College can be more Affordable when you Receive College Scholarships

The desire to attend college is one that many people have. It used to be traditional to so right out of high school. While many students do follow this path, others take some time off first before they move into that part of their life. It also isn’t uncommon for many men and women to decide to attend college later on in life. They may have started families or followed a career path that they wish to further enhance. Regardless of when a person attends college, the cost is often a problem to be concerned with.

The financial burden of it can be offset through the awarding of college scholarships. Many students admit that they never would have been able to complete their education if such financial assistance wasn’t in place for them. While a person can apply for loans, not everyone is eligible for them. Many young college students don’t have any support financially from their parents for schooling. Yet they aren’t able to apply for loans on their own at that time. In other cases a co-signer is required before they can access such funding.

As a result their desire to attend college can be unachievable. With the acceptance though of college scholarships they will find they are able to attend like they want to. Being accepted to the college of your choice doesn’t necessarily mean that you will be able to afford it. With the help of college scholarships though this ability is closer to becoming a reality. With the cost of education continuing to increase, students need all the help the can get.

It may surprise you to learn about just how much money is available out there in the form of college scholarships. There are millions awarded annually and there is simply no reason why you shouldn’t strive to get a portion of it. If you don’t apply for them then other people are going to. Why should you continue to struggle with the cost of going to college when you don’t  have to?

Wouldn’t it be nice to also just focus on your studies? With college scholarships you won’t be as likely to also have to work at the same time. That also frees up your time for you to pursue other interests on the college campus. There are many great clubs and activities that you can choose to be a part of. They can make your entire college experience more fulfilling.

If you definitely want to attend college, then make sure it will be possible for you. Don’t let financial concerns prevent you from being able to do so. College is a big step for anyone and a great way to ensure you have a bright future. Being able to work in a field that you are passionate about is very important. No one wants to dread having to go to work each day. By the same token a college education often means earning more money.

Now that you realize college can be more affordable when you receive college scholarships you should be looking into them. Don’t allow your dream of attending college to slip through your fingers. Do all you can to prepare for the cost of attendance. You can also avoid the dark cloud of a huge pile of debt waiting for you to repay when you finish either.

The Purpose of Kindergarten

It’s pretty common when you are starting to prepare your preschool child for that first day of kindergarten for her to ask you, probably with tears in her eyes, “But Daddy, why do I have to go?”  And while you have your parent answers to give her and you will obviously refocus her attention on how fun it will be and how it will be her next step toward “being a big girl”, you might ask yourself that question as well.  It’s important that dad and mom have a firm idea of what kindergarten is all about as well so you can do a good job of preparing your little one for this big step in life.

It is a mistake to see kindergarten as a huge academic leap into the future.  When parents pour so much energy into preparing their children to excel academically before heading off to kindergarten, they miss the point of this important year of school.  Moreover, by “prepping” the child for school as though this first year was going to be their freshman year at MIT, you create even more stress and anxiety because the child begins to think they are going to walk into a situation of high stress. The result is the child goes off to kindergarten already stressed and far more anxious than is justified for this first step out of the home.

Now this does not mean that preschool is not a good idea.  Not only does preschool give the child an early love of learning, it is also an excellent way to help your child begin to acclimate to the idea of going to school out of the home.  And learning to go somewhere else and become part of an organized curriculum is a big purpose of kindergarten.  So preschool gently starts that transition both academically and emotionally.

To a very large extent, the purpose of kindergarten is to help young children begin that transition to a structured environment of school.  If by the end of this important first year, kindergarten children come to school happily, know how to work with a schedule, sit at desks, listen to speakers, write things down and take them home and then bring them back again the next day and walk through the structured schedule of a normal school day, that is a huge step forward in preparing your child for school life that will begin in first grade.

Yes there is a curriculum in kindergarten and simple lessons are taught.  Very often grades are not even kept or a child is given a good or passing grade just for being in class, participating in the group activity and trying to work with the program.  The learning objectives that any kindergarten teacher will have for this year of life with these first year students is heavily slanted toward behavioral and social goals and not as heavy on academics. 

The kindergarten teacher is a much different kind of teacher than any others your child will meet in his or her academic career.  You will find your child’s kindergarten teacher to be very interested in each child as an individual and in helping your child make that transition away from living at home every hour of the day and toward using a significant part of their day at school.  Commonly kindergarten teachers have special training in child psychology and are as much counselors and guides as they are teachers of lessons from books.

Get to know the teacher of your child’s kindergarten class.  You will find she is eager to know all she can about your child to achieve her goal of preparing each kindergartner for the more academic years ahead.  And if you are in sync with those goals, you can reinforce the experience your child is having with encouragement and interest at home.  And working as a team, you and the teacher will help your child have a wonderful and successful first year in school.

Summer Reading

Keeping kids interested in books is getting easier with J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books inspiring the highest childhood literacy rates in years, but while Harry's great for getting kids interested, to keep ahead of aggressive class curriculums and get a leg up on the coming year's studies, there are a few great books out there to help relieve some work load without having to hit the text books until September.

The Fabric Of The Cosmos: Greene, Brian; Imagine a book that explains everything you need to know about the basics of physical sciences without having to try to understand Stephen Hawking.  Explained in easy to read fashion with a lot of examples (Bart Simpson on a skateboard to help explain Einstein's Special Relativity), Greene manages to make the most complicated issues seem straight forward. He is a professor of Physics at Columbia University and theoretical physicist.

Finding Darwin's God: Miller, Kenneth; For those who are interested in social studies and biology, Miller's effort bridges the gap between religion and science arguing that they don't have to be exclusive to them selves.  He reviews the arguments that have been put forward over the years, explaining their merits and weak points. He puts his religious views out in the open from the outset, and explains how his faith in God isn't challenged by the idea of evolution, but enhanced by it.  Miller is a professor of Biology at Brown University, in the Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry.

A History of the World in Six Glasses: Standage, Tom; How beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea and Coca-Cola have shaped the empires of the world.  Starting with ancient Egypt and Greece until the present day rise of the United States, Standage shows how those countries and periods in history were shaped by these drinks. The Art of War: Sun Tzu; A classic guide to strategy praised by military leaders and executives alike, The Art of War is less about war as it is about strategies with which to approach your every day life, and realigning your perceptions with the nature of the environment in which you find yourself, including handling opposition, and the perfect strategy of winning without fighting.

The Art of Happiness: His Holiness the Dalai Lama with Howard C. Cutler, M.D.; Lessons which should be learned very early in life, it provides methods of stress relief and is a good counter balance to Sun Tzu's work.  "…Happiness is our birthright as human beings. There is no doubt that life can be difficult—living in today's world is not always easy. But despite life's inevitable problems and challenges, genuine happiness is still possible".

How to Read Literature Like a Professor: Foster, Thomas C.; Teaches English students how to find those key points in a novel which teachers will be testing on to see how well a student understands the material.  It provides a break down of how to interpret the most common symbols and meanings that teachers and professors will be looking for.

Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time: Mortenson, Greg and Colin Oliver Relin;  A man's story about bringing education to underdeveloped areas in Pakistan and Afghanistan, in racially charged times it can be important to introduce a new perspective to the world and create an understanding of what people in other parts of the world must endure.  Winner of  the 2007 Kiriyama Prize for nonfiction While these aren't the only books that should be read through the summer they are a few that help give a good start to the new year of school.