There’s a continuous buzz about using solar energy, right? It’s a snap to begin harnessing the sun’s energy by using a clothes line or an inexpensive folding drying rack.

Too much trouble? You’ll find, that if you use it for nothing else, you’ll save a bundle by hanging your towels. Sure they’ll be less fluffy, but it’s a small price to pay to save energy, $$$, and greenhouse gasses.

Here’s another tip. In the winter, dry the items inside. Why? Because it’ll add moisture to the home. It’s a double benefit: save all of the above and make the living space more comfy.

If there is any interest, I’ll do the calculations on how much money (and energy) a typical family will save each year. Let me know.

Address your response to Al, the “physics professor” (former) member of the writing team, and co-author of the award winning book: Why Bad Grades Happen to Good Kids.

Linda & Al Silbert

Assign a large number of homework questions and make children answer them in full sentences.

Full sentences? Toward what end?

Let’s say the homework question is: What is the capital city of Sweden, and, what popular singing group came from there?

A perfectly good answer is “Stockholm, ABBA.”

Here is how to ruin it. Make the children handwrite something like: The capital city of Sweden is Stockholm and the popular singing group that came from there is ABBA.

That is 18 words—when just two words and a comma will do just fine. That’s a word excess of 800% !

Is the assignment intended to nurture writing skills? Fine. Then it is incumbent on the homework assigner to limit the number of questions. The same goes if the purpose of the assignment is to provide practice in penmanship (penpersonship?).

On the other hand, if the assignment is to strengthen finger muscles and improve the cardio-vascular system and aerobic endurance, then fine, bring it on. In that case, insist that the children use a dull pencil, too; it’ll be a far better workout!

This is an appeal to all homework assigners. If you love your subject—if you are truly passionate about your area of expertise—and want the younger generation to learn to love it too, then don’t kill it.

• Screen the questions and eliminate the low quality ones.
• If the questions are all equally good, limit the number of questions. Don’t just use odds or evens, that only cuts the number in half. Consider assigning every forth question—numbers 4, 8, 12, 16,…(this is especially good for math problems).
• And, of course, allow students to answer in a word or two when that is all that is needed.

If you are a parent, pass this message (or one you write yourself) on to teachers and administrators whom you think will appreciate it. Who knows, you may become a change agent for a movement whose time has come!

Linda & Al Silbert
authors of the book Why Bad Grades Happen to Good Kids

P.S. By the way, doesn’t the ABBA sound “shimmer?” It was electronically enhanced to have multiple versions of the same person singing or playing to create a brilliant, shimmering, sound effect.

These are our sentiments, but not our words; they belong to Albert Einstein.

If the words speak the truth, then why has imagination been allowed to slip so far down in the educational scheme of things?

We feel strongly that the time is right for an “Imagination Renaissance.”

Let’s skip the blaming and name calling; instead, let’s focus on thinking of ways to stimulate imagination in children.

In schools, lets start pushing less heavily on knowledge for testing, while at the same time begin pushing more heavily on imagination—as in thinking—in children.

Let’s not limit the push to schools; let’s be sure to nurture it in our homes, too.

Don’t you agree that the pendulum has swung far enough—that the time is right for an “Imagination Renaissance?”

If you are interested, there are lots of tips on jump starting imagination in children in our book for parents and teachers Why Bad Grades Happen to Good Kids and in our Creative Thinking Workbooks for children 5-12 years.

Linda & Al Silbert

The old-fashioned way of copying assignments from the board, legibly, and gathering the books and materials, requires a variety of valuable life skills. It also requires responsibility, the ‘R’ on our acronym STRONG.

If assignments are available only on-line, or if your children overuse the service, here’s a suggestion. Talk to the teacher(s). Encourage them also to write assignments on the board.

Then, encourage your children (and if necessary, help them develop strategies) to:

• copy the assignments from the board,
• remember to bring them home, and finally,
• remember the required books and materials, too.

These simple tasks contribute to building valuable life-long organizational skills and responsibility.

For additional information, there are numerous books and programs on study and organizational skills, such as our Improve Your Study Skills series. Also, you may find our book Why Bad Grades Happen to Good Kids valuable, because it contains numerous tips and strategies.

Linda & Al Silbert

This is not to put down teachers or schools, but it is a fact of life. Think about it; there are 25+ children in the classroom, each with lots of needs and each vying for the teacher’s attention. Add to that the need to teach children how to pass the mandated “No Child Left Behind” tests, it’s no wonder that creative thinking takes a back seat.

So, as a parent, if you want to be sure your children can think for themselves—deeply and creatively—you have to shoulder the responsibility yourself, becoming their creative thinking coach. Actually, it’s a fun role, so enjoy it.

Here are some tips for you to try:

• Be sure that creativity and “out of the box” thinking is alive and well in your home
• Be sure children have ample un-structured time so they can use their minds to create constructive activities to fill up the time
• Use libraries for creativity enhancing programs as well as for books
• Buy books and puzzles that jump start the creative process
• Engage the services of clever teenagers, babysitters and/or private tutors to bring creative and enriching opportunities to your children

Parents: You know your children best, so you know what works well for them. Please share your successes with us so other parents will benefit from your experience.

Teachers: Please share your successful teaching strategies with us so other teachers will benefit from your classroom experience.

We’ve been long time proponents of creative thinking. We enthusiastically invite you to take a peek at our Creative Thinking Workbooks for children 5-12 years and our book Why Bad Grades Happen to Good Kids, which contains numerous tips and strategies parents and teachers.

Linda & Al Silbert

She goes on to say that by accident, she stumbled upon something that worked. She was doing the math wrong, and her son corrected her, and continued to do the problems all the while teaching her. Soon, without the usual fuss, the work was done. Mom’s question was should she “play dumb” in future homework sessions, to repeat the success.

Here’s the answer: No, he’ll see right through that. Instead of “playing dumb,” impress on your son that teaching someone else how to do something is one of the best ways to learn it yourself.

Encourage your son to act as the teacher, “showing” you how to do the problems, even though you know how to do them yourself. Jump in when he gets stuck, but, do so by “team teaching” with your son.

This will accomplish three important things:

1. It will get the homework done.
2. Your child will know the material far better than if he had just rushed through the work himself. And
3. Working together in a pleasant way, without stress, provides valuable additional “quality time.”

And as a bonus, give this process some time, and don’t be surprised if he discovers a better way to do his math homework—by himself. Why? Because it’ll be faster and more efficient that way. If this tip is helpful, you’ll love our book: Why Bad Grades Happen to Good Kids.

The word is spelled pi. It is a cute Greek letter that stands for a number a little bigger than three (approximately 3.14).

Children will need use this in math classes for many years. So, it’ll make life a lot easier for them if they understand it.

Here is a fun to do little activity that will help. It takes only a few minutes, and is good to do before they spend hours doing circle problems.

Measuring the Number Pi, as easy as one-two-three

All you’ll need is some string (an old shoelace will do) and any round object like a plastic serving tray or large plate.

Step 1. Measure the circumference c of the plate using the string.

Do this by wrapping the string around the outside of the plate. Cut it to that length. That piece is one circumference long. Put it aside.

Step 2. Measure the diameter d of the plate using the unused string.

Do this by placing string straight across the center of the circle. Cut it to that length. That string is one diameter long.

Step 3. Find the number pi.

Find the number pi by answering the question: How many lengths of the short string are needed to equal the long piece?

Just place the short piece next to the long piece of string and count how many short pieces equal the long one. (Hint: it is a little more than three). That’s all there is to it, you just found the number pi.

Pi is simply the number of diameters that equal the circumference. As you found, it is a little more than three of them. In fact, it’s closer to 3.14 of them, or using a little math talk, the circumference is pi times the diameter (c = pi * d).

So, what is so special about that? What makes it special is that it works for all circles.

Encourage children to try it for themselves with different size circular objects. The answer is always the same number, pi.

Now that you found pi, you may want to celebrate. (I bet you know what is coming next). A great pi celebration is to repeat this using a soon-to-disappear apple pi  _ _ _.

Linda & Al Silbert
authors of Why Bad Grades Happen to Good Kids

P.S. Did you ever hear if Pi Day? Math teachers and their students celebrate it every year on March 14 — as in the date — 3_14. Now you know why.

Here is good news; they don’t have to be. Just do them as if you were telling a story. Huh? Bear with me.

If you were telling a story about your trip to a beach, is there any way you would mess things up like: “1. First I dried off with a towel, 2. then I dove into the water, 3. then I was wet and cold so I stepped out of the water.”?

Of course not; it isn’t logical. Well, the same applies to geometry proofs; they have to be logical. (By the way, logical thinking is precisely what geometry proofs are attempting to develop in children).

STORY METHOD: Doing a Casual Proof First

STORY METHOD. Before writing all the statements and reasons, just tell yourself a story. Make little notes and marks as needed on a simplified diagram (that you can freehand or trace from the original).

The story you tell yourself might go something like this: “This equals that (mark them), this bisects that (think: that creates two equal parts, so mark them equal), and at the end I’m trying to prove this triangle is congruent to that one.”

Now, add some detail to your story. Just go step by step doing what I like to call a casual proof. That means using almost no writing, just make light pencil marks and some abbreviated comments as you tell your story. Once you’ve finished the casual proof (story), now write each step, statement and reason. And, to make it easier to follow, as you go through the steps, darken the pencil marks you made on the casual diagram.

Why do it this way? Because once you start writing long, formal statements, it’s hard to concentrate on your logical overall plan. By doing a casual proof first, it is less likely that you will get lost.

And, for Pete’s sake (who the heck is Pete, anyway?), don’t write all the givens first. That’s not logical. Instead, write each one as you need it in your “story.” They don’t make logical sense all bunched up at the beginning of the proof. (The reason teachers tell students to put all the givens first, is to make sure the students don’t leave any out. That is easy to do by checking off each given as you use it).

And finally, relax in the formality when it comes to reasons. Instead of “When two straight lines intersect, they create pairs of vertical angles whose measures are congruent,” simplify the reasons. Make them short and punchy, like “All vertical angles are equal.” When you make the reasons simple and less formal, they are shorter and easier to remember.

Have fun doing proofs, after all, they are a lot like puzzles.

Linda & Al Silbert
authors of Why Bad Grades Happen to Good Kids

P.S. Do you know what geometry means? “Geo” means Earth, and “metry” means measuring. Geometry was created long ago to measure the earth, or pieces of land on the earth. Pretty cool.