Basic Brain Gym Exercises

By Dr. Jane BluesteinJune 14, 2022 ADD/ADHD, Behavior Management, Body and Brain, Differentiating Instruction, Learning, Learning styles, Life Management, Non-traditional learners, Parents, Special Needs, Teaching brain gym, making connections, movement and learning, neural communication, wake up your brain Leave a comment

4 simple activities to wake up the brain These are the four core Brain Gym exercises, also referred to as PACE exercises (Positive, Active, Clear, Energetic). I have described these exercises as they were taught to me. There are dozens of videos and PDFs with these and other Brain Gym exercises available since I first…

Book: The Beginning Teacher’s Survival Guide

By Dr. Jane BluesteinAugust 13, 2021April 27, 2023 Assessment and Testing, Avoiding burnout, Avoiding power struggles, Beginning Teachers, Behavior Management, Behavior Management, Body and Brain, Books, Building responsibility, Classroom management, Creating community, Cultural Changes, Culture and Community, Discipline, Educators, Emotionally safe schools, Feedback and encouragement, Health and Safety, Homework, Increasing Positivity, Intervening negative behavior, Leadership, Learning, Learning styles, Life Management, Mentorship, Modeling positive behavior, Motivating cooperation, Non-traditional learners, Parent-Teacher relationships, Problem solving, Professional growth, Recognition and reinforcement, Relationships, Rules and Boundaries, School climate, Schools in Society, Self-care and Inspiration, Social and Emotional Growth, Special Needs, Taking care of yourself, Teacher Appreciation, Teacher retention, Teaching, Teaching, Tolerance and Respect, Win-win authority avoiding power struggles, beginning teachers, boundaries, challenges for new teachers, creating community, difficult students, discipline, emotional safety, emotionally safe classroom, learning differences, parent-teacher relationships, positive consequences, professional development feedback, professional growth, professional identity, school culture, self-care, student behavior, student self-management, teacher retention, teaching

Win-Win Strategies for Success by Dr. Jane Bluestein At the start or your career or at the end of your rope… Get your teaching career off to a winning start—or recharge your passion for your work! The new & revised edition of Dr. Jane Bluestein’s pivotal guide for your teaching career! A great gift for new…

Presentation: Motivating the Unmotivated

By Dr. Jane BluesteinJune 25, 2016June 1, 2022 Avoiding power struggles, Building responsibility, Classroom management, Counselors, Creating community, Differentiating Instruction, Educators, Emotionally safe schools, Feedback and encouragement, Increasing Positivity, Learning styles, Motivating cooperation, Motivating your kids, Non-traditional learners, Parents, Recognition and reinforcement, School climate, Social and Emotional Growth, Win-win authority classroom climate, consequences, difficult students, effective instruction, motivating students, reduce indifference, student engagement, student success, unmotivated students Leave a comment

Getting past defenses, disinterest, and disengagement Presentation by Dr. Jane Bluestein Of all the challenges teachers face, the one mentioned most consistently over the years has been, “How do I engage kids who aren’t motivated and just don’t care?” Few things are more frustrated that having your planning and enthusiasm met with groans, shrugs, or eye…

Increasing Success for ALL Students

By Dr. Jane BluesteinMay 1, 2016April 30, 2022 ADD/ADHD, Body and Brain, Differentiating Instruction, Educators, Learning, Learning styles, Non-traditional learners, Parents, Special Needs Leave a comment

Strategies for changing or maintaining the students’ level of alertness and attentiveness There will be times when your students are starting to drift off or glaze over but you need their attention for a few more minutes before the bell rings. Or they come in all wound up and you need them to settle down…

Playing Well With Others

By Dr. Jane BluesteinJune 14, 2014May 2, 2022 Creativity and independence, Feedback and encouragement, Feedback and encouragement, Learning styles, Mentorship, Non-traditional learners creativity, friendship skills, independence, learning preferences, learning styles, non-traditional learners, play well with others, SEL, social and emotional learning, social skills, student social skills, working alone Leave a comment

Not all it’s cracked up to be When I was in second grade, I got a minus next to “plays well with others.” In my family, this was a terrible thing, worse even than getting a bad grade in the content areas. (This also wasn’t allowed, but somehow getting a “B”—the equivalent of failure in…

Your Personal Learning Preferences

By Dr. Jane BluesteinMay 14, 2013May 4, 2022 Differentiating Instruction, Educators, Learning, Learning styles, Non-traditional learners, Parents, Special Needs Leave a comment

A brief self-assessment As a part of many of my presentations (including nearly all full-day seminars and keynotes that address different ways people learn), I poll the audience to give participants a sense of differences that exist within the group. Even with small groups, the responses tend to be all over the map. Because I…

10 Myths About Autism

By Andrea LemkeJanuary 6, 2013May 8, 2022 Learning, Non-traditional learners, Parents, Special Needs Leave a comment

Sorting it all out Note: In case it’s not obvious, the myths are highlighted. The facts follow. 1. Autism is one disorder. Autism Spectrum Disorders include Asperger Syndrome, Rett Syndrome, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified. 2. Children with Autism have a hidden or exceptional talent. Children with Autism have unique…

Myers-Briggs Scales and Categories

By Dr. Jane BluesteinDecember 6, 2012May 22, 2022 Differentiating Instruction, Educators, General Interest, Learning, Learning styles, Non-traditional learners, Parents, Special Needs Leave a comment

Personality inventory scales and categories The Myers-Briggs assesses where we place on the following four scales: E<——————>I Extrovert<——————–>Introvert N<——————>S Intuiting<———————–>Sensing T<——————>F Thinking<———————–>Feeling J<——————>P Judging<———————->Perceiving (Finish Oriented)<———–>(Process Oriented) The four scales above allow for a possible 16 combinations with variations within any one category depending on the placement or strength in any one scale. David Kiersey’s…

Myers-Briggs Personality Types

By Dr. Jane BluesteinDecember 6, 2012June 8, 2022 Body and Brain, Differentiating Instruction, Educators, Learning, Learning styles, Non-traditional learners, Parents, Special Needs Leave a comment

Descriptions of personality inventory categories Overview of David Kiersey’s four temperament groups, based on the 16 Myers-Briggs categories (which is only one of over 200 “quadrant models”). Note that people in each group share certain similarities in their reality and their approach to the world, and that the people in one group operate from a…

Multiple Intelligences

By Dr. Jane BluesteinDecember 6, 2012May 13, 2022 Body and Brain, Differentiating Instruction, Educators, Learning, Learning styles, Non-traditional learners, Parents, Special Needs Leave a comment

Many ways to be smart Here is a very brief overview of Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences, or different ways of being “smart.” Linguistic Skill with words; using language, expressing with words, either written or spoken, and understanding what is said or written. Related skills might include storytelling, memorizing, writing, discussing, debating, journaling, oration and reading….