1. Formative assessments are ongoing processes that teachers use to monitor student learning and provide feedback during instruction. These assessments help teachers adjust their teaching strategies to improve student understanding and performance. Examples include quizzes, class discussions, and homework assignments that inform teachers about student progress. One way to think about it: Assesses a student’s performance during instruction, and usually occurs regularly throughout the instruction process. Another way to think about it: Like a doctor’s ‘check-up’ to provide data to revise instruction.

2. Diagnostic assessments are used at the beginning of a course or unit to determine students’ prior knowledge, skills, and understanding of the subject matter. This type of assessment helps teachers identify students’ strengths and weaknesses, allowing them to plan instruction that meets their students’ specific needs. Examples include pre-tests, surveys, or initial observations. One way to think about it: Assesses a student’s strengths, weaknesses, knowledge, and skills before instruction. Another way to think about it: A baseline to work from.

3. Summative assessments evaluate student learning at the end of an instructional period, such as the end of a unit, course, or school year. These assessments are used to determine if students have met the learning objectives and to assign grades. Examples include final exams, end-of-term projects, and standardized tests. One way to think about it: Measures a student’s achievement at the end of instruction. It’s like talking to someone about a movie after the movie is over. Another way to think about it: It’s macabre, but if formative assessment is the check-up, you might think of summative assessment as the autopsy. What happened? Now that it’s over, what went right and what went wrong?

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post 3 Types of Learning Assessments appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

In 2006, 50 percent of participants in a survey of more than 1,000 K–12 public school teachers rated parental involvement in their children’s education as inadequate; 48 percent reported parental understanding of the curriculum similarly. And a 2016 study revealed that some of the largest barriers to productive parent-teacher communication were trouble getting to the school site, conflicting work schedules, lack of translation services, and consistent requests for donations or fundraising that seem prioritized over all else.

Research shows that the more deeply a parent is involved in their child’s learning, the larger the impact on the child’s achievement and performance in school. Check out these four incredible examples.

Empower students to explain their best work: At Design 39 Campus in Poway, California, parents attend in-school workshops. During the first half hour, students are in the driver’s seat, taking charge and explaining their work to their parents. The second half hour is reserved for parent-teacher communication—including a question-and-answer period—while students attend an elective, gym, or their lunch period.

Show off your families’ strengths: Give parents a chance to highlight their talents, experiences, and skills to get them more engaged in the classroom, says education consultant and retired teacher Terri Eichholz. Eichholz created a Google Form where families could mention any skills that they might want to share with the class—which led to her finding a parent who was a drone operator. “[He] zoomed with my students (back before Zoom was a thing!), and we built an entire field trip around his expertise,” she says.

Provide pathways for entry: At Educare New Orleans, teachers maintain a monthly calendar marked with days on which caregivers are invited to engage with their child inside the classroom. For parents who can’t attend, there’s a take-home activity that provides a similar experience.

Making your curriculum transparent: High school history and journalism teacher David Cutler posts two weeks’ worth of lessons and assignments online. The practice provides transparency to families about what their children will be learning—and when— while also allowing him to carve out time to meet with students and parents as they prepare for more challenging assignments.

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post Building Better Parent-Teacher Communication appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

1. Take a look at the classroom environment first. It’s easy to overlook the most important step in any teaching strategy: to build a positive class culture. When classroom rules are negotiated with students, they feel a greater sense of ownership and commitment toward them. Often these “rule-setting” sessions at the start of the year generate fairly similar (and effective) sets of rules. Student-negotiated consequences for breaking these rules, and ensuring they are followed throughout the year, can also reinforce a cohesive and positive learning environment. Students are more likely to meet expectations and interact positively with others when they’ve agreed on both the rules and consequences. A set of class rules may look as follows:

• We should listen to each other
• We should try not to hurt each other, verbally or physically
• We should respect each other’s ideas and values
• We shouldn’t make fun of each other’s learning / it’s OK to make mistakes
• We should help each other

2. Combat negative emotions. At the start of the school year, discuss with students how different moods and emotions help or hurt learning, as students often aren’t aware of how much their emotions affect their schoolwork. Then you can ask students to create a positive “mantra” they can refer back to if feeling unmotivated or anxious. Teachers can also prompt students to reflect on their moods when evaluating how they are progressing toward their goals, and note these observations in their learning journals. For example, a student might write: “I didn’t learn much new vocabulary this week. I was feeling angry and I couldn’t focus.” Once the teacher knows what’s going on in the emotional lives of students, it’s easier to offer targeted advice on strategies to ensure learning continues, even when a student is in a heightened emotional state.

3. Boost student interest. Students are more motivated by their schoolwork when it is interesting, so offering students choice is a common way of building interest, along with the quality and relevance of learning materials. Teachers may also allow students to negotiate twists on a task that makes it more interesting to them, while still working toward the learning outcomes of the lesson. Not every learning goal will naturally pique student interests, so ask students to reflect on tasks they find uninteresting in a learning journal to help them identify patterns in these moments and to react in a positive way. The journal entries are also great feedback for the teacher on how to make content more engaging for students.

How would you build motivation in the classroom?

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post 3 Tips for Building Student Motivation appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

1. Foster an early love of reading. Reading can be a family activity, and instilling this value of reading at a young age sends a powerful message that can be for kids. You should model reading, make reading pleasurable, read aloud to your kid in situations that are warm and create positive associations. Let your kids know your family is one that loves to learn about the world, and reading is a big part of that.

2. Put books everywhere. Look at environments that have a lack of entertainment and put books there. Put books in the car, in the bathroom, and at grandma’s house. Bring them to waiting rooms, restaurants, and on errands. It’s amazing how much kids will read when there are books in places where they have nothing else to do. In order to encourage summer reading, you can also restrict kids’ access to screen time in favor of books sometimes.

3. Build a summer schedule around reading. At the beginning of the summer, let kids know that weekdays are not going to be an absolute free-for-all. Think about the categories of things you’d like to happen–strategies like contributing to the house through chores, having time outdoors, keeping a reading log, etc. In the middle of the afternoon when it’s hot, if you’re not at the pool, you can do some sort of quiet indoor activity — and that can very easily be reading. This is a way of doing a soft restriction of children’s activity in order to encourage summer reading.

4. Start young readers with graphic novels. Graphic novels have become very popular in the last decade, and that makes them perfect to start. They can be a kind of gateway to other books, and a great tool to reach kids who think that reading is not worth their time. Getting to other reading will come in time, but it’s not a problem if graphic novels remain the mainstay of your child’s reading routine.

5. Replace naps with quiet time. For young readers at the age of giving up their nap, it’s very smart to institute quiet time. You can say that they don’t have to sleep, but they must have a half-hour of quiet time. For a child who is too young to read on their own, this can be a time for either picture books or reading with a parent or older sibling. In many families, quiet time before bed can easily go up through middle school. Let older kids stay up a half hour later if they want to read, but only books are allowed during this time.

6. Self-concept is essential. Your kids have to see themselves as readers. They can understand that reading is a good thing to do and that it makes them smarter, and most kids do know that, but they still don’t read. It’s the same as someone who knows broccoli is really healthy, but doesn’t eat it. Talking about kids’ reading attitudes is important, however. If you read anything–a book, a newspaper, a magazine, a comic, and online article–you are a reader. That’s all it takes.

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post 6 Tips for Getting Your Child to Read This Summer appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

1. Let them be in charge. Children have a lot to offer. To merely stand in front of the class and speak would be ineffective and it would curb the kids’ confidence. Let them be in charge of the discussion activities and bring out the talent of each student by urging everyone to get involved in the activity or discussion. Student confidence will increase if they are given a sense of leadership and importance.

2. Set realistic expectations. If the level of an assignment is too difficult, it can create anxiety among students, whereas an easy assignment may not push the child enough to boost their learning. Teachers should try to offer a balanced assignment with optimal and realistic expectations that students can achieve. It will also help students gain a sense of accomplishment once they are able to solve the assignment.

3. Provide constructive feedback. Studies have shown that constructive feedback helps students learn and grow. You can’t grow if you don’t know what you’re doing wrong. Teachers should provide necessary constructive feedback to their students. Teachers should be supportive of their students and have faith in their talents.

4. Acknowledge accomplishments. Praising student work and acknowledging their contributions boosts their confidence. Students will have confidence in their capabilities and strive to do more. Praise should be targeted and related to the process rather than student intellect, for instance, “Good Work! I can see a difference in your work compared to yesterday.”

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post 4 Ways to Build Student Confidence appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

It can be hard to tell whether or not the summer slide is happening over the vacation period as nothing seems to change on a day-to-day basis. If a child is forgetting the answers to simple math questions; forgetting simple grammatical rules, such as capitalization of proper nouns; forgetting the difference between their, they’re and there; and/or is not reading as fluently as they were previously, then it is a sign that a loss of learning has taken place. Here are 4 quick and easy ways to stop summer slide.

1. Set some learning-based goals. When school ends for the summer, learning does too.’ Try to avoid this mindset. Regular practice can help to prevent the worst of the brain drain. This can be split into slots over the week so that it can be fitted around any planned activities. Start small by introducing 15 minutes of daily work practice, regardless of the topic, and by doing this children will be able to track and monitor their own progress over the summer. Print off a simple weekly calendar from the internet and pin it to the fridge. Then sit down with a child to make ‘math Mondays’, ‘science Saturdays’ etc.

2. Bring math into the real world. The variety of activities that most children partake in over the summer presents the perfect opportunity to test out some real-world math skills. Something as simple as going for a walk or heading to the swimming pool can lead to any number of math problems being discussed. Whatever is planned over the summer vacation, see if an element of math can be added to it. A trip to the supermarket becomes “the deal says I can get three packets of burgers for $10, but they are $3.50 each. Is the deal worth it?” Or a simple walk could be elevated by asking “If every tree has 2,000 leaves on it and there are 10 trees, how many leaves are there in total?” The possibilities are endless.

3. Introduce a summer reading program. Whether it is 15 minutes of reading per day, or finishing 3 books over the break, creating a summer reading program for children can be a simple yet highly effective way to keep them learning over the summer break. Ask a child to choose 2 or 3 books (that are appropriate to their reading level) to finish over the summer break. Then, when they have finished each book, ask them to prepare a 5-minute presentation on some of their favorite things about the book.

4. Visit an educational place that isn’t the classroom. If you can arrive early enough to beat the lines, summer is the best time to take a trip to a museum or other place of learning with children. After a while, classrooms can lose their allure to young minds, but a trip to the science museum, the zoo or even a national park can help spark or rekindle a love of learning in children, and this is something that could prove invaluable come the start of school! If there are hands-on activities taking place in the museum or another educational location, then try and sign children up for them as this is a fantastic way to help them learn more from the experience.

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post 4 Tips for Preventing Summer Slide appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

August Adventures with Highland Street Foundation
Sat, August 1, 2026 – Mon, August 31, 2026
August Adventures with Highland Street Foundation! During the month of August, we are excited to partner with special Massachusetts cultural institutions to provide one free activity each day for 31 days.

Accessible Adventures: A Fun Day at Deer Island
Sat, August 1, 2026
Enjoy an inclusive, accessible day out at Deer Island featuring guided harbor walks, adaptive recreational games, scenic views, and community connection. Fun is not limited here!

Feline Fun Day
Sat, August 1, 2026
Enjoy a beautiful summer day of cats, crafts, music, and community fun at the Brimfield Winery to support a great cage-free cat shelter. Bring your friends, bring your family, and enjoy a relaxed summer day!

Extended August Evenings at New England Botanic Garden
Wed, August 5, 2026 – Thu, August 27, 2026
Make the most of the summer season’s long days and beautiful twilights with golden hour experiences at New England Botanic Garden. Savor delicious dinner specials, and catch colorful sunsets over the Wachusett Reservoir.

Cinderella’s Enchanted Garden Party
Tue, August 11, 2026
Step into a fairy tale at Cinderella’s Enchanted Garden Party, a magical celebration set on the breathtaking seaside lawn at the Hammond Castle Museum. Enjoy sing-alongs and a lively garden party fit for young royals.

Summer Member & Family Night: S’mores Under the Stars
Thu, August 13, 2026
Join Hale Education for a cozy family night featuring lawn games, stargazing over Noanet Pond, and a classic campfire with delicious s’mores. This event is all about fun and connection with family and friends.

Gloucester Waterfront Festival
Sat, August 15, 2026 – Sun, August 16, 2026
Historic Stage Fort Park along Gloucester Harbor hosts this colorful festival, with live music and children’s activities, delicious ethnic & New England foods, and more.

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post August Events in the Boston Area appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

1. Read every day. Develop a routine for reading each day. Find a time that works for your family—after dinner, before bed, on the bus ride home or in the laundromat—and either read to your child or with them.

2. Use resources from the library. Visit your local library either in-person or virtually. Libraries are great resources for summer reading lists, family activities to promote reading and local community activities. Libraries also help identify age-appropriate books to read to children and for children to read independently.

3. Talk about the book. Ask your child questions about the book as you are reading to see if they are comprehending it. If your child is reading independently, ask them questions that invite them to tell you about the book. Also, while reading, explain the meaning of words you think your child may not know. After reading, talk with your child about the book using some of the new words they learned and help connect new information to things they already know.

4. Read aloud as a family. Gather your children of different ages and read a book out loud for all to enjoy. Give your child who reads independently a chance to read aloud too. And ask questions about the book.

5. Select books with your child’s input. They will be more motivated to read a book if they participate in selecting it. The Association for Library Service to Children provides reading lists by grade.

6. Make sure there are books in your home. Explore community resources that offer free books so that you always have books in your house to read.

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post 6 Summer Reading Tips for Parents appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

So how do you create a SMART goal? Consider the following 5 criteria while thinking about what you want to achieve.

• Specific: what do you want to accomplish? What specific outcome do you want to achieve?
• Measurable: how will you measure your success? What type of data will you include? How will you evaluate it, and how frequently will you check?
• Attainable: do you have all the necessary skills and resources to achieve this goal? If not, can you obtain them?
• Relevant: is this goal aligned with your other goals, or the overarching goals of your team or organization?
• Time-bound: what is the timeframe for achieving this goal?

To create a SMART goal, decide what you want to accomplish, and then address each component of the SMART acronym. Make sure that your goal centers on an outcome, not a practice or set of behaviors. A SMART goal should, in the end, achieve something.

Learning how to frame goals as SMART goals and being willing to adjust them to get SMARTer is an important skill that can help every student get off to a better start and have a better school year, this year and into the future. Here is a practical example, starting with a typical (but not especially SMART) goal: “I will do better on my report card in the next marking period.”

Here is a way to make it SMARTer: “In the next marking period, I will get at least a C on all my math tests, and at least a B on most of my quizzes and homework assignments.” But it’s not SMART yet because it has no action plan or benchmarks. Here is a pretty SMART goal: “In the next marking period, I will take careful notes and review them at least two days before tests and quizzes so that I can ask the teacher questions about what I don’t understand. I will do my math homework before I do things with friends, and when I hand it in, I will ask the teacher about anything I am not sure about. When I get anything wrong, I will make sure to ask the teacher, or one of my classmates how they got the right answer.”

It’s not easy to write SMART goals. This skill takes time to develop, and it’s especially important to have in place for students at the secondary level. A goal is an outcome, something that will make a difference as a result of achieving it. It can’t be too ambitious to be out of reach, but also not so simple that it does not challenge. A goal has to be realistic with a stretch, requiring effort and focus to achieve it. That’s why goals need timeframes and measurable action steps along the way so that students can keep track of progress and make adjustments as necessary.

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post SMART Goals for the Classroom appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

The more readers can find and read books that are enjoyable and meaningful, the more confident they will become in identifying books they think they will like. We hope these books for middle schoolers are catalysts for students and their families, who might benefit from venturing outside of the traditional canon and experimenting with new ways of fostering a love of reading with reluctant readers.

1. Maze Runner Series by James Dashner. Readers get hooked with Maze Runner, a dystopian novel where a teenage boy named Thomas wakes up in a strange place with unfamiliar boys, and a towering maze full of deadly predators. The only want to get out is through the maze, but no one has ever made it out alive. Readers will quickly become hooked to the engaging plot — thank goodness there’s a series.

2. This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp. Many reluctant readers enjoy books with multiple narrators — especially unreliable ones. This is Where It Ends is set in the middle of a school shooting and is told from multiple perspectives over the span of 54 minutes. While there’s no happy ending, students will be captivated by this gripping, emotionally charged selection.

3. Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Books 1-4) by Jeff Kinney. If you ask a group of high school students who don’t like to read what books they enjoyed in middle school, it’s likely that Diary of a Wimpy Kid will come up. Greg is an extremely relatable protagonist attending middle school and dealing with bullies, hormones, puberty, and social dynamics. The novel features funny drawings on each page, making it an accessible selection for students who are intimidated by longer prose novels.

4. Matched Trilogy by Ally Condie. Fast-paced, action-packed, and full of themes that teens are grappling with in the present, dystopian novels tend to be a popular genre with reluctant readers. In this dystopian setting ‘the Society’ makes choices for its citizens: what to read, what to watch, what to believe, and the person with whom they’re most compatible. When Cassia witnesses a glitch in her matching ceremony, she becomes determined to find out what is going on.

5. Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell. Eleanor and Park are two 16-year-old misfits who meet on a school bus. Brought together by a bullying incident, they begin to connect through their mutual interests. As they grow closer, Eleanor fears that Park will realize what she deals with at home. Readers will enjoy getting to know these well-developed characters and following what happens to Eleanor after Park attempts to rescue her from her abusive home situation.

6. Restart by Gordon Korman. Ever since Chase fell off the roof, odd things are happening. His memory is wiped out. He can’t even remember his own name, at first. People at his school start to treat him differently upon his return, and Chase sets out to discover who he was before the fall, and who he wants to be now that he has a second chance.

7. The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon. Natasha and Daniel are two teenagers living in New York City who meet on the day Natasha finds out her family is being deported. Daniel is additionally struggling to meet the rigid and high expectations of his parents. In this case, opposites attract, but how can they stop Natasha’s family from being deported to Jamaica, where Natasha has never stepped foot?

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post 7 Books for Reluctant Readers appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

1. Keep children away from burn hazards. Fireworks can be extremely dangerous when not handled properly. As many gear up to celebrate occasions throughout the summer with fireworks and sparklers, Erica Hodgman, director of the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center’s Pediatric Burn Center, explains the risks. “They can explode and cause significant tissue damage, or light clothes and nearby structures on fire,” she says. “A lot of people don’t realize how hot sparklers can get, and give them to young children to play with. They can get as hot or hotter than a welding torch.” Grills and bonfires can also pose serious danger to children, who can fall near them and get seriously burned. “There should be a 5-foot, child-free zone around them at all times,” says Hodgman. “It is also important to never pour anything flammable onto a fire, like gasoline or lighter fluid. All fires should be thoroughly extinguished with water since embers can stay hot, even overnight.”

2. Dress children in sun protective clothing and apply sunscreen. Although feeling the summer sun on your skin is pleasant, sunburn is not. During the summer, ultraviolet rays are at their strongest, and children under the age of 18 are the most at risk for skin damage. “I would never let my child go outside without sun protective clothing and sunscreen,” says Anna Grossberg, the director of pediatric dermatology at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center.

3. Be mindful of bugs that thrive during the summer. Summer is often the peak season for ticks and insects such as mosquitoes, which can carry diseases. To prevent bites, wear long sleeves and pants tucked into socks when in wooded or grassy areas, along with close-toed shoes. Use Environmental Protection Agency-registered insect repellents and follow instructions for use and age limits. “Once inside, check your child for ticks and remove them using tweezers and pulling firmly upward,” says Erica Prochaska, M.D., pediatric infectious diseases specialist with Johns Hopkins Children’s Center. “Kids should also bathe or shower within a few hours of coming inside, which could prevent ticks from latching on.”

4. Ensure children wear a helmet while on wheels. Wearing a helmet during activities such as riding a bicycle, skateboard, or electric scooter can prevent head and brain injuries in children. A helmet should be worn properly and should only be used if it meets the bicycle helmet safety standards of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Studies show that properly fitted helmets are proven to reduce the risk of head injuries. Leticia Ryan, director of pediatric emergency medicine at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, suggests parents can play a role in getting their children to wear a helmet by wearing helmets themselves to set an example of safe practices.

5. Avoid trampolines. Kids may love bouncing on a trampoline, but the American Academy of Pediatrics strongly discourages the home use of trampolines. Wassam Rahman, medical director of Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital Pediatric Emergency Center, says that some of the common injuries seen year-round in the emergency center are related to trampolines, including sprains, broken bones, head and neck injuries, and in rare cases, severe neurological injuries.

6. Encourage water safety. In the summer temperatures, children may want to escape the heat by dipping in a lake or pond. But those areas can be breeding grounds for dangerous bacteria and other organisms. For instance, “brain-eating amoeba” (Naegleria fowleri) can infect a person by entering through the nose while under a contaminated fresh water source. Patrick Mularoni, a pediatric emergency medicine physician at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, suggests safety in these and other water areas. “Be careful entering water if you have open wounds or cuts, as bacteria can enter the body and potentially cause an infection if the water is contaminated with bacteria,” he says. “No matter the water source, it’s always important to be aware of your surroundings and practice water safety.”

7. Stay hydrated and watch for signs of heat exhaustion. Summer is the time for hot temperatures and outdoor play, but when those are added together, it could also mean dehydration and heat exhaustion or heat stroke. This is especially true for children because their bodies don’t cool down as fast as adults. “Make sure children always have a filled water bottle with them,” says Brandon Smith, associate medical director of the Harriet Lane Clinic at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center. “Allow your child to choose a fun water bottle and/or straw, and stick to water — not soda or juice.” Danielle Hirsch, a pediatric emergency medicine physician at Johns Hopkins All Children’s, agrees. “No matter if you are in the backyard, at the beach or taking a walk outside, you need water to avoid dehydration,” she says. “When out in the heat, your body loses fluids and electrolytes through sweat, and if you lose too much fluid and salt, you can become dehydrated.”

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post Johns Hopkins Summer Safety Tips appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

1. Real problems, pretend play. Bring a real-world problem, such as world hunger or global warming, to pretend play and ask the kids to think of solutions. For example, if they were the president of the United States of America, how would they solve these issues? Such critical thinking games allow kids to learn about their surroundings and be aware of their environment while critically thinking about the issues and how to work around them. These games also allow your children to understand the real challenges that people in the world face. Through your encouragement, you can motivate them to not only think heavily about these problems but also actively think of solutions, which might benefit their future careers and ideologies.

2. Create art. Encouraging your child to express their thoughts through artistic outlets is an incredible way to nurture critical thinking skills. As children draw pictures or compose music to express things they might not know how to do in words, this requires critical thinking skills. Practicing artistic skills and nurturing creativity is an indispensable activity for children to build critical thinking skills. It is by no means a simple task. This is one of the many reasons art has been highly valued throughout history.

3. Play with building blocks. Building blocks and LEGOs are great toys for building critical thinking skills. The endless possibilities allow your child to let their imagination loose. By creating various things with them, you encourage them to utilize more of their brainpower to bring their ideas to life. From dinosaurs and buildings to spaceships and model homes, as your child builds their imaginations into reality, they actively fire up those neurons throughout the process. You can also achieve outstanding results by playing Minecraft with them. Essentially a virtual world made out of building blocks, you and your child have a great bonding experience that is both fun and educational. If Minecraft isn’t your thing – programs like Engineering For Kids encourage creativity and critical thinking in their STEM camps, classes, and events.

4. Solve puzzles together. Puzzles are an excellent activity for children to build their neurons. Whether it is Monopoly, Tic Tac Toe, Connect 4, jigsaw puzzles, Shoots and Ladders, or many others, your child will actively build their critical thinking skills by playing these games. Through puzzles and brain teasers, your child slowly learns how to formulate strategies, understand the fundamentals of game theory, and gradually build up these skills until it is second nature. Your presence is also significant when it comes to puzzles. These puzzles might seem daunting and unenjoyable if you let your child play alone, but playing together can become a fun and wonderful bonding experience.

Critical thinking abilities are crucial for achieving success in life. They allow individuals to live life to the fullest and always think ahead of their actions and the consequences that will come. By nurturing critical thinking skills in your children, they will undoubtedly have a bright future ahead.

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post Critical Thinking Activities appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

1. Development of communication skills. Communication advantages include:

• Public speaking confidence: Regular practice presenting ideas to classmates and authentic audiences
• Interpersonal skills: Active listening, empathetic responding, and constructive feedback delivery
• Clear articulation: Ability to express thinking clearly and defend ideas respectfully
• Collaborative abilities: Experience working effectively in team-based environments
• Leadership competencies: Natural opportunities to facilitate discussions and lead projects

Small classes provide numerous opportunities for students to practice public speaking, engage in debates, and present their ideas to authentic audiences. These regular communication experiences build confidence and competence that serves students well throughout their academic and professional careers. The collaborative learning that thrives in small classes helps students develop strong interpersonal communication skills that contribute to success in team-based college projects and collaborative professional environments.

2. Building confidence and leadership. Character development benefits include:

• Intellectual risk-taking: Supportive environment encourages sharing ideas and unique perspectives
• Leadership experience: Natural opportunities to facilitate discussions and support peer learning
• Strong academic identity: Individual recognition helps students understand their potential contributions
• Self-assurance: Foundation of confidence supports continued growth and challenge-seeking
• Resilience: Experience overcoming difficulties with personalized support builds persistence

The supportive environment of small classes encourages students to take intellectual risks, share their ideas, and develop confidence in their unique perspectives and abilities. This foundation of self-assurance supports continued risk-taking and growth throughout their educational journeys. Small learning environments provide natural leadership opportunities as students take turns facilitating discussions, leading collaborative projects, and supporting their peers’ learning. These experiences build leadership competencies that prepare students for increased responsibilities in college and professional settings.

3. Impact on college readiness. Small class alumni enter college with enhanced capabilities:

• Strong self-advocacy skills: Experience communicating effectively with teachers and seeking help when needed
• Superior discussion abilities: Comfort engaging with complex ideas and contributing meaningfully to academic conversations
• Accurate self-assessment: Realistic understanding of strengths and growth areas from personalized feedback
• Independent learning skills: Strong organizational abilities, time management, and intrinsic motivation
• Communication confidence: Experience with presentations, debates, and public speaking

Students educated in small learning environments enter college with stronger self-advocacy skills, having learned to communicate effectively with teachers, seek help when needed, and take ownership of their learning progress. These competencies translate directly to success in college settings where students must navigate larger, more impersonal environments independently. Small class alumni demonstrate superior discussion and seminar participation skills, having practiced meaningful dialogue and collaborative learning throughout their educational experience. College professors consistently identify these communication and critical thinking skills as essential for academic success.

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post 3 Advantages of Smaller Class Sizing appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

1. Getting active. Moving isn’t just good for physical health; it’s good for mental health, too! If your child is feeling bored, tired, hyperactive, sad, angry or nervous, getting out and getting active can help them even out their emotions. It doesn’t take much time or many supplies to get active, and you can let your family’s imagination be your guide for fun activities.

Here are some activities for kids:

• Taking a family walk outside.
• Riding a tricycle or bike.
• Cleaning and organizing their room.
• Playing pretend outside.
• Playing fetch with your pet.
• Swimming.
• Following a fun, age-specific workout video.
• Dancing to favorite tunes.
• Playing active games with friends and family.
• Jump roping.
• Playing catch or shooting baskets.

And some ideas for teenagers:

• Going for a run.
• Weightlifting at the gym – with a gym buddy for spotting!
• Attending a yoga class or doing a yoga video at home.
• Following workout videos online.
• Bike riding.
• Rollerblading.
• Joining a sports team or playing pick-up games with friends.
• Going for a walk or on a hike.
• Joining a dance class.

2. Muscle relaxation. Muscle relaxation is a perfect way for dealing with stress, as it can help calm the bodies and minds of children or teens who are nervous, stressed or upset. By tensing and releasing different muscles, it allows the mind to calm and focus on just that one thing. It can also help both kids and adults practice recognizing when stress or worry may be causing pain and tension in different parts of their body, and how they can release it.

To perform muscle relaxation, have your child start by getting into a comfortable position. They can be lying down or sitting on a chair with their feet on the ground. Then, have them take five to 10 belly breaths. Next, have them start to focus on tensing and relaxing the various parts of the body.

3. Journaling. A journal is a place for children and teens to write about their thoughts and feelings and record daily activities. It can help them relieve stress, learn more about themselves, process strong emotions and solve problems. Journaling can be helpful when someone is upset, scared or angry, and or when they are excited about something – there’s no wrong way to do it. If your child doesn’t know what to write about, here are some ideas to get them started. They can write about:

• What they did today.
• Something they’re looking forward to, and why.
• Something they’re worried about, and why.
• A time they felt really strong or proud.
• Something they wish they could change about their life right now.

A journal can be their own private book, or they can share it with others. It’s nice to start with 10 minutes of journaling. Then, the more often they journal, the more they will learn about themselves and the better they will feel.

4. Belly breathing. When someone feels nervous or stressed, their breathing and heartbeat may increase and their muscles tense and tighten, making it harder to think clearly. But when they can relax their body, it can help with anxiety, pain, and dealing with stress. Here’s how to practice belly breathing with your children:

• Start by having them lie down or sit on a chair with their feet flat on the ground.
• Place one hand on their belly and the other on their chest. Have your child take a deep breath in through their nose, filling their lungs up with air. Their belly expands as they breathe in, while the hand on their chest should stay still.
• Have them turn their lips into “O” as they exhale or blow out all the air. They should feel their stomach flattens as their muscles tighten.

Belly breathing can be utilized if your child is dealing with stress. Like any other skill, the more they practice belly breathing, the better they will become.

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post 4 Tips for Dealing with Stress in Kids appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

Bubbles & Books Storytime on the Seaside Lawn
Wed, July 1, 2026 – Wed, August 26, 2026
Every Wednesday Morning in July and August, enjoy family-friendly mornings of storytelling, crafts, and seaside fun. Bubbles and Books is a bubble party featuring stories, music, a light snack & even an outdoor scavenger hunt.

Boston Harborfest & Fireworks 2026
Thu, July 2, 2026 – Sat, July 4, 2026
Boston Harborfest is a proud tradition celebrating Boston’s maritime and revolutionary history. Hundreds of activities over Independence Day weekend at Boston’s most iconic historic landmarks.

Boston 4th of July Events, Activities & Parade
Thu, July 2, 2026 – Sat, July 4, 2026
Residents and visitors are invited to view the City of Boston’s official commemoration, enjoy the Boston Pops Spectacular televised performances, and participate in Boston Harborfest programming.

Newton Summer Concerts
Sun, July 5, 2026 – Sun, August 9, 2026
The Newton Centre Bowl comes alive with music and dancing for six weeks this summer in the open space adjacent to the playground and just down the hill from the Tyler Terrace hut.

Free Summer Sports Centers for Ages 7-14
Mon, July 6, 2026 – Fri, August 21, 2026
Our Sports Centers offer free summer camp alternatives to Boston youth. Each location offers instruction in several popular sports from July 6 through August 21.

BioCamp for Middle Schoolers
Mon, July 6, 2026 – Fri, August 28, 2026
BioCamp is a STEM day-camp for middle school students (ages 10-14). The curriculum is designed as an enjoyable, fun, and hands-on introduction to inquiry-based learning and the scientific method.

Mommy & Me Summer Camp
Mon, July 6, 2026 – Mon, July 27, 2026
Move, play, and connect this summer at our Mommy & Me Summer Camp — the perfect way to add fun and routine to your summer mornings!

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post July Events in the Boston Area appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.

A growing wave of education leaders and policymakers are adopting new cellphone policies, with the debate swinging decidedly in favor of tighter restrictions. Limiting access, they argue, will benefit students’ mental health and learning. At least 38 states and the District of Columbia require school districts to ban or restrict students’ use of cellphones in schools. Some other states are either incentivizing or recommending local districts enact their own bans or restrictive policies.

According to a 2023 report from Common Sense Media, half of kids ages 11 to 17 receive at least 237 notifications on their phones on a typical day — 25% of which are received during the school day. In the past year or so, dozens of school districts have sued the parent companies of Facebook, TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube, alleging their apps cause classroom disciplinary problems and mental health issues and divert resources from education.

Aside from the more obvious concern of cell phones being a significant distraction from learning, in June 2023, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued an advisory calling on Congress to require warning labels on social media platforms regarding their effects on young people. The advisory said social media may cause body image issues, affect eating behaviors and sleep quality, and lead to social comparison and low self-esteem.

Overall, the researchers found 12-year-olds who had a smartphone had a 1.3 times higher risk of depression, a 1.4 times higher risk of obesity, and a 1.6 times higher risk of insufficient sleep. Even children who did not have a phone at the age of 12 but received one a year later reported poorer mental health and sleep quality than kids of the same age who didn’t have a smartphone. Additionally, the earlier the age at which a child received a smartphone, the greater the risk of developing the problems increased by about 10% for each year earlier age, starting as young as age four.

In summer 2024, two states announced they were piloting programs to restrict cell phones in the classroom. Delaware and Pennsylvania approved funding in 2024 to provide some districts with pouches for storing cell phones during classroom instruction. On July 1, 2024, Delaware Governor John Carney signed a $168 million supplemental spending bill that allocated $250,000 for a state Department of Education pilot program for cell phone pouches. Under the pilot program, students would place their phones in locked pouches and would not have access to them until the end of the school day. Lawmakers suggested five to eight schools be chosen to participate in the pilot. The state DoE has been charged with implementing the pilot and collecting and evaluating data.

Allison Green
Boston Tutoring Services

The post Phone Bans in Schools appeared first on Boston Tutoring Services.