#074 - Try Different, Not Harder

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💡 THOUGHT

"Try Different, Not Harder"

When our kids struggle, our first instinct is often to say, "try harder."

Andrea Fife (OpenEd VP of Learning) shared a different approach on this week's Q&A podcast:

"If what you're doing isn't working, don't just try harder – try something different."

Case in point: Andrea’s teenage son struggles with boring tasks. What does she do? Rather than just white-knuckling it through the boredom, she and her son take their laptops to the roof. The slight element of adventure boosts his engagement enough to get the work done.

This isn't just about being quirky. It's about recognizing that what looks like resistance might be a signal that the current approach isn't working.

Small changes in the environment can have huge impacts on learning.

Innovation often beats intensity.

Next time your child hits a wall with learning, instead of asking, "How can we try harder?" try asking, "How can we try different?"

– Isaac

P.S. Curious about other questions keeping parents up at night? In this week's Q&A episode, we also tackled:

• Where to find "your people" when doing alternative education (hint: sometimes the old-school approach works better than social media)

• Which subjects are truly essential to teach (and which ones you can let go)

• How to know when to push through vs. when to pivot on activities

• Plus, more stories from families finding their unique path

Listen to the full episode here →

📊 TREND

The New Math

States across the country are now accepting computer science courses as math credits. Why? Because they've recognized coding is just math in different clothes. For students who've always said, "I'm not a math person," coding offers a fresh perspective.

Instead of memorizing formulas, they're solving puzzles. Rather than crunching numbers, they're creating logic flows.

Isaac shared his own lightbulb moment on the podcast:

"I never liked math until I took symbolic logic in college. Suddenly, I realized coding and algebra are both just a bunch of if-then statements.”

Why didn't anyone tell us math could look like this?

🛠️ TOOL

The Attention Span Calculator: Is Your Child's Focus "Normal"?

Have you ever wondered how long your child should be able to focus? Here's a simple rule of thumb: multiply their age by 5 minutes, and you’ll get their approximate maximum attention span for focused work.

But before you start timing your 8-year-old for exactly 40 minutes, here’s a more nuanced breakdown from educational psychologist Natalie Hutton:

For Young Learners:

• Age 3: 3-8 minutes (up to 15 with engaging new options)

• Age 4: 7-15 minutes solo, 5-10 minutes with others

• Age 5: 10-15 minutes alone, up to 25 minutes in groups

Moreover, you can double these times by focusing on activities they love.

Quick Attention Hacks:

1. Add movement or music to make tasks multi-sensory

2. Remove obvious distractions

3. Rate task difficulty together (1-5 stars) to better understand their struggles

4. Take body breaks between focused sessions

These aren't rigid rules. Some kids hyperfocus for hours on passion projects while struggling to spend 5 minutes on other tasks.

(MEME) OF THE DAY

Gulp.

That’s all for today!

– Charlie (the OpenEd newsletter guy)

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