Victoria Carlton ~ The Child Whisperer – Page 14 of 28

April 7, 2016April 7, 2016

Joyful Illiteracy? Yes! Yes! Yes!

While our Aussie children are stretched and snapping, children from a far away country are thriving. Can you imagine a nation revelling in words such as THE JOYFUL ILLITERACY OF KINDERGARTEN CHILDREN? Well read the link provided at the end of this article!

While we are ripping children from sandpits and block corners to give them boring workbooks, the Finns are quietly allowing (actually encouraging) their young children to play and experiment and be active and NOT stressing about literacy. In fact their children enjoy extraordinary literacy standards with far fewer tests and worksheets.

They TEACH their children rather than continually testing. Over-testing of children is like digging up beautiful, flowering, healthy rose bushes to see if they have roots. Eventually they will wither. This is happening to our children- right before our eyes!

In Finland children are encouraged to play because the well documented power of play is understood by their educators. There’s an old Finnish saying, “Those things you learn without joy you will forget easily.” I would like to see that on a poster in every classroom in the world! (Universities as well)

Every 45 minutes, children in Finnish schools are encouraged to get up and go outside to play (even in cold weather!) We know what happens when children are allowed to freely move and actually get outside- better results!

So why are we modelling our system on those that do the opposite to these practices? Erroneous thinking, lack of research and knee-jerk reactions rather than calm consideration of what is actually best for children.

Will it only be when our classrooms are full of depressed, nervous and stressed out children who are stretched to breaking point and “snapping” like dry leaves that we will consider change? Well that is already happening. Even ONE child snapping and losing joy, confidence and a sense of I CAN is too many!

It’s time to say WE WERE WRONG and allow children to become children once more. Maybe it’s time to celebrate the joyful illiteracy of our own pre-schoolers and leave them in the sandpits if we want the high literacy standards enjoyed in Finland.

I’m off to jump in our sand-pit with some playful, creative pre-schoolers……..

http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/10/the-joyful-illiterate-kindergartners-of-finland/408325/

April 7, 2016April 7, 2016

The ABC OF CHILD WHISPERING L is for limiting thoughts and beliefs

New mindset new results motivational phrase sign on old wood with blurred background

Yesterday I was talking to a bunch of young people at our centre- upper primary and secondary.

They were talking about how scary the forthcoming NAPLAN tests are for them. One of the students was very worried about a test she had coming up at school today.

I suddenly realised I was confronting a dense smog of self-limiting beliefs and that it was worth taking some time away from our writing lesson to help the children see what they were doing.

I reminded them that repeating these negative affirmations was just making the likelihood of failure more likely!

We looked at how simply worrying about NAPLAN could ruin the forthcoming holidays and not help one iota. We then examined how taking a positive attitude and using positive affirmations would be likely to lead to higher marks. (Along with some judicious practice and well applied study skills!)

We discussed the pointlessness of obsessively worrying about the questions that MIGHT occur. It is a far better strategy to write down the questions that would be most difficult and then write answers.

Playing WORST QUESTIONS EVER is actually a very positive strategy where children together write the hardest questions they can think of and then collaboratively set out to answer them!

Chances are that they will actually get easier questions and even if they don’t- they will not have spent days or weeks worrying themselves into a negative wormhole!

The limiting thoughts and beliefs we carry from childhood have a massive impact on our adult lives and in turn get visited on our loved ones.

Common examples are I AM HOPELESS AT MATHS, I AM NOT SMART, I WILL NEVER HAVE ANY MONEY, I WILL NEVER BE SUCCESSFUL, PEOPLE DON’T LIKE ME, I DON’T HAVE MANY FRIENDS, I WILL NEVER PASS THE EXAM…………

We deal with these negative self-beliefs within all our learning sessions and in particular during our evidence-based EQ4KIDZ course.

Children need to be helped to squash these thoughts and place them under a “microscope” to see how damaging they really are. Then they need to be shown how to use positive affirmations that can be immediately substituted for negative thoughts.

Children and teenagers CAN be empowered to overcome these self-limiting beliefs. It just takes time, sensitive, deep listening and a willingness to demonstrate and scaffold thinking techniques that need to be applied. Our young people are often very stressed and worried at this PRE-NAPLAN time and they need our calm support!

March 11, 2016March 11, 2016

THE SYSTEM IS BROKEN – HARD TIMES ARE BACK!

Our education system is broken.
We have lost the plot – seriously!
We treat children like vessels to be filled with knowledge- like Mr Thomas Gradgrind, the school board superintendent, in Charles Dicken’s “Hard Times.”
“Now, what I want is Facts. Teach these boys and girls nothing but Facts. Facts alone are wanted in life. Plant nothing else, and root out everything else. You can only form the minds of reasoning animals upon Facts; nothing else will ever be of any service to them.”

There are more and more schools that rip kindergarten children from the sandpits and plop them in front of boring workbooks, taking them away from play-based learning and thrusting them into formal school learning – all in the name of acceleration. Acceleration for what? Acceleration towards boredom and disengagment!

Some schools have the stated aim of getting all the children to be 1 year ahead before they get into year one! Why? What will this tension lead to?

Broken children will be the end results and already our level of anxiety amongst children has grown to worrying levels.
https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/lifestyle/a/25294925/anxiety-rising-among-children/
We are enrolling more and more children who are very anxious about NAPLAN, reports, academic performance and not managing to get all their homework done!
Schools are discussing children in terms of marks, stanines and percentages – not needs, personalities and learning styles.
The humanity, fun and excitement has gone from education and will continue to go.
Just over the last 7 days I have met broken children who believe they are failures at 8 years of age! I have met broken teachers who love children but have been instructed that children are no longer at the centre of the educational stage – it is all about exams results and, marks.
Even children are now describing themselves using the marks they get. I have children who have told me they desperately want to achieve a pass or get better than a C but believe this is no longer possible.

I have seen many reports that tell the exact position children come in their class. That is unbelievable and unacceptable in this day and age. It has to be stopped.
We are dishonouring our children and robbing them of motivation, hope and love of education. We CAN improve standards and reform our education system without taking away all the hope, enthusiasm, fun and creativity and breaking the hearts of the next generation!

March 8, 2016March 8, 2016

The ABC of Child Whispering: L IS FOR LISTENING

Natural child whisperers LISTEN to children and know how to kid-watch.

Everyone can learn this- it just requires us to shut down our internal chatter for a while and just observe and listen deeply.

When we listen like this something different is happening. It is not just our ears working- our eyes, hearts and brains are all working to help us UNDERSTAND and you cannot do this at speed.

The problem is that often we think we know what children need and so often we are wrong.

One of the best questions I ever ask children is, “What do you think you need? Are we helping you? Is there anything else we could do?”
I have had some surprising and very perceptive answers. Children (if allowed to speak for themselves and not rushed) have a pretty clear idea of how they learn and what is helpful in terms of teaching input.

This also works for behavioural issues.
”What would help you to stop getting in to trouble like this? What do you need?”
Then let them take their time, draw their responses, think for a while, even make a time to chat on a different day to allow them to think deeply.

No child wants to be in constant trouble, excluded from class, shamed and embarrassed. Give them the chance to delve deeply and come up with their own solution. That sometimes involved throwing out preconceived notions and that can be hard.

The more we are sure we are right- the more we’re not!

Try it today. Don’t be on the lookout for bad behaviour. We’re not prison warders. Be on the lookout for good behaviour and reward it- every time! Wrap your pre-conceived notions up and stick them in the bottom drawer. Clear your mind and LISTEN!

All teachers and parents should be grateful for the Greek philosopher, Epictetus who reminded us we have 2 ears but only one mouth. The equation is very clear.

LISTEN twice as much as you speak.

March 2, 2016March 2, 2016

DODGY PEDAGOGY

Over the last week I have been given at least a dozen reports and copies of test results to read and hardly any of them have made sense!
I have seen crazy results with one parent being told- “Your child only reached stanine 3 in the ________ test.” Unfortunately the parent had no idea of what this test meant, let alone the results.
This over-testing of children and labelling has reached epic proportions. The race is on to somehow put every child in a box with a negative label.
Children are not allowed to learn differently.
They must all be the same.
Why not put Ritalin in the drinking water or simply give every child a lobotomy at 2 years if they show signs of curiosity and interest in the world around them!
I have read reports that label realy bright children as C – (satisfactory) and then go on to give the place in class. These stupid strategies were last seen when I was at Primary school and that was rather a long time ago!
Our kids are puzzled, depressed and starting to give up. Many children have told me they KNOW they can never reach a higher score than C.
The education system is choking for lack of positive air. We are shaking the lifeblood from our students and killing their enthusiasm. This is not the accountability that was much needed. Children’s ability, attainment and progress cannot be simply measured by scores. It is far more complex than this. We are treating our children like machines.
It is stupidity of the highest order and is actually harming children.
Who would dig up a healthy plant to keep checking it is growing?
Yet- this is what we do but this crazy over-testing of children is achieving the same results- the love of learning will die!

March 1, 2016March 1, 2016

The ABC of Child Whispering: L IS FOR LOVE OF LEARNING

If we want children to engage and reach their learning potential, they have to ENGAGE and LOVE the process.
That does not mean that learning does not get hard. In fact, children can really enjoy the bumpy parts if they feel supported and believe they CAN solve problems. This means that we have to use child-friendly themes and ensure we differentiate the learning. It can never be one size fits all!
This also means teachers need to research their children’s interests and to tweak the programs so ALL children can experience success.
It might mean asking for slightly less written responses or cutting back on homework requirements.
For very able students more complex reading material can be chosen. Luckily, with the huge amount of material available on websites devoted to children’s interests and text and work books readily accessible, this is not hard.
It is essential that parents understand their children are all amazing gifts and definitely do not all respond to the same teaching styles.
Some children need to move more as they learn and often respond well to visual stimuli. Others can easily concentrate and take in information in auditory ways.
We regularly conduct assessments for children to determine learning styles and both strong and weak intelligences. This allows us to offer more targeted tuition that will really meet students’ needs.
Parents and teachers who would also like to assess children’s predominant learning styles and strengthen weak intelligences can order a copy of ALL KIDS ARE SMART from us. (Order by emailing victoriacarlton@iinet.net.au) This book will provide testing tools and give you a HUGE amount of information for maximising children’s progress.
Try to keep your tension away from learning situations. We know students learn more when relaxed and are therefore open to new information and experiences.
We can ALL love learning as long as we perceive it as possible!
Plan plenty of learning games and “hands-on”, active learning experiences. You will be rewarded by happier, more motivated students who feel EMPOWERED and LOVE their learning experiences!

February 16, 2016February 16, 2016

The A-Z of Child Whispering: K is for KINDNESS

K is for KINDNESS
We use this word so easily but when you really analyse it – what does it actually mean?
Generally – friendly/generous and considerate are adjectives we think of with KINDNESS but I think gentleness is in there too.
I gave a workshop at the Singapore Kindness Movement conference one year and was encouraged by the positive response and interest.
Teachers and parents are really searching for ways to teach KINDNESS and I guess children do not always find the world to be a kind place!
I was chatting to a student last week and asked him about 1 change he would like to see in the world. WORLD PEACE was his choice. He told me how he sees the fighting and hatred on the television and how bad it is. He then asked me about MY childhood and I was catapulted back to a time when we didn’t see these hateful images on our screens every night.
It was a time when my Mum told me to run along after school and not to return till dinner-time. So, off to the river we went to climb trees, fall down, fish, slip in freezing streams and generally (mostly) get home in 1 piece to eat and off to bed with a book.
Imagine parents being able to say that to kids these days?
Recently I returned to that river and NOTHING has changed! Gentle village, village school, quiet lanes, Saxon Church and giant yew trees- feeling of indescribable peace,
Of course the world was not a totally safe place then and I certainly experienced my share of unkind teachers and children. This is part of normal growing up.
However, we were shielded and allowed freedom to think, be and develop.
I can’t help wondering what these horrific images in the media might be doing to young people? I don’t believe we can hide our children from the media forever. The student I was chatting with was 14 and very savvy with digital media, websites and the like.
But he was worried enough to want to chat about it.

So how can we teach our kids to be kind in this society?
We just DO it– one kind act at a time. Leap in!
I have always been a fan of the Random Acts of Kindness movement. https://www.randomactsofkindness.org/
But let’s model it and teach it in a way that is not always random. How about some deliberate PLANNED kindness!
Let’s set out every-day to be kind, model kindness too children and encourage them to practise it on a daily basis!
So – How do we teach kindness to children?
Start by being kind to yourself. Take some time each time to think and BE with yourself. Get back into your body and stop spinning!
Allow your children to do the same. Children crave SPARE TIME to just play and BE.

Be kind to your children- not indulgent. Look at this amazing website for practical examples and be inspired by the incredibly short but powerful life of Martin Richard– a real believe in peace and kindness. His message will live on forever!

Kindness: How You Can Teach Children to Care for Others

See this link for 14 amazingly practical ways to make kindness a way of daily family life! http://www.parents.com/parenting/better-parenting/advice/14-little-ways-to-encourage-kindness/

We have made KINDNESS a real part of our EQ4KIDZ program and we often have a minute of KINDFULNESS – where we sit with dimmed lights and consider kind acts we can do for each other.

We CAN change the world- 1 kind act at a time.
Children are wired for empathy and get so much satisfaction from BEING kind rather than just receiving kindness. Big people too!

February 16, 2016February 16, 2016

PAY IT FORWARD for kids

Last night I watched the classic 2000 PAY IT FORWARD movie: https://youtu.be/TlZDDACt8Nw

If like me- you missed it- watch it today! Martin and I ended up blubbering on the couch but at the end decided that really PAY IT FORWARD is an amazing concept. I know there are various organisations, websites etc out there who organise this and we have used the concept in our EQ4KIDZ programs – especially with older children….. but somehow last night’s viewing has changed me. I want to consciously PAY IT FORWARD each day and help children to do the same.

I notice how excited our kids at ICE get when we talk about BIG IDEAS. They are fascinated and want to become involved. I am going to let this PAY IT FORWARD concept sit with me throughout Lent. (Always a good time for me to reflect!)

Then at Easter I hope to birth the idea to our kids in a really practical format.

What a simple concept. Strip away all the hype, publicity etc and just look at the idea. Imagine- if we all gave 1 act of generosity a day- even a week or a month- and asked the recipient to simply pay it forward.

Seriously, the world COULD change. we could DO that! Before you call me a dewey eyed idealist- watch the movie and if you’ve seen it- watch it AGAIN.

February 10, 2016

DOUBLES BOOKS

This idea began at a book burning!

I am not normally a fan of book burnings but this day I was busy burning old reading books in the incinerator when a child asked me if he could have one of the books destined for the fire!

This child was repeating Grade One in my class without a great deal of success! I tried to persuade him to take a more suitable (modern) book than the Beacon series, Kitty And Rover one he selected. But no! He wanted that one.

He looked at the first page- it said Kitty.
“What does this say,” he asked. I told him and then he saw it repeated again. Then Kitty was repeated on the next page, and he said (a little excitedly!) “Look Mrs. Carlton- it says the same thing.”
“Yes,” I replied thinking how boring it was!

Then he got to Rover. “What does this say?” I told him and he noticed it was repeated again and said the word.

I started to get interested. This kid hated reading and could hardly read a word. He continued reading and asking me and repeating all the way through dear old Kitty and Rover and guess what? By the time he had finished he knew what reading was and his literacy journey had begun.

All my strategies, wheedling, begging, soaking him in phonics, narratives, restructuring text and language experience had not done the trick. I was a so called literacy specialist but could not achieve the basic thing this book could do. I was humbled and saved the rest of the Beacon series from the bin!

A few years later I had a similar child- no success at all! I decided to try the strategy but with a twist. I used the child’s own language and got them to tell me about something they were really interested in. e.g. a sport, animal etc.

They dictated and I scribed or typed and repeated each sentence. The children then read every sentence (twice because I had doubled it!)

Then I started to use dotted script and they traced the words. Some children copied the words underneath and illustrated their books!

DOUBLES BOOKS were born!
Steps-
• Ask the child about their interests and help them to choose a topic.

• Get them to tell you- sentence by sentence.

• You type and then copy each sentence again.

• If appropriate they can trace the words, copy and illustrate.

They LOVE these books and after 8-10 books they are off and running!
If not- guess I could try TRIPLES BOOKS!

I will soon publish a few of these simple books about common topics that fascinate young readers but I still favour the approach where students dictate their own text, a teacher scribes and children read/trace and copy.

Try it- IT WORKS!

January 11, 2016

ART FROM THE HEART

I woke this morning with that Christmas morning feeling you get when you are anticipating joy!
All week we have ART FROM THE HEART classes and I know the atmosphere at ICE will be peaceful, excited and yet strangely calm.
We do a little bit of art in every course we run and of course HEAPS of art in ART FROM THE HEART!
ART should always be from the heart. Art engages the left and right sides of the brain as children imagine, plan, organise, “feel” their way in, create and revise. I love to watch their faces as they engage in art- they GLOW and all concentration and tension issues seem to fly out the window.
Interestingly, the learning that takes place after art is ALWAYS deeper.
Sure issues of low self-esteem, lack of confidence and worries about it not being perfect surface but the art time is a great place for these things to come up and be dealt with. Teachers who help kids engage in art are really not just doing art- they are helping to grow more centred, creative and self-aware people!
Should we ALL be drawing/painting/crafting?
Maybe hardened criminals and terrorists should attend daily art classes! It truly seems to make for calmer, happier children so let’s try it on some big people.
I am starting an ART FROM THE HEART pinterest board today and will be sharing lots of techniques and ideas as well as displaying kids’ work. Please follow and share some of your own creative ideas too!
Let’s make this a week where we ALL indulge in some creative practices and share.

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