Free Reye's Gold by Ruthie Robinson Page A

her mother’s help at home. Their efforts resulted in a tenfold improvement in her reading that year. Now she recognized how much Mrs. Sanchez and her mom had done for her. Armed with the knowledge regarding learning styles and with a new level of self awareness, she felt compelled to come up with the means to incorporate what she’d learned every day. She observed her kids, worked with them, seeking to identify each of their styles. More importantly, she sought a way to explain these concepts to them, hoping to arm them with tools to use to help themselves once they’d moved on from the program.
    Reye settled on several funny phrases to describe the differing styles. “Seeing is Believing”, “Shake, shake, shake your body”, “Talk to me, baby”, and “Order is Among Us” were the names she created.
    “ Seeing is believing” was the name for the kids who learned visually, by seeing images. They typically enjoyed art and drawing and were interested in how machines worked and with inventing. They were often accused of being daydreamers in class.
    “Shake, shake, shake your body” referred to the kids who processed information using physical sensations. They were highly active, not able to sit still for long periods of time, and they showed you rather than told you. They needed to touch and feel the world. They were naturally athletic and loved sports, and were quick to be labeled with attention deficient disorder.
    “Talk to me, baby” described her talkers. They were joke-tellers, and language came easy to them.
    “Order is among us” referred to the kids that were logical and orderly thinkers. They were the easiest to teach. They were good at figuring how things worked.
    She was proud of her kids and how much they’d improved. Michael, a shy African-American boy, had joined their group a few days ago. He’d walked in the class with his head down, where it remained while he suffered though introductions to the other children. Shane, usually shy, approached him. “What are you?”
    Michael lifted his head, giving Shane a puzzled look. “I’m Michael,” he answered, his voice high pitched.
    Shane, not receiving the answer he needed, but not giving up yet, asked again. “I know that, but what are you?” Again, Michael looked puzzled. Shane continued, “Are you a shake, shake, shake your body?” He demon strated by moving his hips. Reye hadn’t been able to resist a dding movement to accompany that phrase, not really expecting any of the children to perform it. “Or are you a seeing is believing kid?” Not waiting for an answer, he said, “I’m a seeing is believing kid.”
    Now Michael really was confused. Reye walked over to him and explained what that meant. “What Shane is trying to ask you is how you learn. He knows that we all learn differently.” She looked at Shane with a smile.
    “We’ll find your learning style as we get to know you, and that will help us and you with your homework. For now, how about we finish introducing you to the other kids and show you around the center.”
    * * *
     
    It was Saturday evening and Reye was going through her pre-dinner checklist. She’d gone grocery shopping earlier in the day and purchased wine, spaghetti, salad ingredients, and bread. The meal she had planned was one of the few things she could cook decently. Who couldn’t boil spaghetti and add sauce to it? But in light of this special occasion she splurged, purchasing a more expensive brand of sauce instead of her usual Ragu.
    Dessert tonight would be her if she were lucky, but just in case, she’d also purchased fruit tarts from a bakery down the street. Reye had gotten to know the family that owned it, a husband and wife with two school-age kids. She’d stop in on her way to catch the bus if she hadn’t been able to eat breakfast at home. She admired the way this family managed to incorporate the whole work-life b alance thing. They owned a home in the neighborhood, owned the bakery