I saw an interesting article this morning on the New York Times website that I thought you might find interesting. It is self explanatory.
Here is the link:
It is exciting to think that as time goes on we will be able to find out more about how the brain actually works. That will enable us to figure out better ways of addressing the problems that teachers and parents observe in their children.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
The article mentions that ADHD delays brain maturity in attention and motor control. Do you think this would warrant holding a child back for an extra year before entering Kindergarten?
-Lori Eich
I think this article does a nice job of articulating that we still don't know enough about how the brain develops and that children's development is very malleable. It's in taking the time to know what a child needs to develop "normally." Whatever is considered normal is subjective. Lori, I do think holding a child back a year in Kindergarten could help to make them more well adjusted and successful later in life. It happens in many other countries. Most education systems link age as the common factor among grade level because it's easy to manage a large numbers of students. I look forward to finding a school that is truly focused on promoting development by allow students to show they meet grade level standards and keep moving through the system as they develop, a person who is slow to develop may take a year or longer to complete grade level standards when they are in their early stages of learning, but later on may move through 2 grades in one year.
I agree with all of Kerri's comments including the validity of delaying the beginning of kindergarten for some students for developmental reasons. Sometimes there is also a physical development issue, particularly for boys,that may be a factor. It is important for parents who hold their kids out a year to keep their intellectual and physical development continuing in whatever fashion they can. Thanks Lori and Kerri for your intelligent thoughts!
Post a Comment