by Gretchen | Mar 13, 2018 | blog, College Prep, Communication, For Parents, podcast
Students need to become familiar with failure earlier than their parents often let them. Megan and Gretchen discuss why it is important to let student fail small in the younger grades, and provide tips for how parents might back off as students transition from...
by Gretchen | Mar 13, 2018 | blog, College Prep, Communication, For Parents, podcast
Teenagers often have lapses in judgement.But when these lapses go too far, how might it impact high school graduation or college admissions? Megan lays out 5 kinds of trouble that teens can get in and analyzes how that behavior might get in the way of their next steps...
by Gretchen | Mar 13, 2018 | blog, College Prep, For Parents, podcast
Sometimes nagging is necessary! So how can parents do it in a way that will make teens receptive to their reminders and prodding? In this episode, Gretchen tells stories about how 3 different clients made agreements with their parents about how and when they are...
by Gretchen | Mar 13, 2018 | blog, Communication, For Parents
Teens often start their coaching sessions with me super emotional. “Do you know what just happened?! My parents just ambushed me!” We then spend the next 5-10 minutes of our session processing anger, resignation, and tears. An ambush is a surprise attack. For teens,...
by Gretchen | Mar 6, 2018 | blog, Communication, For Parents
Is there a teenager in your life who seems overly dramatic? As a parent, are you often accused of yelling when you think you’re talking in a reasonable tone? Over the years, I’ve had a number of students who complain that their parents yell too much, but the parents...
by Gretchen | Feb 27, 2018 | Academic Coaching, blog, For Parents, Study Skills, Test Anxiety
Do you ever make stupid mistakes on your math tests because you’re hurrying too much? I have a client who was consistently scoring a letter grade lower every test because of silly mistakes. My solution for him? Check out the video for details about what it means to...
by Gretchen | Feb 20, 2018 | Academic Coaching, blog, For Parents, Study Skills, Test Anxiety
Are you (or a student you love) naturally good at taking tests? Do you have to do minimal, or no, studying for your chapter tests… but then suddenly discover you’re not ready for final exams? It’s frustrating, isn’t it?! The info got into your...
by Gretchen | Feb 14, 2018 | blog, College Prep, For Parents, podcast
Sometimes nagging is necessary! So how can parents do it in a way that will make teens receptive to their reminders and prodding? In this episode, Gretchen tells stories about how 3 different clients made agreements with their parents about how and when they are...
by Gretchen | Feb 14, 2018 | blog, College Prep, For Parents, podcast
College visits are a time consuming part of the college search process, so how do you make sure you are getting helpful information when you are on campus? How do you look past the college’s marketing messages to see what is really going on? Megan provides her Top Ten...
by Gretchen | Feb 14, 2018 | blog, College Prep, For Parents, podcast
Thinking about starting your own academic coaching biz? Maybe you’ve already started, but you’re frustrated with how slow moving it is? Maybe you’re a parent curious about hiring an academic coach? Listen in as these 3 newly minted academic coaches (who’ve just...
by Gretchen | Feb 14, 2018 | blog, College Prep, For Parents, podcast
How do we motivate teens to take little actions that offer big results? Megan reports in about a book she read recently that has lots of great advice for teens: Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life…and Maybe Even the World by Admiral William H....
by Gretchen | Feb 13, 2018 | Organization, Student Life, Study Skills
Most high schools these days have online portals where teachers track what assignments are due and when. Because of this, I often have students complain — do I REALLY need to write my assignments down? After all, they’re online already!! This week I had two situations...
by Gretchen | Feb 12, 2018 | Academic Coaching
Nothing can replace the power of a live-in-person training, even if it is “just” virtual. I’ve got two coming up the next two weeks, so click here for more information, and to sign up for those. Stop the Saboteur! Common Signs You’re Holding Your Biz...
by Gretchen | Feb 6, 2018 | Procrastination
Do you sometimes shock yourself with the amount of time that you scroll mindlessly through your Facebook feed? For the longest time, I’ve been trying to control my own Facebook use. I’m a total addict, you see, and it doesn’t become me. I’ve...
by Gretchen | Jan 30, 2018 | Study Skills
Do you struggle to focus in class? Does a student you love with ADHD have trouble keeping their mind on the teacher, or on their homework? I was recently in a 504 meeting for one of my clients with ADHD, and one of the teachers joked that it would be nice to have a...
by Gretchen | Jan 29, 2018 | Academic Coaching, blog, Entrepreneurship
Ten years ago when I saw my first student clients, no one had heard of Academic Life Coaching. These days, more and more families are googling the phrase “academic coach” in their quest for support for their anxious, overwhelmed, and/or unmotivated students. Other...
by Gretchen | Jan 16, 2018 | blog, College Prep, For Parents, podcast
Did you know that many of the practice SAT & ACT tests offered by companies to help you study — are fake?! Don’t fall for fake tests! Megan walks you through how to make sure the practice tests you are taking are legit… and will actually help you...
by Gretchen | Jan 10, 2018 | Academic Coaching, blog, Student Life
Do you ever use Google Translate to get your language homework done? One of my clients got called out in his Spanish class — but in a really good way! I actually don’t want to give you a synopsis of why, because I really want you to hear the whole story of...
by Gretchen | Jan 9, 2018 | blog, College Prep, podcast, Study Skills
What does research teach us about the best ways for teachers to teach and students to study? Guest experts Yana Weinstein and Megan Sumeracki, otherwise known as The Learning Scientists, school us on what research shows is is the best ways to learn, including some...
by Gretchen | Jan 3, 2018 | Academic Coaching, blog, Creativity & Edges, For Parents
Have you been looking for a quick and inspiring way to set a new intention to improve your teaching this spring? Classroom teachers are such overworked and underappreciated educators that I sometimes hesitate to make suggestions for how they can transform their...
