New teacher wants to help...What do you wish you learned in

I think all H.S. kids should learn how to use checkbooks, balance them, pay bills, use caution with credit cards. These are good math lessons, but needed throughout life as well.

You probably could do a little of this sort of thing still this year.

Just my thoughts!

I agree with Marion.

The first thing that popped into my mind was real life, “let’s balance the checkbook and look at the budget” math. I actually did have a class like this and it was very helpful.

Barb

I would have liked to have learned how to develop techniques for doing tasks that were difficult for me. This would have required understanding of my difficulties, so that strategies to help me could have been taught. For example, I tend to become easily overwhelmed. It would have been helpful had I been given strategies that I could use to deal with tasks that overwhelmed me. It would have been most helpful if I had been taught to apply the strategies learned to a variety of situations, so that I would be better able to use these strategies as new situations arose. It would also have been helpful had I been required to complete tasks within time requirements and given help if I was unable to do so.

I had never developed good work or study skills. Developing and using these skills in supervised situations, with help available, would have enabled me to function better in college, graduate school, and work situations and would probably have helped me to be more self-disciplined in performing household tasks.

I thinck every buddy has a grate point. Arlene is on the monny.If some of my teachers would have let me us more of my math tricks insted of the “right” way every day life would be easer.
Oh well, as far as my spelling, lol well that is anothere story.some of the best Cal. has to ofere have studded me reton papers and tryed to fix it. Now Im 27 and still cant spell. I aprecheat the people that did try and still hold some anamosaty tourd the ones that wouldent make an efert to understand.Like a createve wrightting teacher that almost faild me becouce of my spelling.unfortenetly that is all she focased on with me (not constuctevly)insted of teaching me the mecanecs.I all but stoped righting untell just resontly.
My point is , well just try to remember that when thes kids leve you thay will still hav there LD. Thanck you if it wasent for people like you that have the curage to tack these tip of things on nun of us would beabel to funchen in life at all.keep up the good work. Codos to ya. Toni in Cal.

ps I will admit that the redundens the repeting overe and overe of the same old thing insted of being chalenged pritty much shut me down.I had ben to an insane numbere of high schools and I will say that the kids including my self that were drilled with the 3ed grade garbag overe and overe agene got quit insolted. I have see bad teachers, I have seen good teachers: It sounds like u are already good and if you keep up with your consern I thinck youll be grate.

I wish I would have learned that I was an equal part of the system, that beause I was LD that I was not as bad as everyone made me feel, mostley Teachers. I wish that I was tought the strengths of Ld people , and not always being told what I couldnot do. I wish that at least once the Teacher did not allways try to correct my mistakes but just tell me that what I did get correct was good enough.I wish that I did not have to spend my HS years always having to hear about the smart kids, the kid’s who always got awards for gettin the best grades. It was always about the best , the smartest , the excelled. I tried my best , but I was never the smartest , the excelled , never the one getting the awards, or being able to get out of class for the honors ceremonies. I should have gotten an award because I probley tried harder than the others. After 3 years of this in HS I gave up , I did not try any more. I learnrd that the effort was not worth it , because in the Teachers eye’e I was still having to always do it over again untill it was correct.IT WAS NEVER GOOD ENOUGH. Now that I am an Adult I know better. I feel like my teen years were all wasted.

Maybe that’s the key.

Do writing assignments on important LD people, science projects on what LD is, reading on stratigies around LD. Let LD’er learn they are not stupid and work harder than most.

I like that.

Barb

(Welcome back, Toni!)

You know what, Amy…

I don’t think anyone has ever asked before! Thanks for listening!

Barb

Thank you for your answers. I will keep checking. I have already incorporated some of your answers into my lessons this year. I just want my kids to have a good life after graduation. Isn’t that why they’re here?

No Amy, thanck you.
I have some realy good tricks for readding and notes if your intrasted.
Im shour u prob know some of thim but if your intrested let me know.
Thancks agen Toni in Cal.

I was completely lost in high school. Both academicly and socially. I quit my first year. What I wish I had learned in high school… what my weaknesses were, what my strengths were, and most of all that everyone has different stengths and weaknesses. Taking a biological psychology class, gaining an understanding of how the brain works and sometimes doesn’t, really gave me insight to what my potential was. I began to understand that there were ways of working around my weaknesses. I think special ed should spend more time on developing strengths than remediating weaknesses. Also, social skills! Opportunities to work on social skills, with lots of facilitation for successful experiences. Last but not least, life is too short to waste time being unhappy. Do not go quietly into the darkness. Yell, jump up and down, stomp your feet, clap your hands, make yourself heard, laugh and smile as much as possible.

Marion, what a great idea!! I think schools should definitely teach about everyday living, even for non-LD people. Why did we need Algebra when we could have learned about basic accounting skills for writing check, etc. Actually, my LD resource room teacher was going to teach me, but for some reason that fell apart. I don’t think it was her fault though. There should probably also be special classes specifically geared towards with LD, such as the money skills, communication skills, etc.

Just a thought.

Take care!
Christine

No doubt, daily life math is important. But I am biased because I am a math student in college….

I see math as a training in problem solving which is important in all daily life activities. In math classes, students should be taught how to think, how to tackle problems, and come up with a solution plan. For example, when faced with a problem, we can break it apart to simple steps. How to work backwards. How to fit pieces together.

Others..
- concepts of addition, subtraction, multiplication, division (what you are REALLY doing)

Show them why math is fun and important in daily activities. If you love math, your kids will too.

Sounds like you really care abot your student learning. bravo to u! Good luck

What great ideas! I wish I had learned how to write a paper while still in high school. That didn’t come until I was a senior in college (thank God for computer programming classes which teach you how to break everything into it’s most basic part and how to put it back together again)! No teacher ever did a graphic organizer which showed the steps necessary to organize my thinking. I am SUCH a visual learner. With my son (who has ld/add) I’ve learned that he learns best when he can see how the parts relate back to the main idea, whether it’s in science, math, history….of course English. Please use lots of graphic organizers!…and how it relates to todays world.

Time management is also a important. Most kids don’t have any concept how long it takes to do anything. Having them do a graph of how many hours they spend doing different activities, such as watching TV, talking on the phone, school, traveling to/from school, hanging with their friends…you get the idea, will help them see time wasters. Have them time themselves doing things, clearing the table, making their beds, folding a load of clothes, cleaning the bathroom sink… will help them learn that it’s procrastination that makes accomplishing activities seems like it takes forever, when the reality is, it actually only took 5 minutes. This is a life skill which will help all students.

Toni’s right….compliment them on their effort. We all want to hear praise: it keeps us trying.