A writer’s world is often an imaginary land, filled with extraordinary characters and endless possibilities. Even in the ugliest of circumstances, there is always hope for a happy ending, or at the very least, some sanity.
Surprisingly, the creativity that students pour into the art of writing can significantly impact their well-being...
Communication with children at any age is vital to building their self-confidence and necessary for strengthening family relationships. Parents often feel teens won’t talk to them, and teens complain that parents never listen. The key to remember for effective communication is that it is a two-way street, and that parents play an active role in fostering a safe, open pathway for dialoging with their kids.
Communication should be open-ended, inviting responses that are more than one word answers. For example, “Tell me about how the party went,” will encourage more of a response than “Did you have fun at the party?”
For struggling students, few things can be as daunting as report cards coming home. But report cards can even cause anxiety for well performing students depending on how they are received at home, and the expectations parents set about school performance. No matter how high you set the bar for your son or daughter, the dialogue we have with our children surrounding their report card should be constructive, regardless of the performance. Here are some grade appropriate tips by Doug Tynan, Chief Preventative Health Psychologist at Nemours Health & Prevention Services, and former director of programs for children with behavior and learning problems at the AI DuPont Hospital for Children and the Children’s National Medical Center.
Did you know that within your home exists a hidden gift, which will guarantee your child’s vocabulary and language development? Did you know that this same gift could unleash your child’s critical thinking and conversational skills? As if that weren’t enough, this gift will also strengthen the bond between you and your child. If I told you this treasure would cost you nothing, require little preparation, and would last forever, would you take it?
Paying for College
By Ryan Anderson, Area Director in Greensboro, NC
As winter approaches high school seniors are thinking about college. Should I take a SAT prep course, and re-take the SAT to get a higher score? Is this essay good enough? When should I do an on campus interview? Can I get accepted into that college? When I get accepted, can I even afford to go to school X?
By Mike Seising
Finding the Reading Moments
Finding time to read is important to developing literacy skills for all kids. And there are many easy and convenient ways to make reading a part of each day — even when it's tough to find time to sit down with a book.
Car trips, errands, and waits in checkout lines and the doctor's office are all opportunities for reading. Keep books or magazines in your car, diaper bag, or backpack to pull out whenever you're going to be in one place for a while. Even if you can't finish a book, read a few pages or discuss some of the pictures. Encourage older kids to bring favorite books and magazines along wherever you go.
By Ken Ballinger
Tutoring is to Education as Coaching is to Athletics
Parents and children would be well served to use tutors in the same way that athletic teams use coaches. If I were the parent of a promising young tennis player, I would immediately seek out a coach with the knowledge and experience to refine those skills and instill the virtues of hard work through organized and intense work sessions. It is hard to imagine a world class figure skater without a world class coach by her side, alternately praising, and cajoling to more efficient, more athletic performance.
By Trish Delacruz, Area Director Plano/North Dallas
As school is back in session and tight schedules become even more rigid, it is important to make the most of every minute of your day. From waking the kids up in the morning, to picking them up from soccer practice, each second seems to be spent rushing around to meet the demands of work, children and spouse. Endurance, problem solving and being at peak health are crucial in overcoming the challenges we face. We need to be at our best, physically and mentally, in order to confront the stress life often brings.
By Gary Hukriede
As a parent it is important to recognize, in a timely manner, signs that indicate your child is struggling academically. A first step is to communicate with your child’s school. Your child may also need additional reinforcement to help get back on track.
Math is a tough subject; as they approach upper level math young adults can increase their success by making sure they have strong foundations in the basics. By the time they hit 6th grade most young adults have developed the ability to really apply themselves, and can be encouraged to spend the time needed to make sure they flourish in math class. We’ve found a few of the following to be helpful for the disinclined number cruncher.
