Student Stress Tips - Private Tutoring

Student Stress Tips BobbiM Mar 20, 2013 The kids at the local high school by my house are taking the SAT Test and the ACT Test this week. Heres the crazy thing: a few of these kids go to my church and I could actually sense a visible and material signs of stress in their faces, voices, and in their mannerisms. In sum, these are some stressed out kids. Now, if you take my experience and multiply that by the tens of thousands of high school kids worrying about the ACT Test and the SAT Test, but also the college students stress from their classes the cumulative effect of all of that stress cannot possibly be good for anybody. Certainly not good. Now, Im an expert on meditation or anything, but I have some experience with stress and have meditated through my practice of martial arts. And, keep in mind, I graduated from Brigham Young University in 3 years while I worked 20 hours per week to support my wife and 2 kids. Later, I graduated from a top 5 graduate school while trying to juggle being a husband and dad to 3 kids. I have stared stress in the eyeballs and have won that staring contest! So, here are some suggestions from someone who has dealt with stress and isnt actually very stressed much anymore: Close your eyes and Breathe: Simple, I know. Seriously, turn away from what ever you were doing, close your eyes, and breathe. Breathe for several minutes by inhaling through your nose and exhaling out your mouth. Heres an important tip when you inhale, do not stick your chest out, instead stick your stomach out. Thats how babies breathe. Try it for several minutes. It will help you relax. Exercise and Sweat: For real get up and do something. When you are exercising, you are breathing. And, oxygen in your body is good. And, when you sweat, you are also releasing toxins (dont quote me on that one). Believe me exercise is good. It will help your mind relax. Drink Healthy Herbal Tea: I like chamomile and apple spice, but you can drink any healthy herbal tea. Warm tea will help you relax and the herbs will revive your mind. Go some place high: Go on your roof or on top of a tree or on top of a hill. If you can see the landscape and broad land beyond you, you will gain perspective. And, when you stressed, gaining the proper perspective will neutralize most stressful situations. Pray: If you are religious, then pray to your God. If not, then pray to something higher than yourself. It will bring you a sense of humility and help you realize that theres more to this world than your problems. Give these student stress tips a try. I hope they help you out.

How to Study Science The Art of Understanding Tough Topics

How to Study Science The Art of Understanding Tough Topics We were all students once, so we all remember the much-dreaded or much-anticipated “science class.” The suffixes “-ology” and “-istry” still haunt some of us to this day. You may have blocked them out, but remember these conversations?“Did you cram for that terminology quiz? “I totally bombed the last lab report.” “Were you up until 3 AM too?”It shouldnt come as a shock to learn that students now arent much different. And how do they study science topics to prepare for tests? By cramming and memorizing, depending on short-term memory to do well on the exam!While a strong academic performance in a science class can be a students major point of pride, the same class can also result in crushing defeat if approached poorly. Because of this, we often see students studying long into the night with cram guides, flashcards, and redundant problem sets in order to capture that elusive, sought-after A.But what if that isn’t the right way for students to study science?At AJ Tutoring, we encourage creatively distilling complex material into an engaging and productive learning experience for our students. We recognize that every student has a unique way of learning that works best for them. And so, traditional methods of studying for science classes might not be the best for students with a drive to understand why instead of what.To address these needs, our tutors use studying strategies inspired by the liberal arts, such as  effective note-taking, flashcard exercises, and qualitative case studies. We aim to  help students move away from rote memorization and toward deeper and more comprehensive learning.Try some of these methods next time you’re studying for a chemistry (chemistry tuition), physics, or biology quiz!Five Effective Ways to Study ScienceConnect concepts to real-world examples whenever possible, like understanding thermodynamics with a boiling pot of water or neuroanatomy with Phineas Gage.Use flashcards to create situations. Randomly pick five cards from different topics and finding a way to connect them together in the same situation.If youre studying with someone, use teach-backs! Become a teacher and try to explain a concept or come up with an example for your friend to solve.Study in real time! Find examples of plant biology on a walk in the park, or behavioral psychology while waiting in line for a movie.Ask “Why?” as much as you can. Being able to explain why a ball rolls down a hill, or why melatonin makes us sleepy, is the key to moving away from memorization and toward deeper learning.