The Adventures of Chuck and Colleen

Learning is a difficult and challenging process under that best of circumstances. Most people need guidance and assistance when attempting to understanding new concepts and learn new skills. Clarity isoften provided by examples and experiential instruction.

There are those occasional few individuals who can learn independently; however, these individuals are the exception to the rule. These are unique individuals and it is certainly exciting to have them in the world. For the rest of us, having an opportunity to think about the process of what a word may mean or statement may reflect is critical to gathering sufficient knowledge to be able to use information wisely and well. It is the guidance that we receive through adults, be they parents or educators, that is critical to this process of learning to think, reason and problem solve.

This story and the textual support that follows are intended to help young children to explore ideas and situations that are not always clear and observable. Under those circumstances it is critical to a child's success that an adult be available to provide guidance and support which opens the door for the development of critical thinking skills.

This process is what makes this text a guided reading activity and not a story for independent reading by children. Those who guide learning can add a rich level of excitement to the exploration of the process of reasoning.

Underlying this text is the work that was begun in psychology and human development beginning at the end of the 19th century and progressing into the 21st century.

This text also looks to integrate aspects of parenting skills that have been a major area of study for more than 50 years with the development of a child's ability to think, reason and problem solve. Epigenetics are included to offer adults food for thought in how behavior can become integrated into children and inform their ability to think and manage self control.

The importance of these perspectives emphasizes how children can and need to be guided to become highly effective learners academically and socially. To further enhance the aspect of social learning the suggestion here is that the effects of these theories and ideas are interactive and lead to what we become and what we want to become.

We have major responsibilities to our children, ourselves and the social context in which we live.