Enrichment Teaching Archives

Writing Coaching

August 1, 2015 1 Comment

My Learning Springboard and its faculty offers a full spectrum of writing support, including application essay coaching, “Just-in-Time” editing and writing coaching, and creative writing enrichment teaching.

Our writing coaches hail from top-tier publishers and educational institutions worldwide, and from nearly every writing discipline imaginable. They include Ivy League professors, bestselling novelists, critically-acclaimed playwrights and award-winning authors of children’s, young adult and literary fiction and non-fiction. Our seasoned nonfiction writers have contributed to publications such as The New Yorker, Vogue, Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal, Rolling Stone, The Atlantic Monthly, Real Simple Magazine, and have additionally worked in film, television, radio and online.

This multi-talented and dedicated writing team coaches developing writers of all ages, levels and backgrounds, from primary school students to college undergraduates, dissertation writers to aspiring authors, job-seekers to C-suite executives. We also support all facets of the writing process—be it short-term editing, ongoing writing coaching, idea generation or project outlining and research—and our editorial expertise includes cover letters, resumes, corporate reports, research papers, dissertations, journal publications, advertising copy, blog posts, novels, plays and even poetry. In addition, we have guided hundreds of high school seniors through the potentially overwhelming gauntlet of common application and supplemental essays required by today’s unprecedentedly competitive college application process. We offer just the right balance of brainstorming, encouragement and editorial feedback to ensure that every essay not only answers its relevant prompt but showcases the applicant’s strengths, talents and individuality. The end result: an exceptionally high percentage of our clients are accepted into their first-choice institutions.

Finally, we offer flexibility: our writing coaches are available to work with you in person or remotely, on site or online, for regular sessions, extended “up-against-the-deadline” work sessions, quick professional polishes or complete editorial overhauls.

The Role of a Language Tutor: What’s Behind a Word

July 23, 2015 Brad Hoffman Leave a Comment

Language acquisition

Over the course of the last two decades technology has dramatically changed the way a language is taught and is learned both in the classroom and in the private or semi-private setting. I remember that in the early 1990s I would take my students on field trips to an Internet café, the first one opened downtown, to expose them to the wonders of the Italian language on-line. And that was just the beginning. Amazing as it seemed then to be able to read the day’s newspapers on a computer, the experience pales if compared to the myriad of ways the net can be used today to enhance language acquisition.

The term “teacher”

In the revolution that has taken and still is taking place, my role as a teacher has not changed much: the tools I use are different, but the way I take advantage of them in relation to my students remains the same. What has changed is the definition given to what I do. And what is it exactly that I do? The term ‘teacher’, derived from the Indo-European root meaning to “point out” is usually used to describe my role in the classroom, while in the more intimate setting of private or semi-private lessons the terms used to describe the part I play have varied over the course of my career and have reflected somewhat the change in society and technology. I mainly have been called “language instructor,” a term I never liked much because reflects the Latin origin of piling all the knowledge I possess on someone and then moving along.

Other times I was called the “language coach” or, etymologically speaking, someone that transfers the students and hopefully delivers them to the destination they expected to reach. I have been also referred to as the “language trainer”, from the Latin root “trahere”, someone that would pull the students along an established path and help them reach the shape they longed for. The fact is, I have never felt that my role was only to pull, shape, transfer or pile up. When I teach, I wonder. I “point out” and then I watch the miracle happen before my eyes. That is why the term I really like is one of the oldest, and has recently been resurrected by the net from its academic medieval use: tutor. From the Latin root “tueri,” used with the double meaning of “behold” and “preserve,” the term precisely describes what I do. I not only watch over the students’ progress as they become acquainted with my language and help them preserve what they have learned by making sure they feel confident using it with other Italian speakers, but I also watch and preserve my own language, and my knowledge of it, as I witness its evolution and point it out to others.

My role as an Italian tutor/teacher, and the role of all foreign language teachers, as I see it, is therefore performing as agents of socialization, individuals who, during a lifetime, inherit and pass on the social, linguistic, and cultural characteristics of a society evolving before their eyes. Technologies are, fortunately or unfortunately, not making what I do obsolete; they just make it more or less difficult depending upon the age and point of view of the tutors and the students. Or, since “student” comes from the Latin meaning “the one who engages in painstaking application,” should I refer to them as tutees?

By Alba Dwass, Italian Tutor

Digital Coaching

July 15, 2015 Leave a Comment

At My Learning Springboard, we pride ourselves on helping learners of all ages and experience levels. Whether you want to dream big with coding or inDesign, start small with Google Calendar, learn to edit video or pick the best reading apps for your child, digital coaching with our experienced tutors will help you and your family to create custom solutions for your digital needs. Or, learn to write your own technological solutions with one of our expert coding tutors!

Here are some examples of how our digital coaches can work with you:

Phone, Tablet, and Computer Set-up and Syncing

New computer? New phone? Struggling to stay on top of email communications? Our tutors are experts in iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac, and PC software and can help you to get started on a new device, transfer files, sync information across multiple devices, or enhance your email management:

Email labels and filters
Calendars (including student and family calendars)
Contacts
Tasks (keep track of homework, assignments, and deadlines)

App Installation and Management

The right app can help you to manage your time, keep track of work, school, or fitness goals, and practice everything from vocabulary words to math facts. Our digital coaches can help you to set up a new device from scratch, select and customize the most effective apps for each member of your family, or just help you figure out what an “app” even is!

Photo, Video, and File Management and Organization

Now that you’ve taken all the pictures from your family vacation, what do you do with them? Work with our specialists to clean up your desktop and organize your files for easy access, and set up “Cloud” backups so you don’t have to worry about losing files if your computer crashes (Dropbox, iCloud, SugarSync, etc.).

Software Training

Create and edit your own videos, design your own website, simplify school assignments, or improve your web browsing experience by working with one of our digital coaches to learn:

Adobe Photoshop
Evernote
inDesign
Google Drive
Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint)
Create digital student portfolios for college admissions
Web Browser and Extensions (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, etc.)
How to launch your own website or blog

Computer Science and Programming

“I think everybody in this country should learn how to program a computer — because it teaches you how to think.” – Steve Jobs

Learn the essential skills of the 21st century and stay ahead of the curve with Computer Science and Programming instruction in these languages and more:

Intro to Computer Science and Programming for children (ideal for ages 8-13)
Learn about digital circuitry and electronics
Robotics (Lego Mindstorms)
Python
Java
JavaScript
C#
C
C++
PHP
R
Objective-C
TypeScript

Social Media

Blog, Tweet, Pin, learn how to post your latest song cover on Youtube, or up your social media influence with digital coaching using:

WordPress
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Pinterest
SnapChat
Youtube
LinkedIn

e-Readers and Assistive Technology

Think you know everything about your Kindle? Learn how to strategically use your e-reader and take advantage of hundreds of little-known features.

Or, work with our technology and special education teams to select, customize, and practice using assistive technology devices such as Kurzwell 300, LiveScribe, Dragon Naturally, Inspiration, and IntelliTools. E-readers and other assistive and adaptive technology tools can make an enormous difference for students with learning disabilities and reading disorders.

Contact us to work with a My Learning Springboard digital coach in one of these areas, or let us know what you want to learn and we’ll create a program for you!

Audition Success

July 9, 2015 Brad Hoffman Leave a Comment

Imagine yourself in this situation: You’ve spent the past year or more shopping around for the school that fits you best. You’ve read promotional documents. You’ve visited campuses. You’ve seen theatres and recital halls. Perhaps you’ve met with a professor or taken a lesson with a voice coach. After a year or more of research and careful deliberation, you have your heart set on your dream school. Until now, you’ve been preparing your music, meeting with your voice teacher regularly, and feeling like you’re in good shape for audition season. But now that you’ve chosen a school and your goal is clearly defined, you begin to feel there is much more at stake.

The truth is that you’re right, but maybe not for the reasons you’re thinking. You may be thinking, “What if I’m not good enough?” or, “No matter how good I am, there will always be somebody better than me.” Though these are perfectly natural worries, they focus your attention on your weaknesses and not on your strengths.

This attitude forces you into “competition mentality:” thinking that you have to pull out all the stops, choose the most difficult repertoire so that you stand out… trying to intimidate the person who is waiting outside for their turn, listening to you through the crack in the door. You want to be sure that everyone will be impressed by all the amazing things you can do. If this is you, it’s time to look at things from a different angle.

Everyone likes to show off. If you’re a performer, it probably comes naturally to you. You’ve probably been saying, “Look what I can do!” from the time you could speak. An audition, however, is not the venue for “Look what I can do!” An audition is a venue for “Look what I can do well,” and for many of you, this is a game changer.

“Look what I can do!” puts you immediately into “competition mentality,” and leads to choosing repertoire that is “showy” but often poorly suited to your voice, your skill level, or your personality, which results in an immediate disconnect between you and the people you’re singing for, which is a bad way to start an audition.

“Look what I can do well!” puts you into “performance mentality,” replacing nervousness with relaxation and confidence. You focus on your strengths and you choose repertoire that showcases them. It clears your mind and allows you to make a genuine connection with your audience. The audition becomes a shared experience and allows you to show the panel who you are, not just what you can do.

Most people will walk into the room thinking, “Look what I can do!” If you learn how to walk into the room thinking, “Look what I can do well!” you’ll be more likely to make a great first impression that will carry through to the moment you walk out the door. You will feel proud of what you’ve done and you can go home, knowing, that whatever happens, you’ve given a successful audition.

By Alexandra Cohen-Spiegler, Private Tutor

Empathy and Understanding Other’s Perspectives

July 8, 2015 Brad Hoffman Leave a Comment

Because children are so egocentric, it can be very difficult for them to see issues from other’s perspectives. This is important, not only for social skills development in children, but also for adult life. Teaching empathy to toddlers and preschoolers begins with teaching about feelings and teaching how to share and take turns. Reading books to children about feelings is one good way to do this. Also, talking about his or her feelings as they relate to real-world situations is effective. Asking questions like, “Are you feeling mad right now? Sad? Are you hurt?” is important. It can help a child identify and put words to their feelings. Then you can begin to translate those feelings to situations that involve others. For example, “Why do you think that little girl is crying? Does she look mad or sad? Is she hurt? Tired?” Also, encourage your children to ask other children if they are ok when they fall down or bump into them.

As they approach elementary age, asking why questions is appropriate. When they talk to you about a child at school that doesn’t listen or pushes, ask your child why they think he or she did that. Then, ask your child what they believe would have been a better choice or what he or she would have done. Discuss good choices and be sure to give positive reinforcement when your child makes good choices, shares, and uses words to describe feelings. Laying the foundation for empathy/understanding other’s perspectives early makes us more capable children, teens, adolescents, young adults, and adults. We are more effective in the work place because we are better able to problem solve, work on teams, and get along with others.

By Lauren Robinson, Elementary and Middle School Educator and School Counselor