“Education is what remains when one has forgotten what one has learned in school.” – Albert Einstein
It is a joy to work with young people who are having challenges in certain areas of their learning experience. Even if the subject is not a strength for me, this can actually be a benefit. By sitting with a student and looking at the material with a relaxed, beginner’s mind, we come to new ways of looking at the material together.
With no expectation of doing things the “expected or right way,” new doorways open to access the material.
Everyone faces situations that do not appear to have an easy solution. Whether taking care of a sick animal or teaching something new to a student who has learning challenges, there is going to come a time when the answer does not seem obvious. It is at those moments that it is wise to stop and open up to a new point of view.
It is easy to get stuck in our thinking. When things do not appear to be going well, our tendency is to succumb to negative thoughts. We either give up and curse the situation, or keep attempting to use old solutions, even when they are not working. For some reason, we often forget the powerful benefits of doing nothing.
Doing nothing in the face of a challenge sounds like a sign of laziness or disinterest. Fear not. We only have to do nothing long enough for inspiration to strike, and new, more effective ideas to come into the picture. Pushing through a task out of frustration and fear is a waste of our valuable time and energy. The trick is to convince ourselves that putting things down and doing something more relaxing, interesting or exciting will actually lead to the solutions we seek. We see this with children all the time.
When a student is stuck, or simply trying too hard, they actually cut themselves off from the answers. When the mind becomes stressed, the brain is flooded with stress hormones that reduce access to higher order thinking. Ideas and abilities that would normally be easy, become nearly impossible. The good news is that we benefit from relaxing.
Simple strategies like talking to ourselves with positive words, taking a refreshing walk, or even doing something fun, like a crossword puzzle or playing a game on our phone, can benefit our performance in every area. As we feel better, our breath deepens and oxygen floods our system. We open up to answers, and obvious solutions, the kind we miss when we are stressed, show themselves to us.
Take time to slow down. No matter how pressing things seem, there is always room for a few moments of refreshment. Make a list of all that is going well with yourself, take a nap, or walk to the closest coffee shop for a delicious beverage. The benefits on your work will be priceless. Get up from what you are doing, go out and enjoy life. You will be surprised by how quickly the solutions come.
Edward Biagiotti is the Inclusion Specialist for Culver City Unified School District. He is also co-host of the popular radio show, Funniest Thing! with Darrell and Ed, to find out more go to www.DarrellandEd.com or send an email to: EdwardBiagiotti@ccusd.org