About the Book
One of the worst feelings a child can have is being discouraged in school. The sense of hopelessness that pervades can become almost insurmountable. This is the emotional experience for the child called the “Shut-Down Learner.” The Shut-Down Learner: Helping Your Academically Discouraged Child, describes a common, but poorly understood constellation of characteristics. Referred to in the text as "Lego kids" or "high spatial children," such kids thrive with hands-on tasks that "load" on visual and spatial abilities. They excel in so many areas, yet when it comes to the core skills necessary for success in school, they are often quite lacking. This leads to the “Shut-Down Learner,” a child who is discouraged and disconnected relative to school. As a result, parents do not know what to do. They become tense, frustrated, and frantic, feelings of which are conveyed to the child.
Mr. Patrick Flannigan is an accomplished 35 year old photographer. For many years he struggled with believing in himself because of the devastating experiences he had in school. No one understood his wonderful gifts as a spatial thinker. Such gifts were not recognized in school. What was recognized was a child who struggled with core skills of reading, spelling and writing. These weaknesses scarred Mr. Flannigan deeply, leaving him with a profound sense of failure. After reading a draft of The Shut-Down Learner, Mr. Flannigan started to see himself in a different light.
As a successful president of a trade show exhibit corporation, Mr. Lloyd Stone uses his considerable visual and spatial capabilities to great advantage for his business. Simultaneously managing multiple clients within corporate exhibits, Mr. Stone keeps track of all of their unique needs. Mr. Stone has a reputation of being one of the best trade show designers in the country. Yet, he is a former shut-down learner.
Like Mr. Flannigan, Mr. Stone read a draft of The Shut-Down Learner. After reading the draft, Mr. Stone was moved to write a letter to the author, Dr. Selznick, stating, “As a child, I was great with blocks, erector sets, puzzles and had a great ear for music. But when it came to learning from the book, whether it was a foreign language, trying to read a chapter of history, or read music, my ability to focus and concentrate was painfully non- existent. This led to a low self-esteem and even the propensity to become overweight. It took years for me to overcome these problems. I wish someone had shown me your book when I was younger. I would have had a different perspective about myself and my abilities.”
The Shut-Down Learner offers hope and solutions for parents. Written in a friendly style that is easily understood by parents without jargon or technical language, the book allows parents to understand their child’s characteristics, and offers specific approaches to begin to break the downward spiral. Illustrations are included to help convey the issues facing the shut-down learner. The text has been honed after review by parents of shut-down learners, and professionals in the field.
Reliable statistics indicate that as many as 30 – 40 % of the population will experience mild, moderate or severe problems with core skills of reading, writing and spelling. A significant proportion of this population are spatial thinkers, people who excel when the task is more visually-based. This often leads to the shut-down learner, a child who is discouraged and fundamentally turned off to school. These shut-down learners can become very successful adults, if they are able somehow to get through school relatively unscathed. Typical Shut-Down Learner fields include architects, engineers, computer programmers, dentists, interior decorators, entrepreneurs and businessman, to name a few. There are many other fields that tend to attract shut-down learners.