What Kumon Could Do for Your Special Needs Child

The Kumon Method of Learning is a Japanese educational method that facilitates the learning of Mathematics and other subjects through an individualized approach with modularized worksheets. To date it has centers in 46 different countries catering to around 4.6 million students worldwide, making it one of the widest-reaching after-school educational programs available. The method employs a series of carefully-planned study assignments and practice exercises that are designed to fit learning experience to the needs of a child. In this case, it's interesting to know if the method could help children with special learning needs - and yes, it could.

Kumon Helps Children Develop Attention

For any kind of learning to take place, one should first learn to sustain one's attention while engaged in a particular task. It doesn't matter how a little attention a child is capable of in the beginning, what's more important is that his attention span be slowly stretched so that it could accommodate more demanding activities.

Developing one's attention span is actually the first order of business in Kumon study, and one that would especially benefit children with special learning needs. Since the Kumon method uses worksheets to facilitate learning, this means children are given concrete tasks in which they could develop their concentration skills. Topics are also assigned depending on the child's capability, making sure that the child won't tire of the exercises given him. Children with problems in attention and hyperactivity would especially benefit from this kind of training.

Kumon Helps Children Understand Topics Through Sustained Practice

Practice makes perfect, and more so if the amount and difficulty of content is tailored to what a child is capable of. Children doing Kumon study do worksheet exercises this way, the assignment of which may include the necessary repetition of items of similar topics. The logic behind this idea is that repetition provides an opportunity for the child to imbibe the necessary 'muscle memory' or in this case number sense, so that he could instantly answer more items of mathematical content. As we all know, Mathematics involve a lot of numbers, and the patterns associated with it could only be obtained through mindful practice.

Repetition benefits children with special learning needs because it makes them easily master content. Through consistent practice and review, special needs children retain information better than just making them go through a standard lesson plan. Children with pervasive developmental disorders (e.g. Autism, Asperger's) and with mental retardation would benefit from such a framework.

Kumon Helps Special Children Prepare for MainstreamSchool

One of the fundamental goals of special education is for a child with special learning needs to acquire the necessary skills and mastery so that he could join school that is appropriate for his school age. What better way to prepare for mainstreaming than to help the child develop the competencies in the academics? Kumon study exposes the special needs child to mathematical content akin to what is being done in school, allowing him or her to be able to be at par with what their classmates are doing. In addition, the Kumon program also teaches children to follow rules and routine, the same requirements needed for mainstream school.

One caveat though: though the Kumon method has made great progress with some special needs children, it doesn't necessarily mean that all could benefit from it. For example, if a child cannot move his limbs or would require constant medical attention then it may be more to his benefit to address these needs first rather than go for an after-school program.

With these benefits, one could really see how the Kumon program could help children with special needs: it develops attention, it helps children master content, and it prepares them for mainstream school. As it is, it's another way of helping out children wherever they are.