Transfer Test Tutoring in Northern Ireland.

Since the 11+ tests in Northern Ireland were abolished by the then secretary Martin McGuinness, more and more parents have been paying for private transfer tuition to aid their children in securing a place in their school of choice.  Some parents believe children get a better deal at grammar schools, and while the entrance tests remain, so will the push for places, the reliance on tutors and parental tuition.

Tuition includes preparation for the transfer tests that pupils are due to sit in November, covering both AQE and GL tests.  Parents of children who require help with certain subjects are paying considerable fees to ensure their child gets the chance of a grammar school education whilst giving them the best opportunity of doing well in exams.

Transfer tuition can be carried out in one of two ways, children can learn in small groups or on a one-to-one basis; both scenarios place an emphasis on familiarising pupils with the technique for the actual tests.

A lot of parents are helping their children at home, and with the right atmosphere this can prove rewarding once you have distinguished which areas of your child’s learning that could benefit from tuition.

But do remember, there is a danger that children get too much teaching, too much tuition, and too much of an academic overload so do bear this in mind if you are planning on assisting your children in their studies.  You do not want your children to feel that learning becomes a chore as it can cause them to switch off if it is not carried out correctly. Spending as little as one hour per day will go towards supporting your child in their studies and prepare them for the transfer tests.

As a parent it is very possible to tutor your own child and avoid the traditional tutoring fee’s.  You do not need to have a teaching qualification, just access to the resources and the time. 

.  Below are some tips, brought to you by Key Stage Two.com, a National Curriculum approved online learning environment for children aged 7-11.

-Set up a program with your child, and stick to it.  When planning the agenda, and in order to get the best results; involve your child and plan the schedule best suited to their learning styles. Some children perform better first thing in the morning and some function better in the evenings.  Agree a regular time and if you are unsure which time is best for your child, you could test different times of tutoring, perhaps for a week at a time.  This will help both of you understand which timings hold more value.  Once a perfect time has been agreed, display a calendar with days, times, and activities marked. 

-It is essential you have a quiet, comfortable, distraction free environment in which to tutor your child.  Nowadays the internet is a great place to find your tutoring resources, so access to the internet at your tutoring area would be beneficial. 

Ensure your tutoring desk is in easy reach of your educational supplies - pencils, erasers, paper, protractors, rulers, calculators.  Use a wall clock, and always adhere to the agreed times. 

-To encourage better listening when you are tutoring your child, get close to and make eye contact before speaking and try to speak in simple sentences, with an emphasis on important words.

Use body language to illustrate your message and regularly ask your children to repeat what you have told them in their own words to ensure they understand the lesson or point you are trying to make.

-Develop and improve your own tutoring skills. You can use the Internet to brush up on certain subjects that you are due to support your child in.

-Work as closely as possible with your child’s teacher at school. They may be able to provide guidance and suggestions that could help you tutor your own child. Supplementing and complementing what is being taught in class will be more effective than random tutoring; therefore choosing a National Curriculum approved resource, such as Key Stage Two.com would be useful.

Always praise and encourage your child for their hard efforts and don't forget to treat yourself for your own hard work.

If your child is aged between 7 and 11 why not join http://www.keystagetwo.com

It is a virtual learning environment that successfully manages to combine games with education in a fun and engaging way.  KeyStageTwo.com is National Curriculum compliant and is now being used in schools and homes throughout Northern Ireland, Scotland, England, and Wales.  Now taking sign-ups for September 2011 at http://www.keystagetwo.com or try the Demo at http://www.keystagetwo.com/demo

Good Luck for the new term folks!

How do I tutor my child?

A growing numbers of parents are now hiring private tutors to help their children through school and exams despite the recession, according to a recent survey; but as a parent it is very possible to tutor your own child and avoid the traditional tutoring fee’s. 

As you may be aware, conventional tutors are fantastic and hold great value, but for some households’ money is tight and you may not have the financial means to send your child to a professional tutor.  This information is to help you, as a parent, step in and provide the necessary tutoring for your child who is in need of academic assistance.

You do not need to have a teaching qualification, just access to the resources and the time.  Spending as little as one hour per day will go towards supporting your child in their studies and help boost their grades.  Below are some tips, brought to you by Key Stage Two.com, a National Curriculum approved online learning environment for children aged 7-11.

Providing Homework Help

Many tutors work with their students on homework, and this is the easiest tutoring you can do with your child. It is easier for you, as a parent because there is the option of working with the child each day instead of only a couple of times a week.

Things to keep in mind when helping your child with their homework:

• Focus on your child and their homework. Do not let dinner preparations, siblings or the telephone interrupt a homework session. Focusing on your child will help maximise the help your child receives with homework.
• Never repeat the same phrase. When helping your child understand homework that is confusing, it is important to not keep repeating the same example, phrase or definition. Reword each explanation differently until your child understands.

Tutoring to Improve Reading or Math Skills

When a tutor is not hired specifically for homework, it is usually to improve reading or math skills in some fashion. This specific academic assistance can be intimidating to parents, but with a little bit of preparation, even if you don’t have a teaching background you can effectively help your own child improve their grades.

How to Improve Reading Skills:

• Ensure that your young children know phonics. This means that your child should be able to match up a sound to a letter or group of letters. Ask your child to try before telling the word, and for difficult or longer words, use two fingers to bracket and split the word into smaller pieces.
• To improve fluency, ask your child to use an index card to keep their place in the text instead of using their finger. Also consider using an index card to cover up words as they read to prevent their eyes from re-reading the same words several times. This forces the eyes to continue to read ahead, often speeding up the reading.
• To improve comprehension, ask your child to review questions from each page of the text, as well as at the end of a book.

Improve Math Skills:

• Work on basic facts – addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. Turn drill and practice into a game, providing incentives and encouraging your child to beat their last score.
• Ask your child’s teacher what specific skills and subjects your child could benefit from tuition in, then find creative ways to re-teach the skill or subject using games and real-life examples. 
• Ask your child’s teacher for extra worksheets to assist your child in catching up on any missing skills, or areas requiring improvement.

Providing academic assistance during the summer break.

Although the school summer break has just finished here in the U.K, it is often the busiest season for tutors as parents attempt to brush up on their children’s learning from the previous year or to prepare them for the next school year. In reality; every parent should provide academic tutoring for their child over the summer break.  The summer slide is when students lose academic ground as a result of no schooling for a long period and the less ground a child loses; the easier the next school year will be for them.

Many teachers should be more than willing to suggest a course of study for your child over the summer break, providing suggestions, topics and sometimes even worksheets for you to complete with your child. If nothing else, your child should read each day and complete a few maths sums on a regular basis.  As we are already into September 2011, remember this for summer 2012!

Working with your child to improve their grades, whilst avoiding the cost of a private tutor is within reach for you, as a parent.  

All it requires is a little planning and time for you to devote to your child in whatever area requiring academic assistance.

Finally, if your child is aged between 7 and 11 why not join http://www.keystagetwo.com

It is a virtual learning environment that successfully manages to combine fun games with education, whilst concentrating on the subjects your child is learning in school to help boost their grades in a fun and engaging way.  KeyStageTwo.com is National Curriculum compliant and is now being used in schools and homes throughout Northern Ireland, Scotland, England, and Wales.  Now taking sign-ups for September 2011 at http://www.keystagetwo.com or try the Demo at http://www.keystagetwo.com/demo

Good Luck for the new term folks!

Where can I find a good tutor for my child?

Just look in the mirror! Growing numbers of parents are hiring private tutors to help their children through school and exams despite the recession, according to a recent survey; but as a parent it is very possible to tutor your own child and avoid the traditional tutoring fee’s. 

You do not need to have a teaching qualification, just access to the resources and the time.  Spending as little as one hour per day will go towards supporting your child in their studies and help boost their grades.  Below are some tips, brought to you by Key Stage Two.com, a National Curriculum approved online learning environment for children aged 7-11.

-Set up a program with your child, and stick to it.  When planning the agenda, and in order to get the best results; involve your child and plan the schedule best suited to their learning styles. Some children perform better first thing in the morning and some function better in the evenings.  Agree a regular time and if you are unsure which time is best for your child, you could test different times of tutoring, perhaps for a week at a time.  This will help both of you understand which timings hold more value.  Once a perfect time has been agreed, display a calendar with days, times, and activities marked. 

-It is essential you have a quiet, comfortable, distraction free environment in which to tutor your child.  Nowadays the internet is a great place to find your tutoring resources, so access to the internet at your tutoring area would be beneficial. 

Ensure your tutoring desk is in easy reach of your educational supplies - pencils, erasers, paper, protractors, rulers, calculators.  Use a wall clock, and always adhere to the agreed times. 

-To encourage better listening when you are tutoring your child, get close to and make eye contact before speaking and try to speak in simple sentences, with an emphasis on important words.

Use body language to illustrate your message and regularly ask your children to repeat what you have told them in their own words to ensure they understand the lesson or point you are trying to make.

-Develop and improve your own tutoring skills. You can use the Internet to brush up on certain subjects that you are due to support your child in.

-Work as closely as possible with your child’s teacher at school. They may be able to provide guidance and suggestions that could help you tutor your own child. Supplementing and complementing what is being taught in class will be more effective than random tutoring; therefore choosing a National Curriculum approved resource, such as Key Stage Two.com would be useful.

 Always remember to praise and encourage your child for their hard efforts and don't forget to treat yourself for your own hard work!

If your child is aged between 7 and 11 why not join http://www.keystagetwo.com

It is a virtual learning environment that successfully manages to combine fun games with education, whilst concentrating on the subjects your child is learning in school to help boost their grades in a fun and engaging way.  KeyStageTwo.com is National Curriculum compliant and is now being used in schools and homes throughout Northern Ireland, Scotland, England, and Wales.  Now taking sign-ups for September 2011 at http://www.keystagetwo.com or try the Demo at http://www.keystagetwo.com/demo

Good Luck for the new term folks!

Children’s sleeping patterns and school.

Children’s sleeping patterns and school.

If they are not back already, school kids will be starting their new term in school within the next few days.  They have all probably enjoyed weeks of fun packed days, late nights, lie-ins, and holidays.  But for most households, easing your children into the normal sleeping pattern for school term time, can be a lot more difficult as it sounds.  Therefore, Key Stage Two.com have complied a useful guide that you can incorporate into you and your children’s morning and evening strategy. 

As a parent, it is only normal that you hope to experience a smooth transition for the term time schedule, if your child is not accustomed to a healthy sleeping pattern it can cause serious problems stemming outside the bedroom and into school and home life.  Lack of sleep can cause difficulty in concentration, issues with bad behavior, irritability, underlying health issues, or a child becoming hyperactive or disagreeable.  Sleep is very important to a child’s wellbeing, and although there is no set amount of hours per night a child should be sleeping, the NHS state that between 9.5 and 10.5 hours per night is ideal for a child aged 7-11.  You can visit their website for a more detailed breakdown of hours per night compared with the exact age of your child. 

1. Instill a non-negotiable time for your children to go to bed and get up, and stick to it.  This will ensure complacency and develop a routine that they will become accustomed to.  If your children fail to get up at the set time, you could always impose a penalty whereby their bedtime will then be 15 minutes earlier than usual for the following evening.  Although, if you do warn this, you must follow through with the consequence or threatening it will mean nothing to your children.

 2.  Stagger Wake-Up Times

If you have more than one child, you could consider staggering wakeup times for greater efficiency. Starting with your children who require more assistance or the sleepyheads, this will allow you to get them ready without interruptions prior to the rest of the family getting up, and will also ease the nightmare of everyone wanting to use the bathroom at the same time!

3. The school uniforms

Full uniforms, including clean socks, underwear, shoes and accessories should be laid out or hung up each night before bedtime. You can involve your children in picking out the items.  Getting up in the morning with everything sitting ready can play a real part in easing the morning routine.  Even as an adult I still do this process on weeknights for myself!

4. Breakfast

Breakfast is important—and said to be the most important meal of the day, so your kids need a nutritious start each morning.  Preparing breakfast should be a straight forward process, but it is not always the case.  Have as much ready the night before, for example plates and glasses and encourage your children to do as much for themselves as possible in preparing their own breakfast, exception being kettles, etc.   show your younger children how to correctly pour their own cereals and milk; allowing you one less thing to do in the mornings. 

5. Only Do What's Really Important

A school morning routine should consist of

-Getting your child up at the same sufficient time.

-A quick dip in the bath or wash.

-Dressed for school using pre-prepared uniform.

-Healthy breakfast.

-Kiss and a cuddle and off to school!

Chores and duties not specific to getting your child ready for school can cause unnecessary problems, and create a mad rush to get out the door. Consider creating a checklist of what must be done each week from afterschool activities and P.E kits. It is not advisable to leave Homework until the morning time, but some children do perform better first thing in the morning compared to after school, if this is something your child prefers you can work with it and allow adequate time.

6. Lunches and schoolbags.

Getting your children up, dressed and fed every morning is quite a task in itself. Start the new term with new rules, for example preparing all lunches in the evenings, ready to grab from the fridge before school.  It is also a good idea to put schoolbags, P.E kits and back-backs into the boot of the car before bed also.  Coats should be kept in a central location near the door so you are not running round rooms looking for them in the mornings. The central location could also house shoes, car keys, mobiles and purses.

7. Promote Self Responsibility

Kids can learn to awaken by an alarm clock and get themselves up. Let them decide what is the best time for the alarm to go off and get ready on time. It may mean your daughter doesn't get her hair styled or your son doesn't get toast with his cereal, but it can encourage them to set their alarm 15 minutes earlier the next day. Cause and effect...it's a good lesson to learn!

8. As a parent, be a morning riser, not a morning whiner!

It’s all great reading how to better manage your children’s sleeping patterns and morning schedule, but it is equally important you are well organised also! Make sure you get up ten minutes before the kids to allow uninterrupted time to get yourself sorted; if you are running round in a frantic panic it will be very hard for your children to exercise the tips as mentioned above.

9. And finally, have wind-down time before bed without electronics or games in order for your children to settle.

- Take all electronics out of the bedroom so it is merely a place to sleep.

- Put the kids to bed and wake them up at the exact same time every day, really important!

- Lots of bright light in the morning is a sure fire way to wake up any sleepy heads. Therefore lots of bright light at night is a no-no.

Good luck folks and the best of luck for the new term 2011/2012. 

This information was brought to you by Key Stage Two.com, an online learning environment for children aged 7-11.   Key Stage Two.com successfully manages to combine fun games with education, making sure academic and non-academic children benefit greatly, whilst being compliant with the National Curriculum in Northern Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales.  Visit http://www.keystagetwo.com or try the demo at http://www.keystagetwo.com/demo

Back to School Tips

 The final week of the summer holidays 2011 are now upon us and kids and parents are now preparing for the new academic year.  There are so many things to remember so we have put together a checklist to help you, as a parent to prepare for September 2011 and onwards.  

1)      School uniforms and P.E kits make the first topic on our list.  By now you should have every item your child will need for the new term.  There are many items of clothing you will be able to use from last year, but crisp new shirts, socks, vests and pants should make your list of new things to buy.  Supermarkets now sell uniforms, P.E wear and shoes, my favourite is Asda, as it’s very reasonably priced and of good quality.  I actually buy a lot of my clothes from there myself! P.S Remember to name-label all items with a black sharpie.

2)      Back to School accessories are next on the list, new pens, pencils, rulers, notepads, school bags, and pencil cases make up some of the accessories.  Don’t forget wrapping paper for those new books you will be asked to wrap on the evening of their first day back to school!

3)      Sleeping pattern awareness.  Now is the time to start shifting your child back into the term time sleeping pattern.  Your child may be used to weeks of staying up that bit later in the evenings and longer mornings in bed, but it is really important to get them back into the term time sleep pattern in the week prior to starting back to school. Get them to bed at the usual time for a school night and up at the normal time to ensure a smooth transition for day one of the new term.  If you fail to ease them into the regular pattern they will be extremely tired in their first week; which will not be a lot of fun for them during school hours.

4)      Double check you have the correct finish time.  As different year groups have varying finishing times, make sure you have the right timings specific to their year.

5)      Check out what after school clubs and activities your school runs.  September is a good time to enrol your child in an after school club or activity that is of interest to them. 

6)      Check the schools policy of gadgets in the school, including rules on mobile phones, I-pods, I-pads, tablets etc.  If your child is permitted to bring such devices into the school grounds make sure you have ‘marked’ them with your details that may help if they are lost or stolen.

7)      Get the shopping in! When buying lunches check all the dates, it’s very easy to pick up a pack of yogurts with a sell-by date of 3 days away, but the back of the shelf has yogurts with a sell-by date of two weeks away.  Also, prepare the lunches in the evenings before bed… one less thing to do in the mornings!

8)      Have a bedroom clear out.  Now would be a good time to do a clean and clear out in your child’s bedroom.  Clear out old clothes and toys and start fresh for September, a clear out may present an opportunity for your child to have their own desk for completing homework, if you do not already own one.  Do remember you can sell unwanted goods of reasonable quality on Gumtree.com.  It is free to place an advertisement and you could make some cash, there are also services available to buy unwanted clothing.  Companies can pay 50 pence per kilo for clothing and bedding, 50pence may not sound a lot, but it does add up.

9)      Prepare your car. If you drive your children to school, it is worth having your car checked from a safety point of view, check the tyres, oil levels, water levels, and brakes, and read tips for winter driving that are available on the internet.  It is also a good idea to spend a few hours cleaning your car, give it a good hoover and internal polish, to make it a nice cosy environment for you and your little ones when travelling.

10)   If your child is aged between 7 and 11 why not join http://www.keystagetwo.com This is a virtual learning environment that successfully manages to combine fun games with education.  It concentrates on the subjects your child is learning in school and will help boost their grades in a fun and engaging way.  KeyStageTwo.com is National Curriculum compliant and is now being used in schools and homes throughout Scotland, England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the R.O.I.  Now taking sign-ups for September 2011 at http://www.keystagetwo.com or try the Demo at http://www.keystagetwo.com/demo

Good Luck for the new term folks!