LaurenWelle.com

On TED.com there is a speaker whose talk was recently published with a focus on education of children.  His name is Sugata Mitra and he has devoted a greater part of his life to education research.

In 1999, he and his colleagues developed an experiment where children were left unsupervised and he noted how they were able to teach each other and others.  This was started in New Delhi and replicated in other parts of rural and urban India.

Of course we are not advocating that teachers be removed from the classroom but rather reflect on the marvel of kids and the some of the ways they are able to learn and teach others.  Quite thought provoking isn’t it?

hildren who have an articulation delay have difficulty pronouncing age appropriate sounds. Listed below are a few easy and successful suggestions that you can do at home. In class, I have found my students have fun with these activities and do not realize that I am actually working with them on something that is challenging.

1) Buy small plastic trinkets that start with the letter you are trying to address. For example, if you are targeting the letter “B” you should buy items such as a ball, bat, bear, bike, and bee. Often, the dollar store has an array of these items. I would buy 7 or more of these items. Put the items in a bag and have your child reach in and feel around. Have them guess what they are feeling. When they pull the item out, help them identify the object and produce the targeted beginning sound. Your child might have difficulty. Make sure to give gentle reminders and repeat the sound twice per object.

2) Place pictures that start with the targeted sound on the ground. Spread them out and have your child throw a bean bag onto each card. Have them identify each picture and assist them in producing the sound. This is a good language and gross motor activity.

3) Place cards that begin with the targeted sound on blocks. Give your child a ball and have them bowl to knock down each block and produce the sound.

Therapeutic horseback riding has been proven to be extremely beneficial for children with special needs. Children have an opportunity to improve their physical capabilities, cognition, social skills and emotional well-being. Participants even experience increased confidence and develop a better self-concept.

Horseback riding requires flexibility, balance and posture. The horses movement causes the rider to use their core muscles which often improves strength throughout the body and their upright position. Muscles that benefit from riding include the back, buttocks, ankles, knees and hips. This is beneficial for those who have low muscle-tone. Those with high muscle-tone work on relaxing their muscles and moving with the gait of the horse.

Horseback riding also provides a unique opportunity for children to communicate with the horse and those involved with instruction. The participant often forms a relationship with the horse. This is especially beneficial for those with emotional or social disabilities. The animal shows love, loyalty and trust in the rider. Children feel in control when riding a horse and it helps to empower them. They also learn how to care for a horse, giving them responsibility.

Riding requires attention, memory and reasoning skills. The child is asked to interpret sensory information that they receive from riding including the motion, smell, feel, sound and sight of the horse. They are also interpreting information from the surrounding environment and the instructor leading to intellectual stimulation.

If you are interested in more information, check out the web-page for The North American Riding for the Handicapped Association.

There is contact information for Therapeutic Horseback Riding in the area under Resources.

Children between the ages of 2 and 3 experience a tremendous growth spurt in their language skills. By the age of 2 most children can follow simple commands and their vocabulary expands. Many children also begin to echo what they hear and begin to combine words in simple phrases.

By the age of 3, the child’s vocabulary is typically between 900-1000 words and they begin to string words together in short sentences.Children at this stage of language development start to speak more clearly and they are usually able to use language to engage in a simple question and answer format.

Reading books, singing, playing word games and talking to your child will increase their vocabulary while providing increased opportunities for listening activities.

Remember to talk to your child about daily events. Before bed, ask your child what they did during the day. If the child is having difficulty, start the sentence out for them or give them clues describing the event. Read your child’s favorite book several times and encourage them to identify objects and actions in the book.

Below is a list of typical communication skills for children who are between the ages of 2 and 3.

Children who are 2 years old should be able to:

Use at least 2 prepositions ( on, under and in)

Produce intelligible speech 2/3 of the time

Produce short sentences and combine words

Have a vocabulary of about 150-300 words

Name common objects

Use two pronouns correctly (I, me, and you)

Responds to simple familiar commands such as “show me your mouth”

Children who are 3 years old should be able to:

Use some plurals and past tenses

Understand at least 3 prepositions (in, on and under)

Use pronouns correctly (I, you and me)

Point to body parts (head, nose, mouth, hair, eyes)

Use 900-1000 words

Produce intelligible speech 90% of the time

Produce 3 word sentences

Understand simple questions and commands that are familiar

Answer simple questions beginning with “what”

Say their name, age and sex

A common challenge that I see in my class is the student’s inability to read social cues. Most often, this causes them to have difficulty forming successful relationships with other peers in the classroom. Communication between peers is important at this age and lays the groundwork for future relationships.

Children with language processing disorders often have a hard time understanding what others are saying vebally or what they mean to say through body language or facial expressions. There are three elements of social interaction; social intake, internal process and social output.

Social Intake involves the child’s ability to read social cues. These children have difficulty reading facial expressions, misinterpreting the meaning of vocal pitch, and the understanding of personal space.

Children who are able to read social cues must also process the information and decide what action to take. Internal process includes the ability to monitor feelings. If the child misinterprets another’s words this may lead to an inaccurate solution.

After a child interpets the social cue, he/she must respond. This is a difficult task to do appropriately if the child does not understand the cue and does not process the information correctly. Social output involves the action that the child must make.

It is easy to get frustrated in these situation. There are activities to do at home to help your child interact appropriately with peers which in turn will build confidence.

Model appropriate behavior when you interact with others, especially your child. This can be done in natural situations, during check out at the grocery store or during contrived situations. Set up opportunities throughout the day.

Role play with you child. Set up situations where there is an opportunity to exchange information with them. Guide them along the way and explain proper responses to facial cues and expressions. “When a person is mad they frown”. Ask the child how they would respond.

Promote generalization. Once a child has learned how to take turns during a game at home, teach them how to wait in line at the store.

Reading social cues takes time. Remember to be patient and offer positive praise.