Grades Grow Tutors

If you’re a high school senior, you may have already been accepted into the college of your dreams. For other students, it’s important to know what kinds of things you can do to make sure you end up at the best college for you. It’s vital to start thinking about college well before your senior year by the time you’re in your final year of high school, your GPA is pretty much already set! In fact, many colleges prefer having students apply in the winter of their senior year, meaning that you only have 3 ½ years to really put together a good impression to present to potential schools.

Get Good Grades, of Course!
First and foremost, a college will look at your grades, so buckle down! Get homework help if you need it, work with an online tutor or tutoring service, be an active part of study groups, do whatever you have to do! Not only will developing good study habits earn you the grades that colleges look for in potential students, but those habits will also help you succeed at the next level of your education as well. There are many important things to consider when getting ready to apply to colleges, but having good grades is at the top of the list!

Work on Your Writing
Not only will every college course imaginable require you to have good writing skills (and I do mean every course imaginable), but you’ll want to be able to write great essays if required. In fact, most colleges will require you to write an essay as part of your application for admission, so dust off those essay writing skills and be prepared to knock their socks off! A polished, interesting essay with a dash of humor and personality is just the thing to help you stand out from the crowd of applicants, after all.

Get Involved!
Colleges love students who take part in extracurricular activities. It shows initiative, maturity, a desire to learn, and it also ensures that their college campus will be a place with many active students to liven things up. Make sure that you get involved with activities through school, whether they be sports, academic team (or clubs), the school newspaper, student government, anything you can think of! But don’t stop there! You can also get involved in your community to make a good impression on potential colleges. Doing a simple thing like helping out with a food drive, mentoring young children, or helping clean up the town you live in can really boost your application and give you that extra something in the eyes of the colleges you apply to!

With a college education being absolutely vital for success in today’s world, it’s important to be able to get into the right school for you. If you want to avoid disappointment and go to school at your first choice, rather than your tenth choice, you’ll want to plan ahead and make the best of your high school experience. Do so, and you’ll be able to choose from just about any college you wish!

If you’re a student or the parent of a student, you probably already know that classrooms are often packed with eager learners, stretching the teachers too thin to provide the kind of individual attention that they would like to give to each student. Students can have a hard time getting extra homework help or other assistance from teachers, since there are often twenty or more other students who need the same assistance. Today, we’ll talk about some ways to overcome the difficulties that arise from such large classroom sizes.

Find a Time When the Teacher Can Help You
It’s sometimes helpful if a student who requires some extra assistance can find time to speak with the teacher outside of class time. Many teachers will be more than happy to answer questions or provide extra help after class is over or during study hall or prep periods. Teachers are mainly concerned with helping you learn, and not only will they be more than happy to help students who need it, but they’ll likely be pleased that the student has taken the initiative to get extra help in the first place.

Get Help from a Tutor
If you are having trouble getting the individual assistance you need from your classroom teacher, it’s a great idea to seek out help from a tutor or tutoring service instead. Tutors can provide help during nights, weekends, and other times when your teacher is not accessible. Not only that, but they will utilize many of the same strategies and techniques that the best teachers use! If your classroom time alone is not sufficient enough for you to understand a topic, consider an online tutor or tutoring service as a source of additional assistance.

Work With Parents
Parents have many of the same troubles that teachers do when it comes to a lack of free time, but whenever possible, it’s great to have parents who are willing and able to help their children understand their school work. Not only is it a great way to spend time and bond with your family, but it will also improve the student’s grades tremendously. By scheduling a “homework time” or “study time”, parents and students alike can make sure that the proper time is devoted to school related tasks as well as just spending time together as a family.

Study in Groups
Another good source of homework help is a student’s peers at school. By working with other students who have a good grasp on the material being taught, students who are having trouble can get the extra help they need. Also, helping explain concepts to other students only cements the knowledge being learned, so students who already have ability in a subject can improve their grades by helping others!

Although increased classroom sizes have made it harder for teachers and students alike to accomplish some of their goals, there are ways to work around the constraints to make sure that every student gets a successful education. With a little creativity, students can still get all the help they need.

One of the first major tests that your child will face in school is learning how to read. Learning how to read rivals even learning basic math as one of the most essential skills a child can develop. The majority of kids who are “left behind” at a young age and made to repeat a grade have to do so because of an inability to grasp basic reading concepts. Simply put, it’s vital that your child learn how to read at a proper pace! With the help of yourself, a tutor, and teachers, your child will be well-equipped to tackle the task of reading. With so much importance being placed on learning how to read, it’s a good idea for us to go over some ways you can help your little reader progress.

Read to Your Child Often
It may seem like reading to your child would have little effect on their own ability to read, but it makes a huge impact! Reading to your child makes your child comfortable with the idea of reading books…therefore, reading to your child is just as important as giving them homework help! It shows them that reading can be fun and helps open the door to thinking of reading as a pleasing experience, not a frustrating one. You can also do things while reading to your child to encourage their learning. You can point at the words as you read them, and even allow them to read a word or two if they are able. By reading as a “team”, your child gets valuable practice without feeling that the pressure is all on them.

Make Reading Fun
Like with any other activity, your child will be much more encouraged to give it their all if you make reading a fun time. When I was a child, I loved to read about my favorite topics, such as dinosaurs, sharks, and sports. Your children will likely be more interested in reading if you get them books about things they love and enjoy. If at all possible, let your child pick out their own books as well. This will help them have a feeling of ownership and make them more likely to want to follow through on reading the books they pick out.

Provide a Good Environment
Reading takes a lot of concentration, especially when you’re still learning the fundamentals. Your child will have a lot more success if they can read without distractions such as loud noises, other kids playing, or the television. If you can have your child read in a comfortable, quiet place, they’ll be able to concentrate much better and will be comfortable and cozy during reading time. It’s also a good idea to have a special place for your child’s books.

These are just a few simple things that parents can do to encourage their little readers to improve. Your child’s teachers and tutors (or tutoring service) will notice the improvement when you take these steps, and so will you! By helping your child embrace the world of reading, you’re getting your child off to a great start and giving them a huge advantage.

As parents, we constantly worry about our kids. We worry we’re not doing enough for them. We worry we’re being too harsh on them all the time. We worry we’re being too soft with them all the time. We worry about how to find a balance. We sometimes also worry that we don’t worry enough. Here’s a helpful list on top 10 ways on how not to worry about not being involved in your child’s life (in other words, How to Be an Involved Parent.)

Before we get started with the 10 ultimate ways parents can get involved in their child’s education, let’s recap the blog entries for the last week! We discussed how to avoid frustration when studying, we covered finishing the school year on a positive note, and talked about why tutors love their jobs. We also talked about ways to improve performance in English class, reasons that school libraries are essential for academic success, and how to continue learning during the summer months. Now, let’s get to some ways that parents can be a part of the school experiences of their children.

10. Volunteer at the School!
One often overlooked way for parents to stay “in the know” is to get involved at their child’s school. Joining the PTA, chaperoning trips and events, or volunteering to help run extracurricular programs are some easy and effective ways to do so. Not only that, but you will have fun and maybe make some new friends in the process!

9. Always Ask Questions
Let’s face it, most kids aren’t just going to come right out and tell you everything that’s going on at school. This may seem obvious, but it’s very important for parents to show interest by asking questions about how things are going at school. Your child may need homework help or have other things to inform you about, but they may forget or not be sure how to ask. Make sure that you stay on top of things by asking questions!

8. Develop a Routine
It’s helpful for kids and parents both to have a routine to follow, especially with how busy life can get. By having a set time to discuss school or work on homework together, it’s easier to make such things a daily priority. Not only will it help you both stay organized, it will make it much more simple to make time for discussing school matters.

7. Give Incentives for Good Grades
Here’s a suggestion the kids will like even more than the parents! By providing incentives (no matter how small) to your child, you will not only provide extra motivation for him or her, but you will also be more privy to how your child is doing at school. When your son or daughter gets a great grade on their quiz, they’ll be sure to let you know, especially if they know they’ll be going out for pizza as a result!

6. Communicate with Your Child’s Tutor
This one can be tricky. Depending on what type of tutor or tutoring service you utilize for your child, it can be hard to stay up to date on your child’s progress, or you may find that you aren’t getting the amount of detail that you would like. With an online tutoring service like here at Grades Grow Tutors, you’ll get regular reports with detailed information on what material was covered in every study session. Combine that with the flexibility and convenience of the internet, and staying up to date is easy!

5. Provide Positive Reinforcement!
It’s vital to keep your kids from getting discouraged when they’re having trouble with schoolwork. One of the most important things to remember is that kids need positive reinforcement. Not only that, but you’re more likely to get good results from having a positive attitude than from being overly negative with your child. After all, becoming frustrated with your child is only going to make school more frustrating for him or her, too. Remember that no matter what, you have to support your child as they navigate their way through obtaining an education.

4. Attend Meetings with Teachers
This may seem obvious, but I know enough teachers to know that many parents don’t or can’t attend meetings with teachers as much as they should. It’s understandable that many times it’s hard to work out a time to meet with your child’s teacher, especially when so many parents work and have many obligations for their time these days. However, whenever possible, it’s very important to meet with your child’s teacher. You can learn a lot about how school is going from talking to your child, but teachers have the luxury of being right there and seeing everything from a much closer perspective. If you really want a good idea of how things are going, talk to the teachers!

3. Use Computers to Stay on Top of Things
If you have a hard time meeting with your child’s teachers, or work conflicts make it impossible to do so, do not despair! More and more schools are utilizing the internet to help parents stay involved. E-mailing teachers can be a great, quick way to get an update on how everything is going, and your child’s school may even have the option of checking out grades online as well! Take advantage of the benefits of modern technology and you’ll find that keeping up with what’s going on in the classroom is easier than ever!

2. Study with Your Kids
Studying with your children is a wonderful thing to do because it provides more than one benefit. Not only will you be helping your child grasp important concepts and facts that they’ll need to succeed in school, but you’ll also be getting a much better feel for your child’s strengths and weaknesses. Parents who give their children homework help or who study with their kids will be much more knowledgeable about what their kids do and don’t understand. After all, if you know what’s giving your son or daughter the most trouble at school, you’ll be able to make better decisions on whether to, for instance, get a math tutor, an English tutor, or both! You’ll know whether your student needs to spend more time on a particular subject, and you’ll be more educated on your child’s progress for when you talk to their teacher. If you can make the time, studying with your kids is a great thing to do.

1. Above All, Listen!
All of these tips are useless if you’re not listening to what your child has to say. Again, we all know that the world we live in is busier than ever, and parents nowadays have so many responsibilities and things that have to be done with their time. However, it’s important to take the time to just listen to your child, and really pay attention to what they have to say about their schooling. Short of being able to actually go to school with your child, what they have to say to you is going to be the best indication of how things are going in the classroom. Plus, it’s great to take the time to talk to your kids anyway! You might as well discuss how they are faring in the classroom while you’re at it!

There you have it, ten easy ways for parents to get more involved in their child’s education. Although you may feel helpless from time to time, since you can’t be at school with your child, as a parent there are so many things you can do to help your child succeed! Try some of these tips out, and you’ll be sure to see some improvement in your child’s performance.

Even though the school year is quickly winding down for most students, there’s one thing that won’t be taking in a restful summer- your brain! I know, it’s a cliché, but nobody ever really stops learning. Hey, that’s not a bad thing, either! After all, whether you’re in class, working with your math tutor, or working at your summer job, there’s always something to learn more about. Today, we’ll take a look at some of the ways you can learn a little in the summer while having a good time.

Find a New Hobby
There’s no better time than the summer to take up a new hobby. It doesn’t have to be the first thing you’d think of, in fact, if you pick something completely random that’s always interested you, you’ll have even more to learn! Maybe you’ve always had a passing interest in gardening, or bird watching, or surfing- anything that’s always interested you! Pick something and really find out all about it. Go to the library, search the internet and talk to people who know more about your new hobby than you do. You’ll feel like you accomplished something, and you may just make some new friends in the process.

Catch Up, or Pull Ahead!
Even though you don’t have to go to school, the summer can be a great time to catch up with the students in your grade level, or to master the skills you’ve already started to learn. It’s important to keep your brain sharp so you don’t forget everything you worked so hard to learn during the school year, so meeting with a tutor or working with a tutoring service in the summer is a great idea. Of course, I would suggest an online tutor due to the ease and convenience involved. Plus, an online tutor can “travel with you” when you go on vacation or visit family that lives far away! Working on school subjects during the summer may not seem like the most fun idea, but you’ll be happy you did when you don’t have any frustration adjusting to school again in the fall!

Get Involved!
Summer is also a great time to get involved in your community. Summer sports, volunteer organizations, and clubs are wonderful ways to have fun while boosting your standing with colleges and employers (they both love extracurricular activities) and learn a new thing or two. Without having school every day, you’ll finally have more time to help out around the community or take in new experiences. Try to use this opportunity to do things that will not only provide a good time, but that will also look good on a college application or a resume. When you apply to a college, or start looking for a career, the fact that you used your free time to better yourself (and those around you) will be noticed!

Remember, even when you’re not a student, you’re still a learner. Try to learn new things whenever possible, and have as many positive new experiences as you can. Your experiences will make you a better student as well as a better person. Here’s to a happy, fun and productive summer!

I’ve found that one of the keys to achieve success at any level of education is to avoid getting frustrated. We’ve all had times when a certain math problem or science project has had us at our wits’ end. It’s definitely not fun, and really, it only hurts your performance. After all, it’s tough to do your best work when you’re agitated and stressed out. Here are some great ways to get the most out of your homework and study time while avoiding all the frustration!

Take a Break if You Need It
This sounds like a simple tip, but you’d be surprised how many students have a hard time with taking study breaks. It’s easy to fall into the trap of wanting to work continuously until studying or homework is done, especially if you’re getting work done close to a due date or test date. However, in the end you will work more efficiently (and save yourself some premature gray hair!) if you allow yourself a break now and then. Just don’t go too crazy with the study breaks- after all, you need to get some work done, right?

Don’t Go It Alone
Forget all the macho stuff- even the best students can use a little assistance now and then. If you need homework help or study tips, or even if you would rather study in a group or with a partner, don’t be afraid to ask! A tutoring service can be just what the proverbial doctor ordered for many students, and it’s much easier to avoid frustration when there is someone there to help get you through the difficult parts of a subject. I know that once I got a math tutor, algebra, calculus and other match classes became much less frustrating, and even a little fun!

Reward Yourself!
It’s sometimes useful to give yourself extra incentives when you’re studying or doing homework- especially if you’re working on a tough and stressful subject. For instance, you can reward yourself with some ice cream, or by watching your favorite television show after doing well on a test or having an especially good tutoring session. You can also give yourself perks like the afore-mentioned study breaks for a job well done. Of course, the grade you receive after doing excellent work is the real reward, but it doesn’t hurt to give yourself an added bonus or two along the way!

Above All, Be Patient
It’s important to remember that you won’t always “get” everything right away. Sometimes it takes time to truly understand a new application, or to take in new information and understand it. Even the best students require practice or extra help from time to time. Don’t expect to be an expert on everything the first time you do it- allow yourself a chance to develop your abilities in every subject, and be patient with yourself! With some practice and hard work (and some work with an online tutor!), you’re sure to improve.

Remember, if you want to maximize your potential in school or in any venture, you need to be patient with yourself and avoid becoming frustrated. Keeping calm and focusing on your work will help you reach heights you never dreamed!

The tutors here at Grades Grow Tutors love their work, and they’re not alone. By and large, tutors do what they do primarily because they enjoy it. Here are just a few of the many reasons that tutors love their jobs.

Helping Out Feels Good
You don’t have to be a tutor to know how good it feels to help someone understand something that they previously had struggled with. Whether you taught a child to tie their shoelaces, showed someone how to change their oil, or showed your grandparents how to use e-mail (like I did), it’s just a one-of-a-kind, wonderful feeling when you see that “light bulb” go off and know that the person understands something that they didn’t get beforehand. Let’s face it: we’ve all been students, and we all know what it’s like to have trouble learning something new. Any time you can help someone overcome that, especially a student who is really trying hard to improve, it just feels great.

Education Never Stops
Many tutors love the world of education. Most of our tutors are former teachers or long-time students who have worked their way up to a Master’s degree, or even a Ph.D. If you simply love the world of learning and education, tutoring is a great next step! Nowadays, a great education is even more important than it used to be, and as such, parents and students look for more when they find a tutor. These days, the college student next door doesn’t always cut it! Tutors nowadays have to be well-versed in their subject of expertise, as well as knowledgeable of different teaching and learning strategies, and possessing of excellent “people skills”. For those that have these qualities and love the world of education, tutoring is a natural fit.

It’s Convenient!
Online tutoring isn’t just convenient for students and parents, it’s also convenient for the tutors themselves! Online tutors can work from home or, with the prevalence of internet connectivity today, from just about anywhere! Online tutoring also provides tutors as well as parents tools to monitor and track student progress, and make it easy for tutors and parents to connect and discuss the student’s work. The world of tutoring is just one of many things that the internet has helped to improve upon.

You Can Make a Difference
It may sound a little, okay, maybe more than a little corny, but it’s true. It’s important to know that what you do with your time, even your career, is something that is helping others and even improving the world around us as a whole. By providing homework help, studying assistance, and guidance to students, tutors are helping to create a better educated society…full of students who will be the future leaders of the world! If you have a choice between doing a job that just feels, well, like a job, and doing work that feels important, there really is no choice at all. Having a career that means something to yourself and others is a huge perk to everyone in the field of education, especially tutors.

With information being so easy to find and access via the internet these days, it seems that the good old school library is quickly becoming a neglected place. If anything, school libraries have mainly become a place for students to go to check their e-mail or do internet research during school time. I’m here to tell you, the school library is not a place you want to forget about, if you want to get great grades! Here are a few things that the library has to offer students, even in the internet age.

Expert Help Available
Librarians aren’t just sitting behind their desks to tell you when to be quiet. Librarians are a great source of knowledge, especially when it comes to researching subjects efficiently. Sure, search engines do a good job of providing you instant sources for research papers or other projects, but librarians can help you diversify your sources and find you information you otherwise never would have found. Not only that, but librarians can provide homework help by guiding you through vast newspaper, magazine, and journal indexes as well. Most school libraries have a wealth of information available, the librarian is like the roadmap that will help you find the information you need.

Sometimes the Internet Isn’t the Best Source
Believe it or not, not everything can be found on the internet. Almost everything, but not quite! All jokes aside, your school library is bound to have resources that you simply can’t find from your home PC. Scholarly journals, newspaper archives on microfiche, and a variety of DVD-ROMs will likely cover the gaps missing in your internet-exclusive research. Many teachers and professors have soured on the idea of students only doing research on the internet, and require a mix of sources for papers and projects. Also, while much of the information on the internet is from reputable sources and is accurate, there is still a lot of information that isn’t. Citing a rant from someone’s blog as a source for your research paper isn’t going to make your teacher (or English tutor) very happy.

There’s No Better Place to Study!
The library is not just a place to find the information you need, but also a great place to actually get your work done. The quiet and relaxed environment you’re likely to find in your school library is a great place to meet with other students, your tutor, or even to get work done on your own. At home, in study hall, or in a dorm room it can be hard to find the kind of environment you need to concentrate properly. Not only will the library provide a great place to study, but it’s a convenient location because all of the resources you require are right there, should you need them. You can even meet with your online tutor from one of your library’s computers!

I would be the last person who would ever deny the internet’s wonderful impact on education. However, it’s important to remember that there are other places students can go to get assistance, get work done, or study. I firmly believe that along with tutoring, good study skills, and assistance from teachers, school libraries are absolutely essential for school success.

One of the best ways to get the most out of your classes (and get a little homework help) is to study in groups. The greatest thing about studying in groups is that it’s not only effective, but fun!

Studying with your friends- or a tutor- can be a lot more interesting and enjoyable than merely going over notes and re-reading chapters on your own. What I’d like to do today is explore some ways you can make learning in groups even more fun. Here are some ideas:

Game Show Time!
Earlier this week, I talked briefly about how to turn your study group into a full-blown game show for added fun and maybe even a little competition. Here are some ways to do that. First, split up into teams. It doesn’t really matter whether you have two teams, three teams…you can even have a little one-on-one standoff if you only have one study partner. Then, each team contributes a few questions from the relevant course that they will be asking other teams when it’s their turn. Split the questions into categories, such as “easy”, “medium” and “difficult”, with harder questions counting for more points. Then, take turns, with each team getting a chance to answer questions from the other teams’ question bank! Decide how many rounds to play and remember, the highest score wins!

Flash Cards with a Twist
Just about every student has used flash cards at some point. They may seem to be for kids, but they can be very helpful, especially with subjects like foreign languages, history (dates and names lend themselves well to flash cards), or even math, with all the formulas that need to be remembered for tests. How do we take flash cards and make them more fun? Easy…design a board game! Take a piece of paper and draw out a map with many squares (how many is up to you), and write things on some squares, like “move back 1 square” or “skip a turn” on random squares. Then, take a normal die, and take turns rolling it. After you roll the die, have your partner show you a flash card. If you answer the flash card correctly, you move the number of spaces on the die! See? It’s simple, yet will make the same dull flash cards into a totally new experience!

Tutors Just Want to Have Fun!
Okay, maybe the famous Cyndi Lauper song doesn’t go exactly that way, but the point remains the same: you can have fun while studying with a tutor, too. In fact, many tutors and tutoring services are skilled in approaching subjects in new and interesting ways, so that students can digest new information easier than they normally do. If you have a big test coming up, have your tutor challenge you to answer questions correctly, and see if you can continue increasing your score! Also, tutors may have fun acronyms or other learning strategies to learn important terms, formulas, or other information that has to be remembered.

As always, learning is what you make of it. If you approach learning with an open mind and a positive attitude, you’re much more likely to enjoy yourself! Remember this the next time you study with a group of friends, your online tutor, or even by yourself, and studying will take on a whole new life!

English may not be the first subject that comes to mind when you think of challenging classes, but it’s definitely near the top of the list. Many students struggle with the myriad of rules, guidelines and intricacies of English writing. Here are some tips to help you do your best in English class.

To Write Better, Read!
It may sound strange, but one of the best ways to become a better writer is to read more. Reading more will improve your grammar usage, spelling, and even your vocabulary! Many good spellers will tell you that their secret to spelling success is the fact that they’ve read many books, and that only makes sense. After all, if as see a word more times, you will be more likely to remember the correct spelling of it. Reading will also demonstrate proper language, grammar and sentence structure…hopefully after reading a lot, you will have a much better grasp of how to format your writing!

Learn From Your Mistakes
It’s easy to get discouraged when a teacher returns a paper to you full of red ink marks, but take advantage of such setbacks as a chance to learn! It’s hard to think of another class where help is more readily available. After all, the teacher is providing you with a document that actually lists all of your errors, and often tells you how to fix them! Not only that, but multiple drafts, which most instructors require, allow you chances to improve your writing for a more polished final product. How nice would it be to have multiple “drafts” of a calculus test? An English tutor is a great way to take your writing to an even higher level. Working with a tutor allows you to get that extra help that your teacher may not be able to provide, and gives you another pair of eyes to look over papers before you hand them in. Tutoring is also great because students can learn helpful ways to remember complex grammar and punctuation rules.

Write About What You Enjoy
You’d be surprised by how much your writing will improve when you write about something that interests you. When you write about a topic or subject of interest, you bring more knowledge to the table, and you’ll be more likely to research the topic well, since you would like to learn more about it anyway. Believe it or not, when the teacher reads your paper, your passion for the subject will shine through! It’s not hard to tell if a writer is connected to his or her topic or not, and having a genuine interest for a subject will give your work that extra something, and could be the difference between a “B” and an “A” grade. Next time you have a research paper, book report, or fictional story due, try to write about something that interests you…you’ll see the results, and you’ll enjoy yourself much more in the process!

English is one of the most important subjects to learn in school, because you will use what you learn as much or even more than what you learn in any other subject. Therefore, it’s imperative that students master the skills taught to them in English classes! Follow these tips, get homework help if you need it (an online tutor is a great choice!), and you’ll see improvement in no time!