StudySkills Search

educators

Malcolm Gladwell’s Gift to Detroit: A Language for Success!

June 10, 2014

The Power of Language Two nights ago, my ten year-old son, Mark, was getting very upset over simple things. After the second meltdown, I knew something was up. Me: “Sit down. Tell me what’s really going on?” Mark: “I spilled my drink!” Me: “I know that’s upsetting. But you’re having a ‘ten-mile reaction’ to a ‘two-inch…

The Mackinac Bridge Was Once Considered Impossible. Times Changed. So Can Education.

May 28, 2014

Today is the first day of one of the nation’s largest policy conferences, the Mackinac (pronounced “Mack-i-naw”) Conference. It’s the most important event of the year for the political, business, and non-profit organizations of Michigan. I’m writing this on the 5-hour road trip to Mackinac; where the Lower and Upper Peninsulas of Michigan almost meet.…

SOAR® Covers 100% Common Core Anchor Standards!

May 2, 2014

You can now get a free digital review copy of the 2nd Edition of SOAR®! SOAR® Study Skills-2nd edition is now SOAR® Soft Skills for College & Career Readiness. SOAR® now covers 100% of the Common Core Anchor Standards! This 2nd edition has all of the same great content you loved before plus three new…

The Plight of Teachers in 2014

April 14, 2014

Last fall, Microsoft asked me to share some thoughts about changes in education. Naturally, about technology. But, as I explained below, the cascading effect of technology on students will have an impact on teachers…. For the better! Like many educators, Susan Kruger was inspired to help students through her own school experience. Kruger struggled to…

The Matrix of Study Skills; What if Neo Chose the Blue One?

March 24, 2014

In the movie, The Matrix, there’s a famous scene where Morpheus offers Neo a choice… Red Pill or Blue Pill. If Neo takes the blue pill, it would allow him to remain in his made-up reality of the Matrix and continue living in ignorance. If Neo takes the red pill, he escapes the Matrix and…

Educators: “We Are All from Detroit”

March 16, 2014

I was born and raised in Detroit. I’ve long been used to the negative impressions about my hometown when I travel. But last summer, the reaction went visceral. Two weeks after Detroit filed for bankruptcy, I was at a conference on the East Coast. Naturally, I was asked the standard opening question, “Where are you…

Why Didn’t Someone Teach Me How to Learn Earlier!?

March 11, 2014

At the end of this week, the 2nd edition of SOAR® is going to press. As I did eight years ago with the original I’ve put my heart and soul into this new edition to save students from the struggles I did not need to face. The following letter to students is included in the…

Vocabulary and Differentiation: Larry Says, “Just Deal with It…”

December 16, 2013

Two weeks ago, we published an article about learning vocabulary words (available here). It was my answer to a question from Jean, a concerned parent whose son was struggling with an on-going vocabulary testing situation. Immediately after we published that article, we received a response from Larry M. Here’s what Larry had to say: Hi…

How to Learn Vocabulary Words

December 2, 2013

We received an e-mail from our client Jean: I’m wondering if you can help with a recurring problem. My son, Daniel, gets 20-25 vocab words every couple of weeks for his Language Arts class. For the test, he has to pull the words out of his head, spell them correctly and write the correct definition.…

Understanding the Needs of the 21st Century Learner

October 21, 2013

In anticipation of the upcoming Microsoft’s Partners in Learning webinar on October 23, 2013, I was interviewed by Microsoft to get my take on the state of education in our country. Read on to see the interview. What drew you to the field of education? Why is it important to you? I went to a…

Six Steps to
Conquer the Chaos

Get Our Free Guide & Information on... notebook24 How to Organize & Motivate Students for Success

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
Get Our FREE Curriculum Guide!
The SOAR® Curriculum

The most critical learning, organizing, and communication skills needed for school. Learn more here.

Who’s Using SOAR®?

Click here to learn more.