| Hello again! It's Governor II here, Mrs. Ellis is my pet parent. It's really beginning to look a lot like fall. There are a lot of exciting events in October. Do you remember this? "In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue." An exact replica of one of Columbus's ships was anchored in downtown Memphis at Beale Street Landing. My pet parents visited and told me all about it. Wow! What a small ship. What a lot of history! The picture at the top of the page is a replica of the Nina. October is also Dyslexia Awareness Month. Check out this site. http://www.dyslexia-reading-well.com/dyslexia-awareness-month.html |
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Hello- It's Governor II again. Wow! One month of school is already gone. Welcome to September. That means cooler weather is coming soon. What a welcome relief to a Shipoo that has as much fur as I do! I hope this school year has gotten off to a smooth start for all of you. Sometimes it is hard getting back into the swing of a new school year, but wasn't it great getting to see all of your friends?Don't forget to look for those new students and make them feel welcome. Invite someone new to sit with you at lunch or play with you at recess. Remember this advice: "To have friends, you must be a friend." Speaking of new beginnings,,,every new year brings new challenges. Don't be afraid to ask for help if you need help. Smart students know when they need help, and they ask for it. Smart students also know to get plenty of sleep and to be prepared for tests. Do not wait until the night before a test to begin studying. Fall will begin on September 21. Happy Fall Ya'll!!!! This is Governor II signing off for now. See you next month! Hi again. Governor II at your service. Wow!! I did not think that Spring would ever arrive! Don't get me wrong. I LOVE SNOW, but we didn't get much this year. All we had was rainy COLD weather. So...if we can't have snow, it may as well be spring. I am ready to roll!!! Spring here I come! What's happening in April? April is Autism Awareness Month. Isn't it wonderful that God created us all to be so different? Not one of us is like anyone else. We are our all individuals. This world is big enough for all of us, and God's love is limitless. When I think of spring happenings, Easter comes to mind. Easter always makes me glad that spring has finally arrived. Check out this fun link for Easter fun stories. https://www.embracinghome.com/easter-egg-hunt-story/ A big April happening in Memphis is the IDA conference April 26, 27. Free Event Pre-Conference Event IDA Friday, April 25, 2014 Parent-Student Night with Rob Langston Paid Event 12th Annual RISE Conference Saturday, April 26th, 2014 Tennessee's most comprehensive one-day reading conference! 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM MARCH...... Lion or Lamb? Hello again. Governor II here wishing you a fabulous March. It appears that March is coming in like a lion. Who would have thought that school would be cancelled for inclement weather in March? I am ready for "Spring Break" in another week! Well as the saying goes, "If March comes in like a lion, it should go out like a lamb." It definitely looks like March is coming in like a lion. Maybe spring is near after all! I highly recommend these upcoming events,They are in April, but early registration is suggested. Free Event Pre-Conference Event IDA Friday, April 25, 2014 Parent-Student Night with Rob Langston Paid Event 12th Annual RISE Conference Saturday, April 26th, 2014 Tennessee's most comprehensive one-day reading conference! 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM Hutchison School 1740 Ridgeway Road Memphis, TN 38119 DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME begins March 9th. Don't forget to set your clocks AHEAD one hour before going to bed. Governor II signing off until next time! Happy Valentine's Day!!! February is a fun filled month. In addition to Valentine's Day, we celebrate President's Day. We honor two of our past presidents, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. We also celebrate Black History month. It is indeed a very historic month. Do you ever get the "Winter Slumps"? I think that from time to time we all get a little sluggish especially the second half of the year. However, that is when we really need to "shine" as we prepare to move on to the next grade level. Here are some tips that may help shake those "Winter Slumps" by Margaret Foster, M.A. from Additude Magazine.com. Lost, Late or Burned Out? Does your child begin the school year excited and determined to do his best, but lose steam by second semester? Do you and teachers complain: “You’ve been at this for six months now, and you still don’t know what you’re doing?” For the child who has ADHD and EF challenges, this is difficult to hear. Fortunately, new research on EFs clarifies the causes of “spring fever” in children and suggests strategies that bring relief. What Are EFs, Anyway? Executive functioning is “an umbrella term for the mental processes that serve a supervisory role in thinking and behavior. It allows us to create a master plan, initiate it in a timely manner, react to changes and challenges, and keep the goals in mind over time,” according to Joyce Cooper-Kahn, Ph.D., a clinical child psychologist. Let’s look at some of the reasons children begin to fail as the school year progresses, and see how we can help them. Challenge #1: The Work Is Tougher Teachers don’t always admit it to students and parents, but the curriculum does get more complex as the year goes on. There is an assumption that basic skills have been covered and that good study habits have been formed. But for the child with anxiety, attention, or learning disabilities, this may not be the case. He or she might be struggling with gaps in basic skills or experiencing problems with speed of performance. When this gap lowers his performance level, or causes missed deadlines, things get challenging. Fix #1: Fill the Gaps You need to know what knowledge or skills your child is missing in order to help him acquire them. The how. Is there a basic process to a task or assignment (research project, book report) that is obvious to most students, but not to the individual with EF challenges? The what. Perhaps the content is hard, involving abstract ideas and their corresponding details. Your child should revisit concepts until they’re clear. How accurate. If your child moves on without gaining mastery of a skill, he'll need to relearn or review it every time she has to perform related tasks. Use flash cards to build or retain math facts or vocabulary words. Challenge #2: He's Bored The students who need repetition to crystallize new ideas or skills are usually the same ones who crave novelty and change, as most ADHDers do. Boredom lowers the levels of dopamine in the brain and can impair the ability to attend to detail and perform work. Fix #2: Do Things Differently If boredom is your child’s problem, change things up. It’s not always possible to find a new teacher or class for your child, but changing the way your child does things can make a difference. Can he or she do homework in a new setting, like the dining room or a library? Or with a partner? Is there a new twist a teacher can add to a repetitive assignment? Is there a new sport your child can try? Learning to change things up is essential for students with ADHD and LD. Challenge #3: Misplaced His Planner...Again Practice makes perfect, but poor practice creates a mess. If your child is struggling, it might be time to check on those good habits that were set at the beginning of the school year. Is he still using his planner, or does it sit at the bottom of his backpack? Does your child still study for small quizzes, or does he obsess about larger tests? Have homework routines been shelved? Fix #3: Get Back to Routines Establishing or re-establishing good habits and routines—planner use, homework structure, or breaking large assignments into smaller ones—can increase the capacity of working memory and help us manage complexity. Making something a habit or routine allows you to do tasks without having to tap into working memory. Increased working memory enables higher-level thinking and increases performance and speed—we work smarter, not harder! Challenge #4: He's Burned Out School can wear down students with EF challenges. Imagine having to show up for track practice five days a week, eight hours a day…with a bad ankle. It’s the same feeling for those with learning problems who are in an intense learning situation. To teachers and parents, burnout looks like lethargy, irritability, or work avoidance after a time. Fix #4: Tune Up the Brain Research by Stephen Kaplan, Ph.D., and Marc Berman, Ph.D., suggests that even 20 minutes of exposure to nature “resets” our attention and helps us to refocus. Whether we are gazing out a window or walking in a park, nature gives the right level of brain input, or “soft fascination,” to better access EFs and self-regulation. This effect seems to last well beyond the time spent in nature. Get Going Decide on which one or two of these challenges is most affecting your child. If you’d like to create change, take out a calendar and make a plan to start this week and/or this month. Turn those plans into habits through repetition, and your child will be in better shape in time for the transition to summer. Seahawks Red Bryant Has Dyslexia - Click on this link to read the whole story! “You’re not dumb, you just learn differently.” That’s what Red Bryant’s high school English teacher said to him to keep his spirits up. Find out how Bryant faced the challenge of dyslexia head on and came out on top. This is Governor II signing off until next time. Hello again, Governor II here! Thanksgiving is a very special time around our house. My human mom is a real Pilgrim, or at least she has a Mayflower pilgrim heritage. Her great, great, great, great great..(17 greats)..you get the idea... was Governor William Bradford of Plymouth Colony. Guess where my name, Governor, came from??? I am sure William Bradford would be proud. Anyway, I wanted to share a story with you regarding Squanto who went through many hardships and set backs, but became an instrument for good. Sit back and enjoy reading about a real American hero and a real Biblical one as well. Happy Thanksgiving!! I’m talking about the amazing story of the way God used an Indian named Squanto as a special instrument of His providence. Historical accounts of Squanto’s life vary, but historians believe that around 1608—more than a decade before the Pilgrims arrived—a group of English traders sailed to what is today Plymouth, Massachusetts. When the trusting Wampanoag Indians came out to trade, the traders took them prisoner, transported them to Spain, and sold them into slavery. It was an unimaginable horror. But God had an amazing plan for one of the captured Indians—a boy named Squanto. Squanto was bought by a well-meaning Spanish monk, who treated him well and taught him the Christian faith. Squanto eventually made his way to England and worked in the stables of a man named John Slaney. Slaney sympathized with Squanto’s desire to return home, and he promised to put the Indian on the first vessel bound for America. It wasn’t until 1618—ten years after Squanto was first kidnapped—that a ship was found. Finally, after a decade of exile and heartbreak, Squanto was on his way home. But when he arrived in Massachusetts, more heartbreak awaited him. An epidemic had wiped out Squanto’s entire village. We can only imagine what must have gone through Squanto’s mind: Why had God allowed him to return home, against all odds, only to find his loved ones dead? A year later, the answer came. A shipload of English families arrived and settled on the very land once occupied by Squanto’s people. Squanto went to meet them, greeting the startled Pilgrims in English. According to the diary of Pilgrim Governor William Bradford, Squanto “became a special instrument sent of God for [our] good . . . He showed [us] how to plant [our] corn, where to take fish and to procure other commodities . . . and was also [our] pilot to bring [us] to unknown places for [our] profit, and never left [us] till he died.” When Squanto lay dying of a fever, Bradford wrote that their Indian friend “desir[ed] the Governor to pray for him, that he might go to the Englishmen’s God in heaven.” Squanto bequeathed his possessions to the Pilgrims “as remembrances of his love.” Who but God could so miraculously convert a lonely Indian and then use him to save a struggling band of Englishmen? It is reminiscent of the biblical story of Joseph, who was also sold into slavery—and whom God, likewise, used as a special instrument for good. Squanto’s life story is remarkable, and we ought to make sure our children and grandchildren learn about it. Sadly, most books about Squanto omit references to his Christian faith. But I’m delighted to say that Eric Metaxas has written a wonderful children’s book called Squanto and the Miracle of Thanksgiving. I highly recommend it. It will teach your kids about the “special instrument sent of God” who changed the course of American history. Hello! I'm back with some thoughts on October! October is a busy month. Most remember the month for jack-o-lanterns and Halloween.October is much more than that.
LD Awareness Month Did you know that October is LD awareness month? Following is a encouraging video regarding LD. Learning Disability Video Poetry This month I want to share a poem that describes the uniqueness of each child. BUTTERFLY IN THE WIND Author unknown A child is a butterfly in the wind, Some can fly higher than others; But each one flies the best it can. Why compare one against the other? Each one is different! Each one is special! Each one is beautiful! October Happenings Look at all the special October Events! WEEK ONE: National Hispanic Heritage Month begins Saturday, September 15, 2013, and ends Monday, October 15, 2013.
WEEK FOUR:
Link to loads of fun math practice! Happy October!! See you next month!! Governor II Hello! My name is Governor II. I had a very busy summer. My mom decided to send me to puppy school. Boy did I learn a lot!! This school year I am going to share some thoughts and tips each month. Stay tuned!!!
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