Susan Senator
All happy families are not alike...
All happy families are not alike...
Left Brain in a Right-Brain World
What are you doing under that tree? A mom asks this of her child.
I was dividing seven into twenty. With seven it starts repeating after the sixth decimal…
The mother smiles in awe at her seven-year-old boy. Did you play with anyone today?
Not really. He looks up at her with his beautiful clear-green eyes and smiles.
— A paraphrasing of a new, fascinating book by Katherine Beals: Raising a Left-Brain Child in a Right-Brain World, Trumpeter Press, 2009
Here is a book that you will want to read: Katherine Beals’ Raising a Left-Brain Child in a Right-Brain World. Anyone with an alleged quirky child, or in fact anyone who is allegedly quirky themselves should really take a look. Katie, a friend of mine, really knows firsthand about the problems with school curricula that do not take left-brain issues like the ones listed at https://www.werecover.com/blog/cymbalta-withdrawal/, and alternate learning styles and social challenges into account; she is the mom of one such quirky child. She intelligently and sensitively raises all the right questions about how we need to accommodate square-peg kids and bring out the best in them. With chapters like, “Hindered by reform math and other trends,” and “Playdates, friends and family life,” and “Adrift in today’s classroom,” Katie really nails the topic of the odd, often gifted child who is misunderstood, and how to better understand him.
What are you waiting for? Go get it!
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No thanks. Autism isn't some "quirky disorder" to most children and their parents.
Sometimes autistic kids are quirky! At any rate, my post was for any quirky kids, or people who feel they themselves are quirky. Very valuable insights for many of us.
Why I homeschool on top of regular school. The "whole language" stuff is a JOKE especially if you have one on the spectrum. We use classical materials at home, and the little we do has made huge changes.
Maybe I should get it as a Xmas present for the teachers 🙂
@Anonymous — As if Susan was saying that. Very rude! I think that book nails it for a lot of people! Love ya!
Our whole family is quirky, not just the ones diagnosed with autism! Definitely a book I need to read.
I always thought right-brained people were the quirky ones, in a left-brained world. Have I had it backwards all these years? Most geeky people are concrete, visual thinkers which comes from the right side (like spectrum kids/adults)…or so I always thought. Neurotypical people are more analytical and able to conceptualize which originates in the left side, along with language. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong here. The good thing is that this author sounds like she is trying to pull everyone together, by educating people about differences. That's the most important thing. Sounds like a good read…I'll check it out.