Sing this song to the tune of Jolly Old St. Nicholas and use hand gestures. It’s a lot of fun and children learn the meanings of the punctuation symbols very quickly. As you know, singing is one of the best ways to store information in a child’s long term memory. The brain remembers in patterns and when we sing, we are using musical patterns and rhymes. Perfect!

[Read more →]

Kids are relying on Google as their memory. Not a good idea! The brain needs to be taught to memorize by using memory exercises and learning to memorize poetry and math facts. Memory is important in building relationships, establishing recognition of patterns, people and events, and then the brain transforms this information to problem solve. Kids who practice memorizing favorite poems may [Read more →]

Today I decided to share the many uses for graph paper in teaching math. It’s a unique and effective tool for making learning math much easier.

Use 1/2″ graph paper to keep those pesky numbers in the correct columns when adding or subtracting, or multiplying and dividing. I can’t emphasize the importance of graph paper, especially the large squares.  It’s extremely effective for visual learners who must
[Read more →]