"> resources about elections</a> on the TeacherVision site, including charts and printables. In 2016, we shared information about<a href="https://www.icivics.org/" target="_blank"> iCivics</a>, founded by former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, with the goal of transforming civic education for every student in America with innovative, truly engaging games and resources. In 2020, iCivics has a <a href="https://www.icivics.org/election" target="_blank">Guide to the 2020 Election,</a> including a countdown clock to Election Day and a guide to the Presidential Debates, along with games, including <a href="https://www.icivics.org/node/67038/resource" target="_blank">Win the White House</a>.</p><p>One issue which is new to this tumultuous election is how to vote safely and securely in the midst of a pandemic and political upheaval. All but the youngest children are likely to have heard about the pros and cons of voting by mail and all of us have been urged to make a plan for how we will vote. This can be a good conversation to have with your children. Talk about how voting used to be almost exclusively in person on election day and discuss the options this year for voting in person, on election day or during an early voting period, or voting by mail. Have a conversation with your children about how you plan to vote this year and why. Your blogger remembers entering the voting booth with her parents and, in turn, bringing her own children to vote with her when she was a young parent. While this isn't a safe option this year, we look forward to a time when it is again a routine part of parenting and civic education.<br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqTD2tpRGhENRpFiqXt-XfH2g5_iY_aOAdMIsttKHICtvhGEh6_d7ERWjiMmZbNoHhHFKxyW9ZPm8jr_PAQcpnUI8mXNQ_9Rv3XxYQWaSWgPGkDN9tLYkVxDoCT9HrBmCvNLleg9OYuOUN/s215/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="215" data-original-width="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqTD2tpRGhENRpFiqXt-XfH2g5_iY_aOAdMIsttKHICtvhGEh6_d7ERWjiMmZbNoHhHFKxyW9ZPm8jr_PAQcpnUI8mXNQ_9Rv3XxYQWaSWgPGkDN9tLYkVxDoCT9HrBmCvNLleg9OYuOUN/s0/images.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br /><p></p>Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-31677949455268010522020-09-08T14:00:00.002-04:002020-09-08T14:00:32.608-04:00Supporting Your Remote Learner<p>Labor Day is behind us and schools are opening -- one way or another -- all around the country. Most students are engaged in some form of remote learning, at least part of the time, since being in school full time seems to be the exception in most places.</p><p class="MsoNormal">It was with the continuing challenges of remote learning especially in mind that Dr. Yellin and his colleagues from <a href="http://www.qedfoundation.org/" target="_blank">QED Foundation</a>, Kim Carter and Betsey Bradley, presented a webinar last week focusing on Observations
and Opportunities: Supporting Your Child in Remote Learning.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">They used Betsey<span face="" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;">’</span>s experiences with her own son to frame the challenges and possibilities that learning from home presents for students and parents alike. Betsey had noticed that her son was struggling with writing tasks. She knew that he had a good vocabulary and was a strong reader. But when it came time to create a report or write an essay, his work wasn't up to the level of his conversational skills. So she put on her parental detective hat and used the Neurodevelopmental Framework for Learning (NDFL) that underlies QED's approach, to examine where and why he was having difficulty.</p><p class="MsoNormal"> Betsey knew that writing involved a number of tasks that had to be performed simultaneously -- coming up with ideas, spelling, grammar, vocabulary, organization, punctuation, and actually forming the letters to write. But her son struggled with handwriting (graphomotor function) and attention difficulties made it hard for him to handle all the tasks of writing at the same time. Watching her son work at home gave her insight that she might not have gotten from just looking at a paper he had brought home from class. Once the bottlenecks in his writing became clear, it was possible to put together specific supports to help address the areas that made writing difficult. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Some of the tools that can help students who struggle with writing can be found on the <a href="http://www.yellincenter.com/resources.html" target="_blank">Resources page </a> of the Yellin Center website. <a href="http://www.yellincenter.com/graphic-organizers.html" target="_blank">Graphic organizers </a>can be especially helpful for students who need to put their creative thoughts or academic knowledge into an organized story or essay. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Parents whose children learn from home this fall -- even part-time -- have a unique opportunity to observe how they learn. Doing this while doing one's own job and managing other kids is not easy. But if circumstances allow, watching your child work through a lesson can provide useful insight into which areas might be challenges for him or her and how to help him or her improve.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_pRiPIHk6Y5NU40FIlJzG1xOAI79KLhX5y3QZDXHZMQDrz0clhU_PJgNeDsQrbcdxutfixXagyCndeWIWtVACHs6D7doBeigHz4zV7mKr9JRovEQwNkBKTLENGEHZq5yK6ztHbTFTIPEs/s2048/blog+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1451" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_pRiPIHk6Y5NU40FIlJzG1xOAI79KLhX5y3QZDXHZMQDrz0clhU_PJgNeDsQrbcdxutfixXagyCndeWIWtVACHs6D7doBeigHz4zV7mKr9JRovEQwNkBKTLENGEHZq5yK6ztHbTFTIPEs/s320/blog+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p></div></blockquote><p> </p><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-5805283397750863282020-08-03T13:35:00.000-04:002020-08-03T13:35:01.241-04:00College Readiness and Success in NYC <div>We have just had the opportunity to review <a href="http://www.graduatenyc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/GNYC-2020-Public-Report-FINAL.pdf" target="_blank">a new report from Graduate NYC (GNYC),</a> a citywide initiative dedicated to increasing college readiness and completion rates throughout the City, which shares information on some exciting progress and initiatives, especially those focused on students who are from low income families, who are the first in their families to attend college, and/or who are students of color. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>This report was of particular interest because your blogger has spent time with graduating NYC high school students at the <a href="https://www.hillsidearts.org/" target="_blank">Hillside Arts and Letters Academy</a> at an annual program where students are "interviewed" by adults in a profession they are considering, as if they were applying for their first job. Many of these students are from families recently arrived in this country and are the first in their families who will be attending college. Thanks, in part, to the programs discussed in the GNYC report, almost all of the students I have had the privilege of speaking with over the past several years planned to enroll in college; others planned to join the military or attend trade schools. And almost half of last year's graduating class were accepted to CUNY two or four year schools.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_gH9vt-5MLADyGF1Kqk1-eVigdKpS3RwFIKVar5rFAMj9qxltHFvLJo-oOh87_hUwwtdWCaDa_4VOOJOcnAZI0l0xJYA8BMUzKZeJpLO9sEfynyEZ0HNude7CeMZZqTkpXt8wid_53Iio/s225/index222.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="224" data-original-width="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_gH9vt-5MLADyGF1Kqk1-eVigdKpS3RwFIKVar5rFAMj9qxltHFvLJo-oOh87_hUwwtdWCaDa_4VOOJOcnAZI0l0xJYA8BMUzKZeJpLO9sEfynyEZ0HNude7CeMZZqTkpXt8wid_53Iio/s0/index222.jpg" /></a></div> <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>City-wide, the GNYC report notes that 57% of NYC high school graduates who plan to go to college enroll in a CUNY school -- 30% in a two-year program and 27% in a four-year program. Students who are headed to a CUNY school have opportunities to get a head start, with programs like the<a href="https://www.cuny.edu/about/administration/offices/evaluation/areas-of-focus_1/college_readiness/early-college-initiative-eci/" target="_blank"> Early College Initiative</a> and the <a href="https://k16.cuny.edu/collegenow/" target="_blank">College Now</a> program that facilitate academic momentum and allow students to accumulate college credits even before they start college. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Still another barrier to college success that is being dismantled and which is discussed in the GNYC report is the cycle that students with learning disabilities often encounter when they are caught up in a loop of remedial coursework which they need to pass before moving on to fully matriculate. The <a href="http://www1.cuny.edu/sites/cunystart/program/math-start/" target="_blank">Math Start </a>program is a highly supportive, flexible program that allows students to gain the knowledge they need at a minimal cost so that they can move ahead to start regular coursework. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Any student and their parents considering enrollment at a two or four year CUNY program should definitely review the GNYC report for a deep understanding of the supports and programs that have been put in place to foster student achievement and help students enrich their education, graduate on time, and move on to a successful future. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 11.6667px; left: 211px; top: 1261.78px; transform: scaleX(0.996637);"></span><span style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 21.6667px; left: 60px; top: 858.218px; transform: scaleX(0.914305);"><br /></span></div>Susan Yellin, Esq., Advocacy and Transition Serviceshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00520056610650965932noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8097554359685304770.post-32887330158425895442020-07-13T12:24:00.000-04:002020-07-13T12:24:15.909-04:00Getting Young Children to Wear MasksAlthough wearing -- or not wearing -- a face mask may be a political statement in some parts of the country, here in the New York City area there seems to be a general consensus that masks are the best way to keep ourselves and others safe and most people seem to be wearing them when they can't be socially distanced from others.<br />
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In fact, families visiting our offices since we re-opened have been required to wear masks, not just in our offices, but even to enter the lobby of our building. It makes us all safer.<br />
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Children from older elementary age and up seem to "get it" and most that we have encountered are pretty good about keeping their mask on where necessary. <br />
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But what about getting young children to wear masks? This question takes on particular importance now that day care centers are starting to reopen and there is the possibility of at least some in-person school and preschool in the fall. Our colleagues at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) note that children under age two should not wear face masks, since they can pose dangers of choking. But it is possible to help children older than two to use face masks appropriately and, as importantly, to understand why they are wearing a mask.<br />
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Young children can understand simple explanations that lots of people have been getting sick and that wearing a mask is a helpful way to keep everyone healthy. Little kids love to be helpers and this kind of language should appeal to them. Slightly older children may understand the idea of germs and that masks help keep germs away from them and from other people too.<br />
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It is not just young children who may need extra support and guidance around mask wearing. Children who have sensory sensitivities may be unable to tolerate mask wearing, especially for an extended time. Trying different kinds of masks, using clear face shields that provide some barrier while not closely covering the mouth and nose, and practicing mask wearing to build up additional tolerance may all help.<br />
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Other ways parents can help children become comfortable with wearing a mask, as suggested by the AAP, include:<br />
<ul>
<li>Look in the mirror with the face coverings on and talk about it.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Put a cloth face covering on a favorite stuffed animal.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Decorate them so they're more personalized and fun.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Show your child pictures of other children wearing them.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Draw one on their favorite book character.</li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKp8fSSRZDR4v5oh9Ji6aGGWgxj7qMVyVvjGI7uUxhPnYP15rapjvm6PO_ptrc87aFVQDYBojUhZe8rweRya_yiSj7IwPHlfzdn5eR6NHcBuRSySNSYUi_T8bpSy-hf5plC7Hq4sKPYF8H/s1600/IMG_2497.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1216" data-original-width="891" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKp8fSSRZDR4v5oh9Ji6aGGWgxj7qMVyVvjGI7uUxhPnYP15rapjvm6PO_ptrc87aFVQDYBojUhZe8rweRya_yiSj7IwPHlfzdn5eR6NHcBuRSySNSYUi_T8bpSy-hf5plC7Hq4sKPYF8H/s200/IMG_2497.jpg" width="146" /></a></div>
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In addition to the ideas noted above, the most effective way to teach
your child the importance of mask wearing, as it is with most things, is
to model the behavior yourself. If parents are matter of fact about the
need to wear a mask outside the house where social distancing isn't
guaranteed, their children, even preschoolers, will be more likely to
accept mask wearing as something they need to do, like wearing shoes or a
jacket. There may be some resistance, but compliance will be far
easier.<br />
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Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Educationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14275796096631495341noreply@blogger.com0