New to alps

new to accelerated learning

‘If your teacher uses Accelerated Learning you learn to use your brain. You learn by seeing, hearing and doing. I like the doing bits best, because I’m a doing person. I like body maths and role-play in science. It makes things sink into my brain much quicker than just listening to the teacher.’ Arvind, age 10.

Nicola describes her books ‘The ALPS Approach’ and 'The Thinking Child' and their follow-up resource books as, “the books I wish I’d read when I first started teaching". It took her fourteen years in the classroom to develop the techniques that she describes in her work. Ideas and demonstrations of good practice by hundreds of practitioners are linked to the most recent brain research, which explains why these methods work.

Although it is hard to think of any way of learning that is not ‘brain-based', there are some basic principles for teaching using brain-based techniques. Some are essential for all age groups, whereas others are particularly relevant for the older primary children.

The brain-based principles are:

Create the right environment for learning

Address children's physiological needs

Build self-esteem in the child so that he or she wants to learn

Work to help children develop what Daniel Goleman calls 'Emotional Intelligence'

Add movement to learning and plan for regular brain breaks and Brain Gym®

Use and teach mapping techniques.

Use VAK to present learning in visual, auditory and kinesthetic form

Be aware of the different forms of intelligence as you plan for children's learning

Use rhythm, rhyme and music to .to enrich learning

Use motivation systems such as RAP (Recognition, Affirmation and Praise) or The Three A's (Acknowledgement, Approval and Affirmation)

Minimise stress and teach relaxation techniques

Teach children to be metacognitive – to understand how they learn

Develop the New 3Rs - Resourcefulness, Resilience and Responsibility

Set clear and ambitious targets for groups and individuals

Nicola's books explain how to do all these things in detail, but if you want to find out more, click on the hyperlinks above. There are no hard and fast rules about how to begin to work using brain-based techniques. Simply try out aspects that appeal to you, and gradually work with colleagues to develop systems that work in your individual circumstances.

To read what children say about learning using accelerated learning, click here.