Devon Sawa Quotes

I had ADD as a kid and often acted as the class clown. My teachers used to tell my mom, 'Raphael thinks he's a real comedian.'

I was a pretty disruptive student in class in school. I had a hard time paying attention. I had what they call A.D.D. now, back then I was just a hyper kid.

Students never think it can be the teacher's fault and so I thought I was stupid. I was frustrated and would come home and cry because I couldn't do it. Then we got a new teacher who made math accessible. That made all the difference and I learned that it's how you present it that makes it scary or friendly.

I expressed myself through hyperactivity and disruption. I wanted to play rather than study.

I was always shouted at by my teacher because I would draw straight on the table in the school.

Research is starting to show that a child should be engaged at least 20 hours a week. I do not think it matters which program you choose as long as it keeps the child actively engaged with the therapist, teacher, or parent for at least 20 hours a week.

I was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, the youngest of four girls, including my oldest sister, Lisa, who has special needs. My mom was a special education teacher, and my dad worked on the Army base. We weren't wealthy, but we were determined to succeed.

I do a lot of work with the Dyslexia Institute because, for people with dyslexia who do not have parental support, it is a huge disadvantage. I was fortunate because my Mum was a teacher and she taught me to work hard.

We expert teachers know that motivation and emotional impact are what matter.

I was very disruptive. I was horrible. I didn't learn like all the other kids. I had to sometimes take my tests out in the hallways because I couldn't focus. But, my teachers would come see me in the plays and were like 'I don't understand how you can focus and be in the moment in a play and you go into math class and you can't focus.'

A lot of moms give their kids line reads. My mom wasn't put in that position because I always had an acting teacher helping with the feelings rather than how to say something.

When I was child, I never spoke. Teacher used to write remarks on my note book. My mom sent me to a trainer. I started talking, and it gave me confidence.

I had this chronic hyperactivity and an inability to focus, so I was forever being moved to another class, with a much smaller group of children - some of them about 18. If I was asked to read a paragraph, this white wall would go up in my head. Still now, I read very slowly and can rarely work out a tip.

I was a pretty hyperactive kid, kind of ADD. I couldn't really stay sitting in my chair, so my kindergarten teacher would have me standing at the back of the room, because I couldn't sit for more than five minutes. My mom needed some positive way to focus my energy and I said I wanted to be an actor, so she was like, "Well, we'll roll with it and see how you respond to it," and I loved it. It was something I could instantly focus my attention to.

I grew up in my mom's third grade classroom and always helping her, and I also got a passion for kids that way.

I used to work at a school as a teacher's assistant, and my mom is a principal at an elementary school. I don't know, I think that's a pretty good life, teaching kids.

The thing was, at a young age, my mom and my grandma always tried to keep me out of the streets as much as they could, so they put me in a private school when I was super young.

It's very important, once you are a parent, that you educate your kid day by day.

I think the real heroic teachers are the ones who work with kids, like my mom and my sister do.

As a former high school teacher and a student in a class of 60 urchins at St. Brigid's grammar school, I know that education is all about discipline and motivation. Disadvantaged students need extra attention, a stable school environment, and enough teacher creativity to stimulate their imaginations. Those things are not expensive.

The best schools tend to have the best teachers, not to mention parents who supervise homework, so there is less need for self-organised learning. But where a child comes from a less supportive home environment, where there are family tensions perhaps, their schoolwork can suffer. They need to be taught to think and study for themselves.

Why not whip the teacher when the pupil misbehaves?

I was a good student. My mom is a teacher, and her side of the family is all teachers. She put a big emphasis on getting good grades.

My mother was a Sunday school teacher. So I am a byproduct of prayer. My mom just kept on praying for her son.

I was raised by my mom. My dad was always traveling, but she allowed me and encouraged me to be close to my dad. So I grew up with three parents: my mom, my dad and my stepmom. Ninety percent of the time I was with my mom, and 10 percent was with my dad.