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Personality Poker: The Fast, Fun Way to Unload Innovation, Collaboration, and Predictable Growth by Stephen M. Shapiro 4th Ed offers a fun game that any organization can use to help everyone determine their dominant and secondary personality types. It makes it easier to put people in positions that best suit their personality strengths, better drive the innovation process, and help connect people with complimentary personalities. Once you know your hand, you can compliment it when you hire new staff. To date, the game has been played by over 250,000 people and scientifically validated.

Introduction

• Personality Poker is a fast-paced game that helps you discover and understand your unique contributions to your team’s success, whether in driving innovation, strengthening collaboration, shaping culture, or achieving shared goals. Once everyone knows their strengths, the goal is to place the right person in the right position. Creativity is about generating new ideas. Innovation is about shifting culture to implement valuable new ideas.
• Stephen divides people by suits. The Spades dig and organize data. Diamonds are the idea people. Clubs plan and execute. Heats engage the hearts and minds of team members. Stephen has used this system with success with organizations of all sizes since he invented it in 1999.

Part I: Are You Gambling Your Company’s Future? 1. Pregame Warm-up

• Personality Poker can be used as a powerful conflict resolution tool. It focuses on what people like as opposed to what people are like. People often game personality tests by picking what they think is the “right” answer. People in a good mood solve more problems through flashes of insight and creativity. How others see you is an indicator of your behavior. Some personality traits such as inquisitiveness, are difficult to observe. First impressions can be “sticky.” Work roles often prescribe a particular behavior.

Part II: Playing Personality Poker 2. Before Getting Started

• It’s important to know the difference between your preferred style and your adapted style. Your adapted style is a learned behavior that you develop on the job due to the role you are put in. You can tell it’s an adapted style as it tends to sap you of energy whereas using your preferred style is more likely to energize you at work. If you are different at home, you are probably using an adapted style at work.

3. How to Play

• You first need a deck of the special cards that have style descriptive words on each regular playing card. The solitaire version involves going through the deck and placing cards in piles that are most like you, least like you, and others. The goal is to get nine cards in the like you and not like you piles. When you have that you should know which style you are most like, which style(s) are somewhat adjacent, and which are your opposite.
• You can also do a five pile version, which adds like me but I infrequently use it and like me but an adapted skill piles. In a five-card draw version each player gets five cards and players trade cards until they get a hand with cards most like them. There is also a 52 card pick up version.

4. Finding and Understanding Your Style

• The black cards are more rational and are more liked by people who rely on expertise and knowledge. The red cards are more relational in nature. These people like to connect ideas, experiences, and people. If your five cards don’t tell you what your primary style is feel free to get more cards. You are more likely to have two or three suits than only one or all four. Like the author, my primary style is diamonds and my secondary style is spades. The suit or suits you are missing are the styles you need to rely on from colleagues.

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How to Keep Your Kid’s Brain Moving Over Breaks by Emily Graham offers great advice to anyone who has to supervise a student during a school break, which can be as long as a summer break or as short as a weekend. Please share with parents you know.

Introduction

School breaks can be a time of drift or quiet acceleration. Kids need rest — but long
stretches without structure can dull progress, especially in core subjects like reading, math,
or even language learning. Parents don’t need to become teachers to stop the slide — just
good facilitators. With the right rhythms and low-pressure options, you can keep your child
curious and engaged without burning them out or turning summer into school 2.0.

Start With Why Learning Slows Down

Extended time away from school makes it harder for students to maintain academic
footing. Reading comprehension slips. Math skills fade. Kids lose the mental routines that
help them focus and retain information. That’s not because they’re lazy or disengaged,
it’s just how cognitive systems work. If you want to prevent summer learning loss, you need friction — just enough engagement to keep the learning circuits active. A small,
regular push is far more effective than occasional sprints.

Your Role Is to Prime, Not Push

You’re not trying to replicate a classroom. You’re trying to make space for questions,
conversation, and effort. When you read aloud with your child, pause. Ask what they think
will happen next. Try to engage them in learning through small, consistent co-learning
moments. The goal isn’t mastery — it’s momentum. Your presence, your tone, and your
interest shape whether your child sees learning as something to tolerate or something
worth showing up for.

Supplement With Human-Led Online Support

Not every subject clicks in the same way. And not every parent can support every subject
equally — that’s normal. One of the most practical ways to supplement is through online
tutoring. It offers structure without rigidity, and many platforms allow you to adjust timing
based on your child’s schedule. If your child needs extra help with Spanish, for example,
you might try online Spanish tutors that are personalized, flexible, and motivating. Some let
you switch instructors, book trial lessons, and match based on your goals — a supportive,
immersive, and best value for money approach that feels both engaging and effective.

Keep Learning Cadence With Short Practice Windows

One of the simplest shifts you can make is in how you pace repetition. Instead of long,
dense study sessions, spread things out. Short practice blocks — 10–20 minutes a few
times a week — help the brain store and stabilize new knowledge. The key is rhythm, not
rigor. Using a family toolkit that supports retention across math, reading, and writing can
help structure this without having to build your own plan. Let the tools do the heavy lifting
while you focus on showing up.

Include Movement to Reset the Brain

Cognitive overload happens fast — especially for younger kids. But movement resets
attention. That’s not anecdotal; it’s biologically grounded. Stretching, light cardio, even a
dance break has been shown to support focus and mental clarity. If your child is flagging
mid-session, pause. You’ll get more learning value after a reset. In fact, active breaks boost
attention better than silent sitting or passive distractions. It’s counterintuitive, but stepping
away can make recall stronger.

Follow Their Interests — Especially in Reading

The best summer learning doesn’t feel like learning. It feels like following a question. If
your child loves sports, get them books about athletes. If they like animals, find stories set
in the wild. When reading is centered on choice and interest, motivation spikes. You’re not
trying to enforce a reading log. You’re trying to spark summer reading engagement by
showing them that books are a gateway, not a checklist. Even reluctant readers often
respond well when they’re given options.

Let Loose Structure Do the Heavy Lifting

Some parents go into break mode thinking, “We’ll just play it by ear.” Others build color-
coded schedules that collapse by week two. The sweet spot is somewhere in between:
simple routines that kids can anticipate without strict timelines. Morning reading? Check.
Screen-free hour in the afternoon? Done. That kind of balance between freedom and
structure helps children hold onto school-year habits without making it feel like
punishment. You’re maintaining momentum — not applying pressure.

You don’t need a master curriculum. You need a few strong rhythms. Parents who build in
light structure, leave room for curiosity, and add small supports — whether it’s a reading
session or a quick language lesson — are the ones who see their kids return sharper, not
slumped. The secret isn’t piling on more work. It’s timing, tone, and matching how kids
learn when the pressure’s off. So as the break rolls on, worry less about doing “enough” —
and more about doing “just right.”

FAQ: Supporting Learning During School Breaks

Q: How much learning time is ideal during a break?
A: For younger students, even 15–30 minutes a few times a week can help. It’s the
regularity, not the volume, that matters most.
Q: What subjects should I focus on?
A: Reading and basic math are the most vulnerable to skill fade. But subjects like language,
art, and science can add fun and variety.
Q: How do I keep my child motivated?
A: Follow their interests. Let them pick the topic, book, or project. Offer small wins and
praise effort, not just results.
Q: What if I’m not confident helping with certain subjects?
A: Consider online tutoring for support. Many platforms offer flexible, subject-specific help
that complements your child’s pace.
Q: Will this really make a difference in the long term?
A: Yes. Children who stay engaged even lightly during breaks often return to school more
confident and ready to learn.
Q: Is school break a good time to start language learning?
A: Yes — it’s an ideal time. Without the pressure of grades or homework, kids can explore a
new language in a more relaxed, engaging way. Even short, consistent sessions can build
real momentum and boost confidence heading into the next school year.

Unlock a world of knowledge and innovation with Dr Doug Green’s insights on education,
productivity, and personal growth—visit today to start your journey towards a smarter
future!

Emily Graham
Emily is the creator of MightyMoms.net. She believes being a mom is one of the hardest jobs around and wanted to create a support system for moms from all walks of life. On her site, she offers a wide range of info tailored for busy moms — from how to reduce stress to creative ways to spend time together as a family. You can email her at emilygraham@mightymoms.net. She lives in Arizona.

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