10 Tips on How to use an Agenda
What is the read, write, read, write method for homework agendas or planners? Not every student knows how to use an agenda or planner. Or how to use an agenda well. Time management and organization are life skills that are important to teach students. Before a student can understand how to plan out projects, they must first know how to do the basics. Many of my tutoring clients tell me they do not need an agenda because they can just look at the list of assignments on a website, but this does not teach them time management skills, nor does it help them chunk large projects into manageable pieces. Neither are most students capable of keeping all that info “in my head” as their main strategy for remembering all their homework assignments, but I do hear that option quite a bit! I find that sometimes we expect students to automatically know how to use their agenda, and we mean more than just copying down the word “homework” in today’s calendar box. To help students, I created a printable with 10 tips on how to use an agenda for beginners and the easy-to-remember “read, write, read, write” method. For a simple…
Smart Budgeting for Teens Who Struggle with Planning
What is the most important financial literacy skill teens need before becoming adults? Teaching smart budgeting for teens who struggle with planning requires tailored strategies that account for executive function challenges. By making financial concepts visual and concrete, simplifying choices to reduce overwhelm, and implementing consistent routines, parents can empower their teens. These financial skills are crucial for independence for any teen, but may be harder for some to learn than others. Patience and modeling will help make these skills part of everyday life for families. Here are 4 tips for budgeting for teens, including practical budgeting activities especially for neurodivergent youth. 1. Make it Visual Abstract concepts like “money” and “saving” can be very difficult for kids and teens with executive function challenges to grasp. They benefit from seeing and touching. Tip: Continue to use visual aids and physical money, but transition to digital tracking alongside physical. Emphasize how money moves and grows (or shrinks). Practical Activity: Digital + Physical Tracking Combination: Help them set up a simple spreadsheet or a beginner budgeting app (like Monarch or You Need A Budget – YNAB, or even a simple notes app) for tracking income and expenses. However, still have a physical…
The Art of Asking Questions: How to Develop Critical Thinking in Kids
What do you value more – a good grade or a well written paper? The art of asking questions is one of the most valuable tools we can give children to help them grow into confident, thoughtful, and capable individuals. As parents and tutors, we all want to develop critical thinking in kids, but it doesn’t happen by accident. It starts with curiosity, and curiosity begins with questions. If you have a child in the younger years, you might be hearing a lot of questions already! When kids are encouraged to ask good questions, they begin to understand the world more deeply. This habit leads to better academic performance, stronger relationships, and more independent thinking. The best part? You don’t need a classroom or curriculum to begin. Everyday conversations at the dinner table, in the car, or during tutoring sessions provide rich opportunities to nurture critical thinking. Why Asking Questions Builds Thinking Skills At its core, critical thinking is the ability to process information thoughtfully rather than passively. Children naturally ask questions when they’re curious, but over time, that instinct can fade, often due to pressure to find the “right” answer. The art of asking questions helps kids shift from…
Cure Senioritis in 4 Steps
When was the last time you got a case of senioritis? What is senioritis and how can you cure senioritis? Senioritis is defined as a decrease in motivation and academic performance at the end of the senior year of high school when the college acceptance letters and final exam exemptions begin arriving. We all know that it’s much broader than that and senioritis strikes older and younger students alike. Even teachers and parents can get a case of the “I don’t care anymore” attitude when the summer vacation or job change is just around the corner. Spring fever is a similar attitude where students lose focus in the classroom because they can’t wait to get outside and enjoy the longer days. They have a “let’s just get this done quickly” mentality. Here are 4 steps to cure senioritis and spring fever and finish the school year strong, plus more resources for additional reading. Go outside This is a game-changer. Did you know that spending 20 minutes a day outside will make you healthier, more productive, and lower your stress level? Whether you are the student, the teacher, or the parent, take some time to go outside each day. Put a…
10 tips for using Google Tasks and Google Calendar as a student agenda
How can you effectively use Google Calendar as a student agenda? Time management is a life skill that is important to teach students, and I love a good organizational system! Over the years, I have traded my paper calendars and agendas for digital ones. It is helpful to see what events I have have and where I have time in my schedule for tasks. Many of my tutoring clients tell me they do not need an agenda because they can just look at the list of assignments in Google Classroom, but this does not teach them time management skills nor does it help them chunk large projects into manageable pieces. (Nor are most of them capable of keeping all that info “in my head” as their main strategy for remembering all their homework assignments but I do hear that option quite a bit!) This school year when I teach study skills to my middle and high school tutoring clients, I will include how to use an agenda whether it’s a paper one or a digital one. For a simple digital system for students who have Gmail accounts, I recommend Google Calendar and Google Tasks. Use the calendar events to block time…
10 Test Taking Tips
How can you help a student confidently take a test? Fear tends to grip students when teachers, parents or tutors talk about testing or preparing for tests. My 10 free Test Taking Tips will help students so that they can focus confidently on the test, not on their worries. Students and parents can smile more and sigh less! Well prepared students will work to the best of their abilities. Read everything! Read everything on the page including the directions, the passage, the questions, and every answer choice. If time allows, rereading the passage, too. Read the question twice. Sometimes you misread or your brain tricks you into thinking something different than what it’s really asking. Rereading will help you understand what the question is really asking. Underline important words or numbers in the questions. These clues might help determine the answer or eliminate wrong answers. Think about what the answer is. Before reading the multiple choice answers or before writing your answer, think about what the right answer is. Eliminate wrong answers. Cross out wrong answers before selecting the correct one. Even if you can only eliminate one or two answers, you will have a better choice of picking the…
Home for the Holidays
What strategies do you put in place when your college kids come home for the holidays? With spring break just around the corner, here are 4 tips for not just surviving but thriving in the holidays when your kids come home. Whether they are in college or beyond, things are bound to be different when your adult kids come home to visit. Open communication of expectation is key to enjoying time when your kids come home for the holidays, whether it is spring break, winter break, or summer. While it is nice to have help when everyone is home, a short visit probably is not the time to load them up on chores unless it has been stated ahead of time that it is basement cleaning time. Tips to Help Your Family Thrive Schedule some mutually agreed upon family time before the calendar fills up Discuss expectations and respect each other’s space Choose an activity or two to do together (see list below) Get to know each other as adults To balance out the time at home, consider choosing an activity or two to enjoy together. You could even share this post with them and have them pick the…
7 Easy Steps to Cornell Notes
What makes a note taking system effective? The Cornell System is a highly effective note taking strategy. It saves time and helps students better comprehend the lecture or material. Originally developed by Cornell education professor Walter Pauk as a note taking method for schools, many people easily adapt this method to take notes while researching material, during client interactions, or even during business meetings. Below are 7 easy steps to Cornell Notes. Research also shows that handwritten Cornell Notes are the best for recall. Students who learn early on to take Cornell Notes are better prepared to take useful notes during class than those who merely copy the powerpoint. Using a consistent note taking system helps students use their notes for reference and study as the format is clear and effective. While there are many note taking techniques, the Cornell System outshines them all. Here is how you can try it out for yourself. Here are 7 easy steps to Cornell Notes Divide your paper into 2 columns with a row across the bottom. Some people like to write a giant capital I on the page, slightly offset to the left to divide the paper. Write the course/meeting name at…
5 Note Taking Tips
Why is note taking a lost art? Teaching kids to take good notes and use them seems to be a lost lesson plan these days. So many of my tutoring clients think note taking is copying a slide or worse yet, taking a photo of a slide. While there is not anything wrong with doing either of these things, it is not really note taking. Here are 5 Note Taking Tips to help you teach a child or yourself to take good notes from a lecture or a textbook. Use a consistent system, such as Cornell Notes Write down main terms and key questions from text or lecture Leave space to add to notes later Watch for things that are repeated or emphasized Use notes to review and study, adding additional notes as needed Good note taking requires practice. Learning and using a system will help you take better notes. If the teacher requires a particular system be sure to use that, but if not, try Cornell Notes. In the next blog post, I will introduce you to Cornell Notes if you need a system to try. I have successfully taught students as young as 4th grade to take notes…
Four in a Row Game Board
Was Connect Four a favorite game in your childhood? Four in a Row is a simple game where the goal is to score four boxes in a row in any direction, yet it becomes a complex game when you apply strategies to keep the other player from scoring four in a row first! The supplies are minimal – a four in a row game board and two colored pencils. To help one of my tutoring clients be more engaged in reading and comprehending his spelling word patterns instead of just memorizing the letters, I pulled up a four in a row game board and typed in his spelling list. In order to score a box, he had to correctly pronounce the word on the first try. He likes a good competition so this challenge pulled him right in! Soon he was thinking more about a word and sounding out in his head before saying it. Typically I like students to go ahead and attempt hard words and process them aloud and ask for help when needed. However, this was the perfect challenge to push my client to the next level! If he said it wrong, he did not get the…