Smarter than Me!

It can be a bit humbling when your student, who is considered to have a severe cognitive disability, proves to be smarter than you. Let me set the stage. In our classroom we have been doing some market math worksheets that encourage the use of the calculator to complete the problems. Students complete problems by referring to a page that has prices from a grocery store. They take these prices and add them together to find out the total cost of combined items from the grocery store using a calculator. 

A couple weeks ago when we were starting these pages, I was working with a student. He requires a hand helping hold his pencil steady when he is writing, but he does the actual movement. We were on the easiest sheet which just required reference the price page and writing down the price for items. He would start writing down the next price without even looking at the page. At which point I would stop him and make him find it physically on the page. However, this caused great frustration. It started to dawn on me that maybe he had memorized the page and was doing it from memory, so I tried to keep up. Later my instructional assistant was finishing up the same page with him and told him "I can't find it as fast as you." So, he started pointing to the menu price with his left hand, while writing with his right hand as if saying "here you go ... I'll help you find it since you're so slow."

Fast forward a few days and we were on to problems that required adding two items together. Most of us would look at the price list and put the prices in the calculator one at a time until we got the total to write down. This student just started writing on the answer blank. Of the 10 or so problems, he got 9 correct. All this without using the calculator and periodically referencing the price page (when he had forgotten a price). However, when we tried to video tape him doing the same thing for his parents, he got every answer wrong. He is one who will not perform for anyone else which can be ridiculously frustrating.

The lessons I am continuing to learn:
1. When a child refuses to look at the paper after a quick glance (price list, reading assignment, etc.) it might be that they have a photographic memory and are reading the list in their heads while looking into space.
2. When a child is frustrated, maybe it is because I am the one holding them back.
3. Forcing a child to use a calculator when they can do the problem in their head is ridiculous.
4. Don't be afraid to admit to a student that they can do the work faster and better than you can and ask for help.
5. When a student doesn't complete work successfully, it might not be because it is too difficult.