Photo of Fifth Graders Relaxing on the Story Tower

Posted by. Ms. McDonald

A Few Photos from Community Leader Breakfast

posted by: Mr. Graber

Photo of Some of Ms. Falvey's Students Working on Measuring Skills in the Science Lab

Middle School Global Climate Change Game

The middle school students recently participated in a game created by Ms. Hepler, a global climate change game. The game taught them about climate change, ever-changing global economies, dealing with natural disasters, and precious natural resources.

Life Success Series (part 4 in a series of 8)

posted by: Mr. Graber

Every two weeks I will be posting a section from this article here on Inside Bodine. I think you will find it quite interesting. It is a wonderful piece on life success for students with learning disabilities. It originally appeared on LD online.

Below are the schedule of the postings and the fourth installment:
September 6: introduction
September 21: self-awareness
October 5: proactivity
October 19: perseverance
November 2: goal-setting
November 16: presence and use of support systems
November 30: emotional coping strategies
December 14: conclusion and resources

Success Strategy #3: Perseverance

Many persons with learning disabilities show great perseverance and keep pursuing their chosen path despite difficulties. They often describe themselves in such terms as "I am not a quitter," and "I never give up." However, successful individuals demonstrate an additional important ability -- knowing when to quit. Although they rarely give up on a general goal, depending on the situation, they may change the way they go about achieving it, thereby improving their chances for success. In other words, after repeated failure, these individuals are able to see and pursue alternative strategies for reaching their goal, or know when the goal itself might have to be modified. Often they try several strategies until they find one that works. One successful adult states, "Once I have a failure, I can't just dwell on that failure and restrict myself for the rest of my life. I'll do something else." In contrast, unsuccessful individuals are typically not flexible and often appear to "beat their heads against the wall," failing to recognize when it is time to reevaluate their strategies, or the goal itself.

Successful persons with learning disabilities appear to learn from their hardships making statements such as "I have failed many times, but I am not a failure. I have learned to succeed from my failures." In addition, successful people seem to agree that difficult situations are necessary for learning. In comparison, unsuccessful individuals with learning disabilities are often overwhelmed by adversity, back away from challenges, and give up much more easily and quickly than successful peers.

Perseverance Checklist
My child…
Understands the benefits of perseverance
Keeps working at academic tasks despite difficulties
Keeps working at non-academic tasks despite difficulties
Knows how to deal with obstacles/setbacks
Knows how to adjust to change
Knows when to quit

This success attribute, like all the others, needs to be developed in a number of areas beyond school. Attention has to be given to fostering perseverance in the following areas: educational, cognitive, physical, psychological, employment, social, leisure, and spiritual. With regard to these areas, children with learning disabilities should learn to:

Understand the meaning of perseverance;
Understand the benefits of persevering and the consequences of not;
Develop strategies for dealing with obstacles, setbacks, and adjusting to change;
Recognize that passion and desire keep one moving in the face of adversity.
General activities for fostering perseverance:
Share inspirational stories (tell, read, watch movies) of people who have persevered in the face of adversity.

Have your child share his or her own stories (tell, write, draw) about times when he or she did not persevere and the resulting outcomes.
Have your child keep journals focusing on experiences requiring perseverance.
Have your child keep a record of when he or she is, or is not persevering.
Praise your child for persevering behavior and attitude when playing games, learning new sports, and doing unpopular chores.

Photo of Ms. Assel's Third Grade Reading in the Library

Posted by. Ms. McDonald

First Graders Working in the Science Lab

Posted by Ms. Blakley and Ms. Uphoff

The first graders are using an instrument called the "Air Zooka" to show that air has mass and can exert force - enough force to "Knock off Dr. Lee" (whose photo is on each of the stacked plastic cups). The students also learned that through cooperation and using the muscles of more than one student they could exert a stronger force and knock down more cups.

Bodine Teacher Helps Clean Up Wolf River Harbor

Posted by: Ms. Uphoff

Life Success Series (part 3 in a series of 8)

Posted by: Mr. Graber

Every two weeks I will be posting a section from this article here on Inside Bodine. I think you will find it quite interesting. It is a wonderful piece on life success for students with learning disabilities. It originally appeared on LD online.

Below are the schedule of the postings and the third installment:

September 6: introduction

September 21: self-awareness

October 5: proactivity

October 19: perseverance

November 2: goal-setting

November 16: presence and use of support systems

November 30: emotional coping strategies

December 14: conclusion and resources

Success Attribute #2: Proactivity

Successful adults with learning disabilities are generally actively engaged in the world around them -- politically, economically, and socially. They participate in community activities and take an active role in their families, neighborhoods, and friendship groups. Additionally, they often step into leadership roles at work, in the community, and in social and family settings.
Not surprisingly, therefore, successful persons with learning disabilities also believe that they have the power to control their own destiny and affect the outcome of their lives. In talking about how he took charge of his college experience, one successful adult remarks:
"I actually didn't take classes as much as I took professors. The way I got through college was I looked at the classes I was interested in and I was over at the professors' office times telling them I'm going to need extra time; give me the ability to take the written exam orally. There are a bunch of exceptions and I just listed them out for these people."

This quote demonstrates the kind of creative self-advocacy and initiative we frequently observed in successful adults. In contrast, unsuccessful individuals tend merely to respond to events and are passive.

Successful persons with learning disabilities also show the ability to make decisions and act upon those decisions. Additionally, they assume responsibility for their actions and resulting outcomes. In talking about how his shyness interfered with trying to meet a girl, one successful adult shares:
"I looked at that lesson and said, 'OK, you blew it that time. What are you going to do? How are you going to overcome that situation?' So I systematically started working on getting over my shyness…And last spring…"

When things don't work out, successful individuals generally take responsibility for the outcome and do not blame others. Commenting on his career, the same individual expresses commitment to action, "Anything I'm going to do, I'm going to give it my all. Otherwise I'm not going to touch it."

A willingness to consult with others while making decisions is also characteristic of successful people with learning disabilities. In that connection, they also appear to be flexible in considering and weighing options. For instance, when faced with a career-ending knee surgery, one successful athlete was able to smoothly shift her career focus to a pottery business. Another individual whose learning disability prevented him from passing required college courses, researched and transferred to a university that did not require those courses for graduation.
In contrast, unsuccessful individuals often do not recognize that situations can be altered, or that multiple solutions may exist. Instead, they are either passive, making no decision, or conversely, stick rigidly to a simplistic, rule-based decision even if it ultimately fails. Successful individuals, on the other hand, take responsibility for both the positive and negative outcomes of their decisions and actions. For example, one former student commenting on his success stated:
"I think that I worked hard and I made choices instead of letting things happen. I mean stuff that I haven't actively gone and taken care of are the only things that I'm not as satisfied with. The stuff that I've gone and taken care of, I'm very happy with.

Proactivity Checklist
My child…
Participates in classroom and extra-curricular social activities
Makes decisions and acts upon those decisions
Understands the advantages/disadvantages of making certain decisions
Recognizes when a decision needs to be made
Knows how to evaluate decisions
Takes responsibility for his/her actions
Feels he/she has control over his/her world
Is assertive and stands up for him/herself
Is self-confident

There is life beyond school for children with learning disabilities. While learning to be proactive in educational pursuits is important, persons with learning disabilities also need to develop the attribute of proactivity for social, employment, interpersonal, familial, and recreational settings. With regard to each of these settings, children with learning disabilities need to learn to:
Understand proactivity, its importance, and benefits;
Make decisions, act upon those decisions, and evaluate their decisions;
Understand the advantages and disadvantages of making certain decisions and take responsibility for their actions;
Act as self-advocates and be assertive while engaging in the world;
Develop the self-confidence to take risks and be flexible.
General activities for fostering proactivity:
Introduce problem-solving vocabulary into your family discussions. Share your personal challenges and dilemmas and what strategies you have employed. Present your child with examples of people facing problems, and have your child discuss or role-play action-oriented strategies for resolving these difficulties.
Have your child write down or discuss important decisions he or she has made, the strategies used to make the decisions, the results of those decisions, and whether or not the correct decision was made.
Present your child with examples of people's behavior and the specific outcomes resulting from the behavior. Then discuss the extent to which the individual had control over his or her behaviors.
Present your child with a number of "risky" scenarios and discuss the possible consequences of specific actions.

First Graders Working on Chicka Chicka Boom Project in Library

Posted by: Ms. McDonald, Librarian

The first grade students are making a craft based on the letters of the alphabet and the coconut tree in the book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.

October is Dyslexia Awareness Month: In Honor of Michael Cook

Written by: Mr. Graber

For Some Every Month is “October”

It is difficult to find two individuals who share the same definition of dyslexia, as misconceptions about dyslexia are commonplace. This remains constant, despite the fact that it is estimated that one in ten people have dyslexia. To complicate matters, often dyslexia is not formally identified in many individuals. It is interesting to note that some of the greatest minds of all-time were dyslexic. Nonetheless, it is not a significant part of our common vernacular. Among those notable dyslexics were: Winston Churchill, Leonardo DaVinci, Charles Darwin, Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, Mark Twain, and Franklin Roosevelt.

To help debunk much of the misinformation that seems to surround the subject of dyslexia, educators and learning specialists worldwide have named October “Dyslexia Awareness Month.” Dyslexia is a neurologically-based disorder which interferes with an individual's ability to read and spell. Dyslexics have difficulty learning the code for written language. Contrary to popular belief, dyslexia is not the result of low intelligence, lack of motivation, sensory impairment, or inadequate educational opportunities, and dyslexia affects as many girls as boys.

Since 1972, The Bodine School in Germantown has led the Mid-South in teaching children with dyslexia to conquer their academic difficulties and strive for success. Founded by Richard and Virginia Bodine, the school for students in grades one through eight, has been under the direction of its Executive Director, Dr. Rene Friemoth Lee, since 1990.

Dr. Lee, who is widely respected in the community as an advocate for her students and for raising awareness for dyslexia in general, is quick to give much of the credit for the school’s success to the entire school community. “We have a tremendous amount of support from our extended school community, especially our families,” she says.

One such supporter is Michael Cook. Cook, a native of the Memphis-area, who now lives in Jackson, Tennessee, was living in England at the time his son was diagnosed with dyslexia. “We were getting ready to move back to Memphis for my job when he was diagnosed. It was back in 1996 when the internet was in its infancy. We started looking around and found out about The Bodine School,” he said.

Cook, a former Senior V.P. with Service Master, and his wife met with Dr. Lee shortly after arriving back in the states. Dr. Lee tested their son, but had no place for him in the school, as his grade was filled to capacity. “Initially, when she said there was no room for my son, I had resigned myself to the fact that we were just going to seek advice or alternatives for him,” he said. However, not being one to accept no for an answer, he persisted until a place was found for his son at the school.

Once Cook’s son was enrolled, Dr. Lee wasted little time in taking full advantage of Cook’s financial and business acumen and networking potential. She recruited Cook to join the school’s board of trustees where he recruited other quality board members. “Working on a non-profit board is quite different from working in private industry,” he says. “The challenge is to motivate people when you can’t tell them what to do.”

Cook met this challenge with great success, as for four years he led the Bodine board of trustees to recruit other strong-minded business types. They were successful in improving the quality of the lives of their students by getting the school’s needs met. “Michael Cook has contributed significantly to this school,” said Lee. “He was instrumental in getting our new state of the art science lab funded and built, and he improved the financial aid program at the school. In addition, he has been a great ambassador for our school and for dyslexia in general. Every school and every cause needs their own Michael Cook.”

With great modesty, Cook said he did not have much choice in the matter, but whole heartedly believes in the school’s mission and purpose. “I wanted my son to go to school at Bodine, and I was at Dr. Lee’s disposal and mercy,” he chuckled, and then stated, “I truly believe The Bodine School is doing something better than anyone else is in the Mid-South.”

Now that he has retired from the board of trustees at Bodine, Cook reflects to see how the school has made a positive impact in the lives of his family members. “Both my daughter, who is in high school, and my son, who is now doing well in college, attended Bodine,” he said. “It is wonderful to see that many students are going from Bodine into universities and succeeding.”

For Michael Cook’s family and many other families who have been touched by dyslexia, every month is Dyslexia Awareness Month.