HERD Blog Feeds

ADHD: Catching Up and Calming Down

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:54:17 -0700

by Pennie Sempell

ADHD is the most common psychiatric childhood disorder in the USA and it is increasing globally, with use of stimulants drugs on the rise since the early 1990s.

Hard Questions About Homeschooling (Part Six)

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:21:55 -0700

“I CAN’T CONTROL MY KID!!” - Part II
by Steven David Horwich

This is an extension of the fifth article in a series answering hard questions dealing with homeschooling. We’re dealing with this question:

- Some children may be a handful for the family to “handle”.

A Gentle Yet Effective Approach to Math Mistakes

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:19:17 -0700

by Josh Rappaport

Everyone who teaches math knows it’s easy for students to make mistakes. After all, there’s often just one way to get a math problem right, but many ways to get it wrong.

And in addition, the more steps a problem has, the greater the chances for making a mistake. When you consider all of this, doesn’t it seem miraculous that anyone ever gets a math problem right?!

Keeping Teaching Fresh for the Homeschool Parent

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:16:48 -0700

by Ms.Tirtza Koren Gal

As homeschooling parents, we focus most of our attention on keeping our homeschool curricula interesting and engaging for our homeschool students. Many of us, however, forget that we are also a critical element, and that our enjoyment and engagement in the process directly affects the learning experience of our young charges.

SAT vs. ACT

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:10:34 -0700

by Jean Burk

Years ago, deciding whether to take the SAT or ACT wasn’t even an issue. Back then, the ACT was traditionally required by colleges in the Midwest, and the SAT was the test of choice for the South and both east and west coasts. Now the majority of universities in the United States widely accept both SAT and ACT results. Even if a school prefers one over the other, admissions officers will usually convert the scores interchangeably.

The Impact of Hemispheric Dominance on Learning to Read

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:08:14 -0700

by Sarah Major, M.Ed

As is often the case when we discuss people in terms of classification, we tend to over generalize and label people. This is certainly the case when discussing right- or left-brain dominance. I would love to have a dime for every time I’ve heard someone say, “I’m right brained” or “I’m left brained.” A picture flashes into my head of a hemisphere in the brain running around on little legs and bare feet.

A Winning Combination: Children, Computers and Time

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:04:24 -0700

by Barbara Frank
(excerpted from Thriving in the 21st Century: Preparing Our Children for the New Economic Reality)

Ultimately, schools have enough on their plates teaching children the three R’s; adding a requirement for insuring that children become computer-literate can often overwhelm even the best schools. So if children don’t learn to use computers in school, where can they learn this vital skill?

Do Re Mi, 1 2 3

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:01:27 -0700

by Mike Overly

Simply stated, music is heard as sound and seen as symbol. The symbols are given names which may create confusion because sometimes a different name is given to the same symbol.

Is Your Child in the Healthy Fitness Zone?

admin — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 16:34:37 -0700

by Pennie Sempell

Are you worried about your child spending too many hours in front of electronic media and the TV? There is a price to be paid for being glued-to-the-tube (or its modern equivalents). If California is any measure of what is going on in other states, and I suspect that it is, the price is too little time getting the exercise and overall fitness that playing outdoors and doing sports provides. Diet plays a major role as well.

Hard Questions About Homeschooling (Part Five)

admin — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 16:33:52 -0700

“I CAN’T CONTROL MY KID!!” (Part I)
by Steven David Horwich

This is the fifth article in a series answering hard questions dealing with homeschooling. In article one, we made a brief list of major concerns and objections one might encounter to homeschooling. Let’s take up the fifth point on that list now.

- Some children may be a handful for the family to “handle”.

Explore Math the Fun Way... Through Games

admin — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 16:30:44 -0700

by Josh Rappaport

Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’ve often sensed that of the four “solid” subjects, people generally find math the most serious. After all, the subject of English offers the pleasure of poetry and the fancies of fiction, science boasts the playfulness of experimentation, and social studies delights through stories that stir the imagination: battles, voyages, great feats.

Balancing the Fundamentals with your Child’s Interests

admin — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 16:29:09 -0700

by Ms.Tirtza Koren Gal

As a homeschooling parent, you are probably more often than not struggling to find a balance between structure and flexibility. A homeschooling parent needs to maintain structure and cover the necessary fundamentals within traditional curricula (like reading), but, at the same time, many of us like to play up one of the great virtues of homeschooling – the ability to focus on the individual child’s interests and strengths.

The Past, Present and Future of Sheet Music

admin — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 16:28:46 -0700

by Mike Overly

Overview

Sheet music is a form of music notation that uses written symbols and signs to represent the sound of music. The medium of sheet music has progressed from clay tablets to parchment, and from paper to computer screens. Sheet music may be written by hand, printed by a press, or sent from the computer to a graphic printer. The term "sheet" is used to differentiate written music, regardless of the medium, from an audio presentation of sound as experienced through records, tapes, CDs and mp3s.

It Is Important to Know What Kind of Learner Your Child Is!

admin — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 16:25:58 -0700

by Sarah Major, M.Ed

We parents can have a pretty linear view of our children’s ability to perform well in school. We tend to speak about children as “smart” or “struggling” or “learning disabled.” The problem with this view of children’s scholastic ability is that there is room for a whole lot of error—of mis-labeling children—and when we have subconsciously determined what group a child falls into, it might not occur to us to make the effort to find out what exactly is causing a lack of success.

You Could Handle It, Mr. Stossel

admin — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 16:24:01 -0700

by Barbara Frank

A while back, television reporter John Stossel wrote yet another of his columns criticizing America’s public school monopoly, where he also explained why we need school choice. I’m with him on that. But after bringing up homeschooling and how successful it is, he made a comment that bothered me. He said,

I don't know how these homeschooling parents do it. I couldn't do it. I'd get impatient and fight with my kids too much. But it works for lots of kids and parents….

Prepare Your High School Student for College

admin — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 16:21:42 -0700

by Jean Burk

Before you know it, college will be knocking at your door. As the parent of a high school student, it’s your job to make sure the transition is as easy as possible. Don’t wait until senior year before you start thinking about preparation. Right now you can begin helping your child put their best foot forward by this instructional guide for conquering the inevitable college entrance test known as the SAT. For the student:

How to Find Learning Opportunities in Your Community

admin — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 15:01:51 -0700

As a homeschooler, the world is your classroom. Field trips are a great way to make a lesson come to life. People in the community are available to enrich your learning. Planned events can become part of your curriculum—you just need to know where to look.

Identifying Community Educational Resources

The Value of Enrichment Activities

admin — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 14:30:11 -0700

by Kathleen Sabo

At a time when budgets are tight and expenses are skimmed, recreation is one of the first items to be cutback or discontinued. What is the purpose of recreation? Is it just an extra-curricular activity for the wealthy? Or is it a vital resource worth preserving? Should enrichment activities be optional or do we require them?

Distance Learning Trend: An Economic Model of Risk and Return

admin — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 10:08:58 -0700

by Mark Keys

Motives for education can be fundamentally broken down into students taking an initial investment in hopes of high returns in the future. College students forego working now, and instead pay to educate themselves at traditional universities. This initial cost for investment has historically proven worthwhile to college graduates. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, those with a bachelor degree will earn $900,000 more than a high school graduate on average over the course of a lifetime (the gap widens to $1.3 million for a master’s degree).

Go for the Gold in the Scholarship Olympics

admin — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 06:59:07 -0700

by Jean Burk

Let the games begin! Looking for scholarships can seem like a marathon. The competition is fierce, but hard work can pay off in scholarship gold. With the right knowledge and some persistence, students can put themselves ahead of the game and bring home the prize in the way of college money.