(upbeat music) >>Welcome to "A World of Difference, Embracing Neurodiversity".

I'm Darryl Owens.

For many students with learning and attention differences, a typical school day can feel like an uphill battle, where grasping the three R's is anything but straightforward and the struggle doesn't end with the final bell.

Homework, spelling quizzes and test prep often bring more stress than success.

For students who wanna learn but face challenges with memory, organization and performance, study time can trigger self-doubt, frustration and a sense of falling behind.

But it doesn't have to be this way, especially when families tap into a practical, easy to use playbook designed to support how these students learn best.

On this episode we meet a determined seventh grader who's redefining steady success on her own terms.

Then our panel of national experts shares real world strategies from memorization hacks to test day rituals that help neurodivergent students study smarter and feel more in control.

And later you'll meet our latest difference maker, a former baseball all star now hitting home runs as a children's book author and dyslexia advocate.

But first, we travel to Jacksonville, Florida where we meet Korina Esparza, at GRASP Academy, the only public school in northeast Florida designed specifically for dyslexic learners, she's discovered study strategies that work for her.

Color coded systems, quiet spaces and routines built with care.

With support from her mom and teachers who understand how neurodivergent minds learn, Korina is building confidence, not just for the next test but for the long run.

(upbeat music) (gentle music) >>During fifth or fourth grade, I had very bad grades.

I was just like a type of person who didn't really care about my grades, like what is this gonna do part of my future life?

I was very ashamed of myself because I felt like I was a failure and I just felt that I couldn't do anything.

My mom saw how bad I was struggling in second grade and we went to the doctors and you know she found that I had like ADHD or dyslexia.

>>Korina struggled definitely with her confidence.

She knew the answer.

She was always second guessing herself and changing the answer at the last minute.

Something she definitely struggled with also was reading.

Just reading out loud, reading fluently.

Reading with porosity was something that she struggled with when I first met her.

GRASP Academy is a K through eight public school.

It's the only public school I believe in Florida that is specifically tailored to students with dyslexia, dysgraphia, similar learning disabilities and neurodivergency.

>>Section Tyler to sleep, go chance.

>>Neurodivergent students are not going to be able to sit there with flashcards and have that be effective.

They're not going to be able to sit down for 20 minutes a day with a practice test or with a worksheet and have that be effective.

The thing that makes learning stick is those memories and those fun experiences.

Balancing getting ready for a test and the joys of learning are sometimes difficult, but it's all about finding the manner in which you deliver those studying tactics.

So we can do a review test, but every question can earn them points and they can take away points from other teams.

Or we can do a review test where all of the answers are hidden in clues around the room and it becomes like an escape room.

Making learning memorable is super important for neurodivergent learners and dyslexic learners or learners with learning disabilities because that is gonna stick in their mind more than just saying, we're gonna take this practice test.

(upbeat music) Korina has grown exponentially since I first had her.

I was actually just looking back at her testing scores and she was a level one in fourth grade, which is the lowest you can score on a state test.

Then she grew up to a level two in fifth grade, which is approaching grade level.

And then in sixth grade when I had her last year, she was a level three, which is on grade level and that was the first time Korina had ever been on grade level.

I remember calling her mom with the good news afterwards and her mom was just floored and so excited because all the work that we've been putting in had made a difference.

She had earned that score.

Korina's always been sort of shy, but she's definitely come out of her shell.

She's really grown into a leader and somebody who is a pillar at our school.

Seeing that connection and seeing her growth is very inspiring for the younger students 'cause it helps them see what's possible for them.

If Korina can do it, they can do it.

>>The teachers, they give me confidence, they gave me their support and they would never let me give up.

They showed me that everybody can do something as long as you put your mind into it.

I have a bird named Kiko and I kind of read to him too if I had like a little story, he's my little comfort zone.

I couldn't read.

I was not really good at math either and I just didn't know how capable what I am of myself.

And finally when like I realized that I can do anything if I put my mindset into it and that just made me realize that I can just help other kids too and I get to show them what I didn't know back then and I gained from all the F to all the way A's and B's and I'm very proud of myself because I have different type of goals that I wanna do for myself.

And I finally accomplished one of them here at GRASP.

>>Korina is just a great kid, she's a smart kid, she's a kind kid, she's a dedicated kid, she's a fantastic student and I'm just really excited for everyone to see that.

>>Did not know how difficult the energy.

(upbeat music) >>Next our panel of national experts offers practical tips and strategies for building better scholars.

(upbeat music) Dr.

Misty Freeman is director of special education for Houston County schools and founder of Mocha Sprout, a consulting firm focused on belonging and inclusion.

With over 20 years in education, she's an author and expert in instructional technology, accessibility and strategies that help all learners thrive.

Judith Quinlan is an executive function coach and university professor with more than 15 years helping students with ADHD, autism and dyslexia succeed.

She designs educator training and personalized strategies that build confidence, organization and independence, turning study struggles into success stories for neurodivergent learners and their families.

Samantha Owens is a learning specialist at Beacon College where she supports first and second year students in building strong academic habits with a background in exceptional student education and applied behavior analysis, she brings practical tools and compassionate guidance to help students transition smoothly from high school to college.

And we're gonna begin our conversation with Dr.

Freeman.

Parents often ask, where do I even start?

From your experience, what's the first thing families can do at home to help a child who struggles staying organized or remembering help them learn?

>>That's a very common question and we receive that question from parents all the time.

I think the main thing a parent can do in the home is bring about consistency.

And consistency can be very simple.

You don't necessarily need an organizational tool or some kind of elaborate app, but something as simple as making sure that students know or a child knows where to put their book bag in the household when they come in in the afternoon, they know where to study, where to do their schoolwork.

Are you doing your schoolwork at the dinner table or are you doing your schoolwork in the bedroom at your desk?

These things take mental energy for neurodiverse students and children.

So knowing these things ahead of time, they know where to go, what to do, and it doesn't become so unorganized inside their head.

So that's the main thing is consistency in the home, making sure they're not using that mental energy, designating spots in the household.

These are all simple tools and these are all things that can be implemented immediately to help the child stay organized and to also start be a starting point for parents.

So I think that's the main thing is creating a space of consistency so that that child can thrive.

>>So Judith, you've worked with so many students who learn differently.

What is one mindset shift that will help parents and students feel less stressed about study time?

>>The biggest mindset shift that I could recommend is that the function and purpose of studying is to learn how to learn.

It's not singularly about that one test or that one moment.

What you're doing is you're giving your student the opportunity to discover different ways in which he and she can assimilate information.

So it's really bigger picture and it not only relates to the immediate need of the test, but it spans into their lifetime so that if they learn how to learn, whether professionally at college or even in any type of communicative situations, they can pull back on the resources they've learned from studying.

So studying isn't about getting an A on a test, it's about learning how to learn.

>>Thank you, so Samantha, when students start college, what is the biggest change or surprise that they face about how studying changes and how can parents help prepare their teens for that jump?

>>So one of the biggest surprises is really how independent studying really becomes.

In high school, students typically have somebody there to help guide them through the whole process.

They have somebody maybe providing reminders, helping them break up and like chunk the information that they need to study for a test checking on their progress.

And in college a lot of that becomes expectations that professors have of students to do more independently.

They need to be able to manage their own time, they need to be able to keep up with heavier reading and they need to be able to ask for help by themselves if they need it.

So one of the things that like parents can really do is start practicing those things.

Even something like role playing with students.

How do you contact your professor and ask for assistance in office hours?

How do you go to office hours?

And would you ask if you're struggling with preparing for a test?

It might be something like helping them to practice using a calendar to keep track of important upcoming dates or even to take a large amount of information and break it down into manageable chunks that they can review before a test.

If they're practicing it with parents, then when they have to do that in college, they're not doing it for the first time.

So it's a little bit less of a shock.

>>All right, thank you.

So Dr.

Freeman, is there a simple memory trick that both teachers and parents can use to help students who need a little extra support?

>>One simple trick is to chunk information.

I think that makes it relatable and relevant to the child.

For example, if your child has a difficult time or your student has a difficult time remembering their address, let's just say the address is 221 Forest Avenue, we may start a chant, two twos and a one, two twos and a one.

That lets us know the number for the address.

We can also add more to it, two twos and a one, trees and a avenue, two twos and a one trees and a avenue, two twos and a one trees and a avenue.

So we chunked the information.

It may take a couple of days to remember the two two and a one and a one, but eventually the student will remember it because it's relatable, it's a chant, it's something that they enjoy, trees in the avenue, that is so silly.

But at the same time, Forest is a tree.

I mean Forest is full of trees so we have trees in the avenue.

So I think when you chant the information, you make it relevant, it is so much easier to remember.

If we think about commercials, a lot of times they use chants.

So a chant is a good way for a student to remember information, to make it relevant, to make it relatable and it carries on into the future because more than likely if they have a chant, they will not forget the chant.

>>All right, so Judith, we've been talking a little bit about chunking and this may be answering my question right here, but if you have a student that says, I read the book but I can't remember the information, are there any other strategies that they can employ to help that information stick?

>>What I've done with my students is that we call it intention, connection and capture.

Before you start reading, talk about what your intention is with the learning.

It could be that you wanna know about this content, it could be that you need to study it, whatever it is, it gives you a sense of purpose prior to reading, while you're reading, create a visual image or make some type of life connection, something that is reminding you of what the content is.

And then the last thing is within two minutes when you finish your reading is capture one key element, only one thing that is relevant to you.

And you can document that through a storyboard.

For older students, they can send themselves a voicemail, you can put it on sticky notes, you can draw it and for some students, they even have the opportunity to then teach the class the one concept, but really limiting it to an intention.

What is your purpose?

Connection, making a personal connection to the reading and then capturing one key detail or element that resonated with you.

>>All right, thank you.

So Samantha, I assume that the vocabulary list are still popular in schools.

So I'm wondering, do you have a favorite study hack for helping students memorize vocabulary terms or key words that they could try tonight?

>>It can be really hard to remember vocabulary terms and like their definitions if we're just looking at the words alone.

So one of the things I always recommend is to use something called dual coding and really that's just pairing the word with a visual or an image that can help students remember its meaning a little bit better.

So that might be something like if the term is photosynthesis, putting on a flash card photosynthesis, and then drawing next to it a picture of like the sun and lines going to a plant.

Because students are going to be able to remember that image a little bit better than they can remember just the words alone, linking the two together, the word and the image is going to make that recall a lot stronger for students.

It takes a little bit of the pressure off working memory and can also like make an abstract concept a little bit more concrete.

So just pairing those two together.

Also adding in a musical component like it was mentioned earlier, the chants, something like that can really help students remember vocabulary terms and their definitions too.

>>All right, so Dr.

Freeman, how effective are visual charts and things like that for helping students to both stay organized and also to feel less overwhelmed about study habits?

>>I think anytime you provide a visual, it benefits the student.

One of my favorite visuals is post-it notes, sticky notes.

If you have five tasks to complete, if a student has five tasks to complete, you write a task on each post-it note, once it's completed, you just simply throw it away.

That's very easy, but it allows them to see progress.

It allows them to know automatically what they need to do because they can easily refer back to the post-it note.

I think anytime you provide a visual, it shows the student that they are successful, by looking at a visual, they can see what they have completed and what still needs to be completed and that shows progress and success.

>>All right, so Judith, most families today are very, very busy and I imagine that that becomes even more amplified when you're dealing with neurodivergent children.

So for families who are juggling sports and ballet and everything else, including studies, what's a realistic way for them to plan for the week so that nothing falls through the cracks?

>>Well, life gets lifey and sometimes you need to adapt and you need to be flexible.

The biggest strategy that I would recommend is adding in specific buffer times.

So if you have a ballet class and it typically takes you 30 minutes to get there, add in 45, add in that extra buffer time so that it's realistic and feasible for you to achieve.

You know, get there on time and be a part of the class.

The other thing though is just really an understanding that schedules are not fixed.

That although there may be certain non-negotiables or you know, this is where you have to go for practice, this is when you have to do that.

There is an element of flexibility and it's a learning process, so being able to erase things and change times in addition to adding those buffers is really practical and realistic in organizing so many different things that are going on.

>>Watch the full, Ask the Experts segment on our website at awodtv.org if you wanna learn more about this topic.

You can also watch or listen on Facebook, YouTube, or on your favorite podcasting platform.

(upbeat music) Now let's meet our latest difference maker.

When it came to sports, there wasn't much Brian Jordan couldn't do.

On the baseball diamond, he was an all star, patrolling the outfield for the Cardinals, Braves, Dodgers and Rangers and on the gridiron, he was a take no prisoner's safety for the Atlanta Falcons.

But the one arena where Jordan faced a truly uneven playing field was the classroom where reading was a struggle, thanks to undiagnosed learning differences that went unnoticed for years.

Now as a dad who's gotten his son the help he never had, Jordan is going to bat for students with dyslexia using his platform as a children's book author and literacy advocate to rewrite the narrative.

Because Jordan knows you didn't have to play in the NFL to understand that the best outcomes for learning differences start with tackling the problem early.

(upbeat music) (vehicle engine whirring) (gentle music) >>Hey, good morning, good morning, how you doing?

>>Good morning.

>>All right, so this is my book called "I Told You I can Play".

Yes, you got a lot of books.

Keep reading, okay.

You know, I always say it's a blessing from God You know, I always say it's a blessing from God because I was that child who had no confidence in reading and probably had dyslexia back in the day, talking to a friend on the telephone.

They were planning to play a game, "I wanna play too."

Brian said.

It was a frustrating experience because in sports I was athletic, I could do whatever I wanted.

(audience cheering) >>Left field!

>>But when it came to reading, that was a real challenge for me and I felt even more intimidated 'cause my mom was a teacher and to go to school and kind of being embarrassed to sit in a class and avoid reading, it took a toll on me.

(upbeat music) You know, in 2004 I woke up with this idea in my head and I wrote it out and I called my mom again who was an educator.

I read what I wrote down and she said, that sounds like a book.

And that was my first book, "I Told You I Can Play."

I'm gonna get my chance, right?

>>That's my favorite part of it.

>>It's your favorite part, okay.

From there I've written five more books and it was in my heart to start the Reading Challenge to encourage kids with difficulty reading to stay positive, believe in yourself and like myself, teach yourself if you have to.

If we can encourage and motivate kids, they can be very successful.

I was fortunate enough to have two parents encouraging me to get my education and I knew even though I was drafted outta high school, education was number one and my mom was gonna make sure I graduate from college.

That was my number one goal, get my education and then play two professional sports.

(upbeat music) Now we as parents, we have to continue to keep these kids grounded and understand that you have to read books to be successful.

>>I've been practicing.

>>I learned about my son's dyslexia through his actual Jackson Elementary and the one teacher's a reading specialist, and she and I kind of identified it.

He showed the signs, you know, as I was a kid, when my mom would wanna read, I would always shy away from it and she would end up reading to me and I knew when I would go to my son and try to read to him, he was always kind of, you know, shy away from it, not wanting to do it.

And I was like, wow, that's the signs that I had.

And we took him for the testing and sure enough, it clearly stated that he had dyslexia.

>>I used to go to a school just for dyslexic people and it helped me a lot by slowing down the lessons and letting me comprehend everything that was going on.

And they focused more on language arts type things like typing on language arts type things like typing and cursive and comprehension packets.

>>Again, I say it's a gift from God because I never thought I would write children's books being that I grew up with dyslexia, ADHD.

But I knew in this journey it was a reason for it.

And it's the reason is for me to share my story with kids and encourage them that it's not how you start, it's how you finish.

And to sit back and watch the impact that I'm having on kids, to see the smiles on their face when I come to the schools, I know I'm doing what I'm supposed to do.

And that is my mission in life today is just encourage other athletes to come in and join in and get kids reading because I think it's important.

Professional athletes make a huge difference in kids' lives.

And when I can come in here and not talk sports, but talk education and literacy, I'm hoping that I'm changing that mindset, and believe in yourself.

If you believe in yourself, you can do anything.

Making that impact alone to me is important, you know, and that's what drives me.

So thank you guys for listening.

>>That's a couple of things.

>>Teachers come to me and say, wow, he never reads, but he's starting to read now, that's important to me.

You know, hearing those messages.

That's the impact that I want to make and I'm making.

(people chattering) (upbeat music) >>Congratulations Brian Jordan for making a difference.

And that does it for this episode of "A World of Difference, Embracing Neurodiversity".

I'm Darryl Owens, see you back here next time.

You can watch episodes of A World of Difference on the Beacon College, Facebook and YouTube channels, and on the show's website, AWODtv.org.

The website also provides tip sheets and other resources for your parenting journey.

You can watch the show from the PBS app, available on your favorite streaming device, and you can listen on your favorite podcasting platform.

Thank you for watching and supporting A World of Difference.

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