Double Entry Journal #11

When the author says "Learning doesn't work well when learners are forced to check their bodies at the school room door like guns in the old West," he's basically saying that children learn better when their bodies are involved and the lesson is treated more as a cultural process.  People understand more and understand better when they can relate to what it is that is being taught.  The author also states that the best way to gain a large vocabulary is not to just read a lot, but by experiencing the "worlds" in which the words they are learning refer to.  A word is given a specific meaning when the person learning the word "plays the games" the word is used in.  Basically, they learn specific meanings by experiencing the word.

According to the author, the work of childhood is play.  To a degree, I agree with this.  Part of being a child is, well, being a child.  That is, getting to have fun and play.  However, childhood cannot only be about this. There is a great deal of learning and educating that must take place during childhood.  Granted, children can always learn by playing, and that is probably how they learn most effectively.  One thing cannot be solely concentrated on, however.  Children still need to go to school and to become educated.

Many of the manuals and directions that come with video games are very technical and difficult to read.  The author argues that these are easier to read once someone has experience with the game.  I have to say that I agree with this statement.  I have found from experience that sometimes reading the manuals that accompany the games are confusing and don't always make sense, but once I've played the game a little, it becomes more clear.  Knowing the literal or general meaning of words does not lead to strong reading skills.  It is the context in which the words are taking and an understanding of this that would lead to strong reading skills.  This makes good learning.

I think that if children learn best by relating the information they learn in school to real-life situations, then they need to learn the information in that context.  Peer to peer interactions are also important for children.  When they talk with their peers, they are more critical in their thinking.  They are more reflective of their thoughts.  They also get another perspective on the world and new and different ways of how to view the world.  Because children learn better by interacting with their peers, I think that I would probably apply this by doing group-based activities, so that they will be able to interact more often with their peers.