Motivated by the promise he made to himself as a fatherless child to never abandon his own children, the two spent almost a year moving among shelters, "HO-tels," soup lines, and even sleeping in the public restroom of a subway station. Never giving in to despair, Gardner made an astonishing transformation from being part of the city's invisible poor to being a powerful player in its financial district. More than a memoir of Gardner's financial success, this is the story of a man who breaks his own family's cycle of men abandoning their children. Mythic, triumphant, and unstintingly honest, The Pursuit of Happyness conjures heroes like Horatio Alger and Antwone Fisher, and appeals to the very essence of the American Dream.
The Creative Classroom by Mitchell Lopate, M.A.T. = Academic humanities advising-mentoring, tutoring, writing support: "Fluid Learning." Two decades of college & university and middle-elementary education in-class/online with a B.A. in psychology and a masters in education. Cross-curriculum humanities concepts, career counseling, MBA instruction, composition and research methods, and values, ethics, and writing. mitchLOP8@yahoo.com / 840-216*1014
Wednesday, March 13, 2024
The Pursuit of Happyness: Believing in your dreams and goals
Motivated by the promise he made to himself as a fatherless child to never abandon his own children, the two spent almost a year moving among shelters, "HO-tels," soup lines, and even sleeping in the public restroom of a subway station. Never giving in to despair, Gardner made an astonishing transformation from being part of the city's invisible poor to being a powerful player in its financial district. More than a memoir of Gardner's financial success, this is the story of a man who breaks his own family's cycle of men abandoning their children. Mythic, triumphant, and unstintingly honest, The Pursuit of Happyness conjures heroes like Horatio Alger and Antwone Fisher, and appeals to the very essence of the American Dream.
Thursday, March 7, 2024
The Beatles: Their social, political, economic, historical, and business impact on the world
- A charismatic event of the modern era. "More popular than Jesus."
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Wednesday, February 28, 2024
Emily Warren Roebling - Bridge builder Extraordinaire
Sunday, February 25, 2024
ADHD Learning Styles for children
Thanks to https://edgefoundation.org/2017/01/08/how-to-create-better-learning-experiences-for-adhd-students-by-understanding-learning-styles/
As they grow and develop, children depend on all of their senses to learn. However, researchers have long understood that a child learns better with one sense over the others. This is the child’s preferred learning style. The VAK learning model, developed in the 1920’s, identifies 3 primary learning styles – auditory, visual and kinesthetic. Understanding a child’s learning style can help parents and teachers create more effective and engaging learning experiences, especially for students with ADHD.
Auditory learners learn best through talking and listening, visual learners do best with spatially organized information, kinesthetic or "hands-on learners" thrive when they are in experiential settings. No learning style is ”better” or ”worse” than the others, but learning experiences that take a child’s preferred style into account will optimally support his or her educational process. Not only that, learning experiences tend to be more engaging and hold a student’s attention better when presented with their preferred learning style in mind. This can be instrumental in helping ADHD students focus on their material.
In addition to general accommodations in the classroom for learners with ADHD, there are specific things teachers and parents can do that cater to the preferred learning style of these kids.
Below are some examples for each learning style.
- Auditory Learners
These children learn best by hearing things explained. They are highly attuned to voice tone, speed, volume, and inflection. Ways to make their learning experiences more engaging include:
Studying with a buddy that they can talk to and bounce ideas off of
Recording lectures and notes in the classroom when possible
Using flashcards and reading the information aloud
Having the right level and type of auditory background when studying or learning
- Visual Learners
Visual learners respond best to things they can see in a form that makes it easy to recall and understand. Ideas to help leverage this preferred learning style include:
Having information presented in charts, maps, diagrams or other visual displays
Taking written notes that include diagrams to organize the information
Using flashcards as a visual cue to help retain information
- Kinesthetic Learners
Kinesthetic learners are attracted to learning activities that involve action, movement, and hands-on experimentation. Tools that help them in the classroom and at home include:
Giving them the opportunity to engage in physical activities after school
Allowing to non-disruptive activities in the classroom to help them retain information, such as using a stress ball, doodling or tapping a hand or foot
Allowing the child to take breaks, stand, change positions and move around while learning
Using role play as part of a learning experience when possible
Knowing a child’s learning style can make a big difference in their success at school. To help discover those learning styles, therapist and ADHD coach Rory Stern, PsyD., recommends that parents and teachers take time to observe and evaluate what senses a child relies on most when learning. Once parents and teachers understand the way a child learns, teaching methods can be adjusted to make learning experiences more engaging and effective.
Friday, February 23, 2024
Sunday, February 18, 2024
My MBA introduction video
Just a link to a video that I share with my MBA students before class begins; I send this out at least three weeks ahead because it encourages their effort.
To my students: apologies for length--this is 25 minutes. That's because there's a lot to cover for a 6-week class--and I do not micro-manage. I let you go at your own pace, including deadlines that work for you. My suggestions for the video: take notes. Do @12 minutes, then STOP. Take a break. THEN go back and finish the 2nd portion. I know mentally that an audience shuts off after 15 minutes. And it takes time to process information this intense--including my personality.
I also have that New York style of speaking a bit faster at times. Sorry--I have been working on it for years. That's one way I overcame stage fright and learned to do public speaking--and stand-up comedy. Oh yeah--I do it on education: both yours and mine. LOL
Wednesday, February 14, 2024
Indigo (and Crystal) Children are Different Learners for the 21st Century
(Dedicated to Morgan and Angela, in Boaz, AL, and to Ayla from Boston.)
This is more of a social commentary, but it is deeply relevant to issues in education and teaching.
It is time to talk more about Indigo Children...and perhaps later, Indigo Adults. Yes, we are real, we are here, and we (as adults) have been walking on this world for many years. As Time itself becomes more and more significant regarding socio-economic, political, and geo-physical changes on Earth, it is more important than ever that we are recognized as being DIFFERENT in our values, our sensitivities, and our purpose for knowing what and why we are here to teach and share information.
From http://www.halexandria.org/dward035.htm
Variously called the Indigo and Violet children, the Children of Oz, or the Sun Eyed Children of the Marvelous Dawn, this generation of young people seems to be a new species of humanity arising on Earth today. They think differently, their emotional bodies process feelings differently, their energy bodies are capable of holding stronger soul vibrations, and they have a new vision to share. They do not fit into mainstream society. Many of them appear to have special psychic and healing abilities, and [they] need special support to control and develop these gifts.
The Indigo children generally seem to range in age from the teens into the thirties, while the Violet children are younger, and carry a different mandate. Some of you reading this comprise the Indigo generation, and you are birthing a new species of kids. The Violet kids do not need to read any of this to know what’s real. They are linked mind to mind in a global psychic link-up that reflects a new fifth-dimensional morphogenetic grid on Earth. As with the hundredth monkey phenomenon [1] they are the first to step into what Sri Aurobindo envisioned as “supramental consciousness”, which will eventually become available to the rest of us also, if we choose it.
There is a new “root race” forming on Earth! Perhaps some of you reading this are being called to provide emotional support, or to provide guidance in “training” them, or to provide safe havens for them to come together, or to support their mission by attuning with them through their global mind-link.
Richard Giles, using the perspective of Astrology has his own take on the Indigo Children.
“Among other attributes, the children relate easily to the rush of images of modern movies and communications and have no trouble understanding everything -- their information processing abilities sometimes breathtaking. They are very sensitive children in tune with the pace of technological and future change, have few self-worth issues, absolutely no fear of authority, frustrated by systems that are non-creative and ritual oriented, and they want to do things in new and better ways. They sometimes seem antisocial, and do not respond to guilt-inducing discipline techniques in school or at home. [emphasis added]
“Many of these children are gifted souls. They combine the weird, inventive and futuristic energies of Uranus with the inspirational energies of Neptune. They have all sorts of patterns by which their behaviors are indicated - probably the most obvious is what we call ADHD or ADD. However, they ought not be diagnosed as hyperactive, dyslexic and suffering from neurological disorders. The astrologer Donna Cunningham in her excellent article entitled The Ritalin Generation, describes them as children who may be ‘wired’ differently from the rest of us. She suggests that rather than having ADD and being described as hyperactive, it is more likely the previous generations (the rest of us) are to be considered hypoactive by comparison (Mountain Astrologer, April/May 2001).
“The children elected as ‘Indigo’ by authors Carroll and Tober, in their book, The Indigo Children [Hay House, 1999] may be the ones who can best adjust to the future as it’s forming now with its vast high tech and mind-expanding possibilities. Only they have a nervous system wired for the immense unfolding of the next few decades, processing and acting upon astoundingly large amounts of information in very short spaces of time. This is why the new movie and TV advertisements don’t leave them mind-staggered like they do many of us. The Indigo Children can be described as creative, independent, brilliant and self-governing. Unfortunately, it also means they do not fit in with today’s education systems which to many of these children, seem as unfulfilling as a discarded old piece of rag and as frustratingly slow as can be with non-responsive, entrenched authoritarianism.
“Many then are seen as difficult and overactive and are drugged out with Ritalin, etc., and other pharmaceutical prescriptions to keep them limited to the older standards. Give them enlightened teachers who don’t have issues with authority themselves and they will thrive. Lock their minds up and they will rebel or refuse to cooperate and drop out.
“Identifying this combination child is the first step (not all born from 1988 have every characteristic). Cooperating with them is next. They will inherit the environmental predicament made by today’s leaders as their big issue being called upon to resolve it. They need support, understanding, creativeness and patience.”