Thoughtful Toys for Every Child

Have you seen the Toys"R"Us toy guide for differently-abled kids? If not, click the link and check it out. As the company website explains, "For nearly 20 years, we have published the annual Toys"R"Us Toy Guide for Differently-Abled Kids, an easy-to-use resource featuring specially selected toys that aid in the development of children with physical, cognitive or developmental disabilities."

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Categories: Education | Disabilities | Optimism

1 comments - Posted by Paul Orfalea at 11:57 PM

Develop An Eye for Opportunity

Because I couldn't read well as a youngster, I learned from direct experience. Experience is a harsh teacher, since the test comes first and the lesson follows. Still, I embraced every chance to participate in life. I started businesses, like my vegetable stand. I skipped school to watch my father's stockbroker at work. One thing I saw for myself was that to succeed in school, you had to be good at everything, but to succeed as an adult, you only had to be good at one or two things.

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Categories: Creativity | Education | Disabilities | Entrepreneurialism

6 comments - Posted by Paul Orfalea at 3:37 PM

One Secret to Better Concentration

By Dean Zatkowsky, coauthor, Two Billion Dollars in Nickels

Business meetings are almost universally hated for being lifeless, tiresome time-wasters, and at school, only the most dynamic teacher or professor can escape the "boring" label. For many of us, conference rooms and classrooms symbolize excruciating visits to purgatory, as we struggle to overcome feelings of distraction and boredom. But why is it so hard to sit still and concentrate?

We now know that contrary to what our parents, teachers and bosses have believed and taught for generations, concentration has little to do with sitting still. In fact, struggling to sit still presents a serious impediment to concentration for many people.

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Categories: Corporate Culture | Creativity | Education | Disabilities

1 comments - Posted by Dean Zatkowsky at 7:04 AM

NEW BOOK!

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Categories: Corporate Culture | Creativity | Customer Service | Education | Nutrition | Management Skills | Disabilities | Entrepreneurialism | Finance | Economics | Ethics | Competitive Advantage | Optimism

2 comments - Posted by Paul Orfalea at 9:13 AM

Punditry for Dummies

As a dyslexic who struggled for many years to master the written word, I appreciate the value of literacy but also feel empathy for those who cannot read. Most of humanity has been illiterate throughout history, and I for one am grateful that technology and research have made it easier to communicate with people who cannot read, from the standardization of pictographic warning symbols to the educational programming of The Discovery Channel and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. It’s not the same as reading Emile Zola, but it’s enriching.

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Categories: Education | Disabilities | Optimism

0 comments - Posted by Paul Orfalea at 3:21 PM

Differences and Disabilities

Although society’s understanding of dyslexia and ADHD is improving, too many people still equate “difference” with “disability.” Every disability may be a difference, but not every difference is a disability. Children are sometimes branded “learning disabled,” even when it is their schools that actually lack ability. Schools that still treat education as a “one-size-fits-all” endeavor resent individualized instruction, which they consider inefficient. But our growing awareness of learning differences puts more enlightened schools in a difficult position: within the constraints of budgets and teaching skills, how can we best serve students with differences?

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Categories: Disabilities

0 comments - Posted by Paul Orfalea at 9:00 AM