Different ways of encouraging children to write through tutoring

Children have their own way of depicting creativity. Hence; in this blog; I have tried to make my readers understand the need for developing writing skills in children; and different ways of encouraging them to write creatively.

My blogs have always concentrated on highlighting various talents that can be very useful to children. Today this write-up is based on different ways through which tutors can encourage children to write. Writing is a very creative field which requires imagination and will power on the part of the child to grow in the writing field. As children always start off with something small and abstract there is enough potential of developing creativity through communication and connectivity. Now you might be wondering how connectivity comes in the fore for this subject? Let me explain this to you. While you are writing on something you develop a connection with the topic, the characters and the story. In the same way; children need to be encouraged to write more and more so that we can come to know different creative ideas in their ideas. Once they start putting their ideas into words the connectivity automatically develops. It also helps in critical thinking of the child; and improves their performance in school.

So as we have understood the need for nourishing written skills in children let me show you different methods through which tutors can easily inculcate the habit of writing in children:

• Word Power: It has been statistically proven that children love learning new words. They have the habit of picking up new words very quickly. In fact it has also been proven that children learn at least 9 words a day; before learning how to read. Hence; building word power is one of the most effective ways of making them habituated with the writing skills. Make them read magazine, newspaper or an article on the internet. Also make them aware of different words that they come across on internet and newspaper that are new to them. The other ways of making them interested in writing are:

§  Ask them to write notes or letters using the new words that they came across on day-to-day basis

§  Ask them to talk about words in the form of songs. This is a great way of making them learn new words. This way they can then use these words creatively to form various sentences easily

• Read loudly: When you are reciting a picture book to a child; make sure that you are reading loudly to them. Also make sure that they are paying attention to the different words being used in the sentences. This will encourage them to hear these keywords and frame their own stories; which will ultimately lead to great write-ups. This is also known as writer’s ears. Describe the characters that they love elaborately this way they will come to know how to write a part of the story and develop characters in that story.

• Provide healthy environment to the child to write: This is the most important thing while making children convergent about writing. The room where they are scheduled to write something should have a surface, writing tools, good lightning and inspiration. Always have all the interesting things that the child enjoys so that they can think creatively with these tools and develop their own ideas while writing on a topic. Remember that creativity can only be developed when the surrounding place is of the liking of the child and their creativity is enhanced with the props surrounding the room in which they are writing.

Tutoring is a very difficult profession. It requires lot of time and dedication. Creativity cannot be developed in a day. It takes time and patience. Hence; always be there for the child and provide your support thereby encouraging them to write on topic of their liking. This way you will inculcate the habit of writing in children in a very positive manner.

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PracTutor
12806 Townepark Way

Louisville, KY 40243-2311

United States

http://www.practutor.com

Myths and realities associated with tutoring

Tutoring is a very noble profession. But there are various myths that have been associated with it. In this blog; I have tried to uncover the realities behind these myths so that tutoring can get the distinct position in the education field.

I have always encouraged a healthy discussion in my blogs. Usually the topics have been about children as they are the future of our world. But today this write-up discusses about different myths and realities associated with tutoring. After reading this write-up you will come to understand the relevance of tutoring, the various benefits associated with tutoring neglecting the myths that have been based on false judgment of some people. But through this blog sanity will prevail and I will try to uncover facts that will make you realize that tutoring is also a very important aspect of education sector. But first of all let us try to understand why tutoring has become such a big deal in recent years? We all know that in conventional classroom environment it is not possible for the teacher to concentrate on each and every child and I have already said these thousands of times that the grasping power of each individual is different. Hence; it becomes quite difficult for a teacher to handle so many students in one classroom and answer all their queries. Due to these things there are times when certain students lag behind; and are not able to perform according to their knowledge. During such stages tutoring is required.

So now as you have understood the need for tutoring let me shift my attention to various myths that have been associated with tutoring. I will also try to uncover the realities associated with these myths so that we can get a clear picture in the end as to whether tutoring is required in today’s dynamic education environment or not. So let us start off this journey by discussing these myths and realities:

• Myth 1: Tutoring is only required for laggards

• Reality: Please note that tutoring is provided to children who take longer to grasp things but that do not make them laggards. Moreover; there are examples where even intelligent students have taken tutoring as an option to get more personalized attention and get good knowledge from the subject. No child should feel ashamed while asking help from tutors as this is essential for their overall progress.

• Myth 2: Tutoring is only for rich people

• Reality: There are various families who spend thousands of dollars on private tutors to make the future of their child but that does not mean that tutoring in general is expensive. There are different types of tutoring courses which are provided in accordance to needs of the child through online means. These online courses are very reasonable in cost and finding a relevant online tutor for your child is quite an easy task. You can learn about different pay scales of tutors based on major cities by copying and pasting the link below to a separate browser:

http://blog.tutorspree.com/post/15257341578/state-of-tutoring 

• Myth 3: Tutoring is required only if the teacher is not their job perfectly

• Reality: The reason for hiring a tutor can be different from the skill sets of their teacher. A teacher normally has to handle a classroom filled with large number of students. Hence; it becomes very difficult for them to pay attention to the individual needs of a student. In such cases to derive more knowledge from the subject tutoring is considered as an option. This is not to say that the teacher is not doing their duty properly; it is just that your child needs a little more attention than the other children.

• Myth 4: Tutoring saves students from getting “F” grade

• Reality: Like I have already depicted earlier; a knowledgeable child can also take the help of a tutor. Hence; it is not very important to think about grades when you first enroll for a tutoring course. The ultimate objective should be to gain knowledge from the course. If the child derives the requisite knowledge they will get much higher grade than F in their tests and exams.

• Myth 5: Tutoring takes lots of time

• Reality: Always remember that quantity does not ensure quality. Hence; even an hour’s study on a lesson can have an everlasting impression on the minds of the child. Once the child develops confidence in the tutoring style of the tutor it becomes very easy to enhance their confidence and make them learn new topics easily. Most tutors also give adequate amount of time to ensure that the child gets desired attention from them and get requisite knowledge from the course.

• Myth 6: Tutoring will solve all the problems of the child

• Reality: Tutors are not walking encyclopedia, they cannot provide answers to each and every problem of the child. But if you stay in contact with the teacher at school and ask them about the weaknesses of the child then they can be overcome with the help of tutors. Tutors will make your child develop independent quality to solve problems; and apply their knowledge, to get the desired resolution after understanding their weak points; and work on the improvement of these points.  

Hence; after going through these myths and realities I can safely conclude that tutors are required in today’s educational field. But they should be selected quite wisely after proper scrutinization. I would like to conclude this blog by mentioning a quote from Thomas Jane,

“We always need more tutors, because there are students who are waiting for a tutor to help them improve their reading, writing, math, or basic computer skills."

If you wish to provide your feedback and comments on this blog; follow us at: http://www.facebook.com/PracTutor, http://hardik.practutor.com

PracTutor
12806 Townepark Way

Louisville, KY 40243-2311

United States

http://www.practutor.com

Using creative methods to break the bad habits in children

It is natural for a child to have some habits inhibited in them. But if they are bad then it becomes very difficult for the parents and the tutors to break these habits. Hence; I have dedicated this blog in solving this concern by providing creative methods to break the bad habits in children.

I am a firm believer of the fact that children are fast grasper of the facts. Whatever they see from the surroundings they adopt it sub-consciously hence it is very important to keep their immediate environment free from contagious and bad habits. Sometimes they follow certain traits from their parents which are not good like shouting very loudly with each other, bad mouthing in front of the child or speaking badly about someone in presence of the child. These things have tremendous affect on the child in the long term. Hence; it is very important to keep a check on your activities as mature adults as see to it that children are not seeing things that should be avoided in front of them. Some of the basic bad habits in children constitute of biting nails, nose picking, not answering courteously to immediate circle for example saying please, thank you and sorry in day to day life, thumb sucking and knuckle cracking. Now these things become habits in the long term which are very difficult to break even during early adulthood. Hence; parents and tutors need to take adequate actions in order to curb these habits from children.

Now these habits are not formed with one instance but when they sub-consciously follow the same things over time they become habits which are quite difficult to break. It is also very easy to distinguish a good habit from a bad habit. For example; reading a comic book is a good habit for a child but biting nails is a bad habit. Once these habits are formed subconsciously it is very difficult to stop them. Now these habits form due to external pressure, anxiety or to release tension. Parents need to very patient with the child when the first observe these bad habits. It is very easy to punish the child when you see them with doing these activities. But by punishing them, you are encouraging them to continue with the activities for longer time. Rather than using the stick as an option, try to use the other approach of making the child understand the negative aspects of the habit.

Before I enumerate different creative methods of curbing these bad habits let me depict a quote from Rob Gilbert,

“First we form habits, then they form us. Conquer your bad habits or they will conquer you.”

As we can see if the habits are not broken quickly they become very vicious which can be very destructive for the child. Hence; let me now get to the point and give you various creative methods which can help parents to break the bad habits in children:

• Have a frank talk with the child: See without speaking with the child it will be very difficult for you to help them out. Hence; try to be patient with them and explain the various negative things that can happen if they continue with the habit. Initially ask them the reason for developing this habit. If it is because of some form of pressure or tension; ask them to look for other activities that can help them divert their attention from this habit. This way they will discontinue habit without any force.

• Give positive reinforcement when you find the child discontinuing the habit: When you find that the child does not follow the bad habit for a particular time period observe them carefully and then give them encouragement, thereby reinforcing the successes that they have achieved by discontinuing the habit for the duration and then call attention to the setbacks that can be overcome if they discontinue with this habit. Set a new goal for the child and ask them to curb their bad habit for particular number of days. This will help the child to gain confidence and be very effective in curbing their habit permanently.

• Ask them to make a commitment to their family about discontinuance of the habit: This is one of the best motivating methods that can influence the child to give up on the habit. Ask them to make a promise in front of the entire family including grandparents, family friends and teachers. This way everyone will support them to break free from this habit.

• Teach relaxation techniques to the child: Nail biting, sucking thumb are attributes of nervousness which can be curbed with the help of relaxation techniques. Ask them to practice breathing techniques. They should also try for positive self-talk whenever they feel stressed out or nervous.

• Patience is the best virtue: Since habits are not formed overnight. It will be difficult to change them instantly. Have patience and try to reduce the number of times the child is repeating the habit in a day. Once it is reduced considerably you can aim for the complete eradication of the habit. But if for some reasons, it is not possible to reduce the habit then it is always recommended to visit a mental health professional to get proper treatment of the child. But this method is normally only used in serious cases where the habit cannot be curbed through behavioral intervention.

Normally you would see parents using force to curb these habits from the child. But since I have always tried to solve concerns using creative means; I wanted to display different methods which will not only help the child overcome these bad habits but will also make them realize the importance of keeping a relaxed mind and healthy body for building good habits.

If you wish to post your comments and feedback about this article; follow us at: http://www.facebook.com/PracTutor, http://hardik.practutor.com

PracTutor
12806 Townepark Way

Louisville, KY 40243-2311

United States

http://www.practutor.com

Different learning styles of different students and how these styles affect the tutoring patterns

In my blogs I have always tried to look at different means of instilling creativity in children. This write-up is about different learning styles adopted by different students and how these styles affect the tutoring pattern.

Every child has a unique way of absorbing and learning things. When you are meeting a child for the first time it might take you some time to get their learning methods. But these learning methods can mean a lot for a tutor in strategizing long term planning for a child. In my blogs I have always concentrated on various facets through which children can be creatively engrossed in learning activities. In this blog I will talk about different learning styles in different students which make it mandatory for a tutor to change their teaching style according to the learning style of the student. But first of all let me enumerate different learning styles in children. According to an article written with the same subject by D. H. Sailor, he says that there are various theories which revolve around different learning styles of children but he finds the model discussed by Sliver, Strong and Perini in 1997 a good example which accumulates all the major learning from different theories and try to adopt in their model. So let me discuss about this model in detail to make it interesting for you to understand the different learning styles for students:

• Mastery Learners: These types of learners are aggressors. They try to absorb every new information in a step-by-step process. They are very clear about their objectives and like things which are depicted in simple manner. They believe in practical application of the learning. About 35% of students fall under this category.

• Understanding Learners: They have the innate quality of asking lots of questions. They are curious to learn new things and are inquisitive to learn them as quickly as possible. They have good reasoning ability which makes them good inspiration of transforming their ideas into practical solutions.  They are quite logical in their approach and always ask the question why whenever they are in doubt. They look for proof or evidence whenever they find it difficult to get the theory and are very practical in their approach. About 35% of students fall under this category.      

                         

• Self-Expressive Learners: These types of learners depend on their feelings and what they see in material to absorb things. They are artistic by nature and value originality. About 12% of students fall in this category.

• Interpersonal Learners: These learners require a group to perform better. They absorb ideas by sharing it with others. They are always very contributive and value the inputs that are useful for the entire group. They believe in providing services to fellow colleagues through volunteering. About 18% of students fall under this category.

But this theory cannot be used rigidly for each and every scenario. You can find that with a change in scenario, a self expressive learner might adopt the style of interpersonal learner’s style in different situation. For example; Imagine a scenario where the students are given a project on social studies. A self-expressive learner can create the project on his own; but by adopting “interpersonal learners” style he/she can get better knowledge of the project by contributing and sharing different ideas with each other and coming up with a creative project.

Likewise, we have already heard that creative people use left side of their brains and intellectuals use right side of the brain. But imagine a situation wherein you have to adopt both creativity and intellectuality to solve the problem. In that case you are using equal proportions of both sides of the brain. Moreover, there are children who are good are storytelling, drama or writing. While there are others who are very good at crafts, field trips, experiments and learning musical instrument.  

Hence; it is very important for the tutors to understand the learning style that is most comfortable with the child and then progress with their work. This will enable them to teach them in a better way and make them grasp things in a proper way through different ways that the child likes rather than teaching them in the same vein as taught previously. This way the creativity in the child can be developed and the tutor’s responsibility of imparting knowledge in the best possible way would be fulfilled.

If you would like to post your comments and feedback on this article; follow us at: http://www.facebook.com/PracTutor, http://hardik.practutor.com

PracTutor
12806 Townepark Way

Louisville, KY 40243-2311

United States

http://www.practutor.com

The intricate part of making children learn spellings through tutoring

Every child has a gift within themselves and spelling keywords properly is also a gift which can be learned with proper guidance and training. In this blog I have discussed various ways through which children can be taught spellings through tutoring.

I have discussed a lot of different methods of teaching innovatively for English in my previous blog titled “Determining a breakthrough teaching mechanism for English online tutors”. You can read about the different innovative methods that can be applied while teaching English to children by copying and pasting the link given above to a separate browser. Now you might be wondering what is so different about this blog anyways because I have already discussed about different innovative methods in English language in my previous write-up. But today this write-up is on a different subject. I will speak about a very difficult scenario for tutors especially when it comes to teaching those children who are not very good at learning spellings for English language. Now I know that you might be wondering that there are so many blogs on the same topic available on the net and what is so different in this blog. I will explain that in a minute or so but first of all let me tell you that spelling skills cannot be learned in a day or two and need to be practiced for a longer time to make the child expert in spelling keywords correctly. Children usually lose their focus and mix up different letters while spelling them or they find it difficult to spell the word correctly despite lot of effort and concentration on their part. But the good news is that with practice and hard work proficiency can be developed in this area that can help children spell even difficult words with ease.

Now let me enumerate different ways that can help you make children learn spellings through tutoring:

• Ask the child to repeat the spelling of the keyword several times: I now recall my childhood days and remember that whenever I had some problems in any subject during my secondary education I used to go to my father and ask him to help me out with that subject. The only thing he used to tell me was to repeat the questions and answers several times, retaining a significant line in between and then asking them questions based on the line. In the end I had to tell him that I have understood everything and used to work on the subject myself.

In similar way, ask the child to repeat the spelling of the keyword several times loudly; and then try to write it about 10 times without looking at the reference book. This way the child will increase their grasping power, and retain the spelling for a longer period of time.

• Develop sentences based on the keyword and use sentences from that word: Now this strategy is quite useful when there are two words which are pronounced the same way like: seen and scene. Here the word “C” is silent in scene, hence; it is very important to make the child understand the difference between the two words by explaining that seen means to perceive with the eyes; while scene is a place, with the people, objects, and events in it, regarded as having a particular character or making a particular impression. After making the child understand the difference; form sentences based on the keyword. Like for example; today I have seen a scene from a play on Julius Caesar in theatre. This way the child will try to recognize the difference between the two words. This activity is particularly important to clear confusion from the minds of the child. Always try to use different examples for similar keywords for example; there, their, they’re and explain the meaning of each of these keywords properly so that the child is not confused while spelling these words.

• Do a mock spelling test:  For similar pronunciations of different words, say the word loudly in front of the child and then give them hints about the association of the keyword with different parts of speech for example; adjective, noun, verb, adverb etc. Then use the keyword in a sentence; and ask them to repeat the sentence loudly by repeating the keyword. This is particularly useful for children who find it difficult to write or read. This method can also eliminate the test anxiety amongst children.

If you find that the child has progressed a lot while taking their test; praise them, and always encourage them to do better. Increase their self-confidence by giving them incentives; whenever they spell a particular keyword properly. This way they will be encouraged to give their best; and it will be more like a playtime for them. Also maintain a scorecard and show it to them regularly; so that they can get positive vibes from it. They can then approach the next spell test with confidence.

If you wish to contribute further and post your comments and feedback on different ways through which children can be taught to learn spellings through tutoring; follow us at: http://www.facebook.com/PracTutor, http://hardik.practutor.com

PracTutor
12806 Townepark Way

Louisville, KY 40243-2311

United States

http://www.practutor.com

Developing character traits in children - A huge responsibility on tutors

My blogs have always been about instilling creativity in education domain. But today this write-up is focused on a very important factor which can make or break a child’s future. I will be writing about different ways through which character traits can be developed in children by tutors.

Every time I have planned to write something on teaching the very first thing that comes into my mind is children. You might also agree with the fact that majority of my blogs have been focused on children because they are the future of the world. We want our future to be bright and knowledgeable. Hence, there has been a constant effort on my part to provide useful information on making lives easier for children. This blog has been written with a different focus. The attention has been towards developing or building a strong character in children. This requires great commitment on the part of the tutors. Not only do they have to see that the children are focused on their studies but they also have to inculcate various positive traits that can shape the future of the children in a better way.

I have always said that at a tender age of 10-15 years it is very easy to be influenced by the surroundings and here the responsibility of parents is also paramount because children like to follow their parents. They copy their behavior, sometimes the way they talk and walk. All the major characteristics of building a strong character in the child comes from the society as a whole. Tutors are also part of the society hence; they should try to use different techniques through which a strong foundation can be built for the children so that a better future can be paved for them. Another major reason for focusing on developing character in children is to enhance their ability to understand the difference between the good and the bad thing and distinguish between right and wrong behavior. In this blog I will try to cover this area with examples to give you a fair idea of what ought to be done to build a strong character in children.

So let us begin this voyage with a quote from Helen Keller,

““Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” 

Hence, always remember that children need to be given their space to learn from their own experiences about the good and bad things. But always tell them that you are there for them if they need you. There are different ways of teaching good character traits to children but the most important thing is to make them do self-exercises. This will make them understand better and it will be more like a fun-filled game for them. So let me give you some of the important techniques through which tutors can develop strong character traits in children in their early age:

· Ask them to prepare a project and collect pictures of their heroes which include traits that they love about them: This is a very important exercise as the child can not only think of it as a game but also as learning experience. The other part of the exercise to make them read these traits day-in-and-out so that they can learn something positive from these traits and inculcate positive things from their heroes. For example; they can collect an image with the quote,

“The *amazing* can only be created by facing fear, risk and failure during the process.”

Or something like this:

“With great power comes great responsibility.”

When children read these quotes again and again everyday they inculcate positive changes and are able to absorb positive energy from these images. Moreover, tutors can even ask them write in their own words what their super hero would like to describe these quotes in their own words. This way you will not only encourage creativity in the child you will also build future generations of positive minded individuals. Ask the child to save the quote as wallpaper on their PC as a reminder and ask them to see it whenever they face any difficulty. This way you will give them the required independence and build positive character in them.

• Inform children about the true meaning of a particular personality trait: Read comic strips that describe particular personality trait of the super hero to the children. This way they will come to know what exactly is braveness, fearlessness, courage, bravery, heroism, boldness, righteous, honest and truthfulness. By depicting these traits through comics you give the children the scope to visualize all these character traits and they will then try to inculcate these behaviors in their day-to-day lives which will make them a better person for future. Whenever you see a positive personality trait in a child appreciate it immediately. For example; if you find that a child waits for your conversation to end before asking relevant questions point out to him/her that they did something respectful by allowing you to speak up completely before putting their point of view.

Once the child is well-aware of different character traits; ask them to differentiate between them. Encourage them to learn more about their favorite superheroes by reading comics and seeing videos. This way they will develop positive character traits for their future. This is a great responsibility of a tutor; as they are the ones who teach the children about different things apart from parents. Hence; it becomes their moral duty to inculcate positive character traits in children in a fun-loving manner.

I would like to conclude this blog by encouraging all the tutors to participate in healthy discussions and post your comments and feedback on this blog. You can follow us at:

http://www.facebook.com/PracTutor, http://hardik.practutor.com

PracTutor
12806 Townepark Way

Louisville, KY 40243-2311

United States

http://www.practutor.com