Friday, November 30, 2018
Thursday, November 29, 2018
How Students Can Be Happy for the Rest of Their Lives
Parents and school counselors often encourage students to take
advanced classes in every subject. This might look like good on a transcript,
but how does it make students feel? Are they overwhelmed, or inspired? Be
careful to avoid the first emotion while boosting the second.
I’m a perfect example. In my case, I have loved words and grammar
since I was little. Numbers, however, seem to slip through the cracks in my
mind, especially zeroes. I don’t know why, perhaps it's cultural. When I grew
up, girls were told they were bad in math and good in storytelling. I guess I
fulfilled this prophesy.
In the ninth grade we were told to pick a foreign language class.
I chose French and continued studying it through college. In the tenth grade I
was instructed to select an advanced math class, since I had completed the
required courses already. My reply was, “Can I take another language instead?”
Lucky for me, the answer was yes. I added German to my schedule and continued
studying it happily through college.
I kept adding languages and avoiding courses I did not enjoy. The
result was happiness. I liked my classes, even when they became complex, and
competition from foreign students grew intense. I graduated college with a
degree in German, French and English, and taught them for over 40 years. If I
had been forced to take advanced math instead of the extra languages, what
would have been the result? I’m sure it wouldn’t have been a successful career
teaching languages. There were times where my abilities in multiple languages even
granted me a job over someone with fewer language skills.
Apply my example to any student. Take the required classes in
every subject, but push harder in courses you enjoy. Go to summer school or the
local community college to eliminate required subjects of lower interest. Then,
there will be room for more classes in your strength. Not everyone is into
words. Some students love music, math or science. Whatever the strength, talent
or interest, feed it, and watch it grow. Imagine having a career in something
you love. As they say, it won’t feel like work.
Picking the right courses will help students be happier and more
successful in secondary school and earn far more scholarship money for college. For more
information on college planning and scholarships, you’ll want my new
book, Free College. It’s for families of Pre-K through High School
students. Buy it now from Amazon, http://ow.ly/y7hx30k0JvQ.
You are reading from the blog: http://www.roadtofreecollege.com
Photo credit: Google Images
Monday, November 26, 2018
Friday, November 23, 2018
Wednesday, November 21, 2018
Gift Ideas to Help Students Be Successful and Win More Scholarships
Often when meeting parents at Back to School Night, they asked me
what books they could give their children for Christmas, Hanukkah or on their birthdays
to help them be more successful. I loved this question, and created a list of
gift ideas. Here’s the list and the appropriate age for each book:
1. Seven Habits of Highly
Effective Teens by Sean Covey – Age 13
2. Personality Plus by
Florence Littauer – Age 14
3. The Magic of Thinking Big
by David J. Schwartz – Age 15
4. Free $ for College for
Dummies by David Rosen and Caryn Mladen – Age 16
5. The Blue Zones of Happiness
by Dan Buettner – Age 17
6. The Millionaire Next Door
by Thomas J. Stanley – Age 18
Of course, it would be unethical to suggest
families buy my own book, Free College, if I was still in the classroom,
but I’m not. You should buy a copy if you are a parent, grandparent, aunt or
uncle of a Pre-K through high school student (college bound or not). It contains a proven step-by-step guide to help your kids earn more scholarships and grants. Buy it now from Amazon, http://ow.ly/y7hx30k0JvQ.
You are reading from the blog: http://www.roadtofreecollege.com
Photo credit: Google Images
Monday, November 19, 2018
Friday, November 16, 2018
Wednesday, November 14, 2018
Thanksgiving Holiday Scholarship Challenge
Although many students want to go to college, few have the
financial resources to do so without scholarships, grants or loans. I’m
completely against loans, since they have a tendency to destroy a graduate’s
future. That leaves grants and scholarships, but they don’t magically appear.
Someone has to apply for them.
When writing my book, Free College, I realized I
didn’t complete many chapters without having a specific goal, with a time
limit. Once I set this up, the chapters almost seemed to write themselves. This
could be true for scholarship and grant applications too. I suggest setting up
a routine for finding, filling out, and submitting college scholarship and
grant forms.
To this end, I propose a challenge over the upcoming Thanksgiving
holiday. For most students, this means four days. For others, it may be five
days. Whichever is the case for you, pick the number of applications you wish
to submit during this time. They will all be completed online, of course, so
you don’t have to worry about offices being closed. My suggestion is a minimum
of one per day, better yet would be to double or triple that number.
You’ll still have time for visiting with family and friends,
watching football or the Twilight Zone Marathon, and eating lots of turkey or
ham. Discuss your family’s travel plans with your parents in advance. Block
this time out on a calendar (you can print templates online for free). Then
block out your sleep schedule. You’ll do a terrible job if you’re sleep
deprived.
You now know when you have free time for meeting this
scholarship/grant application challenge. Use a red pen to outline the times you
are allotting to find, complete and submit your applications. If you have
already filed at least one, you know how much time you’ll need for each. The
average student takes about an hour, after the first one.
Sure, vacations should be fun, but wouldn’t you dedicate ten hours
of the 120 over the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday if doing so might result in
being awarded thousands of dollars for college? Go ahead and do it. I dare
you.
For more helpful scholarship information, you’ll
want my new book, Free College. Buy it now on Amazon, http://ow.ly/y7hx30k0JvQ. Great for families of Preschool through High School students.
You are reading from the blog: http://www.roadtofreecollege.com
Photo credit: Google Images
Monday, November 12, 2018
Friday, November 9, 2018
Wednesday, November 7, 2018
How to Improve Your Child's Scholarship Chances
I've created a short video to explain how you can help your children earn more free cash for college.
If you'd like to buy a copy of my book, Free College , it's on Amazon.
Click HERE.
Monday, November 5, 2018
Friday, November 2, 2018
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