As local students enjoy the summer months, most parents are already looking for resources to prepare their kids for the upcoming school year. To succeed in school and life, Hunterdon and Mercer area students need ongoing opportunities to learn and practice essential skills. For many children, the first day of school doesn't just mean new teachers and new friends – it can also be a source of anxiety with homework assignments and tests just around the corner. Fortunately, starting the year off on the right foot can help minimize children's stress levels throughout the year.
Getting ready for a new school year isn't just a job for kids - it also requires parents to be prepared. To help local parents and students kick start the new school year successfully, Sylvan Learning, the leading provider of tutoring to students of all ages, grades and skill levels, is offering a variety of tools to improve core skills like math, reading and writing.
Master Your Math:
"Forgotten Math for Parents" and "Algebra Spoken Here" Seminars
Parents wishing to restore their math skills in order to help their children learn can participate in "Forgotten Math for Parents" and "Algebra Spoken Here" seminars offered free-of-charge at your local Sylvan Learning throughout the year. "Forgotten Math for Parents" is an interactive, 90-minute seminar designed to help parents and family members gain confidence in assisting their children with their homework by reviewing many of the key math concepts that are introduced in 6th, 7th and 8th grade.
Do you ever use the phrase, "I'm not a math person"? The "Algebra Spoken Here" parent workshop will provide fun ways to overcome your math "phobia." Hear the latest trends and news about math - and why it's more important than ever!
SchoolMathPrep.com and SylvanMathPrep.com
SchoolMathPrep.com is offered by your local Sylvan Learning as a free math resource for local teachers and students in grades 7-12 to use during school hours - for remediation, enrichment and test preparation, and SylvanMathPrep.com is available for on-the-spot math guidance during homework time at home. The educator-created sites deliver more than 2,000 instructor-led videos, covering 750 lessons in pre-algebra, algebra, geometry and specific lessons designed to address the math concepts assessed on the SAT/ACT. Each lesson includes sample problems demonstrating the work and answers, summary notes, a quiz, a worksheet, and a deep thought question. The resources also feature a powerful search function - by concept or keyword or textbook (for a majority of U.S. middle and high school textbooks).
Educators interested in securing the free math resource from our neighborhood Sylvan Learning center are encouraged to visit www.SchoolMathPrep.com. To obtain extra help with math homework – when and where you want it, visit www.SylvanMathPrep.com for a free trial.
Prepare For College:
"Test Stress: A Parent's Real Guide to College Test Prep" Parent Seminar
College admissions today are becoming very competitive. New tools, such as the common application, encourage students to apply to more schools - which increase the competition, making it more difficult for students to gain acceptance into the colleges and universities that were once seen as safe bets. A well-rounded application, including strong SAT and ACT scores, is critical. Getting a college education requires a lot of time, effort and careful planning by students and parents working together. To help navigate the college prep process, your local Sylvan Learning is offering free workshops for parents and college-bound students, "Test Stress: A Parent’s Real Guide to College Test Prep," dedicated to helping families navigate through the SAT/ACT and the complex college admissions process.
The fun, interactive seminar will feature advice from Sylvan educators and leading college admission experts, college coaches and guidance counselors to help parents understand how to create a successful plan for the test-taking season. Families can then use their free, customized College Planner, Parent Resource Guide and High School Tracking Program to ensure their children are college admission ready.
Read for Fun: Book Adventure
Reading enrichment can be yet another vital activity to prepare to re-enter the classroom. Educational experts agree that the more children read, the more they'll enjoy reading, and the better readers they're likely to become. Sylvan Learning has created a free, interactive reading motivation program called Book Adventure where parents and teachers can help children choose books from more than 7,500 titles, take short comprehension quizzes and redeem accumulated points for small prizes. Book Adventure also offers teacher and parent resources and tips to help children develop a lifelong love of reading. For more information, visit www.BookAdventure.com.
Family Resources: DrRickBlog.com
DrRickBlog.com is a one stop resource for parents and educators that provides tips and tools for families of students in grades pre-K to high school. "Dr. Rick," Richard E. Bavaria, Ph.D., Senior Vice President of Education Outreach for Sylvan Learning, has more than forty years of education experience in both the private and public sectors. Dr. Rick's blog features weekly topics concerning the latest trends in education, advice and creative ideas. In addition, DrRickBlog.com invites visitors to post feedback and comments with their own views, helping to further the connection among educators and education-focused families throughout North America. It also incorporates an inspirational and informative, but fun and interactive tone, providing a supportive destination for parents and educators to visit year-round. For more information, visit www.DrRickBlog.com.
Newsletters, Tip Sheets and More
Sylvan's monthly newsletters feature the latest trends in education and other issues important to educators, parents and students in grades pre-K through 12. Additionally, Sylvan offers tip sheets on topics ranging from holding successful parent/teacher conferences, stress-free test taking, helping with homework and more.
Visit the "Parent Resources" area of www.SylvanLearning.com for additional, free tools.
Sylvan Learning Directors and teachers from Flemington, New Jersey dish on the latest educational trends and what you can do to help your child achieve academic success!
Monday, July 25, 2011
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Now is the time to begin preparing for the SAT and ACT
Reduce Anxiety and Increase Confidence for Better SAT* and ACT® Scores
More than three million college admissions tests are administered each year, making the SAT and the ACT two of the most important exams that a high school student will ever take. In order to perform at their best, students should become familiar with the style and types of questions on the tests, in order to avoid “trap-door answers.” In addition, students should boost their reading and vocabulary skills and learn specific process of elimination strategies. Above all, students need to work through as many practice questions and tests as possible in the weeks and months leading up to the actual exam. Your local Sylvan provides courses specifically for SAT preparation as well as other supplemental courses to help students increase their reading speed, shore up any Algebra or Geometry weaknesses before taking the SAT or just get organized for college.
Sylvan Learning, the leading provider of tutoring to students of all ages, grades and skill levels, offers tips to help students prepare for these important tests:
• Unlike the SAT, the ACT has no scoring penalty for incorrect answers, so never leave an ACT question blank.
• On the SAT, by eliminating at least two incorrect answers for every question you’re unsure about, you will mathematically beat the odds of the test and raise your score.
• Since the test’s instructions will not change, don’t waste time reading the instructions on the day of the test. You should already know them.
• Never spend too much time on any single question—it’s just not worth it. It’s better to lose one point on a difficult question than to lose 10 points because you ran out of time on the last part of a section.
• If you are unsure of a question, circle it and come back to it if time permits.
• Don’t get bogged down on the difficult questions before you have racked up as many points as possible on the easy and medium questions.
Students who are interested in a test prep course should visit the “College Prep” area at www.SylvanLearning.com or call your local center to learn more about Sylvan SAT Prep and Sylvan ACT Prep. These courses are offered exclusively through Sylvan Learning and provide proven test-taking strategies, state-of-the-art course materials and content review in small team environments that give students the confidence and personalized attention that help raise test scores.
For additional assistance in helping your teenager prepare for college, attend a free, interactive seminar – “Test Stress: A Parent’s Real Guide to College Test Prep” – to obtain advice from leading college admissions experts that will help you develop action plans to ensure your student is college ready. Visit tutoring.sylvanlearning.com for upcoming seminar details.
More than three million college admissions tests are administered each year, making the SAT and the ACT two of the most important exams that a high school student will ever take. In order to perform at their best, students should become familiar with the style and types of questions on the tests, in order to avoid “trap-door answers.” In addition, students should boost their reading and vocabulary skills and learn specific process of elimination strategies. Above all, students need to work through as many practice questions and tests as possible in the weeks and months leading up to the actual exam. Your local Sylvan provides courses specifically for SAT preparation as well as other supplemental courses to help students increase their reading speed, shore up any Algebra or Geometry weaknesses before taking the SAT or just get organized for college.
Sylvan Learning, the leading provider of tutoring to students of all ages, grades and skill levels, offers tips to help students prepare for these important tests:
• Unlike the SAT, the ACT has no scoring penalty for incorrect answers, so never leave an ACT question blank.
• On the SAT, by eliminating at least two incorrect answers for every question you’re unsure about, you will mathematically beat the odds of the test and raise your score.
• Since the test’s instructions will not change, don’t waste time reading the instructions on the day of the test. You should already know them.
• Never spend too much time on any single question—it’s just not worth it. It’s better to lose one point on a difficult question than to lose 10 points because you ran out of time on the last part of a section.
• If you are unsure of a question, circle it and come back to it if time permits.
• Don’t get bogged down on the difficult questions before you have racked up as many points as possible on the easy and medium questions.
Students who are interested in a test prep course should visit the “College Prep” area at www.SylvanLearning.com or call your local center to learn more about Sylvan SAT Prep and Sylvan ACT Prep. These courses are offered exclusively through Sylvan Learning and provide proven test-taking strategies, state-of-the-art course materials and content review in small team environments that give students the confidence and personalized attention that help raise test scores.
For additional assistance in helping your teenager prepare for college, attend a free, interactive seminar – “Test Stress: A Parent’s Real Guide to College Test Prep” – to obtain advice from leading college admissions experts that will help you develop action plans to ensure your student is college ready. Visit tutoring.sylvanlearning.com for upcoming seminar details.
Monday, July 11, 2011
Summer Spelling
by Dr. Rick
There’s plenty of time in the summer for kids to be carefree and active, liberated from school routines and free to indulge interests, discover new talents, and get plenty of outdoor exercise. But that doesn’t mean their minds are shut down.
Here are some tips your family can consider to keep kids’ spelling skills sharp during the summer. Remember, all language arts skills – reading, writing, listening, and speaking – are related, so when you read, write, speak, and listen with your child, you’re strengthening all those skills.
1. Create a word wall. Write new words your child has mastered on colored paper and “chain” them around her room as a constant and colorful reminder of her increasing vocabulary. A “mini word wall” can be equally efficient and more public on the refrigerator. The more words, the higher the confidence rises.
2. Choose a Letter-of the-Day. Together with really young kids, each day select a letter that your family is going to focus on. Find words in the newspaper, magazines, online, on billboards, and around town that begin with that letter. Make a list of those words. Enlist the participation of older siblings and other family members. Share the words you’ve all discovered at family time.
3. Do a scavenger hunt. Find items that begin with a certain letter. First to find ten items wins an extra ten minutes of bedtime story reading. (Bedtime reading is one of the few times you can loosen up a routine!)
4. Be an artist. With your children, draw or cut out pictures of people, items, and events that start with a certain letter. Be creative and exaggerated for emphasis and vocabulary-building. “F is for flaming fireworks, Fourth of July, fishing, frolicking, fast footraces, free time, fresh fruit, family, friends, and fields full of flawless flowers.” Exhibit these pictures for the whole family to appreciate.
5. Highlight names. Write the names of family members and friends on cards so the youngest kids recognize them. Start with their own names, of course. Decorate the cards with pictures of these people or their hobbies.
6. Play word games in the car. Kids really don’t need to be in front of a screen all the time, especially in the car. For each five minutes on a ride, spot as many items as you can that begin with a certain letter. Make a list. After five minutes, change the letter.
7. Keep a summer journal. Writing helps spelling like no other activity.
8. Play games that reinforce spelling. Play Scrabble, do crossword puzzles (they’re a healthy addiction), make up silly words and rhymes. Rhyming and word games help kids understand the main principle of phonics – letters make sounds and sounds make words.
9. Have a pen pal. Kids love getting mail. Snail mail is more fun than email.
10. Create your own spelling lists. Use favorite summer activities, summer books, and summer interests as your source for words. Find cool summer books by visiting the free www.bookadventure.org for book suggestions and kids’ prizes.
11. Have a family spelling bee. Use words from your readings, your vacation, or your family interests.
12. Practice, practice, practice. Then review. If you’re looking for spelling practice workbooks, check out Sylvan’s, which are excellent.
Go to www.randomhouse.com/sylvanlearningbookstore for a virtual tour.
There’s so much opportunity to improve your kids’ spelling skills and get them confidently ready for the new school year. Don’t waste summer with a lot of boring, passive time-wasters. Have fun, certainly, just don’t shut down.
There’s plenty of time in the summer for kids to be carefree and active, liberated from school routines and free to indulge interests, discover new talents, and get plenty of outdoor exercise. But that doesn’t mean their minds are shut down.
Here are some tips your family can consider to keep kids’ spelling skills sharp during the summer. Remember, all language arts skills – reading, writing, listening, and speaking – are related, so when you read, write, speak, and listen with your child, you’re strengthening all those skills.
1. Create a word wall. Write new words your child has mastered on colored paper and “chain” them around her room as a constant and colorful reminder of her increasing vocabulary. A “mini word wall” can be equally efficient and more public on the refrigerator. The more words, the higher the confidence rises.
2. Choose a Letter-of the-Day. Together with really young kids, each day select a letter that your family is going to focus on. Find words in the newspaper, magazines, online, on billboards, and around town that begin with that letter. Make a list of those words. Enlist the participation of older siblings and other family members. Share the words you’ve all discovered at family time.
3. Do a scavenger hunt. Find items that begin with a certain letter. First to find ten items wins an extra ten minutes of bedtime story reading. (Bedtime reading is one of the few times you can loosen up a routine!)
4. Be an artist. With your children, draw or cut out pictures of people, items, and events that start with a certain letter. Be creative and exaggerated for emphasis and vocabulary-building. “F is for flaming fireworks, Fourth of July, fishing, frolicking, fast footraces, free time, fresh fruit, family, friends, and fields full of flawless flowers.” Exhibit these pictures for the whole family to appreciate.
5. Highlight names. Write the names of family members and friends on cards so the youngest kids recognize them. Start with their own names, of course. Decorate the cards with pictures of these people or their hobbies.
6. Play word games in the car. Kids really don’t need to be in front of a screen all the time, especially in the car. For each five minutes on a ride, spot as many items as you can that begin with a certain letter. Make a list. After five minutes, change the letter.
7. Keep a summer journal. Writing helps spelling like no other activity.
8. Play games that reinforce spelling. Play Scrabble, do crossword puzzles (they’re a healthy addiction), make up silly words and rhymes. Rhyming and word games help kids understand the main principle of phonics – letters make sounds and sounds make words.
9. Have a pen pal. Kids love getting mail. Snail mail is more fun than email.
10. Create your own spelling lists. Use favorite summer activities, summer books, and summer interests as your source for words. Find cool summer books by visiting the free www.bookadventure.org for book suggestions and kids’ prizes.
11. Have a family spelling bee. Use words from your readings, your vacation, or your family interests.
12. Practice, practice, practice. Then review. If you’re looking for spelling practice workbooks, check out Sylvan’s, which are excellent.
Go to www.randomhouse.com/sylvanlearningbookstore for a virtual tour.
There’s so much opportunity to improve your kids’ spelling skills and get them confidently ready for the new school year. Don’t waste summer with a lot of boring, passive time-wasters. Have fun, certainly, just don’t shut down.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Summer Vocabulary Tips
Summer’s a time for slowing down, not shutting down. We need to strive to keep kids’ brains active and learning through summer.
Words are the building blocks of language. The more words we have at our disposal, the better we area at expressing our thoughts, ideas, feelings, and beliefs. The more confident we become in school and work. The more we understand. The more facts we learn, knowledge we accumulate, references we recognize, cultures we discover, jokes we “get.”
Here are some tips to try at home.
1. Keep reading. Reading opens up many doors – imagination, curiosity, discovery, knowledge, maturity, confidence – so you want to indulge your child’s natural interest in new things. As you read together, stop occasionally to explain unfamiliar words or to help him figure out their meaning by their context, by accompanying pictures, by their roots, or by their prefixes, or suffixes. Talk a little bit about the words. No lessons, just parent-child conversation.
2. Reward often. When she correctly uses a word you’ve discussed or read together, reward her with praise. Kids love to be successful and feel accomplished. Just like us.
3. Create word lists. Make lists of words you’ve learned together during the summer. Write them in your summer journal, make a “chain” of words out of construction paper and drape them around the room. Or create a “word wall” that shows how much you’ve learned. Make flashcards – good, old-fashioned, low-tech flashcards – of these new words and have “word sprints” to see how many he can remember in a one-minute period.
4. Make the dictionary your friend. Surely I can’t be the only person who enjoys browsing through the dictionary and picking up a bonus word as I’m looking up another. Develop this habit – it’s like getting two words for the price of one! It’s also a good way to reinforce alphabetizing. Eventually “graduate” to the Thesaurus.
5. Use the words. Now that you’ve learned new words with your child, use them often to reinforce their meanings and develop comfort and fluency. Pronounce them, explain them when necessary, and give examples of how the word can be used.
6. Talk often. Conversation is the best way to learn any language, so make plenty of time to share talks with your child about just about any subject. Summer is full of fun topics like play, travel, the beach, sports, vacations, favorite family stories, memories of relatives, your own summers . . . You get the picture.
7. Memorize. Memorization is an important skill for school and for work. Make a game out of it. Memorize poetry, song lyrics, even short scenes from a favorite play or movie. It’s good brain exercise.
8. Play. Have fun with words. Play word games, do crossword puzzles and word searches, compete in low-stress family spelling bees. Get a laugh out of tongue twisters. (I love them. Here are two of my favorites. “The skunk sat on a stump and thunk the stump stunk. But the stump thunk the skunk stunk.” And, “She stood at the door of Mrs. Smith’s fish sauce shop welcoming him in.” Google others or make up your own.)
9. Create themes. Make up summer word themes for new vocabulary. Concentrate on baseball, say, or Olympic swimming, sand-castle-building or favorite hobbies. Learn as many new words about the theme as possible.
10. Have a study buddy. You’ve heard me advocate for study buddies in many, many blogs. When it’s time for your student to start studying for spelling and vocabulary tests again, encourage him to have a study buddy who’ll support, challenge, and celebrate with him.
Words are the building blocks of language. The more words we have at our disposal, the better we area at expressing our thoughts, ideas, feelings, and beliefs. The more confident we become in school and work. The more we understand. The more facts we learn, knowledge we accumulate, references we recognize, cultures we discover, jokes we “get.”
Here are some tips to try at home.
1. Keep reading. Reading opens up many doors – imagination, curiosity, discovery, knowledge, maturity, confidence – so you want to indulge your child’s natural interest in new things. As you read together, stop occasionally to explain unfamiliar words or to help him figure out their meaning by their context, by accompanying pictures, by their roots, or by their prefixes, or suffixes. Talk a little bit about the words. No lessons, just parent-child conversation.
2. Reward often. When she correctly uses a word you’ve discussed or read together, reward her with praise. Kids love to be successful and feel accomplished. Just like us.
3. Create word lists. Make lists of words you’ve learned together during the summer. Write them in your summer journal, make a “chain” of words out of construction paper and drape them around the room. Or create a “word wall” that shows how much you’ve learned. Make flashcards – good, old-fashioned, low-tech flashcards – of these new words and have “word sprints” to see how many he can remember in a one-minute period.
4. Make the dictionary your friend. Surely I can’t be the only person who enjoys browsing through the dictionary and picking up a bonus word as I’m looking up another. Develop this habit – it’s like getting two words for the price of one! It’s also a good way to reinforce alphabetizing. Eventually “graduate” to the Thesaurus.
5. Use the words. Now that you’ve learned new words with your child, use them often to reinforce their meanings and develop comfort and fluency. Pronounce them, explain them when necessary, and give examples of how the word can be used.
6. Talk often. Conversation is the best way to learn any language, so make plenty of time to share talks with your child about just about any subject. Summer is full of fun topics like play, travel, the beach, sports, vacations, favorite family stories, memories of relatives, your own summers . . . You get the picture.
7. Memorize. Memorization is an important skill for school and for work. Make a game out of it. Memorize poetry, song lyrics, even short scenes from a favorite play or movie. It’s good brain exercise.
8. Play. Have fun with words. Play word games, do crossword puzzles and word searches, compete in low-stress family spelling bees. Get a laugh out of tongue twisters. (I love them. Here are two of my favorites. “The skunk sat on a stump and thunk the stump stunk. But the stump thunk the skunk stunk.” And, “She stood at the door of Mrs. Smith’s fish sauce shop welcoming him in.” Google others or make up your own.)
9. Create themes. Make up summer word themes for new vocabulary. Concentrate on baseball, say, or Olympic swimming, sand-castle-building or favorite hobbies. Learn as many new words about the theme as possible.
10. Have a study buddy. You’ve heard me advocate for study buddies in many, many blogs. When it’s time for your student to start studying for spelling and vocabulary tests again, encourage him to have a study buddy who’ll support, challenge, and celebrate with him.
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