Every Wednesday, I’ll post about multiple intelligences so we can better understand children and why they do what they do. — Multiple intelligences is a strength-based way of looking at children, teens, and even adults. That’s one reason I enjoy teaching the Model. All of us are born with a capacity to develop all eight smarts. Although it’s never too late to awaken them, the earlier they’re awakened, the better. It’s a greater likelihood they’ll develop as strengths. Let me share four awakening strategies, in no particular order. We want to create “crystallizing experiences,” a term coined by Dr. Thomas Armstrong. These are turning points that spark the birth of an intelligence. Next Wednesday, I’ll share … [Read more...]
Old Skills Can Help With New Situations
January 30, 2012 by · Leave a Comment
Every Monday, I’ll post about discovering genuine hope and authentic answers for living a healthy life. — The next time you’re in a situation where you don’t know exactly what to do, look back. Chances are good that you have an old skill that may be relevant. We all have old skills. We may forget about them because of lack of use, but they’re there. We don’t forget them. Just about them. I’m not sure how young I was when I first shoveled snow with my dad, but I was young. My parents had lightweight shovels specifically so Dave and I could help. Unless the Milwaukee snow was the light-and-fluffy variety, Dad had to follow us with his heavy-duty shovel in order to get down to the cement. As we grew, Dave and I … [Read more...]
Logic Smart Kids May Struggle with Spelling
January 25, 2012 by · 4 Comments
Every Wednesday, I’ll post about multiple intelligences so we can better understand children and why they do what they do. — Do you know any children who struggle with spelling? I do. I also make spelling errors. Spelling can be confusing if we are logic smart because we think spelling “rules” should work. And, we think one combination of letters should have one sound. Right? Of course. That makes sense! Why don’t break and freak rhyme? Horse and worse? Cord and word? Cow and low? What about comb, tomb, and bomb? Doll and roll? Home and some? Paid and said? (Pay and say rhyme!) The English language is confusing so mistakes will be made. It’s not necessarily because children are not smart. It might be because of … [Read more...]
Multiple Intelligences: Being Intentional With Our Thankfulness (Part 1 of 2)
November 14, 2011 by · 3 Comments
Teaching about multiple intelligences is one of my favorite things to do. people are always encouraged – and that includes the moms who attended the recent Hearts At Home convention. Figuring out how children are smart benefits them and us in numerous ways – primarily because it can help them believe in their abilities to learn and they can choose to invest more energy in school/learning, therefore being more successful. What if we applied our understanding of how children are smart to the theme of gratitude since Thanksgiving is right around the corner? This can work for adults, too. Do you have someone to thank or are you grateful someone is in your life and you want to remind him or her? You can also use people’s smarts … [Read more...]
Halloween Costumes, Part 1
November 1, 2011 by · 3 Comments
Halloween Costumes, Part 1 (Please also read Part 2) Last night, thousands of children dressed up in Halloween costumes and pretended to be someone they’re not. A terrific Baby Blues cartoon in Sunday’s paper shows Zoe, dressed as a princess, and her younger brother, Hammie, dressed as a dragon. I only know that because they’re looking in a mirror and Hammie has become a dragon in his imagination. I thought his costume was a bug of some sort. Of course, in the mirror, Zoe’s dress was even more elaborate and she was riding a white horse perfect for a princess. Dressing up can be harmless and this type of imagination for Halloween is totally appropriate. Little girls can become princesses while dressed as one. Boys can … [Read more...]
Thankfulness Lifts the Exhausted Soul
October 27, 2011 by · 2 Comments
One of the most meaningful keepsakes in my shadow box is a card that accompanied flowers delivered to me on the last day of school back in 1980. It was my third year of teaching second graders and Paul was one of my students. His parents purchased the flowers as a thank you gift. The card reads, “Thank you for investing in our son, Paul. You have made a difference and we are grateful.” Thanking someone is a beautiful thing. Thankfulness lifts an exhausted soul. Gratitude is like oxygen to the lungs and clouds under tired feet. Gratitude can clear cobwebs from overwhelmed brains and calluses from hardened hearts. Thankfulness restores and heals. Paul’s parents went out of their way to notice my efforts and Paul’s progress … [Read more...]
Help Prevent Bullying: Overcome Being Overwhelmed
October 24, 2011 by · Leave a Comment
With many concerned parents and grandparents, I recently attended a community seminar about bullying. As you know if you saw my Facebook post, I was extremely disappointed that the panel members discussed coping with bullying rather than preventing it. Although it’s great to give parents suggestions for helping their children deal with bullies, why wasn’t preventing bullying included in the teaching? I also recently attended a seminar about a Christian worldview. The information was detailed, passionately delivered, compelling, and fascinating. During the four hours, my feelings vacillated among being concerned, fearful, angry, exhilarated, and overwhelmed. Listening and working to process it all was exhausting. I realized, anew, … [Read more...]
Making “New” Decisions
October 13, 2011 by · 1 Comment
I’m a person of habit. People who know me well are laughing right now. It’s an understatement, actually.At some restaurants, I don’t need to open the menu. I know what to order. Some of you think that’s sick, but it works for me. It wouldn’t work for you. That’s okay. I’ll take the same roads to the same place over and over again. Why try another way when I know what works? Not long ago, construction loomed ahead of my friend, Nancy, and me while we drove to the fitness center. We quickly turned to the right and made a left up ahead, making it to the center even though we went a different way. Guess what? It was a better way and we’ve used it ever since, even though the construction is long over. Sometimes I have to be … [Read more...]
People Have Purpose
October 10, 2011 by · 1 Comment
People Have Purpose Walking into the apartment, all I saw were walls covered in clothes. It was weird. They didn’t belong there.The apartment’s tiny closet didn’t have much room. So the first missionary who arrived made space for her clothes. She hung them over pictures, took pictures down and used nails for her hangers, and had even placed some outfits between a wall and a chair. She made an apartment into a closet and left the closet space for me.***In my office, almost staring down at me, is a black-and-white picture of my grandfather as a young man. Dressed in a fancy double-breasted, pin-striped suit, he’s standing at a podium giving an important speech. I like to think that I inherited at least some of my word-smart, … [Read more...]
“Pull With Your Back” – A Lesson in Security
October 3, 2011 by · Leave a Comment
“Pull with your back.” My initial reaction was disbelief. I heard myself wonder, “What?” but I was pretty sure I had just thought it and not actually asked it. Linda, my fitness trainer, repeated herself: “Pull with your back.” I’m not even very picture smart, but I laughed as I saw and imagined large hands coming out of my back to grab the handles. I told Linda what I had seen and she laughed, too. Because the piece of equipment we were using was designed to strengthen back muscles, Linda wanted me using those muscles, rather than my arms. You know what I discovered? Because of the trust I had in Linda, I knew it must be possible to actually pull with back muscles, even though my hands were on the handles and it … [Read more...]
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