Tutors: How Every Student Can Benefit

U.S. Department of  Education

While poor test scores and bad grades are an obvious indicator that your student needs help, there are many other instances in which a tutor can really help your child to learn the skills they need to be confident, independent, successful learners.

The most important factor in determining whether your student could benefit from a tutor is communication; speak with them about the kinds of help a tutor can offer and speak with your child’s teacher too.

Building Confidence

Not being top of the class can cause students to feel less confident. This, in turn, could seriously affect their performance in class. When students lack confidence, they tend not to ask or answer questions in class. The teacher may overlook quieter students and they won’t participate in class and group activities with as much enthusiasm which will affect their academic performance over time.

Executive Skills

More than any other assets like intelligence and talent, executive skills determine the success of a student. The ability to organize time, prioritize tasks and memorise data is key to academic performance. If you know that your child is smart, but they don’t study, have trouble focussing, often don’t hand in work or fail to study for exams, they may need some help with their executive skills.

Teaching executive skills early on will ensure that they are able to handle their workload in later grades and at college. While they should get some training in executive skills at school, large class sizes mean teachers just don’t have time to teach these skills.

A one-on-one teacher who specializes in executive skills can help your child to organize their time and carefully plan so that they leave enough time to complete assignments and study for exams. Learning studying and memorizing skills will also help to minimize time spent studying.

Honing these skills should reduce the daily homework hassles and minimize frantic morning searches for lost homework or forgetting assignments.

Academic Foundations

Each student will have gaps in their academic foundations which get compounded as they move through their school careers. Each new grade builds on the last and teachers don’t have the time to go back and explain work that has already been covered. When your child gets one-on-one tutoring, their tutor is able to start at the beginning and work through the academic foundations to find gaps and fill them.

Better Grades

Students with great grades need tutors too, especially if they have schools, scholarships or programs they want to qualify for. If you have a talented student that has started to struggle, chances are that they are just bored. When gifted students get bored, they tend to stop paying attention in class and don’t work as hard because they aren’t challenged. When this happens, their grades suffer and they may miss important opportunities.

Whether your child is bored or they want to turn their A into an A+, you can trust a one-on-one tutor to help them to excel. Your tutor can work with teachers to find extra, more challenging work for your child to take on.

Exercise Can Relieve ADHD Symptoms

Picture from USAG Humphreys

ADHD can cause students to have trouble staying focused and impedes their academic performance. For about two thirds of those suffering from ADHD, prescription drugs may bring some relief of symptoms, but the side effects can be severe. New studies show that exercise can help to relieve the symptoms of ADHD for many students and help them excel academically.

Exercise as an alternate ADHD medication

The Pediatrics research journal recently published the results of a study which showed that children who exercised regularly displayed improved brain function and cognitive performance. Their executive functions improved and they even scored better on their tests, especially for math and reading comprehension.

Executive functions are essential in combating the symptoms of ADHD as they allow the student to resist distraction. An improved executive function will allow students to maintain focus and will improve their working memory. Executive functions also govern a student’s ability to move from one task to another which is called cognitive flexibility.

John Ratey, an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard, has suggested that exercise be prescribed as a medication to combat the effects of ADHD because it causes the release of dopamine and serotonin. These two ‘feel good’ hormones boost academic performance and improve mood. "Think of exercise as medication,” says Ratey. “For a very small handful of people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD ADD), it may actually be a replacement for stimulants, but, for most, it’s complementary — something they should absolutely do, along with taking meds, to help increase attention and improve mood.”

Exercise also has a wealth of benefits that go beyond the classroom and it has no bad side effects! The biggest problem for most parents is getting sedentary students away from TVs and computer screens and outdoors where they can exercise.

Get your kids moving!

The best way to get your kids moving is to make it fun rather than a chore. You can take walks around your neighborhood; just 30 minutes four times a week will do the trick. Encourage your kids to participate in outdoor activities and get them to join a club or sports team, bike to school and go for hikes on the weekend. Be a good example for your children and find fun and exciting ways to get them moving every day.

There are many local resources for parents like Michelle Obama’s ‘Let’s Move’ campaign which offers parents advice on how to get their kids moving. The British Heart Foundation offers tips on how to encourage exercise and how much exercise children need. Canadian families can get a tax cut called the Children’s Fitness Tax Credit. Parents can claim up to $1000 per child for expenses related to fitness, sports and exercise.

Encouraging Girls to be Leaders

Picture from Francisco Osorio 

There’s a reason we have so few women in leadership positions; they aren’t always encouraged and empowered to step up. Women make up more than half the population, but in the US, they make up only 18.5 percent of congress and 24.2 percent of state legislatures. Ever noticed how boys are encouraged to lead while little girls are often called ‘bossy’? Studies show that the gap in confidence starts around middle school. Here’s how to create a culture where little girls are free to lead.

Ban Bossy

The organization Ban Bossy is on a mission to change the way we describe leaders. While boys are often described as ‘charismatic’ or ‘confident’, girls get the ‘bossy’ label when they have a take-charge attitude. This organization is encouraging parents and educators to be more aware of the language they use when addressing girls so that we can create a culture that encourages young girls to lead.

Even Beyoncé’ added her support with her video: “I’m not bossy, I’m the boss.”

Watch it here.

Build Confidence

Remind your daughters and students every day that they are valued and capable. Resist doing things for them or taking over tasks that they are not doing well; this sends the wrong message. Instead, encourage them and help them to do things themselves.

“That’s for boys’

Ban this phrase from your vocabulary. If she wants to play with mechanical toys and cars, perhaps she will grow up to be an engineer. If she wants to play sports, that’s a great way to learn to be part of a team. In fact, playing a sport or belonging to a club is a great way to encourage leadership.

Don’t always Let Her Win

A good leader is able to overcome adversity; where others see problems, a good leader sees a challenge. As much as you want to shield your children from disappointment or failure, see these as teachable moments that will help them to deal with tough times. Encourage a ‘can do’ positive attitude and be a good example.

Foster Independent Thinking and Decision-making

Wherever possible, encourage your daughters to find their own solutions to problems and to make their own decisions. Of course you will be there to guide them, but try to let them make up their own minds; it shows that you have faith in their abilities.

Love Her Just the Way She Is

This may sound intuitive, but often we tend to validate only those traits that represent the people we want them to be. Recognizing each person’s unique gifts, talents and personality traits for what they are is essential in building self-confidence.

Teach Her About Money

Ensure the she has a good understanding of how to manage her finances effectively. It’s never too early or too late to teach the value of savings, investments and deferred gratitude.

Pursue Passion

Foster passion in all areas of her life and encourage her to follow her heart, to set goals and to create plans on how to achieve them.

Should your Student Take a Gap Year?

Picture from Jason Priem

From Harvard to MIT, many of the most prestigious colleges are recommending a gap year. While most North American parents cringe at the mention of a gap year, it has been standard practice for most European and Australian scholars for years. The thinking here is that a gap year gives high-school students who are burnt out from ACTs, SATs and college applications a chance to recharge. It also gives those students who aren’t quite mature enough or aren’t sure of their career path a little more time to find their feet.

Gap Years can be a Good Thing

For most parents, the biggest concern is that a gap year will turn into gap years and their students won’t fulfill their college dreams. College admissions officers disagree. They claim that there are very few students who are a no-show after a gap year.

They support gap years because they feel that students who are better prepared are more likely to complete their degrees. Most colleges allow newly accepted students to defer for a year while they complete public service or internships.

This is in an effort to reduce the relatively high dropout rates (30% for first year students). According to the Collage Board, three out of five students don’t manage to complete their four-year degrees in the first five years of college. The thinking here is that students who have taken a gap year will be more prepared and better equipped to deal with their studies.

Structure your Gap Year

Travel, volunteering and internships are all possibilities for gap years, but encourage your students to take on these tasks by themselves and to plan their gap years carefully. You can also ask them to make a budget for the year; just because you’re paying for college doesn’t mean you have to fork out for a gap year too. Most students take on part-time jobs to fund their gap years.

If you and your student have decided on a gap year, don’t let this be the reason for delaying the ACTs or SATs or for delaying college admissions. Students should stay on track and gain college admission which they can defer for a year. They have a far greater chance of going to college if they have already secured admission.

If your student didn’t get into their college of choice, a gap year can offer them a second run at it. While gap year experience is no guarantee of college acceptance, it may help to bolster admissions that were not successful the previous year.

If your student is considering a gap year, be sure that this doesn’t give them an excuse to drop the academic ball in their last year. Try to ensure that they secure a college admission before heading off and make sure that their year is planned and structured so they get the most out of their year off. 

Brain foods that actually make you Smarter

Bryan

No matter what age you are, your brain can keep growing and developing; all it needs is some exercise and the right fuel. Just like your body, your brain needs the right nutrients in order to keep functioning properly. Your brain uses about 20% of your daily calorie intake. If those calories are high in complex carbohydrates and refined sugars, your brain won’t be functioning at its peak.

If you want to be firing on all cylinders for school, work or exams, there are foods that help to boost brain health and give your grey matter the fuel it needs to succeed.

Glucose

One of the things your brain needs most is glucose. Without a constant supply, memory loss and an inability to concentrate effectively will leave you scrambling for answers. Healthy sources of glucose include grains, fruits and vegetables.

Unhealthy sources of glucose can be found in candy, soda and products which contain a lot of refined sugar. Consuming too much sugar can negatively affect your ability to concentrate and may prevent you from effectively accessing your memory. These refined sugars also negatively affect your blood pressure. When this spikes and drops, you will be left feeling lethargic and too tired to think straight.

Keep a constant supply of glucose flowing to the brain by eating regular meals. Avoid skipping meals (especially breakfast) and try to eat small, healthy meals every couple of hours. Always aim to get seven servings of fresh fruits and veggies a day.

Iron

Brains love iron and this can be found in leafy green vegetables like kale and spinach. You can also find a ready supply of iron in red meats and some grains. Brains are particularly fond of vitamins from the B-family. These can be found in whole grains, wheat germ, organic eggs, bran, whole wheat, oatmeal, brown rice and nuts.

Omega-3

Foods containing Omega-3 fatty acids are really good for brain health. You can find these in oily fish like wild salmon. Walnuts are brilliant brain food as are edible seeds like flax, hemp and chia.

Anti-oxidants

The anti-oxidant properties of berries are legendary and can be found in acai and blueberries. Acai berries are also a great source of Omega-3.

Magnesium

Magnesium is also an important nutrient for healthy brains. You can find magnesium in Swiss chard, spinach, potato skins, quinoa, peas, yogurt, cheese, soy products, tofu, fish, nuts and lentils.

Luteolin

A plant compound called luteolin helps to reduce the effects of aging on the brain as well as brain inflammation. Luteolin can be found in carrots and is also instrumental in promoting good memory.

Study Skills: Getting Organized!

Image from Cybrarian77

Organizational skills do not come naturally; they are a learned ability that can help your students in their academic and personal lives. With large class sizes and demanding curricula, most teachers barely have enough time to teach coursework, let alone study skills.

If your child is smart but scattered, they may be forgetting to do homework or assignments which seriously impacts their grades. Not being able to prioritize tasks and organize activities means they don’t leave enough time to study or do their assignments. When this happens, bad grades and a feeling of being overwhelmed can cause damage to confidence and self-esteem.

Roadmap to success

One of the biggest problems for school children is simply forgetting upcoming tests, assignments and homework. Get your student a diary or workbook where they can record each and every task that they need to do and when it is due.

For example, the Tutor Doctor’s X-Skills program provides students with a workbook where they record every tasks that needs to be done. They start by jotting down the task quickly in class as the teacher assigns it. Then, every day when they get home, they mark the task into their study schedule. Tutors help them to determine how much time it will take and then they block off time in their workbooks to complete the task.

Students must check their workbooks every night to see what books, tasks and homework to take so that they are organized for their next school day.

Prioritizing tasks

One of the biggest obstacles to being organized is an inability to prioritize. If your child is falling behind, evaluate their after-school activities to see if they aren’t overloaded. If social or extra-mural activities are taking up study time, it may be time to reconsider.

Another important aspect is to say no to social interactions during study time. This means no texting or calling during times marked off for studying. Students don’t always have to say ‘no’ to social invitations, but they must learn to say ‘not now’.

The right environment

Creating an organized, quiet, well-lit and comfortable study area is imperative. If you want your student to be focused and to make the most of their study time, then provide them with a space that is free from distractions, noisy siblings and TV. If your home cannot accommodate this space, consider the library, a neighbor’s house or even a quiet coffee shop.

Get a tutor

Tutors will help your child to catch up, but they can also teach study and organizational skills so that your child becomes a successful independent learner. Opt for an organization that has an academic game plan in place. Here your child should be assessed to see exactly what their academic needs are so that you and your student have an accurate idea of the gaps that need to be filled. Realistic, attainable goals should then be set with a road map of how those goals will be achieved. This helps your child to understand how to set long and short-term goals.

Teaching your child the fundamental skills they need to succeed academically is the first step in better learning and a better life.