Mental health has only become more important and more fraught as the pandemic has confined children to their homes and limited their social interactions. With parents losing jobs and COVID-19 claiming loved ones, adolescents are experiencing a lot more strain on their mental health, so it’s essential to try to improve mental health for students at school. “There’s just a lot more worry about everyday things. So there’s anxiety about things – and I’m not…
If you are a high school senior who will be applying for financial aid for the next school year, the time is quickly approaching to fill out the 2022-2023 FAFSA and the 2022-2023 CSS Profile, as both applications open on October 1, 2021. As a rule of thumb, families applying for aid should complete the applications as soon as possible to ensure that they meet all deadlines and that the schools still have financial aid…
For Muniya Khanna, strong emotional reactions and increased social discomfort are predictable responses as youngsters emerge from more than a year of isolation and students re-adjust to altered routines caused by the pandemic. Khanna is a clinical psychologist in Pennsylvania who specializes in treatment of childhood anxiety. She explained that anxiety is part of the body’s fight-or-flight response to uncertainty. While in-person activities may be billed as a “return to normal,” Khanna said it also…
Last fall, teacher Michael Palermo called the crew of Christopher Columbus to the witness stand. Wilfredo Lopez Murcia, a student at Wakefield High School in Virginia, strolled to the front of the classroom, followed by classmate Jhonnatan Moya Miranda. “Hello, mates,” Wilfredo quipped, giving a short salute to his peers. Wilfredo and Jhonnatan were about to defend themselves in The People vs. Columbus, et al. trial, a social studies role play that encourages critical thinking…
Boston Tutoring Services is excited to share the Open House dates of local schools. Take the time to research these schools and visit the ones that seem like a good fit for your family. The Academy Open House is a great way to experience a day on campus and meet the staff. This week we are featuring Meridian Academy in Jamaica Plain, MA. Meridian Academy will be holding four open houses over the next several…
Boston Tutoring Services is excited to share the Open House dates of local schools. Take the time to research these schools and visit the ones that seem like a good fit for your family. A School Open House is a great way to experience a day on campus and meet the staff. This week we are featuring Dana Hall School in Wellesley, MA. Upper School Open House October 23rd, 2021 from 9:00 AM to 11:00…
It’s the kind of news story that keeps parents of school-age children up at night: kids go to school, dutifully wear masks, and still half the class ends up getting sick. That’s what happened this past spring at an elementary school in Marin County, CA. The school seemed to be taking all the right precautions against COVID-19 transmission. They tried to create safer classrooms by requiring teachers and students to be masked while indoors, placing…
The current federal student loan freeze — a lifeline pausing repayments interest-free for millions of borrowers in the wake of the pandemic — will now last at least through Jan. 31, 2022. The student loan freeze was first enacted in 2020 and has been extended several times, but the Department of Education has referred to the current deadline as the “final extension” for this relief. With the no-interest repayment pause now unlikely to continue beyond…
Addressing the differing needs of students can make teaching reading a daunting task. Students are expected to have a deep understanding of what they read and provide answers grounded in text. One way for students to interact with the text is through close reading, which can become a powerful classroom tool for fiction and nonfiction texts across grade levels. Teaching close reading to younger students is very doable–here’s how. SETTING THE STAGE At the beginning…
Color-coding strategies are fun, but they also wield a deeper value–colors can have a positive impact on memory and attention. Using color-coding is a great way to provide scaffolding for students who need it and engage those who don’t. As a bonus, it can be applied to every aspect of ELA! READING 1. Want students to analyze a text? Ask them to read with color. This color-coding strategy helps them to delineate between a main…
