The Manila Reading Clinic

With NILD – I just made it onto their weekly engagement list by being one of their top engagers! 🎉

Never give consequences when you’re angry!
🔗 bradweinstein.substack.com

Jose and Andres loved our country the Philippines, enough to die for her.

📅 WEBINAR | March 25 | 12:00 PM EST
Refreshing Your Dictation & Copy Technique
with Kari Bondar, M.Ed., PCET

Earlier this week, we shared a short clip of Dictation & Copy in action.

What looks simple is doing something powerful: helping students notice errors, monitor their thinking, and adjust their work independently.

But techniques like this only develop those skills when they’re implemented intentionally.

In this focused session, Kari Bondar will revisit the purpose, procedure, and small refinements that ensure Dictation & Copy builds more than mechanics — it builds thinking.

🔗 https://nild.org/webinars/5-core-review-refreshing-your-dictation-and-copy-technique

Excited to share that I just got recognized as one of Soar With Dyslexia 's top fans! 🎉

School is built around weaknesses. Think about if a student does poor in math, that becomes the focus. They may be exceptional in reading, science, etc. but the focus is on the weakness.
If all the feedback is about what you are bad at, trying feels risky. Trying becomes another chance to point out failure. So students eventually shut down. When their weaknesses become the focus, which is often the case, then it is understandable why they hate school.
That is the flaw.
A weakness focused system teaches fear, not growth. It conditions students to believe ability is fixed and that mistakes are something to hide. Research on mindset shows that when students see ability as fixed, effort drops, persistence fades, and learning slows.
Now there is nothing wrong with improving weaknesses, but that shouldn't be the focus of education or life. Research says when we focus on our strengths we are exponentially more success than just fixing weaknesses.

But now let's compare that to a strengths based approach. When we focus on student's strengths and what they do well.
Then students experience success, which gives them confidence.
Confidence makes them willing to try new and harder things.
That willingness is where rigor actually comes from.
Rigor is not forcing difficulty on students who feel incapable. It is students choosing challenge because they believe they can handle it.
You do not get students to stretch by reminding them what they cannot do. You get there by helping them experience success first.
When we miss that, it is no mystery why so many students leave school defeated and done with school.
Let's focus on their strengths, so success gives them the confidence to reach their potential.