May 20th, 2011
Here at Study Hut Tutoring in Manhattan Beach, we’re more than just good tutors: we pride ourselves on being good human beings! After all, the same qualities that make a good teacher–passion, care, dedication, responsibility–also make a good person. That’s why I thought it was perfectly fitting that Study Hut participated in and had a team at last Saturday’s Relay for Life event in Manhattan Beach.
It was truly impressive to see my coworkers stay late and long after work in order to plan out team activities, and even more admirable to see them put in all the extra hours needed to fundraise for the American Cancer Society. After a long day of leading SAT prep, correcting Chemistry and Trig problems, and editing students’ essays, a box of whole grain crackers and a jar of natural peanut butter practically beg you to their side; however, my fellow tutors met up at 10 PM to figure out how we could raise money for such a worthy cause, and then took their usual day off to put on a car wash at Mira Costa High School. I was so proud of them for working to make a difference!
Because here at Study Hut, we are well-versed in the science of cancer: we pride ourselves on knowing and teaching biology, AP Chemistry, psychology, and anatomy. But we cannot know or explain the actual experience of having cancer. Instead, we can come together to support our community, whether in Manhattan Beach, the greater Southbay, or the nation as a whole, of cancer survivors and help fund research that will ease or prevent future suffering. I’m glad Study Hut got the chance to prove that it doesn’t just have the best tutors–it has the best people!
Tags: American Cancer society, anatomy, ap chemistry, best tutors, Chemistry, mira costa high school, psychology, SAT prep, southbay, study Hut, Study Hut in Manhattan Beach, Study Hut relay for life, Study Hut Tutoring, Study Hut tutoring in Manhattan Beach, teaching biology, trig, trig problems, Tutors
Posted in 9-12, AP Biology, Biology, Chemistry, high school, Manhattan Beach, Relay For Life, SAT, Self esteem, South Bay, team building, Trigonometry, Tutors, Uncategorized |
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May 19th, 2011
Pay less for college, regardless of how much money you make!!! Is that ridiculous or what? That’s what we thought when we first met ALL IN EDUCATION and they showed us financial resources that we never knew even existed for families, especially not for middle and upper class families!
In short, in talking with the founder of this organization, Kyle Shelley, he explained to me the program that is changing the way families do college, while reducing the cost of college, for any family, by tens of thousands of dollars. How do they do it? Well, below is the bulleted list, but that’s why I’m touching base with you. We’ve always strived to produce the best results for our students and provide the most value for our families. In that same spirit, once your student/s get into a great college, wouldn’t it be brilliant if you could pay a fraction of the cost? We think so! And we think you’ll agree.
We’ve asked ALL IN EDUCATION to provide an event for our families on May 25th, at the Belamar Hotel in Manhattan Beach. Is it worth your time? Go to www.facebook.com/ALLINEDUCATION where, in less than 3 minutes, you can complete the College Savings Calculator and see just how worth your time it will be.
A few ways ALL IN EDUCATION is reducing the cost of college:
* free college credits
* tuition reimbursement
* local scholarships
* in-state tuition for out-of-state students
* credit recapture (for transfer students)
Tags: All in Education, college savings, cost reduction college plan, Financial Aid
Posted in 9-12, El Segundo, General, General Articles, high school, Manhattan Beach, Palos Verdes, Peninsula, Redondo Beach, SAT, South Bay |
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May 18th, 2011
As a parent, you know that your child is a complex individual, full of surprises. You know their dreams and aspirations, their fears and dislikes, what influences and what motivates them. You know that though they may grow bored at school, frustrated with teachers or affected by their peers, that if someone could find the key to tap into your child’s potential they would shine as brightly as they do in your eyes. It is this uniqueness that we try to cultivate. There are a few special ingredients that make Study Hut such a sweet place to learn and one of them is that we recognize each student’s individuality. Tutors are paired students that allow us to foster genuine connections and have a real positive influence. That’s why we enjoy being tutors. While many of our tutors can teach multiple subjects, Study Hut takes the time to place students according to their personality and ambitions. Seeing our students strive for the same goals we’ve have strived for inspires us and we pass this inspiration onto our students.
A real understanding of who your child is also helps us tutor more effectively. Biology becomes a basketball team, physics becomes skate boarding and statistics becomes the probability the Lakers will win the championship (100%, of course!) Students are no longer just another face in a sea of students but part of the Study Hut family. Every child learns differently, and relates differently. Parents know this for their children; tutors should know this for their students. We don’t just teach a child, we teach your child.
Tags: Biology, El Segundo tutor, high school tutoring, high school tutors, learning styles, learning tips, manhattan baech, manhattan beach tutor, Redondo Beach tutor, school, studying help, studying tips, teach styles, teaching tips, Tutor Tips, Tutoring, Tutors
Posted in 6-8, 9-12, General, high school, Learning, life skills, middle school, Poor Test grades, retention, Self esteem, study skills, Teaching, Tutor Tips |
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May 12th, 2011
From 3rd graders to high schoolers to college students, there seems to be a major misconception about what it truly means to “study for a test.” The common definition seems to be “that thing you do the night BEFORE you actually take a test.” And you know what? Sometimes that works. If you’re studying spelling words, or memorizing a list, studying close to the test is definitely beneficial. But let’s face it, high schoolers and collegiates: you’re not studying for spelling tests any more. The subjects you’re working on are harder, and the ideas you’re learning are more complex. The material has changed, so the way you’re studying for it has to change too.
Here at the Study Hut, we try to find out tests dates as soon as is humanly possible. Most tests require AT LEAST a week of prep time to be truly prepared (especially if you’re in an AP or Honors class). Some tests require more, some less. Of course, as the class goes on, you’ll discover how much time you need to prepare. But that amount of time is NEVER one evening. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and you can’t guarantee a good grade off one night of studying.
My most successful students are the ones that make a plan, and follow through with it. For example, I recently had a student who had a Social Studies chapter test coming up. He wasn’t doing particularly well on tests, so we set up a plan. We set aside a certain amount of time each night so that he’d be studying only one section at a time. That way, the night before the test, HE HAD ALREADY STUDIED THE WHOLE CHAPTER! All he had to do that night was review the concepts he was having trouble with and strengthen his understanding. No cramming, no headaches. And he did markedly better on his test! He broke the work down into manageable bits over the course of a week, instead of stuffing everything into his head the night before. And it made all the difference.
Tags: high school tests, studying, Studying for tests, studying tips, test, test prep, test taking, test tips
Posted in 6-8, 9-12, General, high school, K-5, Learning, life skills, middle school, Poor Test grades, Redondo Beach, retention, Self esteem, study skills, Test taking anxiety, Testing, Tutor Tips |
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May 11th, 2011
I know we’re all feeling that summertime itch, but there’s one last hurdle
before the sun, sand and surf‹finals week.
And so, we will divulge a few finals tips to the stressed-out students out
there:
1. Take care of yourselves. Drink water, eat healthy and get lots of sleep.
Being sick on exam day is definitely something to avoid.
2. Take breaks. Try not to study for more than an hour at a time without a
10-minute break. Keeping your mind fresh is key to making the most of your
study time.
3. Write out a study plan and stick to it. Ideally you should have a study
plan for each of your subjects for at least a week before the actual exam.
1. E.x. MONDAY: U.S. History (World War II): 1 hour; Biology (Nerve System): 1 hour
4. DON’T CRAM. The chance of burning yourself out is too great, and sitting
through an exam with a semi-functioning brain is a special kind of torture.
It is much better for your G.P.A. and your sanity to pace yourself and allow
that knowledge to sink into your long-term memory instead of hoping it will
stick around in your short-term memory.
Keep these tips in mind as you head into the last weeks of this semester,
and from all of us at the Study Hut, “GOOD LUCK!”
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Posted in high school, life skills, retention, Tutor Tips |
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May 2nd, 2011
So you have a huge end-of-the-year comprehensive biology test coming up, and since you’ve been cramming every chapter test since the beginning of this year, you don’t remember anything. What do you do? Where do you even start? To begin, you should realize that for a huge subject such as biology, cramming all the details just isn’t going to work. There are way too many intricate details to be able to memorize each and every one from all the chapters. And before you think about cramming again for this final, consider this: most science majors require at least a year of biology in college, and a good chunk of the information is overlap from what you learned in high school. Therefore, the better a foundation you set for yourself now, the more it’s going to pay off not only now in high school, but in college, and maybe for the rest of your future as well.
To begin, break down biology into manageable chunks of information. Don’t just rush through reading every chapter and then realize you’ve already forgotten everything, but break it down by paragraphs and really try to visualize what’s going on. Carefully analyze the diagrams, draw your own pictures, watch (relevant) youtube videos, etc. There are lots of excellent visual resources online that can make understanding the material much easier, and they’re free! After visualizing the information, you’ll find it a lot easier to memorize, and then it’s just about reviewing the information consistently to reinforce what you’ve learn, while slowly adding more details to your knowledge.
Another great way to study biology is to review the information with your friends. Choose a topic, and popcorn each other to begin describing everything you know about the topic. Everyone always focuses on different aspects, and you’ll be able to take notes on what points you forgot to pay attention to.
Remember: there’s something in biology for everyone! Whether or not you love or hate science, biology plays a very relevant part to our everyday lives. Whether you want to learn the most effective way to work out, want to learn what to do to eat healthy and stay fit, or just how to prevent breakouts, biology will teach you the basics of how the human body works and allow you to make educated decisions to improve your health!
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Posted in 9-12, AP Biology, Biology, El Segundo, high school, Learning, life skills, Manhattan Beach, Palos Verdes, Peninsula, retention, science, study skills, Tutor Tips |
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April 27th, 2011
“When am I ever going to use this?” That may just be the most common complaint vocalized by the students at Study Hut. And their concern isn’t entirely unjustified. It really does seem that a solid chunk of the material covered in high school may never again need to be used later in life. No one is going to ask you to regurgitate the quadratic formula any time soon, right? Maybe not—maybe so. Students at Palos Verdes High School are currently participating in a Brobdingnagian battle of brains (Brobdingnag is the land of the huge in Gulliver’s Travels, in case that’s a question). The annual Scholar Quiz kicked off last week and the competition has been heated. Some of the tutors from Study Hut and I had the opportunity to watch our tutees flaunt their knowledge of (seemingly random) topics from across the board, academic and otherwise. I watched as competitors embarked on missions of rapid thought, evaluating solutions to formulas, testing knowledge of geography, and requiring an appetite for up-to-date pop culture and news. As one of the official sponsors for PV’s (and Mira Costa’s) Scholar Quiz, Study Hut has been thrilled about the emphasis on knowledge of both the fundamentals and specifics of topics we teach every day. The final showdown is tomorrow—come out and support your favorite team! Peace out.
Tags: Palos Verdes tutoring, pv high, PV High Scholar Quiz, PV tutor, Scholar Quiz
Posted in 9-12, El Segundo, General Articles, high school, Learning, life skills, Palos Verdes, Peninsula, Redondo Beach, Tutor Tips |
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April 26th, 2011
As the school year begins to draw to a close, students are hard-pressed to improve their grades. It’s certainly not too late to do so, but raising a grade significantly at this point is difficult and requires a lot of hard work. If students are committed to bucking down in their classes, dramatic improvement can be made in a short period of time. It’s crucial that students take thorough notes throughout the entire school year in order for them to effectively study for final exams. If notes have not been consistent during the year, a great way to review for finals is to go back through each of the earlier chapters in the textbook, making a brief outline for each one. Students need to balance the learning of new material in the last month or so of school with comprehensive reviews of the prior subjects.
One of the main subjects that poses a problem for students learning at the last minute is precalculus. When broken down into small doses, precalculus is somewhat palatable. A few formulas to memorize here and there don’t seem like too much to wrap your mind around. But when thrown into a cumulative final on all of the year’s work, a comprehensive understanding of the material is more important than rote memorization. At Study Hut, we teach students how to problem solve when presented with different types of exam questions. For example, trigonometric functions often overwhelm students—six trig functions, inverse trig functions, graphing trig functions, properties of trig functions. The list goes on and on… However, all trig functions can be related to the most important two: sine and cosine. By knowing the basic graphs and properties of sine and cosine, every student is capable of deriving all other trigonometric properties and identities.
Think about problem solving at a comprehensive level. By knowing the basics, each student can logically work his or her way through even the toughest of problems. Best of luck!
Tags: high school, organization, Pre-Calculus, precalculus
Posted in 9-12, elementary school, General Articles, high school, Learning, life skills, middle school, Pre-Calculus, South Bay, Success Stories |
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April 21st, 2011
As SATs come to a close AP exams lurk around the corner only two or so weeks away. AP exams are some of the most beneficial and important tests towards your college career, other than that SAT college entry test. The AP exams can help fast track your college career in a major way. Getting good scores on these exams makes you eligible for placement into courses that are more advanced.
Colleges only see your AP scores if you choose to send them. You can choose the option to send your exams to select schools you are applying to right away or you can choose to wait and send the scores when you are ready to apply.
Due to increased competition for college admission, admission officials are now increasingly looking at AP exam scores to make final decisions between two equal candidates. Most of the time, a strong AP score of four or five will boost a students application. Two students with equal SAT and GPA scores will be chosen between using their AP exam performance as a tie-breaker.
So, if you come from a region with considerable competition and are applying to the most selective schools, your chances of admission could be greatly affected by your AP exam scores.
Once accepted most colleges will grant college credit for AP credit giving you a jumpstart over most students. Receiving college credits from AP exams can expand the variety of classes in college or lighten your workload for a semester. Overall, the AP exams make the admissions counselors believe that you are ready for the college experience and are able to handle the course load.
Here at Study Hut we can help you prepare. Educated on all levels of subject testing, we gear students for the opportunity to succeed!
Tags: AP exam, SAT
Posted in 9-12, AP Biology, high school, Palos Verdes, Peninsula, Redondo Beach, SAT |
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