Okay, right brain child "stuff" - what do you think?

[momsuz123]

I am curious about the right brain info that I have read. One of my kiddos seems to really "fit" what they talk about. I looked at the Diane Craft site. This child is not behind at all. She is either on target or ahead in all areas.

Any thoughts? Any good sources? Any suggestions on how to teach a right brain child?

[wapiti]

http://www.visualspatial.org/

 

Click the VSL tag on the bottom of this page for some older threads

[lindsrae]

I just discovered the Dianne Craft site as well--I believe it helps explain my eldest DDs frustrations with reading and writing. I cannot offer any suggestions, but I am :bigear:

[jujsky]

Could you link me to the Diane Croft site? DS is definitely right-brained, and I'm curious what you're reading :001_smile:

[FO4UR]

I don't use any Diane Craft stuff.

 

I do have a VSL, and I do take that into consideration when teaching him. Rote memory is not his strong suit. He loves diagramming sentences, thrived on Miquon Math, spelling requires a LOT of "taking mental pictures" and cues of associating word families and like phonograms. (one/lone/alone..."ow" like in "cow")

 

The Charlotte Mason methods for reading/spelling are worth looking into. I don't use them 100%, but she does a lot of visualizing which speaks to the strengths of the VSL. We add visualization to whatever we might be using as needed.

 

 

That said, I just don't like much of the Diane Craft stuff. I don't want mine to visualize pictures for the sight words. I want mine to visualize the phonics patterns. I don't want to give mine a book with the like phonograms already highlighted. I want mine to go through the physical work of marking their own words. I'm picky.:tongue_smilie:

[boscopup]

This child is not behind at all. She is either on target or ahead in all areas.

 

It sounds like you're already doing what she needs then?

 

My VSL is not requiring a lot of strange techniques or anything. I just had to realize that auditory-only wasn't going to work for him. He needs a workbook with a pictorial presentation alongside a manipulative (I think many do fine with just manipulatives, but this child does not). He's actually picking up phonics just fine. He's a good speller for a 5 year old. He can spell better than he can read. Reading is the area he struggles, but that's coming along after switching to some techniques/curriculum designed for dyslexics. In math, he's using the same curriculum as his non-VSL big brother, but I've added C-rods to it (brother doesn't need manipulatives and is an abstract thinker).

 

I wouldn't worry about going out of your way to use special techniques until you run into a problem that requires those techniques. Don't borrow trouble. ;)

 

I think a kid can be VSL and still use normal curriculum, as most curricula are designed for various learning styles. Some kids may be extreme VSL and require something completely different. I suspect those kids have other issues besides just being VSL though.

 

My dad is VSL, and he did very well in school except early on when it came to reading. They put him in a special ed class for a couple years, because he wasn't ready to read in 1st grade like everyone else was. A couple years later, reading clicked (around the time it often does for VSL children), and he took off from there. He did very well in all his other classes, even algebra (which surprised me after hearing Temple Grandin talk about how she couldn't understand algebra because there were no pictures for her to put in her brain... but again, maybe that's an extreme VSL or the autism affecting things?). I actually had no clue that my dad thinks in pictures and is mildly dyslexic until he told me as I was talking about DS2. It thrilled me though, as I was able to tell DS2 that he was a lot like Grandpa, and Grandpa didn't read right away, but now he's a really good reader (and has to read a million books to DS2 when he comes over - they keep their shelf stocked with Mo Willems Elephant and Piggie and Pigeon books, plus Scaredy Squirrel and other good picture books :D). DS2 has lamented that he can only read "baby books", and I'm trying to squash that kind of thinking. ;)

 

So yeah, knowing DS2 is VSL has been helpful in adjusting techniques, but I haven't had to use Dianne Craft stuff or special curriculum so far (besides Dancing Bears for reading). The biggest thing that helped me knowing he was VSL was when he was struggling with 'm' and 'n' in reading and writing (and he previously confused those letters in speech, but that was corrected). These letters are his nemesis. :tongue_smilie: My friend had PAL Reading, and I saw the alphabet pictures, where 'm' is the mountain letter that you can drive your car through, and 'n' is the nose letter. Guess what? After copying that and showing it to him, he now is remembering which one is which! :hurray: I didn't need to change curriculum for this issue. I just needed an idea to make the problem into something he could visualize.

[MyLittleBears]

If you have a VSL who is typical learner and just want to gain insight on how to best teach them, I recommend the book Upside down brilliance by Linda Silverman. The link above is hers, I believe. It is possibly the best book I've read on VSLs. I think the marked difference with VSL is the ability to use whole brain thinking and having to visualize to learn. Rote memory seems a waste of time and a source of frustration for most of them. It is really just a matter of teaching to their strengths.

 

Dianne Crafts materials are really for struggling learners to remediate specific issues. I have used Dianne Crafts Biology of behavior supplement recommendations and they have essentially cured my oldest guy of lactose intolerance and have modified some behaviors in my other two. We also use her brain integration therapy manual and it has worked wonders for my dysgraphic son as well as some visual issues in my youngest two. We are currently working through the auditory processing portion of the manual so I will have to give an update on that.

 

That said, we tried her right brain phonics program and it was a bomb here.:tongue_smilie: We have had great success with Abecedarian.

Edited September 24, 2012 by MyLittleBears