| Dezember 2011 |   |
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| 28 | 29 | 30 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
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The Combining of Language, Music, a Sense of Aesthetic and Movement
Children learn new things most easily through movement and activity. Multisensory building blocks (the MB-system) offer learning modules which take this into special consideration. Syllables are jumped, letters are hopped and cursive writing is swung, all to the rhythm of music. By the end of the first grade, all children will have already acquired the ability to write cursively and to print. The central objective of Myrtel and Bo is to promote the coordination of movement, language, motor activity, cognition, emotion and sociability. The lovingly decorated learning materials are an important aesthetic element to meet the children at the point of development they have reached. The illustrations are of a high aesthetic quality and equally appeal to children and adults. After an introductory phase with Myrtel and Bo the story’s framework setting changes, allowing many different topics to be offered (grades 2 to 5). This will also lead to a solid general education.
Multisensory Learning Based on Neuropedagogy
Learning processes in which as many sensory organs as possible are addressed will lead to particularly sustained learning results and versatile linkings of the neurons. By learning with the MB-system, the children approach the object of learning by using all of their senses. Seeing, touching, hearing and movement equally shape the various learning modules. Multisensory learning is designed to interconnect different school subjects. This, in combination with a movement-oriented teaching method will also lead to an understanding of abstract subject matter by making it "graspable", understandable and therefore comprehensible. This multisensory groundwork raises the children’s ability to learn in all school subjects. The learning modules in the MB-system take into consideration not only the neurological basics but also deem important the setup of the classroom in order to speak to all senses, so that the children will be able to learn in a positive and pleasant atmosphere.
Individualized Learning
To respect the children and to take their individual needs seriously is the basis and the strength of individualized learning. The child is perceived as a personality and is challenged not only on the level of performance but also, and especially, on an emotional level. The multisensory building blocks of the MB-system are especially suited to meet the demands of individualized learning. The learning modules offer children different approaches to learning the same topic in compliance with their individual ways of learning. A great variety of methods contributes in accompanying and supporting each child on his or her personal learning path in the best possible way. Within this framework, as well as overall, the children are being led to work in a highly motivated, self-sufficient and structured way.
Networked Learning
Due to multi-dimensional learning strategies, the multisensory learning system is excellently suited to interconnect different school subjects. The incorporation of songs, moving games and creative stimulations methodically opens teaching to interconnect different themes. Children want to be addressed in a multi-channel and varied fashion and possess the need to be challenged to act. Over and over again the children will be presented with the learning material in a way that will meet these demands. In addition, the MB-system encourages close teamwork with colleagues of other subjects such as music, art, homeroom and sports. Networked learning which has been promoted in this way facilitates sustained success in learning.
A Structured but Unconfined Way of Learning
Coordinated and interconnecting elements make the MB-system a systematically-elaborated holistic teaching concept – but by no means an inflexible system. The variety of applied means and methods is adapted to the individual needs of the children. The learning system is designed in such a way that single elements, for example the weekly schedule, can be worked with and adjusted to meet personal needs. The learning materials require no copies, allowing teachers more time to pay attention to the individual ways of learning and learning speeds of the students. Group and individual work can be combined according to preference. Teachers working with the MB-system are welcome at any time to vary individual exercises and to adapt them to their current themes and contents.
The Conveying of Values
One of the claims of the MB-system is to convey not only knowledge to the children but also a sense of values. Experience shows that children who learn in a multisensory way treat themselves, the objects around them, and the environment with more respect. In this way, the vicious cycle of violence and destruction, which legally and financially burdens many schools is broken. Right from the first grade on, the MB-system, with its lovingly created characters and stories, takes the children on a trip through many different scenarios. The protagonists surrounding the caterpillar Myrtel and the magic bird Bo go through experiences and feelings which can be authentically and in a true-to-life fashion transferred into their own day-to-day school life. Topics such as friendship, joy, grief or envy find a firm place in the day-to-day activities within the learning modules.
Performance-Oriented Learning
Working with the materials and methods of Myrtel and Bo creates a joy of learning within the children as well as a curiosity for the new subject matter (as well as an eagerness to know what will be learned next). With this foundation a high motivation to read and to write is developed at an early stage. This motivation and eagerness to learn are maintained by the interesting framework setting, and the children's identification with the characters in the stories and work booklets. Teachers are encouraged to teach in a creative and lively way. This, along with the innovative subject matter, requires and boosts the performance of children up until the fifth grade, maintaining motivation on a long term basis.
The Result: An Efficient System of Learning
The work with the learning materials of Myrtel and Bo is designed to be economically very efficient and sustainable. The children quickly learn to work self-sufficiently and concentrated so that even in classes with very many students, this makes successful and at the same time individualized learning possible. Teachers find themselves noticeably relieved, thus being able to attend to the personal needs of the children. The fact that the complete working materials are contained in the students’ work booklets saves schools and teachers much time and money – labourious preparation of the lessons as well as costs for copying drop away. All additional materials are of such high quality that they can be used over many years also by succeeding teachers, thus relieving the school’s budget in the long run. A substantial saving / economizing results in the area of future tutoring of weak students. The expenditure required here will be reduced to a minimum.
