Disjointed: Funny in Television, Not Funny in School
Old timers will remember the hugely popular radio and TV show, “Children Say the Darndest Things.”
The host, the kindly Art Linkletter, interviewed one child after another. The humor results from the disjoint between children’s and adult’s thinking and their very different interpretation of words and phrases. In other words, the humor comes from the children [...]
Tutoring + Coaching, Better Than Tutoring Alone
Tutoring is good and Coaching is good, but Tutoring / Coaching is best. Here’s why.
Tutors usually teach, or re-teach, content. Examples include how to regroup when subtracting and how to remember the amendments to the Constitution for a test on Friday. Whenever possible, a good tutor will also attempt to make the content relevant, by [...]
Geometry Proofs: Junk or Gems?
Are geometry proofs Junk or Gems?
The answer is both.
High school students taking geometry, including the new NYS Regents Geometry Course, will be doing lots of geometry proofs.
“When will I ever use this junk?” will almost certainly cross their minds.
The answer is “probably never,” which clearly favors the “junk” designation in the title.
Then why make kids [...]
Stop Turning Kids Off to Learning—HW Answers Don’t Always Need Full Sentences
Here is a primer on how to take fascinating subjects—that we adults are passionate about—and make them deadly dull for schoolchildren.
Assign a large number of homework questions and make children answer them in full sentences.
Full sentences? Toward what end?
Let’s say the homework question is: What is the capital city of Sweden, and, what popular singing [...]
Bring Back Imagination in Children
“Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.”
These are our sentiments, but not our words; they belong to Albert Einstein.
If the words speak the truth, then why has imagination been allowed to slip so far down in the educational scheme of things?
We feel strongly that the time is right for an [...]
Why You Can’t Leave Creative Thinking Up to the Schools
Don’t leave your children’s creative thinking up to schools and teachers; they can’t handle it.
This is not to put down teachers or schools, but it is a fact of life. Think about it; there are 25+ children in the classroom, each with lots of needs and each vying for the teacher’s attention. Add to that [...]
What do pies have to do with math?
“What do pies have to do with math? I looked up ‘pie’ in the math book and couldn’t find it.” This was a frazzled parent talking. It sounds like a cute math joke, but it’s true.
The word is spelled pi. It is a cute Greek letter that stands for a number a little bigger than [...]
Geometry Proofs Made Easy
Remember geometry proofs? For many students, they are the basis of recurring nightmares.
Here is good news; they don’t have to be. Just do them as if you were telling a story.
Huh?
Bear with me. If you were telling a story about your trip to a beach, is there any way you would mess things up like: [...]
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