Creative Learning
In the beginning there was my inaptitude to read a book with 1000 pages that I was interested in, but its dry content made it unreadable for me. Instead I started to read about learning techniques, got into brain research and the information that the potential of our brain is almost inexhaustible and that we learn easier the more we learn. Our brain can be compared to a growing network, the more information we have stored, the easier it gets to link new informations. Motivated I started to read more about related topics and discovered the most efficient learning method for me.
At the same time the number of hyperactive children in my practice has increased. In fact it's mainly the diagnosis ADHD that has increased and it's common medication with Ritalin. Reading about ADHD I discovered that I know quite some of the ADHD symptoms myself and that I find them helpful to concentrate and learn. I learn best if I am fascinated about a topic because it's new and looks endless. I get as many books about the topic as possible. While studying a book I already check the references and surf on the Internet to find further information. If a text is very inspiring I just read a few sentences, go for a walk to follow my thoughts, call up friends to talk about it or write mails. I create a atmosphere rich in variety to encourage new thoughts. In contrast I get sleepy reading without breaks and can hardly endure sitting in a seminar for hours without doing anything or moving about.
From this experience I can easily understand children who can hardly endure a conservative education. I am happy to see that there are more and more alternative education methods that not only support active children, but generally encourage the creativity of the children instead of lulling it into sleep.
Creativity and ADHD
Children with ADHD often have various talents. Famous people had characteristics that would be pointing towards ADHD nowadays:
- constant search for new possibilities
- high creativity
- ignoring rules and normality
- excellent and rapid perception of holistic figures
Mozart for example loved to behave mischievously, would shock by interrupting his piano play and jumping over tables and chairs in his foolish mood or would miaow like a cat and do summersaults. Emotional experiences could throw him of the track completely.
Even while washing his hands early in the morning he would move up and down, never rested and was always thinking........He was always in motion with hands and feet and played with something. (Description of Sophie Haibl sister-in-law of Mozart)
Einstein could rather be taken as the inattentive type. He didn't accept that he should learn things he wasn't interested in and he didn't like anything exhausting.
Highly talented children often have features like hyperactive children, for example challenging behavior or disturbing in groups.
There might have been as many ADHD children earlier. What has changed are the expectations in children
Rather make use of the talents then just working on the weakness
(Source: Brandau, Pretis, Kaschnitz; 2003)