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SoWashCo Young Scholars

Nurturing Potential, Sustaining Support

SoWashCoYoung ScholarsNurturing Potential, Sustaining Support
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January 2021

Happy New Year everyone! Welcome to another edition of the SoWashCo Young Scholars monthly newsletter.


This month, we will continue exploring simple ways to help your Young Scholar grow and stretch their brains by learning more about the thinking skills used in Young Scholar lessons.


Our January focus will be on Visual and Evaluative Thinking.


We'll be looking at traits for each type of thinking as well as questions and resources to help guide and encourage the different thinking skills.

Building your Young Scholar's Visual Thinking Skills

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What is Visual Thinking?

Visual thinking is about recognizing patterns and visual details to make predictions, ask questions, or search for solutions to a problem.
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Conversation Starters

Try out these questions to get your Young Scholar thinking visually about what they are reading.
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What's Going On in This Picture?: At-Home Visual Thinking Activity

Each Monday, the New York Times posts a new picture on their "What's Going On in This Picture?" site. These images are a fun and interesting way to use visual thinking skills to notice and wonder. More information about the image is revealed each Thursday.
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Books for Building Visual Thinking

Books are a great way to practice visual thinking. Here are three examples to get you started.
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Which One Doesn't Belong?

There's a lot more going on in Christopher Danielson's book, Which One Doesn't Belong than you might first think. Each set of four shapes and the seemingly simple question, 'Which one doesn't belong? encourages critical thinking and sparks memorable mathematical conversation. Because there is no one right answer, your Young Scholar will need to use their visual skills to explain the reasons behind their choices!
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How Many?

In the book How Many? also by Christopher Danielson, you and your child decide what to count on each page. This is a fun way to use visual thinking to spark conversations about patterns and shapes. You have many choices, and the longer you look, the more possibilities you'll notice!
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Tangle Art & Drawing Games For Kids

Artist Jeanette Nyberg's Tangle Art and Drawing Games for Kids is a fun way to practice visual thinking skills while exploring and experimenting with art!

Building your Young Scholar's Evaluative Thinking Skills

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What is Evaluative Thinking?

Evaluative thinking involves making choices and offering solutions, decisions, or opinions that can be supported based on factual, measurable, or observable considerations. Evaluative thinkers recognize more than one viewpoint and understand how different considerations, or criteria, can affect an outcome
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Conversation Starters

Try out these questions to get your Young Scholar thinking Evaluatively about what they are reading.
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Logic Games and Puzzles: At-Home Evaluative Thinking Activities


Click HERE or on the image above for some fun ways to use logic games and puzzles to build evaluative thinking skills.

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Card Games for Building Evaluative Thinking

Believe it or not, card games are a great way to practice evaluative thinking skills - especially when you can get your Young Scholar talking about the why behind their choices.


Below are a few fun examples that work well for evaluative thinking, but you'll also find that just a regular deck and a favorite card game works, too!

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BLINK

The card game BLINK is an easy-to-learn matching game that works well with a variety of ages. To help build evaluative thinking skills, add in the rule that players need to say why they are choosing each of their matches.
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BOLD

If your Young Scholar likes BLINK, they'll love this game. BOLD takes matching to a new level involving memory, strategy, and a little luck. Scroll down on the website to play the online version.

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Low Down

Maybe numbers are your Young Scholar's thing! In the game, Low Down, players plan out their strategy to replace high scoring cards with low scoring cards in order to win. Scroll down on the website to play the online version.

Support for You

"The Best Of" 2020 Parent Support Group Resources

  • This month, we’ll be looking back at some of the best resources from our 2020 parent group meetings. We’ll be taking time to visit websites and dig deeper into the resources to see what they offer and how they can best be used to support you and your Young Scholar.
  • Click below to download your invitation for our next meeting on January 12, 2021 from 6:00-6:45pm.
See below for more information on the upcoming ADHD panel discussion "Walk In My Shoes"

Young Scholars works with students, families and schools to increase...

About Me

Hello!


My name is Colleen Redmond, and I am honored to work as Coordinator for SoWashCo Young Scholars.


I'm a mom, a wife, small business owner, avid biker (the pedal kind), book enthusiast, and beekeeper.


I've been lucky enough to teach in South Washington County Schools for over twenty-five years and have had the incredible opportunity to be a part of the lives of so many students and families over the years.


Now, as part of Young Scholars, I have the honor of working with the amazing staff, students, and families throughout 833 to implement and grow the Young Scholars program.


I am so very excited to work with and support you and your Young Scholar. I can't wait to see where the journey takes us!

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Contact Information

Please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions, thoughts, or needs!


Colleen Redmond

651-425-6212

credmond@sowashco.org