Tag Archives: Ferny Hills

Tuition Tips – Did You Know…

Tuition Logo 2…that most learners will forget the last four weeks of learning over the six weeks of Christmas break?  Pretty much everything learned in November is lost by the time they go back to school in January/February.

Six weeks is a long break from learning and I doubt young minds require so much recovery time.  I come from a sports training background and know that such a break from training for a sports person would be detrimental to their ability to perform.  That is why professional sports people do not take a break, they alter how they train. That is also why we run holiday tuition programs for our students; to keep their minds prepared for the next year.

It is not just the Christmas holidays that causes a disruption to learning.  There appears to be so many events during the year that prevent our students building up momentum in in their learning progress. We have public holidays (about 12 days per year), school holidays (about 12 weeks per year), student free days (at least one after every school break), athletics sports day, swimming day, excursions to …., school camps (1 or 2 weeks per year), …

So, why do our students attend tuition during the school holidays? Because their parents believe education is the best method to open the doors to opportunity as we move through life.

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Tuition Tips – Brain Food For The Memory

Diet PlansThere are five essential nutrients for effective brain function, and this includes memory. Many teenagers are low in iodine, as can be said about the general population. It is readily found in some seafood but if you do not eat seafood then you must obtain it from another source.

Decades ago the government placed iodine in table salt so that inland populations may have a non-seafood source of the nutrient. If your family eats salt then it may be beneficial to purchase iodised salt. Other nutrients are omega-3 (from oily fish), iron (meat), zinc (almonds) and the B vitamins.

Two herbs gaining respect for their ability to aid memory are Ginkgo biloba and gotu kola. Ginkgo increases blood flow and fluidity to the brain and improved circulation aides brain function.

The quality of food is so important. We do no good for our children when we give into their tantrums for low nutrient junk food. Be parents to your children now and their friends when they grow up.

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Tuition Tips – Brain Food

pacific cruise 2012 074Vitamin C

Now before you go off collecting kindling to burn me for being a witch let’s have a look at how vitamin C can be considered brain food.  The highest concentration of vitamin C in the body is found in the adrenal glands because it is required to make cortisol and adrenalin for conditions of stress.  But the next highest concentration is found in the brain.  Why would the brain require vitamin C?  So the body may produce dopamine, serotonin and melatonin.  Vitamin C helps to keep your sanity as well as your collagen intake.

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The Photographer – Callum (Aged 11)

BurglarLate at night as the wind howled, the amateur photographer remained silent in the garden. Even though he was frightened he scraped through the opened window, crept down the dark corridor and found the combination safe where he knew his equipment was being stored. Hastily he considered his options. Last year he practised in the gym and he was strong. He picked up the safe and sprinted with a big grin on his face.

Callum (Aged 11)

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Tuition Tip – Did You Know…

Tuition Logo…that most learners will forget the last four weeks of learning over the six weeks of Christmas break?  Pretty much everything learned in November is lost by the time they go back to school in January/February.

Six weeks is a long time to have a break from learning and I doubt young minds require so much recovery time.  As I come from a sports training background I know that such a break from training for a sports person would be detrimental to their abilities and performance.  That is why professional sports people do not take a break, they alter how they train.

I have witnessed the downfalls in people achieving weight loss because they cannot gain any momentum on their weight loss program.  There was always something preventing them getting up a full head of steam on their weight loss project; birthdays, work functions, anniversaries, weddings, parties, etc..  It may be the same for our students in the education system.  There appears to be so many things that prevent our students building up momentum in their learning progress; public holidays (about 12 days per year), school holidays (about 12 weeks per year), student free days (at least one after every school break), athletics sports day, swimming day, excursions to …., school camps (1 or 2 weeks per year), …

That is why we run holiday programs for our clients.  To us learning is so important to the development of the child that we give tuition hours away to ensure our students return to school not having forgot what they learned in the last month and a half of school but are advanced on what they know.

OUR 342 HOLIDAY PROGRAM 

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Tuition Tips – Brain Food With B Vitamins

Empty Gas TankHaving a properly fuelled student goes a long way to producing good academic results.  There are times a student will come to our tuition room tired and unmotivated.   They are slow in movement and slow in thought when the previous week they were lively, animated and full of beans.  How has such a difference come about in such a short time?

My first question to afternoon students is, “When did you last eat?”, whereas my second question is, “When did you last have a drink of water?”  Lack of food (fuel) and lack of hydration are two factors that will bring about that feeling of being tired.  Consuming water and a healthy snack before settling down to working the little grey cells will go a long way to helping a student concentrate during study time.

This week we will look at B vitamins and their role.

The chief function of B Vitamins is to act as spark plugs for the body to assist in converting glucose into energy for fuel.  They are also vitally important for the functioning of a healthy nervous system and in helping to promote relaxation in stressed individuals.   Very few vitamins are found in a packet of potato crisps and a can of coke.   A person will literally obtain more miles out of a banana than soft drinks and chips.

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Sparrow – Dardo (aged 8)

SparrowOnce there was a bird in the Amazon Forest.  He was a sparrow who had very big wings so he could glide three miles. One day when he was chasing an electric eel he got stuck in an underwater cave and couldn’t breathe until he swam up to the dry land.  He began to explore the amazing cave system but soon he got completely lost and began to cry miserably for help.  A vampire bat flying out of the cave rescued the relieved sparrow.

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The Very Cheeky Mouse – Jemima (aged 7)

mouseIn the morning the mouse was in a dark, dark forest. She had pretty pink ears and she wore a black t-shirt, a red bow and black and red pants. When she woke up she had cheese for breakfast. After eating she put on her cheeky clothes and went outside and poked her tongue out at the teachers at school. At night she put on her pyjamas and slept in the very, very dark forest.

Jemima (aged 7)

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Tuition Tips – Brain Food

Diet PlansYour car will not run without fuel and neither will your body, including your brain.  Too often the last decent meal a student has before they attend our Tuition Room after school is breakfast – and it shows.

The inability to concentrate, feeling listless, unenthusiastic and headaches are all signs of insufficient nutrient intake.  The body begins to slow down by mid-afternoon after a day of high activity and very little nutritious food.

The best way to maintain high-energy output is to ensure a nutritious breakfast, a healthy lunch and perhaps morning and afternoon tea.  A healthy round of vegemite sandwiches with a glass of water or milk will ensure the B Vitamins for energy production are in the body to spur the brain into motion

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The Elf’s Journey – Steffi (aged 9)

elfIn the North Pole just before Christmas, the eves were busy wrapping presents for big and small children.  The smallest elf worked very hard like all the others but he could stretch so that he could stack the highest presents on the very top of the gift mountain.  One day he stretched so high, he reached up out of the factory where he saw the world and was interested to find out more.  He packed his bags, took a reindeer and sped off across the ice, over the mountains until he reached the edge of Greenland.  Instantly he missed all the other elves and wondered if they were thinking about him too.

by Steffani (aged 9)

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