Very Poor Handwriting

In article ,
(Chris Himes) wrote:

Since they really hate to write, when they start a set of problems
they often will number the paper first, and then if things don't fit
in the space they provided, just put the other part of the problem
somewhere else on the paper--they would never REWRITE the problem or
start over!!

There is a very simple solution -- suggest that they stop numbering the paper
first. Sounds to me like they have picked up the habit of numbering the page
first and have carried it past the stage where it is appropriate.

The next trick is to convince them that they are actually writing for an
audience. Suggest they underline the final answer, or write a summary
statement at the end, when appropriate (eg, "there are 27 emus and 54 sheep in
the field"). Ruling off after each problem will also help.

--
Chookie -- Sydney, Australia
(Replace "foulspambegone" with "optushome" to reply)

"Life is like a cigarette -- smoke it to the butt." -- Harvie Krumpet

(Chris Himes) wrote in message om...
(valerie) wrote in message om...

The disorginization and the sloppy handwriting may or may not be part
of a bigger problem. Are they in general characterized as being
messy, or unorganized, forgetful, unattentive to details, or have
trouble with spatial relationships?

Now that I've really started thinking about the issue I did a quick
web search and see a lot of information on "visual-spatial" learning
which really seems to fit my older son in particular. Visual-spatial
learners tend to think in "pictures," making it difficult for them to
break things down into steps and sequences. They tend to have very
poor handwriting, be good at music, maps, and puzzles; they hate
drills and repetition, are poor spellers, don't pay attention to
detail, but have great memories. They are not good writers, but good
in more technical fields. All of these fit him so well, it's amazing.
He is an excellent musician and chess player, grasps mathematical
concepts but has problems with calculations, etc. So, it seems this
just may be his learning style and he'll make a great architect,
cartographer, or engineer (if he can learn how to get through the
other subjects!)

Chris


Each child has his/her own way to learn and fulfill what they are good
at, it is parents job to observe how they learn and oblige. I give my
child freedom to develop his own style within reasonable limit, be
true to himself at what he is able to excel.

----

At hindsight, as a boy, I felt inadequate or even stupid based on one
dimentional stereotype what defined boy -- good at math and science, I
then jumped into the wagon to be like other smart boys. Compared to
some friends who were naturally good at math, I was hopeless, I spent
16 hrs a day to go thru school, private science lessons, private tutor
at home then homework after 9PM to midnight in the last year in high
school while deep down I had no natural ability at math in particular.
My fool effort is an A, the result didn't add up. Some of my friends,
their efforts were B or C or they even skipped classes to have fun,
their results are A+ or more. It proved itself again in my first year
in local university, then at Strasbourg University, I sinked deeper
and was desperate. Decades later, I learned that I allowed myself to
fit in stereotype which didn't suite my natural ability, compared to
my math friends who see in details and excel at it. I see in abstract
concepts or larger picture built of details but not the other way
around.

(Chris Himes) wrote in message om...
(valerie) wrote in message om...
Now that I've really started thinking about the issue I did a quick
web search and see a lot of information on "visual-spatial" learning
which really seems to fit my older son in particular. Visual-spatial
learners tend to think in "pictures," making it difficult for them to
break things down into steps and sequences. They tend to have very
poor handwriting, be good at music, maps, and puzzles; they hate
drills and repetition, are poor spellers, don't pay attention to
detail, but have great memories. They are not good writers, but good
in more technical fields. All of these fit him so well, it's amazing.
He is an excellent musician and chess player, grasps mathematical
concepts but has problems with calculations, etc. So, it seems this
just may be his learning style and he'll make a great architect,
cartographer, or engineer (if he can learn how to get through the
other subjects!)

Chris

Great!! If you're interested in exploring this subject
further, here are some books you may be interested in;
but first, an idea that might help.

You said he has trouble with sequencing. It may be possible
to teach him, fairly easily, to do some specific sequencing
tasks by building on his strengths. He would have to want
to be able to do it, first.

In one of Thom Hartmann's books (I think) that mentioned NLP
(neuro-linguistic programming), it described a person who
had trouble emotinoally dealing with the past. The person
was asked how they visualized the past. They visualized
time like a road, with the future in from of them and the
past behind them. They were told: no wonder you can't
deal with the past -- it's behind you, so you can't see it.
It was suggested that the person visualize time as a line
in front of them, with the past on the left and the future
on the right. The person did this. All of a sudden, the
person became able to handle emotional issues from past
events. A sudden major transformation coming out of a few
minutes of teaching.

Well, with teaching sequencing: since he's good at chess,
he no doubt has a lot of thoughts and memories and neurons
associated with each square of the chess board. You could
say something like this: "Close your eyes. Now, imagine yourself
standing where the king begins on the chess board, doing the
first task in the sequence. Now imagine yourself taking a
step forward and standing where the king's pawn stands, doing
the second step in the sequence. ..." etc., going across
the board step by step to where the pawn becomes queened.
(Or, it may make sense to begin as the pawn; this allows
one fewer step to be memorized but may be more intuitively
appealing to the chess player.)

In other words: getting him to use visual-spatial skills
to memorize specific sequences. I'm sure there are lots of
other ways to do this. If you get him started on this, he
may think up his own ways to do it.

Interesting books:
"In the Mind's Eye: Visual Thinkers, Gifted People With Dyslexia and Other
Learning Difficulties, Computer Images and the Ironies of Creativity"
by Thomas West. Examines the lives of a number of geniuses such
as Einstein and explores the idea that unusual abilities seem to
be almost inevitably connected with unusual disabilities.
By Thomas West.

"Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain": a book which teaches
anyone to draw better, for example to draw pictures of
people's faces, by learning to have the right side, rather
than the left side, of the brain active while drawing.
Produces miraculous improvements, especially perhaps in
people who claim they can't draw. May help your son
to be proud of being right-brained and to understand the
differences better.

"Time Management for Creative People" by Lee Silber.
He also has a web site, www.creativelee.com
His book seems aimed mainly at adults pursuing careers in
art, writing and other creative pursuits who need to figure
out how to do things like focus, complete projects,
stay motivated, and remember to balance their checkbooks; but it
has lots of fun, creative and uplifting ideas some of
which may be of use to your son.

"Time Management for Unmanageable People" by Anne McGee-Cooper.
Also aimed at adults, but may have ideas helpful to children too.
Like Silber's book, it's aimed at right-brain thinkers.
Lots of fun ideas on how to stay organized, like using
coloured file-folders. What helped me was not so much the
specific ideas, but the validation about why I need certain
things like coloured office supplies, and that it's OK to
have fun while organizing, and general principles that help
me invent my own organizing systems. One of her suggestions,
for example, is to go once a month to an office supply store
and buy a bunch of nifty things, including things you like a lot
even if you haven't thought of a use for them yet. This makes
getting organized more fun -- which helps supply the
motivational energy to do it. I suppose it was when I read
that that I started buying lots of little pads of coloured
sticky notes, which I had previously considered an
unjustifiable expense. If you think in terms of the value
of feeling motivated to get organized, they're not that
expensive really.

The Edison Trait by Lucy Palladino. About children
with ADD. Has suggestions for how to cope with ADD.
Takes a more positive approach to ADD -- considering
kids with ADD to be different, not worse, learning styles --
than some other books. However, if you really want to be
positive, you don't use the term "ADD", which has two
negative words in it. I'm not implying that your son
has ADD, but right-brain thinkers are sometimes labelled
as ADD.

I prefer to talk about "SPIRE", a personality type
characterized by spontaneity, passionate interests and
responsiveness to one's environment. "Energetic" is
more positive than "hyperactive"; "spontaneous" is more positive than
"impulsive". We're all individuals.

See also Teresa Gallagher's website about positive
aspects of ADD
http://borntoexplore.org
and my website on the same subject
http://www.ncf.ca/~an588/exp_home.html
--
Cathy