MSI Press Blog

  Today's tip for parents from two talented teachers comes from  365 Teacher Secrets for Parents  by Cindy McKinley Alder and Patti Trombly. #45 If Your Child is Bored   A good teacher is one-fourth preparation and three-fourths theater. ~ Gail Godwin               A teacher is responsible for all of the children in her class. Just as she is responsible for providing remedial lessons and materials for students having trouble, she is also there to be sure every child is challenged if the material being covered has already been mastered.             If your child repeatedly talks about being bored in class, the first thing to do is to find out why. There are two very common reasons for this. The first is that your child is having a tough time paying attention or keeping up with the pace and academics of the class. It’s easy to tune out something you contin...

  Today's tip for parents from two talented teachers comes from  365 Teacher Secrets for Parents  by Cindy McKinley Alder and Patti Trombly. #33 Review that Homework Policy   It isn't that they can't see the solution. It's that they can't see the problem. ~G.K. Chesterton               Homework often becomes the dreaded “H” word around homes with school-aged children. Perhaps you know the feeling. You struggle with your child to get her to sit down and complete it, become frustrated trying to help her when she says, “That’s not how my teacher said to do it!,” or become stressed because your child can’t even remember what she’s supposed to do and you have no idea, either! So, begins another year of frustration for your whole family.             Or does it? The goal of homework should be to practice skills learned at school, help develop st...

  Today's tip for parents from two talented teachers comes from  365 Teacher Secrets for Parents  by Cindy McKinley Alder and Patti Trombly. #30 Some Habits Are Hard to Make   Habit is a cable; we weave a thread of it every day, and at last we cannot break it. ~Horace Mann   Have you heard the theory that it takes 20 days to create a habit? If this is true, then some of the ideas you've read about this month (intended to last not only throughout the year but perhaps a lifetime) are probably not already a part of your family's routine. That's OK! As Part 1 winds to a close, take a few minutes to review the month's ideas and decide which ones you believe are beneficial to your child and your family. Which ones have you been doing? Which have worked? Which have you modified to fit your family exactly? Which ones do not appeal to you? Now that you have identified which ideas are the most important ones, stick with them! Even if it's not always easy, remember that so...