Year Archive - 2008
Problems with spelling?
October 1, 2008 * Note that there are deliberate spelling errors in this post In the previous post we looked at problems with punctuation and how punctuation can make or brake a sentence. The same can bee said for spelling. Spelling is a major stumbling point for students if all ages. But why ... more
Problems, with Punctuation?!
September 22, 2008 Learning the proper uses for punctuation is challenging for people of all ages. After all, there is an almost infinite number of rules to remember and an almost equal number of exceptions to those rules. One of the biggest punctuation culprits is the comma. And it’s little wonder when one ... more
Remember Fieldtrips?
August 29, 2008 Rising gas prices change the school experience For students, a new school year means adapting to new things—a new grade, new teachers, new classrooms, and new subjects. But this year, there could be one more thing to learn to deal with: the elimination of school fieldtrips. Like peanut butter sandwiches ... more
Nostalgic for chalkboards
August 8, 2008 Are wired classrooms changing the way that students learn? Chalkboards, one room school houses, apples for the teacher, walking to school, using both sides of the paper, desks with flip open tops, writing with pencils right down to the nub…there is something in the air during back to school time ... more
Tell Mosquitoes to Buzz Off with Buy-A-Net and Oxford Learning
July 30, 2008 Oxford Learning students are helping children in Uganda tell malaria-infected mosquitoes to buzz off by raising funds for BUY-A-NET, a charitable organization that supplies bed netting and medicines to families in Africa. BUY-A-NET is a volunteer organization based in Kingston, Ontario, Canada that provides World Health Organization (WHO) approved mosquito ... more
To Multitask or Not?
July 25, 2008 A look at multitasking from both sides of the coin… What is multitasking anyway? Is multitasking good or bad for us? Multitasking is one of those topics that we never seem to be able to decide on. Is it a positive attribute to boast about on resumes, or is it ... more
Twenty Best things to do this summer
July 7, 2008 A list in fives 5 things to do for your BODY this summer: Climb a tree Swim in a lake Go for a hike Ride a bike Get a good night’s sleep every night Five things to do for your BRAIN this summer: Read a classic novel Learn five new ... more
Summer Learning Facts and Figures
June 26, 2008 Summer Camps to keep students on track So, the final bell of the school year has rung; and though the classroom is closed for the season, it doesn’t mean that a child’s potential to learn has stopped. In fact, summer is a critical time for learning. Without some measure of ... more
Will Your Child's Report Card Be a Surprise?
June 12, 2008 End-of-year report cards are almost here…with their arrival comes the potential for shocking and unpleasant revelations. Report cards are generally upheld as the ultimate indicator of student progress—after all, they are the final word on a child’s academic progress in the school year—but the wait and the wondering about what ... more
Plastic Bag Project Dissolves the Competition at Science Fair
May 29, 2008 Science fairs submissions are usually fairly predictable… there’s hot air balloons, and growing mold on bread, the solar system, waves, generating electricity from a potato, wind energy, magnets, and of course, the ever-popular exploding volcano. But one high school student has set the bar for all future science fair submissions. ... more
Tutoring - more than just better grades
May 16, 2008 The end of the school year is almost here. For many students in high school that means the inevitable arrival of final exams. And for the majority of those teens, blood pressure and anxiety levels are on the rise–exam time is easily one of the most stressful times in a ... more
I forget what I studied just yesterday! There's got to be a better way!
April 29, 2008 How to Study For Long-Term Memory There’s a big test this week and you stayed up all night last night cramming all the information that you need to remember to ace the test. Now it’s a week later and you’re wondering what happened to all those facts, figures, and dates ... more
Why Do Kids Procrastinate?
April 23, 2008 You just found out that your child has big project… and it’s due tomorrow! Before you start yelling about procrastination and bad work ethics take a minute to look at the reasons why kids procrastinate in the first place. Why do students put off a big project until the last ... more
No More Homework !?!
April 4, 2008 Has homework reached critical mass in Toronto? Families across the greater Toronto Area will be on the edge of their seats in the upcoming weeks as they wait to hear whether or not Toronto District School Board trustees will make the groundbreaking decision to ban or restrict homework. The fact ... more
Time Management Problems
March 17, 2008 The rising sun and buzzing alarm clocks signal the arrival of morning. School bells ring to signal the start of the school day, recess, and the end of the school day. Church bells and cuckoo clocks mark the passing hours. When the kettle boils—it’s teatime. Home from school and work—it’s ... more
Death by Multitasking
March 7, 2008 There’s a grassroots email revolution afoot. When working on a tight deadline, there is one thing that we can all do without: interruptions. With roughly 39.7 billion person-to person emails sent daily, the time spent replying to the deluge of emails is threatening to drown productivity in offices across Canada ... more
Math is stupid. I hate it.
February 25, 2008 “Math is stupid. I hate it. I’m never going to need this stuff.” I’m guilty of having uttered each of these sentences in my life. Math was always a struggle for me, much to the dismay of my father. He was a virtual human calculator who dealt with complicated math ... more
Afraid to Fail—Why Some Students Don’t Even Try.
February 12, 2008 On the subject of participation in the classroom, we’ve looked at how to encourage your child to raise his hand in class, and how participation in the classroom can improve grades. We’ve also touched on how being shy can prohibit a child’s willingness to participate. But another big reason that ... more
Raise Your Hand:
January 17, 2008 Encouraging Students To Speak Up in Class Grades 7-12 How many classes in a school day are fun, interactive classes—a place for bouncing ideas off one another in a point/counter-point lively interactive learning forum? Sadly, the answer is not too many, if none at all. Most classrooms exist in the ... more
Raise Your Hand:
January 11, 2008 Encouraging Students To Speak Up in Class Grades1-6 For students who are too shy, too hesitant, or too unwilling to speak out in class, the results can mean poor grades and poor classroom participation marks. Those poor grades can make self-esteem plummet and make the child even less willing to ... more
New Year’s Resolutions: Academic-Style
January 9, 2008 An Every Student’s Top Eleven Guide to Ultimate Academic Resolutions for 2008 for a Better School Year: I resolve to do my homework every night I resolve to not leave studying for a test until the last minute I resolve to write down my homework and assignments in my agenda ... more
