My most frequently asked question of the moment!
Wednesday: Everything at a run today.
Trying not to be so early as to have to share lanes, I get too absorbed in my chosen filler activity (for once, not reading!) and end up a little later than intended.
So four very brisk breast stroke lengths, four back stroke, another four breast stroke and only now do I allow myself to pause and face front crawl. I deliberately choose length 13 again, deciding it's lucky for me. Catch my breath firmly then very very slowly and considerately let myself set off. And I do make it to the other end. See - Mrs 'Born Trier' triumphs again.
But by now I've only got a couple of minutes left, with 7 more lengths to do. The swiftest lengths I've ever achieved get me to 18 lengths and I beg the attendant for the last two -
'Oh, go on then!, Why not.'
Thursday: I time it perfectly. There is someone in the slow lane. And the medium lane. So I opt for.....da-dah! The fast lane.
Not that I'm particularly fast now, though yesterday's performance gives me confidence. It's just that that's the empty lane. Having said that, I realise I used to worry: 'what counts as slow? what counts as medium? Oooh heck! I don't know where I should go!' but I now realise it's all relative: 'Am I faster than they are?' And more importantly: 'where is there most room?'
Having learnt to improve my swimming, I now have another thing to worry about. My jaw has become prone to stiffness. I date it from bumping my head on the side of the pool. The dentist gave me some exercises for it yesterday, asking 'have you been grinding your teeth a lot recently, or may be clenching them while you're swimming?'
Well, no, but there's a definite tendency towards frowning, squishing up my face and other general gurning. And as for the exercises! 'Now you look like a proper school librarian', says my husband. 'Very miserable'.
Thank you, darling & I love you too! I'll have you know that that miserable school librarian image is a very outdated myth!
Yesterday I woke up to the Radio 4 news: a Save the Children report shows poorly nourished children have lower levels of literacy. Such children are 20% more likely to make a mistake when reading a sentence as simple as 'the sun is hot'.
Thousands of children were studied in the developing countries of Ethiopia, India, Peru & Vietnam. The report is calling on the G8 nations to make nutrition a priority to stop the damage to life chances that occurs even before these children reach school age.
There are pockets of poverty in this country too. They say it is increasing. I wonder therefore whether the need for FRED may actually increase. I hope not.
If you'd like to help us help those who need us now, please send your donation in support of my swimming efforts to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
with cheques made out to Forest Read Easy Deal.
Thank you
Catherine
Thursday 30 May 2013
Tuesday 28 May 2013
Blowing our trumpets....
Half term changes the dynamic.
I was a little early again, not having to wait for my son, but the clientele at the pool also changed. Two people in 'my' slow lane already, a child and a parent or possibly coach. The girl had really good swimming style so I was relieved but not surprised when they escaped to the 'medium' lane after putting up with me for a couple of lengths.
The butterfly was fine, though I have no idea what it looked like. A little disappointingly I only managed front crawl as two half lengths. Not sure what happened really - perhaps I wasn't taking it slowly enough. Or perhaps another attack of the self fulfilling prophecies.
To counteract anything of that tendency though, a large envelope arrived on the doormat this lunchtime. The bid to the Big Lottery Awards for All Fund I wrote about in this blog has been successful.
I've talked a fair bit about our coaches and our learners in these posts, but I've not said much about FRED's management team nor about our 'coach co-ordinator' Sheila.
Sheila's role is crucial. She is the first port of call for anyone interested in becoming a coach. She's also the first contact for anyone wanting to become a learner or to refer a learner. And vitally she not only matches new learners with the best coach for them as an individual, she also keeps in touch with each 'learning pair' and monitors progress, notes any difficulties and provides gentle support to all parties.
As she previously performed a similar role professionally, FRED is extremely lucky to be able to take advantage of her experience. Sheila chooses not to be a member of the management team but provides it with a huge amount of feedback, allowing the rest of us to work out the direction in which FRED needs to go and therefore the overall shape of the bids that need to be made.
Our secretary, Vicky, joined FRED originally as its first volunteer coach and fairly early on became co-opted as volunteer secretary. At an event to celebrate FRED's first year anniversary, the first such event I attended, she spoke very movingly about her learner and about how she might sometimes search for material on the internet related to his personal interests, adapting it to a level that he'd be able to cope with. That's a huge amount of work and commitment and yet, often, it's necessary because the quantity of material available to provide reading practice to build up what's called 'reading stamina', is not huge. That's what part of the money from the Awards for All bid will go on: purchasing a greater range of reading materials at the right levels.
Kris Ventris-Field provides the coach training and focussed coach 'get-togethers' for us. If you've clicked on her name, you'll have realised she too, is another very experienced professional in this field. Despite the fact that she is self-employed FRED receives her support & her time for free, such is her passion and commitment. I've learnt a great deal from Kris.
I'm proud to say I recruited the next member of the team myself. Janet Williams used to be head of Steam Mills School near Cinderford, a school I visited on a regular basis as a librarian to publicise the public libraries' 'Summer Reading Challenge' (credited as making a major contribution to keeping literacy levels high over the long summer school holiday).
Each year there is a different theme to this challenge. Each year I would groan with a sense of 'been there, done that' as I tried to think of a new way to enthuse the children in assembly. Memorably one year (the theme was sport) I even entertained them all by putting on my artistic roller skates. I don't know if it was that memory that made Janet say yes, or her knowledge of the literacy needs of the area and her continued commitment to education. Either way, she is a knowledgeable voice of calm and reason and a huge help and support.
Our latest recruit is Frank Rainer, our treasurer. Anyone who has ever worked with a small organisation will know how difficult it can be to recruit a treasurer and what a relief it is when one is found. Frank originally approached FRED as a volunteer coach but during the training, and hearing about his past career, we spotted his potential and invited him onto the management team PDQ. The bonus was that not only did he offer to be the treasurer when he found we didn't have one, but he turns out previously to have taken on that role for the highly successful Great Oaks Dean Forest Hospice. He could hardly have come with better references!
And finally there's me, about whom you already know a lot. I've chaired FRED for about a year and a half and written the (mostly successful) funding bids on its behalf. I am sorry to be leaving FRED and I will miss the team (already do). One of the very difficult things for voluntary organisations to cope with is that circumstances change and volunteers move on. I have great faith that FRED will survive. But as well as asking for your money tonight (please send cheques made out to Forest Read Easy Deal to
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL),
I'm also asking you to consider whether you'd be interested in joining FRED's management team. If the answer's yes, then please ring Sheila and let her know.
I was a little early again, not having to wait for my son, but the clientele at the pool also changed. Two people in 'my' slow lane already, a child and a parent or possibly coach. The girl had really good swimming style so I was relieved but not surprised when they escaped to the 'medium' lane after putting up with me for a couple of lengths.
The butterfly was fine, though I have no idea what it looked like. A little disappointingly I only managed front crawl as two half lengths. Not sure what happened really - perhaps I wasn't taking it slowly enough. Or perhaps another attack of the self fulfilling prophecies.
To counteract anything of that tendency though, a large envelope arrived on the doormat this lunchtime. The bid to the Big Lottery Awards for All Fund I wrote about in this blog has been successful.
I've talked a fair bit about our coaches and our learners in these posts, but I've not said much about FRED's management team nor about our 'coach co-ordinator' Sheila.
Sheila's role is crucial. She is the first port of call for anyone interested in becoming a coach. She's also the first contact for anyone wanting to become a learner or to refer a learner. And vitally she not only matches new learners with the best coach for them as an individual, she also keeps in touch with each 'learning pair' and monitors progress, notes any difficulties and provides gentle support to all parties.
As she previously performed a similar role professionally, FRED is extremely lucky to be able to take advantage of her experience. Sheila chooses not to be a member of the management team but provides it with a huge amount of feedback, allowing the rest of us to work out the direction in which FRED needs to go and therefore the overall shape of the bids that need to be made.
Our secretary, Vicky, joined FRED originally as its first volunteer coach and fairly early on became co-opted as volunteer secretary. At an event to celebrate FRED's first year anniversary, the first such event I attended, she spoke very movingly about her learner and about how she might sometimes search for material on the internet related to his personal interests, adapting it to a level that he'd be able to cope with. That's a huge amount of work and commitment and yet, often, it's necessary because the quantity of material available to provide reading practice to build up what's called 'reading stamina', is not huge. That's what part of the money from the Awards for All bid will go on: purchasing a greater range of reading materials at the right levels.
Kris Ventris-Field provides the coach training and focussed coach 'get-togethers' for us. If you've clicked on her name, you'll have realised she too, is another very experienced professional in this field. Despite the fact that she is self-employed FRED receives her support & her time for free, such is her passion and commitment. I've learnt a great deal from Kris.
I'm proud to say I recruited the next member of the team myself. Janet Williams used to be head of Steam Mills School near Cinderford, a school I visited on a regular basis as a librarian to publicise the public libraries' 'Summer Reading Challenge' (credited as making a major contribution to keeping literacy levels high over the long summer school holiday).
Each year there is a different theme to this challenge. Each year I would groan with a sense of 'been there, done that' as I tried to think of a new way to enthuse the children in assembly. Memorably one year (the theme was sport) I even entertained them all by putting on my artistic roller skates. I don't know if it was that memory that made Janet say yes, or her knowledge of the literacy needs of the area and her continued commitment to education. Either way, she is a knowledgeable voice of calm and reason and a huge help and support.
Our latest recruit is Frank Rainer, our treasurer. Anyone who has ever worked with a small organisation will know how difficult it can be to recruit a treasurer and what a relief it is when one is found. Frank originally approached FRED as a volunteer coach but during the training, and hearing about his past career, we spotted his potential and invited him onto the management team PDQ. The bonus was that not only did he offer to be the treasurer when he found we didn't have one, but he turns out previously to have taken on that role for the highly successful Great Oaks Dean Forest Hospice. He could hardly have come with better references!
And finally there's me, about whom you already know a lot. I've chaired FRED for about a year and a half and written the (mostly successful) funding bids on its behalf. I am sorry to be leaving FRED and I will miss the team (already do). One of the very difficult things for voluntary organisations to cope with is that circumstances change and volunteers move on. I have great faith that FRED will survive. But as well as asking for your money tonight (please send cheques made out to Forest Read Easy Deal to
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL),
Friday 24 May 2013
National Curriculum and other support systems
Back to my usual time and thankfully the one other person in my 'slow' lane realises he's having to overtake me too frequently and dips under the rope into the medium lane.
Usually it takes me until length 8 to feel like my body has loosened up and started to co-ordinate itself easily. Up until then it's a little like a chore. But by the end of my swims these days days, I've got into my rhythm so well I think I could easily keep going a while longer.
Today length 8 comes and goes with no improvement. There are days like this! Six lengths of breaststroke and six of back stroke, and still my neck feels seized up. It's no good, I've just got to knuckle down and take on front crawl.
Pausing for slightly longer than usual at the end I realise it's going to be length 13. Split second hesitation, realise my slight nerves mean my breathing is never going to be set up for a perfect start, push off.
All I concentrate on is keeping going slowly and steadily and breathing on every fourth stroke, bubbling out the air in a steady stream in between. Deliberately chose to go from deep end to shallow this time to avoid any mid length freaking out. Have to encourage myself with 'I can do it, I'm going to do it' thoughts from about 2/3rds of the way along. And it works! The whole length - smoothly, without panic, without excessive gasping.
And now my body's warmed up properly!
So next time it's feeling un-inclined to get going I think I'm just going to get sterner with it sooner rather than pander to it! It can have 6 lengths max of 'ooh, this is hard work' and then I'm going to start pushing it a bit harder.
Makes me wonder if FRED's coaches sometimes have to get stern with our learners? A delicate balancing act I should think, sensing what level of stern will produce achievement and what will be so much as to cause de-motivation & a debilitating sense of failure.
Everything smoothed out, a glow of achievement & I settle easily into the remaining lengths. And yes, if they hadn't kicked me out I could have gone on for......
Yesterday, I read that an Amateur Swimming Association survey found 51% of 7-11 year olds are unable to swim; only 2% of primary schools reach government targets of providing 22 hours of swimming lessons a year (the average being 8). According to RoSPA many parents think their children can swim when they can do barely more than float.
The surface argument of this is 'tut, tut, schools are failing'. But it is so much more complex, isn't it? Swimming pools close, or are unavailable locally so it is more expensive for schools to transport pupils, especially at a time when the price of everything else goes up and budgets are cut. Travelling to & from also takes time away from of the rest of the curriculum, against which teachers and pupils seem to be constantly tested. And always there are demands for yet more to be stuffed into that curriculum (creative activities, learning to cook, reading for pleasure, more science....).
As with many things (reading, cooking, exercise generally) attitudes in the home have a huge influence. Once again I was the lucky lucky one. In my very early years my parents took all six of us weekly to Derby Swimming Baths, such an importance did they place on it, even though my mum couldn't swim and my dad didn't really like it.
And then our forward looking primary school raised money to build a small teaching pool of its own. My eldest sister swam in the opening ceremony. My mum helped with swimming lessons. A little later still, the secondary school in the village built a large state of the art (for then) public swimming pool. So lauded was it locally that 'celebrities' came to swim there. My eldest sister's claim to fame for many years was that she'd been accidentally kicked by Brian Clough in that pool (I discovered only the other day that this pool of my childhood is no longer there).
So we had a system of naturally progressing support with our swimming as with our reading, thanks both to our parents and to publicly available facilities (we also regularly visited the village library).
Some, though not all, of FRED's learners have not had support systems at home to assist with their early reading.
Despite the 'Literacy Hour', not all schools have libraries (I was very very impressed to see mention of a librarian on the staff at Forest View school in Cinderford the other day!). In fact I'm told some secondary schools have closed their libraries completely. And it is quite common for school library staff to have no library qualifications at all, because it is so often seen as a purely administrative function.
There are many tales of people from many backgrounds including those just described, finding their own support systems via public libraries. Many people who would not have been able to grow into who they are today and perhaps more importantly, contribute to society in the way they do today, if it had not been for the availability and accessibility of their public library service. And in this day & age that can also means access to the information and services available via the internet.
One (and I stress it was only one) of the reasons I took redundancy when I did was because I lost faith in my employer. We knew cuts were coming, we agreed they were inevitable, we even knew they were likely to be huge.
When they proposed the closure of Cinderford Library it was a cut too far for me. The community worked hard and secured its future and these days I hear its usage figures are increasing.
But today I signed a petition against cuts in Herefordshire Libraries. They propose to cut all but one library in the whole of that huge county.
I could cry (again).
But better than you crying, perhaps you'd consider sending a donation to help FRED continue its existence as a support service. Send donations to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
- cheques should be made out to Forest Read Easy Deal.
Thank you.
Usually it takes me until length 8 to feel like my body has loosened up and started to co-ordinate itself easily. Up until then it's a little like a chore. But by the end of my swims these days days, I've got into my rhythm so well I think I could easily keep going a while longer.
Today length 8 comes and goes with no improvement. There are days like this! Six lengths of breaststroke and six of back stroke, and still my neck feels seized up. It's no good, I've just got to knuckle down and take on front crawl.
Pausing for slightly longer than usual at the end I realise it's going to be length 13. Split second hesitation, realise my slight nerves mean my breathing is never going to be set up for a perfect start, push off.
All I concentrate on is keeping going slowly and steadily and breathing on every fourth stroke, bubbling out the air in a steady stream in between. Deliberately chose to go from deep end to shallow this time to avoid any mid length freaking out. Have to encourage myself with 'I can do it, I'm going to do it' thoughts from about 2/3rds of the way along. And it works! The whole length - smoothly, without panic, without excessive gasping.
And now my body's warmed up properly!
So next time it's feeling un-inclined to get going I think I'm just going to get sterner with it sooner rather than pander to it! It can have 6 lengths max of 'ooh, this is hard work' and then I'm going to start pushing it a bit harder.
Makes me wonder if FRED's coaches sometimes have to get stern with our learners? A delicate balancing act I should think, sensing what level of stern will produce achievement and what will be so much as to cause de-motivation & a debilitating sense of failure.
Everything smoothed out, a glow of achievement & I settle easily into the remaining lengths. And yes, if they hadn't kicked me out I could have gone on for......
Yesterday, I read that an Amateur Swimming Association survey found 51% of 7-11 year olds are unable to swim; only 2% of primary schools reach government targets of providing 22 hours of swimming lessons a year (the average being 8). According to RoSPA many parents think their children can swim when they can do barely more than float.
The surface argument of this is 'tut, tut, schools are failing'. But it is so much more complex, isn't it? Swimming pools close, or are unavailable locally so it is more expensive for schools to transport pupils, especially at a time when the price of everything else goes up and budgets are cut. Travelling to & from also takes time away from of the rest of the curriculum, against which teachers and pupils seem to be constantly tested. And always there are demands for yet more to be stuffed into that curriculum (creative activities, learning to cook, reading for pleasure, more science....).
As with many things (reading, cooking, exercise generally) attitudes in the home have a huge influence. Once again I was the lucky lucky one. In my very early years my parents took all six of us weekly to Derby Swimming Baths, such an importance did they place on it, even though my mum couldn't swim and my dad didn't really like it.
And then our forward looking primary school raised money to build a small teaching pool of its own. My eldest sister swam in the opening ceremony. My mum helped with swimming lessons. A little later still, the secondary school in the village built a large state of the art (for then) public swimming pool. So lauded was it locally that 'celebrities' came to swim there. My eldest sister's claim to fame for many years was that she'd been accidentally kicked by Brian Clough in that pool (I discovered only the other day that this pool of my childhood is no longer there).
So we had a system of naturally progressing support with our swimming as with our reading, thanks both to our parents and to publicly available facilities (we also regularly visited the village library).
Some, though not all, of FRED's learners have not had support systems at home to assist with their early reading.
Despite the 'Literacy Hour', not all schools have libraries (I was very very impressed to see mention of a librarian on the staff at Forest View school in Cinderford the other day!). In fact I'm told some secondary schools have closed their libraries completely. And it is quite common for school library staff to have no library qualifications at all, because it is so often seen as a purely administrative function.
There are many tales of people from many backgrounds including those just described, finding their own support systems via public libraries. Many people who would not have been able to grow into who they are today and perhaps more importantly, contribute to society in the way they do today, if it had not been for the availability and accessibility of their public library service. And in this day & age that can also means access to the information and services available via the internet.
One (and I stress it was only one) of the reasons I took redundancy when I did was because I lost faith in my employer. We knew cuts were coming, we agreed they were inevitable, we even knew they were likely to be huge.
When they proposed the closure of Cinderford Library it was a cut too far for me. The community worked hard and secured its future and these days I hear its usage figures are increasing.
But today I signed a petition against cuts in Herefordshire Libraries. They propose to cut all but one library in the whole of that huge county.
I could cry (again).
But better than you crying, perhaps you'd consider sending a donation to help FRED continue its existence as a support service. Send donations to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
- cheques should be made out to Forest Read Easy Deal.
Thank you.
Tuesday 21 May 2013
Learning from the Classics (old & new)
Here's something to buck the trend of this blog: it's a video about 20 minutes long. It's not about swimming. It's not about reading as such and I wouldn't normally put something visual on here.
But it's a speech by JK Rowling, (author of Harry Potter - just in case there's anyone out there who doesn't know that!) to graduating Harvard students in 2008. It's humorous and enjoyable but with its serious side too. She sprinkles references to reading across it lightly but with relevance. I share it with thanks to my friend Peter Clark for passing on the link.
Rowling talks very movingly about what she calls 'the fringe benefits of failure', having experienced reaching rock bottom herself. About how it strips you down to the bare essentials of who you are. How, without knowing how long the tunnel of darkness will be and with only the hope of light at the end, you can, with personal effort, rebuild and grow again. She does acknowledge not all of us will achieve on a similar level to herself!
I've been there too and I know it's true but it also reminds me of what I said before about FRED's learners: they achieve more when choosing to learn has been a very personal decision and that it's often a life event or change that triggers that choice. As Rowling (a Classics graduate) says, quoting Plutarch: 'What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality'.
Rowling also talks about imagination which she describes as: "the power that enables us to empathise with humans whose experiences we have never shared."
I suspect it is often because FRED's volunteers have the imagination to empathise that they choose to volunteer for us and achieve what they do for our learners. If you can similarly empathise, perhaps you'd consider making a donation to help FRED continue its work. If so, please send a cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
Keeping to the sides of the lane makes things trickier - my arm keeps catching the rope during backstroke. The choppiness of the water makes it more tiring and as I take my breath I find my mouth is full of water instead of air.
I can't mentally get into the swim because of the distractions so, although my body still feels good afterwards, I've not really developed that sense of calmness I've come to expect.
Plus points though: for the first time in several swims I did not hit my head on the side of the pool.
And I try front crawl again.
I remember to slow everything down, not to take a breath every stroke. I manage half a length before, for some quite odd & unidentifiable reason, the sight of the steeply descending bottom of the pool, puts me off my stroke entirely and I revert to breast stroke.
But I don't hate it. I even feel that if I put my mind to it the way I did with breast-stroke all those years ago, I might actually get around to enjoying it. Certainly to some sense of pride at being able to face it without the big mental barrier I've had till now.
Inward achievement changing outer reality.... as per Plutarch.
But it's a speech by JK Rowling, (author of Harry Potter - just in case there's anyone out there who doesn't know that!) to graduating Harvard students in 2008. It's humorous and enjoyable but with its serious side too. She sprinkles references to reading across it lightly but with relevance. I share it with thanks to my friend Peter Clark for passing on the link.
Rowling talks very movingly about what she calls 'the fringe benefits of failure', having experienced reaching rock bottom herself. About how it strips you down to the bare essentials of who you are. How, without knowing how long the tunnel of darkness will be and with only the hope of light at the end, you can, with personal effort, rebuild and grow again. She does acknowledge not all of us will achieve on a similar level to herself!
I've been there too and I know it's true but it also reminds me of what I said before about FRED's learners: they achieve more when choosing to learn has been a very personal decision and that it's often a life event or change that triggers that choice. As Rowling (a Classics graduate) says, quoting Plutarch: 'What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality'.
Rowling also talks about imagination which she describes as: "the power that enables us to empathise with humans whose experiences we have never shared."
I suspect it is often because FRED's volunteers have the imagination to empathise that they choose to volunteer for us and achieve what they do for our learners. If you can similarly empathise, perhaps you'd consider making a donation to help FRED continue its work. If so, please send a cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
It was a very scrappy swim today. I had to share a lane with two other people. Usually everyone else is getting out and I have the last half hour to myself.
Keeping to the sides of the lane makes things trickier - my arm keeps catching the rope during backstroke. The choppiness of the water makes it more tiring and as I take my breath I find my mouth is full of water instead of air.
I can't mentally get into the swim because of the distractions so, although my body still feels good afterwards, I've not really developed that sense of calmness I've come to expect.
Plus points though: for the first time in several swims I did not hit my head on the side of the pool.
And I try front crawl again.
I remember to slow everything down, not to take a breath every stroke. I manage half a length before, for some quite odd & unidentifiable reason, the sight of the steeply descending bottom of the pool, puts me off my stroke entirely and I revert to breast stroke.
But I don't hate it. I even feel that if I put my mind to it the way I did with breast-stroke all those years ago, I might actually get around to enjoying it. Certainly to some sense of pride at being able to face it without the big mental barrier I've had till now.
Inward achievement changing outer reality.... as per Plutarch.
Saturday 18 May 2013
Success, pride and the pleasures of persistence
No, I haven't finished yet. But I am approaching my final week of training before the 'big week'.
Gains so far
Gains so far
- slimmer calves and wrists!
- increased strength and stamina - which has pay-offs on the allotment, when doing housework (faster), at work (yesterday, since I already had stuff in the other hand, I carried the paper recycling sack downstairs in one hand without strain, negating the need for two trips!)
- unexpectedly discovering a long lost friend's picture upon a former colleague's Facebook page and making delighted contact again.
Oh, and the money which has been coming in, thanks to you, though there's still time for more cheques made out to Forest Read Easy Deal and sent to
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL)
with my thanks.
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL)
with my thanks.
As for the waistline & the weight, the jury's still out till after the final swim. Just where should one measure one's waist? I've always put the tape measure around the narrowest part of me as viewed from the front. A good 2 - 2 & 1/2 inches above my navel.
At my recent health check, the nurse measured around my navel. Since these days one's waist size is taken as a good indicator of one's health (some think it more relevant than the traditional height against weight 'Body Mass Index'), surely this is quite important?
At my recent health check, the nurse measured around my navel. Since these days one's waist size is taken as a good indicator of one's health (some think it more relevant than the traditional height against weight 'Body Mass Index'), surely this is quite important?
Sometimes reading back over my blogs I worry that all our learners come across as downtrodden people. And that maybe I do too?
One of our first learners was a successful businessman, indeed quite wealthy, so I understand. All his life he had worked hard, both at his business and at covering up his lack of reading ability, even from his own family.
And like him, despite negative experiences in life, I too have had successes and times of great pride and achievement. Just for balance, I'd like to share some.
Rejoining my profession was a real homecoming for me. My first grouping as a librarian in the Forest of Dean was 'Lydney, Bream, Newnham, Mitcheldean and the Forest Mobile'. I organised the successful 'Poetry on the Fridge Door' event at Lydney, arranging for an exhibition in the library of 'Poetraits' by portrait painter Graham Kershaw. The fabulous library staff got in touch with Biffa and borrowed a defunct fridge so customers could use magnets to write poems on the door.
Two years later after a re-organisation it was 'Cinderford & Coleford' (how I missed the bluebells between the office in Cinderford and Lydney library, along the Soudley route!). Another re-organisation and it's Cinderford, Newnham, Mitcheldean & Newent. For information, Bream, Newnham & Mitcheldean libraries are now run by their communities and Forest Mobile Library is no more.
In my time I've met several authors, some of them famous: Jacqueline Wilson and Andrew Taylor; some very talented but less well known (Cat Weatherill and Jacquelyn Mitchard); I've met children's book author-illustrators, for example Tony de Saulle. Special mentions must go to Shoo Rayner (more about him later) and Hannah Shaw, whose style I so loved I commissioned her to illustrate a rhyme my husband wrote for our children when they were little. She delivered it in person and the last time I met her she told me she still has her copy of it on her studio wall. I follow her career with great affection.
To a large extent, it was me who project managed the 'client side' of the refurbishment of Cinderford Library. Even 2 or 3 years later I would still fill with enormous pride when someone saw it for the first time, doing that slight double take: ' Wow! Isn't this a lovely library?'
And I would think 'Yes! I chose those colours!', 'I worked out that layout that everyone says works so well!', 'That piece of furniture in the children's zone that the children love, and that draws their attention to the 'start to read' books displayed on it and encourages them to borrow more - I chose that and argued the case for having it!'
So - success!
I have helped possibly more than a hundred people begin to access the internet for themselves as part of my role as local librarian. One to one, or at most two. Tuning in to their existing levels of understanding and ability, their motivations for wanting to learn, taking cues from their own interests. Taking them as I would put it 'from where they are now, further towards where they wanted to be'. Very much as FRED coaches do with FRED learners, I think.
Some people were literally shaking with nerves. Some were so grateful they wanted to kiss me afterwards (we made do with heartfelt handshakes!)
I still think it was one of the best things we ever did as a service, empowering people to access information in the modern world way. I still think it was a great USP for the library service. A great 'in' to showing off what else the free library service can offer (and it is amazing how many people still don't know that they can belong to the library for free, that it has already been paid for by their taxes). I've not only lent books about learning computer skills on the back of this but books about football, art, textiles - you name it, & fiction as well.
A tale of personal pride, then. And the pleasures of persistence?
I wanted very much to work with Forest View Primary School, it being the biggest in Cinderford. I sent emails to the literacy co-ordinator. No response. I rang more than once. Literacy co-ordinator not available, messages not returned. Knowing how exceptionally busy teachers are and how crammed their days are with incidents that have to be dealt with then & there, I determined on a last ditch effort and a single A4 proposal made its way to the right pigeonhole.
It turns out she hadn't been ignoring me - she'd been ill. The following spring over the course of World Book Week I provided age appropriate events and library introduction to each and every class. Every child was able to enter a competition (poems or illustrations) judged by me. On my recommendation they got Shoo Rayner on board to do events at school and to help me present the prizes. The headteacher wrote to me later:
Massively worth the persistence.
I could tell you many many more stories but ..... you've listened long enough today.
When I went swimming again yesterday I did not choose to persist with front crawl. I chose to further consolidate breast-stroke and back stroke.
And two things suddenly clicked:
I found myself stretching forward much more in the breaststroke which lengthened and smoothed everything, including the breathing. And in backstroke I remembered to kick from the hip rather than the knee, which again seemed to produce a greater level of efficiency. The lessons of persistence therefore must now (in my final training swims) be applied to front crawl.
I'm still a bit scared though.....!
Two years later after a re-organisation it was 'Cinderford & Coleford' (how I missed the bluebells between the office in Cinderford and Lydney library, along the Soudley route!). Another re-organisation and it's Cinderford, Newnham, Mitcheldean & Newent. For information, Bream, Newnham & Mitcheldean libraries are now run by their communities and Forest Mobile Library is no more.
In my time I've met several authors, some of them famous: Jacqueline Wilson and Andrew Taylor; some very talented but less well known (Cat Weatherill and Jacquelyn Mitchard); I've met children's book author-illustrators, for example Tony de Saulle. Special mentions must go to Shoo Rayner (more about him later) and Hannah Shaw, whose style I so loved I commissioned her to illustrate a rhyme my husband wrote for our children when they were little. She delivered it in person and the last time I met her she told me she still has her copy of it on her studio wall. I follow her career with great affection.
To a large extent, it was me who project managed the 'client side' of the refurbishment of Cinderford Library. Even 2 or 3 years later I would still fill with enormous pride when someone saw it for the first time, doing that slight double take: ' Wow! Isn't this a lovely library?'
And I would think 'Yes! I chose those colours!', 'I worked out that layout that everyone says works so well!', 'That piece of furniture in the children's zone that the children love, and that draws their attention to the 'start to read' books displayed on it and encourages them to borrow more - I chose that and argued the case for having it!'
So - success!
I have helped possibly more than a hundred people begin to access the internet for themselves as part of my role as local librarian. One to one, or at most two. Tuning in to their existing levels of understanding and ability, their motivations for wanting to learn, taking cues from their own interests. Taking them as I would put it 'from where they are now, further towards where they wanted to be'. Very much as FRED coaches do with FRED learners, I think.
Some people were literally shaking with nerves. Some were so grateful they wanted to kiss me afterwards (we made do with heartfelt handshakes!)
I still think it was one of the best things we ever did as a service, empowering people to access information in the modern world way. I still think it was a great USP for the library service. A great 'in' to showing off what else the free library service can offer (and it is amazing how many people still don't know that they can belong to the library for free, that it has already been paid for by their taxes). I've not only lent books about learning computer skills on the back of this but books about football, art, textiles - you name it, & fiction as well.
A tale of personal pride, then. And the pleasures of persistence?
I wanted very much to work with Forest View Primary School, it being the biggest in Cinderford. I sent emails to the literacy co-ordinator. No response. I rang more than once. Literacy co-ordinator not available, messages not returned. Knowing how exceptionally busy teachers are and how crammed their days are with incidents that have to be dealt with then & there, I determined on a last ditch effort and a single A4 proposal made its way to the right pigeonhole.
It turns out she hadn't been ignoring me - she'd been ill. The following spring over the course of World Book Week I provided age appropriate events and library introduction to each and every class. Every child was able to enter a competition (poems or illustrations) judged by me. On my recommendation they got Shoo Rayner on board to do events at school and to help me present the prizes. The headteacher wrote to me later:
"The children really did benefit immensely from it. It was fantastic to see a vast number of pupils return from their library visit holding their books in their hands and excited about reading. As a result of the book week staff at Forest View have reported that more children now want to read and I have certainly noticed that there are many more children using our school library and sat in class reading areas.
The enthusiasm and passion that you showed during the sessions that you worked with the children certainly encouraged them to see how beneficial reading is and the importance that it has to their lives. This was all reflected on the prize giving day, when every single child and their parents turned up to receive their prize, this is something that as a school we have never been able to achieve!"
Massively worth the persistence.
I could tell you many many more stories but ..... you've listened long enough today.
When I went swimming again yesterday I did not choose to persist with front crawl. I chose to further consolidate breast-stroke and back stroke.
And two things suddenly clicked:
I found myself stretching forward much more in the breaststroke which lengthened and smoothed everything, including the breathing. And in backstroke I remembered to kick from the hip rather than the knee, which again seemed to produce a greater level of efficiency. The lessons of persistence therefore must now (in my final training swims) be applied to front crawl.
I'm still a bit scared though.....!
Thursday 16 May 2013
Banned substances
Paracetamol.
Apparently competitive athletes aren't allowed it. But though I love the 'good aches' as they tell me I'm strengthening and stretching my muscles, extending my lung capacity and my stamina in a way that is useful for many parts of life, still to be aching and heavy limbed when I haven't actually swum for two days does make me realise what I'm going to be putting myself through in that final week of swimming.
More to the point, the overtired tetchiness that sometimes comes with it is not enjoyable. So paracetamol it is. I'm not in it for gold medals, I'm in it for the money! For FRED! Talking of which, have you sent a cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal to
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
yet?
And as my husband keeps trying to remind me - it's a marathon, not a sprint! Go easy, girl.
I completely forgot to tell you that I tried front-crawl last time. I managed all of a third of a length before gaspingly and spaced-out in my head I reverted to breast-stroke for the rest. I must try to remember my friend Gail's advice and the recommendation from swimming.org:
"Front crawl doesn't have to be a splash and a dash stroke to the wall - swim longer and use your energy more efficiently by using a long and smooth rhythm"
It'll be hard to break those ingrained habits though. I once went swimming with the Venture Scouts as a teenager. Widths across the middle of the pool - not for fun or enjoyment, or improving technique. Oh no, it had to be competitive.
But not being strong of arm and leg nor replete with natural stamina, while others rested I was still finishing. Without any rest I had to turn round and go back again & again & again & again. I left the pool that night feeling humiliated and glowering with resentment.
Notice I say 'with' the Venture Scouts. Technically I was one, too and joined in horrible (though possibly 'character-building'?) experiences like the White Peak Walk.
"20 miles isn't far, Catherine" said a friend of my sister's.
It is when you've never walked that far before, rarely walked with a full pack on your back, when you are in a mixed team and the boys are striding on ahead and therefore navigating and therefore it turns into 25 miles..... Oh, & it's your period and you're in pain and the boy who was supposed to have brought the first aid kit (with the paracetamol) hadn't but the supervisors still let us go out anyway because he'd showed them his lunch box!
For information: the White Peak Walk is described as: A strenuous challenge walk in the Peak National Park following the most rugged parts of the Peak and passing via Rowsley, Birchover, Youlgreave, Monyash, Flagg, Taddington and Great Longstone.
I only really started to develop any stamina & strength after having my children. They were both quite hefty and grew at a tremendous rate - forced progressive resistance weight training!
But yes, Ventures was another example of being on the outside looking in, and of not quite 'getting it'. I joined for something to do, because my lovely older sister suggested it. But I still had that sense of tagging along with her friends, of not really doing it of my own dynamic choosing & volition.
It is this need for FRED learners to come to us because they themselves want to, that is so important in how well they will succeed.
Some of our referring agencies misunderstand this importance: Job Centres and those contracting services from them, for example.
If a learner feels they have to come 'or else', that internal motivation is not as strong. Resentment or other conflicting emotions (being made to face the humiliating possibility of failure yet again?) can dilute it and are not helpful additions to what can already be a challenging and vulnerable situation.
Apparently competitive athletes aren't allowed it. But though I love the 'good aches' as they tell me I'm strengthening and stretching my muscles, extending my lung capacity and my stamina in a way that is useful for many parts of life, still to be aching and heavy limbed when I haven't actually swum for two days does make me realise what I'm going to be putting myself through in that final week of swimming.
More to the point, the overtired tetchiness that sometimes comes with it is not enjoyable. So paracetamol it is. I'm not in it for gold medals, I'm in it for the money! For FRED! Talking of which, have you sent a cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal to
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
yet?
And as my husband keeps trying to remind me - it's a marathon, not a sprint! Go easy, girl.
I completely forgot to tell you that I tried front-crawl last time. I managed all of a third of a length before gaspingly and spaced-out in my head I reverted to breast-stroke for the rest. I must try to remember my friend Gail's advice and the recommendation from swimming.org:
"Front crawl doesn't have to be a splash and a dash stroke to the wall - swim longer and use your energy more efficiently by using a long and smooth rhythm"
It'll be hard to break those ingrained habits though. I once went swimming with the Venture Scouts as a teenager. Widths across the middle of the pool - not for fun or enjoyment, or improving technique. Oh no, it had to be competitive.
But not being strong of arm and leg nor replete with natural stamina, while others rested I was still finishing. Without any rest I had to turn round and go back again & again & again & again. I left the pool that night feeling humiliated and glowering with resentment.
Notice I say 'with' the Venture Scouts. Technically I was one, too and joined in horrible (though possibly 'character-building'?) experiences like the White Peak Walk.
"20 miles isn't far, Catherine" said a friend of my sister's.
It is when you've never walked that far before, rarely walked with a full pack on your back, when you are in a mixed team and the boys are striding on ahead and therefore navigating and therefore it turns into 25 miles..... Oh, & it's your period and you're in pain and the boy who was supposed to have brought the first aid kit (with the paracetamol) hadn't but the supervisors still let us go out anyway because he'd showed them his lunch box!
For information: the White Peak Walk is described as: A strenuous challenge walk in the Peak National Park following the most rugged parts of the Peak and passing via Rowsley, Birchover, Youlgreave, Monyash, Flagg, Taddington and Great Longstone.
I only really started to develop any stamina & strength after having my children. They were both quite hefty and grew at a tremendous rate - forced progressive resistance weight training!
But yes, Ventures was another example of being on the outside looking in, and of not quite 'getting it'. I joined for something to do, because my lovely older sister suggested it. But I still had that sense of tagging along with her friends, of not really doing it of my own dynamic choosing & volition.
It is this need for FRED learners to come to us because they themselves want to, that is so important in how well they will succeed.
Some of our referring agencies misunderstand this importance: Job Centres and those contracting services from them, for example.
If a learner feels they have to come 'or else', that internal motivation is not as strong. Resentment or other conflicting emotions (being made to face the humiliating possibility of failure yet again?) can dilute it and are not helpful additions to what can already be a challenging and vulnerable situation.
Wednesday 15 May 2013
"Aquatic Apes" and "Thinking Frog"
Most scientists think humans evolved from apes who, on starting to live on grassland away from trees, developed our upright gait and other features. But apparently this theory does not explain all our evolutionary developments:
"Humans are very different from other apes," said Peter Rhys Evans, an organiser of Human Evolution: Past, Present and Future. "We lack fur, walk upright, have big brains and subcutaneous fat and have a descended larynx, a feature common among aquatic animals but not apes."
So there is an alternative theory, supported even by David Attenborough, that we are descended from 'aquatic apes'.
However, this theory describes apes that waded in deep water (therefore needing to be upright) not apes that swam. So I can't claim that swimming is something I've evolved to do! But other implications of the theory might apply, for example in our brain chemistry:
"Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is an omega-3 fatty acid that is found in large amounts in seafood," said Dr Michael Crawford, of Imperial College London. "It boosts brain growth in mammals................... The crucial point is that without a high DHA diet from seafood we could not have developed our big brains. We got smart from eating fish and living in water."
A friend of mine (Vicky) has commented on my post 'That thing they call the wall' via email, saying
"If you accept that the mind and body have to learn to work in concert for the perfect breaststroke, does it really help to beat up on them on those days when they don’t?"
My first reaction is to say 'don't worry: the extreme wussiness comments are somewhat hyperbolic!' But being occasionally given to depression I appreciate her concern. Of more immediate help though is this:
"linking it to yoga principles again; sessions start with noticing how the mind and how the body feel that day, and accepting it."
Because she also links it to the need learners and coaches have to 'acknowledge the baggage of their day' before they can start the learning process.
Thankfully recently I have gone into the pool with a very focussed attitude. Yesterday's swim has produced more of those enjoyably virtuous aches in both legs and arms, a heaviness of limb and sleepiness noticeable when trying to force a double duvet into its clean cover last night. I alternated two lengths of breast-stroke ('thinking frog' as per my friend's more detailed advice) with two lengths of back stroke.
Attempting to engage the aquatic ape's larger brain to get the back stroke right (a sort of flick of the wrist backwards to level your hand as it enters the water?), I endure several bumped wrists and another bump to the head before I also remember to keep an eye on how close to the end of the length I am.
On leaving the pool I also discover another benefit of the aquatic ape theory. Another woman getting out at the same time commented: 'oooh, you feel the cold when you get out, don't you?'
Um, well, no, actually. My exertions have raised my body temperature considerably and it's all being insulated by that layer of sub-cutaneous fat I evolved! I'm positively glowing!
Perhaps she's descended from land apes?
However you think you may have evolved, if you've enjoyed today's blog, please send a cheque to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
made out to Forest Read Easy Deal.
With our thanks
Catherine
"Humans are very different from other apes," said Peter Rhys Evans, an organiser of Human Evolution: Past, Present and Future. "We lack fur, walk upright, have big brains and subcutaneous fat and have a descended larynx, a feature common among aquatic animals but not apes."
So there is an alternative theory, supported even by David Attenborough, that we are descended from 'aquatic apes'.
However, this theory describes apes that waded in deep water (therefore needing to be upright) not apes that swam. So I can't claim that swimming is something I've evolved to do! But other implications of the theory might apply, for example in our brain chemistry:
"Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is an omega-3 fatty acid that is found in large amounts in seafood," said Dr Michael Crawford, of Imperial College London. "It boosts brain growth in mammals................... The crucial point is that without a high DHA diet from seafood we could not have developed our big brains. We got smart from eating fish and living in water."
A friend of mine (Vicky) has commented on my post 'That thing they call the wall' via email, saying
"If you accept that the mind and body have to learn to work in concert for the perfect breaststroke, does it really help to beat up on them on those days when they don’t?"
My first reaction is to say 'don't worry: the extreme wussiness comments are somewhat hyperbolic!' But being occasionally given to depression I appreciate her concern. Of more immediate help though is this:
"linking it to yoga principles again; sessions start with noticing how the mind and how the body feel that day, and accepting it."
Because she also links it to the need learners and coaches have to 'acknowledge the baggage of their day' before they can start the learning process.
Thankfully recently I have gone into the pool with a very focussed attitude. Yesterday's swim has produced more of those enjoyably virtuous aches in both legs and arms, a heaviness of limb and sleepiness noticeable when trying to force a double duvet into its clean cover last night. I alternated two lengths of breast-stroke ('thinking frog' as per my friend's more detailed advice) with two lengths of back stroke.
Attempting to engage the aquatic ape's larger brain to get the back stroke right (a sort of flick of the wrist backwards to level your hand as it enters the water?), I endure several bumped wrists and another bump to the head before I also remember to keep an eye on how close to the end of the length I am.
On leaving the pool I also discover another benefit of the aquatic ape theory. Another woman getting out at the same time commented: 'oooh, you feel the cold when you get out, don't you?'
Um, well, no, actually. My exertions have raised my body temperature considerably and it's all being insulated by that layer of sub-cutaneous fat I evolved! I'm positively glowing!
Perhaps she's descended from land apes?
However you think you may have evolved, if you've enjoyed today's blog, please send a cheque to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
made out to Forest Read Easy Deal.
With our thanks
Catherine
Monday 13 May 2013
On the outside looking in
I'm the third child of four. Two years between my eldest sisters. Two years between my second sister and me. Fifteen months between me and my younger sister.
As a very young child I always wanted people to associate me with my eldest two sisters. They were the 'bees-knees', the ones whose every exploit was to be aspired to.
As we grew however, very often we became known as 'the big two' and 'the little two' and I fear that on too many occasions I was horrible to my younger sister in my resentment.
She & I did sometimes play happily, often with activities which were imitations of the ones I'd seen my older sisters playing the year before (or was it the month before - time is so different for children).
I especially remember one year, begging my mum's old tights and stuffing them, drawing or sewing horses' faces and ears on them and riding them like hobby horses up & down the drive as 'the big two' had done.
The odd thing was that despite copying as well as I could, I still didn't get the point of the game. After all that making and planning, when it came to the finished article and the galloping up and down the drive, my main sensation was 'so?'! I was on the outside looking in.
Later on the 'big two' and their group of friends discovered a lady who lived on a smallholding down the lane. While searching for a friend's missing cat we found someone else's missing tortoise, would you believe? They started to visit the goats, ducks, hens, dogs & cats kept by this lady (not forgetting the geese who had to be sung to, apparently). They began to call themselves 'the Mack Club', this being the lady's name.
But of course, while they could go on these visits independently, my little sister & I were 'too little' (whether this was my older sisters' view or my Mum's I don't know'). Once again, I was the envious outsider.
So the obvious link with FRED is, is that how it feels when reading is difficult? Are you always the one left out, left behind, not quite in the loop?
If you can empathise with this feeling, please consider sending a cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
There is at least one thing I copied from my sisters that I did 'get', that stuck, and that I became fully involved in. Under five, I sneaked into my eldest sister's hallowed room, climbed up onto the bed (& it was a climb at that age!) to look at all the things on her bookcase. She must have been at school.
And then and there, I quite clearly and definitely made a decision: 'When I'm big, I'm going to read Enid Blyton'!
As a very young child I always wanted people to associate me with my eldest two sisters. They were the 'bees-knees', the ones whose every exploit was to be aspired to.
As we grew however, very often we became known as 'the big two' and 'the little two' and I fear that on too many occasions I was horrible to my younger sister in my resentment.
She & I did sometimes play happily, often with activities which were imitations of the ones I'd seen my older sisters playing the year before (or was it the month before - time is so different for children).
I especially remember one year, begging my mum's old tights and stuffing them, drawing or sewing horses' faces and ears on them and riding them like hobby horses up & down the drive as 'the big two' had done.
The odd thing was that despite copying as well as I could, I still didn't get the point of the game. After all that making and planning, when it came to the finished article and the galloping up and down the drive, my main sensation was 'so?'! I was on the outside looking in.
Later on the 'big two' and their group of friends discovered a lady who lived on a smallholding down the lane. While searching for a friend's missing cat we found someone else's missing tortoise, would you believe? They started to visit the goats, ducks, hens, dogs & cats kept by this lady (not forgetting the geese who had to be sung to, apparently). They began to call themselves 'the Mack Club', this being the lady's name.
But of course, while they could go on these visits independently, my little sister & I were 'too little' (whether this was my older sisters' view or my Mum's I don't know'). Once again, I was the envious outsider.
So the obvious link with FRED is, is that how it feels when reading is difficult? Are you always the one left out, left behind, not quite in the loop?
If you can empathise with this feeling, please consider sending a cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
There is at least one thing I copied from my sisters that I did 'get', that stuck, and that I became fully involved in. Under five, I sneaked into my eldest sister's hallowed room, climbed up onto the bed (& it was a climb at that age!) to look at all the things on her bookcase. She must have been at school.
And then and there, I quite clearly and definitely made a decision: 'When I'm big, I'm going to read Enid Blyton'!
Friday 10 May 2013
Calmly does it.....
It's like learning to drive. I was nearly ready to put in for my test, when someone went into the back of the car as we came off a roundabout. Bang! The next time we went out, I'd become a very timid driver again, not confident, tensed up and definitely not enjoying it.
So my instructor decided he'd just take me out along quiet country lanes and out to the coast (I learnt in Newcastle upon Tyne) for a lesson or two. And that did the trick.
So recently I've just gone for business-like but satisfyingly enjoyable swims. Mostly breaststroke with a couple of backstroke lengths thrown in today.
No butterfly. I'm not saying never........ I just need to get my confidence and my calm and the fun back.
Mind you, (& this might be cheating on the 'learning only by reading' front!) I did see someone doing butterfly in the pool today and they seemed to be raising their shoulders quite high out of the water. That might give me a bit longer to take a breath in between strokes, which might mean I get less exhausted.......?
I mostly seem to be doing what swimming.org suggests for backstroke - there's just a little bit I'm going to have to work on:
'Don't immediately pull with your hand after it enters the water - this will create resistance.
Instead, turn your palm so it is facing the bottom of the pool and scull your hand outwards and downwards until it reaches a position in a line between your upper chest and shoulders with your elbow bent.
At this point rotate your hand again so your palm is facing towards your feet, then push through the water until your arm is fully flexed by the thigh.'
I can't quite work this out yet - I might try it out on dry land first. I haven't been aware of any resistance though.
FRED's coaches learn to become as sensitive to their learner's needs as my driving instructor was to mine. Sometimes our learners arrive at a session with the 'baggage' of their day still clutched tightly to their chests (as does happen with us all from time to time). Good coaches recognise that real learning can't take place until that baggage has been acknowledged at the very least. Once acknowledged, everyone can take a breath and turn towards the business of reading.
If you recognise the skill that these coaches offer freely to those who need it, then please take a moment to send a cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal, to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
and thank you for helping us continue our work
Catherine
Thursday 9 May 2013
Awards for All - rewards for FRED? Fingers crossed!
Apologies for the break in transmission.
FRED is bidding for some money from Awards for All to support a development in its work and they wanted some more information.
Probably like me, your initial idea of adults with literacy needs is that they're some kind of homogenised group. But over the past couple of years, I've come to understand the variety lying beneath that phrase.
Some learners go through our main resource straightforwardly and then go on to enrol at College, happy as Larry (who was Larry, by the way?). Some learners, similarly straightforwardly, go through the resource and are quite content with that - it satisfies their need as they saw it.
Others go on to College but find it challenging because of their low confidence levels. Where possible we arrange a transition period of support, sometimes with the coach accompanying them for the first couple of sessions (we're very lucky to have excellent relationships with Gloucestershire College Forest of Dean Campus staff.
Another group do the initial course, but would like help with other aspects of literacy before they feel able to progress further or feel they've achieved what they wanted to achieve. Yet another subset is much slower to go through the book, some of them seeming to reach a plateau. They perhaps need more time & materials for practice & consolidation.
Everybody is slightly different and everybody is allowed to go at their own pace, building their skill and confidence as they need to.
FRED's original constitution was purely worded in terms of the reading side of literacy, but recognising our learners' ongoing requirements meant we took the decision to widen that wording to include literacy generally. But that brings challenges. More & different training for coaches; more supporting resources for extra practice in reading, writing & spelling.
Hence the bid. But please don't think that FRED doesn't need your help if it might get money from Awards for All.
Grant making bodies want bids that are 'projects' - in other words, they don't want to pay for ongoing costs. Our coaches give massively of their time. We still need to be able to cover transport costs, phone calls, postage, stationery.......so if you'd like to help, please send a cheque to
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
made out to Forest Read Easy Deal. You have my thanks.
I refered to the pleasures of word games a few posts back. Writing this bid has enlightened me to the fact that crosswords, word searches and other word games can all play a part in reading, writing & spelling practice!
And reminds me of something I heard on Radio 4 on the way to work the other day. A wordgame called 'Wordaholics'. One round required contestants to suggest new words for potential new phobias. This contestant swore blind she actually suffered from hers: Prunidigitophobia - the fear of getting wrinkly skin from staying too long in the bath!
It's a good job I don't suffer from it. Though the idea of it did put me off having water births for my babies!
FRED is bidding for some money from Awards for All to support a development in its work and they wanted some more information.
Probably like me, your initial idea of adults with literacy needs is that they're some kind of homogenised group. But over the past couple of years, I've come to understand the variety lying beneath that phrase.
Some learners go through our main resource straightforwardly and then go on to enrol at College, happy as Larry (who was Larry, by the way?). Some learners, similarly straightforwardly, go through the resource and are quite content with that - it satisfies their need as they saw it.
Others go on to College but find it challenging because of their low confidence levels. Where possible we arrange a transition period of support, sometimes with the coach accompanying them for the first couple of sessions (we're very lucky to have excellent relationships with Gloucestershire College Forest of Dean Campus staff.
Another group do the initial course, but would like help with other aspects of literacy before they feel able to progress further or feel they've achieved what they wanted to achieve. Yet another subset is much slower to go through the book, some of them seeming to reach a plateau. They perhaps need more time & materials for practice & consolidation.
Everybody is slightly different and everybody is allowed to go at their own pace, building their skill and confidence as they need to.
FRED's original constitution was purely worded in terms of the reading side of literacy, but recognising our learners' ongoing requirements meant we took the decision to widen that wording to include literacy generally. But that brings challenges. More & different training for coaches; more supporting resources for extra practice in reading, writing & spelling.
Hence the bid. But please don't think that FRED doesn't need your help if it might get money from Awards for All.
Grant making bodies want bids that are 'projects' - in other words, they don't want to pay for ongoing costs. Our coaches give massively of their time. We still need to be able to cover transport costs, phone calls, postage, stationery.......so if you'd like to help, please send a cheque to
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
made out to Forest Read Easy Deal. You have my thanks.
I refered to the pleasures of word games a few posts back. Writing this bid has enlightened me to the fact that crosswords, word searches and other word games can all play a part in reading, writing & spelling practice!
And reminds me of something I heard on Radio 4 on the way to work the other day. A wordgame called 'Wordaholics'. One round required contestants to suggest new words for potential new phobias. This contestant swore blind she actually suffered from hers: Prunidigitophobia - the fear of getting wrinkly skin from staying too long in the bath!
It's a good job I don't suffer from it. Though the idea of it did put me off having water births for my babies!
Tuesday 7 May 2013
A bit of a Wednesday.
Glorious Bank Holiday, wasn't it?
Swimming on Friday, gardening on Saturday, allotment on Sunday, more gardening on Monday - and now we're back to swimming. I am feeling fit. If a tad tired.
The unexpected pleasure of my eldest son appearing on the doorstep led to a barbecue on Sunday followed by a very very nice outdoor fry up brunch on Monday (eggs, bacon, sausage, mushroom, tomato, fried potato). And as at this moment, I'm being plied with an after swim 'Marmite on slightly burnt toast' (as per instructions) by that very same eldest, this blog is obviously in danger of becoming the 'greedy pig' guide to swimming.
I didn't feel this positive before my swim. A much more mixed bag of emotions, really.
Receiving a postcard & cheque for FRED from my arty sister, I become a little 'high' on her praise: 'very impressed (way you write, what you say, sticking with the swimming and how you talk about the FRED work'.
She's upped her donation level as a result because, as she says, she 'supports all and every way of connecting people with culture'.
But at 2am this morning I'm awake & stressing about the fact that apparently not much other money has come in.
Cue demotivated feelings.
I know I shouldn't have asked. I didn't mean to, but I would so hate to become a nuisance, nagging people who've already donated. And I wanted to thank people, too. But the self-fulfilling prophecy feelings kick in. The fear that I promise a lot but can't deliver.
Writing this now, having had reflection time in the pool & simultaneously activated my 'feel-good' hormones, I'm reminded of FRED meetings where I've discovered that learners' feelings of failure & their expectations of repeat failure can become huge barriers, not only against them coming forward as learners in the first place, but also as they progress through the resource we use: Yes we can read.
Every now and again, they all hit parts they find more difficult.
And that's when the persistent support of our coaches can be absolutely essential. They try to be there, to catch the hand of the learner and pull them through.
And now that's what I'm asking from you. Catch my hand and pull me through.
If you've been meaning to donate but just haven't yet got round to it, please go and get your cheque book now and make one out to Forest Read Easy Deal. Whatever size. Then please find an envelope, pop the cheque inside and a stamp on the outside and address it to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
Oh! And the title of today's blog?
It's a phrase of my parents'. When on holiday they have a lovely couple of days at first, then they hit a day when they're both niggly, they can't agree what to do, things just don't go to plan..... And then that's day's over and they start to enjoy themselves again.
So obviously, I've just had 'a bit of a Wednesday'. And things will look up again.
Yours, getting my nagging shoes on again,
Catherine
Swimming on Friday, gardening on Saturday, allotment on Sunday, more gardening on Monday - and now we're back to swimming. I am feeling fit. If a tad tired.
The unexpected pleasure of my eldest son appearing on the doorstep led to a barbecue on Sunday followed by a very very nice outdoor fry up brunch on Monday (eggs, bacon, sausage, mushroom, tomato, fried potato). And as at this moment, I'm being plied with an after swim 'Marmite on slightly burnt toast' (as per instructions) by that very same eldest, this blog is obviously in danger of becoming the 'greedy pig' guide to swimming.
I didn't feel this positive before my swim. A much more mixed bag of emotions, really.
Receiving a postcard & cheque for FRED from my arty sister, I become a little 'high' on her praise: 'very impressed (way you write, what you say, sticking with the swimming and how you talk about the FRED work'.
She's upped her donation level as a result because, as she says, she 'supports all and every way of connecting people with culture'.
But at 2am this morning I'm awake & stressing about the fact that apparently not much other money has come in.
Cue demotivated feelings.
I know I shouldn't have asked. I didn't mean to, but I would so hate to become a nuisance, nagging people who've already donated. And I wanted to thank people, too. But the self-fulfilling prophecy feelings kick in. The fear that I promise a lot but can't deliver.
Writing this now, having had reflection time in the pool & simultaneously activated my 'feel-good' hormones, I'm reminded of FRED meetings where I've discovered that learners' feelings of failure & their expectations of repeat failure can become huge barriers, not only against them coming forward as learners in the first place, but also as they progress through the resource we use: Yes we can read.
Every now and again, they all hit parts they find more difficult.
And that's when the persistent support of our coaches can be absolutely essential. They try to be there, to catch the hand of the learner and pull them through.
And now that's what I'm asking from you. Catch my hand and pull me through.
If you've been meaning to donate but just haven't yet got round to it, please go and get your cheque book now and make one out to Forest Read Easy Deal. Whatever size. Then please find an envelope, pop the cheque inside and a stamp on the outside and address it to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
Oh! And the title of today's blog?
It's a phrase of my parents'. When on holiday they have a lovely couple of days at first, then they hit a day when they're both niggly, they can't agree what to do, things just don't go to plan..... And then that's day's over and they start to enjoy themselves again.
So obviously, I've just had 'a bit of a Wednesday'. And things will look up again.
Yours, getting my nagging shoes on again,
Catherine
Friday 3 May 2013
Tomato sauce sandwiches
Here I am at 8.31am, fresh from my swim and having just finished my tomato sauce sandwiches.
Yes, you heard!
When I first proposed this swim, my sister (the arty one) told me I'd get hungry, and that I'd better get some bananas in. As my granny would have said (but about her knitting) 'me and bananas have fallen out'. At 18 months old actually, as Rachel very well knows. 'Peanut butter sandwiches, then?' - but I find those a bit 'claggy'.
I tried flapjack - but it was a bit sweet so early in the morning. Marmite sandwiches are fine. Lovely in fact - & I could go for Marmite & peanut butter together. But today I indulged myself. There are some things you just have to experience for yourself - it can't all come from reading. It's even better on toast too. Especially if the toast is just a little bit burnt.
And how was my swim?
Well, I only managed 16 lengths before they gently kicked me out at 8 o'clock. So I'll either have to do 24 next time to make up (which would be pushing it in the time) or do 21 four times.
Two reasons really. The first: in order to get my swim in and get my son to school he has to come with me, which means I have to get him up half an hour early. At 6.30. Not something likely to go down well with a teenage lad but he's been very good about it so far (he even swam the first time). But this morning he just couldn't get a wiggle on.
The second reason is that darned butterfly thing.
I started out thinking I'd do a few lengths of leisurely breaststroke to warm up, not being in the best of tempers. By the second length though, I'd started doing it properly. Or at least more properly - the face going under the water, the feet coming up to my 'seat' (as they phrase it in the advice) and then kicking firmly outwards. How pleasing to think the neural pathways are starting to develop! But it is more tiring than my former style (I am actually putting proper physical effort in these days) and I find I have a little pause at the ends of the pool where I wouldn't have before.
Conscious of the time I go for a butterfly length fairly early on - length 6, I think, and far from 'just doing it' I actually try to do it consciously, remembering some of what I've read.
'The leg action comes from the hip' - I realise I've just been flapping my lower legs so try to change this. 'Powerful downbeats of the feet then propel the body forward' - so I try to exert more power. Far from being propelled forward I become convinced I'm swimming on the spot!
Dredge the memory for more help: 'Try to keep your legs close together with your ankles relaxed'.....Well! That's fine for you to say!
My brain is juggling all these messages - to keep my legs together I have to exert muscles at the top of the legs in an inward direction whilst firmly and powerfully making the feet go down (for propulsion) while simultaneously keeping the ankles loose.
I told you this was a ridiculous stroke!
Meanwhile the arms are going round and round as they should (hopefully, that is. I haven't really read the detail of that bit yet). I'm gasping for breath every time my head breaks the surface. It's totally exhausting. I vaguely remember that some people take a breath every other stroke and try this towards the end of the length. Disaster strikes - I swallow water and start to cough, grabbing for the end rail while my legs revert to a lifesaving breaststroke kick. What was it my friend Gail said? 'Don't drown.....'!
I scull a length on my back to recover but, since I'm already writing my blog in my head, I relax too much and my head meets the wall with a crashing 'ow!'
Back to breast-stroke then for a few more lengths till I gather up the courage to fulfil yesterday's promise of doing butterfly twice. I don't try to do it 'properly'. I just do it. Get through it. Get it done. Still hate it. Still feel embarrassed by it. I read back over my posts for the first time & am relieved to confirm I only promised to do one length of butterfly over the five days. I don't have to keep making things more difficult for myself, surely?
But I re-read the 'Butterfly? Why on earth?' one. And feel slightly as though I'm giving up.
So, tomato sauce sandwiches. Do you think I deserved them?
Finally, don't forget, if you've ever enjoyed tomato sauce sandwiches, think of me & send a cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal, to: Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
Yes, you heard!
When I first proposed this swim, my sister (the arty one) told me I'd get hungry, and that I'd better get some bananas in. As my granny would have said (but about her knitting) 'me and bananas have fallen out'. At 18 months old actually, as Rachel very well knows. 'Peanut butter sandwiches, then?' - but I find those a bit 'claggy'.
I tried flapjack - but it was a bit sweet so early in the morning. Marmite sandwiches are fine. Lovely in fact - & I could go for Marmite & peanut butter together. But today I indulged myself. There are some things you just have to experience for yourself - it can't all come from reading. It's even better on toast too. Especially if the toast is just a little bit burnt.
And how was my swim?
Well, I only managed 16 lengths before they gently kicked me out at 8 o'clock. So I'll either have to do 24 next time to make up (which would be pushing it in the time) or do 21 four times.
Two reasons really. The first: in order to get my swim in and get my son to school he has to come with me, which means I have to get him up half an hour early. At 6.30. Not something likely to go down well with a teenage lad but he's been very good about it so far (he even swam the first time). But this morning he just couldn't get a wiggle on.
The second reason is that darned butterfly thing.
I started out thinking I'd do a few lengths of leisurely breaststroke to warm up, not being in the best of tempers. By the second length though, I'd started doing it properly. Or at least more properly - the face going under the water, the feet coming up to my 'seat' (as they phrase it in the advice) and then kicking firmly outwards. How pleasing to think the neural pathways are starting to develop! But it is more tiring than my former style (I am actually putting proper physical effort in these days) and I find I have a little pause at the ends of the pool where I wouldn't have before.
Conscious of the time I go for a butterfly length fairly early on - length 6, I think, and far from 'just doing it' I actually try to do it consciously, remembering some of what I've read.
'The leg action comes from the hip' - I realise I've just been flapping my lower legs so try to change this. 'Powerful downbeats of the feet then propel the body forward' - so I try to exert more power. Far from being propelled forward I become convinced I'm swimming on the spot!
Dredge the memory for more help: 'Try to keep your legs close together with your ankles relaxed'.....Well! That's fine for you to say!
My brain is juggling all these messages - to keep my legs together I have to exert muscles at the top of the legs in an inward direction whilst firmly and powerfully making the feet go down (for propulsion) while simultaneously keeping the ankles loose.
I told you this was a ridiculous stroke!
Meanwhile the arms are going round and round as they should (hopefully, that is. I haven't really read the detail of that bit yet). I'm gasping for breath every time my head breaks the surface. It's totally exhausting. I vaguely remember that some people take a breath every other stroke and try this towards the end of the length. Disaster strikes - I swallow water and start to cough, grabbing for the end rail while my legs revert to a lifesaving breaststroke kick. What was it my friend Gail said? 'Don't drown.....'!
I scull a length on my back to recover but, since I'm already writing my blog in my head, I relax too much and my head meets the wall with a crashing 'ow!'
Back to breast-stroke then for a few more lengths till I gather up the courage to fulfil yesterday's promise of doing butterfly twice. I don't try to do it 'properly'. I just do it. Get through it. Get it done. Still hate it. Still feel embarrassed by it. I read back over my posts for the first time & am relieved to confirm I only promised to do one length of butterfly over the five days. I don't have to keep making things more difficult for myself, surely?
But I re-read the 'Butterfly? Why on earth?' one. And feel slightly as though I'm giving up.
So, tomato sauce sandwiches. Do you think I deserved them?
Finally, don't forget, if you've ever enjoyed tomato sauce sandwiches, think of me & send a cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal, to: Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
Thursday 2 May 2013
Gonna make a change....
This post was very nearly called 'Wake up! It's a beautiful morning!' My housework hour became a gardening hour, involving reading, of course: seed packets & a dip into Carol Klein's 'Grow your own veg' to check I'm still doing the right thing by my courgettes. Time to put them into the cold frame to harden off.
Because, by coincidence, I've had a comment from someone called Pam at Garden4less. And this being the deal, I've been for a wander on their website. I like the wildlife houses best - strangely you find them under the 'decor' tab. And their water butts seem a good price if you're interested. A great range of wellies, barbecues, pond stuff, chicken keeping equipment, tools, seeds, camping equipment, garden furniture and statuary. No kitchen sinks though. Or swimming pools, for that matter.
But gosh, there are people out there reading this.
The comment was attached to 'That thing they call the wall?' and it tells me to be proud because I didn't give up. And I am proud... ish. But more importantly, I got over it and got on with it and I'll be swimming again tomorrow.
I haven't always faced life like this. In that 'fish out of water' job I had, I read research that talked about people either having an internal or an external 'locus of control'. Fancy words describing whether or not a person felt they were able to make a difference to their own lives or whether they felt powerless and were the sort of people to whom life 'happened'.
I could tell from the way it was written that having an 'internal' locus (ie able to make a difference) was considered 'better' but knew in my heart I had an external one. It did nothing at all for my already low self esteem to think I was on the 'bad' side of that divide.
My big mistake was to believe that you were either one or the other and that was that. Immutable. You were what you were and you couldn't change it. It took certain life events to make me realise that though I might never get the things I dreamed about, or live the life I wished I had, I could at least try. And that maybe it was the trying that mattered after all.
At 45+ I fully, consciously, realise that there is only me who can change things if I'm not happy about something in my life. I finally understand that there are no fairy godmothers or knights in shining armour. And I find that to make a change often all you need do is make a decision to change and then look for the helping hands.
It's akin to what happens with FRED's learners. Something brings their life to a critical point and they decide 'this has got to change'. For some, it's the birth of children, or their children going to school. For others it's needing to get employment. Or perhaps the family member they always relied upon to help with reading dies or moves away.
FRED's learners are people whose reading needs are at 'pre-college' level. Before Julie came along and started FRED, there was nowhere to which such people could turn. Through its trained but purely voluntary coaches FRED provides a unique service in the Forest of Dean.
So, embarrassing or not, I aim to do two lengths of butterfly tomorrow. One to just 'do it' and one to try to make it better.
Let's save proud for the exhausted end..... and for our learners, who keep going and our coaches, ready & willing to keep going with them.
Please help our coaches by sending a cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
Many thanks
Catherine
Please help our coaches by sending a cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
Many thanks
Catherine
Wednesday 1 May 2013
We need to talk about .......
....dyslexia.
The website Dyslexia Action suggests that one in ten people have dyslexia. They also make a very succinct point:
"if you cannot learn to read, you cannot read to learn".
For someone like me who feels 'not quite alive' if I'm not learning something - however informally or casually - such a thing is unthinkable. I gape in horror at the thought that I would lose the freedoms that being able to read brings me.
These days much of my 'learning' comes via the internet. I think of something, hear something on the radio, someone else mentions something and, like many other people, I Google it. Or I might nhs.uk it. Or direct.gov it. Or .....well, you get the idea.
And while Google is often good at guessing what you are searching for even if you've misspelt it, not all websites are the same. Even with Google, I imagine it's difficult if you can't read. As dyslexia affects 'the ability to convert letter combinations to sounds and vice versa', how much more difficult it must be if you might not recognise Google's possible correction to your original spelling. Maybe you won't recognise anything at all.
Dyslexia isn't an indication of intellectual ability or IQ, but is apparently a biological condition. I have three dyslexic nephews. Their sister isn't dyslexic. Their mother, already a teacher, trained as a specialist dyslexia teacher. I'm sitting here now, reflecting on what all that means.
Over the years I have struggled to think of birthday presents and Christmas presents for the boys. Partly because they were boys (& I'm not) and we don't live nearby so I don't know them well and ...well....my default gift option has always been books.
And books are for sharing. You read something, you like it, you tell someone. You like it, you give it to someone. When my previous doctor retired, aiming to do some travelling, I gave him a copy of my favourite and much re-read non-fiction book, Steinbeck's autobiographical 'Travels with Charley' -in case you're interested). And I haven't felt able to share things I have loved with those boys - now men.
How can you explain the experiences you get from a book to someone who can't read? I'm not just talking about the dry reading of another person's life. I'm talking about ...two things, I think. Firstly that sense of no longer being aware of where you actually are, because you are so absorbed by the world you have entered. It's almost a 'floaty' sensation. It can make you a little deaf to the real world. Almost trance like. When you come out of it, you can feel a great sense of well-being.
And secondly there is the sense of being changed through what you read. The taking of what is on the page, measuring it against your own understanding and experience to date, and then sometimes at least building it into how you view the world, how you view yourself and ultimately how you choose to relate to the world.
It makes me want to talk to my nephews about how its been for them. It would be patronising of me to suggest that, just because I experience things in a different way to them that 'my way is better'. There are many successful & dynamic dyslexic people out there. If they give me permission I'll link you to some of the work my nephews have produced musically. But now I'm curious to know just what they feel its impact has been on their lives so far.
FRED does not specifically offer help with dyslexia, but if Dyslexia Action is right about its numbers then it is not surprising that some of our learners are dyslexic. But how many? Strangely, I've never thought to ask.
The website Dyslexia Action suggests that one in ten people have dyslexia. They also make a very succinct point:
"if you cannot learn to read, you cannot read to learn".
For someone like me who feels 'not quite alive' if I'm not learning something - however informally or casually - such a thing is unthinkable. I gape in horror at the thought that I would lose the freedoms that being able to read brings me.
These days much of my 'learning' comes via the internet. I think of something, hear something on the radio, someone else mentions something and, like many other people, I Google it. Or I might nhs.uk it. Or direct.gov it. Or .....well, you get the idea.
And while Google is often good at guessing what you are searching for even if you've misspelt it, not all websites are the same. Even with Google, I imagine it's difficult if you can't read. As dyslexia affects 'the ability to convert letter combinations to sounds and vice versa', how much more difficult it must be if you might not recognise Google's possible correction to your original spelling. Maybe you won't recognise anything at all.
Dyslexia isn't an indication of intellectual ability or IQ, but is apparently a biological condition. I have three dyslexic nephews. Their sister isn't dyslexic. Their mother, already a teacher, trained as a specialist dyslexia teacher. I'm sitting here now, reflecting on what all that means.
Over the years I have struggled to think of birthday presents and Christmas presents for the boys. Partly because they were boys (& I'm not) and we don't live nearby so I don't know them well and ...well....my default gift option has always been books.
And books are for sharing. You read something, you like it, you tell someone. You like it, you give it to someone. When my previous doctor retired, aiming to do some travelling, I gave him a copy of my favourite and much re-read non-fiction book, Steinbeck's autobiographical 'Travels with Charley' -in case you're interested). And I haven't felt able to share things I have loved with those boys - now men.
How can you explain the experiences you get from a book to someone who can't read? I'm not just talking about the dry reading of another person's life. I'm talking about ...two things, I think. Firstly that sense of no longer being aware of where you actually are, because you are so absorbed by the world you have entered. It's almost a 'floaty' sensation. It can make you a little deaf to the real world. Almost trance like. When you come out of it, you can feel a great sense of well-being.
And secondly there is the sense of being changed through what you read. The taking of what is on the page, measuring it against your own understanding and experience to date, and then sometimes at least building it into how you view the world, how you view yourself and ultimately how you choose to relate to the world.
It makes me want to talk to my nephews about how its been for them. It would be patronising of me to suggest that, just because I experience things in a different way to them that 'my way is better'. There are many successful & dynamic dyslexic people out there. If they give me permission I'll link you to some of the work my nephews have produced musically. But now I'm curious to know just what they feel its impact has been on their lives so far.
FRED does not specifically offer help with dyslexia, but if Dyslexia Action is right about its numbers then it is not surprising that some of our learners are dyslexic. But how many? Strangely, I've never thought to ask.
If you know someone with dyslexia (& you probably do), think of them as you send a cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal to:
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
- and thank you
Catherine
Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL
- and thank you
Catherine
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