Saturday, September 11, 2021

 Saturday, September 11, 2021

 

   I had my first appointment with 4 ½ year old E. He sat in his kitchen in front of the monitor. His two ½-year-old brother L was there too. E made funny faces. I asked him why. He said to be funny. I made funny faces to show him it could look weird. He got it. His mother was pleased that he didn't touch the screen. He will have an in-person individual interview and a group Zoom alone. Geez, Louise. It is harder than getting into Harvard.

   At 10:30, I had an appointment with adolescent D.  I was struggling with his inability to remember phonics rules that I told him over and over and over. I couldn't figure out the cause of the problem. I paused and thought. I don't know where my ideas come from, but they come when I ask and wait. The answer I got was that he had trouble with abstract thought.  Anything that doesn't generate sensation is abstract. Love is somewhat abstract, but everyone has a feeling they associate with it. Words are abstract, but we connect them to objects or concepts, many of which have feelings associated with them.   But then there is the level of abstraction of a nonsense sound, a phoneme, associated with a nonsense design, a letter. Two abstractions with no association with anything we can feel. How am I going to get him to connect here? Multi-sensory. I may try the clay work which Ron Del Davis developed. He has his students form words out of clay. He uses real potter's clay. It's tough to work with. I found some modeling clay at the local art store that might do. 

     D has been claiming that he has made no progress in his reading. Yes, he's struggling with the 8th-grade material. However, two years ago, the school evaluated his reading on a 1st-grade level. After working with him for a short while, he was assessed on a lower 2nd-grade level. Even then, he had trouble discerning the difference between her and here. He has been claiming that his reading is not better due to our work. I heard him say, "I  always read as well as I read now. "I asked him if that was the case, why didn't he read. He answered, "I don't know." What is he saying? There is a possibility he doesn't understand his situation accurately. Scary. I made plans to share this with his mom. I had already recommended a psych evaluation a while ago. I'm not sure this young man is okay. I am also not sure that getting him into the medical loop would be to his advantage. I don't know what the profession has to offer.

     Elsa sat by the sofa with her gaze fixed underneath it. Elsa is good; she will tell me exactly where the ball is. I got one of my walking sticks and swept. Five balls came out, including her favorite pink, green, and blue with a stubbly surface. It's falling apart. I have looked for a replacement. I can get balls that size, but not that precise one. So sad.

    Elsa and I started a new routine. She sits in my lap while I pull apart matted hair or comb her. I tried that before, but she wasn't so responsive. This is a significant change. Her response is to become relaxed and meditative. In the past, all she was up for was belly rubs. She responds to those like an addict getting a fix. It's not as enjoyable as this grooming activity.

   I called my friend Melissa. She will be heading out again to deliver babies where doctors are needed. Her first stop will be Seattle, and then she's headed back to Australia and the Outback. She loves it there. It was clear from the conversation that Covid and the political situation were weighing on her too.

   My friend Linda in England wrote that she found my updates "fascinating." I was dying to know which part. I hoped she was referring to my educational work, particularly the BrainManagementSkills work. I asked her. Let's see what she has to say. 

   On the same day, Judy told me how she loves reading my updates. She said reading the details of my mundane life made her realize the value of all the mundane moments of her own life. I can't think of a greater compliment. Also, I write my updates to keep me in touch with the fullness of my life.

    There is a scene from the book Zen and Motorcycle Maintenance. The narrator is teaching writing at a college. One of his students says she has nothing to write about. He tells her to sit in the local café, look at the brick building across the street, and then describe each brick, starting from the one in the upper left corner. Boy, did that resonate with me! I think I've always had an eye for detail. I suspect it is that tendency that makes me such a good teacher. I am on the lookout for the smallest changes. I look carefully at what the student is doing and/or thinking to find a clue as to why they are having difficulty. I don't know if I can pass that on to someone else. 

     I got a copy of an email from Julia from Step Up. She introduced me to two people, saying I was an amazing tutor. I contacted Shiree, telling her I could work with her during my Reading office hours or another time if that didn't work for her. She came back with a confusing response. Something about Elizabeth and Elizabeth's parents. I had no idea what she was talking about. Also, there was no response from Alan, the second name. It was clear that Shiree and I weren't on the same page. There were three reasons Julia might have called on me. 1) she recommended they participate in my Reading Office hours for advice, 2) these two people would be my cohort of new tutors. I was supposed to have two groups of six, but I guess this was the best they could get together. SUT promised to start this support program for new tutors weekly for about a month. 3) I offered to give one hour to supplement to help a student with a serious reading problem. I had no idea which one of the three this was. I wrote Julia, saying I was thoroughly confused. I also made a Zoom appointment with Shiree so we could talk directly.