Dr. Selznick calls these kids “Lego kids” because of their amazing spacial abilities. That describes Jordan, even at age 14 he loves to spend hours creating interesting things with his Legos and other building toys. Dr. Selznick suggests that there are 2 styles of Shut-Down Learners, I realized I have worked with both types. One of my homeschool co-op students is definitely a Style 1-disconnected, unmotivated and difficult, while Jordan is a Style 2-Pleasant and Terribly Insecure.

“The Shut-Down Learner” gives suggestions to parents and educators on how to help these students see their strengths and work on improving their weaknesses. I am incorporating some of the suggestions into this fall’s homeschool day.

Here are a few samples of De. Selznick’s advice:

1. Identify the “cracks in the foundation” as early as possible. Find a professional who knows the “red flags” to identify for early learning problems. So much heart-ache can be avoided if you address the skills weaknesses early.

2. If the cracks are widening, seek outside help if possible. Don’t be passive and wait for the schools to intervene. They may, but it’s often a long process. Many of the children I see are not bad enough to warrant the school’s intervention. It’s a negative snowballing effect. Use word of mouth in your community to find people who can intervene

3. Know the kind of reading problem you’re targeting.  There are essentially two types. In the first type the child has trouble decoding the words and reading fluently. This type is the largest majority of the struggling kids. In the second type, the child can read fluently, but has great trouble understanding what he/she has read. Get clear on what you are targeting!!!! Don’t scattershot your remediation.

4. Take the heat out of the interaction. For most of the struggling kids, the daily ritual of yelling about school is a constant. Households are tense. Lots of blame goes around. Pecking at your child, nagging and yelling are not working. Why continue?

5. Find the child’s true strength and help kid embrace it. The shut down learners that I know do not feel very good about themselves and they do not see their strengths. Most of these kids are very solid in the visual spatial dimension of ability. This is often not valued in school. The kids need to learn to value this trait and see it as a potential.

6. Find someone to connect and mentor your child in school. If your child is older, push the kid to have one adult in the building as child’s mentor. It should be someone that your kid can form a relationship with. Too often shut-down learners go through school not bonded to anyone. This is tragic.

7. Keep your humor. Try not to let school problems become all consuming. Go out for an ice cream sundae with your kid even if he hasn’t done his homework! School problems can be so all consuming – don’t lose touch with your kid’s good qualities.

Fortunately, the value of The Shut-Down Learner doesn’t end with advice. Dr. Selznick shows you how to apply this advice. With great sensitivity, he writes about several of the shut-down learners he has known. He shares their conversations and insights and shows how they didn’t let their learning problems and the rigidity of schools destroy their lives.

If you think your child may be a Shut-Down Learner I suggest you get the book and visit the website www.shutdownlearner.com, and get involved in helping your child succeed.

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In talking to my friends I have realized that no one is helping them choose the right college for their child. Even those in public schools with “guidence counselors” aren’t getting the support and information they need to make one of the most important and expensive decisions in their lives so far.

I have been doing some research and I have found some interesting online resources. Over the next few months I will be sharing them with you. I have not received anything from these sites though some of them have asked me to talk about them on my blog.  Some of these sites may see each other as a “competitor” but every family has different needs and different questions about preparing for and choosing a college. I am doing this as a service to you, my readers.

I hope you will find this series of articles helpful and please feel free to share them with your friends via Twitter, Facebook, e-mail, StumbleUpon, Propeller, Digg and any other way you like to share great information.

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As this school year winds to a close I have heard from several parents who are thinking of homeschooling their children. We are completing our 13th year of homeschooling and over that time I have helped several families weigh their options and get started.  I want to start out by saying homeschooling is not for everyone. Homeschooling is one of the biggest committments you will make as a parent.

The reasons families chose to homeschool are as varied as the families themselves. Many families homeschool because of religious reasons, special education issues or poor local school systems. We homeschool mainly for religious reasons but also because I was a public and private school teacher and I was appalled at the low educational expectations, lack of respect and discipline issues in our local schools.

Before diving in to homeschooling you need to make sure you are ready for the committment. Ask yourself these questions:

• Why do I want to homeschool my children?
• Do I have 4-6 hours a day to focus on my children and their education?
• Can I handle the added responsibility of being mom/wife/housekeeper/teacher ?
• Do I have a support system that believes in the benefits of homeschooling?
• Can we afford to homeschool? Each year we spend more and more money on homeschooling books, resources and activities.

Make sure you can answer these questions and then discuss them with your spouse. Your life will change when you begin to homeschool and you need to both be on the same page each step of the way. Once you are both united in this adventure it is time for you to do your research.

Homeschooling is legal in all 50 states, though the rules differ from state to state.  A great starting point for learning about your state’s regulations is HSLDA.org, the Home School Legal Defense Association is a wonderful organization of lawyers dedicated to the cause of homeschooling and the rights of parents who chose to legally homeschool their children. When you visit their site click on the tab “About Homeschooling” and start reading.

Next time we’ll look at the most asked question “Where do I get books?”

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