Math Tutor Beverly Hills        (310) 968-1594

A couple of weeks ago, I saw a TED talk by Dr. Carol Dweck on the "power of not yet." She describes that a "not yet" mindset encourages students to approach novel and complex tasks with enthusiasm and grit. Her research was inspired by a high school in Chicago that was giving out scores of "not yet" to students who had not passed a course. A "not yet" score implies there is a learning curve and the person just has not reached it yet, rather than the negative connotations of a fail such as "I'm nothing. I'm nowhere." 

In Dweck's early research, she observed that when 10 year old students were given problems that were slightly too hard for them, those who reacted positively made statements such as "I love a challenge," or "I was hoping this would be informative." Those children understood that their "abilities could be developed," stayed engaged, and hence had a growth mindset. Such children process errors, learn from it, and correct it. Students who feel negatively--that it's tragic, catastrophic, their intelligence is up for judgment & they have failed, disengage.

She advises parents and teachers (1) to praise students for their efforts, strategies, focus, and perseverance rather than intelligence or talent. She describes that when her and scientists from the University of Washington teamed up to create a new online math game that rewarded effort, strategy, and progress rather than the typical game that rewards only the right answer, they got more effort, perseverance, engagement over longer periods of time, and strategies, on really difficult problems. Second, she advises (2)  that just utilizing words "yet" or "not yet," give students a confidence booth and increases persistence.  

To watch or read the TED Talk this is the link: https://www.ted.com/talks/carol_dweck_the_power_of_believing_that_you_can_improve?language=en

Do you ever arrive to appointments early, or finish projects, deadlines, assignments ahead of time? If not, why not?

When I was in graduate school, I decided to complete all my reading assignments several days prior to their due date. This allowed me to enjoy my week without having the readings hanging over my head and it also meant I did not feel scrambled and pressured the night before. Thus, I was able to enjoy what I was reading and also had time to organize my thoughts. I would usually review highlighted material the night before the class.          

Set a deadline that is earlier than when your project is due.

Many people plan on being exactly on time which can often lead to being late since life has a tendency to happen. You may forget your keys, get caught in unusually bad traffic or their might be an accident on the freeway, etc.  If you plan to be 15 minutes early, that will usually be enough time for you to be on time.

Some of you are probably thinking this is not possible. You are just way too busy. If you are always busy, you may want to consider decluttering your schedule or getting curious about why you need your life to be so busy.  

(Also, you can check out this article http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/06/30/the-busy-trap/ )

Wake up earlier and give yourself time to enjoy your morning. But also give yourself enough time for sleep. Sometimes people underestimate how much time they will need in the mornings and find themselves eating breakfast as they are running out the door. If you are always feeling rushed, that is something to notice as it probably prevents you from enjoying day to day moments…

Once you have made a commitment to finish something early, other fun tasks may present themselves and sometimes it may be a well needed break. However, if you find yourself consistently saying yes to distractions, then you may be avoiding/procrastinating.

Make sure you get some time to take-care of yourself to prevent burn-out. You will be more productive if you are feeling emotionally satisfied.

Sometimes people underestimate how much time a task will take to be completed and again are left feeling stressed and pressured. So plan ahead and leave some cushion time.

 

 

*At the beginning of each week, take 15-30 minutes to plan your week.

*Also,create a to-do list each morning.

 

* Most people over commit. This often leads to feelings that drain energy.

 

* Make a list of habits that are wasting your time and then work on removing them from your life one bad habit at a time.

 

* Plan pleasurable activities and time for rest. No matter how busy you are, make the most of what little “you-time” you have—be present to the moment and remember to play!

 

Yasi

 

 

Test Taking and Managing Anxiety

A certain level of anxiety is helpful as it inspires one to take action and study. However, too much anxiety can lead to avoidance behavior as one may procrastinate, or it may cause one too freeze during test time. This can lead to going “blank” during the test—all of a sudden your forget everything, perhaps you lose your ability to focus, your heart starts beating faster, and you become more panicked and flustered. You may find that you run out of time or are unable to complete problems you have already studied.

 

So, how can you cope with test anxiety?

 

1.    Adequate preparation.    

~~>Study a little bit every day. Sometimes getting started is the hardest part, so commit to 15 minutes a day. You may find that once you get started, you will go over the 15 minutes.

~~>Try to see the bigger picture. Often, titles and highlighted words can key you into the big picture. Make connections to previous readings or notes.

~~> Create 5-7 key words that represent the material you learned and be able to verbally elaborate on each word/concept.

 

~~> Practice deep breathing. Individuals tend to breathe shallowly or even hold their breath when feeling anxious. Sometimes they are not even aware of it. Shallow breathing limits your oxygen intake and adds more stress to your body, creating a vicious cycle. Breathing exercises can break this cycle. Set 15 minutes to practice breathing. You may be surprised how energizing or relaxing this could be. If you dismiss this suggestion, just notice and get curious about why.

Exercise 1        

~~> 1. Sit up straight and allow your feet to touch the ground.

2. Place one hand on your diaphragm and the other on your chest.

3. Take in a deep breathe in through your nose and exhale slowly though your mouth.

4. Inhale and exhale on a count of 5 and overtime try to work your way up to a count of 8.

5. Your hand should move out as your inhale and the hand on your chest should stay relatively still.

6. If you lose your concentration, just come back to your breath.

7. Do this for 15 minutes.

8. Notice your experience. Notice if this helps you feel more relaxed or nervous. If you become more anxious, notice where your mind went. Notice why an exercise that was meant to relax was anxiety provoking. Did you have judgements? Was it too boring? Waste of time? Just notice and keep practicing. Try this in the now or tomorrow morning!

Exercise 2                

~~> 1. Cover your right nostril with your thumb and inhale through the left.

2. With your index finger cover your left nostril and exhale through your right.

3. Then switch sides.

4.Practice this for at least 5 minutes. Try this now!

 

Yasi Shamtoub, M.A.

 

 

 

Study Tips for Math:

 

 

Yasi Shamtoub, M.A.

Individuals differ in their learning styles. Below you will find descriptions of visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners. However, remember that they are just categories and things are not always so cut and dry. Individuals can have a predominant learning style and yet display characteristics of the other learning styles.

Students learn in many ways, like seeing, hearing, and experiencing things first hand. But for most students, one of these methods stands out.

Why is this important? Research has shown that students can perform better on tests if they change study habits to fit their own personal learning styles.

For example, visual-learning students will sometimes struggle during essay exams, because they can't recall test material that was "heard" in a lecture.

However, if the visual learner uses a visual aid when studying, like a colorful outline of test materials, he or she may retain more information. For this type of learner, visual tools improve the ability to recall information more completely.

A simple explanation of learning styles is this: Some students remember best materials they've seen, some remember things they've heard, while others remember things they've experienced.

Visual learners are those who learn through seeing things. Look over the characteristics below to see if they sound familiar. A visual learner:

Diagramming, reading maps, essays (if you've studied using an outline), showing a process

Listen and respond tests

Auditory learners are those who learn best through hearing things. Look over these traits to see if they sound familiar to you. You may be an auditory learner if you are someone who:

Reading passages and writing answers about them in a timed test.

Auditory Learners are good at writing responses to lectures they've heard. They're also good at oral exams.

Kinesthetic learners are those who learn through experiencing/doing things. Look over these traits to see if they sound familiar to you. You may be a kinesthetic learner if you are someone who:

Long tests, essays.

Short definitions, fill-ins, multiple choice.