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; w...

  Excerpt from 10 Quick Homework Tips (Alder & Trombly) TIP # 1    HEAD OFF STRESS BY BEING PROACTIVE "The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now." ~ Chinese Proverb   Why is this Important?   One of the biggest reasons, if not THE biggest reason, that kids and parents alike feel stress about homework is that their family simply has no concrete plan for how, when, and where homework will get done.  Kids may not act like it, but they need, and even like, having rules.  They feel better, safer, if they know exactly what is expected of them.  Think about your daily life, at work or at home.  Do you feel more confident, more calm, on days that you are unsure what your boss will want from you, when you don’t know what you are expected to do, or where you should do it and with what tools… or on days when you know exactly what is expected of you, where you know just what to do, where, when and how? ...

  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...

  What is a  book jewel ? A sometimes-overlooked book with remarkable insight and potential significance. Each month, we share near-daily, or as often as possible, reviews of the monthly book jewel - short, succinct reviews that can be read in 1-2 minutes with links to the reviewer by reviewers whose words are worthy of being heard and whose opinions are worthy of being considered. Sometimes a couple of minutes contains more impressive thought than ten times that many. We will let you decide that. This month's book jewel is 10 Quick Homework Tips by Alder & Trombly. Written during the pandemic to assist parents, the tips are just as good today. Description: Is there a lot of whining at your house about homework? Do you fi nd 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 th...