“Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now.” – Alan Lakein
Some students have a lot of trouble with planning, organizing and managing themselves in time and space.
They also show weakness with “working memory“, which is an important tool in managing their time, planning a project or even recalling the date, particularly the current day of the week or month of the year.
This difficulty is not so obvious in the early grades but tends to be more noticeable as children move through the intermediate grades and need to meet homework or project deadlines.
It becomes a sensitive problem for parents and teachers when it seems like the student is not aware of how to start, finish or even contemplate the work at hand in a timely manner. The student’s time for completion is slipping away, but the student seems stuck in time.
Some parents have affectionately described this “way of being” as a “Where am I? What’s happening?” state of mind. This unusual expression helps them describe their experience with their child’s difficulty as it impacts the child’s ability to be ready when they are leaving for school, going to an event or even remembering when and where everyday events will take place.
A digital clock or watch will tell the student the time, day, month or year, but will not teach them where they fit in time. Teachers and tutors can help with one efficient supportive skill. It’s a technique for integrating a quick calendar lesson into each class.
If you are interested, check out this short video demonstration to see how it’s done.
Enjoy your students and remember: “Sometimes it takes a wrong turn to get you to the right place.”
Marilyn Wardrop is a gifted trainer & mentor who helps educators replace or surpass their current math teaching strategies for struggling math students or those children learning math for the first time.
Marilyn’s OG Academic Math training programs have been called the secret weapon of frustrated math instructors. Thousands of educators use OG Math every single day.
Contact Marilyn here anytime.
Marilyn Wardrop is a gifted trainer & mentor who helps educators replace or surpass their current math teaching strategies for struggling math students or those children learning math for the first time. Marilyn’s OG Academic Math training programs have been called the secret weapon of frustrated math instructors. Thousands of educators use OG Math every single day.