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When Students Struggle

Livia McCoy
Livia McCoy teaches science to students with language learning disabilities at The New Community School in Richmond, Va. Her students are bright, college-bound adolescents who have difficulty with reading, spelling, or other components of language or math. Livia sees each student as an individual with great potential to learn, and feels her job is to help them figure out how to be successful in school. Livia says, “I blog about the many smart students who struggle in school because of learning disabilities or attention issues. I share what I have learned helping these students, their parents and teachers to see how they can experience success in school despite their learning differences.” Livia welcomes comments on her blog at SchoolFamily.com.


Consequences of a Zero: How One Missing Grade Makes a Huge Difference

Oct 24, 2011 - Posted by Livia McCoy in Teachers, SchoolFamily.com, School Supplies, School Success, Parenting, Parent Involvement, Middle School, Learning Disabilities, Kindergarten, Kids Reading, Kids Math, Kids Learning, Homework, High School, Fun Learning Activities, Elementary School, Back to School
Many students do not understand how important it is to complete (and turn in) every single assignment. They think that missing a paper or two does not make much difference in their overall grade. I have tutored students befor... Read more
A Cool (Free) Tool for Doing a Presentation

Oct 19, 2011 - Posted by Livia McCoy in Technology, Teachers, SchoolFamily.com, School Success, Middle School, Livia McCoy, Learning Disabilities, Kindergarten, Homework, High School, Elementary School
Many teachers assign presentations to help their students develop their speaking and presenting skills. I recently learned to use some presentation software that is available free on the web. It’s called Prezi and is pa... Read more
How to Help Your Child Improve His or Her Vocabulary

Oct 11, 2011 - Posted by Livia McCoy in SchoolFamily.com, School Success, Parent Involvement, Livia McCoy, Learning Disabilities, Kindergarten, Kids Writing, Kids Reading, Kids Learning, Fun Learning Activities, Elementary School
For children to be successful in school, they need a strong vocabulary.  This especially helps them to understand what they are reading.  Experts tell us that children need to read a wide range of fiction and non-fi... Read more
Does Writing Something Down Help You to Remember It?

Oct 04, 2011 - Posted by Livia McCoy in Livia McCoy
After I wrote about cursive handwriting last week, I started thinking about all the times when my students use a computer (or other electronic device) to write instead of handwriting with a pencil and paper. One of the argum... Read more
Do Children Still Need to Learn Cursive?

Sep 28, 2011 - Posted by Livia McCoy in Livia McCoy, Kids Writing, Kids Learning
Last night at Parent's Night, I had a conversation with parents of a student new to our school. The father said his son is so excited that he was going to "get to learn cursive"! Word is that many schools have had to remove... Read more
Change How You Praise Your Children to Assure They Reach Their Potential

Sep 20, 2011 - Posted by Livia McCoy in Livia McCoy, Kids Learning
I just finished a wonderful book by Dr. Carol Dweck. It’s called Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, and it is about how we as humans approach our lives. It explains how we can change the outcome of events by the ... Read more
How to Advocate for Your Child with Learning Disabilities at the Beginning of the School Year

Sep 13, 2011 - Posted by Livia McCoy in Parent Involvement, Livia McCoy, Learning Disabilities, Back to School
If your child is learning disabled, now is the time to make contact with his or her new teachers. Speaking from a teacher’s perspective, the beginning of the school year is extremely hectic! It is very easy to overloo... Read more
Fear of the Unknown Creates Anxiety

Sep 06, 2011 - Posted by Livia McCoy in Parent Involvement, Livia McCoy
Recently, my grandson started kindergarten. He loved the first day of school. Even so, he did not want to go back the second day. He was worried because the teacher told them they would have a fire drill the next day. Bec... Read more
Executive Functioning -- How it Affects a Student in School

Aug 31, 2011 - Posted by Livia McCoy in Organization, Livia McCoy, Kids Learning
There is a great article you might enjoy reading: Executive Function—A New Lens Through Which to View Your Child. What I like the most about it is that it focuses on how a better understanding of your child's stren... Read more
Don't Let Technology Keep Your Child from Getting Enough Sleep

Aug 23, 2011 - Posted by Livia McCoy in School Success, Parent Involvement, Livia McCoy, Kids Learning
My students sometimes have trouble staying awake in school. They tell me they do not get much sleep at night. When I question them about it, I often find out that they are "sleeping" with their cell phone. That is such a b... Read more