| President’s Message Oh, to  be able to
paint what one sees! What a time of year! The beauty
of the season cannot help to put a glow on one's face. It seems like our community
has been dipped in gold. There has not
been as much red and orange as in the past....but beautiful gold
leaves signaling the end of a season. So my eyes are the lens
for pictures I will hold in memory to pull out during the dreary days
sure to follow. Already the rains have come. 
"How
do I start to homeschool my child? I have never homeschooled before,
what do I do?" These questions come to us repeatedly, as
parents find they want to try a different approach for their child's
education. Each state has different guidelines which they want
parents to follow. But for each state the main areas that
parents need to be aware of, are the following: determine the type of
curriculum you will use in the homeschooling process; keep track of
the time your child studies each day; and maintain adequate records of
the child's work. Some states require physical education and the
arts. This can be accomplished by going to a gym or recreation
center each week and providing music or art lessons for your
child. Don't forget to tell your local school district that y We further suggest that the parent structure learning by having a set time for learning activities each day. The learning environment is important....good lighting, a flat surface for writing, adequate supplies and no television in the background. Homeschooling is not an easy task. It takes effort and commitment on the part of the parent and child. But the rewards can be awesome! I wish you could hear some of the comments, I hear....especially from the students. It is rewarding for us, as well! |
ou
have decided to homeschool your child. |
Thanksgiving is a time for family and
friends to gather and celebrate the successes of the year. In
our family, the children have taken over the role the older generation
held for so long of preparing and hosting the festivities. It
becomes very special when we all help in the preparation, boast of our
accomplishments and remember past Thanksgivings. It is a
time for reflection and laughter. We are fortunate to
have this time together and would wish that everyone could have the
same. So the success we celebrate each Thanksgiving, more than
any other, is the opportunity to be together. A bountiful, happy Thanksgiving to each of you!
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President John F. Kennedy |
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 Learning
with e-Tutor:
There
is much reading and writing in the e-Tutor program and users will have
excellent reading and writing skills if the program is used
consistently. Parents sho When emailing Knowledge HQ, e-Tutor, we are able to respond to subscribers more quickly when the email program included with the e-Tutor program is used. The program quickly identifies students and parents. We respond to email within twenty-four hours unless it is a weekend or a holiday. Four new lessons were added to e-Tutor this month! Join the e-Tutor world of learning today to view the Lesson Library. |
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The first Thanksgiving ever proclaimed by a President of the United States was observed in 1789. It was proclaimed by President Washington as a day of gratitude for the adoption of the constitution. Over the years the reasons for celebrating have changed. Custom now focuses more on an early celebration the Pilgrims had. Our own family traditions have added to how we celebrate the day. Yet centuries later, it remains a day of thankfulness and a general sense of appreciation for a way of life founded on the ideals of our fore fathers. |
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How
many lessons should my student do each day?
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Alexander Pope, 1731 |
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Visualizing or making pictures in one's mind helps us clarify information so that recall is easier. When students are visualizing information spoken to them, they are actively participating in the construction of meaning. Some researchers have suggested that visual images are easier to recall and are remembered longer than printed or verbal messages. A familiar example of this is our ability to remember people's faces but not their names. Instruction in visualizing can begin with a single, descriptive object (e.g., a fresh, hot pizza with "the works"). Thoughtful selection of a target object will insure that the student has prior knowledge of the target. After modeling the visualization of a target object, the child can discuss what he/she would include. As the child becomes proficient in
visualizing simple targets, passages that require increasingly more
complex visual images can be presented. For example:
Possible questions might include:
After sufficient practice and
discussion, the child can independently practice visualization.
Passages that contain details and descriptive language
If the child has difficulty remembering information that is critical to the passage, prompts can be given. A child's drawing of their visualization can help, as well as comprehension questions. Adapted from Idea Factory for Teachers Silver Burdett and Ginn |
| It is that time of year again when there is an over abundance of foods and delicacies that are hard to resist. There is entertainment and much to be done for most of us. As parents we need to attend to our personal health, but also to be a role model for our children. The following tips will help you sail happily through the holiday season:
Adapted from Leaders' Edge |
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With our sermonettes, cajoling and in some instances, begging and threatening our children to study and learn, many of them seem to turn away and perceive us simply as nagging parents with little impact on their daily learning. We, in turn, often feel guilty and fatigued by these constant battles for our children's benefit and resent our roles as minister-wardens in the service of modern education. Show a non-threatening interest in your child's learning. This means that you care and want to know what your child is learning, but not for purposes of criticism or surveillance. The dinner table is an excellent setting for exploration of new things your child has learned. On these occasions your disposition should be to understand and share in the enjoyment of your child's learning. They are not situations in which to criticize or be demanding of the child to improve or to show superior work. Such reactions will usually cause the young person to avoid discussions of this nature, or worse, to resent learning activities for the oppression it brings to home life. Learning is an active physical and emotional process. Children must feel rested and healthy to have the energy needed for learning. They must also feel loved and free from emotional trauma in order to concentrate on learning. Otherwise their time in school may be spent worrying about or reflecting on personal problems. A satisfying home life is a prerequisite for effective learning. Adapted from National Education Association |
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One way to help your teenagers become better decision makers is to step out of your role of exclusive decision maker and take on the new role of coach and helper. Teach these steps for making a decision:
Adapted from National School Public relations Association |
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Washington Irving once wrote: "Great minds have purposes; others have wishes." His insight leads to the realization that without expectancy, we lack purpose. Achievers, in particular, exhibit this
attitude of expectancy. This shows itself most forcefully in the
way they minimize their losses. The do not grieve over failures
or what might have been. Rather, the achiever looks around the
corner in anticipation of the good things that await him. All he
has to do, he believes, is show the determination to get
there. He rejects the notion of 'can't.' As a result, he is able to open more doors than others, strike better deals and attract more energetic and resourceful people to work with him. He sets higher standards and gets others to help him meet them He wins confidence and nurtures vitality in others. He expects to succeed. When combined with desire, expectancy produces hope. And hope makes all things possible. Living the expectant life is simply an act of good judgment. Allan Cox, The Making of an Achiever |
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Most parents don't understand how deeply a child fears humiliation. All too often we don't see or hear what is really troubling our children. Research has shown that children are afraid of losing face: being thought of as unattractive, stupid or dishonest. It is more troubling to wet their pants in class, get a bad report card or repeat a grade, for example, than it is to undergo surgery or be confronted by a rival baby brother or sister....situations a parent might expect to be most disconcerting. For a child, a blow to self-esteem, the sense of being worthy, is a terrible thing to endure. Researchers
have found that once a child starts school, the respect and liking of peers
become immensely important. The opinion of friends sometimes
matters more than the approval of teachers and parents. When
asked what was so bad about repeating a grade, the most common
response was shame at being We have always understood that adolescents turn to their peer group for support, but we have also assumed that for younger children friendships were easily formed and easily broken. New studies show that the loss of friends and particularly rejection by the group are painful and humiliating for even very young children. There are some things we can do:
Adapted from James Lincoln Collier |
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Curtis Botanical Magazine:
Students of all ages can access antique illustrations of native plant
species from around the world. The US Department of Agriculture has
created a database from the information found in Curtis Botanical
Magazine (published 1787-1807). Use the search feature to find plants
by common name, species, or location, such as US state or country. Space CAD: Do you
want your child to experience CAD (Computer-Aided Drafting and
Design), but don't have a lot of time and money to set up a program?
Try using the lesson ideas from this ThinkQuest entry, which uses
authentic NASA technical drawings and includes a link to free, lite-CAD
software. Tutorials, slide shows, interactive quizzes, and design
projects are linked to the history of the NASA manned space program,
including many color photographs. Lessons are also available in
Spanish and French. Yes I can Science!
The International Space Station is in the news. Learn more about the
role the Canadian Space Program plays in the station, and let your
students experiment and create activities using the themes of water,
ecosystems, robotics and energy. Specific lessons targeted to students
from grades 3-12. Codes and Ciphers in the Second
World War: Everyone I know has played spy at one time or
another. Let students see the practical side and how technology and
mathematics helped break codes during World War II. Take a virtual
tour of Bletchley House, where code-breaking operations were housed,
and learn about Enigma, the coding machine that was so tough to break. EuroTurtle:
EuroTurtle, despite the name, covers turtles worldwide. This great
resource has information on the biology of turtles, species of
turtles, their location and their chances for a long and happy life.
Early learners can view great images and gain information, while older
students can spend hours accessing the information and activities on
the site. Chaucer Metapagea: For
educators and students trying to understand Chaucer or for those trying
to get a feel for life in 14th and 15th Century England, visit this site
to read about Chaucer's work, hear the work read aloud and figure out
the meanings of Olde English words found in his work.
From the Knowledge HQ Staff Copyright © 2005 Knowledge Headquarters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. www.knowledgehq.com
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are especially
useful for the visualization strategy. For example:
breathing will help regulate
your heart and respiration rates and clear your mind. 
"laughed at and teased" by
former classmates. 
Parents, of course, have
to help shape their children to fit into society. But let them
fit in, in their own ways. The basic requirement for everybody,
young or old, is to feel that he or she is worth something. 
We
give thanks for each of you this month!