Jj is for Jottings 162. The Connection Between Literacy and Music.
There is a strong connection between literacy and music. Here, music includes learning a musical instrument and/or singing. It actually goes further: children who learn and practise music also have improved performance in executive function, arts and mathematics. (The core areas of executive function are working memory, inhibitory control, and selective attention.) Let’s go into why this is the case. Continue reading
Jj is for Jottings 159. Creativity in Children, Part 1.
Walk into any preschool/kindergarten and you see that they provide many opportunities for creativity in children. Why is that? Because arts and crafts are one of the most important ways to help children develop and grow between ages 3-8. Here is a chart of communication milestones as a point of reference. Creativity isn’t just about art and crafts, but they are major avenues for growth and development at these ages. Continue reading
Jj is for Jottings 154. How Smartphones Affect the Brain.
In this article we will cover some of the latest research on how smartphones affect the brain. We have previously discussed the effects of screen time on children. Amongst other aspects, this included language delay in children exposed to screens at an early age. We have also discussed the effects of digital distraction, which relates to a range of technological devices. Here we will look into the specific effects on the brain of smartphones, rather than screens in general. Continue reading
Jj is for Jottings 138. Brain Gym.
Brain gym is a series of movements which claim to enhance whole-brain learning. An alternative term is “educational kinesiology”. The word “education” comes from the Latin educare, which means “to draw out”. “Kinesiology” is from the Greek root kinesis, which means “motion” and is the study of the movement of the human body. Continue reading
Jj is for Jottings 137. Auditory Processing Disorders.
Following on from auditory skills and developing auditory processing skills, we now turn our attention to auditory processing disorders. There are so many conflicting ideas in the literature as to exactly what constitutes auditory skills. One could really become bogged down by this and therefore any resulting disorders. There is even disagreement as to whether it should be “auditory processing disorders” or “central auditory processing disorders.” I’ve decided to go with the thinking that “central” implies problems only at the brain level and consequently limits the definition.
Auditory processing disorders – attempting to prevent them is a good policy.
Jj is for Jottings 136. Developing Auditory Processing Skills.
Following on from the article on auditory skills, we turn to the topic of developing auditory processing skills. An article on communication milestones from 12 months to 5 years can be found here. But now we will explore the development of auditory processing skills in a little more detail.
One general way of developing auditory processing skills is to read to your children.
Jj is for Jottings 132. Direct Vocabulary Instruction.
When a child has poor vocabulary knowledge for their age, it indicates that they struggle to learn vocabulary from their written or spoken language experiences. They will then need direct vocabulary instruction to increase their chances of catching up with their peers.
It also makes sense to teach them strategies to help them learn new word meanings from their language experiences. These strategies involve teaching them to use morphological knowledge (see previous article) to work out meanings of more complex words, or to search for words that might provide clues to the meanings of other words in context. A combination of this broad, strategy-based approach and direct vocabulary instruction will provide the best results, according to recent research. And it aids not just vocabulary knowledge, but also reading comprehension.
Many children with poor language and reading skills will have only a nodding acquaintance with many word meanings. They can even be quite common, concrete words which you would expect them to know. These children can easily slip through the net. Parents and teachers may not observe that, although children may use a word, their knowledge of it is actually very limited. It’s not just a case of “he used that word so we can mentally tick it off as part of his vocabulary”. We need to be more vigilant than that.
Direct Vocabulary Instruction needed at this age? Probably not for a cria.
Jj is for Jottings 126. The Bossy ‘E’.
The bossy ‘e’ (sometimes called the magic ‘e’) appears so often in written language that it is worth revisiting in its own right. It is a classic case of “Give a man a fish and you will feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” Once you know the rule, you can unlock thousands of words. Continue reading
Jj is for Jottings 125. Nonsense Words.
Nonsense words are letter sequences which follow regular phonetic rules and are pronounceable, but which have no meaning. Examples are ‘bof’, ‘zim’, ‘chog’. They can also be called nonwords or pseudowords. There are stages in children’s development where nonsense words may play a part. These are: babbling, early reading, rhyming, and if they require assistance for speech sound development (speech therapy). All children babble, but children may not encounter nonsense words when learning to read or to rhyme. And many will not need speech therapy, or have access to it if they do.
Atticus is a FAN of nonsense words.
Jj is for Jottings 112. What is Neuroplasticity?
Just what is neuroplasticity? It is the term which describes a sequence of processes that take place in your brain in response to incoming stimuli. In other words, your emotions, behaviours, experiences and thoughts physically change the way your brain functions.
“What is neuroplasticity? I think it is – if I keep practising balancing, I’ll get better at it.”
