EVERY STUDENT SUCCEEDS ACT[ ESSA ] - by Garry O. Blanson

By now, you have heard of the " DEATH " of the Federal Program for Education in our Schools Known as " NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND." As a matter of fact, some states had " ALREADY " established their own new program to replace NCLB.The New Federal Program that each state must implement is called ," Every Student Succeeds Act( ESSA )." ESSA will replace No Child Left Behind and each state must develop its own plan to measure student progress and help students achieve more Academically. The Louisiana Association of Educators recently released their report on what they say that parents and community members say they want from public schools.Also, members of the LAE said that more than 750 people participated in their meetings. So far,I haven't talked to anyone in the Monroe area who actually attended any of their meetings.Here is a statement from an article about the LAE report," Many participants are concerned about the amount of testing in schools, and how testing may affect learning time, creativity, critical thinking and innovation in the classroom." The article went on to mention that " PENDING " federal " approval, the Every Student Succeeds Act could be in place in LOUISIANA SCHOOLS for the 2017 - 18 school year. Yes, there's a lot that I could have said,but right now I just want to help you become " AWARE " of how School is used as a tool against Innocent Minds ! Please don't forget to go to FACEBOOK and like my page: https://www.facebook.com/Garry-O-Blans on-115049231930571/?fref=hovercard

" Conditioned to Respond " by Garry O. Blanson

Recently, I came across a term known as " Conditioned Response." After further research, I found out that this term was also called," Classical Response." So what does these two terms actually mean? Although people sometimes give different meanings to these two terms, most people agree that the terms involve behavior which is consistently repeated over a period of time( sometimes as little as 4 or 5 times within a single day ). Most times the behavior is done Subconsciously( un-beknownst to the persons involved ). The Responses include Mental and Physical as well as Emotional responses.Additionally, the Response can be Triggered by any single or combination of people,places,events or things within a persons Mental and Physical or Emotional World { examples include anxiety, doubt, fear, the color of the sky, the wind blowing,or someone looking at you in a certain way, etc...} The verdict is still out on whether or not the " CLASSICAL RESPONSE " is the CAUSE of many of the problems that cause children to develop what is known as S.D.D.[ Self-Awareness Deficit Disorder ].Self-Awareness Deficit Disorder basically means that a person isn't fully " AWARE " of who they are in regards to their individual strengths,gifts,talents, and divinity. They lack knowledge and full understanding concerning who they are and what they are truly capable of achieving. Hopefully, through articles like this one and others, School Administrators,Teachers,Principals, Parents,and Students will start the necessary conversations about " S.D.D." and " CLASSICAL RESPONSE." Please don't forget to go to FACEBOOK and like my page: https://www.facebook.com/Garry-O-Blans on-115049231930571/?fref=hovercard

JUST A THOUGHT by Garry O. Blanson

If doctors can amputate a person's diseased foot to prevent the problem from spreading and causing more harm,what if people were to amputate their negative diseased thoughts ? Someone once said," Keeping one's mind off of the thoughts that one DOES NOT want,and on the things that you DO want is one of the most difficult thing one can do." Every minute, we are thinking more and more thoughts { positive thoughts as well as negative ones }. Some of our thoughts are our own,but many of them come from outside sources such as parents,teachers,television,radio,and other social media. We are bombarded with so many thoughts on a daily basis,it's no wonder we often forget a few of them, Lol ! So as I mentioned earlier,it sure would be nice if we could amputate our negative diseased thoughts. However, since amputation isn't an option,we must plant new healthy positive thoughts Over a period of time, the new positive thoughts will over-ride the old negative ones.One of the best ways to do this is by using what is known as an"AFFIRMATION." One of the best definitions that I've come across is the one given by Phil Laut," An Affirmation is a high quality thought that you like well enough to immerse in your consciousness. Also,let me be clear that there is more than one right way to create an Affirmation. Like most things,experiment with several of them and use the ones that work best for you.Also, below are a few guidelines from " JACK CANFIELD " that you can consider when creating your own Affirmations. * Start with the words I Am.The words “I am” are the two most powerful words in language. Use the Present tense.Describe what you want as though you already have it.Wrong: I am going to get a new red Porsche 911 Carrera. Right: I am enjoying driving my new red Porsche 911 Carrera. * State it in the positive. Affirm what you want, not what you don’t want.The unconscious mind does not hear the word no.Wrong: I am no longer afraid of flying. Right: I am enjoying the thrill of flying. * Keep it brief.Think of your affirmation as an advertising jingle. * Make it specific.Vague affirmations produce vague results.Wrong: I am driving my new red car. Right: I am driving my new red Porsche 911 Carrera. * Include an action word ending with –ing.The active verb adds power to the effect by evoking an image of doing it right now.Wrong: I express myself openly and honestly. Right: I am confidently expressing myself openly and honestly. * Include at least one dynamic emotion or feeling word.Some commonly used words are… enjoying, joyfully, happily, celebrating, proudly, calmly, peacefully, delighted, enthusiastic, triumphant.Wrong: I am maintaining my perfect body weight of 178 lbs. Right: I am feeling agile and great at 178!!!! * Make affirmations for yourself, not others.Wrong: I am watching Johnny clean up his room.Right: I am effectively communicating my needs and desires to Johnny. * Add or something better.Example: I am enjoying living in my beautiful beachfront villa on the Ka’anapali coast of Maui or somewhere better. For more information on Jack Canfield, you can click on this link : http://jackcanfield.com/training-events/ AND Please don't forget to go to FACEBOOK and like my page: https://www.facebook.com/Garry-O-Blanson-115049231930571/?fref=hovercard

Solving Problems Using The FACTS Versus OPINION System - by Garry O. Blanson

When it comes to the circumstances in our lives,why do we keep mixing " FACTS " with “ OPINIONS ?” You would think that it would be easy for us to tell the difference.Surprisingly,it's not as easy as it seems. I guess it is because of the way we have been conditioned by our previous experiences.Never-the-less,we keep mixing the two of them together,causing us more grief and trouble than necessary. If only we could learn to separate the two. I've been told that the way we perceive a situation is much more important than how it appears to be. In the words of Shakespeare," Nothing is either good or bad, Thinking makes things So ." It would do us good to keep this in mind whenever we are faced with a problem.Instead, of just automatically viewing it as a problem, why not try and separate the facts from the opinions. Believe it or not, the process is pretty simple. All you need is a couple of sheets of paper or a notebook, and a pen or pencil.On the first sheet of paper, write down all your thoughts about the problem and how you feel about the problem( use two or three sheets, if needed ). On the next sheet of paper,draw a straight line down the center of the page.At the top of one side of the sheet of paper write FACTS, on the other side write OPINIONS.Using the page or pages you used to write your thoughts about the problem,list each thought as either a FACT or OPINION.When you finish listing your thoughts, examine the thoughts that you listed as OPINION " FIRST!"For each OPINION listed, ask yourself, Where did this OPINION come from{ you,your parents, grand-parents, relatives, t.v. ,radio, school, church,etc }? After discovering where you got the OPINION from,DECIDE whether or not you would like to hold on to this OPINION( you do not have to, if you do not want to ). Now examine the thoughts that you listed as FACTS.Which FACTS do you feel like you can tackle by your self ? Which FACTS do you think you need someone to help you with ?Ok,get two sheets of paper[ on one sheet of paper, list the FACTS that you can accomplish by yourself ; on the other sheet, list the FACTS that you need someone to help you with ].You can go ahead and get started on the list that you feel that you can get done by yourself.Also,write down a time of 30 - 45 minutes when you will brainstorm to see who you can get to help you with your list that you need help with. I believe that this little system will help many of you get over the procrastination habit that always seems to keep people from being more productive [Go ahead and "DO-IT-NOW!"]. Please don't forget to go to FACEBOOK and like my page: https://www.facebook.com/Garry-O-Blanson-115049231930571/?fref=hovercard