This summer, Barnes & Nobel and Texas grocery store chain HEB are offering great rewards for reading.
Barnes & Nobel is offering free books to elementary students who read eight books this summer and record them in the Barnes & Nobel Summer Reading Program, Imagination’s Destination Journal, which can be picked up at any Barnes & Nobel bookstore. After completing the journal, which entails writing the titles of the eight books and a very short recommendation, positive or negative, all you have to do is take your journal to your local Barnes & Nobel bookstore by September 4th and choose a free book from the list printed in the Imagination’s Destination Journal. Not a bad deal!
If you’re a junior high or high school student who likes to read and write, then the HEB Summer of Read. Write. Win. contest may be the challenge for you! Just choose an influential Texan to read about and write an essay explaining why you think he or she has had an impact on Texas. 3 Grand Prizes: $15,000 scholarship – 3 First Prizes: $6,500 scholarship – 7 Honorable Mentions: $1,000 scholarship
So here’s to you! Find yourself a great book and get reading! Enjoy!
Signed,
Lora the Study Coach
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Setting Myself Up for Failure
It may sound crazy, but lately I've been setting myself up for failure...on purpose.
I'm right-handed but have been trying to throw with my left hand and kick with my left foot when playing ball with my dog. Let me tell you, Lily was very patient with me. When kicking her small orange ball with my right foot, I could get that thing to loft into the air and go a good distance, but with my left foot, it was a totally different story. At first, it was the same as when I golfed, nothing but air. My foot usually wouldn't even hit the ball, but if it did, the ball hardly moved from its spot. Sometimes I got lucky and the ball would actually move forward a few feet. After a while, I'd get to feeling bad for Lily and, for her sake, would revert back to using my right foot. Boy would that get her running! But each time Lily and I went out to play ball, I would try for quite a while to kick her ball with my left foot. It really didn't take more than a few days of trying before there was consistent contact and distance, which made both of us happy.
Like I said, I also tried throwing with my left hand. There was a bit more success in that, but only because the ball was already in my hand. Although the ball went much farther than when I kicked it with my left foot, the difference between throws with the right hand and the left were obvious. Nonetheless, I kept throwing with with my non-dominant hand and paying attention to how my wrist moved, how the ball sort of rolled off my finger tips, and how my arm moved. Often I would throw with my right hand, paying attention to all those things, and then try to mimic the movements with the left side of my body. Just like with the kicking, my throwing improved quite a bit.
So now you may be wondering "Who cares?" or "What's the point?" Well, let me tell you. I have been purposely setting myself up for failure in order to become better. I have been challenging the left side of my body to improve the power of my brain. That's right. There is a connection between the ability to use both sides of your body and the ability of your brain. You don't have to only practice academics to "get smarter."
So I challenge you. Start using your weaker, non-dominant hand to eat, open jars, throw balls, drink, and unlock your door and use your non-dominant foot to kick a ball, push a drawer closed and pull open a door. It won't take long before you'll see the physical progress and in the future you'll appreciate the mental results. Talk about a painless way to get a better functioning brain!
Signed,
Lora the Study Coach
I'm right-handed but have been trying to throw with my left hand and kick with my left foot when playing ball with my dog. Let me tell you, Lily was very patient with me. When kicking her small orange ball with my right foot, I could get that thing to loft into the air and go a good distance, but with my left foot, it was a totally different story. At first, it was the same as when I golfed, nothing but air. My foot usually wouldn't even hit the ball, but if it did, the ball hardly moved from its spot. Sometimes I got lucky and the ball would actually move forward a few feet. After a while, I'd get to feeling bad for Lily and, for her sake, would revert back to using my right foot. Boy would that get her running! But each time Lily and I went out to play ball, I would try for quite a while to kick her ball with my left foot. It really didn't take more than a few days of trying before there was consistent contact and distance, which made both of us happy.
Like I said, I also tried throwing with my left hand. There was a bit more success in that, but only because the ball was already in my hand. Although the ball went much farther than when I kicked it with my left foot, the difference between throws with the right hand and the left were obvious. Nonetheless, I kept throwing with with my non-dominant hand and paying attention to how my wrist moved, how the ball sort of rolled off my finger tips, and how my arm moved. Often I would throw with my right hand, paying attention to all those things, and then try to mimic the movements with the left side of my body. Just like with the kicking, my throwing improved quite a bit.
So now you may be wondering "Who cares?" or "What's the point?" Well, let me tell you. I have been purposely setting myself up for failure in order to become better. I have been challenging the left side of my body to improve the power of my brain. That's right. There is a connection between the ability to use both sides of your body and the ability of your brain. You don't have to only practice academics to "get smarter."
So I challenge you. Start using your weaker, non-dominant hand to eat, open jars, throw balls, drink, and unlock your door and use your non-dominant foot to kick a ball, push a drawer closed and pull open a door. It won't take long before you'll see the physical progress and in the future you'll appreciate the mental results. Talk about a painless way to get a better functioning brain!
Signed,
Lora the Study Coach
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Fun Educational Websites!
Below is an article that I wrote for Healthy Valley Magazine's April 2012 issue. It's a compilation and descriptions of some awesome websites that parents and students can take advantage of, and all of the sites are FREE!
Kids Know It is “the Internet's most popular educational website since 1998.” Children can find educational activities, products, movies, music, games, articles, text books, learning programs and worksheets. There are even posters and podcasts available. http://www.kidsknowit.com/
"FunBrain is the #1 site for online educational games for kids of all ages.” It offers games, books, comics and the lost art of Mad Libs. The site helps students improve their math, grammar, science, spelling and history knowledge in fun, versatile ways that keep kids wanting to play, without realizing that they are improving their academic skills. http://www.funbrain.com/
Starfall is a wonderful site dedicated to literacy that teaches children to read with phonics. Its systematic approach and phonemic awareness practice are perfect for preschool through second grade students as well as those in special education and English language development programs. Starfall keeps literacy fun and motivating, so it is a site that also appeals to struggling readers. http://www.starfall.com/
Jefferson Lab, also known as JLab, comes from a world-class research facility in Virginia, and is considered a highly valued partner by the local, regional and national education community. JLab focuses specifically on science and math through a collection of science videos (produced by Jefferson Lab Science) and recorded lectures, both via the Science Cinema portal. Students can learn math and science through games and test their knowledge and receive specific feedback through the SOL Tests section. http://education.jlab.org/
Smithsonian Education offers to students so much knowledge about just about everything. Unlike most educational sites, this site does not focus solely on academic knowledge; although there is plenty of it. It invites exploration because it is full of cool stuff that kids are unlikely to discover and experience without traveling around the globe. http://smithsonianeducation.org
Coolmath-games is all about math. As the names suggests, many cool math games can be found here, but not only that. There are math lessons from basic arithmetic to pre-calculus that are simple to understand and that go step by step. The lessons are short, so students have to spend a lot of time to be successful. The three sites that make up Coolmath are http:/coolmath.com/, http://coolmath4kids.com/, http://coolmath-games.com/.
Signed,
Lora the Stucy Coach
Kids Know It is “the Internet's most popular educational website since 1998.” Children can find educational activities, products, movies, music, games, articles, text books, learning programs and worksheets. There are even posters and podcasts available. http://www.kidsknowit.com/
"FunBrain is the #1 site for online educational games for kids of all ages.” It offers games, books, comics and the lost art of Mad Libs. The site helps students improve their math, grammar, science, spelling and history knowledge in fun, versatile ways that keep kids wanting to play, without realizing that they are improving their academic skills. http://www.funbrain.com/
Starfall is a wonderful site dedicated to literacy that teaches children to read with phonics. Its systematic approach and phonemic awareness practice are perfect for preschool through second grade students as well as those in special education and English language development programs. Starfall keeps literacy fun and motivating, so it is a site that also appeals to struggling readers. http://www.starfall.com/
Jefferson Lab, also known as JLab, comes from a world-class research facility in Virginia, and is considered a highly valued partner by the local, regional and national education community. JLab focuses specifically on science and math through a collection of science videos (produced by Jefferson Lab Science) and recorded lectures, both via the Science Cinema portal. Students can learn math and science through games and test their knowledge and receive specific feedback through the SOL Tests section. http://education.jlab.org/
Smithsonian Education offers to students so much knowledge about just about everything. Unlike most educational sites, this site does not focus solely on academic knowledge; although there is plenty of it. It invites exploration because it is full of cool stuff that kids are unlikely to discover and experience without traveling around the globe. http://smithsonianeducation.org
Coolmath-games is all about math. As the names suggests, many cool math games can be found here, but not only that. There are math lessons from basic arithmetic to pre-calculus that are simple to understand and that go step by step. The lessons are short, so students have to spend a lot of time to be successful. The three sites that make up Coolmath are http:/coolmath.com/, http://coolmath4kids.com/, http://coolmath-games.com/.
Signed,
Lora the Stucy Coach
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Translation Stick-Ups YouTube Video
I hope this blog finds you doing well and being successful in your studies. I want to let you know that another Lora the Study Coach video has been posted on YouTube. This one is entitled "Translation Stick-Ups" and uses Math as the sample subject material. Of course, this activity, like all the others, is useful to study and learn information for any subject. I hope you like it and find it helpful.
Here is the YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubi_R9CRpBY
You can also subscribe to my YouTube channel with this link: http://www.youtube.com/user/LoraTheStudyCoach?ob=0&feature=results_main
Signed,
Lora the Study Coach
Here is the YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubi_R9CRpBY
You can also subscribe to my YouTube channel with this link: http://www.youtube.com/user/LoraTheStudyCoach?ob=0&feature=results_main
Signed,
Lora the Study Coach
Friday, February 10, 2012
YouTube Video Showing Columns Activity
I hope that you are doing well and are enjoying this second, and perhaps most challenging, semester.
Because this semester is chock full of state assessments, I have recently uploaded a Lora the Study Coach video on YouTube.com for you. It demonstrates the “Columns” activity found in The Study Coach’s Easy Study Manual and gives attention to the small details that make this a very effective activity for learning vocabulary in all subject areas; historical dates, events, and people; scientific theories and laws; mathematical theorems and equations and their variables; and more. I hope that you find the video useful!
Link to Lora the Study Coach “Columns” video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNIMhPlHH8c
You can also subscribe to my YouTube channel with this link: http://www.youtube.com/user/LoraTheStudyCoach?ob=0&feature=results_main
Signed,
Lora the Study Coach
Because this semester is chock full of state assessments, I have recently uploaded a Lora the Study Coach video on YouTube.com for you. It demonstrates the “Columns” activity found in The Study Coach’s Easy Study Manual and gives attention to the small details that make this a very effective activity for learning vocabulary in all subject areas; historical dates, events, and people; scientific theories and laws; mathematical theorems and equations and their variables; and more. I hope that you find the video useful!
Link to Lora the Study Coach “Columns” video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNIMhPlHH8c
You can also subscribe to my YouTube channel with this link: http://www.youtube.com/user/LoraTheStudyCoach?ob=0&feature=results_main
Signed,
Lora the Study Coach
Friday, January 6, 2012
Wisdom
Wisdom is more than knowledge. It's knowledge coupled with proper judgment, which generally comes with life experiences. We often consider grandparents as wise, because they seem to know all the tricks to getting something done right. Grandparents have lived for such a long time that they have learned what to do and what not to do through their copious experiences. They are so capable of taking in so much information and coming up with the right answer. This is not knowledge; this is wisdom.
Here is what the Bible has to say about wisdom in Proverbs 3:13-16.
13 Blessed are those who find wisdom,
those who gain understanding,
14 for she is more profitable than silver
and yields better returns than gold.
15 She is more precious than rubies;
nothing you desire can compare with her.
16 Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor.
I am not pretending to be a Biblical scholar, but let me sum this up. Wisdom is more precious than any other riches a person could think of.
In my opinion, wisdom keeps you alive and helps you make good choices in life.
With that said, go and do your best in school. Take from your teachers all the knowledge that they have to give, because without knowledge, you can't have wisdom. And wisdom is the key to many of life's great riches.
Signed,
Lora the Study Coach
Here is what the Bible has to say about wisdom in Proverbs 3:13-16.
13 Blessed are those who find wisdom,
those who gain understanding,
14 for she is more profitable than silver
and yields better returns than gold.
15 She is more precious than rubies;
nothing you desire can compare with her.
16 Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor.
I am not pretending to be a Biblical scholar, but let me sum this up. Wisdom is more precious than any other riches a person could think of.
In my opinion, wisdom keeps you alive and helps you make good choices in life.
With that said, go and do your best in school. Take from your teachers all the knowledge that they have to give, because without knowledge, you can't have wisdom. And wisdom is the key to many of life's great riches.
Signed,
Lora the Study Coach
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Do You Leave Scars?
A teacher in New York was teaching her class about bullying and gave them the following exercise to perform. She had the children take out a piece of paper and told them to crumple it up, stomp on it, and really mess it up, but not to rip it. Then she had them unfold the paper, smooth it out, and look at how scarred and dirty it was. She then told them to tell it they were sorry. Now, even though they said they were sorry and tried to fix the paper, she pointed out all the scars they left behind and that those scars would never go away no matter how hard they tried to fix the paper. That is what happens when a person bullies another person - they may say they’re sorry, but the scars are there forever. The looks on the faces of the children in the classroom told her the message hit home. ~ Author Unkown (shared by Charlene Freed-Geimer)
Signed,
Lora the Study Coach
Signed,
Lora the Study Coach
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