Our Parenting Blogs:
What do I do if my child doesn’t know a sound when we are reading together?
Since the structure of school has changed due to COVID-19, many parents are spending a lot more time teaching reading to our young students and struggling readers. A question that has come up over and over again is, “What do I do if my child doesn’t know a sound when...
How Do We Prepare for the Upcoming School Year When We Don’t Know What It’s Going to Look Like? Part III
Part III- Distance Learning Strategies for Teachers How do we prepare for the upcoming school year? This is a question I have been asking myself a lot as a parent and a teacher. Last week, we discussed how parents could help their child prepare for the upcoming...
How Do We Prepare for the Upcoming School Year When We Don’t Know What It’s Going to Look Like? Part II
Part II- Realize That Distance Learning Is Not Going Away This blog is part two in a series that I started last week on preparing for the upcoming school year. Part one was on staying current on math and reading skills. Have those of you that are local readers been...
How Do We Prepare for the Upcoming School Year When We Don’t Know What It’s Going to Look Like?
Part I- By Staying Current in Reading, Math, and Writing Skills This is part one of a series on how to prepare for the upcoming school year when we don’t know what it is going to look like. This is a topic that I have been thinking about a lot. I have also noticed...
Do I Need to Take the SAT or ACT to Apply to College in 2020?
If you are a rising senior who is trying to take the SAT in order to apply to college during the fall or spring of your senior year, it has undoubtedly been a stressful process. Many SAT and ACT test dates in the spring and early summer were canceled and it seemed...
How to Search for Colleges Virtually: What You Can Do Even When You are Stuck at Home
Many juniors are beginning their college search and many seniors are finalizing their college search from home. Due to coronavirus restrictions and closings, most students aren’t able to do the college visits they planned. Many are also having difficulty thinking...
What Will School Look Like in the Fall?
Many parents have been wondering what school will look like in the fall. Yesterday Governor Northam released a three phase plan for reopening schools with Phase I effective immediately. Here is the detailed plan: Phase I During phase one remote online learning...
A Strategy to Help Increase Reading Comprehension
Often students read fluently but do not fully understand what they are reading. As children enter upper elementary, the focus shifts from decoding and trying to figure out words to attempting to understand the meaning of text. Most students need strategies throughout...
Summer Learning
By now, we are all well aware of the “summer slide”. Research has consistently shown that kids lose more than 2 months of instruction over the summer if they do not practice learned skills. This learning loss is greater in math and happens to a larger extent in the...
Strategies for Staying Focused
Oftentimes we have a task to complete but run into difficulty getting it done. This is frequently due to distractions. Either we become sidetracked or overwhelmed and don’t begin or we get off task once we have started working. Here is a five step process to help stay...
Helping Students Create Routines and Schedules
Adapting to the new reality of at-home education and work can be difficult for the whole family. Children may have an especially difficult time adjusting to new changes. If your child has trouble following a regular schedule or has meltdowns when asked to switch from...
How to Create the Perfect To-Do List (for Kids!)
There are two major reasons that we don’t get things done even when we have every intention of doing them. The first is that we are not specific enough about exactly what needs to be accomplished. We need to consider what specific actions need to be taken to meet...
How to Motivate Your Kids
We are all trying our best to educate our children during this unusual time. Many parents have found themselves suddenly in charge of several full-time jobs: their actual full-time job, teaching their children, and managing a full household that has new rules for...
Helping Children Cope with the Coronavirus Pandemic
As a special education teacher and during my training as a school counselor, I worked with many children who were struggling with emotional and behavioral challenges. I know that during this unusual time, all of the needs of these children are falling to their...
Educating Students with Disabilities During School Closure: Suggestions for Math
Students who are struggling may have an even more difficult time managing distance learning where the teacher is not right there to help them. Often when trying to learn new math concepts, struggling students rely heavily on hands-on instruction, manipulatives, and...
Project-Based Learning Ideas!
Project-based learning can be a fun and authentic way to learn from home. It can also be a great way for teachers to motivate students who are no longer receiving grades by giving them something interesting and relevant to work on. When searching for a project, it is...
At Home Learning Can Be More Authentic
Just because school is over and many students are no longer receiving grades does not mean that learning has to stop. Now that most students are home from school due to the coronavirus, parents are left trying to navigate how to balance teaching their children with...
How Can I Practice for the SAT at Home?
Many of you are aware that the College Board has canceled the May 2nd SAT. The College Board is promising to provide future opportunities to take the SAT in place of the canceled tests. As of now, the June 6, 2020 SAT test is still being held as planned. This leaves a...
Will the AP Test Still Be Given in 2020?
I bet a few weeks ago you did not think you would be homeschooling your student, especially not in their AP classes! We have received many questions from parents who are wondering about AP testing and whether it is still happening. They are also not sure how to best...
How Do I Know if my Child Needs Reading Help?
Often I talk with parents who are frustrated to find that their child is one, two, or even four or more grade levels below what would match up with their year in school. They usually express some version of the same frustration,...
What is the Difference Between an IEP and a 504 Plan?
What is the Difference Between an IEP and a 504 Plan? Parents who are seeking out additional support for their child are often confused about the difference between an IEP (Individualized Education Program) and a 504 plan. Both plans provide support and often...
How Do I Find Out if My Child is Eligible for Special Education Services?
How Do I Find Out if My Child is Eligible for Special Education Services? I frequently speak to parents whose children have been struggling in school for years. Many times they suspect that this is due to learning or attention issues. Often they have brought this up...
Do I Need a Math Tutor?
Do I Need a Math Tutor? You may be wondering if you need a math tutor. Is your difficulty in math really bad enough to spend money to fix? If your child is struggling, won’t their teacher help them in school? Doesn’t everyone have a hard time with math sometimes? I...
Not Sure How to Accomplish that Big Task? Just Get Started!
Do you spend a lot of time and energy preparing for a test only to feel like your mind goes blank once you start the assessment? This is a common experience. It happens because of the way our brain takes in, stores, and then recovers learned information. There are three phases to learning and remembering…
How to Get More Done By Making One Simple Change in Your Routine
Do you spend a lot of time and energy preparing for a test only to feel like your mind goes blank once you start the assessment? This is a common experience. It happens because of the way our brain takes in, stores, and then recovers learned information. There are three phases to learning and remembering…
I Studied, So Why Does My Mind Go Blank When I Take a Test?
I Studied, So Why Does My Mind Go Blank When I Take a Test? Do you spend a lot of time and energy preparing for a test only to feel like your mind goes blank once you start the assessment? This is a common experience. It happens because of the way our brain takes in,...
3 Research-Based Strategies for Supporting Children with ADHD
3 Research-Based Strategies for Supporting Children with ADHD A quick search of the internet will turn up many “suggestions” for helping students with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) succeed in the classroom. However, frustratingly few of these...
Discussing our Stuff the Bus drive (Aug. 4 Southpoint Wal-Mart) on Ted Schubel’s Town Talk Radio Show
Discussing our Stuff the Bus drive (Aug. 4 Southpoint Wal-Mart) on Ted Schubel's Town Talk Radio Show Nina Parrish, Dawn Shelley, Rene Daniels and Michelle Swisher discuss the upcoming Stuff the Bus school supply drive with Ted Schubel on his Town Talk Radio Show on...
5 Ways Teachers Can Encourage Reluctant Readers
5 Ways Teachers Can Encourage Reluctant Readers We all know that reading is critically important to school success. Previous studies have found reading proficiency by third grade to be the most significant predictor of high school graduation and career advancement....
We Already Know How to Fix Education
We Already Know How to Fix Education Just imagine if all teachers were given a break from constant new programs introduced from above and allowed to teach this way. Imagine the growth we could see. One of the most frustrating experiences as a public school teacher is...
3 Ways Switching to Google Keep Can Help You Stay Organized
3 Ways Switching to Google Keep Can Help You Stay Organized I used to love writing on sticky notes. A few years ago, if you walked into my office you would have seen an array of rainbow notes with everything from grocery lists to the details of a recent phone call...
A Really Simple Way to Achieve More Goals
A Really Simple Way to Achieve More Goals If You Are Working On A Challenging Goal, Plan Backwards As a study skills tutor, I often work with high school and college students to prepare for exams, write a lengthy paper, or plan how a project will be completed. I...
Five Simple Student Routines for School Success
Five Simple Student Routines for School Success We all want our children to grow into happy, successful, and independently functioning (as in not living on our couch) adults one day. As a teacher, study skills tutor, and parent, I have come to the conclusion that if...
Do You Wonder if Your Child Has Dyslexia?
Do You Wonder if Your Child Has Dyslexia? Do you wonder if your child has dyslexia? Maybe you wonder if you have dyslexia. You are definitely not alone. As a special education teacher and reading tutor, one of the most common questions that I am asked by parents...
Volunteering: It’s good for way more than your student’s college application.
Volunteering: It’s good for way more than your student’s college application. “I am so glad I am here,” the teenage girl next to me says as she heaves clunky binders and packs of notebook paper into marked boxes. We are in the back of a box truck on a warm summer day...
5 Study Strategies for Students with Test Anxiety
5 Study Strategies for Students with Test Anxiety As the school year begins, a problem that I hear parents express most often, working as a study skills tutor, is that they see their children studying and then it seems they cannot remember the material on test day or...
Ten Tips for Tax Free Weekend Back to School Shopping in Virginia
Ten Tips for Tax Free Weekend Back to School Shopping in VirginiaThe Virginia Sales Tax Holiday or Tax Free Weekend is coming up this Friday, August 4th through Sunday, August 6th. During this time period, you can buy qualifying school supplies, clothing, footwear,...
The Secret to Happiness
The Secret to HappinessI feel a tug on the bottom of my sweater and look up from my work at the computer to see my two-year-old. “Apple Blessing, Mom” she says. I can’t even count the number of times I have heard these words in the last month. She asks me to sing this...
Put Down that Workbook, Summer Learning Should Not Be Torture
Put Down that Workbook, Summer Learning Should Not Be TortureI see you in Walmart or Borders buying that summer workbook for your kids, and I know that you have the best intentions. I have had the same thoughts myself. Nothing is more infuriating than coming home from...
Five Strategies for Surviving End-of-the-Year Testing
Five Strategies for Surviving End-of-the-Year Testing Good Morning. Testing will begin shortly after you complete the identification information on your answer sheet. Please listen carefully to the following instructions. You may not eat or drink in this room. You may...
Ten Tips to Prevent the Summer Slide!
School is almost over and the kids are ready for SUMMERl! It’s time to play video games, go to the pool and really just relax. While these are all fun summer activities, it turns out that inactive summers can really result in...
If Your Kids Can Do It Themselves, Let Them: 4 Ways to Foster Independence
If Your Kids Can Do It Themselves, Let Them: 4 Ways to Foster IndependenceI walked over to the coffee pot to put in the filter and spoon the tiny black granules into the basin. Above the soothing drip drip drip of coffee entering the pot, I suddenly hear my oldest...
Do This One Thing to Help Raise a Child Who Is Both Kind and Successful
Do This One Thing to Help Raise a Child Who Is Both Kind and Successful March is National Reading Month and Thursday March 2nd is Read Across America Day; A great time to reexamine how you are reading with your children! Do you want to raise a child who is both...
Three Tips for Productive Parent-Teacher Conferences
I rush to the car, grabbing items as I pass through the kitchen in a blur: purse (check), paper and pen (check), toddler has presentable clothes on (check), hair brushed sometime today-mine and hers (check and check), and keys and shoes (check). This goes on for what...
8 Essential Study and Life Skills You Won’t Learn in School
I can’t even count the number of teachers that I have heard say something along the lines of, “if it’s not on the test, I don’t teach it.” I don’t really blame them. We have created a culture in our schools that is completely focused on testing. Teachers are...
The Power of “I See You”
“Who is she talking to?” my older daughter says looking at the baby inquisitively. Our big silver SUV is bumping along crowded gray streets with cars lined up like dominoes. Lights flash yellow to red, horns honk. It’s rush hour. I look back. The baby holds her chubby...
Five Ways to Teach Your Kids Kindness Today
A concern I have heard from many parents during this election season is, “What will we tell our children?” Many times the behavior I see promoted in popular culture, Hollywood, and on television is not what I would want for my children. Since my kids are...
Is it Unfair to ask Children to Do Chores?
There is a video that is creating quite a buzz on Facebook recently. It is about the benefits to kids of doing household chores. The video contains pictures, information, and statistics about children in the United States doing chores. (See below for full video...
The Student Who Taught Me I Have Room for Thankfulness
As I drove from my house in the country, fields and green lawns gave way to rows of colorful single-family homes and then to enormous gray warehouses and boxy brown garages. The buildings, encircled by towering chain-link fences with signs that read “Keep...
Trick or Treat Should Not be the Way You Get Your Kids to Do Their Homework
We all know parents who try to coerce their kids into doing their school work with tricks and mind games. I am sure you also know at least a few parents who bribe their kids with money or rewards for doing their assignments or earning good grades. Maybe you are...
