Reading can help children cope better during the pandemic which has affected more than 1.5 billion students across the globe. Reading is a great leveller, reading brings joy, excitement, sometimes sadness but overwhelmingly reading transports us to other worlds. 
  
Authors and celebrities have put together unique digital story-time initiatives to help spread the joy of reading until school can start again.  I have selected a few of the best for different age groups of children, they are all free to access and reading online brings no pressure for the children to read independently.   
 
Have a look at some fabulous resources for all age groups of children to seek out and more importantly have fun.  Beginning with the littlies to comics

NZ celebs read
Watch New Zealand celebrities - including Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern - read bedtime stories

Audible
Audible has also made its children's stories open and free to all.

Marvel Comics - Official
Free issues. When you select an issue and click on it, you just select the first 'Read Now' option besides 'Marvel Unlimited'. It's a really cool interface to read on when you get through.

Harry Potter at Home
Welcome to the Harry Potter At Home hub where you’ll find all the latest magical treats to keep you occupied - including special contributions from Bloomsbury and Scholastic, nifty magical craft videos (teach your friends how to draw a Niffler!), fun articles, quizzes, puzzles and plenty more for first-time readers, as well as those already familiar with the wizarding world.

With thanks to Dunedin Public Library for most of the links.

Happy reading!

Marie Kelly
Educational Psychologist (reg)
Kidz Therapy and KTL Tuition
 
May 2020

Using any tuition company is a big decision for parents and their children.  Ensuring the tutoring company you choose has a good solid reputation and reliable and delivers the results you want is all important.  Here’s how you can you avoid the pitfall of choosing the wrong provider.

1. Assuming the larger the company the better.  Many of the very large companies are franchised and market driven focusing on the filling of seats.  The statistics do not support that the large companies make better gains for your children.  Most often the larger companies take groups of children who may not necessarily be at the same academic level and thus lack individualization of what your child actually needs.  KTL Tuition is not a franchised company. 

2. Choosing group tutoring over 1-on-1. The benefits of 1 on 1 instruction for a private tutoring session are well-documented.  In a 1-on-1 setting, students have the constant attention of the tutor so that they can listen and speak with much more ease than in a group situation.  Each student’s strengths and challenges are addressed individually and fully at their own pace, without the distraction of other students. With a permanent, 1-on-1 student-tutor match an important rapport will also develop, creating a positive, encouraging, and stable atmosphere for learning.  At KTL we offer one-on-one indivualised tutoring so your child’s needs are met rather than someone else’s child. We have been in business ten years and as a trained teacher, tertiary lecturer and educational psychologist I guide the tutors to work to your child’s best advantage. 

3. Assuming your child’s tutor will be great.  Experience tells us they simply are not all great.  At KTL Tuition all tutors are interviewed, screened, trained and regularly observed taking tutoring sessions.  We encourage parents to come along and speak with the tutor at the sessions and any questions are answered immediately.  

4. Assuming that because the tutor has academic knowledge that is it all it takes to be a successful tutor.  There are tutors who are excellent at a certain subject matter but may not have the ability to teach it. Hence, hiring a math genius is not a sure fire way of boosting your child’s results in algebra. She or he may understand the theory but is that particular math genius capable of breaking down a complicated theory so that a child can understand it and even excel on the subject?  KTL Tuition tutors have great personalities, provide positive reinforcement and make a genuine connection to make sure there is ‘buy in’ for the students.  

5. Assuming that your child will make massive improvements in their academic outcomes. Increases in achievement come from confidence and clarity.   Learning is not passive – there is a strong connection between student engagement and results which is why at KTL Tuition we welcome your comments about our tutoring dyads, and we do our very best to ensure we have the best possible tutor match for your child.  Our purpose-built room is warm and welcoming and we encourage the students to feel at home.  At the start of each term we set new goals with each student.  

6. Wanting the tutor to come to your home:  Yes, this works for families but restricting yourself to only home-based tutoring decreases your choice of finding ‘that right tutor’ for your child.  KTL Tuition provides on site tutoring in centrally based Morningside handy to trains and buses.  Some of our students have attended for seven years or more-

7. Using a service or individual with only limited subjects or levels. Today your child needs help with Maths and other days it may be Science.  Selecting an individual or service which only offers limited subjects or levels means the search will begin anew each time your child’s needs change. By selecting a service like KTL Tuition that offers many, varied subjects and instruction at all levels, parents can save time and headaches.

8. Selecting a service with limited hours. Our busy lifestyles mean that tutoring often must be sandwiched in between other activities including sports practices and games, extra-curricular commitments, and work schedules. For maximum effectiveness KTL Tuition is open for tutoring 7 days a week.

​Research suggests that 75% of students consider themselves to be procrastinators with 50% doing so regularly and to a level that is considered a problem. The author of one of the biggest studies on procrastination, researcher Piers Steel, states that “the further away an event is, the less impact it has on people’s decisions.”

​Executive functions let people plan, organize and complete tasks. Executive function is like the CEO of the brain. It’s in charge of making sure things get done from the planning stages of the job to the final deadline. When kids have issues with executive functioning, any task that requires planning, organization, memory, time management and flexible thinking becomes a challenge.