Dr. Linda’s School Success Newsletter | May 2011

In This Issue

Happening Now: Private Tutoring in all subjects, kindergarten through college; Regents, AP, SAT and ACT Prep, and College Advisement
Note from Dr. Linda: Mother’s Day and Final Exams
School Success Tips: How to Study for Tests
Books for Young Readers: Clara Barton and the Red Cross|
Family Fun: “The Adventures of Berticus Barns,” Part Ten
Now It’s Your Turn: Let Us Know What You’d Like

Happening Now at StrongLearning.com

One-to-one tutoring - all subjects, levels and grades in your home, at a convenient location near you or online. No contracts
Educational Testing – learn how your child learns, to make schooling easier and more successful
IEP Advisement - Helping parents with children with special needs
Exam prep for Regents, AP, SATs and ACTs - Private or in Groups
College Advisement - helping parents and college-bound students with college selection, essays, applications, and more

Contact Strong Learning for More Information at 845-628-7910

Register now for the following Small Group Courses offered by Strong Learning in Westchester and Putnam Counties, NY. Enrollment limited.

Regents Prep Classes: Schedule is published at Strong Learning. Please register early because each class is limited to 12 students.
AP Prep Classes: Schedule published at Strong Learning. Please register early because each class is limited to 12 students.

Register Today. Call Strong Learning at 845-628-7910

Note from Dr. Linda

Hi Parents, Grandparents, Teachers and Friends:

May is that special month when we take time out to appreciate all the things moms do all year long for their kids and families. Mother’s Day is a perfect opportunity for kids to make something for their Mother or Grandmother, maybe a card or paper flowers. Perhaps something they made in school.

We’ve been celebrating Mother’s Day since President Woodrow Wilson signed a bill in 1914 making it a national holiday. Now it’s not only a day for giving Mom flowers and cards, it’s also the most popular day of the year for eating out.

Of course, May is also the month when kids start thinking about the end of school and summer vacation. However, before vacation they’ve got all those tests and final exams to take. So in this month’s newsletter, I’ve got some good tips for your kids to help them study for tests.

There’s the next adventure of Berticus to get you laughing. And I’ve recommended a book for children about Clara Barton, who founded the American Red Cross in May 1881.

Happy Mother’s Day to all you wonderful, loving, giving, caring Moms (and Grandmoms).

Best wishes,
Dr. Linda

P.S. Help your children develop skills with Strong Learning’s Improve Your Study Skills, Memory Skills, Reading, Writing and Math Skills Workbooks. These workbooks offer advice and activities to improve basic skills. Appropriate for fifth grade and up. Order these books from our website.

Is homework a hassle in your home? Discover easy, effective strategies in Dr. Linda’s “25 Top Homework Tips,” a FREE mini-ebook. Subscribe now and you’ll also receive our weekly tips to help your child raise test scores, improve study skills, increase reading, writing and math abilities.

You’ll get the monthly “Dr. Linda’s School Success Newsletter” too. You’ll even receive the first chapter of our award-winning book, “Why Bad Grades Happen to Good Kids.” Sign up today and tell your friends, too.

School Success Tips: How to Study for Tests

Studying isn’t just about learning the material and understanding it. You also have to remember what you’ve learned and that takes practice.

To get good grades on tests, follow these easy tips for remembering and practicing what you know

Graphic Organizers – Create a graphic that you fill in with chunks of information.

Association – Associate or create a word with a person, place, thing, feeling, or situation.

Rhyming – Remember the information by creating a rhyme. For example, i before e, except after c.

Writing Sentences – Using the first letter of the words you want to remember, make up a sentence. For example, for the planets, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune (and Pluto, maybe), you can think “My very earthy mom just served us nine pizzas.”

Acronyms – Write a word made up from the first letters of a list of words. For example, “HOMES” is written to remember the five Great Lakes. H=Huron, O=Ontario, M=Michigan, E=Erie, S=Superior.

Now sleep, eat and relax because you’re ready for your finals.

Books for Young Readers: Mother of the American Red Cross

Clara Barton, a Civil War nurse, teacher and humanitarian, founded the American Red Cross on May 21, 1881 at Danville, NY. Working in hospitals and battle fields, she traveled all over the world helping soldiers and refugees. People sometimes called her the “Angel of the Battlefield.” In 1900 when a hurricane devastated Galveston, Texas, Barton was there offering aid to families who had lost their homes.

Thanks to Clara Barton, the American Red Cross is still helping people all over the world during natural disasters. Red Cross volunteers recently helped the Japanese people after the earthquake and tsunami in March. Children, ages 9-12, can read about her in Clara Barton by Stephen Krensky.

Family Fun: “The Adventures of Berticus Barns” by Brian Silbert

If you’re living with or teaching one of those kids often labeled an “unmotivated, disorganized, procrastinating, mind-wandering underachiever,” you’ll love Berticus. He represents all those children who don’t fit into the system. I hope you enjoy this read-aloud story for the whole family.

Part Ten: Berticus has Lunch with Mary M’Gerkin

When we left Berticus last month, his club came to end when he was kicked out. Now he is resolved to come up with a New Big Idea. But first he has lunch with Mary M’Gerkin to make Amy jealous. This lunch date proved not to be one of his better ideas!

I felt it was time for us to embark on a project again in search of a new big idea, but I wasn’t exactly sure what it would be. We had already tried to start a club, but Farley Finnigan had ended that of course. (I didn’t care anyway because I would never want to be in a club that wouldn’t have me as a member.)

And then there was the time we tried forming a yacht club one afternoon. That was rather difficult because neither of us owned white captain’s hats, or a yacht, for that matter. The lack of any large body of water near our town would also prove to be a big obstacle, which I determined to be a vital element when forming a yacht club.

A short while later as I was putting my books away in my locker I heard what sounded like a smoke detector. When I closed my locker door, I was startled to see Mary M’Gerkin standing there with a weird look on her face.

“Thatch told me you like me-like me!” Her eyes fluttered at me and her nose started to whistle the wedding march song.

“Oh, um, I guess I sort of like you. I mean, you’re nose whistling is kinda neat and all. But, uh, I don’t think I like you-like you.”

She put her hands on her hips. Then her nose started whistling faster and faster like a train gaining momentum.

Suddenly I got an idea. Perhaps this was my chance to make Amy jealous.

“Um, on second thought Mary, maybe we could sit together at lunch today and, ah, see how it goes.”

Mary smiled and as she walked away her nose was whistling, “Zip-a-dee Doo-Dah.”

After my normal rounds in the lunchroom I headed over with my meatball sandwich to sit next to my “date.” I made sure to pass by Amy’s table so she would see me. But, as I walked by she turned her head to talk to Shelly Humperdink.

Other than the sounds coming from her nose, Mary and I sat in silence for most of our meal. I had no idea what to say to her. At one point I started to say something but I turned it into a sneeze instead.

“Ahh…”

“Yes Berticus???”

“Aaahh… choooo.”

“Gazoontite.”

“Thank you.”

This conversation was as exciting as watching paint dry. I continued to peek over at Amy’s table wondering if she’d seen me with Mary. Perhaps she had and was already crazed with jealousy like Thatch’s sister suggested. Maybe she was off somewhere crying to her friends and formulating her own plan as to how she would win me back. Just then, she and her friends walked by our table but she didn’t look over once. Not even a glance. I slumped down and buried my hand into my cheek.

Mary got a crazy look in her eye. “Why were you just looking at Amy Appleton!!??”

“Oh, um. I wasn’t… I was, er…”

“YES YOU WERE!!” Her nose sounded like a psycho horror movie.

“Okay. Listen Mary, I’m sorry. I gave it a shot with you. But, I think I might actually like-like Amy Appleton.” Then it finally hit me for real. Holy cow! I like-like Amy Appleton! Even though he didn’t always remember who she was, Thatch was right!

“But, what about our stimulating conversation??” Mary asked.

“All I did was sneeze.”

“Well, it’s a start…”

I shook my head no. Mary stood up, fire in her eyes. Her nose whistled like a train again even louder than before. “That’s it Berticus! We’re through! We’re over! History! You had you’re chance and you blew it!!! You don’t deserve me! We’re breaking up!”

I was shocked and confused at the same time. She’s nuttier than peanut butter, I thought.

“But, Mary, in order to break up, don’t we have to be going out first?”

“You’ll want me back! You’ll see! You’re a cold-hearted man Berticus!!!” Mary stormed off.

As she did, Thatch sauntered up to the table and winked at me again. “Yer welcome buddy. I had a hunch you two would hit it off. After you told me you liked her I had to make it happen.”

“Thatch, I was talking about Amy. Not Mary.”

“Who’s Amy?”

Sheesh I should have known Thatch didn’t understand what I was talking about.

Don’t miss the June “School Success Newsletter” where Berticus gives up on girls and moves forward with Thatch on his latest Big New Idea

Now It’s Your Turn

Go over to Dr Linda’s Blog now and subscribe by email or RSS feed so you won’t miss anything. Leave a comment. I love to hear from you. Let me know what you’d like to see in the next newsletter and on the blog.

Thanks so much for all your emails, calls and comments.

Wishing a happy end of the school year to your children and all you terrific Moms and Dads.