Virtual Teacher

As Levine (2002) states, attention is the brain’s manager, including a complicated network of controls that regulate most of the processes involved in learning and behavior. Levine, an authority in brain research and founder of "All Kinds of Minds", adds that attention does not accomplish anything on its own, but rather it helps the brain determine what to do, when, and for how long. Children who struggle paying attention in the classroom, also known as children with short attention span and/or inattentive students, frequently exhibit problem behaviors such as: •Distracted by background stimuli (irrelevant visual, auditory, and/or tactile stimuli) •Shifting from one uncompleted task to another task that is also left unfinished •Losing and/or misplacing the books and materials necessary for completing the task; forgetful •Do not pay attention to details, and due to this, they make careless mistakes •Do not seem to listen •Difficulty organizing tasks (what comes first, ne...

Psycho-educational or therapeutic teachers believe that behavioral change is primarily a teaching and learning process. To be effective and long-term, behavior change strategies must include cognitive (thinking), affective (feelings), and behavioral aspects. We also believe that we all have the choice of behavioral change, and that all students, including students that exhibit habitually disruptive behaviors in the classroom, can learn new and more positive ways of behaving. In the psycho-educational classroom, educating disruptive children about the motivation behind their behavior plays a vital role. Once children understand that they choose their behavior, they also understand that they can change their behavior. Psycho-educational teachers believe that strengthening children’s coping and social problem solving skills is therapeutic. The psycho-educational or therapeutic model is one of social problem solving and socio-emotional growth rather than disciplining and punishment. When...

Teachers can use self-instruction techniques to teach children an organized approach to solve social problems like settling arguments and fighting; also to cope effectively with angry feelings and with feelings of frustration. To solve the problem, we can train the child to ask, “What am I supposed to do?” and then, the child follows these steps: Look at all the possibilities or look at all the different answers so you can find the best possible solution. Focus in. Concentrate or think hard about just the problem you are working on right now. Do not look or think about anything else. After you study all the different choices, pick an answer. Check out your answer. If you got it right, tell yourself you did a good job. If you did not get it right, you do not have to put yourself down. Just remind yourself to be more careful or to go more slowly on the next try. (Kendall and Braswell, 1985) Teach students to use self-questioning . Questions help in organizing the steps needed t...

This is an excerpt from my popular book Keys to Meaning: What Teachers and Tutors Can Do to Improve Reading Comprehension Skills. To preview this book, click on the link at the bottom of this post.   When students understand a reading passage or a literary piece, they know what the information in the reading material means . To show understanding or meaning, children need to be able to recall or remember, to explain, to tell how something works, to restate the important ideas and details and/or to summarize. At the highest levels of meaning, students need to be able to apply or use the information (i.e. solving a problem), analyze or break the information down into parts (i.e. comparing, contrasting, sequencing), synthesize or use the information to create something new, and evaluate or telling the value of the information and giving opinions. There are two main types of literature: fiction or literature that is made-up, and nonfiction or literature about real people,...

Section 1: Definition Cognitions are the ideas and beliefs that we express through self-talking (the way we talk) and self-images (the way we think). Our cognitions guide our perception or interpretation of an event, which in turn influences the way we feel about the event (e.g. amazed, embarrassed, threatened, or angry). The way we feel about the event in turn influences the way we respond to the event. For example, if I perceive the event as hazardous to my health, I feel threatened and find ways to protect myself, but if the same event is challenging to me, I feel energized mentally and physically and behave accordingly. In other words, the way we feel and behave is a reaction to the way we perceive or interpret the event. Based on this basic premise, the cognitive-emotive approach, also known as rational-emotive thinking, states that we control our emotional destinies by the way we look at the events that take place in our lives, and by the actions we choose to deal with thes...