Dyslexia

"I have observed dyslexic adults can teach and understand special needs children in a better manner."

This is a comment I received last year. I'd never thought too much about it before but, thinking it through now it does make sense! People often tell me that I have an advantage in working with dyslexic individuals because of my dyslexia. 

The writer of the comment also went on to say that dyslexic students require more time to learn. Let's talk about that! 

Yes, in one way you can say we would need more time. Let me explain, though: We might need more time when:
 *we have a new or confusing subject to learn
 *If something is taught without examples or models
 *or, we're trying to learn something when not using our strongest learning sense. 

HOLD ON

Wait, these are the EXACT moments when our Davis tools can be activated, or inserted into the situation and we can complete the work at hand! 

Here's what I've heard this week --

My student: "What time is it?" 

Me: "It's 11:30"

Student: "Wow! It feels like I've been here 30 minutes! and it's been hours!" 

I'm not extraordinarily entertaining, but when I can give students the proper tools for the situation these brain tools can make a huge difference! With the right methods we can learn and be productive while using our gifts and talents!

Recently I spoke to a friend about her grandchild. One point she made was about focusing, specifically that focusing is hard for someone who's learning style is that of a picture thinker. 

I agree. 

WHY CAN'T THEY FOCUS

What do our classroom teachers expect all students to be able to do ... to independently pay attention, to focus when told to get ready, to be prepared when the teacher begins talking and to be a good listener. 

All teachers want their students to accurately hear when they announce to the class, "Get ready" or say "Time to focus" or "Get out your books and be ready to read".  Sometimes, in these classroom and other situations the dyslexic learner or 'picture thinker' --as my friend put it--  is deeply lost in their creative brain! 

A dyslexic can have their creative talent brain-mode turned on and be ready to actively work at any time, like in a classroom or the office, at the shop, gym, business, or restaurant by using the Davis tools of Release, Energy Dial and Focusing. These are effective game-changers! 


Cathy Henkle Cook, M. Ed.
OnPoint Learning, LLC
Columbia, Missouri
(573) 819-6010


Empower Your Life with the GIFT of Dyslexia! 

Conditioning

Conditioning

Conditioning. Reshaping. Strengthening. Is this about a workout of some kind? No, this is about brain training!

Recently a five-year-old German Shepard dog, named Rumor, won the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York City. Rumor is quite the intelligent dog, not unlike my Shetland Sheepdog, 'McDuff of Meisinger' who was our family pet while I was growing up. Until I caught the finale of the Westminster dog show I'd almost forgotten about the dog obedience classes Duff and I went through the fall after we brought our Sheltie home as a young pup.

Duffy graduated every single semester I took him through classes and  I loved going with him to the parks and rec classes. Dad always said Duff did a pretty good job during obedience school...a good job of training me!

That champion dog Rumor has a trainer who possesses the skills necessary for producing an award winning dog! Dogs need guidance in becoming well trained.

My dog was certainly intelligent enough to follow training expectations and to excel at training, but according to my dad, Duff just managed to finagle me and to get past my directions!

Let me give you an example.  When guests were over for dinner at our house, their dinner plate never failed to be the subject of Duff's intense review! If you looked to the left for more than a second he would spring up from the right to snatch your hamburger or chicken leg slickly off your plate!

Our next door neighbor's Italian grandmother was one of Duff's favorite targets. Grandma P. would start her daily walk down the neighbor's long, straight drive to the mailbox at the end of our shared lane, slowly moving, one foot after another; but THE second her thick-soled shoes touched the graveled area where our driveways connected, she became a part of Duff's game. With that step he would charge down our lane barking at her. Sorry Grandma P. :(

The point of this story? Intelligence, ability and determination are great, but having the right tools to implement these into your life, they are essential.

Look at Duff in this picture with my parents, sitting attentively there in our yard (I'd guess it was Easter Sunday which meant the moment we drove away for church he'd be on his way to raid our Easter baskets of their chocolates!)

I'll admit that my age probably didn't help get me the results I would have liked to have had with my dog. After all I was pretty young and had no prior experience with dog training. At least I'll claim that as part of my excuse for Duff's antics. But, if I'd been able to apply training techniques to all of Duff's behaviors I might have had a dog who didn't chase our elderly neighbors or eat our house guests sandwiches!

Likewise, with the Davis dyslexia correction program we can teach children and adults to use our tools of Focusing, Release and Energy Dial in an effective manor; plus, we can model these techniques for them...as we help that person become independent!


Cathy Henkle Cook, M. Ed.
OnPoint Learning Center, LLC
Columbia, Missouri
(573) 819-6010

Empower your life with the GIFT of Dyslexia!

Pathways

On-Point with a young child

"For every single one of us, learning something new means rearranging the way the brain works," *"Our brain has an astonishing 100 Billion neurons all connected together. Learning is about creating and strengthening pathways through these neurons,"
Clip by: Tiffany Shlain & The Moxie Institute Films to help emphasis this ---

How we Learn!

That first time we learn a new skill can be the most difficult! While we're learning something new we're still creating dozens upon dozens of images within seconds!  Let's say we have to do some reading for our school work. The brain is simultaneously taking in info from the environment. This rapid, astonishing power of a dyslexic brain makes our lives interesting! Yes, to focus on what is useful, relevant and helpful is great, but, with the eccentric power of our brain remaining on-point isn't always easy!

Reshaping our Brains
I mentioned the term on-point above. Are you wondering what that means? In our Davis

Using Koosh balls to create pathways

technique/world having your brain ready is (being) 'on-point'. Truthfully, it's about the brain plus it is about creating a cohesion between our vision, hearing, sense of timing, balance and movement of the body. 

The reverse of this therefore is called 'off-point'. This can mean two things:
1) Not focused  or 2) we're using our creativity

Focusing
Now you might ask "Cathy, how in the world can this be two things all at the same time?"

Good question! Simply put, if you need to accomplish an academic task like reading, writing or communicating, we need to be on-point to do the task effectively. On the reverse side, if your goal is to be creative, by all means, off-point mode is the best!

Creating with clay

Creativity
What does all this have to do with brain training or creating pathways? Simply put, when we are focused, just as my young clients are in the pictures above, the brain then has the prime conditions it needs to form new routes, better pathways, and to be able to create more meaningful links.

Then again, dyslexics are well known for their creativity and imagination! My young friend (to the left) did not need an ounce of help constructing her original creature that she called a dragon-dinosaur!

*"Our brain has an astonishing 100 Billion neurons all connected together," and yes, I'd say we dyslexics rock at using these neurons to our advantage!





Cathy Cook, M. Ed.
OnPoint Learning Center, LLC
Columbia, Missouri 
(573) 819-6010

Empowerment for Life with the GIFT of Dyslexia! 

An Award!

Let's Celebrate! 

OnPoint Learning blog has earned an award! Wow! 

Here's the note I received! 

"I personally give you a high-five and want to thank you for your contribution to this world 
as one of the Top 50 Dyslexia Blogs on the web."

Anuj Agarwal,
Founder of Feedspot

Now this is quite an accomplishment for this 'dyslexic' blogger! 
Take a look at these other dyslexia blogs! 
http://blog.feedspot.com/dyslexia_blogs/

Thank you to Feedspot and Anuj for this recognition! 

Cathy Henkle Cook
OnPoint Learning Center, LLC
Columbia, Missouri
(573)819-6010

EMPOWER your life with the GIFT of Dyslexia!

Meet the BLOG!

Getting Started

The journey to becoming licensed as a Davis facilitator was intense...an understatement, at least in my case! The intensity, not so much from the process, but from my fierce motivation!

Everything had to be just right before I achieved my final licensing from Davis Dyslexia Association International. I had a mental list of what perfection would entail: professional office ready to go, user friendly website activated; brochures, business cards, local licenses, contacts made, and anything else you could imagine. Done! There was just one glitch. One small glitch! 

OnPoint Learning Center, LLC original brochure

Opposition. 

That's right, opposition because opposing opinions are out there! This business of dyslexia correction is not for the faint of heart, I tell you! Not to discourage you, but to give you a footing, an understanding, a solid place to start. 

WHAT??? Not everyone will agree with you or be amenable? No, they will not. Do not let that stop you! (And don't get me wrong, there will be many who LOVE what you do!)

Reflection

Reflecting back over the last 35+ years of studying about learning differences I'd never thought much about being opposed in my search. Most people wanted to know what my opinion was, but I had not worried about opposition. 

It started with my son's pediatrician. Dr. Lee was a genius in my book. Hours after my son was born needing emergency surgery Dr. Lee was on the ball! He'd studied the weekend before the exact type of unexpected medical issue my son ended up having (I know it was not by chance that the doc was totally up to date on this, but that's a whole other story!) 

Throughout the process of hospitalizations and treatment Dr. Lee was knowledgeable and supportive. All the way. Until down the road when I talked about looking at areas of learning differences. He was good with my ideas and didn't oppose me, too much. It was a good introduction to what would come down the road.

This leads me to the meat of this story. 

Look for the BRIGHT side! 

Around the time I was waiting on the official Davis license I attended a leadership group. The evening started off well, things were going smoothly as we munched on tasty treats, me sitting cozily on a soft couch. That's when it hit. 

I was in a conversation with the woman to my left when she mentioned what a great substitute teacher she was. She went on to talk about how she stood out above the rest of the teachers when it came to learning differences. So, having a chance to learn more about her I asked how she felt about dyslexia, attention deficit, and such.  

She stiffly turned directly toward me and articulates, "There is no such thing as dyslexia. It's all made up."

And with that lovely comment she spun around, placing her back squarely towards to me, refusing to speak! 

What can I say!

I couldn't believe what had just happened! I tried to strike up a conversation again, even pulled a friend who was sitting close by into the conversation, but to no avail. The woman refused to talk to me. I ended up leaving the event pretty early, needless to say!

Welcome to Columbia!

Meet the blog

I drove home with one mission: it was a logical conclusion, I had to start blogging! Oh, I was aware the English language and I are not always the best of friends, but I knew I could not say out-loud  $%#@ the kinds of things I wanted to say! There seemed only one recourse, to state my case through a blog post. I needed an outlet! 

I'd never, ever, considered blogging before (for one thing, I'm not the best speller!) But I was determined! 

It's been quite a pilgrimage, a venture that continues, needless to say! Carry on! 

Cathy Henkle Cook, M. Ed.

OnPoint Learning Center, LLC

Columbia, Missouri

(573) 819-6010

Empower your life with the GIFT of Dyslexia! 

A Year

The Gift of Dyslexia by Ronald D. Davis

You can talk about reading comprehension, the power of the brain or types of learning styles, all important topics, but the process of becoming a Davis facilitator was one of the most important things for me!

It started in the early 2000's when I was on an intense journey. The journey's mission boiled down to one thing: my students. 

These elementary kiddos had abundant potential (some were my special ed students, others were simply in the same classes as my students. Some spent lots of weekends with my family and I, others only had a few minutes a week in their classroom as part of their IEP) that wasn't being accessed; furthermore, I was confused by the endless stream of medications and drugs some were religiously given. 

The array of seminars I attended had a bounty of information, but the sessions never quite hit the target for my students. 

Seminars were not the only place I searched. There was one book that jumped out at me through my research, The Gift of Dyslexia by Ronald D. Davis.  My husband generously bought me the book and I packed it without questioning for spring break 2001, reading it on the airplane as we passed over mountains in the western United States. My friends made fun of me for 'working' on vacation. I did not care! 

The Journey!

It would be several years before I would finally start the path toward becoming a licensed Davis facilitator, but once that journey began I was ALL IN for the RIDE! 

The year of training was long, required many sacrifices, but I was impassioned to obtain the best results obtainable. There were no short cuts on this journey, I had too many questions to answer. 

There was this one question that nagged at me -- How would people know I was capable of providing the Davis Dyslexia correction program? Would they trust me with their children? Would I honestly be able to help anyone? 

The specialist involved with my training told me she would always be there to vouch for me. That seemed reasonable. I still had questions!  

That was over twelve and a half years ago as I was finishing up my training. I genuinely had no idea time would speed along so quickly through these years! Sincerely, I know there were times in the beginning of opening a new business where I had to jump high hurdles, but sitting here typing, right here in this moment, I cannot name any hardships or struggles that didn't, in the end, pass rather quickly.

Reflecting over years of facilitating the Davis program it truly all comes back to dyslexia. 

That's right, dyslexia. Not in the way you might think of dyslexia, but my own dyslexia, it's about my own dyslexia now.  Some say they think my dyslexia has added to my ability to help others. Maybe they are right; maybe that's my gift of dyslexia, the ability to help others. 

I no longer wonder what my clients, their parents; students, their grandparents or friends think about this program. I believe in them without reservation. Wholeheartedly. Onward with the journey!

Thank you, Ron Davis!

  

Cathy Henkle Cook, M. Ed.

OnPoint Learning Center, LLC

Columbia, Missouri

(573) 819-6010

Empower Your Life with the GIFT of DysLeXia! 

More than senses

Power of the Brain

Our brains take-in information (for example) sounds from inside of our home, the smell of dinner coming from the kitchen, the feelings of those who live within close proximity to us; from the colors decorating our rooms, to the arrangement of our furniture, and even from the textures of the carpeting and the upholstery of our furniture. 

Here's what I've noticed about myself--

The raised, looping-textured fabric of an indoor-outdoor rug in one room of our home feels nice on my bare feet. I like to think of it as a mini (MINI!) foot massage! I can tell the different between areas tread upon frequently and those barely walked on. 

Here's another: I realized my brain was taking in information from the environment way back in my college days. In the early days after I first left home to live in the girl's dorm at Western Illinois University I woke up one night from a deep sleep feeling reassured. What was so reassuring? The sound of the refrigerator! That was it! And then I thought, "I don't have a fridge in my room!" I soon realized what I was 'hearing', out of the blue, was the refrigerator back home! 

Well, not really a refrigerator (at least not one I could reach over to touch) but the memory of home! My mind created a way to cope with this brand new situation in life by playing out the sound clip of the humming Kelvinator from HOME! Who knew that something so simple would bring comfort.

Life Application

As nice as these memories are, what does it all mean? 

I talked about my brain waking me up from a deep sleep to play the sound clip of the family's refrigerator, but the drone of a fridge isn't all that important! 

In helping dyslexics, as a Davis Dyslexia Correction facilitator, I began applying the tools used for hands-on correction of dyslexic symptoms to adult emotions.  Creating the letters of our alphabet A-Z with some of my adult clients, we first make alphabet letters from non-hardening clay. My letters on one side of the table, my client's on the opposite side. 

We joke, carry on delightful conversations and at the end of the alphabet making we take a short break. Afterwards we focus on some simple Davis tools, and start creating letter A.  

I'd like to say from here I have an elaborate plan of attack, but truthfully at this point my clients take over. While I do ask a few questions to get things started I'm amazed at the power of their brain that supplies these adults with the answer. Not any old answer but the viable answers to their questions! 

While not all things in life are that easy, this is certainly a place to begin. 

We start with letter A, process through some simple tools with the clay materials and the brain begins to fill in the holes. It fills in the holes, while exposing deeply immersed items from recent or long forgotten interactions, reactions, emotions; from visions, feelings, interpretations, and an endless array of brain absorbed materials.  

Any idea what may be locked inside your brain? Let's start with a little clay and see where we can go! 

Cathy Henkle Cook, M. Ed.

OnPoint Learning Center, LLC

Columbia, Missouri

Empower your life with the GIFT of Dyslexia!