When our kids struggle with attention and impulsivity, and they are required to sit passively and learn something that doesn’t engage them, it’s a recipe for a disaster.
My daughter is a powerful, beautiful tornado. In hindsight, her impulsivity started at birth. I was induced with full-term twins, and, within an hour, my sweet baby girl crowned, much to the dismay of the doctor, who planned for a delivery in the OR. “Wow, she doesn’t wait for anything,” the doctor quipped.
Six years later, she is unstoppable, creative, and imaginative, but struggles with impulsivity and emotional control. At home, some days are better than others; medication has been a saving grace. But at school, she is thriving because her teachers are committed to putting students in the driver’s seat. She has choices every day that allow her to personalize her learning, and it brings out the best she has to offer the world. As a mom and educator, I couldn’t hope for more.
Choice is at the foundation of what it means to be a learner, especially when learning requires attention and commitment. This scenario is all too familiar because teaching has been a one-size-fits-all pursuit. Think back to the classrooms of your childhood—straight rows, hard-backed chairs, lectures, reading aloud in front of peers, and worksheets. In this kind of classroom, my daughter could transform into a funnel cloud and bring the classroom, with everything in it, to the Land of Oz.
On the other hand, think about the learning experiences you enjoyed: how to bake an apple pie, ride a bike, play the violin—when the learning was on your terms suddenly everything changed. It wasn’t magic. It was personalization, and today, teaching and learning should be personalized, so my kids, and your kids, can all be successful together. So what shouldAll of our kids have passion. Imagine if they could bring that passion into the classroom. With, they can.
All of these choices allow my daughter, my three sons, and their peers, to flourish. I haven’t had to fight for an individualized education for her, because “one-size-fits-all” is “one-size-fits-no one.” As a parent, if this sounds too good to be true, it’s not. Federal legislation, the Every Student Succeeds Act , which replaced No Child Left Behind in 2015, endorses a framework called Universal Design for Learning .
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