1. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 1 Boys & Girls Learn Differently! Kelley King, Associate Director Gurian Institute 2008

2. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 2 Ratio of Boys:Girls Excelling at geography 45:1 Discipline referrals 9:1 Learning disabled 2:1 Behaviorally disordered 9:1 ADHD 8:2 Substance abusers 7:3 Receiving Ds and Fs 7:3 Retained 2:1 High School Dropouts 8:2

3. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 3 Root Cause Analysis Work with your table group. Choose a statement. Ask “Why?” Record. Repeat.

4. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 4 http://www.bbc.co.uk Search: Sex ID

5. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 5 Verbal - Spatial Differences

6. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 6 Sensory & Emotive Differences

7. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 7 Neural Rest States

8. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 8 Cross-Talk

9. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 9

10. 10 Frontal Lobe

11. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 11 Chemical & Hormonal Differences

12. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 12 “Aggression Nurturance” Involves physical interaction, tough talk, competitive games, and aggressive nonverbal gestures.

13. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 13 “Empathy Nurturance” Understanding how someone else is feeling and really identifying with that person and those feelings.

14. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 14 Boys (and men!) establish pecking orders which are extremely important to them. When they are low in the pecking order, stress hormones go up and learning goes down

15. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 15 Classroom Strategies: Closing the Gender Gaps

16. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 16 Increase Movement Less talking at them Brain Breaks Lessons with movement Social interaction Small motor stimulation

17. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 17 General Movement Ideas Class set of clipboards Standing up while writing Standing up during discussions or lecture Stand up instead of raising hand Stretching exercises Get own supplies Stress balls, hand fidgets

18. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 18 Content-Integrated Movement Ideas Ball Toss Review Continent Scramble Phonics Phitness Vote with Your Feet

19. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 19 Boys need more physical work space. Make sure desks can be moved aside. Create a variety of seating arrangements Take it outdoors Creating space…

20. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 20 www.songsthatteach.com www.songsforteaching.com

21. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 21 In your table group some up with: A lesson that could incorporate movement A great idea for a Brain Break A great movement song Choose someone who will share your best idea with the whole group!

22. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 22 Use Visual-Spatials Graphic Organizers

23. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 23 Learning Scrolls Word Walls Symbol Cards ♥ ☼ ♂ $ Use Visual-Spatials

24. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 24 Incorporate Topics That Appeal To Boys

25. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 25 “A good book for a boy is one he wants to read.” (Moloney, 2002)

26. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 26 Topics that appeal to boys Aggression-themes, violent scenarios Action-oriented, competition Superheroes Gross or slapstick humor Stories reconstructed from TV & video games

27. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 27 Girls tend to favor: Relational-themes Stories about feelings and memories Stories about family, friends

28. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! Violence in boys’ writing Where do you draw the line? Have the boundaries changed in light of school shootings? Are we shutting boys down? What are ideas for managing what is written & shared? http://www.pbs.org/opb/raisingcain/

29. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 29 Suggestions for Boys… Bring in boys’ outside interests Appreciate boy humor Be open to aggression themes in writing

30. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 30 Add “non-school” texts to classroom libraries. Check out www.guysread.com

31. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 31 Use song lyrics as text www.rockhall.com

32. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 32 Share books that appeal to boys / girls. What kinds of “non- school” texts can you add to your classroom? Where do you draw the line with violence in boys’ writing?

33. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 33 Offer Single-Sex Groups

34. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 34 Make Learning Real KIDS’ INTERESTS REAL WORLD STUFF COMPETITION AUDIENCE

35. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 35

36. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 36 What REAL ISSUES can kids work on? How can you tap into their POP CULTURE? How can you expand AUDIENCE opportunities in the school? Are there opportunities for healthy competition?

37. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 37 Mentors & Role Models

38. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! Boys are faced with many contradictions between school literacy practices and societal expectations regarding masculinity. From: Canadian Adolescent Boys and Literacy Study

39. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 39 Dads/men during literacy Vertical mentors Postcards to students

40. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 40 Share ideas for getting dads involved with literacy at school and at home. How might older students serve as mentors to younger students?

41. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! Action Plan Jot down three things that you would like to implement in your classroom. Share your plan with a partner.

42. Boys and Girls Learn Differently! 42 THANK YOU! kelley@gurianinstitute.com www.gurianinstitute.com Please complete the evaluation on the last page of your manual!