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Weekly posts on educational topics, how-to-teach tips, parenting advice, kids health and more. Subscribe to the newsletter (on the left or below on mobile) for education blog updates by School is Easy Tutoring.

Kid’s health: the importance of kids staying hydrated for academic performance and activity

Susan Cumberland April 24, 2015

We all know that it is important to stay hydrated, and to drink our 8-10 glasses of water a day. But is this any different for kids? Read on to learn about the importance of kids staying hydrated, and how it affects their academic performance and physical activity.

The importance of kids staying hydrated in school

Since kids’ bodies are made up of approximately 70% water, it is a given that water affects nearly every part of their bodies. Water enhances circulation and is essential for optimal brain health and function. If your child is demonstrating low concentration, it could be because they aren’t drinking enough water! According to healthybrainforlife.com, dehydration can lead to fatigue, dizziness, poor concentration, and reduced cognitive abilities. So it is really important for your child’s academic success to drink plenty of water every day!

The importance of kids staying hydrated during physical activities

Drinking water also has a significant impact on your child’s physical activity. If they are hydrated, children will be less tired and have more energy. By drinking plenty of water before, during, and after exercise, they can avoid fatigue and enjoy the activity more. Since children’s bodies don’t adjust as well to losses of fluid, and their bodies don’t cool down as efficiently, it is especially important that they stay hydrated during exercise.

Are sports drinks or juice an OK alternative to drinking water?

In general, water is your child’s best bet to staying hydrated. Other drinks like juice, pop, and vitamin water can have a high sugar content, which can lead to weight gain in children if consumed regularly. They can also contain caffeine, which acts as a diuretic (dehydrating the body) and can also affect children’s concentration.

Sports drinks can be beneficial, but only if your child is involved in vigorous physical activity for over an hour. These drinks contain electrolytes, which your child will lose through sweat. Therefore, they are a good source of energy when the body’s stores are becoming depleted. However, if your child is not involved in vigorous physical activity for a prolonged amount of time, keep in mind that sports drinks also contain calories that could increase weight gain if consumed on a regular basis. It is always best to have your child avoid excess sugars by reaching for calorie-free water.

Since it is so important for kids to drink water, encourage them to keep a water bottle with them during tutoring sessions so they don’t get dehydrated. Happy studying!

How to help students overcome homework excuses

Susan Cumberland April 17, 2015

From the classic “my dog ate my homework” excuse to more clever excuses like, “my backpack got stolen” or, “I left my binder in my mom’s car,” there are endless ways students can try to get out of doing and handing in homework. Here are some ways you can help students overcome homework excuses like these.

Try to understand why students don’t do their work

There are many reasons why a student may not do their homework. These might be:

Procrastination
Lack of interest
Wanting to get it perfect or a fear of failure
Being surrounded by distractions
It’s too difficult
It’s too much to do at once
It’s not as important as another task
They forgot
They didn’t have time

Help students overcome homework excuses by taking different approaches on assignments

We’re not talking about bringing the difficulty level down here. Although that could be the case with a student who is struggling, it might be helpful to simply lessen the amount slightly or break it up into smaller chunks.

Or, take a different approach with the homework. For example, if a student is experiencing a lack of interest in a project, try allowing them to take a creative approach on it. If you are a teacher or tutor, give them ideas of different options like turning an English project into an art project, a song, or a skit.

You can also have your students do some partner or group work so they are held accountable to someone else. This also avoids excuses about not having the right supplies, because even if one child doesn’t have their books, someone else in the group likely will. Another option is to schedule an assignment that is done in class or during a tutoring session. This will avoid the excuse of not understanding something, or finding it too difficult, because help will be readily available.

If you are a parent, talk to your child’s teacher or tutor about what other options there are to allow your child to take a creative approach on a project.

Other ways to help students overcome homework excuses:

If your students are not struggling with the assignment itself, but just have trouble doing homework in general, there are few things you can try to help them overcome homework excuses. If they seem to be struggling with procrastination, try giving them some study tips to follow. For example, turn off all devices when doing homework!

You can also encourage students to set earlier deadlines. Or, you could even have a deadline for a first draft before the final deadline for a paper. This will help them get the paper done early so that they don’t feel pressed for time on the final copy. It will also allow them to have more time to get feedback on their first draft before they submit the final copy.

And finally, encourage your students to have a space they can study in without distractions. If they don’t have a quiet space at home, recommend a library or a study area at school.

Whatever problem your student has with completing homework, try figuring out what it is and help them overcome homework excuses. A creative approach or changing up the usual ways may encourage them to get things done. Good luck!

How depression affects teens’ learning

Susan Cumberland April 3, 2015

Depression is an epidemic sweeping the nation, and has been on the rise particularly among teens. According to multiple sources, the average age of onset of depression is constantly dropping, and someone who has a sibling or parent dealing with depression is up to three times as likely to develop it themselves. Keep reading to find out how depression affects teens’ learning, and how to help them deal with it.

Realize how depression affects teens’ learning

It is important not to overlook depression in teens, especially because it can really affect teens’ learning. Kidshealth.org has a great article that shows how learning can be affected by depression. Depression can make it hard to concentrate and focus. This means teens may have a hard time paying attention in a class, in a tutoring session or completing homework. Teens with depression may not even realize they are depressed. This can cause them to think that they are a failure, a bad student, or a slacker. It can also cause them to have low motivation, which can lead to them skipping class, especially if they start thinking, “what’s the point?” Finally, depression can even cause memory problems, which affects test performance.

How you can tell if depression is affecting your teen’s learning

There are many symptoms of depression, including emotional symptoms like feelings of worthlessness, physical symptoms like low energy, behavioural symptoms like change in appetite, and cognitive symptoms like difficulty focussing. However, it is best for your child to visit the doctor to properly diagnose what is going on. There is even a blood test that has recently been in the news that is able to detect depression. If your teen is diagnosed with depression, your healthcare professional should be able to recommend different resources for treatment. Your teen can also turn to online sources such as studentsagainstdepression.org or those listed at mindcheck.ca.

Depression is on the rise among teens, and it can definitely affect their learning. But luckily there are plenty of resources to help you and your teen deal with this issue. It is important to realize that it is not just something a teen will snap out of, but needs to be dealt with properly. If your teen is struggling with depression, consult your doctor so that they can get the help they need and can get the most out of their tutoring sessions.

Focused art lesson: making lanterns as an educational craft

Susan Cumberland March 20, 2015

An important skill for a teacher to have is to be able to teach kids how to see the bigger picture of a lesson and make connections between academic subjects. One way to do this is through integrated studies, which according to edutopia.org, means you combine subjects by doing projects to get a broader understanding that goes beyond one simple topic. The benefits of integrated teaching are quite vast, and include cooperation, and an increased ability to think critically and creatively. In this lesson idea, we will show you how to combine English, Social Studies, and Art to teach your students about making lanterns as an educational craft.

History of making lanterns

You can take the history portion of this lesson in a lot of different ways. You can focus on one culture, one period of time, or even one specific type of lantern. One example of this could be the history of lanterns in China. In this lesson, you could focus on the yearly Lantern Festival. This famous Chinese event began over 2,000 years ago and features lighting lanterns, guessing lantern riddles, folk dances, and eating a sticky rice dumpling called Yuanxiao. Do some research on the history of lanterns for the culture or time period of your choice, and have fun telling stories about lanterns to your students!

The art of making lanterns as an educational craft

A lesson like this is a great way to make some art with your students. After learning about the history behind lanterns, have your students make some! Depending on how you tailored your history lesson or what supplies you have, you can make different types of lanterns. First of all, you could make glass lanterns. To make these, just decorate a mason jar and put a tealight inside. To make a handle, just twist a piece of wire around the jar and hook another piece of wire on two sides of it.

The simplest option is probably to make paper lanterns. To do this, you only need two sheets of coloured paper, scissors, and a stapler. Have your students follow these steps from innerchild.com. Then, hang them from the ceiling of your classroom or tutoring room to brighten up the room!

If you have a little more time for this craft, you can make fun lanterns using yarn or twine. This one is a little more complicated, so you will want to closely follow the directions of wednesdaycustomdesigns.com if you are using yarn, and mrkate.com if you want to use twine.

If you and your students are feeling fairly adventurous, you can even try making flying paper lanterns. This one requires a lot of planning, preparing, and time consuming steps, so make sure you know what you’re getting yourself into before you do this one. Read the instructions by Angie Diersman here.

Apply an English lesson to making lanterns as an educational craft

You can incorporate English studies into both the beginning and end of this lesson. At the beginning, you can have your students read a short story about lanterns, like one about the Chinese Lantern Festival. After the lesson, have your students write about their experience of making the lanterns, and what they learned from it. Or, have them write a small speech to present their lantern and what it represents.

Now that you have this idea for an integrated lesson, try making lanterns as an educational craft with your students! Or, apply these skills to create a fun lesson combining different subjects. Have fun doing integrated lessons with your students!

5 educational jar crafts

Susan Cumberland March 6, 2015

Art is a great way for your children to express their creativity and have fun. However, you can also take the opportunity to turn a fun craft into an educational lesson. In this focused art lesson, we will be using jars, since they are usually easy to find around the house. Here are five fun educational jar crafts to get your kids’ creative juices flowing!

1) Make pencil holders out of jars

Teach your kids organizational skills by making pencil holders or other organizers with jars. To make a fun pencil holder jar craft, first paint the jar on the inside or outside. Then, use chalkboard paint to make a label on the glass. To personalize it, your kids can write their name on their pencil holder with chalk! This tutorial at thecountrychiccottage.net explains how to do this in detail, with pictures to follow along.

2) Bookend jar craft

This is another great organizational tool you can make out of jars. Simply have your kids decorate a mason jar however they desire, then fill them partway with rice or sand to weigh them down. As you are making this craft, you can teach your kids about important organizational skills they should have.

3) Educational snow globe

It doesn’t have to be winter to make a fun snow globe! Your child will love this simple educational jar craft. To make this, have your child take a figurine, small plastic toy, or whatever small item they desire and glue it to the lid of a jar. Then, put some water in the jar and add some glitter. Finally, glue the lid shut so that water won’t seep out. For more detailed instructions of this bottle craft, check out Kami Bigler’s article on babycenter.

This jar craft can easily be turned into either a Language Arts or Social Studies lesson. Reflect on the previous holiday or break by having your students pick one specific memory and putting in a souvenir that represents it. After they make their snow globe, have them do a little write-up explaining the significance of the scene. Or, have them choose an event from what they are learning in social studies, and create a scene from that using small plastic toys or decorations from the dollar store. This is a great creative way to represent their learning.

4) Herb jars

If you are looking for a fun science lesson, you may want to consider making herb jars or jar planters with your kids. You can follow the steps in this video by Budgetsavvydiva on youtube. If your kids are learning about the life cycle of plants, start with seeds so they can see the full cycle as they grow, through the transparent glass. If they are learning about photosynthesis, maybe buy an herb or flower to plant in the jar so they can directly see the work of photosynthesis as they water it and keep it in the sun.

5) Candle holder educational jar craft

To make a unique candle holder, glue flat-backed marbles to the outside of a jar. Or, paint glitter on the inside of the jar. This will make everything sparkle when a candle is lit inside! With this craft, you can teach your kids about the science of fire, how it produces energy and what causes it. To find information on this topic, visit an article on this topic at sciencelearn.org or check out some books from your local library.

Hopefully these educational jar crafts inspire you and your children to find a fun and creative way to express their learning. Have fun with these artistic lessons!

Teaching kids how to debate

Susan Cumberland February 27, 2015

Last week we focused on how to write a good speech, and this week we want to focus on another aspect of public speaking: debates. A debate is different from a speech because its purpose is for two sides to compete to prove which point is more valid. Teaching kids how to debate is important because it not only teaches kids how to be good speakers, but also good listeners.

A debate is not just a speech where you can prepare word for word what you are going to say. Debates require their participants to actively listen to the other side, and to come up with a response, on the spot, to what the other has argued. So, here are some tips for your students to exercise good listening and speaking skills to become the best debaters!

Teach kids how to debate by making sure they know their facts, and know them well

In any form of public speaking, it is important to be well researched and know what you are talking about. Specifically, when you start teaching kids how to debate, it is important to make sure the student understands what their points are so they don’t contradict themselves. Just like a speech, have your students practice speaking their points out loud so that they can be confident in what they are saying.

Teach kids to know the other side of the story beforehand

Not only do students have to research their own topics, but they should also make sure they have an idea of what their opponent will be arguing before they go into the debate. While they are researching their topic, also have your student look up what the other side might say, so that they can have some rebuttal points ready. Knowing what the other side could say will allow your child to respond quickly, and they will have a lesser chance of being caught off guard.

When debating, think clearly and logically

When teaching kids how to debate, it’s important for them to know how to think clearly and logically to prove their point in a structured way. Have your students make a list of all their points, then prioritize which ones are most important. This way, they can clearly see in front of them what points they should focus on. It will also help them if their opponent says something they were not prepared for. They won’t forget what their main point is and can use that to find a way to bring it back to the importance of their main point. Also, this way their points will not be out of order or confusing. Having a clear and organized train of thought will add to their confidence in public speaking and make them appear more professional.

Pick interesting debate topics that relate to your students’ studies

If you are looking for topics your students or tutoring subjects can debate about, just pull topics from whatever it is they are studying right now in school. If they are learning about the renaissance, have them debate about whether they would prefer to live then, or now in modern times. Or, if they are learning about the human body, have each child pick an organ or system in the body and argue that it is the most important, or does the most work.

Having your students do a debate is also a great way for them to learn about a totally new topic because it forces them to research and really get to know something they didn’t before. So, including a debate in your lesson plans can be a fun way to teach your students their next lesson.

Have fun picking interesting topics of debates for kids. Once you have a topic, help your students practice these tips. Then they will be great public speakers and listeners in no time!