How to Succeed in School without Spending all Your Time Studying
by Barbara Oakley and Terrence Sejnowski with Alistair McConville
This book explains with humor and scientific data how to build one of the most important skills in life, learning. Two of the authors are neuroscientists and they use science become successful learners. Their supposition is, “Even kids who start out badly at school can turn things around and end up being successful”.
The authors suggest that a child and parent (or other family adult) read aloud book chapters to each other (ideally for a half hour), so that the ideas being read can be discussed. Chapters include I’ll Do It Later, Honest! Using a Tomato to Beat Procrastination; Learning While You Sleep: How to Wake Up Smarter; How to Pump up Your Brain.
The authors note that people find it hard to believe they can be successful learners, especially if they have trouble with a specific subject. “Your brain is like an incredible tool kit and your job is to learn when and how to use these tools. Brain science shows that they’re wrong; after all, you wouldn’t use a hammer to turn a screw.”