Page 4 - Jupiter Spotlight - January '24

Page 4, Jupiter Spotlight

American Humane Hero Dog Awardsfrom page 1

Known as the “Oscars
®
for Canines,” this year’s
star-studded event was
hosted by supermodel,
actress, and entrepreneur
Christie Brinkley and
TV personality Carson
Kressley. The glitzy
gala presented by Lois
Pope and the Lois Pope
LIFE Foundation brought
together celebrity animal
lovers—including
Nicollette Sheridan,
Jennie Garth, Donna Mills, Marilyn Pelstring and Peter
Monica Seles, and others. Donna Mills. Photo by Getty Fineman. Photo by Capehart Robin Ganzert (middle), Chase Leamer and K9 Buda with U.S. Coast Guard team. Photo
The event was held to Images Photography by Getty Images
honor the five category
winners of the 2023 Hero Dog Awards.

Math Problems

Could Spell

Dyscalculia

By Jim Forgan, Ph.D.,
School Psychologist
“If you have $196 Joe McNamara, Janet Levy, Max
dollars and you spend Gail Worth, Frank Orenstein, Christine McNamara. Photo by Capehart Kelly Brownfield, Maverick, and Christie
$27, how much money do Lynn. Photo by Capehart Photography Photography Brinkley. Photo by Getty Images
you have left?” If you are
a math whiz you quickly Maverick – a lifesaving therapy dog for the United
knew the answer was Services Organization (USO) – took home the night’s top
$169 but perhaps you had honors as 2023 American Humane Hero Dog of the Year.
to think about it, write “We are thrilled that Christie Brinkley cohosted the
it, ask Alexa, or use a 13th Annual Hero Dog Awards. Christie has spent her
calculator before knowing entire life advocating for animal welfare and that’s exactly
the answer. The key here is you knew the basics of how what we do here at American Humane. It was an honor
to solve the problem. If you did not have technology, you to have her join us as we celebrated these heroes on both
could solve the math problem by hand. ends of the leash,” said Dr. Robin Ganzert, president and
Some children receive adequate math instruction but CEO of American Humane. “And it’s a real pleasure to
perform poorly in math due to a math learning disability welcome back fantastic longtime host and animal lover Brian O’Connor and John
called dyscalculia. These children might grasp simple math Carson Kressley to our gala in Palm Beach. Carson is a Carson Kressley and Lois Payne. Photo by Capehart
but struggle with multistep math or math word problems. committed ambassador for all animals, and especially our Pope. Photo by Getty Images Photography
They learn multiplication facts only to forget them. hero dogs.”
There are many reasons why a child might have math The American Humane Hero Dog Awards is an annual, Americans nominated hundreds of inspiring dogs from
difficulty. Consider the introductory math problem. nationwide competition that recognizes America’s across the country. From there, five semifinalists in five
What brain systems did you use to solve the problem? standout working dogs – often ordinary dogs who categories were chosen to meet the American public, who
One cognitive system which is important for math is do extraordinary things – such as saving lives on voted for their favorite four-legged hero.
visualization. You might have visualized the numbers the battlefield, lending sight or hearing to a human
196 and 27 in your mind as you visually regrouped and companion, or helping people achieve their goals. American Humane Hero Dog Awardson page 5

subtracted to solve the equation. Another important
cognitive system is your working memory. You had to hold
196 and 27 in your working memory while you performed
the math operation.
A third cognitive system important for math is
attention. Regardless of using mental math or paper, you
had to give great attention to detail as you solved the
problem. If you made one careless error, it doomed your
answer. Language is a fourth cognitive system involved in
math. You had to use language to understand “how much
money do you have left” requires subtraction. Math has
other specialized vocabulary words such as sum, radius,
and hypotenuse. A fifth cognitive system needed for math
is processing speed. Your child is often timed on math Life moves fast—
tests or expected to rapidly know their basic addition,

subtraction, or multiplication facts. prepare for the unexpected
As you can see, telling your child to “try harder” in
math might not be the solution. Our testing helps identify with Accident Insurance.
which of your child’s cognitive systems are working well
and which ones might be causing a math learning disability
and dyscalculia. There are specialized math programs and
learning strategies available to help children. Call to discuss
your child. Visit JimForgan.com or call (561) 625-4125.
We’re here to help.

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