Reading is a critical skill for succeeding on the ACT, however I have noticed that many high school students claim that don't have time to read outside of their other activities. I find that this is sad because when I was a kid, you would always find me with a book to read. I think the main problem with reading today is the fact that we feel we are too busy to sit down and read.
Instead we have to make time to read because the most successful people in business today read every single day. They read upwards to 50 or more books a year. Succeeding on ACT Reading Test Three of the four main subjects on the ACT contain reading passages that a student must read and answer the questions. If you don't read the information quickly and accurately, you will get the questions wrong and fail the ACT. What if there was a way to study for the ACT by using your own materials? There is, you just have to know where to look. I am going to do just that. The ACT reading test has four main passage types that never changes and neither does the order. This means you can pick and choose what passage to start with based on what you like or are interested in the most and go from there building confidence in the test as you go. If you study using the tips that I give you, you can and will succeed on the ACT reading test. I am going to cover each passage and what to read, how to create your own test questions using key words from study guides out there, and how to use note cards to study on the go. Find what Interests you The ACT contains four main passages that are in the same order. But you don't have to read what other people pick out for you. Instead find reading that is good quality and interests you. This can work for your English classes too when you have free reading time or required reading in your classes. Start with your most comfortable type of passage to gain confidence and move on to the next comfortable type of passage and so on. Prose Fiction This passage deals with stories that are not true so your basic novel or short story works here. A narrator is telling a story about a main character with some problem that needs solving. If you have trouble with sequencing a book with flashbacks works here. This is the first passage on the ACT Reading Test. Social Science or History This passage deals with some point in history but don't panic about dates, names, places, or facts to memorize. THERE IS NO MEMORIZING FACTS HERE!!! Instead find your favorite part of history and read about it. This helps students gain confidence in reading by reading about something they are interested in. This is the second passage on the ACT Reading Test. Humanities This passage deals with the arts such as art, drama, literature, and music. Pick your favorite famous person in these areas and focus on them. You can even read a People Magazine article as a warm up. This is the third passage on the ACT. Natural Science Most high school students are required to take at least three years of science in order to graduate, so instead of studying extra types of science, read your science textbook. Pay attention in class to how experiments are run and basic science terms. These terms are common sense when dealing with science so again you don't have to memorize anything. This is the last passage on the ACT. Osmosis doesn't work with reading Osmosis is the process of absorbing material through moisture to another substance such as plants. However drooling on your book as you read it will not help you understand the material. So as you read, ask yourself questions about what is happening in story. Types of questions to ask Great readers and successful people like Steve Jobs interact with their reading to find out ways to use the information given. As you read you should be asking yourself questions to help you understand the material. The questions I am giving you is really the only thing you need to memorize for the ACT Reading Test. Detail Questions These questions deal with information directly stated in the story. These are the easiest to find and understand if you know what to look for. Ask yourself the five W and H questions Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How. Detail questions are found most often on the ACT reading test. But only focus on details when the questions ask you to. Main Idea Questions These questions deal with the story or paragraph as a whole, so figure out what the story is mostly about. If you are right, your detail questions will support the main idea. Think of it as a movie trailer, giving the reader or potential reader a taste of what the whole book is going to be about. As you read a passage on the ACT, write down what each paragraph is mainly about. This will help you find where to look for an answer to a question. Sequencing Questions Sequencing deals with the order of events in the story. If your story has flashbacks meaning that the character is thinking about an event that happened in the past while in the present, this can help you put the events in order. Vocabulary Questions As you read, you will come to words that you don't know and that is a good thing. Keeping your mind sharp by learning new words is a great way to move to the next level in reading. As you come to words that you don't know, highlight them in some way, such as sticky notes, underlining or highlighting (if you own the book) and look up the words in a dictionary. But don't rely on dictionary definition to help you understand what you read. Instead put the definitions in words that work for your understanding. Then make a point to use these words more often. You will gain more understanding the more you use these words. There is usually only 1-2 vocabulary questions per passage on the ACT but as you study, you can pick out as many words as you like. Drawing Conclusion Questions As you think about what you are reading what conclusions are you coming up with? An author cannot tell you everything in their writing. You have to come up with a conclusion about some things on your own. For example, does the author like the main character, why or why not? You can tell if the author does like the character by how he or she treats them. Maybe the main character abuses another character. Maybe the character is a hero in some way. Drawing conclusion questions along with inference questions deal with higher level thinking. Sometimes your answers will be correct and sometimes not. When looking for drawing conclusion answers on the ACT look no more than a paragraph above or below the cited information. Inference Questions An inference is a guess based on what you already know and the information in the story. Say a friend invites you to go camping. You can make an inference that you will sleep outside in a tent or a camper. Since an author can't write down every detail, you have to make a picture in your mind about what you think is happening as you read. If your picture doesn't make sense, maybe the book is too hard for you to read and you should pick an easier book or do some outside research to help you understand it better. Author's purpose Questions When you are reading a book, ask yourself why are you reading it? This can be the author's purpose for writing the book. The author's purpose deals with why the author wrote the book or a part of the book. For example when picking a title, an author has a specific reason for picking that title and it is hidden in the writing of the story. It is the reader's job to find out why. Using Note Cards to Help Anywhere I recommend that you write these question types and passage types down so that when you are at the library and need a new book to read you can pick a good book that fits each passage. Then as you read you can be asking yourself these questions. I would even write down the new words that you want to utilize in your conversations to help you remember. As you get more comfortable with reading every day, you are relieving test anxiety because you know what to look for and have been practicing the strategies so much it becomes a natural part of you. How do you study for the ACT Reading Test? I would be curious to know.
5 Comments
ACT is a great way to gain scholarships for college. Students that I have tutored have received scholarships ranging from $500 -$10,000 after taking my study course. Not everyone has to take an expensive course though. Some students are able to study on their own if they know where to start.
Some students who have taken my course started studying on their own. They used the ACT.org website and found information on how to study there. Others have used study guides that focus on the ACT. I am going to give you great steps on how to study for the ACT. Here they are: 1. Get yourself a practice ACT and take it Before you register for the test, take a practice test. Taking a practice ACT gives you a baseline of where to start. For example, the student who got a $10,000 scholarship received a 14 on his baseline test. That told me we had a lot of studying to do to increase his scores to earn that scholarship. 2. Analyze your test results Most study guides will analyze each test question and tell you what you need to look for as your strengths and weaknesses. This helps you to figure out what you need to study more closely instead of studying all of the material in front of you. This can shorten study time depending on how much you need to master. 3. Give yourself plenty of time to prepare for the ACT As you register for the ACT test, plan far enough ahead to give yourself plenty of time to study. To increase your points it is about 10 hours of practice per point you want to increase. Mastery of skill takes time to apply the strategies from every angle. The ACT tests the same skills over and over again but in different ways. So you need to ensure you can the master the skills from every vantage point. I recommend finding some time every day to practice the ACT. Applying skills every day helps you naturally answer questions and save critical time. 4. Review areas of need and study up Now that you have analyzed your test scores and planned plenty of time to practice. It is time to make a study plan. This study plan will map out how and what you are going to study. It keeps you organized and on task. It helps you to transition from just learning a skill to mastery and prevents repetition of nonessential tasks. You can use a study guide and your own materials to help with this study plan or get yourself a tutor that will create your plan for you. A great tutor will have a baseline test, analyze it and create a plan that fits you. 5. Take 1 subject at a time or study up all at once? Study only the subjects that you need to study, but take a complete ACT every 3-4 weeks to practice. I recommend that you take one subject at a time to master those skills, but after mastery, apply those skills every other day or daily. I also recommend that you read from a novel and practice math daily at least 30 minutes for each. As you read ask questions to determine understanding of your reading. 6. Use note cards to help you remember skill sets My favorite learning tool is note cards. They are small, portable, quiet, and easy to use. I can write several skills sets on note cards and refer back to them often. That way when I am in the car and have time to spare, I can practice my skills to keep them sharp. You can also do this with math concepts, English grammar and punctuation rules, types of reading questions using key words in question, and science terms to remember. Studying doesn't have to take forever especially if you are on summer or spring break. Using note cards allows you to take 5-10 of down time at a time and practice. Not only that, you can apply those skills in your high school classes allowing you to multi-task. 7. Take at least 3 practice tests before actual ACT Taking the ACT costs you money and time, but practicing for the ACT can save you money and earn money for college. Before taking the actual ACT, I recommend taking at least 3 practice tests besides the baseline test. As you take the test, see about the time limit and are you making it. Do you have time left over to check your answers or not? Analyze the test results and see if you are making progress. Do you have to go back and relearn the concept again? Hopefully you are able to lesson your load every time you take a new ACT test. What has worked for you? I would be really interested in your thoughts. I hope however you study for the ACT you are successful and wish you the best. I love hearing about success stories even if they are not helped by me. Stena Schmitt, CEO Saints Training and Tutoring Math, science, English, reading, writing, sports, drama, music, friends, socialization, and a job are all things that high school students do during their high school career. One more thing could you put you over the top, right? Studying for the ACT should be as important as any one of these events. But instead students feel the ACT is too hard, too easy, or something you can just wing it. They would be wrong, because the ACT is not impossible to pass but does need to be studied. Earning College Scholarships The ACT can provide scholarships for college which helps students be successful in life. For example, one of my students took a practice ACT and finished it in 90 minutes but only answered half of the questions. After taking my course, he was earning $10,000 scholarships. Studying for the ACT can drastically change your outcome in life. When you study for the ACT, you get more benefits than those who don't study such as getting to know the test, relieving test anxiety, reviewing what you already know, practicing what you still need to learn, and learning a strategy for acing the ACT. Getting to know the test The ACT is different than any other test you have ever taken. Colleges uses the test to determine whether or not students are ready for college. The ACT tests a student's problem solving ability. If you don't study for the ACT, it might be easy to take one look and feel it is too hard to ACE so you give up. The more you study for the ACT; the more you realize that it takes a strategy to ACE and that takes time. Relieving Test Anxiety One of my parents' biggest concerns is test anxiety which means they freeze up as soon as they see a test and don't do well on it. As a student studies for the ACT, test anxiety can go away because he or she knows the test inside and out. They know what to expect on the day of the test. I used to have test anxiety as well. In fact I was in the middle of an essay exam for college and thought I was answering the wrong question. I panicked and switched my entire approach. However after the test I realized that I was answering the right question with the right answers the whole time, so my essay was twice as long as everybody else's in the class. After that experience, I realized that if I prepare and prepare well, I will do fine on any test that I take. When I help students study for ACT, I teach them how to create their own test questions so they know exactly what to look for on the ACT. This helps aid their test anxiety because they feel more confident about their studying. Reviewing What You Already Know When a student struggles with reading or learning, he or she feels the ACT is too hard so doesn't even try. However if a student studies for the ACT, he or she finds out what is already know and that gains confidence. Reviewing affirms he or she has learned a lot during the high school years and keeps those skills sharp. Practice what you still need to know As a student studies for the ACT, he or she finds out what still needs to be learned and can practice those skills as well. These skills could be something that was taught in school but never mastered. The ACT focuses on skills necessary to be successful in college and requires higher level thinking skills. The more a student practices these skills, the more successful he or she will be. Learn a Strategy to ACE the ACT There are many resources out there that teach about the ACT and how to ACE it. Students have many choices to choose from, but until each student picks the strategy that works for him or her, they are not really ready for the ACT. Acing the ACT is all about strategy. Just like a chess player dreams about strategy day and night, so does a successful student that has ACED the ACT. What are some way that you study for the ACT? One of my biggest pet peeves is people always talking negative about something but never doing anything about it. Yet again I was listening to the news on TV and they were bashing President Trump. Now before you go and bash me or shut down this blog. I don't necessarily agree with what he is doing. I don't necessarily disagree with it either though. But hear me out.
With all of the negative talk about ISIS and terrorism, people are running scared. You can't go to a concert or baseball game without worrying about your safety anymore. It's no wonder Americans want our borders closed to any one new. What if there was a better way to treat the immigrants coming into our country. Latest Vacation Just this past week I went on vacation to my home state of South Dakota and visited the Ellsworth Air Force Base located just outside of Box Elder, South Dakota. I was able to tour the base and it gave me an idea. On this base is 11,000 acres of land which is plenty of room to house at least 10,000 people both families and single people. A Small Community An air force base is a small community in which the residents are able to live such as get their groceries, bowl, play ball, hospital, movie theater, gas station, auto repair shop, library, YMCA, place of worship, and other amenities as needed. Children also go to the local school system for school. Housing on a military base is also similar to a small community with small apartments/dorms to 4 bedroom houses. This could house families along with single people. People are monitored in and out of the base. In order to tour the base, we had to have our driver's licenses checked along with a background check. Until immigrants or refugees obtained citizenship or legal status, they would live on the base and have to check in and out. When immigrants come into the United States illegally, they have do whatever they can to find work such as sex trafficking, drugs, working long hours with little pay, among other things. If we used the military bases that are closed, immigrants would be able to come to the United States legally without looking for an illegal way. Once here they would learn English, find a job, go to college, earn citizenship, etc. We could reopen the bases to welcome the immigrants to provide a safe home for them. There are regulations for everything including how to take care of your yard and the cleanliness of your house. I was able to look up the housing contract online and it was 56 pages long. The regulations are strict, yes, but necessary for a large group of people living in a small area with large turnover. Once they find permanent housing and legal status, then they can follow their own living arrangements off of the base. Benefits for Americans In order to help immigrants, we would need more jobs for Americans to provide those services. This includes jobs such as construction, building managers, engineers, housekeepers, teachers, doctors, professors, retail workers, etc. Show Me the Money You're probably wondering where is the money for this. There is already money set aside for immigrant to get a good home and a job. But instead of giving them a check, we would be helping them find a job or how to become an entrepreneur based on the skills they already had. Just like the saying "Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he eats for a life time." Allowing immigrants/refugees to come into this country legally and teaching them the necessary skills to be successful in this country will help America be great again. Ever wonder why you can never get ahead? What if you could control your success by watching out for the reasons of failure and fix them? I have your answers for you.
Here are the Top 10 Causes of Failure in Leadership: 1. Inability to Organize Details 2. Unwillingness to Render Humble Service 3. Expectation of Pay for What You Know Instead of What You Do with What You Know 4. Fear of Competition From Followers 5. Lack of Imagination 6. Selfishness 7. Intemperance 8. Disloyalty 9. Emphasis of Authority of Leadership 10. Emphasis of Title Let me expand on each of the causes for further understanding. Inability to Organize Details If you are in a position of leadership such as a supervisor for a job or lead worker for the shift, you have a big responsibility. As a leader you have to be ready to do whatever you require of your staff. I have seen many a supervisors that feel as soon as they become a supervisor, they no longer have to do the dirty work. You are not going to be respected by your staff until you do the dirty work. I have had many supervisors, but only a couple have I had respect for. The first one was when I worked at Burger King. I would pick up extra shifts if I knew that this supervisor was working, otherwise I would refuse extra shifts. I liked this supervisor because she would help us get our work done instead of focusing on the work she needed done before the end of her shift. Unwillingness to Render Humble Service I have had many supervisors that when emergencies happen they are nowhere to be found. Instead supervisors should be willing to do whatever is required to help out. There were many times, I worked around the clock as a supervisor because we were shorthanded. It wasn't fun by any means, but I also was able to become full staff a lot quicker because employees saw what I was willing to do to help out. Expectation of Pay for Knowledge Instead of Using Their Knowledge Just because you have a degree doesn't mean that you can and will apply that knowledge. More employers will hire a person for their experience rather than education. Fear of Competition From Followers When you focus on your fears, your fears come true. I had a superintendent that would lock his office any time that he wasn't in it. You could tell that he trusted no one and in return, no one trusted him either. On the other hand, another superintendent would leave his door open even if he was at the Capitol lobbying for more money for the school district. He was the best superintendent I have ever had. Students loved to sit by him at ball games instead of fearing him. Lack of Imagination As a teacher, I have noticed that if you don't have a student's attention, they will not pay attention to you or the lesson. However if they are playing a game, students don't even realize they are learning something. If you are not able to be creative to keep ahead of competition, you are going to get lost in the shuffle of things. Just because you are successful now, doesn't mean that you will continue if you lose your imagination. Selfishness Great leaders don't take credit for what their staff do for them. Good leaders look good because of the great staff that are under them. In turn leaders than return the favor by giving credit back to those who deserve it. Intemperance Intemperance is when you do not use moderation in what you do or say. So if you overindulge in how you do things, be prepared to not be listened to. One example of not using moderation or restraint is when you are talking about other staff or client issues. If one staff person hears you gossiping about another person, they wonder whether or not you are going to do that with them as well. Disloyalty When you are not loyal to those you should support, don't be surprised to lose your followers. Being disloyal can include not completing tasks as you are asked, being dishonest, and theft. Emphasis of Authority of Leadership Great supervisors do not instill fear in their staff instead they support their staff to do better than they have ever done. I worked at one facility where the supervisor used fear to control her staff. This was a contracted job that cleaned another company's business. The supervisor told us that we were not allowed to talk to the other company about our problem for fear of getting fired. This supervisor was also the owner, so there was not another person to go to for complaints. You shouldn't have to fear your supervisor ever. Emphasis of Title A successful supervisor proves their leadership by what they do not what they say. If you have to say you are a supervisor to prove your role, then you are not a leader. Doors of a real leader are always open and are not afraid to let others use their office even if they are not there. Once you know the characteristics of failure of leadership, then you can correct what you may or may not be doing to succeed in leadership. When thinking about tests especially the ACT many people freeze up and their mind goes blank. I believe that if you have an idea about what the test is and how to attack, the better you will do. Think of any goal that you have ever set for yourself. You know that when setting goals for yourself it is hard at first to accomplish the goal, but the more you work at it, the better you become.
For example, let's say you set a healthy living goal after eating for years on junk or convenience foods. At first this may be hard because the food that you ate before might taste really good. Looking at a salad or veggies and believing they could tastes as good as greasy french fries gets your face all scrunched up into a disgusted look. But the more you work at your goal, the better you do. The ACT is the same thing, once you work on the strategies that are out there, you are going to do better on the test and get the scholarships that you want. Let me introduce you to the ACT and what it is all about. The ACT helps people get into the right schools along with scholarships to alleviate the burden of the cost of college. It is not like any high school test of remembering facts and figures. You can control your score if you know how to. No, I don't mean cheating. I mean preparing ahead of time. When you are training for a marathon, you learn the steps that it takes to go from the couch to running a full marathon. You can't expect to go from the couch to a 5k overnight. The ACT is no different. Kaplan Method Kaplan University suggests that you become a savvy test taker by using these four basic steps: learn the test, learn the Kaplan method and strategies, learn the tested material, and practice, practice, practice. Learn the test Even though the ACT doesn't require you to memorize any facts or figures on the test. Kaplan does however suggests you to memorize the directions to each part of the test. You have precious minutes that you don't want waste on the directions. If you memorize them ahead of time, then you only have to scan for any changes and move on. If you study for the test using the Kaplan method, you will learn the types of questions that the test asks, so you can then create your own test questions. Creating your own questions allows you to use everyday reading material like an ACT test. You will get used to the method so much that it becomes second nature. So when it comes to the test, you won't have to spend precious minutes trying to rack your brain to remember each type of question. You will get extra points by guessing on the test. Other standardized test doesn't allow for guessing, but the ACT encourages it. I had a student who took my class for the first time and was given a baseline ACT. I wanted to see what he knew so I could better serve him. He finished the ACT in an hour. The test normally takes three!!!! I encouraged him to take more time on the test but he refused saying I don't know it now so why bother. I looked over his answer key and he had only answered maybe half of the questions. The other questions he left blank. Because of this, he got a 14 on his baseline score. Needless to say after taking my class, he learned that it was ok to guess. He took the ACT twice and received a 10,000 scholarship to college. You'll know how to write a high-scoring essay...That is if you decide to take that portion of the test. Learn the Kaplan Methods and Strategies Colleges want to know if you can think strategically and creatively which is exactly what the ACT tests for. Colleges don't want students who want to get scores the easy way. Just like a poorly written resume will knock you out of the running for a job, a poor ACT score will knock you out of the running for a good school. Changing the way you think about the questions will help. This is called the ACT Mind-set. Learn a plan of attack for each subject test. Learn the unofficial ways of getting right answers fast. Have you ever been told to skip around answering the easy questions first? The Kaplan method encourages that too. Learn the uncharacteristic aspects of the ACT format. The answer is always in front of you. Learn the Tested Material I have been helping students increase their scores on the ACT for over a year now and one of the leading fears is the math test. The Kaplan method gives you every concept that you need to learn in order to be successful on the ACT. In fact the math test tests about 100 different concepts. If you learn these concepts and know the answer has to be in front of you, then you'll ace the math portion. The science test gives you many different tables and graphs along with diagrams that are meant to be intimidating. Once you learn how to attack them, they will no longer be intimidating. The English language is hard to learn, but the Kaplan method gives you the specific rules that you need in order to master that test. Some of the reading passages are long and hard to understand but once you understand the different types of questions and what they are looking for; then the reading passages will not defeat you. (yes, even those who feel they are not good readers.) Practice, Practice, Practice The more you practice, the better you will be come on the test. Think of any sport, race, musical, or theatrical event you have even been in. If you practiced for said event you did better. The same goes for doing well on the ACT. Once you practice, you will feel more confident the day of the test. What are some strategies that you use to ACE the ACT? I would like to hear from you. Please email me your ideas at [email protected] Taking the ACT is not like any other test you have ever taken. There are no facts or figures that you have to remember. All of the answers you need to succeed is printed right on the test. The ACT Test consists of four main tests and a optional writing test. The four main tests include reading, English, science, and math. The writing test doesn't have to be taken unless the college that you are applying for requires it.
One of the biggest worries that I hear from parents is "Will my child be ready for the real world when ______ is old enough?" My response is to use moments in life as perfect teaching moments. For example, if you have a child or children who complain about what is for supper, then have them plan the meal the next time or next week. Give them parameters which the meal must meet. This includes being well balanced meals with foods from every food group. Then have them buy the groceries, prepare and clean up the meal. Children can pick the day in which they are going to complete this task. This will teach them how much work you as parents put into planning and preparing things around the house and hopefully teach them some things along the way. Be careful not to make it a punishment, because they won't get anything out of it.
Planning the Meal Children love to be included in the decisions that the family makes and planning a meal is the perfect way to make a child feel special. At first you and the child could plan the meal together to teach them how to find things you already have in the house and what you might need to buy at the store. Planning together also teaches the child or children what is important in a meal such as including healthy foods rather than junk food. When you include food from all of the food groups, children are not as hungry after the meal. This is also a good time to start teaching children to read the food labels and talk about what makes a food healthy or not such as looking for how much fat, salt, carbs, fiber, and protein is in a food. Going to the Grocery When going to the grocery store, use this as an opportunity to teach children about the prices of food and how to get the best deal. For example looking for the generic or sale foods. Parents can prepare children ahead of time by showing them the sales ads from the different stores and comparing prices. Check to see if the grocery store will allow comparable pricing on the competitions sale prices. This is also a good time to show children the food labels to choose healthy choices for foods they are buying. When the child is supposed to plan and prepare his/her own meal, they should pick out only the foods required for their meal and pay for it themselves. It is a wonder how much they look for the cheaper prices when they know it is coming out of their own pocket. If parents give the money and can afford it, allow the child to keep the change after they are done and see if they spend wisely then. Preparing the Meal When teaching children how to cook, make sure you are teaching them how to be safe. Fires and burns are the biggest causes of accidents in the kitchen. You might have to watch your child cook to ensure they are safe depending on how much you trust their abilities in the kitchen. But remember cooking can be a fun learning experience with children. Children love making memories with you and cherish them for a long time. When you have child prepare the meal teach them about how to set the table as well. Cooking is full of teachable moments because you can teach about how to measure out ingredients, cutting foods, reading a recipe, temperature, etc. This is a good time to talk about the different vocabulary that is used when cooking and what the difference is between the different words. When reading a recipe it is different than reading a book or newspaper and can be very confusing to children. Measuring out ingredients talks about fractions which is also very confusing to children. Eating the Meal With the hectic lives that we live today, there is not much time spent sitting at the table enjoying the meal. But it is can be the most special time of a child's life because this is a time when you can catch up on your day or their day. There is a lot of times when I see children leaving the table 10 seconds after the meal has started because they are done and don't want to sit at the table. This is a good time to teach children to sit and have a conversation with you about what they did for the day. Sitting and enjoying what you are eating is also a good thing because it can be a time to teach when to recognize you are full and don't want any more to eat. Rushing through our meals is one of the reasons so many are having stomach problems such as heartburn, indigestion, bloating, and gas. When a child has prepared the meal, this is a good time to show your appreciation for what they have done. Clean up Teach children what happens after the meal is over and how to best clean up. Teach them how to fill the dishwasher and wash dishes. This teaches children responsibility. You could even encourage them to clean up after themselves after the meal. Parents spend their life teaching their children how to live in the real world. Teaching responsibility early is the best way to hold children accountable but it is never too late to teach children life skills. Have you ever heard the phrase "Those that can do, and Those that can't teach" I am not exactly sure if I agree with this statement because in my years in the workforce I have had many a people try and teach me the job that was in front of me. I can tell you right now; they were not very good teachers. But they weren't well on their way to something else either. With the different jobs that I have had I learned a few things about the bad teachers and a few about the good. I have come up with a top 5 list of why not everyone can teach.
#1 Forgetting What it is Like at the Bottom Everyone one of us had to start somewhere, usually it is at the bottom. At the bottom of the totem pole everything is new to you. You have no idea what the routine is like and what to do. This is true even if you've had a job similar to the one you're currently in. When training a trainee, it is required to slow down and explain the basics of the job so the new person can understand. This can be hard for a trainer to do because he/she may feel rushed to complete the tasks at hand and cannot do that with a trainee. However this is not easy for all people to do. After you learn a job, you learn tricks or shortcuts that work for you to make the job easier and more efficient. Doing the job your way becomes second nature to the point where you may forget what it is like at the bottom when you just learned the job. When training someone you cannot take the shortcuts that you may have developed because what works for you may not work for someone else. Although you can explain why you take the shortcuts you do but don't assume the new person will take the same shortcuts. #2 Trainer has a hard time breaking down tasks into easier components After you have been at a job a while tasks become second nature that you complete them easily without thinking. It is not easy to break down the tasks into smaller parts. The best way to complete this is to think of all of the steps that it takes to complete the task. My husband does this to me a lot. He has been a farmer for his entire life. I have lived in the city my entire life. That is until I met him. Don't get me wrong, I know which animal beef(cow) or pork(pig) come from and not necessarily from a grocery store. However, I don't know all the ins and outs of farming. It's even worse when he explains his job which is fixing agriculture equipment. My husband goes right into a task and starts telling me the end of the task expecting me to know exactly what to do. Obviously this doesn't work. As you are thinking about the steps of each tasks, write them down. If need be give this list to the trainee so they have a checklist of how to complete each task to help them remember the steps. I know this is not always convenient because sometimes a trainer doesn't know they are training someone until he/she gets to work. But this is something that management can do ahead of time. #3 Lose Patience with Trainee This is a big deal and happens a lot. The trainee has gone through the training successfully but is still in his/her probationary period. The trainee is working on his/her own and he/she makes a mistake or forgets something. The trainer is nowhere in sight to help the person out. When the trainer comes back and finds out what the trainee has done proceeds to yell at the trainee for messing up. When training someone new remember there is a learning process in which the trainee or student observes what is done, tries it out with lots of help (scaffolding), and gradually that help is taken away until they are not receiving any help. This may not happen all at once so don't get frustrated with the trainee. When my husband and I were first dating, he was making this beautiful grill stand out of metal for his mother. I thought this was great because maybe he would want to make me one. Boy was I naive! No not even close! Instead my husband thought it would be a great idea of a project we could do together.( Insert rolling of the eyes here) He had an ulterior motive: He wanted me to learn the tools that he uses so I could help him with things around the farm. We pick out the metal from what's laying around the farm. This means that the metal is pretty rough looking and rusty. We have to clean the rust off, buff any rough spots, cut it to size, weld, paint, etc. So he teaches me how to clean the rust off of some of the pieces. He is standing next to me and watching me to do just fine. The next thing I know, he is gone and doing something else. If you know anything about using a buffer with metal, you know that sparks fly off. If you are not paying attention, these sparks go in directions you don't want them to. Well I wasn't paying attention, and before I knew it, I burnt a hole in my sweatshirt. You're probably thinking that I should have felt the heat. My husband had already thought about this without telling me because he had me wear three layers of clothing that day. I was wearing a hooded sweatshirt, a short sleeved t-shirt, and a long sleeved t-shirt. (It was mid-July) Needless to say, my husband yelled at me when he came back and noticed that I had burnt a hole in my shirt. Yelling at the trainee within the probationary period will just make you have to train a new person. Instead pay attention to where the trainee is and what they are doing. Be within range for asking questions and help. Be proactive and ask them how they are doing and if they have any questions or what he/she is planning on doing next. #4 Have no experience training or situation at hand I don't think my husband had much experience with teaching someone else how to learn something from scratch, so it was hard for him to break things down for me to understand at first. He is getting better. This happens more than you think. For example when I am subbing in a classroom, I have a hard time dealing with bad behavior because I was taught to respect others no matter what. So when I am dealing with a student who has no respect for authority it frustrates me. Over time, you learn how to handle situations based on what has worked or not worked in the past and changing it to fit the situation. #5 Attitude of Teaching or Training I don't know how many times I have been trained by someone who doesn't want to train anyone. They are just there to do their job and get a paycheck. The last thing the employee wanted to do was train someone. This sends a bad taste in the mouth of the trainee because the trainer has a bad attitude toward the job, trainee and world in general. Do you really think the trainee is going to do a good job knowing some of the attitudes around the job? Do you think the trainer did a good job training the trainee? Probably not. So when deciding who to train others think about what the person's attitude is going to be before giving the job away. Maybe think of some incentives to training others. If you can put extra staff on so the trainer doesn't feel like they have two jobs to complete that shift; their own and training. Do you have any suggestions for training someone knew? Let me know. One of the biggest questions that I get from both teachers and parents is "How can the student be successful online instead of in person?" I decided to share with you the different tools that I use with my students and thought that maybe you could use them as well.
Assessments Before I ever agree to tutor a student, I like to assess exactly where they are in reading, math, and ACT Test Prep. As the student is completing the assessment, I am able to observe their behavior by watching them through the program Zoom. Zoom allows us to feel like we are in the same room. DORA For Reading For reading I like to use the DORA assessment from Let's Go Learn. This test assesses a students ability to recognize words, spell words, understand vocabulary, read and comprehend passages at their level and answer comprehension questions. I like this assessment because as students get answer right, the test gets harder but as students get answers wrong the questions get easier. ADAM-7 For Math I also like the ADAM-7 which tests math concepts in grades Kindergarten through 8th grade. This assessment is also from Let's Go Learn. I like this test because it not only focuses on math concepts by testing how to solve problem but also tests the vocabulary that is associated with each concept. This is good because it creates a deeper meaning with each concept. It is also linked to Khan Academy to review any concept the student struggles with. Edmodo For ACT Test Prep Edmodo is a great online tool that educators use in order to communicate with students all over the country. It is a software program that allows teachers and students to download and upload assignments without having to use a lot of paper. The teacher uploads an assignment and the student can view it, work on their computer/ipad/ and upload their answers. I use Edmodo to test students online for the ACT. I scan a practice test for each student. They can then print the paper off and take the test. After they are done, they can scan the scantron sheet and upload it to Edmodo. As they are online taking the test, I can observe their reaction to the test. Using Edmodo allows the student to access the test at any time to review as needed. One-on-One Sessions During an online session, I used to use Skype because it was what everybody was used to and recognized. However, I noticed a lot of glitches while I was using this program. A friend of mine mentioned Zoom and how good of a program that was. I would have to agree. With Skype, you would have to get separate interactive whiteboard to use to write down notes and such. But Zoom comes with an interactive white board. Students can also write on the whiteboard with ease no matter what kind of device they are using. With Skype it was different, because if a student was using a tablet other than an I Pad, every time they changed screens it would kick them off Skype. Zoom also allows you to share your screen and any person can write on the screen, so if you are doing math problems, you and the student are able to write on the screen to figure it out. I can then see exactly what the student is thinking and stop them in the middle of completing the problem if they are struggling to help them think about what should come next. Just the other day I was helping a student figure out her thoughts when writing a paper for a homework assignment by helping her with a mind map gathering what she knew and wanted to find out. Free Online Resources Khan Academy Khan Academy is a free educational website that teaches various subjects to help students learn several topics. Sal Khan created videos to do the teaching part, and then students can complete problems that go with each skill. It helps to motivate children by telling them when they have done good, and helps them by giving hints of how to figure it out. Carson Dellosa.com CarsonDellosa.com is an online workbook ordering company in which you can try out most of their workbooks for free to see if you want to order them. They have workbooks in reading, math, science and social studies from preschool to high school level. Mathworksheets4kids.com Mathworksheets4kids.com is another website that has excellent math worksheets for children to figure out the skills. It is a good website to enrich their math skills by giving them more problems to work with. There are many more resources out there for you to use and explore but these are the ones I use and trust the most. If you have any others that you like please respond below. |
Archives
December 2023
Categories |