THE DREADED MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS! Multiple choice questions often test a range of skills, from reading comprehension and vocabulary to grammar and critical thinking capabilities. Normally posed in a format where a question or statement is followed by several answer options (usually four), these questions may challenge your child’s understanding of subtle linguistic nuances, inferential reasoning, and context clues. With the increasing prevalence of standardized testing, equipping your child with the skills and strategies to navigate these assessments can make a world of difference. Types of Questions They may include direct questions about a text, interpretative inquiries that require your child to deduce meaning, or questions that test grammatical usage and structure. Familiarizing your child with these different types can guide their focus during study sessions. Common Pitfalls Students often find themselves misled by distractors—answers that seem plausible but are ultimately incorrect. Another problem is not fully understanding the questions which can be convoluted or feel misleading. Tips to Build Skills Read the Questions before reading the material, this helps your child to know what they are looking for in advance and gets the brain to start thinking about the material on a deeper level before even beginning. Reframe the Question! Have your child practice putting the question into their own words. This creates clarification and a deeper understanding of what they are looking for. If time, do a “light read” first in which they get a broad understanding of the material and can ask themselves some questions, then do a Critical Reading. Critical Reading! Encourage your child to engage deeply with texts. This means pinpointing the main ideas, themes, and details, and understanding the author’s purpose and tone. Practicing active reading by highlighting important points or jotting down notes can foster engagement. Context Clues! Teach your child to look for context clues in questions and answer choices. Understanding the surrounding text often sheds light on unknown words or ambiguous phrases. Grammar Knowledge! A solid foundation in grammar is essential. Regular practice with sentence construction, subject-verb agreement, punctuation, and parts of speech will ensure your child feels comfortable when they encounter grammatical questions. Study Techniques Create a Structured Study Plan: Help your child develop a study schedule that breaks down their review into manageable chunks. Maybe certain days are vocabulary, while others are reading comprehension practices. Simulate Test Conditions: Every so often, have your child complete a practice test under timed conditions. This not only helps them practice time management, but also allows for an evaluation of their comfort level with the material. Discuss Mistakes: After your child takes practice tests, go over their incorrect answers together to highlight misunderstandings and of course their correct choices. Reflection helps solidify understanding. Helpful Resources Online Practice Tests: Khan Academy and Quizlet offer practice questions and great tips specifically designed for kids preparing for standardized tests. These platforms often simulate the experience of actual tests, building familiarity and reducing anxiety. Educational Apps: “Magoosh SAT Prep” or “Duolingo” incorporate language skills into fun games and practice questions. These can make studying less daunting and more enjoyable for your child. Reading Comprehension Books: Look for workbooks that focus on reading comprehension and multiple choice questions. Books like “Reading Comprehension for Dummies” can be both accessible and thorough, helping to reinforce strategies. ISEE is a great way to practice, Ivy Global offers online and books. Engaging with Literature: Encourage your child to read widely—both fiction and nonfiction. Discussing books can strengthen their analytical skills. Taking turns summarizing chapters or quizzing one another on key elements can create an enjoyable learning experience. Tutoring Services: If your child is struggling, consider enlisting the help of a tutor who specializes in English language arts. One-on-one attention can target their specific weaknesses while providing tailored strategies for improvement.We are always here at Elite Tutoring to give the help you need.
You might believe that identifying when a child is struggling in school is a cinch. Surely, all a parent needs to do is review their child’s progress report or report card for scores below a “B” average, right? If that’s not enough, then obviously any attentive teacher worth his or her salt will promptly notify the parents of academic missteps from their little one. This is not a tried-and-true rule. While using grades as performance markers may seem self-explanatory in evaluating a child’s learning abilities, sometimes the challenges a student encounters in school do not always manifest via test scores or classroom conduct. Often, parents and educators must use additional indicators to take a closer look into lags of academic achievement. Consider your child’s pace when approaching their schoolwork. Does he or she complete all tasks within the recommended time allotted by teachers, or do they spend far longer on homework that should only take thirty minutes? Consider that when a concept is not well-solidified mentally, it takes longer to apply this concept to assignments. The inverse is also worth examining. Students who claim to finish a weeklong project in just shy of an hour might be avoiding academic struggles. Note that when a child misunderstands an assignment, it can cause frustration that breeds an attitude of dismissal and/or resignation. Instead of tackling the obstacle of confusion directly, some children may opt to ignore it. This leads to overwhelming amounts of late assignments, stressful cram sessions and lower scores. In either case of pacing, hiring a tutor might be useful for pinpointing specific areas for academic growth, and to create a more measured study regimen to complete homework and assignments. Aside from issues of time management and pace, students who are struggling in school may demonstrate this through changes in attitude. For instance, some children may lose confidence in class. Whereas they may have initially been raising their hands and openly participating, feeling confused about concepts can cause them to withdraw. Unsure of whether this pattern applies to your young pupil? Reach out to their instructors to discuss in-class performance. Kids may also lose enthusiasm for learning due to frustration or boredom. It is not uncommon to hear students profess to “hate school,” typically starting around the second or third grade. This is likely because the core curriculum for most public and private schools noticeably increases in difficulty when a child turns seven or eight-years-old, making some students may feel like they cannot keep up with the demand of their classes. A tutor who can transform learning into a fun and engaging experience stand to impact students who feel undermotivated or discouraged in a constructive way. Isolating the cause for your student’s underperformance in school could prove pivotal to their feelings towards school in general. Catch lags and missteps early, invite a tutor to help hone your child’s abilities, and watch them soar!
Finding the right tutor for your child can be a frustrating process. You may wonder what to look for in the right tutor or what questions to ask a tutor to find out if they are a good fit. There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to tutoring. A lot of it depends on your child’s needs, setting, convenience and cost. You can choose a private tutor, tutoring center, or an online service. You will have to determine what is the best fit for your child. It’s often a good idea to look for a tutor that has a college degree and has completed a tutoring program. Make sure that the tutor that you choose has experience in the subject that your child is having issues with. This will ensure that the tutor has been trained in different approaches to help your child with the way that they learn. Find out if the tutor has helped children that are around the same age and has the same learning style that your child has. Also look at what kind of attitude and personality the tutor has. Are they patient, upbeat, and encouraging? How do they interact with children? Make sure you ask for references and check those references. Ask the parents questions and see how the tutor helped their children. Did the kid’s grades improve and were they able to do their homework better? Make sure you meet with multiple tutors and compare the pros and cons of each tutor. Make goals with the teacher, tutor, child, and you. Parents and tutors are aware of what the goals should be, but you know your child better than anyone. Make sure that your tutor is willing to work with your child’s teacher. This will be beneficial in the long run because your tutor can give your teacher updates and your child’s teacher can update the tutor on how your child is doing in the classroom and what your child is needing help with. Make sure that the tutor gives progress reports and find out how often they give them. Ask for a sample of the progress report and see if it gives the kind of info that you would like to see on your reports. What kind of policies does the tutor have? Will you get charged for a session if your child is sick and you did not give them a 24 hour notice that the session will be canceled? Also it will be a good idea to find out their policies on make up sessions and substitute tutors if your child’s tutor can’t make it. Will you have any say in who is teaching your child if there is a replacement? Be involved in the process. At the end of each session, find out what your child is supposed to do before the next meeting. Remember that you play an important part in your child’s education. There is a lot involved in finding the right tutor for your child. Just remember that it will be worth it in the end.
There is quite a buzz in the air concerning the new SAT. The current SAT will be available until March 2016; after this date only the new SAT will be available. How is the “new” SAT effecting education, high school, college entrance, and tutoring? The new SAT and Education: The new SAT will implement the Common Core Standards. Student’s abilities in math, reading, and writing will be tested and measured. Students must master these standards in order to score well on the new SAT. Educators teaching these standards face increased pressure, especially since the new SAT will debut early next year. Teachers must help students gain a deeper understanding and guide them in applying their understanding and knowledge in day-to-day and real-life situations. The new SAT and High School: Current high school students must be prepared in advance for changes in the new SAT. Some students may have the option of taking both the current and new SAT exams. Freshman and sophomores have the option to take both. Current juniors and seniors will not need to take the new SAT and will take the current SAT, since the new exam will not be implemented until 2016. The new SAT and College Entrance: In order to gain the best entrance scores, students must do well on the new SAT, which is more challenging than the current SAT. The questions are harder and will take longer to answer. The essay will be optional, although it will be a more challenging. Some math sections will no longer allow caculators and students will see more algebra problems. Understanding Common Core Standards and the ability to implement these standards are the key to success with the new SAT. The new SAT and Tutoring: Private educators, such as tutors, have already experienced an increase in inquiries from students and parents concerning the new SAT. It is important to get ahead of the game now since students will no longer be able to “cram” for the exam. The time in now to start preparing for the new SAT! Contact Elite Home Tutoring for questions and additional information concerning the “new” SAT, www.elitehometutoring.com
