scatterbrained

[peggyfromwastate]

I need a suggestion as to an organizational tool for Kate to be able to

1) remember to ask her teachers about assignments

and

2) write down what her assignments are.

SHe has a huge agenda thing- it is bulky and takes about 5 minutes to dig it out of her binder. She hasn't ever been a huge advertisement-laden agenda type of gal, and I hate those things for the wasted space and the advertisements! But so far, her "organizational method" is writing it down on her hand.

Seriously.

When I tell her to write it down on paper, she spases out and says that writing it down on her hand is "the only way that works".

But it doesn't, because she keeps missing assignments/forgetting to ask teachers about stuff... (part of that is that she is too self-conscious to ask teachers anything). So she needs another "method."

Any suggestions?

:anyolne:

[rainbabies]

Re: scatterbrained

how about a smaller pocket sized notebook...and having her teachers sign off on it everyday??

sadly, that is what i had to do.

[PrincessFiona]

Re: scatterbrained

Peggy,

For Amanda we got a Trapper Keeper with a front cover that you could slide a picture into. We slide the hard back side of her planner into it so that she can't forget it anymore. I color coded each notebook with a same color folder and it is enough for all of her classes. She basically only carries that thing around (with the exception of science). I tell her that ALL papers must somehow be stuffed into the trapper keeper even if she ends up not putting them into the folder...then each night when we open up the TK, we sort things into the right folders. That at least helps with the papers.

They are planner nazis at her school, so they make sure that they write things down. You might talk to Kate's teachers and ask them to check for her each day OR (better) offer her a small surprise if she does it each day (instant gratification) and if she can do it every day for a week, a larger prize...and keep that up for awhile. I always have more luck with the positive reinforcing stuff....

Kris

[DCJenn]

Re: scatterbrained

I am NOT minimizing this or teasing but my experience w/ the LD college student taught me that whatever learning tool works, run w/ it.

If writing it on her hand is what she needs to do, give her a marker and haqve her develop a better system- like pinky is 1st period- no homework= NONE on the pinky, etc.

My husband uses the tiny slips of paper method and while it makes me nuts, it apparently works for him.

(my organization tool is a desk calendar and EVERYTHING goes on it- personal, professional, Rick and Nikolai's stuff AND family stuff that I need to remember.)

Jenn

[peggyfromwastate]

Re: scatterbrained

Thanks!

I did email one of her teachers (the class where Kate says no one really knows when homework is due; that's the class with the really wacked on-line page too). Anyway, I mentioned that Kate was disorganized and tends to "write assignments on her hand." Teach said:

'Tell Kate not to write on her hand anymore.'

Wow, thanks for the tip... From a 20-something unmarried person. Anyhoo. I think I'll try a little of all of the above. The agenda that they gave the kids is huge, and full of abnoxious ads, so I got her a smaller thing at Staples. I like the idea of making her write a "n/a" for the classes with no homework, though.

I keep all that in my head, mostly, and then write it on a master calendar. But I'm finding that I'm quite different from Kate!

[PrincessFiona]

Re: scatterbrained

Forget my advice. I just talked to Amanda's teacher and apparently, she has lost her notebooks and all of her papers are once again stuffed into her bookbag.

Why, oh WHY did I offer advice? I knew the karma gods would get the last laugh.

Kris

[diggitydot]

Re: scatterbrained

I don't know if this helps at all, but I still write notes to myself on my hand. Hey, at least I'm not killing any trees!

Before I began staying at home with the kids, I worked in a very busy office in the sales and marketing division for a large corporation. My co-workers always joked that they could tell how busy I was by my "post-its wallpaper" covering my computer monitor and every horizontal surface of my desk. But if it was REALLY important that I remember something, it was ALWAYS written on my palm.

I know, I know, it's completely silly, but whatever works... I NEVER forgot to do something that I'd written on my hand.

[houseelf]

Re: scatterbrained

Why, oh WHY did I offer advice? I knew the karma gods would get the last laugh.

Kris, that is not karma, that is CLEARLY the product of bad parenting. I'm killing myself here. I think that I just purchased myself a freighter worth of parenting karma with that little zinger.


Kelly

[peggyfromwastate]

Re: scatterbrained

Kate's friend has been here constantly working on their project, and she seems to have it together. I started asking her friend about all the assignments and for clarifications, during which time kate stood there looking confused...

So, maybe Kate's best organizational tool will be having to check in with her friend every morning to see what is due!!!! Grrrrr.

Kris- you just keep living dangerously. I appreciate your advice even if the Karma gods don't quite get it...

[planet]

Re: scatterbrained

I was a hand writer. It really was the only thing that worked for me when I was over multitasking. Dh now comes home sometimes with stuff written on tape and stuck to his pants/flight suit. I guess it is "how it is done" around here. If it is good enough for a semi-professional....

It kind of sounds more like Kate isn't interested/paying attention when given assignments? Maybe a small voice recorder would be good for her -assuming that is ok with the teacher - and then she could listen and interpret for herself, just on her own time.

[peggyfromwastate]

Re: scatterbrained

I don't know... I really don't. She is way too *shy* to ask her teachers for clarifications, and the kids are supposed to check the online system for assignments, but that is down so often... Her friend who is so organized is a single child, and her parents print up her assignments for her from the online thing, and so I guess she has had to be on top of it. We pretty much let Kate develop her own system for the elem years- there was not a lot of homework and only 1 teacher. So now she has a lot of homework, and 7 classes, and the classes move very fast. So, I think she will figure out something, but we need to guide her more in this area.... It's very frustrating. She can remember every tiny detail about every little social drama at school, not to mention the lyrics to a million songs. But pesky things like tests and homework??? Just not her priority, unfortunately...

Anyway, I think her confusion is mostly in 1 class she hates (math) because she hates it, and in another one (history) because everyone is confused. The teacher there sort of separated the kids into 2 groups, but no one really knows where they belong... (At least that's what Kate says, and then things the teacher has written on her website indicate that other kids have questions as well.) In the class she really likes, she stays on top of it more. But still she's afraid to talk to the teacher. Like when she missed a day becuase we went to the funeral for grandpa, and so she turned in an assignment late. She got marked off for turning it in late, even tho the absence was excused. She's "afraid" to talk to the teacher about it- she's rather just lose the points...

:huh:

[peggyfromwastate]

Re: scatterbrained

The Karma gods got me too, Kris... Kate's "good class" --- science--- she got a D on the most recent assignment b/c we were gone and she never got the info she needed to complete the assignment.

D for damned lazy.