Contents

• Upcoming Events: Neuroeducation workshops with Dr. Schenck, and more...
• EdRev 2010:  Workshops, Exhibits, Activities, Art Contest and more!
• TEN: The Power of Teachers Talking to Teachers
• SAFE Voices: A Member's Personal Story
• Annual Fund Appeal 2009: Thank you to everyone who contributed!
• Other News PEN on Facebook and  Twitter; a UCSF ADHD & Dyslexia study

Upcoming Events

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EdRev 2010: Register now!

Service Providers

We would also like to invite LD/ADHD-related service providers to participate at EdRev as: 

• exhibitors - this year we have an entire level of the ballpark dedicated to exhibits. 
• sponsors
• advertisers

More inforation and registration at: ParentsEducationNetwork.org/Opportunities

If you know any sevice provider who you think should take part in EdRev, please forward these links to them!

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Teachers' Education Network

The Power of Teachers Talking to Teachers

Susan Deemer and Rochelle Bussi, TEN steering committee.

We often operate without the luxury of collaboration. As a result, we are more than familiar with the feeling of isolation that often accompanies our profession. In an attempt to address this issue, Teacher’s Education Network (TEN) provides professional growth opportunities to bring together Bay Area educators, administers, tutors and therapists. On January 21st, our most recent event, Professional Development with a Twist was held at Urban Recess in the Potrero Hill district. Our focus was an issue of growing concern: student anxiety and how it manifests itself in the classroom. Discussion centered around what we can do as educators to address this rising need.

First, we discussed anxiety-inducing assessment messages often heard in the classroom. The group agreed that phrases like, “You’re really going to have to study hard for this test” to “Here are the strategies I would use to prepare for this assessment,”   or “I want you all to do your best,” or “I know you are ready for this, show me what you know” tend to raise anxiety rather than focus on strategies they can use to tackle the task. Discussions among students regarding self-regulation and teaching the students about it and how to do it by modeling it for them or trying on role-plays or other activities that allow them to practice it at their level could be very effective. Providing opportunities for students to externalize the internal dialog and setting time limits and boundaries around assignments and projects and coming up with group norms and consequences were also suggested.

Next, we had a very intriguing discussion about the phrase, “Just do your best,” one we often suggest to our students. If students are always doing their best, they are working at 100% or higher ALL THE TIME; furthermore, they may not know what this is exactly! Scaffolding the development of a skill as much as possible and modeling the skill by showing examples along the way were other excellent suggestions made by one of the participants. Offering alternative places for students to take tests and quizzes outside of the classroom, if possible, was another fine suggestion. Finally, we closed by discussing how to address prolonged absences by a student due to anxiety. Taking a team approach to address the issue and being sure to include outside support was suggested.

Our next event will take place on February 5th. We are thrilled to host Dr. Jeb Schenck who will discuss how the emerging field of neuroeducation is providing educators with new, practical insights that can improve both student and teacher performance.  Through a series of interactive explorations, teachers will come away with practical strategies to implement in instruction. With each major brain process, Dr. Schenck will guide us through the development of personalized strategies to take back and realistically use. We will explore and experience how the attention systems, emotion, and motivational strategies work together. Disorders such as ADHD, Bipolar and Autism will be explored along with interventions that work.  We will also learn how to cement memories through single experiences and why sometimes repetition doesn’t work. Hope you will join us! Please visit our TEN site at ParentsEducationNetwork.org/TEN for more detail on our upcoming events and for the minutes of our Twist events.

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SAFE Voices

This month, we are very honored to share with you this piece by a long-time SAFE Voices member:

Personal Narrative

Steven Cancelmo

I am who I am today because of my upbringing and my learning differences. When I was born, my mom was 16 and my dad was 20. From them, I inherited ten different races, and four learning differences. My parents split up when I was around a year old, and neither of them could take care of me, even if they loved me very much.  A woman named Mary became my foster parent when I was 14 months old. Then, every 90 days there was a hearing to see if my birth parents were doing the things they needed to do to get me back, like go to parenting classes, find a safe place to live, find a job.  I saw them for separate visits every week, but after 18 months, they lost their parental rights. About a year later, Mary adopted me. My birth mom found all this hard to take and stopped all contact with me, but I still had contact with my dad and still do today. In elementary school, I was smart in some ways, but there were some kids, and even some teachers, who thought I had the IQ of a jar of marmalade, and kids bullied me because of my learning differences:

I have Central Auditory Processing Disorder, ADHD, Dyslexia, and Slow Processing.
With ADHD, I can easily drift off the planet.  In other words, I am easily distracted and get lost in my thoughts. With slow processing, my mind moves slower then a tractor on a highway.  It takes a while for me to process information. With Central Auditory Processing Disorder, I might think you said “pizza,” instead of “it’s a” since I have a hard time separating the audio that I receive. In addition, with Dyslexia, I look at words in a book and they appear jumbled like a pile of leaves, which makes reading difficult.

I have trouble with my learning differences, but they give me things that other people don’t have, like spatial processing strength, and enhanced creativity, I spend three times as long doing things as everyone else, except building Legos.  I can build Legos three times faster than other people can. And, I have the ability to see things in a different way and sometimes I can solve problems other people cannot.

I’ve grown up trying hard to keep up in school. My mom always helped me with schoolwork, because of my struggle.  When I was in kindergarten, my mother decided to be a teacher, because of my LD. So in a way I shaped her, as much as she shaped me. As an LD teacher, she helps many kids. Even if she works hard, and is not paid as much as she deserves, she loves her job.

 Having learning differences is like trying to get an ice cream cone 5 yards away, before it melts, while wearing size extra large lead shoes.  Although my mom encourages me to try my best, even if I can’t do things perfectly, it is mentally exhausting to do all my schoolwork and I end up with assignments overdue.   I work on what I can and make the best of it, and I don’t consider things finished until they are as good as possible. From elementary to high school, I have been working to the best of my ability, and being goofy in between. Outside of my school life, I am a playful, curious, person who is always thinking, and always planning things to do in the future.

I still have a hard time in school, I still get distracted, and it still takes me three times longer to do things then other people. Nevertheless, I still make things, I still don’t give up, I still try my best, and I won’t let my learning differences get in the way of my projects, my dreams, or my success.  

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Annual FundAppeal 2009

...to everyone who contributed to our Annual Fund 2009:

Al & Susan Adams Alex Endo Ann Farris Ann Price Anna Zara B.Q. Seeto Barbara Goto Barbara Pavicic Beth Gorman Beth Ohanneson Betsy Dodd Bonnie Preston Cathy Fitzgerald Cathy Osgood Constance Clark David Flink Deann Wright & Luke Evnin Deanna Gumina Debbie Hudson Dennis Aftergut Dick Kirchner Elena Miraglia Elizabeth Baker Elizabeth Daly-Caffell Gayle Rosenberg Geraldine Oliva Golob Family Foundation Greg Hylton     Harriet Wolfe Holly Seerley Irma Castro Isabel Breskin Jacqueline Keyser James Adams Jan Leuin Jennifer Hughes Jennifer Hughes Jennifer Steele Jo Cummins John & Robyn Roberts Judi Swenson Judith Lunger-Bergh Julie Lepinard Kathleen Sullam Kathleen Sweazey

Kathy Klausner Kelly Gorman Laura Birss Laura Cashion Laura Maloney Leslie Burlock Leslie Williamson Lora Buchler Lorelei Sontag Loren Gordon Laura Shine Revlock Marianna Rocca Marilyn Rich Mary Corrigan Mary Ellen Wilson Mary Kay Leveroni Maureen Costello Megan Kaplan Millicent/Bob Lelanne Mona Lessing Harroch Myrna Szeto Myrna Szeto Pat Mandel Peter Thorp Regina Casciato Richard Flaster Rita Nolan Robert Scavulo Sabina Aurillia Sally Large Sam Cuddeback Sara Flynn Sarah Horowitz Shelley Schaenen Susan Horning Susan Phelps Susan Mielke Tanya Stephanian Terry Weber Tinker Judson TJ Scharffenberger Tracy Edwards Trish Schreiber Vivien MacDonald Winn Ellis

If we have left out anyone from this list, we deeply regret it--please contact us and let us know.

We did not fully meet our $60,000 goal in this appeal. It is not too late to help us meet our goal for funding our 2010 programs. Please help in any way you can.

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Other News

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