OUT OF THE MOUTHS OF BABES... GAGA....

Lines from tutoring sessions:

Tutor:     "What happened on the back page of this test?"  (twice as many wrong as the front side)
Student:  "Incorrectmania!"

Tutor:      "This math is really hard!"
Student:   "I know -- they don't have any of my answers!"

We love our students!  If you want "mania" and "hard math" to go away -- GAGA...it's gone!

MOVING BOLDLY FORWARD WITH PERT & CAST EXAMS

Did you know that....

• For students who are interested in Dual Enrollment (at a college while attending high school), the state mandates that they take and pass the PERT exam to determine college readiness.

• For prospective employees interested in working for electric companies (like Duke Energy or OUC) in outside line positions, the CAST test is required.

Top Flight Tutor offers test preparation for both of these tests.  Check us out at www.topflighttutor.com or call 407-590-4054 for information.

MY ANXIETY HAS ANXIETY!

Taking a test often causes nervousness for students who often feel as if their brains have frozen, and everything they know has flown out of their heads.  What a miserable experience!  Brain-based learning has taught us how to "wake up" the brain, and specific breathing techniques are beneficial for reducing - even eliminating -  test anxiety.  Top Flight Tutor provides tutoring for test anxiety in a one-on-one setting as well as in small group workshops.

HOLIDAY SEASON BENEFITS

The second quarter of school ends on December 16th in Orange County and on December 21st in Seminole  and Lake  Counties.  For involved  parents  and motivated  students, the holiday break  is the perfect opportunity  for students  to catch  up on  concepts  they've  missed  or don't understand -- a good time  to take  advantage  of our  holiday tutoring rate.  Check out our website, and give us a call... 407-590-4054.

TO MEMORIZE OR NOT TO MEMORIZE --THAT'S THE QUESTION!

With all the emphasis on Common Core and higher-order thinking skills, what's happened to good, old-fashioned memorization?  Many frown upon it while other researchers promote it.  They say that rote learning:

• challenges and trains the brain
• helps the brain work more quickly and become more active
• helps to free up the brain to learn higher-order thinking skills
• exercises the memory and helps students focus
• develops the brain's short-term memory
• strengthens the memory and helps students become more creative
• often improves a student's capacity to focus later on in school and in life

Our opinion?  Memorization plays an important role early on in learning a subject.  For example, learning multiplication facts can be accomplished in a variety of ways, depending upon a student's learning style and preferences, but memorization is a key component of mastery so the student can go on to comprehend the important concepts that utilize multiplication.

This guy below prefers a calculator to exercising his mind and memory, but just pat him on the head, and he'll be fine.  His biggest plans for the future include only meals, naps, and harassing his brother.

YOUR BRAIN IS YELLING, "FEED ME!"

Our brains need nutrition -- especially at breakfast before everyone heads out. When people are in a rush, they often grab a drink and something sweet to eat.  If this is what you feed your brain, it's going to be screaming, "Feed me!"  To keep your blood sugar steady, keep hunger at bay, and ensure your brain is operating at full capacity, try one of these instead to avoid the inevitable sugar crash you can expect if you indulge in sweets....and remember that many of these can be made ahead of time:

• eggs  
• a little breakfast meat 
• banana with almond butter 
• baked apples with walnuts and cinnamon 
• oatmeal 
• a bowl of fruit along with walnuts
• whole grain toast (if you must have bread) with almond butter 

In spite of his low-carb Science Diet feast, this guy below is sleeping, anyway.  His brain is satisfied, but what can we say?  He's a cat....

P.S.  Don't forget to keep yourself hydrated through the day - - our brains need water.  

UNINSPIRED? GET FIRED UP!

Has your student been lounging around, unable to motivate himself to do his school work?  We wish we had magic for you, but we don't.  We do have a few suggestions for your student, though....

• Picture the positive results of choosing to do school work.
• Think of short-term goals:  passing a test, attaining a good grade, and feeling proud.
• Think of long-term goals:  passing a course, being admitted to college, starting a career, or obtaining a sports scholarship.  Brainstorm what can be done to attain this goal....
• Consider the tangible and intangible rewards of doing well:  self-respect; praise, admiration and respect from others; possible gifts, money or a "special" day (WonderWorks, the mall....)
• Set specific goals.  ("I'm going to study one hour each day to prepare for Friday's test.")
• Rewards when goals are accomplished:  a bike ride, a tennis game, playing a video game, a special snack...

Don't be like Couldn't-Care-Less Kitty below....motivation isn't even in his vocabulary!