Welcome to The Educating Parent Beverley Paine's archive of articles about homeschooling and unschooling written over a period of 30 plus years

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Are You Inadvertantly Making it Harder for Your Children to Learn?

© Beverley Paine, 1997

A 'switch-off' is something that will confuse and interrupt the connections between brain neurons. They cause confusion about how to continue with tasks, inability to make decisions, hyperactivity, poor concentration, lack of motivation, lack of energy, drowsiness, boredom, panic or fear.

Some common factors that can make it harder for children (or anyone) to learn are:

¨ tobacco smoking
¨ computer screens
¨ some fluorescent lights
¨ hunger
¨ lack of water
¨ shock, trauma
¨ stuffy rooms
¨ fast, loud or rock music
¨ lack of exercise
¨ physical stress
¨ emotional stress
¨ solvents, strong smells
¨ transmission lines
¨ trying hard
sharp corners		 ¨ bad, inadequate diet
¨ food additives & colourings
¨ stimulants such as alcohol
¨ pain
¨ television noise
¨ loud, noisy environment
¨ being too close to microwave ovens, television, computers,
¨ power lines, etc.
¨ not enough sunlight in a day
¨ striped wall papers
¨ deodorants and perfumes
tension

Don't panic! It's easy to 'switch-on' learning again!

By using some simple, common sense strategies we can switch the brain back on to quickly restore full neuron activity, revitalise the connections between the left and right hemispheres and enable the brain to work effectively again. Try doing some of these things:

¨ get some exercise - walking, swimming, aerobics
¨ drink water frequently
¨ walk near the sea or river
¨ do some brain gym exercises, cross-overs, stretches
¨ eat wholesome snacks when working
¨ eat a nutritionally balanced diet
¨ relax - yoga, exercises, deep breathing
¨ be near pleasant smells
wear natural fibres		 ¨ get outdoors for fresh air, work with windows open
¨ play slow, regular music (baroque, new age, classical), softly
¨ choose pleasing colours around you
¨ use natural lighting where possible
¨ get regular sleep with good ventilation in room
¨ practice visualisation
¨ learn about study skills you can use to help
practice positive self-talk

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The information on this website is of a general nature only and is not intended as personal or professional advice. This site merges and incorporates 'Homeschool Australia' and 'Unschool Australia'.

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