Managing Technological Distractions

In today’s digital age, we are all constantly faced with technological distractions, such as Facebook, YouTube, and text messages from friends. These distractions are a big challenge, especially when students are trying to focus on homework, but they’re not going anywhere and are only proliferating. Learning to manage these distractions so we can get our work done is an important life skill! 

How do you address the problem of technological distractions? On the one hand, you can take a restrictive approach and not allow any Internet access during homework time. On the other hand, you can take a permissive approach and allow your child to find his or her own way, learning to handle distractions as they become problematic.

Both of these options have their drawbacks. The permissive approach results in the loss of too much valuable homework time, or homework that is poorly completed. The overly restrictive boundaries don’t teach kids the long-term skills needed to manage distractions. After all, once they reach college and the job world there will be no one looking over their shoulder, reminding them to turn off Facebook until their work is done.

Let’s look behind door number three for a better solution. We recommend that the Internet and other media distractions become a common topic during regular family meetings. In the context of a family meeting, children are given some overall clear boundaries, or “non-negotiables,” but they are also brought into the ongoing conversation about what is working and what is not. Their opinions are valued, they are allowed to make some mistakes, and they are given the option to make choices within realistic limits. If your child is included in coming up with a solution, he or she will then be invested in the problem-solving process. Instead of parent vs. child, you've changed the dynamic – you are now on the same team, working together to solve a problem.

Keep Reading to learn how a productive, solutions-oriented family discussion about managing distractions might proceed...

Words that make us smile!

It's almost to Thanksgiving and what are we thankful for? These sweet words from parents that make us smile! We know we have a truly wonderful group of tutors, and it's nice to hear that parents agree!


Here's what a parent has to say about her son's recent work with Michael D.:

"I can't thank you enough for  working with our son -- but, perhaps more importantly, for inspiring him to work to reach his goals. He never once complained about the work -- and I credit that to your establishing a good relationship with him right from the start. Your working sessions have given him much more than test taking skills -- they gave him confidence and a way to approach a difficult task. These are life skills that everyone hopes their child will obtain. We thank you for the assist!"

Another parent had an equally positive reaction to Michael M.:

"We have been extremely happy with Michael's work with our son.  Our goal was to get him through the end of last year and into his high school schedule.  I feel Michael's work and encouragement have been invaluable in bridging that transition both in academics and executive functioning skills.  I'm happy to say that our son is doing very well and has really settled into his classes/studies easily, currently maintaining a 4.0! We are so glad we discovered your group and that it could really meet the specific needs of our son.  Every student has different struggles and we are grateful that the focus was really on what he needed and not just a set tutoring curriculum.  We have already recommended your group to some friends and will continue to do so if we hear of other students who need help.  Thanks so much for your help in all of this and for Michael's warm, encouraging style which has helped our son grow in his self-confidence as well as his academic abilities!"

Here's what a happy mom had to say about her son's work with Lauren F.:

"I just wanted to tell you that I am so very grateful for everything that Lauren has done with and for our son.  She has been incredibly patient, caring, persistent and very enthusiastic the entire time he worked with her.  Who would have ever guessed that he would increase his composite score by 8 points from his first practice test?  She is a wonderful employee and a great representative of your company and its ideals/practices.  I have told you this before, but I would be happy to be a reference for Lauren and for Nurturing Wisdom ANYTIME."

Why do we practice?

We encourage our tutors to be broken records with their students, especially when it comes to attitudes about homework. We want tutors to help their students define the right attitude and create a mantra to help their students believe in its purpose and significance. An effective homework mantra and resulting attitude adjustment can have real long-term benefits when it comes to homework completion.

While students are told that homework matters, they tend not to believe it. I’m sure you’ve heard about teachers who quickly check homework just to see that it’s done – the “effort” grade. So students rush through the assignment to have something to show, but they’re not really using homework as an opportunity to practice and master skills. Their attitude is that homework doesn’t really matter. We want their attitude to be that doing homework thoroughly will help them truly understand concepts and processes, that it will help them do well on the test, and that it will help them down the road when they use that foundation to learn a new skill. So a mantra to reinforce this attitude might be “Trying really matters.” Homework is a great place to learn from mistakes, so another mantra may be “Mistakes are good.”

When I meet with students who are ready to start ACT prep, I talk with them about the importance of homework. I tell them that in the beginning homework is important so they can practice using new skills and strategies independently. Once they get the hang of it, they must continue to do the homework so the processes become automatic and they can open up space in their brains for doing the trickier work. With some students, I make a sports analogy: Tom Brady doesn’t quit going to practice because he’s a really good quarterback; he’s a really good quarterback because he keeps going to practice. Think about what analogies you may use with your students or children to help them understand that effort and practice will lead to improved performance. And then remind them of that analogy often!

-Erin Doyle

November Practice Tests

Our next proctored tests are coming up in Hinsdale and Winnetka in November!

These opportunities are the perfect chance for your child to take a practice test in a real test environment. We offer every single standardized test that we tutor, including the ACT, HSPT, SAT, ISEE and more.

Learn more:

www.nurturingwisdom.com/proctored-tests/

Register Now:

www.nurturingwisdom.com/practice-test/

NW Academy: We've Chosen a Location!

We are absolutely thrilled to announce that we've selected a location for our first Chicagoland NW Academy!!

We will be opening in Hinsdale for the 2012-2013 school year. We're still working on finding a space in the Hinsdale area, so if you have any ideas on facilities we should check out or people we should connect with, please let us know.  We are still planning to open an NW academy in the city of Chicago in the future, but we'll be focusing our efforts in Hinsdale for the Fall of 2012.


Amanda Vogel is currently meeting with families who are interested in learning more about our school, so pelase don't hesitate to pass this message along to anyone else who might be interested in learning even more about a unique school for students in grades 5-8!

academy.nurturingwisdom.com 

What If the Secret to Success is Failure?

We were fascinated by this New York Times article, written by Paul Tough. He profiles Dominic Randolph, the headmaster at The Riverdale School in New York City. The article discusses character and how it's possible to teach it.

For the headmaster of an intensely competitive school, Randolph, who is 49, is surprisingly skeptical about many of the basic elements of a contemporary high-stakes American education. He did away with Advanced Placement classes in the high school soon after he arrived at Riverdale; he encourages his teachers to limit the homework they assign; and he says that the standardized tests that Riverdale and other private schools require for admission to kindergarten and to middle school are “a patently unfair system” because they evaluate students almost entirely by I.Q. “This push on tests,” he told me, “is missing out on some serious parts of what it means to be a successful human.”

Read the rest of the article here!

What does "Pursue Growth and Learning" mean to you?

One of the things "pursue growth and learning" means to me is going outside of my comfort zone to try something new or difficult once in awhile.  This is hard to do but when I do, I find that the thing I initially thought would be really impossible isn't as scary as it seemed.

-Christian

To "pursue growth and learning" to me means to reflect on the areas where you excel or have an interest and try to learn more about those areas.  Doing this helps me to find areas where I can enhance my strength, learn more about a topic that interests me, and find new ideas related to this area.  I've always had an interest in music.  This year, I started learning how to play the piano.  I was able to build on an interest of mine and find a new creative outlet that has also helped me design orientation materials for our music program.

On the flip side, to "pursue growth and learning" also means to reflect on areas where I can further improve.  Reading more about these areas can help me find fresh ideas for making myself better in those areas.  For example, when I wanted to work on my communication skills, I read a chapter about candor in Jack Welch's book Winning.  This chapter really opened my eyes to the importance of open, honest communication.  I had no idea how much I needed to improve in this area until I started reading more about it.  

-Heather

I think the key part of “pursue growth and learning” is the word “pursue.” To pursue something is to make the effort to go out and actively seek it, rather than waiting for growth or learning to happen magically. It's so important to stretch yourself – even if you’re scared, even if you might fail. It’s about having a curious and open mind, wondering what’s possible, and then taking action to achieve it. With risk comes reward. You may not be able to predict what the reward will look like, but if you’re self-reflective, patient, and allow yourself the opportunity to try and to fail, some measure of wisdom and experience can be gained from every experience. Growth isn’t always comfortable – in fact, at times it can feel distinctly uncomfortable – but that does not mean that it's bad.

-Sonja

"Pursue growth & learning" has two equally important meanings for me:

First, it means not taking the easy way out or the easy route. It means accepting the challenge, being adventurous and taking risks because that's how you uncover the most information about a situation and about yourself and your own potential. It means putting yourself in situations where you will have to bring out your best and continually make your best better.  I think challenging yourself to learn and grow also puts you in situations that are more interesting and engaging, so you are in a position to make your best contribution as well as realize your full potential.

Second, it is an outlook that allows you to see the value of any experience, even if it was difficult or upsetting. It means pursuing a growth mindset; realizing what was gained (learned) from the experience and putting that new knowledge it into practice moving forward. 

-Bryce