The "Velcro Metaphor" of Teaching and Learning
I like to think of teaching and learning using a metaphor of Velcro®. When teaching matches an individual’s Velcro® “base”, learning comes easily and naturally. There is a smooth and natural “fit” between what is taught and what is learned. Success builds people’s belief in their innate ability to learn and grow, which in turn leads to MORE learning, bigger gains, and a growing sense of capacity and self-esteem. Learning is experienced as a natural and enjoyable sensation. This kind of learning helps growing individuals become their BEST SELVES.
Children in these ideal settings discover themselves as they grow into themselves, gaining skills and abilities while enjoying the entire process. They naturally discover that they are good at learning. Thus, learning becomes something to be desired and sought after. It is a blossoming spiral of self-fulfilling rewards: the more I do it, the better I become at it. The better I become at it, the more I want to do it.
Conversely, when there is NOT a good match between the method of teaching provided and an individual’s natural Velcro® base, things go quickly awry. The child does NOT learn smoothly and naturally. She begins to ask, “Why can’t I do what other children can do without so much struggle?” “Why doesn’t this make any sense to me?” “What’s wrong with me?” This leads to confusion, and undermines self-esteem. The experience of being at school becomes fraught with frustration and self-doubt. The more unpleasant the experience of being at school becomes, the less likely the child can succeed and make necessary gains.
This vicious cycle of negative reinforcement is often caused by the simplest situation: teaching which DOES NOT MATCH an individual’s Velcro®! Most dyslexic individuals are primarily visual-spatial thinkers, or kinesthetic learners. They thrive when given opportunities to touch, feel, experiment, interact with real materials. Too much “paper and pencil” introduction of concepts in the early years deprives these learners of their most effective learning opportunities. If individuals’ early experiences of school set up the feeling that they can’t learn, it becomes increasingly difficult as time goes by to change their view to one of possibility.
I was thrilled to discover the Davis® method of teaching, which both relies upon and celebrates dyslexics’ natural strengths as learners, their “perceptual talent”. This is one of the major differences between the Davis® method and other dyslexia intervention approaches. It is an essential difference, because it is a fundamentally different way of understanding what dyslexia is. Dyslexia is not seen as “something to be overcome”, but a unique way of thinking to be celebrated and developed to its full potential. Where would we be in this world without the gifts of dyslexic individuals? So many innovations and contributions in science, the arts, engineering, architecture, sports, business and many other spheres have come from the unique thinking of dyslexic individuals.
Ronald Davis, creator of the Davis® method for correcting dyslexia, is himself dyslexic. He has developed a unique approach to instruction—we call it “facilitation”. This creative method of guided support matches the Velcro® of dyslexic thinkers. Davis® facilitators do not break down information into the smallest elements to be built back into a whole. That method is not a good match for dyslexics, who typically start by seeing the whole picture, object, or concept. They access their perceptual talent, viewing the object under investigation from multiple perspectives. Then they manipulate what they are exploring—adding or subtracting elements, imagining myriad possibilities and new applications. This type of imaginative exploration is a powerful tool. It lies at the heart of dyslexics’ impressive ability >> to improve existing inventions, as well as create completely new machines, systems and inventions. This “outside the box” thinking is what allows dyslexics to make the impossible, possible!
Children in these ideal settings discover themselves as they grow into themselves, gaining skills and abilities while enjoying the entire process. They naturally discover that they are good at learning. Thus, learning becomes something to be desired and sought after. It is a blossoming spiral of self-fulfilling rewards: the more I do it, the better I become at it. The better I become at it, the more I want to do it.
Conversely, when there is NOT a good match between the method of teaching provided and an individual’s natural Velcro® base, things go quickly awry. The child does NOT learn smoothly and naturally. She begins to ask, “Why can’t I do what other children can do without so much struggle?” “Why doesn’t this make any sense to me?” “What’s wrong with me?” This leads to confusion, and undermines self-esteem. The experience of being at school becomes fraught with frustration and self-doubt. The more unpleasant the experience of being at school becomes, the less likely the child can succeed and make necessary gains.
This vicious cycle of negative reinforcement is often caused by the simplest situation: teaching which DOES NOT MATCH an individual’s Velcro®! Most dyslexic individuals are primarily visual-spatial thinkers, or kinesthetic learners. They thrive when given opportunities to touch, feel, experiment, interact with real materials. Too much “paper and pencil” introduction of concepts in the early years deprives these learners of their most effective learning opportunities. If individuals’ early experiences of school set up the feeling that they can’t learn, it becomes increasingly difficult as time goes by to change their view to one of possibility.
I was thrilled to discover the Davis® method of teaching, which both relies upon and celebrates dyslexics’ natural strengths as learners, their “perceptual talent”. This is one of the major differences between the Davis® method and other dyslexia intervention approaches. It is an essential difference, because it is a fundamentally different way of understanding what dyslexia is. Dyslexia is not seen as “something to be overcome”, but a unique way of thinking to be celebrated and developed to its full potential. Where would we be in this world without the gifts of dyslexic individuals? So many innovations and contributions in science, the arts, engineering, architecture, sports, business and many other spheres have come from the unique thinking of dyslexic individuals.
Ronald Davis, creator of the Davis® method for correcting dyslexia, is himself dyslexic. He has developed a unique approach to instruction—we call it “facilitation”. This creative method of guided support matches the Velcro® of dyslexic thinkers. Davis® facilitators do not break down information into the smallest elements to be built back into a whole. That method is not a good match for dyslexics, who typically start by seeing the whole picture, object, or concept. They access their perceptual talent, viewing the object under investigation from multiple perspectives. Then they manipulate what they are exploring—adding or subtracting elements, imagining myriad possibilities and new applications. This type of imaginative exploration is a powerful tool. It lies at the heart of dyslexics’ impressive ability >> to improve existing inventions, as well as create completely new machines, systems and inventions. This “outside the box” thinking is what allows dyslexics to make the impossible, possible!