The Myth of Laziness: America's Top Learning Expert Shows How Kids--and Parents--Can Become more Productive

Additional The Myth of Laziness: America's Top Learning Expert Shows How Kids--and Parents--Can Become more Productive Information

How many times have you heard a teacher say that your child has tremendous potential "if only he'd just apply himself" or "if only sh'd work just a little harder"? How often have you said the same thing to your son or daughter? Or perhaps you have a coworker who can't seem to finish anything; his reports are never in on time, or her projects are always behind the schedule. No matter what excusses you hear, you suspect that laziness is the real reason for your colleague's low productivity.

Almost no one is actually lazy, says Dr. Mel Levine, author of the #1 national bestseller A Mind at a Time. Low productivity -- whether in school or on the job -- is almost always caused by a genuine problem, a neurodevelopmental dysfunction. despite this, untold number of people have been stigmatized by unfair accusations of laziness, many of them adults who still carry emotional scars from their school days. In The Myth of Laziness Dr. Levine shows how we can spot the neurodevelopmental dysfunctions that may cause "output failure," as he calls it, whether in school or in the workplace. Dr. Levine identifies seven forms of dysfunctions that obstruct output. Drawning on his years of clinical experience he describes eight people -- children, adolescents, and adults -- he has worked with who exhibited one or another of these problems. He shows how identifying the problem can make all the difference, leading to a course of corrective action rather than to accusations of laziness and moral failure.

With its practical advice and its compassionate tone, The Myth of Laziness shows parents how to nurture their child strengths and improve their classroom productivity. Most important, it shows parents how correcting these problems in childhood will help children live a fulfilling and productive adult life.

What Customers Say About The Myth of Laziness: America's Top Learning Expert Shows How Kids--and Parents--Can Become more Productive:

This book is an excellent resource for teachers (reg & sped) regarding the so-called "lazy" student in your classroom. It was an easy read with case studies to fully explain each myth. I read it for a class and am so very glad I did. It has made me reconsider my original "teacher diagnosis" of some of my students.

Although the book doesn't talk about diabetes affecting learning, the book's fresh perspective allow me consider the possibility. I really enjoyed his reading voice and knowing that he read the sentence with the intended emphasis.I work with under-privileged children of different ages, and I have the hardest time motivating these children. After researching, I learned that a study released in 2009 linked poor academic performance to high A1C levels. They have great potential, as shown be some subject areas that they excel in, but they just do not work hard or seem to care. For starters, my kid has sleeping issues. Well, after completing this book I realize how completely wrong my approach was. Ginny) in Dr.

It turns out my kid wasn't telling the truth. He'd say things like "I don't care about math since I'll never use it in my life" or "I don't care about English class because I hate the teacher." I took these and similar responses at face value thinking this kid was calling it straight. (I know, I know. Levine for your book and for giving me new observations in dealing with children labeled as 'lazy'.

Note, I am reviewing the audio copy of the book as read by the author. Levine's book. I was able to look at my child (that I'm tutoring) with a fresh set of eyes and realize that he needed a new approach. My kid is also a diabetic who was having high A1C levels. He really wanted to do well in these classes but has low energy leading to output failure. Thank you Dr. One 17-year old child in particular was very baffling to me. Naturally, I am helping my child lower his A1C numbers and get more consistent sleep.

Big shock). It all makes sense now after hearing the case studies (esp. Once those problems are solved, I may look into other issues he may have. I don't know yet if this kids grades will shoot up, but at least I feel like I have a better approach and not stabbing in the dark.

Dr. Unfortunately the larger number of those in the education field are unaware of that since it is not taught in the colleges.His books try to give a picture of how to look at the child's processing and learning styles and how to work with them.These students don't start out lazy and unmotivated. Levine wants people to actually spend time watching how the child attempts to take in, process, store, retrieve, and output the information.

I am also a developmental and behavioral pediatrician and in my work with children, parents, and teachers, have found that demystifying why a child/adolescent is struggling is the first step to developing a plan of both intervention and accommodation.Too often, however, the struggling child becomes a struggling adolescent before the problems are determined, if at all. One can also see the child close their eyes or appear to look upward as they are trying to figure something out, which is another involuntary sign of mental activity.These are signs that Dr. Levine's book, The Myth of Laziness is great at breaking down why children and adolescents can have struggles with academics and even day to day tasks.

There are many soft neurologic signs that provide clues to the intensity of mental energy that is actually going on to try to comply, such as mouth movements, and the famous tongue sticking out, the fingers/knuckles on the other hand moving slightly as the student is trying to write, the keeping of the eyes close to the paper as they try to write, and for more than a few an increase in general motor movement as the brain goes into overdrive trying to send energy and information to the brain. This leads the individual to learn that it is much easier and less stressful to get a D or F by not doing the work rather than struggling with it for hours just to be told it is not worthy of a higher grade. Some do give up in elementary school but most continue to try until they hit middle school, when the demands multiply exponentially and they still haven't mastered the foundational skills.Dr.

Levine teaches the physicians, teachers, social workers, and psychologists who take his classes in Chapel Hill. They learn to be this way as a life saving strategy from appearing stupid.

Great insights into how children learn and how to create interventions that effectively help struggling students.

I read this in a book chat with other teachers. It makes you rethink how you view students. It has been one of the most influential books that I have read in quite some time. All teachers should read this.