With the back-to-school honeymoon phase in the rear view, and at least one favorite pen or notebook already lost, the challenges of the new school year are beginning to sink in. Now is the perfect time to get organized and help your child access strategies designed for a successful school year.
Whether your child is in middle school or high school, they’re bombarded with activities and assignments at the beginning of the school year, so learning to establish balance is essential, says Andrew Ferguson, Director of Business Development at Academic Approach, a Chicago-based academic tutoring and test prep company.
“Everything starts in the fall. This includes extracurriculars, but also ACT and SAT test prep. And for juniors, this school year is important because students are earning their final high school grades to support their college applications,” Ferguson says. “Suddenly, high school goes from being fun to being a full-time job.”
Here are five strategies your student can adopt right now to have a successful academic year.
1. Take a practice SAT or ACT right now
If a college entrance exam is in your child’s future, find out this month how much preparation they need to do.
“Families might be tempted to start ACT/SAT prep in March, or they might wait to see their child’s grades for the fall semester before worrying about what’s next. Unfortunately, sometimes families find out they only have two months before the test, but four months of work to do,” Ferguson says.
A practice test and follow-up conversation with a tutor at Academic Approach is free. Better yet, says Ferguson, the information it offers allows you to create a plan for test prep that fits in with all the other activities and academic commitments your child has. “Don’t wait. Take advantage of this resource now,” he says.
2. Consider online tutoring
Time is tight for every family, so why spend any of it on traveling back and forth to see a tutor? Instead, choose a remote option for test prep and tutoring.
“Remote tutoring and test prep opens the door to so many more options for families in terms of what they have access to,” says Ferguson. “Families talk about how busy their kids are and fitting yet another appointment into an already packed schedule is a huge challenge.”
Gone are the days when tutoring comes to an abrupt halt during the summer months when families take an extended trip out of town. “Offering online instruction means we provide consistent support to students, no matter where they are. Their tutoring goes with them, whether they’re vacationing for a month or are on a travel hockey team or playing tennis all over the country,” Ferguson says.
Getting academic support when and where your child needs it — with no time spent on commuting back and forth — is smart time management for the whole family.
3. Seek the most advanced tutoring tools available
Remote tutoring and test prep through a general-purpose meeting tool like Zoom was an acceptable solution when everyone needed a quick-start tool. But your remote tutor should use technology that is both more sophisticated and designed specifically for one-on-one tutoring.
“We use an interactive tool called TutorRoom, which allows both tutor and student to access the same digital materials, including texts, calculators and notes,” explains Carla Pedersen, Regional Director at Academic Approach. “Students can access their test prep manuals in addition to any notes saved or whiteboards if they were screen sharing with their tutor.”
These tools are available to students at any time, not just while they are working with their tutor, Pedersen says. “It’s like a virtual room with a bookshelf where students can go and access everything they need.” Keeping all the materials a student needs in one place guards against losing a manual or notes at band practice or on vacation.
TutorRoom’s functionality is well-suited to visual learning necessary in science and math, says Ferguson. “If a student wants to pull up their notes during a tutoring session, they still have access to the rest of their screen,” he says, unlike other generic meeting platforms which take up the entire screen during sharing and don’t allow all participants to add to the notes. “This tool is built for interactive instruction, both in a test prep and academic setting.”
4. Work with tutors who understand your student’s needs
Students are increasingly familiar with online instruction — and they know not all experiences are great. Skilled instructors know how to keep your student engaged in the learning process even when they aren’t in the same physical space.
“When you are suddenly with a two-dimensional tutor, it can be a weird experience. That’s why we invest time and effort into training our instructors so they aren’t just knowledgeable about the subjects they teach, but they know how to make students feel comfortable during online tutoring,” Ferguson says. “The feedback we receive from our families and the success we’ve had in our numbers prove how well our instructors work with students in this unique online learning space.”
5. Reduce stress with a successful school year plan
As the school year stretches ahead of you, create a calendar with your child so that you can be proactive and prepared for projects, midterms, finals and other important events, like play rehearsals and state sports competitions. If this is an ACT or SAT year for your child, you’ll be extra grateful for a plan of attack, says Pedersen.
“Your student is ultra-busy right now, so don’t wait and try to shoehorn that extra support or test prep into the schedule because that adds stress to everyone’s lives,” she says. “If you can get ahead of it, you are making your life easier. We have options for making academic support as convenient as possible.”
Capture academic success for your child with Academic Approach. Visit academicapproach.com.
