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Susan Kruger Winter, M.Ed.

“A ‘Good’ Teacher is a ‘Self-Abuser’ Teacher!”

April 30, 2023

“I am convinced that a ‘good’ teacher is a ‘self-abuser’ teacher!!” My grad-school professor said this in class one day. He was lamenting that his wife, a kindergarten teacher, had been on leave for two years to have their two children (they lived in Canada, with generous maternity leave). He specialized in reading development and…

How to Teach a SOAR Workshop

April 20, 2023

It was almost-summer of 1998. I was wrapping-up my first year of teaching… at my alma mater. Just five years before, I was sitting in those desks. Now, my desk was at the front of the room. From this new vantage point, I could see that nearly all my 9th & 10th graders struggled with…

Standardized Tests:
Two Proven Ways to Raise Test Scores

April 9, 2023

Research consistently confirms there are two critical ways to raise test scores on standardized tests: Build “cognitive flexibility” with metacognitive strategies.1 If students don’t have problem-solving strategies for learning content, well… they won’t learn it! Obviously. Teach the curriculum, not “to the test.” Teaching “to the test” –also known as “item teaching”– actually lowers test scores; it…

How to Help Your Child’s Test Anxiety

January 8, 2023

Test anxiety is very common.  However, I’ve come to realize that the more we, as parents, try to help our children alleviate that anxiety, we often add to it… accidentally, of course. Jim, a parent using SOAR, recently contacted us with a great question about how he can best help his child. I thought our conversation…

The Learning CircuitTM: How Learning Works

August 14, 2022

The Learning Circuit Video Transcription Learning is nothing more than your brain creating new wires. How does this work? Every time you learn something new, your brain powers a connection from something you already understand. When this happens, the neuron wires in your brain –the information you already understand– create new wires to capture the…

80/20 in the Classroom: How to Change the Way You Work

April 17, 2022

There is a universal rule that governs our lives behind the scenes. It works silently, only observed by those aware of its existence. The people who understand its power spend more of their time living happier lives.   They use this principle to accomplish more in less time. We can see it at work in…

“I’m Not Stupid… So, What Is My Problem?!” College Student Shares How He Turned Struggles into Straight A’s with Study Skills

April 10, 2022

Previously, I wrote about my 20 year-old cousin, Kevin. He moved in with us from North Carolina to do an internship with SOAR®. (See the story here.) I made a prediction that within one year, Kevin would be earning straight-As in school. Turns out, I was wrong. It only took three months! Today, Kevin shares…

Teaching Students with Autism: Science that Empowers What Your Heart Already Knows

April 3, 2022

Teaching Students with Autism There’s a very good chance you could teach me a lot about teaching students with autism. You’re in the trenches, working with students every day, So, I’m NOT here to tell you what you “should be doing differently.” Nor am I here to point out “where you’re dropping the ball.” I…

The Learning Value of Digital Media: Audiobooks, Videos, & Video Games

March 13, 2022

The following article was first published in 2021, during the thick of the pandemic. We wanted to share this article again because the learning value of digital media still remains true to this day! We are both educators, but you can stick a fork in us… we’re DONE! We’ve always said that we could never…

How to Solve Our National Motivation Crisis

February 20, 2022

The United States’ Motivation Crisis is so pervasive; we look right through it. A fish is the last one to know he swims in water. Likewise, the solution is so simple, you might miss its full power. How to Solve the Motivation Crisis We simply need to “change the conversation!” We need to stop focusing on deficiencies…

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