MSI Press Blog

  Today's excerpt comes from 10 Quick Homework Tips by authors Cindy McKinley Alder and Patti Trombly: TIP # 2 TYPE UP AN OFFICIAL HOMEWORK AGREEMENT     Like anything worth doing in life, happiness takes time and patience and consistency. ~Mark Manson   Why is this Important?  That idea of heading off stress by being proactive about homework is perhaps best used in the creation of a Homework Agreement.  Quite simply, this is an agreement your family makes that states when, where, and how homework is expected to be done. Having a plan before school starts in the fall allows you to avoid that “you against them” feeling that so often is attached to homework.  If the year has already begun, though, there is still no time like the present to make a great change for the better! What You Can Do: Have you ever realized that it is easier to get out of something if you can "blame something else"?  “Sorry we can’t come to your son’s piano recital; we have a family reunion that d

  Want to help your child's teacher? Here are some really good ideas collected from teachers by the About staff, " How to Really Help Teachers ." (The article was published last year, but good ideas last forever.) Read more posts about Cindy and her books  HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter.

It may hard to imagine it, but summer vacation for schoolkids is just around the corner. With that in mind, take a look at an article to which MSI Press author, Cindy Alder, contributed, " How to Keep Kids' Skills Sharp over the Summer. " Read more posts about Cindy and her books  HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter.

  Are you facing the need to get a tutor for a child? Any idea what is a fair price? This article in Romper, to which Cindy Alder contributed, should take care of your questions: " Here's How Much You're Actually Supposed to Pay a Tutor ." Read more posts about Cindy and her books  HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter.

  Cindy Alder, co-author of 10 Quick Homework Tips and 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents was cited in a Yahoo News article by Emily Pierce, " How Parents Can Offer Homework Help ." Read more posts about Cindy and her books  HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter.

   Almost missed this one! It came out a few months ago, but as long as children go to school, the information is valuable. Find out what these five things are HERE . Cindy is the co-author of two award-winning books, along with Patti Trombly, of which MSI Press is proud. Check them out: Read details HERE . Purchase from Amazon HERE . Get 25% discount with coupon code FF25 at www.msipress.com/shop. Read details HERE . Purchase from Amazon HERE . Get 25% discount with coupon code FF25 at www.msipress.com/shop. Read more posts about Cindy McKinley Alder HERE .  Read more posts about Patti Trombly HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter.

  excerpt  from review -- an excellent manual for all parents  pressure can be taken off the family tips are simple and easy to apply approach to the topic is excellent makes it easy for both parents and children to deal with homework better [makes] ambiance at home ... healthy and positive. Read the full review HERE . See other posts about Cindy and Patti and their books HERE . See posts about other books in the pandemic series HERE .

  Congratulations to Cindy McKinley Alder & Patti Trombly on their book, 10 Quick Homework Tips , being selected as the Kops-Fetherling International Book Awards gold medal winner in the category of education.   For more information on this book, click HERE . For more posts on Cindy and Patti and their books, click HERE .

  "Your child is much more likely to finish homework and produce quality work if s/he has a special place in which to do it, equipped with all the tools s/he needs." 10 Quick Homework Tips by Alder & Trombly) Is there a lot of whining at your house about homework? Do you find that it sometimes also comes from your kids? If you are tired of the back-and-forth of homework battles, then this book is your solution.  10 Quick Homework Tips  provides a quick reference for parents who are looking for ways to help their kids with their homework. Written by two teachers with over 40 years combined experience, this book will show you  - the easiest way to set up an efficient workspace so kids can do their best, quality work;  - how to reduce your child's stress (and yours!) by being proactive; -  why creating a simple "Homework Agreement" between you and your child will take pressure off of the whole family;  - how to make large projects more manageable; - where to fi

  Continuing our Caturday specials of sharing our authors and their cats, we present Cindy Alder and her family of cats.         Cindy is co-author of 10 Quick Homework Tips and 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents .  For posts about Cindy and her books, click HERE .

  Just in -- great review for 10 Quick Homework Tips from Readers' Favorite: "an excellent manual for all parents" Read the full review HERE . Read posts about Alder & Trombly and their other book, 365 Teacher Secrets , HERE .

TIP # 4 KNOW WHERE TO GET HELP Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to admit when you don’t know something, and to learn something new. ~ Barack Obama   Why is this Important?  It is very frustrating for kids when they come upon something they don't know how to do while trying to complete their homework.  Getting stuck can really derail concentration for some kids.  That’s why it is good to know, ahead of time, what your child should do if she gets stuck. What You Can Do: Teachers sometimes use the “Ask 3 Before Me” rule.  This means that before kids go to the teacher for help, they are encouraged to try to solve the problem themselves by asking/using three other sources first.  At home, there may not be three other people to go to for help besides you, but you can brainstorm possibilities: friends, maybe even a pre-arr

In honor of Caturday, we are sharing photos of the cats who own MSI Press authors, starting with Sula, pictured above, who is herself an MSI Press author. Click HERE  to see Sula's works. Simon is owned by Joanna Charnas, author of chronic illness support books and A Movie Lover's Search for  Romance , who says he is her "foster failure." Click HERE to see Joanna's works. Jeremy Feig was owned by Shelly. He wrote a book about her, How My Cat Made Me a Better Man , that won a book of the year award. Click HERE   to read about Shelly, including excerpts from the book. Carl and Betty Lou Leaver are owned by Intrepid about whom they wrote a book, stuffed with illustrations, and five other cats. Click HERE to see Intrepid . In the picture, Happy (black & white) and Murjan (red & white) share a cat bed. Cindy McKinley Alder is owned by Watson, shown here wrapped in a ribbon. So cute! Click HERE to see Cindy's contributions to the field of teaching, parenting

Released today: 10 Quick Homework Tips . with special advise for activities during a quarantine. Written by two teachers with 40 years of combined experience: Cindy McKinley Alder and Patti Trombly.   Check out their other book that also has many activities that can be done during a pandemic: 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents . And here is another source of hood activities to help during quarantine from Black Parenting Magazine: click here .