Best STEM Google Doodles of 2011

Like clever Google Doodles?  Here are ten you might like if you love Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.  Go have a look.  Do you ever draw Google Doodles?

Five Days Left To Register For SAT

The next SAT is January 28.  Be sure you register by December 30.  For many of you this might be your first time taking the test.  Start now to review/practice for the test so you will be ready and feel confident.  The College Board provides you with a Study Plan or you can make your own.  You might be surprised how just a little study can make a big difference.

Local Math Tutoring

North Atlanta/Woodstock/Marietta, GA Area

Algebra and Geometry Tutoring

National Board Certified Teacher

References Available

SKYPE Tutoring Available

Email me at sandrameek@hotmail.com

Click on picture for Bio and Testimonials

SAT Dates

The next SAT is Nov. 5.  Have you registered?  If not, the last day you can register is October 21, and that is considered Late Registration.  If you don’t want to pay the extra fee, the next test will be Dec 12.  Registration for that test is due by Nov. 8.  Click here to find everything you need to know to register for the SAT.  The date always seems to come around quicker than you think.

Check out the SAT site for a Problem Of The Day to keep you sharp while you are waiting for the big event.  I could wish you luck but it’s really not about luck now is it?

One Way To Help Your Kid Learn Math

I can just hear you now, “Me?  Help my kid with math?  Are you kidding?  I don’t remember it!”

Whoa.  Slow down.  I’m not saying you need to do it yourself.  Math videos are available all over the Inernet.  All kinds.  Some have a robot voice, some are just a “hand” working math problems, some are from text book companies.  Some are free.  Some are costly.  Some are for advanced students, some for young children, some for college kids, some for adults returning to school.

My videos are out there too.  They are particularly for the students who tries but really struggles to pass math.  Beginning Algebra starts at the very beginning and walks students through step by step.  Worksheets are included for free to provide additional practice.

Geometry videos do not have practice sheets but introduce students to foundational geometric concepts. 

The best thing about learning with videos is you can stop them, you can replay them, you can increase the volume, you can repeat the entire lesson or just parts of it.  When you are tired you can turn it off and start again later.  You can watch a problem worked over and over until you “get it”.  I’ll  still be there when you get back.

Once you purchase a video it is totally yours.  No subscription.  No restrictions.   You can either download lessons to your computer or you can stream the video directly from the site at your convenience.  Download the Algebra Practice sheets and you are ready to go.  No stress!  No embarrassment!  Your pace.   Your way.

Find more at MindBites, the how-to video marketplace!

Are You A Wordie?

Here’s a word puzzle you might like.  Good for your brain too!  You start with a given word.  Then you change one letter and create a new word.  Then you change another letter and create another new word. 

I give you the first word and the last and the number of steps.  You figure out all the rest. 

Here’s an example.  The word is  COLD and I want you to change it to the word WARM in 4 steps.  So:  COLD>CORD>WORD>WARD>WARM

See how it works? 

Here’s an easy one you can do in 2 steps.  Change HOT to TOP.   HOT>___>TOP.        Easy, right? 

Okay!  Your word is CLIMB.  Take 7 steps and end up with STEPS.  If you are a parent or a teacher, work this along with your students.  Great exercise.  Also let them make up their own word puzzles for you to try. 

Have fun!

Math Anagram Fun

Okay.  Want some math fun?  Want to stir up the neurons in your brain a little without breaking a sweat?  In true nerd style?  Have a go at these.

If you rearrange the letters in these words, you can get a math term.  I’ll give you the letters and a list of answers.  You rearrange the letters and find the answer in the list.  Here goes.  I don’t think it’s all that easy.

Example:  a garble                  Becomes:  algebra

Another example:  problem in Chinese                Becomes:  incomprehensible

You try these:

I’m a dot in place, I’m a pencil dot, algorithm, innumerable, calculating rules, I call a count, ahh! arithmetic gems, n is- n is not etc, get a no in, clack! total up score, wasn’t here, the classroom, silent, cost me time, twelve plus one, accord not in it

Answers are here:  a decimal point, inconsistent, calculation, decimal point, logarithm, the answer, listen, negation, contradiction, higher mathematics, pocket calculators, integral calculus, eleven plus two, a number line, school master, committees

Most of these are from “Twenty Years Before the Blackboard” by Michael Stueben

Have Fun!

First Edition: Teaching and Learning Blog Carnival

Welcome to the first edition of a Blog Carnival entitled, Teaching and Learning. This edition is focusing on the first days of school.  Now that August is here many students are already back in school. Every week from August 1 until after Labor Day schools are having their first day.  These are, indeed, exciting times. The following blog articles have all kinds of information relevant to these weeks of starting back to school.  Thanks to these talented writers who all write from experience.  Take a look!

Tips for Back to School Success by Sarah Robbins
It’s that time of year again! While the leaves may not be change and the thermostat is still creeping up each day, it seems like more and more kids are heading back to school in August. I wanted to share a few tips with parents to help ensure your new school year gets off to a great success! Prepare your kids ahead of time. (Read more…)

Back To School With Learning Disabilites by Nancy Flanders
It can be tough for kids to get back into the swing of the school routine, but going back to school can be a nightmare for children with learning disabilities. For these kids, the classroom can be a major source of stress and anxiety. They fear being called on in class, having to read aloud in class, and having to struggle with homework assignments that take up so much time. With a little help from Mom and Dad, your child can have the best school year ever. (Read more…)

Back To School: 6 Things to Do As You Get Ready by Janet Hutchins
It’s back to school time for many of us. The school year will be starting up again soon, and that means that there a number of things that need to be done in order for you to get your children ready for another year of learning. As you consider back to school, here are 6 things to do as summer draws to a close: (Read more…)

Real First Days Of High School    by Jacob                                                September 9th, 2004: My freshman year of high school. I was terrified and nervous and excited all at once in a bundle of nerves, hormones, and pristine expectations. High school was going to be my time. Not like Middle School, which was for little kids. Now I was rolling with the big boys.  (Read more…)

Afterschooling    by Jennifer Bardsley                                                                              In simplest terms, Afterschooling is when your children attend a brick and mortar school, but you augment their education at home in a structured and meaningful way. For those fortunate enough to live in well performing school districts, Afterschooling might be something you would choose to do over summer, or else in a light-handed way during the school year in the car or through carefully chosen read alouds at bedtime.

 Top 40 Job Sites For Music Educators
Although these articles deal primarily with students getting back to school successfully, this site was submitted especially for music educators. It is all about finding jobs. This day and time I will do anything I can to help teachers, or anyone for that matter, become employed. That is why I am posting this artile. Please send it to anyone you know looking for a job in the field of music education.  (Read more…)

Top Sites to Buy and Sell Used Textbooks by Antonio Banderas 
A necessary read, textbooks can be just one of the many expenses associated with college. Use the below to buy and sell textbooks over the web. (Read more…)

Discuss What Going to School Entails  by Angela Dejong
The first thing to do is talk to your child about going to school. Tell your child how important it is and what a big deal it is that they get to go to school. Talk about how they will get to play with other children their age, learn to read and other fun activities. Be sure and tell them that they are so grown-up to get to go to school. (Read more…)

Someone Needs You   by Sandra Wilkes
Yes, a homeless child needs much more than a new backpack. Yes, some of them may not use them as hoped. To many of them, however, having what they need to start the new year is just the best. Not having to borrow a pencil or paper or crayons, or use the broken ones left from last year, because you have your own is the way it should be. I declare it so. (Read more…)

7 Step Survival Guide For Back To School  by Sandra Wilkes
Your first days back to school at the beginning of the year can be a little overwhelming. These 7 steps are very simple and will help you get through those first few days. Enjoy! (Read more…)

Something To Look Forward To At School by Maria Grujicic

At school, towards the end of the day
Hype and energy are at play
A rumble, a mumble of feelings had
And tellings shared, like a childhood fad
Playful illustrations of delight!  (Read more…)

Thanks to all writers and readers!  The next Teaching and Learning Blog Carnival will be published October 10,  2011.  Upcoming subject:  Grades and Report Cards.  Subscribe to this blog to make sure you don’t miss it!

Brand New Blog Carnival: First Days Of School

Welcome!  With a typical learning curve and a little fan fare, I hereby announce my First Blog Carnival!     I’m still feeling my way through the maze of how-tos, and I know my brain thanks me.  Would love to have you join me!  I’ll do my best to make you ‘famous’. 

Seriously, if you are a student, parent, teacher, neighbor, bus driver, concert-goer, political aspirant, grandmother, or entrepreneur, no doubt you remember your first days of school each year.  What made them stay in your memory?  What do you suggest for those taking that step this year?  I can’t imagine anyone’s “back-to-school” memories being of little value, which is another way to say, “I value your thoughts on this subject.”

Please submit

the permanent URL to your article , or email your article to me, and help me launch this factual, humorous, intelligent, worthwhile, and memorable Blog magazine.

I look forward to sharing your writing!

Thanks,

How To Find A Good Video Math Teacher

Did you know nearly 50% of people watch an online video on any given day?  And “the average person” now watches 7 hours of online videos per week?  And that half of all websites now include a video? 

Videos include advertisements, music videos, educational videos, TV shows, movies, how-tos, family clips, long videos, short ones, free ones, expensive ones and on and on.  Anything you want to learn is on a video…somewhere!

Why has online video become so popular?  According the latest research, online viewing is not a generational shift.  It is a technology shift.

The number one reason for the popularity of videos is, “I can watch it whenever I want.”

That includes watching downloads on the bus going home from work or school, in the doctor’s office (with ear phones, of course), all around the world.

Although people watch videos for entertainment, of course, I am focusing on educational videos.  A video involves the learner more than an inert, lifeless text-book.  There is often practice that goes along with a video to reinforce the concept being presented.  If you are in the middle of a video and the dog throws up, just hit pause.  If you’d really like to take a class at 7:00 PM but it’s family dinner hour, download it and watch it at your convenience.  If you miss something and need to hear it again, play it back.  If you get tired, bored, or lost in a concept, step away and rest your mind.  It will be there when you get back.  If you need a quick review, it is always at your fingertips.  None of those attributes are present in textbook and classroom teaching.

Videos do not replace face-to-face teaching or interaction.  Nothing can do that. And we certainly don’t want to hole-up in a little room glued to a computer all the time.  But it can be a great supplement to learning.  It can help us catch up when we are absent.  It can help us hear a concept explained another way, and we can listen over and over until we get it.  Perhaps that is most important.

Another crucially important aspect is finding a video “teacher” that works for you: one that speaks to you on your level, meets you where you are, and holds your interest.  It takes time to find that match.  Another positive aspect in selecting your video teacher is customized teaching.  If you need a video on  a specific question,  you need a video teacher who will custom-make that video for you.  When I was a student I was wondering and asking,  ”I can find the derivative, but what exactly is it?,  or “I know how to get the Standard Deviation but what in the world is it, really?”.  They were simple questions, but as a student, I didn’t know.  And I didn’t get the answer in class.  I could find the derivative all day even though I did not know what I had found!   It is most important to have a video teacher who will custom make a video just for you.

So whether you are home-schooled, public-schooled,  or private-schooled, whether you are an adult returning to school and feel you’ve “forgotten everything you ever knew”, or someone trying to get your GED, there is a good fit out there for you.  I could say “Good luck finding it!” and sign off but instead I will offer a few suggestions.

There are free videos and costly videos.  There are easy-to-find mathematics classes at MIT online which I find fascinating, as well as the one-size-fits all slick textbook-company-videos.  There are videos chocked full of advertising that could be distracting.  There are videos that are boring as dirt, some that talk down to you, some over your head.  Again, just like a pair of shoes, find a good fit.

1.  Look for a certified teacher.  State certified is good.  National Board Certified is even better.

2.  Ask for a free trial video to see if you like the style. 

3.  Make sure it is easily accessible.

4.  Choose one with supplemental materials for practice, as well as answers so you can check your work.

5.  Read the remarks, ratings, comments, and testimonials. 

6.  Choose videos that are specific, organized, not wandering all over the place.

7.  Videos that present material in short chunks and use repetition are best.

8.  Choose videos you can stream or download so they are easy to find when you need them.

9.  Look for videos  custom-made for what you want, and who offers a money-back guarantee if it does not meed your expectations.

10.  Find a teacher who specializes in the “level” of video you need.  Obviously, a college professor doesn’t speak the same way as someone helping a 7-year old.  Algebra can be taught fast or slowly.  It can be taught at the Honor’s Level or Beginner’s Level.  One could insult you.  One could frustrate you.

For sure, videos will continue to grow in popularity among all age groups.  Be open to the value they can bring you far beyond entertainment.