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The natural teaching method is active and student-centered, based on schema and constructivist theories, and informed by research in neuroplasticity. A schema is a mental picture or understanding of something we have learned. Humans can have knowledge only to the degree to which they have constructed schemas from learning experiences and practice. Constructivist theory suggests that it is only by direct, active, hands-on exploration and learning from errors can a person construct a schema. Brain and neuroplastic research indicates that as learning occurs, brain nerve cells grow additional fibers (dendrites) and synapses. The learner, through active trial-and-error exploration, increases physiological neuron networks. The six stages of the Natural Teaching Method Planning Model provide a way to guide students to construct new schemas: (1) stimulate students to activate any related knowledge; (2) guide students to start constructing the new structures or knowledge on the structures; (3) consolidate the first growth of new structures and knowledge; (4) give students the opportunity to gain more complex understanding; (5) give students the opportunity to start using their new knowledge in a creative way; and (6) give students the opportunity to fine tune the increasing complexity and richness of the neural network. Being taught the way the mind naturally learns helps students access and use their intelligence. (KP)

1Boy Crusoe

By Allan Eric

Also published as" A Yankee Crusoe" . A 15 year old hard working and studious farm boy finds the lure of adventure on the seas as a merchant seaman more than he can resist. This is his story. " I was born in a little town in the State of Maine, near the close of the Civil War. My boyhood life did not differ materially from that of the average farmer's son in the remote country districts of New England--except, perhaps, that I read more and thought more. Hard work on the rugged soil, two terms each year in the little yellow country schoolhouse, a day's fishing now and then filled the early years of my life full to over-flowing. " What he gets is enough excitement and adventure to overflow his wildest dreams. How he experiences disaster and uses his wits and knowledge to overcome every problem makes for a great read. - Summary by Phil Chenevert