| Climate
for Creative Learning An effective school is a place for
active, not passive, leaning; a place where all
people are encouraged to be creative, not just
conforming; a place of cooperation as well as
competition.
Character Development
Students need to grow in
mind, body and spirit. Schools should help
students develop both reason and conscience; to
affirm the core virtues that guide our lives:
honesty, respect, responsibility, compassion,
self-discipline, perseverance and service.
Aging Parents
 My mother turned 86 this month. Her
health is very good, but we have noticed some
decline in her memory....she has had a major
stroke and several smaller strokes. I found the
following helpful.
As people age certain
physiological and psychological changes affect
their ability to receive messages. To help get
your messages across to older adults, you might
try the following guidelines:
Avoid complex
messages. Seniors have trouble dealing with too
much information at once.
Repeat messages as
often as possible.....especially the more complex
ones. This will reduce the effort needed to
interpret them.
Design concrete
messages. Abstract thinking ability often
declines with age. Use rational rather than
emotional appeals, which tend to be vague.
Use visual aids.
Visual memory declines more slowly than verbal
memory. Put together a combination of words and
pictures.
Deliver messages
slowly....point by point. When information is
presented too quickly, the earlier points
overpower the later ones.
Give preference to
print media. This allows older people to process
information at their own rate.
|
The past month has been
another very busy time for us. We are
expanding both with our on-line
activities and the consulting work. Busy,
I guess is a relative term, the time I
spend working is all-consuming. This
morning my accountant called (it is Tax
Day, April 15), to remind me to file
estimated taxes. But more importantly she
shared how she had been working seventy
and eighty hours the past few days. She
had "gone over the wall" and
did not know how she was standing. Well,
I am sure I have been there on any number
of occasions, but our work is simply
interesting, fascinating and constantly
changing and the hours of work do not
seem grueling....they are just there. I
am learning so much every day.....at
times my mind is tired, but I want to
continue on because the possibilities are
endless. So for me busy is okay....not
enough time in a day or week.....never.
But the challenge is invigorating and I
relish the busyness. 
Begin reading to
children as soon as possible. The
younger you start, the better. 
Blindfold
your child. Find four matches on the two
cardboard sheets using his/her fingers. See how
long it takes to find four matches.
Strategic Studies needs
teachers to prepare lesson plans which can be
used in conjunction with the Internet. Lessons
are being sought in all curricular areas and all
grade levels from primary to high school. You may
want to visit