The Shut-Down Learner is based on the author's clinical experience as director of a program in the pediatrics department of a large teaching hospital that assesses and treats a broad range of learning problems. He has consulted with thousands of families, explaining complex data in straightforward terms understandable to the parents. He coined the term, shut-down learner, to describe children who thrive with hands-on tasks requiring visual and spatial abilities, but who become discouraged by their difficulty mastering core academic skills such as reading and writing.