Wednesdays parent

Wednesday’s Parent: Encourage Summer Reading

 

summer readingThe National Literacy Trust did the research and found that becoming a lifetime reader is based on developing a deep love of reading.

“Research has repeatedly shown that motivation to read decreases with age, especially if pupils’ attitudes towards reading become less positive,” it said. “If children do not enjoy reading when they are young, then they are unlikely to do so when they get older.”

But if a student doesn’t see people reading at home, it may be harder to instill the idea of reading for pleasure. One of the best activities to encourage over the summer is reading. Reading improves vocabulary—a key component on standardized tests.

What can parents do to encourage summer reading?

Get involved

Discuss what books you are reading and why they interest you. Talk about blogs or articles that you have read and use these discussions to spark interest. This can be done over dinner as you encourage everyone at the table to get involved in the discussion.

Foster escape

Reading offers escape from the challenges of life and allows students to become engrossed as a form of self-indulgent relaxation. Seeing reading as a pleasurable activity and a means of escape moves it from the “have to” category of tasks to the “want to” column. Summer offers them the time to immerse themselves in all types of books and reading that interest them.

Encourage varied interest

It makes sense that a student will be more willing to read if it’s something that interests them. Allow your student to have control of venturing from one book to another, one area of interest to another, and one medium to another. Introduce them to a wide variety of texts and genres—comics, ebooks, short stories, online articles, blogs, and magazines shouldn’t be ignored.

Parents who read foster reading interest in their children. It’s not enough to say, “Go read a book”. Even if the child submits to the request, if they don’t enjoy reading, they aren’t going to absorb what they read and want to read more. Readers are more successful in school and in life. It’s one of the ways students grow mentally and intellectually.

Read Wendy’s post: 6 Unexpected Bonuses from Summer Reading

______________________________

Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Wendy and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

The bonus is on the fourth Wednesday of each month when Wendy and I will host Twitter chat #CampusChat at 9pm ET/6pm PT. We will feature an expert on a topic of interest for parents of the college-bound.

Wednesday’s Parent will give twice the info and double the blog posts on critical parenting issues by clicking on the link at the end of the article from parentingforcollege to pocsmom.com and vice versa.

App Tuesday

8 History Apps for College-Bound Teens

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history appsApps make our lives easier: from monitoring spending, to organizing our calendar, to finding the nearest restaurant. One of the best ways to use apps is to encourage and improve our college-bound teen’s education.

Today’s App Tuesday post is about history apps. Whether you need to reference an article of the Constitution, find out what happened today 100 years ago, or look up some famous speeches, here are some apps that have got you covered.

Documents

Sometimes it would be easier if historical documents and your classroom textbook were pocket sized. Luckily, through a few iPhone apps, some are virtually so.

  • Constitution (Free) – Mix-up no amendment or article again with a complete copy of the U.S. Constitution at your fingertips.
  • Declaration of Independence (Free) – And if you have the Constitution, why not get the Declaration of Independence app as well?
  • U.S. Historical Documents (99 cents) — U.S. Historical Documents contains over 200 of the most influential documents in U.S. history and they will be stored directly on your iPhone/iPod Touch. Quickly and easily find any text from any document with the fastest and most powerful search engine available on the iPhone. Have the documents automatically scroll for you in both portrait and landscape modes while reading. Create notes for each paragraph which can be displayed inline. You can even assign bookmarks to any paragraph in any document for future reference. Highlight important words or phrases using the absolute best highlighting system available.

 Reference

Browse historical maps, quote famous speeches, and find out what happened today in history with a number of reference apps.

Learning

  • History App (Free) —Watch your favorite HISTORY shows and content on your iPad, iPhone or Android device with the HISTORY app. Get free access to full episodes, clips and topical videos, all available whenever and wherever you want. New video is added every day so you’ll always have something to watch! Hundreds of videos on historic topics, including the original web series. And a great feature—History: Deconstructed and Bet You Didn’t Know. Available for iPad, iPhone, Android and Windows Mobile
  • Historia World (Free) —Think you know everything about the world history? Try Historia World! Historia is a quizz which will test your general knowledge in History. Historia is very easy to play: try to find the date of the historic events of the selected category. The closer you are, the bigger your score! If you can gain enough points you will be rewarded with a book in your library.
college guidance, mom approved tips, parenting

Mom-Approved Tips: How Early is Too Early to Prepare for College?

 

prepare for collegeHow early is too early to prepare for college? We’ve all seen those movie clips where the parents are agonizing over the right preschool to prepare their kids for the right kindergarten, the right grade school, and the right college preparatory school. These overachieving parents are convinced that college prep begins at birth. They take it to a whole other level elevating college jerseys into full blown college prep. But just how early is too early and how far should parents go when preparing their children for college?

With competition for college admission becoming stronger, parents are recognizing the need to begin college prep early. That doesn’t mean that you start drilling college into your toddler’s head (although some parents have been known to do this). It does mean that you begin a foundation for their education that will carry them into high school and eventually into college.

Looking at the three phases of education (elementary school, middle school and high school), what should parents do to prepare their students for college?

Elementary School

When discussing college prep, most of the discussions start in middle school and the steps begin when a student is in high school. But for a student to be truly prepared for college, parents should begin talking about it, thinking about it, and discussing it as early as elementary school.

Start talking about the value of education

Begin talking about the importance of education when your child enters kindergarten. The first seven years of education are filled with learning fundamental skills and gaining knowledge. This is the foundation of all future education. If your child loves school, excels in school, and is motivated to study and achieve excellence, the logical progression will be to continue their education by going to college.

Start talking about college

The opportunities that a college education provides can be relayed to your children during the early years of education.

For example, if your child is interested in dinosaurs, parents should talk about how people that research and recover dinosaur bones had to go to college first to learn how it’s done. Or if he is interested in space, discuss how scientists and astronauts go to college to learn the skills they need to work in that field. A child’s enthusiasms are the perfect opportunities to start a discussion about how college is key to pursuing and following those interests.

Your student might also be interested in pursuing an education online, like this online BSW (Bachelor of Social Work) offered by Spring Arbor University. There are many opportunities available for your student to pursue a Bachelor’s degree online.

Visit colleges with the family

Visiting college isn’t just for teenagers. Many universities provide campus tours and visiting days when a staff member will guide a grade school class, or other group of children, around the campus and explain the unique and exciting things they can do when they grow up and go to college. Parents can also schedule outings with their children to the college or university from which they graduated. The important thing is to make college sound interesting, exciting and accessible.

Read more college prep tips from TeenLife for middle school and high school students

essays, Guest Posts, Uncategorized

Answering the Common App Essay Prompts

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essayOver the past five years I have read and commented on hundreds of essays from students all over the country. As a result of that work, I have two categories of advice: general essay-writing tips (which we’ll discuss soon), and specific ways to make the Common App essay prompts work for you.

The big idea here is that the story you want to tell matters a lot more than the prompt you attach to it. Most stories are about more than one thing, so yours might be about identity and failure, or about contentment and coming of age. So write the story first, and then figure out how to pitch it to an admissions committee. Having said that, it’s still useful to understand the questions. So let’s look at them in detail:

1. Some students have a background or story that is so central to their identity that they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

There are several ways to read this question:  Is your ethnic, racial, cultural, or linguistic background central to your identity? Do you have a specific story you can tell that illustrates that in an engaging way? Sweet. Try it and see how it goes.

But that’s not the only thing way to answer this question. It can also be about what it felt like when your family moved from Oklahoma to NYC, and how that move made you who you are today. It could be about the birth of your little sister the summer before your junior year, and how becoming one of her primary caregivers changed your perception of yourself.

2. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what lessons did you learn?

One way to think about this question is that’s not really about the failure at all, but rather, about the response to failure. It’s an opportunity for you to tell the admissions officers how you respond to adversity. What’s nice about this question is that you don’t have to pretend that your failure was actually a success, or any of that job-interview nonsense. If you face-planted in epic style, write about that, as long as you then write about how you dug all the gravel out of your face and kept going.

You can also add to your understanding of this question by thinking broadly about what it means to fail at something. You could write about failing tenth grade chemistry. But really, it would be a lot more interesting to write about how you came to the realization that no matter how hard you worked, your feet would never allow you dance on pointe. One of my students wrote about how she came to accept that fact, but that in doing so, she also discovered not only how to dance for pleasure again, but to enjoy other activities, too.

3. Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?

Just like the question about failure, this question should be understood as broadly as possible. Don’t limit it to school. Do your parents believe that financial security is the only consideration in choosing a career, while you want to be an actor? Do your parents want you to follow your dreams, while you want something grounded and practical for yourself? Does your school worship athletic prowess, while you think social action is more important?

Stories about standing up to bullies or publishing an article in the school newspaper that the administration didn’t want you to are great examples, but bravery isn’t always loud and public; sometimes it’s quiet and private.

4. Describe a place or environment where you are perfectly content. What do you do or experience there, and why is it meaningful to you?

What’s your favorite TV show? (Quick – just pick one.) Now, think about what makes that show your favorite. Is everyone in it happy all the time, and good friends all the time, and nothing ever happens because there’s no drama? A lot of my students have said things like, “I feel really content while playing the piano because it lets me lose myself in the music,” or “I feel really content in my grandmother’s kitchen.”

But being content doesn’t really make for a good story. So for this essay, try to think about why you feel content somewhere. One of my students wrote about being content in the dance studio at her school, and the process that led her to feel that way. She hadn’t always felt content there. In fact, for a while she had felt intimidated there. The essay turned out to be about how she grew into herself, both as a dancer and as a leader.

5. Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.

Just as the failure question isn’t really about failure, this one isn’t really about the accomplishment or event: it’s about how you fit into your community. So you can write about your bar or bat mitzvah, or your quinceañera, but you could also write about your first job, or the time you had to put your dog down, or what you learned from looking after your younger sibling.

Remember when I said that the story matters more than the prompt? That’s because all the prompts are really the same prompt, asking for the same story: “Tell us how you’ve grown and matured over time.”

 __________________________

­Today’s guest post is by Rachel Shulman of Shulman & Hill, LLC. Rachel is a passionate teacher, and her students often comment that this passion and excitement for her subject makes them more interested, sometimes in spite of themselves. She has helped students achieve their goals in all three AP History classes and both AP English classes, as well as on the Reading Comprehension and Writing sections of the ACT and SAT. Since the fall of 2010, she has edited over 300 college application essays, working both on her own and with independent educational consultants.

A graduate of Bryn Mawr College, where she majored in History, Rachel also holds an MA in History and an MS in Library and Information Science, both from the University of Illinois – Urbana Champaign.  

Based in the Boston area, but with students all over the country, Shulman & Hill specializes in standardized test preparation, high school English, History, Math, Physics, Biology, and college application essays. We provide individualized learning plans tailored to the student’s unique learning style. Our goal is to leave our clients prepared for independent academic success.

parenting

Motivation for Students Starts at Home

 

helping without harmingAfter finishing high school, which means the end of the obligatory studies, some students struggle to maintain a positive attitude towards learning, especially if they have found a job offer. If you were to ask them, “what do you prefer,money now or money in 10 years,” you’d find out how some of them are so impatient that they prefer the money now, even if it’s a smaller amount. That’s why us, parents, have to be there to motivate them to go to college or to study an occupation and in that way in which they don’t believe it’s only a mandatory thing imposed by adults. In this post we’ll see how to motivate our kids from an early age to always choose to study:

The family is the environment in which our child’s education begins, and also the main model of values and behaviors that guides the cognitive and affective student’s future development. Here’s where parents have the opportunity to get that their children enjoy learning.

Everything should start by educating by an example to follow. Parents who show interest and enthusiasm for their child’s learning tasks and express their curiosity to learn new skills convey this attitude to the student naturally. Several researches say that parental behavior can influence the motivation or demotivate their children to learn, so it’s important too to adopt this disposition in leisure time: parents should teach their kid from an early age to look for the answer to questions, to participate in activities with enthusiasm and to get satisfaction when they get significant achievements in life.

Family should also encourage and appreciate this effort over the results; if we want our child to be motivated in its tasks, they need to suit its capabilities and to increase the difficulty as the student gains new skills cause otherwise, if he’s always required to do the activities he doesn’t understand yet, it’s easy that he feels frustrated and demotivated if he sees his efforts were not worth it. In these cases, it’s necessary to teach him to overcome his problems through perseverance and constant work and to be confident in his skills.

Now, regarding formal education, parents can also influence their children’s motivation by helping them with homework, in order to teach them to deal with problems and to have a good relationship with their teachers. If parents and children share objectives and strategies, the interest of the children to learn will always win.

Wednesdays parent

Wednesday’s Parent: Stress, Stress and More Stress

 

stressThere is nothing more stressful than college prep while dealing with teenage drama. Following are the “best of” tips from Wednesday’s Parent on stress.

Surviving Standardized Tests

Nothing speaks more stress than standardized tests. Those two words or their acronyms are yelled, and screeched and treated with disdain in every college-bound household. Those two words cause fights, stressful days and nights, frustration over the teen’s lack of commitment, and absolute terror in the hearts of most college-bound teens. Nobody, and I mean nobody, likes taking tests.

For some tips on dealing with stress from the parent’s and the student’s perspective read more.

Pushing Buttons

Raising teenagers is stressful. Kids, especially teens, know exactly how to push your buttons. It might be back talk, or constant complaining or eye-rolling, but whatever the behavior, nearly every parent will experience the tactic of pushing buttons. Instead of giving my own advice on this topic, I’ve taken from two sources that should help you see both sides of the coin and perhaps help you deal with this inevitable conflict.

For tips on dealing with all the buttons teenagers push and seeing how parents in return push buttons as well, read more.

The Stress of College Prep

Stress. It’s a killer. Parents and teens deal with stress on a daily basis; and when the college prep season arrives, the stress intensifies. Do you know what to expect and how to deal with it? Just as with any family situation, anticipating problems that can or might arise should help you respond properly and deal with stress during college prep.

For tips on how to react to stressful college prep scenarios, read more.

Sibling Rivalry

Siblings. The very word conjures up thoughts of rivalry. A house with siblings is a house with sibling rivalry. As with any family, competition among siblings begins at an early age. They compete over just about everything: toys, bedtimes, gifts, food, clothing, and the list goes on and on. It’s only natural that the rivalry would increase during the college prep time, thus increasing stress. But is the rivalry between the siblings of their doing or are you initiating the rivalry by comparing one child to another?

For tips on how to deal with sibling rivalry, read more.

Read Wendy’s post: Wednesday’s Parent: Favorite Lines and Tips

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Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Wendy and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

The bonus is on the fourth Wednesday of each month when Wendy and I will host Twitter chat #CampusChat at 9pm ET/6pm PT. We will feature an expert on a topic of interest for parents of the college-bound.

Wednesday’s Parent will give twice the info and double the blog posts on critical parenting issues by clicking on the link at the end of the article from parentingforcollege to pocsmom.com and vice versa.

college guidance, college planning, mom approved tips

Mom-Approved Tips: Does It Matter WHERE You Go to College?

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where you go to collegeMuch is debated about college names and prestige, especially among parents. It’s logical that parents want their kids to have the best opportunities available. It’s illogical that they place more value in the name than in the education itself. But so many parents encourage their kids to make illogical college choices. Where you go to college is not as important as you might think.

A rose by another other name is just as sweet

The college education itself is more important than the college name. Your student can get an excellent education at a community college, a small liberal arts college, or are large state university.

Attitude means more than status

If a student isn’t invested in college, the college reputation won’t make him any more committed to the education. Attitude is everything. A student who desires a learning and life experience can make that happen in any college environment.

There’s more to an education than the cost

Expensive institutions would want you to believe that their price is high because your student will receive a better education. That is not the case. There are over 400 four-year universities and colleges in this country providing quality education.

Employers don’t care about the names

A colleague of mine told me that some of the best government contractors will shun Ivy League graduates over those of the state colleges. Here’s on recruiter’s perspective:

Sometimes the poor kid who had to pay his way through Chico State has the most pluck and is the most driven. These types of employees are sometimes the most successful of all, because they are used to working hard from the get-go and did not come by anything in life through their dad’s connections. They have no sense of entitlement, so are willing to get their hands dirty for the mission.

Read the rest of the article and you’ll see why a college name doesn’t always fly with job recruiters.

Bragging rights for parents doesn’t translate into a good college investment. What matters most is the fit—does the college fit into your student’s wants and needs academically, financially, and socially. Plopping down big bucks in the hopes of a big payback after graduation is not a wise decision unless all the criteria are met.

Scholarship Friday, scholarships

Debunking 6 Scholarship Myths

 

truthEveryone has his or her own opinion about college scholarships. But the truth is most of those opinions are incorrect. Don’t believe what you hear from skeptics. Here’s the real truth about scholarship myths.

Myth 1

“Only low income families get help paying for college.”

Truth: Absolutely FALSE!

There are all sorts of reasons for scholarship awards: academics, special interests, talents, achievements, personal qualities, activities, skills, family heritage, geographical location, and the list goes on and on!

Myth 2

“Most scholarships are for athletes or minority students.”

Truth: Categorically FALSE!

Minorities and athletes encompass only one small portion of the scholarship landscape. For instance, there are scholarships for surfers, filmmakers, horse groomers, southpaws, and even descendants of revolutionary war and civil war vets; just to name a few.

Myth 3

“Only the smartest students win merit awards.”

Truth: Completely FALSE!

Many of the best scholarships are designed for students who devote time to music, performing arts, foreign languages, community service, web design, science projects, leadership, amateur radio, writing, photography, oratory, and even part time jobs.

Myth 4

“Once you’ve graduated from high school, it’s too late to apply for a college scholarship.”

Truth: WRONG!

Even if you’re already in college there are still scholarships to apply for. They may be a bit harder to find, but they are out there.

Myth 5

“Past actions and choices pre-determine scholarship success.”

Truth: FALSE if you utilize this tip!

Turn weaknesses into strengths. What your teen does from this point on can make all the difference. You can’t change your past but you can certainly use it as a tool to show others that you learn from your mistakes and rise above them.

Myth 6

“It’s best to just apply for a few awards because that maximizes your odds of winning.”

Truth: Extremely FALSE!

It’s a numbers game; apply for as many as you can. You never know which application will hit pay dirt.

Before you dismiss searching for scholarships, you should know all the facts. Don’t believe what the skeptics tell you. There are too many students attending college on scholarships to believe any of these myths.

 

financial aid, websites

Edvisors: Demystifying Financial Aid

EdvisorsEdvisors

Get any two parents of college-bound teens together and the topic of financial aid is likely to come up. Every parent dreams of their son or daughter getting a free ride to college. It happens, but it takes some real determination and planning.

Mark Kantrowitz, the founder of FinAid, left that nationally recognized website last year to create a new online resource at Edvisors.com for parents and students to help them learn how to pay for college.

Topics covered

Here are some of the topics that you’ll find by spending time on Edvisors:

  • Student Aid Secrets for Increasing Eligibility
  • Eligibility Requirements for Financial Aid
  • Federal College Grants
  • How To Choose a Student Loan
  • Finding and Applying for Scholarships
  • Paying Back Parent and Student Federal Loans
  • Military Student Aid

Free Guide to Filing the FAFSA

On the Edvisors’ website, you can also download a free copy of  Filing the FAFSA:  The Edvisors Guide to Completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid 2014-2015 Edition.

To download Filing the FAFSA you will have to provide information that will put you on Edvisors’ newsletter list, but you can always opt out if you prefer. As an alternative, you can also buy the 249-page paperback version on Amazon.

Education Tax Benefits

There is a section of the website that contains an excellent and informative explanation of federal education tax benefits. The section describes each tax benefit, and teaches you which are the optimal education tax benefits for your family:  Picking the Best Mix of Education Tax Credits and Benefits.

Asking for help

The site gives you an opportunity to post your financial aid questions in a section of the website entitled, Ask the Edvisors. You can also view previously asked questions and the answers provided by the site’s founder Mark Kantrowitz.

Spend some time navigating the site and discover valuable information regarding paying for your student’s college education.

college planning, Wednesdays parent

Wednesday’s Parent: Making the Illogical Logical-The Final College List

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final college listLast week, I talked about Illogical college choices; choices that college-bound teens make that have nothing to do with the quality of education. Without strong parenting and some tough love, those illogical choices might make their way onto the final college list. Be strong and remember that you are the parent and often they need a slight dose of reality to snap them back into the realization that this decision is an important one.

Here are the three components of a final college list: reach schools, best fit schools, and safety schools.

Following a name—the dream team

So many students believe that attending a college with a “name” guarantees success. It’s your job to help them understand this is not necessarily true. The best college is the college that fits their academic, social and financial goals. It could be a “name”, but it will most likely won’t. Those colleges have low acceptance rates and give little financial aid. I’m all for dreaming but when it comes to a college list, practically and logic reign.

Following the money—the best bets

The colleges that populate this part of the list are colleges that would put your student at the top of the applicant pool. Of all the reasons, this is the most logical. After careful research, these colleges should be ones that offer everything on your student’s list: financial aid, academic fit, and an emotional connection. It’s not all about the money, but it sure does make the final decision easier.

Following a whim—the sure things

So many students add colleges on a whim just because they can’t decide. This happens more often than not when choosing the safety schools or sure things. These colleges could end up being the colleges that accept them and/or give them the most financial aid. Discuss the choices and make sure that these colleges are colleges your student wants to attend. It will relieve pressure and stress if they offer admission.

Turning illogical choices into logical ones is a delicate balance. Guiding your student in the right direction without forcing is the key. It’s easy—about as easy as threading a camel through the eye of a needle.

Read Wendy’s post: 5 Fantastic Tips to Refine a College List

 _____________________

Wendy and I will share more insights into making a great college list on Wednesday’s Parent night (the fourth Wednesday of each month) on #CampusChat, Wednesday, July 23, 9pm ET/6pm PT. We will talk about the many factors to consider, how to finalize the list and the parent role in the process. Join us and bring your questions and comments.

_________________________

Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Wendy and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

Helping parents navigate the college maze