Angela's advice - Should my child have a tutor?

With a myriad of options out there when it comes to tutoring services, we're delighted to offer some advice from our own Angela Rudderham on deciding when your child might need the support of a tutor - and what you should be looking for.

The Bridgeway Team

By Angela E. Rudderham
Director, Turning Tides Community Outreach

Every parent wants their child to succeed in school and have a future full of opportunities and possibilities.  We send them to school each day with all their supplies and a balanced lunch and trust our educators will work to develop our child’s true potential and foster in them a desire to learn. 

Unfortunately, the reality is that not every child’s true potential is unlocked from simply attending school.  In fact, 15-year-olds in Nova Scotia scored statistically lower in academics than the Canadian average, according to Statistics Canada.   Math and literacy scores in Nova Scotia are among the lowest in the country, and the Nova Scotia dropout rate in 2010 was 8.6%.  Only 28% of students from Nova Scotia will go on to university and 8% will go on to a college or trade education. Our children need other supports to ensure their success.  The question is, when are additional supports necessary, and what form should they take?

Tutoring is an excellent way to build academic confidence, improve grades and learn new skills.

You may want your child tutored if:

Your child still needs help mastering basic skills.  Teachers will move forward whether your child has mastered the skill or not. If basic skills are not mastered, then the student will struggle when relying on them to solve more complex problems. These skills need to be re- taught until mastered.

Your child struggles with organization, working independently, or lacks study skills. Often the brightest students who learn quickly may lack organizational skills or become overwhelmed when faced with a testing situation. Anyone can benefit from learning how to organize notes, break down large assignments, meet due dates or discover how they best take in information.

Your child has a learning disability.  This will interfere with the learning process in areas such as the intake, storage, processing, retrieval and/or output of information. A tutoring service that has extensive experience and training in helping students with learning disabilities should be able to show the student how they learn best and provide strategies for independent success.

Your child is struggling with big life changes.  A move, divorce, new school, family issues can all contribute to your child being distracted from their school work. Working closely with a tutor will ensure a smoother transition.

Your child struggles with behavioral, social or emotional needs.  Often these needs can contribute to missed instruction time. A tutor with experience working with students who have had similar needs will often have a large tool box of strategies to draw from to keep your child engaged and on track.

Your child has missed a lot of school due to medical or other reasons. A tutor can go back and teach what was missed and help the student gain back the confidence that they may have lost. They can also work around the student’s schedule.

You want to give your child the competitive edge to get ahead.  There is always room for improvement. Striving to do our personal best is an excellent habit to develop at any age.

Your child needs homework support.  Parents, homework and the student can sometimes be an unpleasant combination to say the least. In most homes, both parents are working or have other major responsibilities and there just isn’t time to give your child the homework support they need without it taking on a rushed or negative tone. Let someone else be the “bad “guy and save your parent/ child time for the important stuff like hugs and kisses.

The right tutoring service will be able to match your child’s needs with the right service. They should understand the importance of rapport building between the student and the tutor. The tutor should be willing to work with your child’s teacher, provide regular updates and reports, and improvements should be noticed after a few months. Be wary of services that will not let you observe or listen in on sessions at least once or have no way to measure the acquisition of new skills. There is little doubt that anyone can benefit from tutoring.  Do your homework and shop around.  Ask questions and compare services and prices until you find the right fit.

Angela Rudderham is the Director of Turning Tides Community Outreach, a community-based organization providing social, behavioural and organizational support to individuals across Nova Scotia.  For more information on tutoring, social skills, parenting and professional development programs offered by Turning Tides, please visit www.turningtides.ca or call 902-404-TIDE (8433).

A few things you probably don't know about the new Children's Arts Tax Credit

It's tax season again, and if you have children, you're probably looking forward to claiming the new Children's Arts Tax Credit for the first time.  Although you probably know it covers arts programs, you might not know that it covers academic tutoring, programs that help develop interpersonal skills, and programs that help children develop and use intellectual skills.  That credit will apply to both the tutoring and social skills programs offered by our sister organization, Turning Tides Community Outreach! 

Here is an explanation of the credit program by Wade Brummet, parent and Past-Chair of the Equal Education Association of Nova Scotia.

Rhonda & the Bridgeway team

By Wade Brummet

Equal Education Association of Nova Scotia

New for the 2011 tax year is the Children's Arts Tax Credit.  Up to $500 is eligible to be deducted from either (not both) parents return for children under 16.  For children holding a disability tax certificate (form 2201), they are eligible for the credit until age 18, and qualify for an additional credit of $500 if at least $100 in eligible expenses has been paid.  For example, if you claimed $150, the actual credit amount will be $650. 

The new tax credit has been fairly well-publicized, but what might not be as well known is that money paid for programs that support the intellectual or social development of kids, along with academic tutoring, can also be claimed.  Here is the full list of activities that are eligible:

·         contributes to the development of creative skills or expertise in artistic or cultural activities;
·         provides a substantial focus on wilderness and the natural environment;
·         helps children develop and use particular intellectual skills;
·         includes structured interaction among children where supervisors teach or help children develop interpersonal skills; or
·         provides enrichment or tutoring in academic subjects.

To qualify for this amount, a program must meet the requirements listed under the section called "Prescribed program" at Line 365.  You can also find more information on the Canada Revenue Agency website at http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/gncy/bdgt/2011/qa01-eng.html.

Note: An activity that develops creative skills or expertise is only eligible if it is intended to improve a child's dexterity or co-ordination, or helps in acquiring and applying knowledge through artistic or cultural activities such as literary arts, visual arts, performing arts, music, media, languages, customs, and heritage.

 
The Equal Education Association of Nova Scotia is a non-profit association formed to advocate educational rights on behalf of all children with learning disabilities in Nova Scotia.  Contact EEANS for more information at info@eeans.ca or visit their website -  www.eeans.ca.

Bridgeway receives $750,000 endowment grant

We're delighted to announce that we have received a major boost in our efforts to create bursary programs for families in financial need.  The Johnson Scholarship Foundation is a supporter of some major organizations in the US, and we're very proud that they have chosen to support Bridgeway and Turning Tides Community Outreach.  We'll share more information about the grant and bursary availability soon.  In the meantime, we thought we would share the media release that went out this morning. 

Rhonda

Bridgeway Academy receives Johnson Scholarship Foundation Grant

Launches $1.95 million endowment campaign

Dartmouth, NS - Bridgeway Academy will receive up to $750,000 in endowment funding over the next five years from the Johnson Scholarship Foundation, a U-S based private foundation with the mission of assisting disadvantaged individuals obtain education.

Endowment funds will be used to support students with learning disabilities who are in financial need.  Students may use bursary funds to obtain access to Bridgeway’s day school programs, as well as tutoring and social skills programs through its Turning Tides Community Outreach programs. 

Bridgeway has committed to raising an additional $1.2 million in endowment funds, bringing the total endowment to $1.95 million in five years.   Bridgeway will raise and distribute another $600,000 in bursaries to families in need over the five year period.

“Cost has been a barrier to many families wishing to access our programs,” says Lucinda Low, Founder and Executive Director of Bridgeway Academy.  “The Johnson Scholarship Foundation Endowment will open doors to students who are currently struggling with learning disabilities or social skills deficits and allow us to provide them with the skills they need to succeed.”

“Bridgeway Academy was a natural choice,” says Malcolm MacLeod, President of the Johnson Scholarship Foundation.  “Education of young people with learning disabilities falls squarely within the Foundation’s mission.  We are extremely impressed by the Bridgeway’s operations and its method of instruction in particular.  And the outstanding leadership of Bridgeway makes it a good bet for continued success. “

Bursary funding will be made available starting in the 2012-13 academic year.  Information on Bridgeway’s bursary programs, including application criteria, can be found on Bridgeway’s website – www.bridgeway-academy.com.  Information on Turning Tides Community Outreach programs and bursaries can be found on the Turning Tides website – www.turningtides.ca.

About the Johnson Scholarship Foundation

The Johnson Scholarship Foundation was founded in 1991 by Theodore R. Johnson and Vivian M. Johnson.  Since inception, it has made grants of approximately $80 million to support the disabled or those who are disadvantaged because of their social or economic circumstances.  The Foundation assists only those in financial need and has chosen to support education as the best means to empower people to become more independent and to participate more fully in the benefits of society.  All of the Foundation's grants are made through partner institutions, and does not make grants to individuals.  For further information, please refer to the Foundation's website: www.jsf.bz.

About Bridgeway Academy

Established in 1983, Bridgeway is one of the leading providers of individualized education for students with learning disabilities in Nova Scotia.  With locations in Dartmouth and Truro, Bridgeway’s day school program offers a safe, nurturing learning environment for students aged 5-19.

Bridgeway Academy is a registered charity, and is managed by an Executive Director under the guidance of a Board of Directors.  For more information about Bridgeway, please visit www.bridgeway-academy.com.

For more information, please contact:

Rhonda Brown, Director of Communications

902-483-7800 or Rhonda.Brown@Bridgeway-Academy.com

Why are social skills so important?

I have been working with a colleague this week on a social skills program our sister organization, Turning Tides Community Outreach, would like to offer to high-risk kids in a low-income part of Halifax.  As part of that work, I have been taking a closer look at social skills and the many ways we rely on them to be successful.  I don't mean knowing what fork to use at dinner in a fancy restaurant.  Social skills help us know what to say, how to behave, and how to make good choices in a variety of situations.  When you think about it, those skills are criticial to successful functioning in life.  Earlier this week, I did some research on the National Association of School Psychologists website, and thought I'd share a bit of what I learned about social skills. 

Rhonda

Most kids pick up positive social skills every day through interactions with adults and other kids.  But not every child has positive role models, and others are unable to model what they see every day due to a learning disability or other cognitive impairment.  Poor social skills can affect academic performance, behaviour, social and family relationships and involvement  in extra curriculular activities. 

Here's some info from the NASP website on the consequences of poor social skills.

Students with poor social skills have been shown to:

• Experience difficulties in interpersonal relationships with parents, teachers, and peers.
• Evoke highly negative responses from others that lead to high levels of peer rejection. Peer rejection has been linked on several occasions with school violence.
• Show signs of depression, aggression and anxiety.
• Demonstrate poor academic performance as an indirect consequence.
• Show a higher incidence of involvement in the criminal justice system as adults.

The good news is that social skills can be taught.  At Bridgeway, Social Skills classes are part of the everyday curriculum for our kids because it's an area that students with learning disabilities and ADHD struggle with.  For many of our students, direct instruction of social skills have made a huge difference in their social relationships, behaviour and academic performance.

What do kids learn in a social skills class?  They learn about the importance of first impressions, introductions and small talk.  They learn to evaluate friendships and possible new friends, and how to behave and communicate with those friends (taking turns, listening, etc.).  They learn to extend invitations, be aware of the feelings of others, and how to communicate.  They learn how to problem solve, make choices, set personal boundaries and avoid fights.  Kids become more aware of themselves and others, and begin to overcome some of the barriers to success they had faced before because of their poor social skills.

What happens when kids have positive social skills?  Here are some of the consequences, again from NASP:

With a full repertoire of social skills, students will have the ability to make social choices that will strengthen their interpersonal relationships and facilitate success in school. Some consequences of good social skills include:

• Positive and safe school environment.
• Child resiliency in the face of future crises or other stressful life events.
• Students who seek appropriate and safe avenues for aggression and frustration.
• Children who take personal responsibility for promoting school safety.

Social skills support is available for any child in HRM and Dartmouth through Turning Tides Community Outreach.  Even if you're outside of those areas, give Angela Rudderham a call at 902-404-TIDE (8433) for more information on how you can help the child in your life.