Teaching - What works!

I know what works. I have used an approach in my classroom and now that same approach is being used in 1000s of locations nationwide.

My approach is based on how kids learn.

Think about how kids really learn. I mean really learn. Watch any baby learn to speak. First the child begins to babble, and then the child begins to form some recognizable word. The parent gets so excited. The child then makes the connection between the word and the object.

 OK.. so what's the big deal!

Well it isn’t happening in most classrooms around the country.  We may talk the talk, but hardly happening.  Kids need to be engaged or immersed in the learning process. In the case of the baby, he was hearing language all around him. He was immersed in the language. The person speaking has knowledge of the content, in this case the English language, so the child is learning English. The final step is to intervene with positive reinforcement.  Otherwise, the baby would just continue to babble and have no clue he was actually saying words that had meaning.

OMG…so simple.  It works. Immerse children in the learning process, so they see a reason for what they are learning, have high expectations, lead them to achieve success, praise them for their accomplishments.

These steps are the basis of the Imagine Tomorrow Approach being used in the Puterbugs Literacy based Technology program.  Our teachers are all trained and certified on how to implement the Imagine Tomorrow Approach.  Many have told me that the same techniques work for their own children at home.

Training doesn’t end with the Imagine Tomorrow Certification.  Our teachers are not left on their own in an isolated classroom.  Our network of teachers share best practices and receive on-going mentoring and support through our proprietary online system.  

Steps for successful Teaching:

1.      High expectations for each child

2.      Knowledgeable teachers who love what they are doing

3.      Make learning meaningful and challenging

4.      Positive feedback

5.      Mentor and support teachers

We see the results from around the country.  The Imagine Tomorrow Approach works!

Imagine Tomorrow...Today!

The name of the company I founded, after resigning from teaching, is Imagine Tomorrow.  The mission of the company is to have a postive impact on the lives of children, while preparing them for their future.  The tool I use is technology, the most powerful tool for learning.

I was imagining tomorrow when I  opened the first Computer Learning Center in 1991 and this is what I imagined:

I imagined a place where children would come and there would be high expectations and respect for every child

I imagined a place where children would have so much fun while learning, because that is how children learn 

I imagined a place where the youngest of children would get to use the latest and coolest technology, not just to play games, but for learning, creative self expression and problem solving.  Kids who understand the power of technology will be the ones who will be successful in school and in life.

What I only could have imagined in 1991 is more than a reality today, being the largest provider of computer classes in the United States.   Today when I imagine tomorrow, I envision the content we develop, Discovery Kids Puterbugs, being used by millions of children worldwide.

Put down that Book - Pick up Technology

Have you ever told your child NOT to read a book or he can only read no more than 25 minutes a day?  Yet same remarks are being placed on kids using technology.

How about all those expert?  I haven’t been able to find one study that shows that kids who sit to read books are anti-social, can’t communicate with peers, less creative and will lead to childhood obesity.   Sounds absurd!  Yet it would be true, if kids found reading a book as engaging as using technology.

What is more isolating than watching a child sitting by himself reading a book?  How many times have you ever heard a kid telling another kid to get this great book?  Rarely!  I know moms this summer are not limiting their child’s reading time, but they are trying all kinds of bribes to get their kids to read. 

Yet they have the tool right at their fingertips.

Parents will hand their kids computers, tablets, smart phones for the purpose of playing games.  Then we have all these “experts” chiming in on how bad technology is for our kids, yet when used properly it is the best learning tool we have.

It doesn’t have to be a struggle to get your child to read.  Your kid is part of the digital generation and will read what is interesting.    Using technology is fun and kids really are naturally inquisitive.   Check out Shark Week on Discovery Website - http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/shark-week/.  Have your child watch the videos and read about sharks. Yes! Watch the videos and listen to the audio.  Really amazing what is at our fingertips and how much we can learn.  Reading and Listening Comprehension are literacy skills kids need to be successful learners.  For younger children, be sure to practice at www.discoverykids.com/puterbugs for the most innovative Shark Week learning experience for your kids! 
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Kids are putting down their book, but picking up technology.   Just as we nag our kids to read a book, when you hand over technology to your kid, do it with a purpose.  A quote from a child from one of our computer classes, “This is almost like learning.”  

Teach our Kids to Think

I heard that Suri Cruise will be attending a private school that costs about  $40,000 a year.  It made me stop to wonder about my own grandkids and other children: Will they be able to compete with kids whose parents who spend this much money on their child's school?  Then I realized, it was always that way.  People send their kids to exclusive private schools for many reasons:  for security from paparazzi and other crazy people, for a better education, or to meet and mingle with the “right” network of people. 

Most of us are not in this league -- so what can the rest of us do?  Teach our kids to THINK!
And expose them to the healthy uses of technology – not to play games but to use it as a tool for learning new things, creative expression, and solving problems.  

Technology levels the playing field.

When you hand over your computer to your young child for the first time, watch how he is mesmerized by it. It is such an engaging tool with such potential to unlock your child's genius, but only if used properly.  Teach your child to respect it: Show your child how to tap on the keys. When showing your child how to use the mouse, have him put his hand on top of yours.  He will think he is in control of the mouse. This is so empowering.

Bring up paint program. Have your child create and explore using the different graphic tools. Be specific when talking about your child’s creative picture such as, " I love how you painted the sky green."  Watch your child beam. He will want to continue to create new things and share it with you. 

Let's say your child wants to print his picture. Don’t just tell him, "click here," pointing to the printer icon.  Instead, ask your child, “What do you think you should click?”  If he doesn’t see the printer icon, give clues until he finds it for himself.   Even though it is so much easier to just do it for him, you are teaching your child to THINK and that he can solve problems.

After it is printed, display it, share it with grandma - make a big deal out of your child's creation.  Sounds so simple, yet it is critical for young children to believe he can do anything if he tries.

You are building the foundation for your child  to be a creative thinker.  No matter what he does in the future, there is no doubt he will be using technology and will need to be able to THINK critically and use creative solutions to solve problems.   

You have the power to give your child the skills she'll need to compete in the world tomorrow, not matter how much you spend on her education.

Will your child design her own brand someday?

Tapping into your child’s creative potential is more important than you may think.

Years ago I went to my first Licensing Show. All the big named brands were there, Disney, Nick, Mattel, Discovery. What I realized is they weren’t there selling merchandise, but rather they were licensing their brand. A few days ago, my daughter, Laura, and I went to the 2012 International Licensing Show in Vegas. Instead of just walking around as an observer, we finally went as participants – we had scheduled meetings throughout the days for our brand, Discovery Kids Puterbugs.

As an educator turned entrepreneur, I keep on thinking of today’s kids: Laura and I wondered -- what are we doing to inspire them to reach their creative potential?

Then as I was sitting on Laura’s patio overlooking the Rocky Mountains, her neighbor drove up on her 4 wheeler and without realizing it, presented us with a perfect example. She asked me if I wanted to see her daughter’s song. I just assumed she was going to pull out a piece of paper with the song. Instead, she whipped out her phone and showed me the video of her ten year old daughter, Isabella, singing “Mountain Girl”. She created it when her mom turned off the TV and told her to go doodle.

I thought to myself - this mom gets it. A simple directive to go do something instead of sitting and being passive can have such a positive impact on your child. The mom was equally as pleased, saying, “If I never told my daughter to get up and do something, she would have sat in front of the TV for hours. Now I have a beautiful song.”

By encouraging our kids to be creative is crucial for developing their creative genius. As a parent, prompt them and then praise their creativity. Their own creative work is an extension of their being. Some children are embarrassed to display their creative side because it is a risk. When they put their thoughts and creative side out there, someone may criticize it, and that’s a direct reflection of them. Whether it’s artwork, a song, a book -- it is so important that they should hear you telling others about their creation. Wait until Isabella hears from me how great it was to have her mom show us the video. That will make her shine with confidence. On the flipside, one negative comment will crush them and will take a lot for them to ever share something creative.

It is the kids who think creatively who will one day have their OWN brand at the Licensing Show. What will you be doing today to prompt your child’s creative side?

Is Your Child At Risk?

No not my child...

We live in a nice house in a great neighborhood. My kids go to "good" schools and get good grades. They have all the latest gadgets. They know how to use my laptop, smart phone to access the latest apps, play video games and they have figured it out all by themselves.

Exactly! No one, probably not you, not their teachers, ever explained to them the risks of using this technology. Do you know according to a study by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that 1 in 5 youths online face invitations to engage in cybersex or receive other risque solicitations?

Sen. Judd Gregg, chairman of a Senate Appropriations subcommittee that funded the study said that, "If your child is using the Internet, it is very likely that your child has been solicited for activity of a sexual manner."

Wow! scary.

The report also went on to say that few of the children ever reported the incidents to authorities or even to their parents. The biggest surprise to me was that the profile of the typical sexual solicitor was a teen. Yikes, and you know how much kids are influenced with peer pressure.

WHAT'S A PARENT TO DO?
 START YOUNG!!! and follow this motto:  Expect + Respect = Success

Expectation
Before you hand your kids that cool technology make sure you set expectations of how and when it should be used.   Think about it.  Would you send your young child to play in a park without any rules or adult supervision?  Would you give your older child keys to the car just because he figured out how to drive?  Of course not, and it must be the same with technology.  

It is fun for young kids to IM and add smiley faces to grandma but this is a great time to start setting expectations.  Let your child  know you expect that he will only IM with some one he knows.  As your child gets older, he/she will text and most likely will have a facebook page.  Your child from a very young age must be told over and over again your expectations for posting and texting. 

Respect
Make sure your kids are taught at an early age to respect technology from the first time they grab your smart phone or tap the keyboard.  Respect for technology isn't natural to kids. It must be taught even though they are clicking and swiping faster than most adults.

Success
Setting high expectations and respect when using technology, kids will less likely be the victims of predators and more likely be the ones who will use it as a powerful tool for learning, self-expression and communication.

Technology is here to stay. Don't put your head in the sand and think by not letting your child use it, that's the solution,.  Believe me..It's way to cool and they are going to get their hands on it.

So ...What are you doing to prevent your child from being one of those kids who are at risk?

Tear Down the Walls

Imagine a School without Walls

It was 1968, I had just graduated from college, and I was ready to shake up the world. I heard about this new approach to teaching being used in Britain called “Open Classroom.” The more I read about it, the more natural it seemed to me. It was kid centric--children actively involved in the learning process. Schools would take down walls between the classrooms and kids would be learning in hands-on small group instruction, instead of a teacher standing in front of room teaching all the kids the same thing at the same time. I embraced the Open Classroom approach and even had the opportunity to teach in the environment. The problem – teachers in my district were not properly trained and many resisted the change. It was considered another teaching “fad” and within a few years the walls went back up.

Today I hear the same thing that was said when we returned to our isolated classrooms in the early 70’s. We need to get back to basics. Our schools are failing. Kids aren’t learning. But today it is so different. Huge changes to education are possible--without physically taking down walls--so kids can learn at their own pace.

How? Technology!

Technology is not going away, and it isn’t a fad!  We do face challenges when trying to change a mindset of educators who see themselves as the deliverers of all information and expect students to give back same information on a test and parents who think their kids are computer savvy just because they can play video games.    

Let’s not lose a generation of kids! For years, I have seen the positive results of using technology with young children, and I keep imagining a tomorrow in which all children will have access to technology, the best learning tool we have.

Should a Test Detemine a Child's Future?

Our Kids Deserve Better!

I recently went to a local Education and Technology Conference in the NY area, hoping to hear about exciting new things going on in the field.  But I was disappointed to find the latest things being discussed there were smart boards, and a program to track students' grades and their interests... Really!?

I am OK with them discussing the pros of using smart boards, but this is not new or very exciting to me.   The presenter then went on to describe this tracking system being used throughout this large district in the city.  I couldn't believe what I was watching and hearing.  She pulled up on the screen  a  profile of a 6th grade girl.  She explained how the testing can identify the child's interest and how they would encourage the child to follow a particular path based on this test.   Since this girl showed an interest in drawing, they would encourage her to take art classes and that she should follow a career path that had an art focus.  Perhaps work at an Art Museum was one option.   

First of all she is in 6^th grade.  Do you know how many 6th grade girls like to draw and doodle?   Second, why wouldn’t they suggest a math or science career?  We sure do need creative people in those fields.  It is the people who can think outside the box who will come up with the new cure for diseases or new energy sources.  Sadly, they are relying on testing to determine a child’s future without giving the child the proper guidance.

This really hit home for me.  Many, many years ago when I started high school, I was placed in a vocation track instead of the academic track, which would enable me to go to college.  It was probably based on the entrance exam without ever looking to find that I had graduated at the top of the class.  I was told that the classes I needed to be a teacher were too difficult for me.  I didn’t believe them, and I made sure I took those “difficult” classes.  I went on to college, finished in 3 years, but I often think about other kids who did believe what they were told, and as a result never achieved their full potential. 

It is so crucial to have high expectations for every child and not to set limitations--based on a test, a label, or other judgement.  They are our future-- Our kids deserve better!

Standardized Testing

It's that time of  year again... 

Kids are spending precious school hours prepping for those dreadful standardized tests.  Parents are anxiously waiting for the results.  When I was a mom with school age children, I know centuries ago, we didn't have facebook, twitter... but we did have phones.  As soon as we would receive the results, our phone would start ringing.  Anxious moms would ask me how my daughters did.  Their child either did horribly or was a genius--all based on that one test.  My response was always the same, year after year.  "My girls did exactly how I expected."   Period.

My girls never even knew their test scores.  I would take the results of the test, glance at them, and put them in a drawer.  Really! One test and your child is a genius, the smartest kid in the school? Or the dumbest?  It's only ONE TEST!  I can tell you now, one of my girls did horribly on the math section of a standardized test.   Had I told her or even mentioned it to anyone, or had she overheard me, she may have believed she wasn't good in math.  She was so quick in math!  There was no way that test was a reflection of what she knew.  Kids believe what others say about them.  Think about it: A standardized test is only one small snapshot of your child.  Your child may have had a bad day, or skipped one of those silly little boxes which then screwed up all the answers.

My advice:   Don't make a big deal when your child takes standardized tests, and especially do NOT post or discuss your child's scores on social media sites.   If your child is doing well all year, then expect he/she will have good results on the tests.  If your child has been struggling, then the teacher and you should have had a plan of action way before the standardized testing.  Tell your child like I did when you get the results.  "You did exactly how I expected and I'm proud of you for trying so hard!"  Then, move on... There's so much more to really learn!