MSI Press Blog

  We cannot tell the back story of 10 Quick Homework Tips without telling the story of is sister book, 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents . So, here is the link to that back story , which we shared last Sunday Back Story of  10 Quick Homework Tips by Cindy McKinley Alder & Patti Trombly [Please do read the back story for 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents to learn how Cindy and Patti met.] A few years ago, after listening to the frustrations of parents trying to find time for everything as well as struggling to work with their kids at home more during the pandemic, Patti and I decided to create a “quick tip” book to help. It seemed homework issues were especially overwhelming and challenging for busy parents.   So, we worked together again and wrote a short book on   easy ways parents could help ease the frustrations of homework battles.   10 Quick Homework Tips was not as time-consuming, but just as fun for us to write.   It feels great to share so many decades of our practical, h

Exceptional teachers Cindy McKinley and Patti Trombly have put together a book that can help any parent through this extended period of sheltering in place. Packed with home activities for learning, readers can pick any number that appeal to them or fit their personal family circumstances. Here is one example that is bound to make the time spent in lockdown more fun: #231 What’s the Matter? Matter is everywhere, but what exactly is it, anyway? Matter is something that is observable with some of our five senses. Matter has weight and takes up space. It is all around us. To help your child understand the concept of matter, as well as its various phases, here are some facts to share and activities you can try: (1) Discuss what is and is not matter. (For instance rocks, milk, and air are matter; ideas, words, and feelings are not.)  (2) Make a chart of what you come up with. Look around your home, even take a walk or a drive to find examples around you.  (3) Further

Cindy McKinley, co-author of 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents , is posting a weekly set of activities for kids to keep their skills sharp over summer -- in a fun way. Her first post is above. To follow her over the summer on her Face Book page, click here. Visit Cindy's web page for all sorts of parenting help. More information is available on Cindy's book on her MSI Press book page. As with other MSI Press books, the book can be ordered at 25% discount, using code FF25 when checking out, for followers of this blog at the MSI Press webstore. And, a bonus -- an unrelated by heartwarming story by Cindy on The Real Us .

Exceptional teachers Cindy McKinley and Patti Trombly have put together a book that can help any parent through this extended period of sheltering in place during the current covid 19 pandemic. Packed with home activities for learning, readers can pick any number that appeal to them or fit their personal family circumstances. Here is one example: #203  Bug Off!  (Game for +, −, ×, ÷) Materials: a new fly swatter; flashcards, or note cards. 1. Hand your child the fly swatter and tell her she’s going to practice math. Already she’s interested and ready to enjoy this game to help improve basic math facts in addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division. 2. Place cards with the answers to math facts she is working on in school or struggling with, face up, spreading them fairly far apart. Then, simply ask a question such as, “What is 3x4?” and have her slap the fly swatter on the index card with the correct answer. Variations: • Use another fly swatter and play the

  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 .

Exceptional teachers Cindy McKinley and Patti Trombly have put together a book that can help any parent through this extended period of sheltering in place. Packed with home activities for learning, readers can pick any number that appeal to them or fit their personal family circumstances. Here is one example that is bound to make the time spent in lockdown more fun: #144 Steal the Beat From a very young age, parents and teachers use song and rhyme to teach children information. From teaching the different sounds animals make in “Old McDonald” to learning the letters of the alphabet in the “Alphabet Song,” children grasp concepts and information easier when it’s presented in rhyme or song or both! Keep that in mind when you see your child struggling with a difficult task or concept. Try brainstorming with your child a rhyme that might help her spell a certain word or remember a definition.  It is usually easiest to utilize a song that everyone is familiar with. Songs su

  Well, oops, gee whiz, we missed this one when it came out, but the advice, like so much advice from Cindy is super, so, finally, here it is in our blog in the event you did not see it in Authority Magazine: The Five Things Parents Can Do to Help Their Children Survive and Thrive in School For more posts about Cindy and her books, click HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Face Book , and  Instagram .

Our author, Cindy McKinley (365 Teacher Secrets for Parents, written together with Patti Trombly) was featured in "11 Parenting Books to Add to Your Summer Reading List" on TODAY Parenting. The book is available at our webstore: www.msipress.com/shop and at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, other online retailers, and select local bookstores. For more information about Cindy and her writing, check here .

  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.

  It's h..e..r..e! Summer vacation. Now, how do you prevent your kids from forgetting everything they learned in school this year before returning in the fall? Cindy Alder has some suggestions in a Twinkl article, " How Can Parents and Carers Prevent Summer Learning Loss? " Read more posts about Cindy and her books  HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter.

Back Story  of  365 Teachers Secrets for Parents: Fun Ways to Help Your Elementary Child Succeed in School  by Cindy McKinley Alder & Patti Trombly Nearly 30 years ago, I met Patti in the back row of a grad school classroom at Eastern Michigan University.  Our professor had us begin the class by writing out a “Bliss List”: all the things that made us happy.  When we compared lists, we were shocked to see they were almost identical! We were both due to have our first babies in a few months, both elementary school teachers, both working on a Masters in Reading, and both had a weakness for soft pretzels. We didn’t know it at the time, but that day sparked a decades-long friendship. Throughout the years, Patti taught upper elementary, and I taught the lower grades.  We met weekly with our four kids and, of course, always ended up talking about teaching and how eager the parents were to find ways to help their kids at home.  I eventually decided to stay home with my kids more and became

What are the benefits to being a teacher? Long-time teacher and MSI Press author ( 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents ) knows! Recently, Cindy was requested to contribute to an article in Up Journey : " The Benefits of Being a Teacher, According to 9 Teachers ." The journalist writes: What are the advantages and benefits of the teaching profession? We asked experts to provide some great insights. MSI Press's Cindy was one of those experts. Yes!

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.

   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.

  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 .

  Cndy McKinley is a parent, a teacher, and a writer.  She grew up in Milford, Michigan, and has lived there for about 40 years, attending Huron Valley Schools.  Cindy has a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and a Master’s degree in the Teaching of Reading from Eastern Michigan University.  She taught lower elementary for seven years, also in Huron Valley Schools, both at Kurtz Elementary and Country Oaks Elementary.  Her children attended the very same elementary, middle school, and high school as she did! She now tutors children of all ages in the community and teaches English at Oakland Community College in Royal Oak.  She’s been teaching for over 25 years. In 2002 her first book, a children’s book called  One Smile,  was published.  It won the Benjamin Franklin award that year.  In 2013 her second children’s book,  One Voice,  came out. It immediately won the Preferred Choice Award and the Carol Reiser Award.  Both books show how simple random acts of kindness can change th

  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.

🌟   5 Tips for Surviving This Time off of School and in the House!  🌟 To be sure, this is an unprecedented time, and an unusual break from school. Your  kids might feel frustrated they aren’t getting to go to school, see their friends, and engage in their favorite sports and activities right now.   But every time your family chooses to stay home, help your kids see that they are actually being brave and helpful. You can help your kids think of this time not like a punishment, but rather like they are giving their community a great gift. Staying home, as many are, is a true act of solidarity. It’s a sacrifice they can give so that nurses, doctors, and all those for whom it is not possible to stay home and protected (from first responders to grocery store personnel, and many, many others) can continue to do their jobs and keep the rest of us safe and keep our lives as normal as possible. Here are a few ideas from an article I wrote about stopping Summer Slide and from my boo