Blog-Post Archives

Helping Families to Manage Homeschooling

April 22, 2012 Brad Hoffman

More and more families are choosing to homeschool their children and they’re seeking curriculum specialists and teachers to support them. At My Learning Springboard, we’ve had the opportunity to work with families at the elementary, middle, and high school levels to design and implement customized programs. Each situation has been quite different. We’ve worked with students labeled gifted and talented. We’ve worked with students with learning differences. And we’ve worked with students with rather complicated IEPs needing a variety of related services. In every case, we manage homeschooling as a collaborative team.

Typically we facilitate the homeschooling process through the public school system in partnership with families. Each public school system has different requirements for homeschool students, including curriculum design, progress reports, and achievement tests. Depending on the need, we provide different levels of support and involvement. Some families are looking for partners to help design instructional programs and courses that they will then implement themselves. As part of this service, we may model instructional techniques or provide ongoing mentorship for parents to help them develop teaching skills. Other families are looking for a more comprehensive service where we both design and deliver the instructional programs. In these cases, we assemble a faculty and provide full case management.

Sometimes we manage homeschooling in partnership with an independent school for credit recovery when an extended absence is required. This model looks quite different and follows the instructional program of the independent school where the student remains enrolled. Reasons for extended absence may include illness, behavioral issues, emotional issues, or temporary family relocation. Some of our programs have used e-tutoring so that students can continue with their New York or Washington, DC based tutor while temporarily living in another state or country.

Homeschooling in urban areas presents endless learning opportunities. Homeschool programs can easily include museums, zoos, botanical gardens, art studios, lectures, college courses, field trips, and road trips. Students can take any sort of PE class they want from gymnastics to African dance to krav maga. We can hand pick the technology, incorporate hands-on learning, design programs thematically, and make multi-disciplinary connections. Students progress at their own pace, instructional modifications can be made quickly, and there are plenty of ways to ensure having opportunities for socialization.

We’ve had great success with homeschooling so far and look forward to working with more families.

By Brad Hoffman, M.S.Ed.
Board Certified Educational Planner and Learning Specialist
My Learning Springboard

Math Takes Shape in a Sacred Space

April 16, 2012 Brad Hoffman

Having struggled through out high school in math classes, I often wondered when would the quadratic equation ever matter in real life? Outside of balancing my checkbook and building a budget—two things I still am not disciplined enough to do on a regular basis—math has not been my friend. I’ve focused my career on teaching English and arts education issues; until recently I had not thought too much about the crossover of math and art (except when I needed to figure out how large of a window to cut in a matte board for framing a photograph). Yet, as I have come to acknowledge, math, namely geometry, does indeed play a significant role in the design and aesthetics of architectural structures.

One cultural institution here in Manhattan that includes math-related tours and workshops is the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine. Its Department of Public Education and Visitor Services, a secular department of the Cathedral, offers a variety of tours for students in grades K-12 that incorporate the diverse artistic aspects of the Cathedral’s space. I had the chance to join a group of students from P.S 278 in Upper Manhattan on a Geometry Tour to see how architectural concepts fit into their math and social studies curriculum. These 6^th graders got to experience, and in some cases act out, mathematical principals that inspired architects in constructing the world’s largest cathedral over 100 years ago.

At first, the group seemed hesitant to proceed into the imposing Gothic and Romanesque architectural space that, according to one student, looked “like a place in Mortal Combat.” Yet students quickly engaged in the geometry tour, which they could connect to their class work designing a Greek temple and amphitheater. It should be noted that this class is also participating in a program with the Salvadori Center, which uses the built environment to teach students about math, art, social studies, and technology. Students were impressed to learn that the length of the cathedral is longer than two football fields, at 601 feet long; at its highest point, the cathedral stands 124 feet tall. Each of these numbers adds up to seven, a sacred number. When asked if they could think of the significance of the number seven, students made the connection between that number and the number of days of creation and days of the week. One student piped up that seven is the “lucky number of God.” At this point in the tour, the term “sacred geometry” entered the conversation, with students learning how numbers played a significant role in designing this and other sacred structures.

Next, students sat in pews beneath the ribbed gothic vaulting and examined how the columns support the building. While it’s one thing to look at this architectural feat, it’s another to become it. Forming a human arch with their arms, two taller students stretched out their arms up and locked fingers (only slightly awkward for the 6^th grade boy and girl), while a shorter student played the role of “gravity,” attempting to hang from this “arch” and test the “architecture.”

Students also got to touch the granite and limestone blocks of this building, which is still a work in progress. (Over the years, it has had several architects, which also accounts for its diverse architectural styles.) Students studied the geometrical patterns in the floor tiles of one of the seven chapels as well as the rose window that frames the main entrance of the Cathedral.

A hands-on workshop followed in the Madeleine L’Engle Library (Ms. L’Engle was a librarian at the Cathedral for more than 30 years). Applying their geometry skills to art projects, students created stained glass windows by cutting holes in black construction paper and gluing tissue to one side; used a compass to create rose windows; folded paper to make origami cathedrals and peacocks (the Cathedral has resident peacocks); and traced shapes to make Celtic knot patterns, another design feature in the Cathedral’s architecture.

In addition to the Geometry Tour, groups can embark on the following tours: Medieval Journey; Architecture; Sensory; Ecology; Literature; Symbols; On Common Ground; Music; and Vertical, which culminates with a view of Manhattan! Each tour can be complemented by a supplementary hands-on workshop, during which participants create artworks that reflect the theme of the tour. The education programs support New York State and Common Core Learning Standards; guided tours enhance classroom curriculum through interactive approaches, including Visual Thinking Strategies, inquiry, observation, object-based learning, and hands-on activities. Tours can also be customized to meet each group’s interests.

At My Learning Springboard, we can help design such interactive educational experiences at cultural institutions across New York City.

By Daria Pennington, Private Tutor

Who Knew Math and Knitting Were So Closely Knit?

April 15, 2012 Brad Hoffman

$knitting$ As a teacher, what do you do when your students don’t understand something? You explain it in a different way. When I realized several of my students were having trouble with math, I began looking for ways to explain things differently. My background is in Special Education, and one of the first strategies we learned was incorporating hands-on activities into learning. Using this as my guide, I began to explore various hands-on methods to include in my math instruction.

While the initial results were promising, I still had students struggling. One of the biggest obstacles was student frustration. Many students, after years of failure and frustration in math, had completely shut down. This obviously made it difficult for them to learn. My challenge, then, was to find a way to reconnect students to math, help them experience success, and get them moving in the right direction.

The answer I came up with was knitting. I have been an avid knitter for more than ten years and I always thought it would be fun to be able to share this skill with my students. What I didn’t realize was how useful knitting could be in teaching math. I organized a lunchtime knitting club that met every Friday. About twenty of my students signed up and I split them into two groups so I could give each student more individual attention. The first few sessions were mostly devoted to teaching the kids how to knit. After everyone had mastered the basic knit stitch, the math fun began!

First, we focused on computational skills, like adding and multiplying. We worked out real life problems like, “If I cast on 30 stitches and knit 6 rows, how many stitches did I knit?” The students would draw a picture, use numbers, or actually knit the stitches to find the answer. I also brought in some of the more complicated knitting projects I was working on. We used these patterns to transition from acting out a math problem to being able to solve it using numerical representations. The kids had a lot of motivation to practice using numbers, even if it was difficult, because they wanted to know how many stitches I had completed, and it took too long to actually count 216 x 35 stitches.

Eventually, we were able to use knitting as a platform to explore more difficult word problems. I would ask a student, “How long do you want your scarf to be?” The student would decide and then we would develop a word problem such as, “If you want your scarf to be 20 inches long and each row is .25 of an inch, how many rows do you need to knit?” Students were able to solve the word problems using drawings, models, and numbers. Then they got to knit the answer!

Lunchtime knitting was a great way to maintain student motivation and connect my students to math in a creative way.

Written by: Editorial Team, My Learning Springboard, Inc.

Senioritis? High School Seniors Begin to Prepare for College as Acceptances Arrive by Mail

April 12, 2012 Brad Hoffman

Senior year….finally. Whether you’re excited or terrified about embarking on this new, post-high school chapter of your life, there is definitely still a lot going on during these last 2-3 months of your school year.

Although your senioritis has surely kicked in to some degree, it’s important to remember not to let your grades slip a considerable amount. You may already be accepted to college, but your dream school can very well revoke your acceptance. You may not have been able to read past the “Congratulations!”, but your acceptance letter said that you are accepted to said college on the condition that you complete high school with the same personal and academic achievement on which your acceptance was based. According to Phillip Ballinger, the Director of Admissions of University of Washington, “We see it as a matter of fairness to students who were not admitted or wait-listed.” This is not meant to scare you, though. The cases in which high school seniors had their acceptances revoked were cases in which students had a considerable decline in their grades. If you’ve had mostly A’s in high school and received a B or two, you definitely should not be panicking.

While the end of senior year means caps, gowns, and commencement addresses, it also means AP exams. If you are enrolled in AP classes and have upcoming exams, it is very tempting to slack off. After all, you don’t need to even send the scores in to your college! What you may not realize, though, is that passing an AP exam can give you college credits and in some cases exempt you from introductory courses in college. Having credits from before college will not only give you a little peace of mind, but can also help financially: you may be able to graduate a semester early, thus saving that much tuition. If your score on the exam exempts you from an introductory course, it can allow you to jump right into more advanced, and perhaps more interesting, classes. It is important to remember, though, that you are not at a disadvantage if you do not have AP credits, so don’t worry!

One of the more underrated parts of the new college phase is the shopping for dorm room furnishings and school supplies. Major store chains such as Bed Bath and Beyond and Target have entire sections dedicated to helping you get everything you need for your room, offering vast selections of things you didn’t even know you “needed.” Buying the necessities really adds to the exciting “fresh start” feeling of your upcoming freshman year experience. Before you check out of the store though, be sure to find out the measurements of your room. The first day of college is stressful enough; unpacking your twin-sized sheets only to find that your new bed requires twin XL sheets (I didn’t know the difference until 6 months ago) would certainly not help matters. If your school doesn’t give you specifics, the most valuable resource in this regard would be someone who currently attends or attended your future college: he or she will (hopefully) know how much closet space you will have, whether or not your will really need those bed risers, and if the beds come with attached drawers underneath. If you don’t know anyone, reach out the your college’s residential life and housing department.

LeeLee Borzak, Private Tutor

Typing Skills as a Competitive Advantage

April 10, 2012 Brad Hoffman

There was a time when handwriting was a major part of the elementary curriculum, and cursive handwriting was explicitly instructed. We still find some handwriting instruction, particularly in the primary grades, but cursive instruction is becoming more and more rare. Why? The resounding reason is that cursive handwriting is considered an obsolete skill. Schools are also pressured to prioritize subjects and instructional time [based on what’s tested], so if science isn’t going to make the cut, certainly cursive handwriting will lose out as well. Whether you agree that cursive handwriting is an obsolete skill or not, I think we can all agree that typing skills are absolutely critical. Hunting and pecking the keys serves our needs on mobile devices and tablets, but the ability to sit in front of a desktop computer or laptop and properly type with speed and accuracy creates a huge advantage for students, including improved multi-tasking, more efficient editing, and speedier research.

Schools, however, cannot provide enough structured practice opportunities during the school day for mastery of typing. This skill should be developed and reinforced at home using any of the resources below. 10-20 minutes of practice at least 3x per week would be a terrific investment for elementary students. Teens and adults should also ratchet up their skills to remain competitive. Just wait until you start typing without looking at the keys…it will change your life!

Typing Pal – Renowned for being simple and user-friendly, and Garfield’s Typing Pal is useful for both beginners and experts to become more proficient at computer communication by teaching sound keyboard skills. This course, customized for each learner, uses animation, statistics, and individualized tips to help guide students towards typing fluency. In fifteen short lessons, you will have learned all the basics towards typing. Typing Pal’s inspector even monitors your typing skills in other software–such as word processors or email programs–and suggests exercises to improve typing performance.

Typing Instructor for Kids 5.0 – In this island adventure themed program, kids are on a mission search for treasures and earn points in order to become the ruler of “Typer Island.” It features Step-by-Step Typing Instruction, including proper posture, finger position, and ergonomic features. The program features challenges, tests, and games to improve speed and accuracy. Typing Instructor instantly provides kids with the results of their progress, which serves as a greater incentive for kids to improve their typing.

Type to Learn 4– Published by Sunburst Digital, this keyboarding software is used in 97% of school districts. Using an integrated cycle of review, practice, and assessment, Type to Learn is targeted at students K-12 and focuses on both accuracy and speed and creates individualized goals for each student. According to Dr. Leigh E. Zeitz, Associate Professor for Instructional Technology, Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Northern Iowa, “The on-going assessment and evaluation system built into Type to Learn 4 ensures that students are challenged as they learn, but are also provided the necessary scaffolding to promote personal accomplishment.”

Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing– In order to help students improve accuracy and speed, this program assesses students’ skill level and customizes lessons to suit their individual needs. You can customize your own program by choosing from their selection of articles to type or even import your own text. This typing skills program includes 430 personalized lessons and 16 arcade-style games. English, Spanish, and French versions are also available.

To read reviews of other top programs, check out this list of the Best Typing for Kids Software Comparison and Review.

If you’re looking for something less structured, check out this site of free online typing skills games for some extra enrichment that’s fun and easy.

Please contact us to setup technology enrichment teaching.

Written by: Editorial Team, My Learning Springboard, Inc.

Helping Families to Manage Homeschooling

Math Takes Shape in a Sacred Space

Who Knew Math and Knitting Were So Closely Knit?

Senioritis? High School Seniors Begin to Prepare for College as Acceptances Arrive by Mail

Typing Skills as a Competitive Advantage

Company Overview

School Planning

Private Tutoring

Test Preparation