Education

Jj is for Jottings 118.  Hearing versus Listening. Consider hearing versus listening: hearing and listening both involve the ears, but hearing is just the first step in the listening process.  Let’s compare the two. HEARING. Hearing is one of the senses, i.e. the ability to perceive sounds by receiving vibrations through ears.  It is an […]

Jj is for Jottings 143.  Mouth Breathing. Mouth breathing – breathing through the mouth instead of through the nose – seems like a harmless enough sort of habit.  But its effects turn out to be quite far-reaching.  I referred to mouth breathing as a potential side effect of tongue tie, but that is only a […]

Jj is for Jottings 112.  What is Neuroplasticity? Just what is neuroplasticity?  It is the term which describes a sequence of processes that take place in your brain in response to incoming stimuli. In other words, your emotions, behaviours, experiences and thoughts physically change the way your brain functions. “What is neuroplasticity? I think it […]

Jj is for Jottings 132.  Direct Vocabulary Instruction. When a child has poor vocabulary knowledge for their age, it indicates that they struggle to learn vocabulary from their written or spoken language experiences.  They will then need direct vocabulary instruction to increase their chances of catching up with their peers. It also makes sense to […]

Jj is for Jottings 68. Communication Milestones. Here is a chart put together by a group from Queensland and the National Office of Speech Pathology Australia which you may find useful. Here is the link if you want to print copies. www.speechpathologyaustralia.org.au/milestones Jj is for Jottings 67.  Reading Comprehension – Is Your Child Barking at […]

Jj is for Jottings 137.  Auditory Processing Disorders. Following on from auditory skills and developing auditory processing skills, we now turn our attention to auditory processing disorders.  There are so many conflicting ideas in the literature as to exactly what constitutes auditory skills. One could really become bogged down by this and therefore any resulting […]

Meet the new neighbours on the other side. Jj is for Jottings: 7. Effects of Screens on Children – My Observations, Part 1. During the 35+ years that I have worked as a speech pathologist in education, technology has made its way into our children’s everyday lives at an ever-increasing pace. At the beginning of […]

Jj is for Jottings 86.  R-Controlled Vowels and Diphthongs. There are other vowel sounds, apart from the short and long vowels.  These include r-controlled vowels, schwa and diphthongs. “Some of these r-controlled vowels and diphthongs are quite tricky to get your tongue around – if you’re an alpaca.”  R-CONTROLLED VOWELS. When a vowel is followed […]

Jj is for Jottings 138.  Brain Gym. WHAT IS BRAIN GYM? Brain gym is a series of movements which claim to enhance whole-brain learning.  An alternative term is “educational kinesiology”.  The word “education” comes from the Latin educare, which means “to draw out”.  “Kinesiology” is from the Greek root kinesis, which means “motion” and is […]

Jj is for Jottings 99. Print Books are Better than Digital Books for Toddlers. The question of whether print books are better than digital books for toddlers is a concern for many parents who are looking to do the best by their children.  Here are two pieces of evidence, one anecdotal and one from research, […]

Jj is for Jottings 148.  Other Effects of Noise. Most of us know about the effects of noise on our hearing, discussed in the previous post.  Spending much time in noisy environments can cause long-term damage to your hearing.  Examples are working in a noisy factory or living near an airport.  Exposure to loud music […]

Jj is for Jottings 123.  Neuroplasticity and Power. The topic of neuroplasticity and power is related to this article which defines neuroplasticity and this article on neuroplasticity and complaining.  Every experience we have and every thought we think affects the way our brain develops and changes.  In turn, this affects our physiology and psychology.  The […]

Jj is for Jottings 140.  Tongue Tie. After discussing /s/ speech sound problems in the previous post, in a way the topic of this post is the opposite: tongue tie.  Why is it the opposite?  Some /s/ problems involve tongue protrusion or sideways movement. But tongue tie anchors the tongue which limits movement to varying […]

Jj is for Jottings 66.  7 Tips for Reluctant Readers. Some early readers find large blocks of print rather daunting and are therefore reluctant to read.  Here are some tips for getting around this: Continue reading Jj is for Jottings 65.  What Is Synthetic Phonics? We’re just taking a break from the series on How […]