Tuesday, March 24, 2020

What college major should you pick to become a Spanish teacher

What college major should you pick to become a Spanish teacher Spanish Major or Education Major - which should you choose? ChaptersThe curriculum and key learning goals of a Spanish majorIs a teaching major the way to go to become a Spanish teacher?Study abroad to become bilingualWhat’s the best way to prepare for your teacher certification exam and become a full-fledged Spanish teacher?Is your goal to become a Spanish teacher in the public school  system?After high school, you’ll need to go to college and pick a major, before eventually completing a Masters in Education and a teacher certification exam for your state’s licensing.Out of a total estimated 20.5 million college students across the country, in 2013 just 1.5 million were studying foreign languages. Spanish was the most popular with 790,000 students studying the language at the tertiary level.Sadly, the Modern Language Association says language study numbers have been dropping. Spanish enrollment dropped 8% between 2009 and 2013, and in some college and universities, less popular languages have stopped being taught altogether.However, sm aller colleges have claimed success in encouraging students to think how language skills can help them grow an international career, and are aimed at giving students practical knowledge on how Spanish skills could support a career in law or medicine, for example.Mastering Spanish is key if you want to become a Spanish professor, but learning a foreign language is also important for many different professions.What’s the best route to follow to become a Spanish teacher? What should you choose as your major in college?Most future Spanish students often narrow their choices down to Spanish or Education….We’ll describe the difference in the majors below so you can decide which best fits your goals. However, if your college allows it, we’d always recommend minoring in whichever you don’t pick as your major! (Ie, a Spanish major with a minor in education, or vice versa.) TadeoSpanish Teacher 5.00 (2) £20/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors AnnickSpanish Teacher 5.00 (6) £20/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors PeterSpanish Teacher £15/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors LowriSpanish Teacher 5.00 (8) £90/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors MartaSpanish Teacher 5.00 (6) £22/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors SharonSpanish Teacher 5.00 (2) £20/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors TanyaSpanish Teacher 5.00 (1) £25/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors Jose manuelSpanish Teacher £14/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutorsThe curriculum and key learning goals of a Spanish majorA Spanish major is the most popular major in many college’s modern language departments. Language students are often enthusiastic about the multiple ways it can be applied to government and social services, translation, international business, or, of course, teaching. Especially if you’re living in the Southwest United States, learning to speak Spanish to a really high level can seem like an especially practical choice.Your professor’s go al will be to prepare you for any kind of industry requiring multilingual skills. They’ll want to give you the broadest foundations possible, and for some jobs, will even recommend studying multiple foreign languages:international businesstourismimport-exporttranslationWhat should you major in - teaching or Spanish - if you want to become a Spanish teacher?The first key thing - declaring a Spanish major often still leaves you plenty of time to explore other subjects too. Beyond the intermediate level, classes will more be about a range of history, culture, and social topics related to Hispanic life, and taught in Spanish. Whichever classes you end up choosing, by declaring a Spanish major you’ll be learning more than vocabulary and perfect conjugations.Some Spanish majors will also choose to study a second or even third language. This isn’t really a bad idea for people who want to become school teachers, given many school systems want teachers who can teach more than one langu age, at least at the beginner and intermediate level.If you declare a Spanish major, your studies will include:The history and politics of countries where Spanish is spoken (Spain, Latin America, colonial history)Spanish language, communication, and cultureTranslation practice, and how to translate different kinds of texts.A Spanish major is a great way to expand your knowledge about a wide variety of linguistic, historical, political, and cultural issues. You’ll be learning about subjects that are both enriching, and practical for your professional future.Depending on your school, you may find yourself missing the literary emphasis that your Spanish classes might have had in high school. Depending on the university you’re at and professors you have, you may find yourself taking incredibly practical, or incredibly literary based classes.Is a teaching major the way to go to become a Spanish teacher?Declaring a major in Education is a more general degree, aimed at anyone who wants to become a teacher in the future.Classes focus exclusively on teaching methods, child development and psychology, and everything else you need to learn to become a Spanish teacher, essentially!Beginning their junior year, students will often begin spending time in school systems and out of university, as they begin their observation hours. A lot of their fourth year is also spent out of the college classroom and in the school, shadowing an experienced teacher, and then become a student teacher, eventually spending two weeks to a month teaching independently.With a major in education, you’ll probably need to continue your Spanish studies on the side, but you’ll be well prepared for your future in the classroom and will graduate college already having gained teaching experience.Discovering other cultures is great. How well do you know Madrid’s city center?Declaring a Major in Education is focused on preparing you for the practicalities of teaching, and maybe even preparing for that all-important teacher certification exam.You’ll learn:classroom management and disciplinary techniqueschild development and psychologyteaching methods and styles, how to develop a lesson plan and introduce a topic to ignite the love of learning in your students.how to develop a lesson plan and introduce a topic to ignite the love of learning in your students.In short, it’s a more pragmatic programme of study! You’ll be fully prepared for the classroom and anything your future students throw at you, with a Major in Education.At its most basic, a Major in Education will cover testing and teaching methods, concepts like integrating technology into the classroom, and different courses on classroom management and child psychology. You’ll get practical fieldwork completing a semester of student teaching under the watchful eye of a certified teacher, and normally your course will also help you prepare for your state’s licensing exam.Study abroad to become bilingualAs a futu re Spanish teacher, surely your goal is to become bilingual in your language of choice, the language of Don Quixote, of churros, tapas, and margaritas.In order to learn a language really well, college Spanish courses are important, but they aren’t enough all on their own.Spending some time studying abroad in a Spanish speaking country is key to perfecting your verbal language skills, improving your listening comprehension, and becoming truly fluent in Spanish.In order to achieve this, most schools will offer you study abroad programs for up to one year.For a Spanish Major, often you’ll be encouraged to go for the full year, and classes will include registering at the local university. It’s a great way to really perfect your mastery of the language and practice your knowledge for daily life. You’ll enrich your Spanish vocabulary, meet native-Spanish students…It’s a great way to complement your college studies and is really important for those hoping to become a Spanish te acher.For Majors in Education, study abroad can be a bit more difficult but is by no means impossible. Depending on your college’s distribution and major requirements, you may be able to organize your courseload to free up a semester or two of study at a local university in a Spanish speaking country. Of course, their teacher qualification processes will be totally different to your state’s. But courses on child psychology, or if you have distribution requirements that need filling in science and math…filling those requirements while studying abroad and perfecting your Spanish can be an excellent way to kill two birds with one stone.Studying abroad in Spain is a great way to perfect your language skills, and is also a great opportunity for personal growth!If you’re dreaming of spending a year in Spain and becoming totally bilingual, majoring in Spanish is probably your better option!What’s the best way to prepare for your teacher certification exam and become a full-fledge d Spanish teacher?After college, you’ll need to pass a teacher certification exam in order to become a fully qualified teacher. Most school systems will also require a Masters in Education, although in most cases you can complete this within a few years of hiring, and if you’re teaching at private schools, may not be required at all.However, working out your local teacher certification processes is definitely necessary to become a Spanish teacher!So once you have your bachelors degree, you’ll need to take your state’s teacher certification exam. Unfortunately, almost every state has their own teacher certification exam, and although some are mutually recognizable, that’s certainly not true for all of them.Unfortunately, a Spanish major definitely doesn’t prepare you for the teacher certification exam. An education major does a bit more, but if you’re going to college in different states from where you eventually intend to teach, you might be prepared for a teacher cert ification exam other than the one you need to take, which is less than helpful.Getting a Masters in Education is also a requirement for new teachers in most public school systems. You’ll often have a certain amount of time to finish the masters after qualifying (sometimes up to five years) and how stringent your school system is might be tied to the current demand and competition for teachers in your subject.A Masters in Education is essentially an expansion of the material covered in a Major in Education, so it’s especially good for those students who chose to major in Spanish at the undergraduate level.You’ll cover pedagogy, teaching methods, training and learning tools…you’ll get all the information you need to combine your Spanish skills with teaching expertise and become a great Spanish teacher.In order to become a Spanish teacher, you need to pass your state’s teacher certification exams!In some states, you’ll be taking the National Teachers Examination with a fo reign language education component. If this is your case, you may need to cover literary analysis and Hispanic civilizations to demonstrate your knowledge of the subject as well as your teaching skills.Some teacher certification exams for foreign languages will also include an oral component, which tests you for your capacity to analyze and argue your point in Spanish, all while demonstrating expertise in Spanish history and culture.Can you teach Spanish without passing your teacher certification exam?Teacher certification is an absolute must if you want to teach in the public school system, but some private schools won’t require it or will ask for alternative qualifications, and there are no set requirements to become a private Spanish tutor or substitute teacher.If you’re planning to go this route, a Major in Spanish is probably the best choice for you so you can really develop your expertise in Spanish grammar, language, culture, and vocabulary without worrying about teaching classes often geared towards your state’s certification exam.But if you want to teach in a public school system. you will definitely need to pass your teacher certification exam, and probably prepare for a Masters in Education as well. If this is your goal, it’s worth considering a major, or at least a minor in education at college to make sure you’re as prepared for the teacher certification exam as possible.Is it possible to teach Spanish without any formal qualifications?Are you still having trouble deciding?There really is no right answer, but especially if you want to teach Spanish at the high school level, we would strongly recommend finding a college where you can double major, or at least major-minor in the language and teaching at the same time. It’ll be lots of study, but that way you’ll be fluent in Spanish and have gained classroom experience by the time you graduate - it’s the best of both worlds!Above all, the choice is a question of personal interests and preferences!

Friday, March 6, 2020

What is Algebra1

What is Algebra1 Algebra1 constitutes one of the most important and basic parts of Mathematics. The topic Algebra is sub-divided into different types based on the level of study such as Elementary Algebra, Intermediate Algebra, and Advanced Algebra etc. Algebra1 consists of topics which are for the beginners and it involves topics related to basic operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication and division in various scenarios such as for expressions and equations etc. In order to do well in math, it is very important to have a good understanding of Algebra1. Example 1: Simplify the given algebraic expression, 9x + 2 5x + 10. Given expression: 9x + 2 5x + 10 In order to simplify the given algebraic expression, we should first combine the like terms together. The terms containing only xs, or the terms containing only plain numbers are called as the like terms. This gives: 9x 5x + 2 + 10- 4x + 12 Therefore the simplified form of 9x + 2 5x + 10 is = 4x + 12. Example 2: Find the value of the given algebraic expression, 7x 5 + 2x 4 when x = 1. Given expression: 7x 5 + 2x 4 In order to find the value of the given algebraic expression when x = 1, we should just plug-in x = 1 in the given expression. This gives: 7(1) 5 + 2(1) 4== 7 5 + 2 4 Calculating the numbers starting from left we get - 7- 5 +2 -4 = 0 Hence the value of the given expression when x = 1 is 0.

Dancing for Children

Dancing for Children Teaching Children How to Dance ChaptersTop 10 Reasons for Children to Attend Dance ClassesWhat Type of Dancing Should Your Child Do?How to Find Dance Classes for ChildrenSo What Are Dance Lessons for Kids Like?“If you hit a wall, climb over it, crawl under it, or dance on top of it.” - UnknownAccording to a study by OpinionWay and Ubisoft, 75% of Europeans think that dancing is a good way to “break the ice” and “make friends”. Be it a dance class, out and about, or an end of year show, dancing is a great way to socialise.So whether it’s contemporary dance or ballet, in a dance studio, dance school, or private lessons, here’s what you need to know about helping your children learn how to dance. SeamDance Teacher 4.96 (24) £25/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors JamieDance Teacher 5.00 (6) £50/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors ErickaDance Teacher 5.00 (1) £25/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors SamuelDance Teacher 5.00 (4) £100/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors FlavioD ance Teacher 5.00 (7) £25/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors HakimDance Teacher 5.00 (5) £50/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors HannaDance Teacher 5.00 (4) £30/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors ClareDance Teacher £30/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutorsTop 10 Reasons for Children to Attend Dance ClassesDance classes are among the most popular activities for children. Moving around, burning off that excess energy, and copying their favourite artist’s dance moves, etc., there are so many reasons that kids want to learn how to dance.Whether it’s Zumba, tap dance, modern dance, ballroom dance, hip hop dance, classical ballet, contemporary dance, tango, Latin dance or modern jazz dance, there are dance styles for everyone. In addition to learning how to dance, children can make friends in dance classes. (Source: CabrioleDansa)In addition to being enjoyable, dancing is great for their development. It’s healthy, for one. Choreography and dancing require endurance and it’s great for the heart. Regular exercise is good for your whole body.Just like with any other sport, dancing also can reduce stress in children and adults alike. Similarly, dancing can channel energy into something productive.It can also help children to find their balance, improve coordination, and develop motor skills. This is particularly true in introductory classes where they’ll learn all the basics of dancing and movement.Dance lessons are also great for their creativity. Dancing is a way to express yourself through movement. Students are regularly invited to create choreography and move around how they’d like.There are fun and practical activities for them to build their self-confidence in front of other children. Dancing ca n help shy children to come out of their shells and they’ll soon discover that they can remember and execute several routines without any problems.If you’re hesitant about signing your child up to a dance school, remember that studies have shown that students who dance tend to have better results at school. Dancing can help students to learn how to adapt as well as improve their memory, which can help them to perform better in school. Furthermore, they can do all this while having fun.If none of these reasons has convinced you, remember that dancing is also a lot of fun!Find out more about the benefits of children's dance lessons.What Type of Dancing Should Your Child Do?So which type of dance school should you enrol your child in? Zumba, ballet, hip hop, breakdancing, etc., what kind of style would your child like to do? Children can do almost all the same types of dancing as adults. (Source: Skitterphoto)Ask your child what style they’d like to do first. If they don’t have a preference, you might want to see if there are classes for them to try out different styles. These types of classes show off the basics of dancing and allow them to experience different disciplines. Your child will have the opportunity to see which one they prefer.For the youngest dancers (4 to 6 years old), you’ll want to opt for introduction to dance classes. These classes are for young children to learn more about the movement involved in dancing. They’ll learn about stretching, gestures, movement, expression, and the general idea behind dancing before focusing on a particular style.Introductory classes are great for working on their balance and motor skills so don’t hesitate to sign them up to other dance classes once they get older.Teenagers may prefer a style of dance like modern jazz or hip hop as these types of classes will include dynamic movement and routines that resemble those of their favourite artists. These styles of dance are becoming increasingly popular so it’s never been easier to find classes for them.The most common classes still tend to be ballet, though. The very youngest often start with ballet classes. These classes are also very demanding and require a huge amount of flexibility. The students will work on their posture.Why not choose something more original for them?Irish dancing, tap, capoeira, African dance, etc. The goal is to find something they love.Find out more about choosing the right dance lessons for your kids.How to Find Dance Classes for ChildrenSo how can you find dance classes for your kids? There are plenty of places where you can find dance classes for children. (Source: sobima)The first thing you need to is to have a look for local organisations and schools that offer extra-curricular activities and dance classes. Thus, you’ll hopefully find something that isn’t miles away.  Furthermore, your local government should have plenty of information on these kinds of things.  If you don’t want to travel around, they’re the people to get in touch with.Generally speaking, the internet is a great source of information. Look for keywords like “dance classes” and the name of your town or city to find classes. You can also get lessons in a dance school or leisure centre, for example. Dance schools can be expensive (especially if you opt for a conservatoire). / You could always get dance lessons from associations.  Some associations offer dance lessons in smaller towns. Lessons are taught by either volunteers or paid teachers and kids can learn plenty of different types of dance. These are usually quite good for learning unique styles of dancing from all over the world.Private tutors are also a good option for teaching your children how to dance. You can find a tutor who has the perfect experience and qualifications for teaching your child how to dance. You’ll find plenty of tutors on Superprof, for example.  Some tutors will have websites where you can find more about them, what they do, and how much they charge.Finally, word of mouth and classified ads are good ways of finding tutors, too. Don’t forget to look at noticeboards in local business as you may find a hidden gem.  Don’t forget to tell friends and family that your child wants to learn how to dance. A friend of a friend of a friend might know somebody or have a recommendation for you.Learn more about finding dance classes.So What Are Dance Lessons for Kids Like?It can be reassuring for both the parents and children to know exactly what happens in children’s dance classes. There'll be a lot of similarities between adults' dance classes and children's dance classes. (Source: sobima)More often than not, parents won’t attend the dance classes as the rooms are too small.You should know that dance lessons usually include warming up. Warming up helps the muscles get ready for exercise and avoid injury and there are many different exercises to help children get into the mood for dancing.Once they’ve warmed up, they’ll get into the lesson. Be it breakdancing, Zumba, dancehall, African dance, etc., the lion’s share of the lesson will be dedicated to learning new skills, moves, and routines.The dance tutor will help them to learn new techniques that they can follow along with. Thus, through rehearsals, these young dancers will learn a routine.  The routines or choreography will be learnt either for fun or an end-of-year show.Some parts of the classes will be dedicated to improvising and creativity. Whether it’s in a group or on their own, they can crea te choreography to show the rest of the class. This is great for their self-confidence and creativity.To finish, young dancers will cool down so that they won’t be sore the following day.  Of course, what happens in a dance class will depend fully on how long the class is and the type of class.The very first class will be very different from subsequent classes and the teacher will need some time with the students to get to know them better. They need to break the ice and let the students make some new friends.Learn more about dance lessons for kids.If there aren't any dance studios near you, you can always get your child a dance lesson from a private dance tutor. They can learn to dance from the comfort of their own home and have a dedicated tutor helping them with dance technique and musicality.There are many talented and experienced dance tutors on Superprof offering face-to-face tutorials, online tutorials, or group tutorials. Each type of tutorial comes with its pros and cons so it's up to you to choose the one that's best for you, your preferred learning style, and your budget.Most of the tutors on Superprof offer free tutoring for the first hour so use this time to try out a few different tutors and see who's right for you.

Thursday, March 5, 2020

Wake up! A new job wont solve the fundamental job problem - Introvert Whisperer

Introvert Whisperer / Wake up! A new job won’t solve the fundamental “job problem” - Introvert Whisperer Wake up! A new job won’t solve the fundamental “job problem” What makes a job bad? Pay? Job content? Hours?   Give up yet? Correct answer: People. Yes, it’s the people we encounter at work that is the biggest factor for how we feel about our job.   Kind of crazy isn’t it?   Its almost like we don’t pay attention or deny this fact universally. We do so very little to equip ourselves to effectively manage our relationships with co-workers including management. Granted, as we grow up we learn a lot about interacting with others and some people learn effective approaches earlier and sooner than others.   Some of what we learn isn’t effective at all and in general, there is a gap we don’t even realize exists. The co-worker relationship gap causes us to pursue dysfunctional behaviors such as avoidance, gossiping//inappropriate venting, passive-aggressiveness or conflict.   Eventually, the lack of resolution lowers our motivation which then leads us to the classic corrective action: finding another job. And then the cycle repeats itself.   To paraphrase a quote: If you don’t solve the root cause to a problem you are doomed to repeat it.   And I see a lot of people in this cycle.   Failure to develop effective relationship management skills sets you up for a lifetime of problems punctuated by a slow-progressing career.   Add to that the stress and unhappiness it causes.   It’s a big part of your life and it impacts you at a deep soul level. My intent by this message is to simply wake you up to this problem.   You can’t solve a problem you don’t acknowledge.   If you are a parent, I urge you to acknowledge this need to your children and put all of you on a path of learning.   Even if you don’t have kids, spread the insight and begin the dialogue.   Begin learning new ways of managing your relationships at work. Go to top Bottom-line â€" I want to help you accelerate your career â€" to achieve what you want by connecting you with your Free Instant Access to my 4 Building Blocks to Relationships eBookâ€" the backbone to your Networking success and fantastic work relationships.  Grab yours by visiting here right now! Brought to you by Dorothy Tannahill-Moran â€" dedicated to unleashing your professional potential. Introvert Whisperer

Help with GCSE Maths Questions!

Help with GCSE Maths Questions! The current Maths 9-1 GCSE includes new material and different grading system. This means there is little information about how to answer many of the new GCSE Maths questions. So we asked experienced teacher Adam S to give us his top tips on how to answer the more challenging questions. If you are struggling with these exam style questions this is the perfect resource for you as Adam gives some useful top tips on how to improve your grade. Adam also walks us through a grade 9 targeted question (grade 9 equates to an A*) for the new Maths GCSE 9-1. This resource is relevant for any student sitting Edexcel, OCR or AQA Maths GCSE papers. It can also be useful for students studying the foundation paper, as similar steps should be taken in answering those GCSE Maths questions. Adam’s number one tip is to always: Read the question twice and make a plan This may seem simple but you’d be amazed by the amount of people who don’t do this. So, these are the steps you should be following when faced with a challenging question: RTQ (read the question) at least twice! Figure out what information you have Figure out what you are being asked to do Make a plan that takes you from what you have, to what you are being asked to do. If you do these 4 things, you will find it much easier to solve grade 9 questions. Here is some expansion on each point and advice on how to do it, with a sample grade 9 question and solution. Read the question from start to finish. Take your time doing this. Then read it again even more carefully from start to finish underlining anything in the question that may give you some information. Do this before you even begin calculating! ‘RTQ’(Read The Question)is most commonly heard uttered in mathematics classrooms near exam time for good reason. Students who are very capable and keen to show off their mathematical skills jump straight into a question before reading it carefully, thinking about what information is provided, and what they are required to figure out. You see a triangle and think ‘Ah! I can use the sine rule here… let me work out the size of the missing angle…, but it doesn’t give me two sides and an angle so I can’t do it… ahhhhhhh I give up’. If this how you find yourself tackling the question then you should try instead to follow Adam’s words of advice. If you had carefully read the question, it may have told you that the triangle is an isosceles triangle. This information can then be used to help make the question easier to solve. There may be a diagram that has two sets of parallel lines indicating you can calculate an interior angle using other information provided on the diagram. So give yourself time to read each question through slowly from start to finish twice before attempting it. May be even a third and fourth time might required before that inspiration hits you . When it does though, it's an amazing feeling! 2. Figure out what information you have (A) 3. Figure out what you are being asked to do (B) 4. Make a plan to get from A to B There is always enough information in the question for you to work out a solution for what you are asked to find. Examiners are nice like that. Although it may not always be obvious, it’s your job to put on a Sherlock hat, grab a magnifying glass and figure out what information is useful. It’s a shame you can’t bring an assistant like Watson into the exam hall to help trigger moments of inspiration… This is especially important for grade 9 questions that often involve multiple areas of mathematics that overlap. The question may appear to be about probability, but the information they give you can be modelled algebraically. You may have to manipulate that algebraic information by using fraction operations, while considering what it means in the context of probability. This question was on a GCSE exam a couple of years ago and it will almost certainly be considered as a grade 7, 8, or 9 question on future papers. Students found it so baffling that the question trended on twitter (not common for maths to trend on a social network!) and a student made a petition about it that had some coverage from popular news outlets: I believe this question appears hard because there are missing links. It’s all about reading the question carefully, working out what information there is and finally working out how to get from the information given (point A) to the destination of a solution (point B). Task: Try this question out for before finding the solution below. Information given: 1) 6 sweets are orange 2) 6 less than n are yellow (this can be written as n-6) 3) a first sweet is removed 4) a second sweet is removed 5) the chance of both the removed sweets being orange is 1 time in every 3 Destination: Plan to get there: 1) Represent every bit of information given algebraically in terms of ‘n’. 2) Make an equation with ‘n’ 3) Rearrange the equation. So, hard maths exam questions are like puzzles. They provide a small amount of information, and ask a question that is sometimes seemingly unrelated. It’s your job to create a plan of action to get there. For those of you that tried out the question, here’s the solution for you: Looking for more blogs on the new 9-1 GCSE? In this blog, New Maths 9-1 GCSE, Adam S outlines explains all you need to know about the new maths 9-1 GCSE providing sample papers   for all exam boards as well as insight into the exam itself.   If you have any questions for Adam S or would like him as a tutor for your child, please send him a message through his profile. Alternatively, on the Tutorfair website enter your postcode and Tutorfair will show you GCSE Maths tutors in your area, with the top rated tutors! Checkout out more  Tutorfair blogs  here: 1.Maths GCSE Syllabus: What's new? 2.Edexcel Maths  GCSE Grade Boundaries

Six Tips for Polishing Up the College Application Essay Over Winter Break

Six Tips for Polishing Up the College Application Essay Over Winter Break With many colleges regular decision applications due between January 1 and February 1, holiday break for high school seniors is a good time to put any finishing touches on the college application packageincluding the essay. CEO and Co-Founder Eileen Huntington of Huntington Learning Center reminds parents that whether the colleges to which their teens are applying require an essay or strongly encourage oneor their teens have chosen to write essays to strengthen their overall applicationit is best to take a methodical approach to the writing process. The application essay gives admissions officers a glimpse of your teen as a student and person and tells them a lot about his or her goals, work ethic, character and more, Huntington says. A well-planned, well-thought-out essay can have a tremendously positive impact. She offers these six tips for teens working on creating a strong essay over winter break: Read the directions (more than once). Its critical that teens pay careful attention to any guidelines provided for their application essays, including a suggested word count and a precise essay prompt. Disregarding these instructions can make applicants seem lazy. At worst, it might immediately discredit their application and hurt their chances of acceptance. Brainstorm and compare possible topics. The essay is an opportunity for teens to share who they really are. Its a good idea to give sufficient time to the brainstorming process to ensure that whatever the prompt, the topic a teen selects does the best possible job addressing it. Outline first. The application essay is not the place to wing it. Teens should create a detailed outline to keep them focused and make sure the essay flows easily from beginning to end. The outline should clearly tie back to the essay prompt and make clear how the essay will fully answer it. Create a schedule. It takes time to craft a great essay. A schedule can keep things on track. Heres an example schedule for a student starting their essay over winter break with an application deadline of February 1 (note: obviously the earlier teens can start their essays the better, and students applying to colleges with regular application deadlines of December 1 will not be able to work on their essays over winter break): Outline essay according to directions December 16 Complete first draft December 18 Set essay aside December 19 Edit December 20-22 Complete second draft December 23 Set essay aside December 24-26 Edit December 27-28 Complete third draft December 29 Set essay aside December 30 Share essay with parent or trusted mentor December 31-January 7 Share draft with a teacher or counselor January 7 Get suggestions back from teacher/counselor January 11 Make final revisions January 12-14 Proof and read through January 19 Essay due to college January 30 Write from the heart. When it comes to the application essay, theres nothing more frustrating to an admissions officer than reading words that dont ring true. Colleges are looking for applicants who are passionate and articulate when sharing something that has changed or impacted them in a significant way. Bottom line: teens should be real and authentic in their essays and forget about trying to impress anyone. Plan on rewriting. Yes, proofreading for grammatical errors and typos is an important step, but it should be the very last step. First, teens must allow themselves time to revisit drafts with fresh eyes and take a hard, honest look at their essays when editing. This means making sure the essay is clear not confusing, not too long or short, and achieves the desired tone and message. It also means making sure the essay is poignant, interesting from the very first sentence, and articulate, and that it sounds like the person writing it. Practice makes better. Teens should write, revise, and repeat as much as needed. Putting the effort into the application essay is certain to be time well spentand it could mean the difference between a college acceptance and rejection. Parents and teens need to remember that admissions officers want to get to know the person behind the name on an application, Huntington says. Teens should give the essay the careful attention it deserves. About Huntington Huntington is the tutoring and test prep leader.Its certified tutors provide individualized instruction in reading, phonics, writing, study skills, elementary and middle school math, Algebra through Calculus, Chemistry, and other sciences. It preps for the SAT and ACT, as well as state and standardized exams. Huntington programs develop the skills, confidence, and motivation to help students succeed and meet the needs of Common Core State Standards. Founded in 1977, Huntingtons mission is to give every student the best education possible. Learn how Huntington can help at www.huntingtonhelps.com. For franchise opportunities please visit www.huntingtonfranchise.com. 2018 Huntington Mark, LLC. Huntington Learning Center, the three-leaf logo, and 1 800 CAN LEARN are registered trademarks of Huntington Mark, LLC. Each franchised Huntington Learning Center is operated under a franchise agreement with Huntington Learning Centers, Inc.

?? 6 Challenges Tutors Face (And How to Overcome Them)

?? 6 Challenges Tutors Face (And How to Overcome Them) 6 Challenges Tutors Face (And How to Overcome Them) Tutoring can be a challenging job. However, if a tutor understands the challenges they may face, overcoming each hurdle gets so much easier.Every student arrives at tutoring sessions with some prior knowledge, experience, and skills. It's thetutor's job to find out what the student already knows and which skills he or she needs to develop tomeet their academic goals.Unfortunately, the process is far from seamless, as tutors may face many different problems.Here are 6 most common challenges tutors face and tips to help you overcome them and create alearning environment that brings the very best results for students.1. Lack of motivationTutoring is usually about studying on top of full-time studying. For many children, that may be justtoo much. It's not easy for them to motivate themselves and make acquiring new knowledge fun.However, it is the responsibility of the educator to motivate the student to learn.One way to motivate a student is to learn about their interests outside of the classroom. Once youknow what your pupil likes, you can apply their interests to the learning process. It's smart toprovide real-world situations that translate the learning content to the topic the student is interestedin.For example, if your student is interested in drawing, you can ask them to visualize an area ofknowledge you are studying in the form of a short comic or a beautiful mind map.This is also where parents can help by communicating with the tutor and letting them know whattheir child's interests are.2. Stress and anxietyIt's likely that students who enter tutoring sessions have experienced a problem with learning in atraditional classroom setting. Their parents might be putting additional pressure on the student tomake the most of their time during tutoring.These students feel that they are coming to a tutor because of their failure. If they associate learningwith failure, they will never consider it as improving their potential for success. That's why tutorsfirst need to understand the student's learning style fully. Connecting learning and adventure is asmart move. It's critical that anxious or stressed students approach their work with a sense ofexcitement.Tutors should experiment with various methods that align with the individual needs of the student.This is easier in a one-to- one setting. If you don't see any progress, you can quickly adjust yourinstruction style. As you become more knowledgeable about your student#39;s needs, you will be ableto anticipate problems in the existing knowledge and address them as soon as possible.3. Bad behaviourAll teachers have encountered students with bad behaviour at least once in their career.Tutoringsessions usually offer an opportunity to get a closer look at the student and anticipate theirproblems.For example, if your student has a troubled home life and tends to act out in class, you will need toadjust your instruction style to contain the bad behaviour and channel the negative energy intopositive learning.Remember that every student will require a unique approach. That's why tutors should first reachout to parents. They are the best resource to improving student behaviour By communicating withparents, you will be better prepared for carrying out your tutoring session.4. LazinessSometimes tutors work with students who just don't deliver any work. What happens is that theylack the mental hooks or drive for learning and understanding.If you're dealing with a student who ended up in tutoring because of laziness or other problems thatprevent them from delivering work, you need to focus on building on their prior knowledge andskill set. Individualisedlearning is the answer here.Since you're dealing with a single student, you have all the time to decide what approach will workbest. Sometimes, tutors find the best mental hooks to come as a rewards or incentives forcompleting assignments. The prizes can be given in fun educational games in which students canparticipate once they fini sh their work. The objective is to use these methods to kick-start the properbehaviour Eventually, the student will get a sense of accomplishment, and that will become thereward in itself.When tutoring a student who doesn't want to complete their work, the best thing you can do is toshow enthusiasm for their progress every day.5. Problems in acquiring new knowledgeYou might be dealing with a student who needs extra time to practice and master new knowledgebefore using it as a building block for further learning. If you are teaching a new idea, the best wayto introduce that type of knowledge is through educational games. These will provide anenvironment for students to practice skills and learn new things. The students will not only learn anew concept or skill but also have a way to practice it instantly.6. Pressuring parentsWhen it comes to learning, parents are always part of the process. Dealing with high-pressureparents is challenging for every tutor.Sometimes children of high-pr essure parents focus so hard on getting the perfect score that they failto understand the concepts that are being taught. As a result, their knowledge retention suffers, andtheir level of anxiety rises, especially when students struggle with a topic.Tutors are there to teach students that lack of perfection at the beginning isn't a failure. In fact,tutors should encourage students to experiment and not be afraid of getting a wrong answer.How to deal with high-pressure parents? It's important to maintain open communication about theprogress of the student and the activities you carried out to facilitate help. This will allow parents tofeel more in control. Sometimes it's a good idea to suggest a way for parents to help the student athome. That way, parents will feel less anxious about their child's performance and lessen thepressure they put on the child.All in all, tutoring is about solid support and encouragement for learning.As a tutor, it's your job to keep the students focused o n their accomplishments to help them gainconfidence, tackle more complex tasks, and move through their education path swiftly.Author's Bio:With her unquenchable love for writing, Sienna Walker works as a careers and business blogger.Deeply interested in self-growth and education, Sienna is oftenfound sharing her tips with students, teachers, job-seekers and employers alike, supporting DirectorStats.

Hampson English

Hampson English Hampson English Founded in March 2002 as part of Beijing Hampson Online Culture Development Ltd., Hampson English is a high-end English training brand and the first Chinese foreign private tutor featured foreign language research and training institute. It is a private education organization authorized by Beijing Municipal Education Commission, obtaining a Foreign Experts Recruitment License from State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs (SAFEA). Through a decade of continuous development, Hampson English has become the largest private tutoring language training with 31 branches nationwide and more than 600 foreign teachers. It has cultivated 20,000 students including kids, youths, adults and corporation staff. Its unique one-on-one foreign private tutor teaching methodology has attracted great attention and been widely reported by mainstream media, such as CCTV, BTV, prestigious newspapers and network media. The cities we have teaching centers areBeijing, Nanjing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Chongqing, Chengdu, Qingdao and Xian.