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Teaching Tips February 1, 2010 |
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by Jerry Perron, Brain Workout Center, Centennial, CO www.BrainWorkoutCenter.com 
Let us begin with a semantic shift: in public education, teachers usually use the words “focus” in place of concentration, and when they on occasion ask for perseverance, it’s usually called “staying on task.” Perseverance and concentration are trainable, but don’t wait for the schools to do this; it‘s up to the parents. HOW? Read on.
You begin first by training self awareness in your children. Children need to know what they are doing or thinking at any given moment in order to become more focused and to stay on task. Parents train self awareness by asking their children questions: “What are you thinking about now? What is your hand doing? Your body? Are you being still? Did you tell your brain to do that?” Second, focus and staying on task require energy and effort. A parent can give feedback: “You were able to keep your body still (your eyes looking, your brain thinking) for 10 seconds. This next time see if you can do that for 15 seconds. Hooray, you did it!” Family games are also a fun way to build concentration and perseverance. Third, perseverance is what we call mental stamina. Our students very quickly learn to increase their mental stamina when they practice activities that require thinking while moving. [Kids are good at moving without thinking and without being self aware]. The Total Learning Manual from the Brain Workout Center (www.BrainWorkoutCenter.com) offers many of these cognitive motor activities. Cognitive physical activities help YOU and your child to actually NOTICE if your child is thinking or not. Students just naturally build their perseverance because the activities are fun and challenging. Fourth, concentration begins in the brain with the involvement of the Reticular Activating System. This system is engaged when the vestibular system is stimulated through spinning, balancing on a balance board, walking a beam and bouncing on a mini-tramp, all activities that are offered in the Total Learning Manual. Through cognitive motor activities, the brain re-programs itself. Through the mindful, purposeful repetition of physical activities, concentration and perseverance are trained. Last, I want to emphasize the role of will in discussing concentration and perseverance. You need to teach your children that effort and struggle are good things; they set us up for success AND build character. Marva Collins realized this when she opened a school for “unteachable” kids in a Chicago ghetto. The sign over her school’s entrance once read “I will is more important than IQ.” She meant that determination and struggle can overcome virtually any learning deficiency, and she proved it: her first and second graders were reading--and loving--Shakespeare, Marlow, and Goethe by third grade! Marva has since been proven right by neuroscientists around the world. 454 Words To view more 'Teaching Tips' Articles please 'Log In' and visit the 'Achives' page. |
