Good Habits, Great Grades

Ask Me In October

My school year has ended: the high school wrapped up June 5th and the college ended June 11th. Typically, these early weeks of summer are spent shredding or filing stacks of papers, pulling weeds, meeting friends for lunch, and reflecting: What did I do well? What can I do better? ...

You CAN Teach an Old Dog New Tricks!

Our English teacher retired this year and, as always when you lose a good teacher, you’re sad and a little anxious, and always reflective. Of course he touched many students during his career. Most of them would tell you he was a great teacher who taught them to write, to ...

Consistency is a Gift

As I’ve written before, most of my students at the college are adults working at least one job and raising at least 2 children. So in their writing class I asked them to tell me what it takes to be a good parent. Lots of discussion ensued, and they took ...

The Students Teach the Teacher -- Again

One of the nice things about being a teacher is that you are always learning. Last quarter I had two deaf students in my math and reading classes. They were amazing men with lots of interesting stories in their lives. They also had a wonderful attitude and huge motivation. At ...

Teaching Accountability

When the research came out a few years ago showing that the adolescent brain is still under development into their early 20s, most high school teachers weren’t surprised. Many of us were relieved, as it helped us understand some of the strange behaviors and choices we would witness in many ...

Good Parenting Defined

Last night I assigned my adult writing students the following topic: What does it take to be a good parent? My students range in age from 20 to 65. Most, but not all, are parents, so I anticipated that some of them would balk at the question. I also suspected ...

Surviving the School Year

This is the time of year when students are stricken with spring fever and teachers are experiencing the pressures of the end of the year. High stakes testing is imminent, and everyone’s pushing to meet goals and complete the curriculum. So how do we all survive? How do we make ...

Scheduling the SAT or ACT

Scheduling the SAT or ACT is another important decision that you need to make with some intention. I suggest that students take these tests in the spring, when their math courses are nearly complete. The content of the math has gotten a little more difficult, so it’s important to have ...

SAT vs ACT: What's the Difference

The introduction of college entrance testing generated some great questions from our readers, so I will continue this discussion for the next couple of weeks. What are the differences between the ACT and SAT? There are only a few, but they are significant. • The first is in how the ...

Preparing for College Entrance Tests

The SAT and ACT are the 2 main tests colleges look at when admitting new students. So how do we prepare our students and when should we start? First, let’s talk about little about what is being tested. These tests are not necessarily testing a student’s specific content knowledge of ...

More About Helping in the Schools

Last week’s column elicited many positive and helpful comments, particularly from a local teacher who did not want me to share her name. She did say it was okay to share some additional ideas for how parents can be involved in the school. Here are some great ideas. • If ...

Staying Involved

In a recent conversation with the headmaster of a local school, he mentioned his frustration that as kids progress through the grades, he sees less of the parents. So I thought it time to revisit one of my most important tips: if your student is in middle school or high ...

Test Success

It’s testing “season” again, so I thought it might be helpful to review what’s expected and how you can help your student be most successful. First, why do we do all this testing? The HSPE (high school proficiency exam), administered March 12, 13, and 14th, is a state-mandated assessment of ...

Giving Back

Recently I joined the Adult Basic Education team at Wenatchee Valley College teaching reading, writing, and math. I was a little nervous at first because I was facing a room full of students ranging in age from 20 to 67 and skills from 1st grade to college. Fortunately, 40+ years ...

Report Card Grades Should NEVER Be a Surprise

Another semester is on the books and already there are angry parents and disappointed kids. So I thought it pertinent to review some of the things we need to do to remove the surprise from report cards. First, students don’t fail in a week. If your student received an F ...

Hard Work Is the Key to Academic Success

I write a lot about problems: challenging students, challenging relationships, challenging situations. I hope these articles help and welcome specific questions. But this week I’d like to focus on a couple of students who have challenged themselves to be the best that they can be. Names, grade, gender have been ...

Breaking Bad News

I have a student whose father is seriously ill and hospitalized as a result. My student whom I shall name Fred, has been visibly shaken by this. Fred still manages to attend school and keep up with his work. But it’s taking a toll. Every time his classmates ask about ...

The Rest of the Story

This week I met with a mom who was concerned that her son was failing freshman English because he didn’t complete a required book report. The book was too difficult, but when her son tried to change books, he was told there were no other choices. Then he went to ...

Keeping Our Children Safe

I leave for work each day around 7:15. It’s still dark at that time, but I see kids walking to school. Today there were 2 little girls, probably 9 or 10 years old, walking on snow-covered sidewalks – alone. And this only a few days after an 11-year old was ...

Planning Ahead

One of the best habits a person can develop is effective use of a planner. A planner, used correctly, will practically eliminate stress, last-minute chaos, accidental oversights. And it’s never too soon to introduce the concept to your kids. Little kids love stickers, so a child’s first “planner” can be ...

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