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10 Best Teaching Tips For A Great School Year

Teachers arguably have one of the most challenging and rewarding jobs, all at once. The following list should help you to keep your career in perspective, as well as infuse your students with an openness and desire to learn.

Prepared But Flexible

The most effective teachers create lesson plans in advance, know their subject well and have all of their teaching supplies on hand. However, these teachers are also flexible.

Never sacrifice true learning for time lines, even if it throws your schedule slightly awry. If your students are genuinely interested in delving deeper into a topic or if they need extra help understanding a new concept, be flexible enough to realize that your lesson is a guideline rather than a rigid structure.

Project Kindness

Especially for young children, a little warmth and nurturing go a long way. Keep in mind the emotional and mental maturity of your students. Little things like a smile, eye contact or a handshake at the start of the day may be all it takes to shake off a grumpy early morning and open them up to learning.

Establish Class Rules

To ensure that children know exactly what is expected of them in your class, use the first week of school to establish class rules. Post them where they can be seen and review them often. Especially during the first week of school, encourage your students to discuss the rules and gauge their understanding.

Plan for Disciplinary Problems

Be clear that not every student will act how you want them to all of the time. To maintain an environment conducive to learning, have a clear plan for how you will deal with disciplinary problems. This will be somewhat dictated by school protocol, but once you get to know the individuals in your classroom, you will be better able to assess what types of discipline tactics you will need to employ.

Enthusiasm is Contagious

Find ways to breathe life into each lesson and convey your sense of enthusiasm and passion for the subject to your students. Like the cliche about finding the silver lining, even with subjects you’re genuinely less interested in, find some angle that excites you and run with it. Your students will reflect your emotion and enthusiasm.

Develop a Sense of Humor

Pull out your sense of humor at any difficult moment: when your students are running wild, when the class is chaotic, when you’re stressed, overworked and uninspired. When things don’t go as planned, keeping a sense of humor will not only rub off on your students, but it may teach them something more valuable than the lesson material.

Interact with Your Students

Students who feel that you’re interested in who they are and what is going on in their personal lives are usually more open to learning from you. By interacting with your students and getting to know them, you invite them to embark on an educational adventure, instead of just sitting in a chair listening to you talk each day.

Listening Skills

Speaking of listening, you should model good listening skills for your students. Because you spend so much time talking, it is sometimes easy to forget that your job is also to listen.

Constant Improvement

Whether you read trade magazines, teaching blogs or take enrichment classes, never stop looking for ways to improve your craft.

Keeping a healthy perspective will make you a better teacher. These tips, used wisely, will make the job of teaching more rewarding for you and for those you teach.

Balance

As with any job it’s extremely important to have a good balance between your work and personal life. If you spend all of your free time working on grading papers and coming up with new lesson plans then you need to make an effort to set aside free time to spend with family and friends. It’s too easy to get bogged down with work and be completely consumed by it. Next time you are feeling stressed or overwhelmed take a look at how you’re spending your time and see if you have a good balance between your work and personal life.

Jennifer Dobson invites you to visit her favorite teacher supplies store, MPM School Supplies. It has a great variety of products including craft supplies and classroom furnishings like classroom rugs and carpets. The best part about shopping at MPM School Supplies is that 50% of gross profits are donated to children’s charities!

6 Helpful Tips For First Year Teachers

Your first year of teaching will likely be full of trials and errors, as well as healthy doses of uncertainty and innocence. The following tips are meant to help guide you through some of the trickier aspects of teaching for the first time.

Establish Rules and Expectations

Veteran teachers know the importance of establishing rules and expectations for the classroom during the first week - and preferably the first day. Communicate the rules clearly, post them largely somewhere in the classroom and go over them several times. Initiate a discussion about each rule and get the students to respond to them or explain them in their own words. This will help to establish understanding and ownership of the rules.

Lesson Plan Preparation

You will feel calmer and enjoy your job much more if you’re lesson plans are created well in advance. Plan your lessons a week or even a whole month ahead of time. Be certain to include a few extra activities with each lesson plan just in case you go through the daily lessons more quickly than you anticipated.

Adequate Teaching Supplies

Being well prepared also includes having the teaching supplies you need on hand. You may choose to manage this inventory by having your students contribute supplies to the whole classroom at the beginning of the year. However you decide to do it, keep your teacher supply closet well stocked with all the necessary materials to take you through each day’s lesson. A monthly inventory check can help avoid the panic of lacking the proper materials to complete a lesson or project.

Work-Life Balance

It is easy for first year teachers to be so caught up with the duties of teaching that they forget to have a personal life. Obviously, this is not a pattern you want to develop.

You may work harder and put in longer hours refining your routine and your methods during the first year, but go easy on yourself. Choose classroom decorations and bulletin board sets that are easy to maintain, as well as being durable and reusable. High maintenance classroom d?cor is a prescription for teaching burnout.

If you can, involve students and parent volunteers as much as possible with classroom decorations and save your strength for well-planned lessons.

Substitute Set-up

Be prepared for the eventuality that you will miss a few days of school. Part of your summer prep work should include creating a folder or multiple folders with information for substitute teachers. This information should include your own tips for classroom procedures and a checklist for finding all the necessary materials and teaching supplies in the classroom. In addition, provide a list of approved classroom games and activities for substitute days, as well as a few different handouts that can take the place of regular instruction.

Be Available

It is very important that you make yourself available to parents who want to be involved in their child’s education. Plan to come to school a few minutes early and leave a few minutes late so that you can chat with parents and respond to questions and concerns. If you are available via email, this is a great way to communicate with busy parents and may make your job easier; responding to emails can be done, within reason, at your convenience.

These first-year teaching tips are intended to highlight and simplify some of the more time-consuming aspects of your job so that you can focus more attention on your students and take less work home with you.

Jennifer Dobson would like you to visit her favorite online teaching supplies store, MPM School Supplies. It has an awesome selection of quality products including classroom rugs and art supplies. One of the coolest parts about shopping with MPM School Supplies is that 50% of gross profits is donated to charities like Coats for Kids and World Vision!

4 Simple Classroom Management Tips To Keep Your Classroom Organized

There is an abundant variety of teacher supplies to help you keep your classroom organized. Teacher supply stores are a great place to look for ideas and items that will help you achieve your own special remedy for organization.

Step 1: Filing Paperwork

As a teacher, you will constantly be juggling a steady stream of paperwork. From student homework and newsletters to school memos and lesson plans, paperwork comes with the job.

In this vein, one vital teaching supply is a good filing system. Whether it’s a drawer filing system or a portable file, have files and folders clearly marked for each type of paperwork that you shuffle around. In addition, create a folder for paperwork that requires your immediate attention. This folder should come and go with you each day.

Step 2: The Well Stocked Teacher Supply Cabinet

An essential area of teacher organization is having the teaching supplies on hand when you need them. Make a list of all the teaching supplies you need to have in your cabinet. Then, take a monthly inventory of your stock and purchase additional supplies as needed. These steps will help you be certain that your most essential teaching supplies are only a few steps from your desk.

Step 3: Arrange Your Classroom for Good Flow

In order to make each day run as smoothly as possible, there are a few things to consider when arranging your classroom furniture. Arrange the desks so that all of your students can make eye contact with you, easily see chalkboards and bulletin boards and other teaching visuals. This will help to keep their focus on you and the lesson.

Keep student desks away from high traffic areas like near the door, the student closet or student supply areas. This will keep bottlenecks from wasting valuable learning time.

Arrange cabinets or shelves where student supplies are kept for easy access and clean up. Organize craft supplies and other student supplies in neat stacks. If you’re a very organized person, you may want to label where each item should go so that the students can practice reading while they clean up.

Step 4: Student Jobs

Start from the premise that your students want to please you and help you whenever they can. Come up with a list of tasks that students can perform that will allow you to spend less time on organization. It also teaches responsibility and makes the students feel “big.” Some examples of classroom tasks that students can perform are watering plants, collecting and passing out homework and worksheets, erasing and cleaning chalkboards, pushing in chairs neatly at the end of the day, and organizing learning centers and book shelves.

While it may not seem like much, all of these little organization tasks add up. It will save you time and frustration over the long run if you teach the students how you want them to perform each job and give them constructive feedback on their performance.

Well-planned classroom organization will make your job as a teacher much easier. Having the appropriate teaching supplies on hand and a good filing system for paperwork, in addition to thoughtful classroom arrangement and assigning student jobs, are four steps in the right direction.

Jennifer Dobson invites you took take a peak at MPM School Supplies, her favorite place to get discount teacher supplies. It as carries products to furnish you classroom like educational kids rugs and much more. Visit today!

How Can Educational Consultants Take The Stress Out Of College Admissions?

High school counselors spend an average of 23 minutes working with their college-bound students on the college search and planning process. Most high school counselors work with more than 350 students. Few high school counselors are able to visit colleges or attend national conferences because their schools do not have the budget for them to do so.

Applying to college can be a very stressful experience. The whole process has changed dramatically in the last twenty years. Most parents do not have the time or knowledge to serve as an effective college guide for their teenager. What’s a family to do? Many are turning to educational consultants for help. They have the expertise to assist college-bound students with the college search and application process. They also have the passion and the time.

Here are nine reasons why an educational consultant can make a difference for your college-bound student.

1. They are experts in the college admission process and visit colleges and universities extensively every year to determine the unique qualities in each school. They are not relying on what a book or college representative might say, but have a good look at a school from their own objective viewpoint.

2. They help students with the college search and are not just interested in brand name schools, but want to find colleges that fit your student’s academic and personal needs. Students need to look beyond the school names they are familiar with and consider colleges that may be less known “hidden gems.”

3. They do not have an emotional attachment to your child and this allows them to provide unbiased, professional advice. It is often difficult to be objective when you are working with your own child and this can lead to family frustration.

4. They get to know students on a personal basis which enables them to help students become stronger college applicants. They take the time to find out what is important to a student and what they are looking for in a college experience. This helps in the college search and throughout the application process.

5. They provide direction for students on their applications and essays. They read and review the applications and essays and offer suggestions to improve them if necessary. They set up a schedule so that students are adhering to application and scholarship deadlines set by both their high school and colleges.

6. They assist students and families in finding schools that are affordable. They also provide information on financial aid and scholarships. They know the colleges that are more generous with financial aid and scholarships and encourage students to include a few of these on their college list if they are the right fit.

7. They are not limited in the number of hours they can work with students. This allows them to be available when students need them, with the answers they need. College counseling is their job and they are not distracted by other responsibilities.

8. They want to help students find colleges that are committed to seeing their students graduate in four years, rather than the usual five, six or more. This can save parents a considerable amount of money. Most parents would be surprised to see the low four year graduation rate at many schools.

9. They are members of professional organizations like the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) and Higher Education Consultants Association (HECA) and attend state and national conferences to continue their professional development.

A college education is one of the most expensive investments a family will make. It should be obvious that more time and thought needs to go into the college search and admission process. Most educational consultants charge affordable fees and are very generous with their time. Many families believe that hiring an educational consultant is the best investment they have made. To find a list of qualified educational consultants in your state, go to http://www.hecaonline.org.

Susie Watts is an educational consultant and the founder of College Direction in Denver, Colorado. She assists students with their college search, applications, and the admissions process. She is also a test prep coach for the SAT and ACT. For more information go to http://www.collegedirection.org.

Cut College Costs- 32 Possibilities to Explore

These tips apply to anyone who plans to attend college or who is already enrolled. At least two-thirds of college students need to take out college loans to finance their education, and these loans take many years to pay off, anywhere from 10-30 years in most cases. If you can cut the amount you need to borrow, your lower student loan balance will be easier to pay off.

1. Check with the education office of your state government to see what sorts of scholarships, grants, or loans are available from your state. Many states have programs like these.

2. Have your parents check to see if the companies they work for offer tuition assistance to children of employees.

3. If you are a good athlete you might qualify for an athletic scholarship. Ask your high school coach and/or guidance councilor for help if you think you might qualify.

4. If you live close enough to your school to commute there from home you can save a lot of money. Living costs can be a major portion of college expense.

5. If you are going to borrow money via student loans to finance most or all of your college education, try to graduate in three years instead of four years or longer. If will be a lot of work, but your debt burden will be significantly reduced. Ask your academic advisor up-front about this type of program.

6. Check with the schools you are interested in to see what merit scholarships are available. These are not need based and anyone can qualify regardless of parental income.

7. While in high school be sure to take exams to qualify for the National Merit Scholarship Program scholarship awards. Ask your school counselor about how to do this if you don’t know.

8. If you are a musician or are planning on studying drama or journalism for example, you might qualify for some financial assistance at many schools. Ask your department head if any help like this is available and if your might qualify.

9. Purchase only used textbooks. Do a google search for “cheap college textbooks”. You will see a lot sites offering deals. You can also sell used textbooks although you may need to keep those textbooks that pertain to your major field of study.

10. In-state residents get better tuition fees than do out of state students at state colleges and universities. Consider staying in your own state for school, at least for your first two years.

11. Check with the schools you are interested in to see what merit scholarships are available. These are not need based and anyone can qualify regardless of parental income.

12. Working part-time can be a huge help with paying college expenses. Don’t overdo it, however. Your top priority needs to be getting the most out of your studies. Some campuses offer work in exchange for room and board, so look for these types of opportunities. Do this as early as possible since sometimes these opportunities are first-come first-served.

13. Taking fewer classes can reduce the amount of time you need to be in school. Sometimes you can take an examination in a particular subject and get credit for having taken that class. Ask about programs like the Advanced Placement Program (APP), the College-Level Examination Program (CLEP), and the Provenience Examination Program (PEP).

14. While in high school be sure to take exams to qualify for the National Merit Scholarship Program scholarship awards. Ask your school counselor about how to do this if you don’t know.

15. If you aren’t going to get much help covering college costs from your parents, you might want to consider going to a community college or a junior college for your first one or two years. If you lived at home your savings would be much greater. Be very careful to make sure that the credits you earn will be transferrable to the school you ultimately wish to attend. Don’t put yourself in a position to be surprised and find out the credits you took end up being worthless.

16. If your parents can afford to purchase a house in or near the town where you attend college, they can rent out rooms to other students. Often the rent will pay the mortgage and the value of the home will increase during your college years. This strategy has obvious risks when housing prices fluctuate.

17. You might be able to get credits for life experiences and thus validate some classes. Write to the Distance Education and Training Council at 1601 18th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20009, or call (202) 234-5100.

18. Some schools charge the same price for a certain amount of credits taken each semester. If you can handle the study load, try to take the maximum number of credits in this case, as it will reduce the amount of time you need to spend at school.

19. Sometimes you can take summer classes at a community college or a junior college, and these could be less expensive than your regular school, especially if you are living at home in the summer. Just make sure the classes you take are transferrable.

20. Check into employment opportunities offered at your school. Most schools have placement offices to help students find part-time employment on campus.

21. If one of your parents is employed at a college or university you may be in luck. Many institutions allow children of employees to attend the school at greatly reduced tuition, sometimes even at no cost. These types of programs are not need based so they are open to everyone who qualifies.

22. Look for work as an RA (Resident Advisor). Older students can get reduced or even free room and board for supervising younger students. Room and board is a major college expense, so thousands of dollars per year can be saved in this way.

23. If you are open to serving in the military after graduation, look into ROTC scholarships or an appointment to one of the military academies such as West Pt., Annapolis, the Air Force Academy, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, or the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. You need to be looking into these types of scholarships early, even in your junior year of high school. There are lots of tests to be taken, as these appointments are highly sought after and are competitive.

24. Look for a low cost school. Periodically there are lists published of schools that provide good value, that is, they have a good reputation and are lower priced than other schools. Try a search for “high quality affordable college” and start your research there.

25. If you are thinking about attending a school of which one of your parents is an alumnus, you may be able to get a lower tuition.

26. If you have a sibling who attends the same school as you, you might be entitled to lower tuition.

27. If you are enrolled in a school and you can get credit for recruiting another student, you might be entitled to a discount. Check into whether your school offers such benefits.

28. Find out if your school offers tuition discounts to student government participants or to people who work of school newspapers and yearbooks.

29. Some schools offer tuition discounts to older students.

30. Some colleges will convert non-federal loans into non-federal grants to students who stay in school and graduate.

31. Some schools will offer lower tuition if the main income earner in a student’s family is unemployed.

32. Some schools have special funds for families who do not qualify for state or federal funding.

Walt Ballenberger is founder of Student Debt Consolidation a resource site with articles and information about student loans and management of student debt and credit card debt. For more information about student debt visit Student Debt Consolidation.

Diverse Groupings Improve Learning and Reduce Behaviour Problems

Diverse groups are mixed in terms of gender and achievement levels. This type of grouping is maximizes potential for peer tutoring, social development and classroom management -whilst avoiding cliques which can lead to bullying, refusal to work, lack of social interaction and other classroom management issues.

It is this particular type of grouping which has been shown through various research studies to show significant gains in academic achievement and classroom behaviour.

Bottom line: If you want to make your classroom run more smoothly, put your students into diverse groupings.

Generally, a diverse group will consist of a high achiever, a low achiever and two middle achievers, and it will consist of males and females. When appropriate, ethnic groups will also be equally represented. Forming and managing these groupings is not as straightforward as random groupings which we covered in a previous article so I’ve included a method you can use below to make the process a little easier for you.

The first issue you need to be cautious of when forming diverse groups is that students should not be aware that they are being grouped according to ability. That means we have to be a bit sneaky when forming the groups.

The method I’m going to present here is very ‘low-tech’ but I’m also going to tell you how you can get a nifty tool to do the job for you.

Low tech method for forming diverse groups: ‘PAIRS’

This method is most popular with students because they have some control over whom they choose to group with. The downside is that you can’t use it with all groups. If there is a broad range of abilities in the class and pupils are conscious of this fact, this grouping won’t work so well.

Start by using your class list to split the group into four clear groups. Put the high-ability students in one corner of the room, the low-ability students in another corner and then split the medium-ability students into two groups, putting one group in each of the other two corners of the room.

Next, ask the students from the high corner to find a partner from ONE of the medium corners. Get students to raise one hand in the air until they find a partner, and to put their hand down when they have done so. That way they can immediately see who is available.

Ask the low corner students to find a partner from the other medium corner in the same way as above.

The low/medium paired students should now stand on one side of the room facing the high/medium pairs. All that’s needed now is for each pair to pair up again with a pair from the opposite side of the room.

This gives groups of four, each with two medium ability students, one high ability and one low ability.

You’ll find that if left to their own devices, the students will invariably pick pairs of their own sex. Diverse groups should have an equal number of boys and girls so you need to stipulate that partners of a different sex must be picked during the first pairing, and pairs of a different sex must be picked in the second pairing.

Once the teams have been formed make a note of the team members for each group so that in later sessions you can have them form new teams with different members to those they are currently with.

Simple?

Well this makes it even simpler…

We’ve had a fantastic little piece of software created called ‘Team Maker’ which you can use in your classroom whenever you want to group your students automatically according to gender and ability level.

It takes all the fuss and trouble out of doing so and even provides print-outs for your students giving a record of previous groups - if you need to know who has worked with who in the past, it’s covered. If you find a grouping that works well and you want to save it, that’s covered too.

All in all this is a very handy tool and it’s currently available as a special introductory offer for a very, very low price.

To find out how you can get this software right now and use it in class immediately go here:

http:www.behaviourneeds.com/team-maker/

The special offer is only available to the first 100 people who respond and they will sell out very quickly - you need to act fast.

Rob Plevin is the author of Magic Classroom Management and the originator of the Needs-Focused Approach to behaviour management. A full schedule of courses and free resources can be seen on his website at www.behaviourneeds.com

The Benefits of Cooperative Group Work

Here are five reasons why you must use cooperative group work in your lessons together with some creative ways of grouping your students:

1. There is less incentive for pupils to disrupt the lesson to get your attention because attention is being received naturally - from the other members of the group.

2. Positive peer relationships are developed as a result of pupils helping each other to reach a common goal.

3. Lower achieving pupils gain confidence and motivation by working collaboratively with higher achieving students. The high ability students also benefit through the process of guiding and supporting their fellow group members - their understanding of the material is reinforced.

4. It saves the teacher time. Once students get used to the cooperative learning framework they effectively teach themselves. The teacher is free from constant requests for attention and can give quality support when it is required rather than when it is demanded.

5. Social skills such as self-expression, decision-making, responsibility, accountability, sharing, listening, and conflict management are naturally practiced and developed. This has a knock-on effect of reducing the occurrence of behaviour problems brought about due to a lack of these skills.

There are many ways to group students when you’re preparing a group activity. Different types of groupings have different benefit sand challenges, so the type you choose depends on various factors. In some cases it might be suitable to allow pupils to pick their own groups but generally it will be up to the teacher to decide which groupings work best for the class and for particular projects. .

Type 1: Random Groups

This is one of the quickest ways to form groups and is best suited to either ‘fun’ sessions where the mix of individuals is not so important, or new groups of individuals you don’t yet know particularly well. Like friendship groups (where students are simply told to get together in a group with their friends), pupils see this as a ‘fair’ way to be grouped as it is based on chance rather than a deliberate choice made by the teacher. As you get to know your students you will naturally find that grouping some individuals together is not appropriate, and you will gradually move away from ‘random groupings’ to more planned and organised methods such as diverse cooperative groups where students’ abilities and genders are taken into consideration.

Ideas for forming ‘Random Groups’

1. Pull the names out of a hat

2. Chocolate bars/candy

This method is very popular with students and is a good one to use on a special occasion, or when you are trying to get a difficult group on side.

Buy a range of chocolate bars or small packets of sweets/candy. You need the same number of sweet types as groups you want to form (so no ‘hundreds and thousands’!). The best to use are the ‘fun size’ chocolate bars – you get around fifteen to twenty of one type in a bag. Six groups of five would require therefore six different types of candy and five of each type.

Stick one chocolate bar/packet of candy under each seat (using tape) and when you want the students to form their groups ask them to check their seat to find their gift. They then arrange themselves in groups of the same candy type.

To make sure groups don’t get mixed up put a large picture of each candy type on the wall in different places around the room. All the ‘Mars’ bars meet under the ‘Mars’ picture, all the ‘pastilles’ meet under the ‘pastille’ picture etc.

Oops, nearly forgot. Remember to check for food allergies on the SEN register before running this one (unless combining with a first aid class).

3. Comic strips:

Here’s a slightly more creative method… Each participant takes a turn at picking a single comic frame out of a large container. After the entire group has each chosen one, the participants begin to search for others with the same comic strip sequence. (Each sequence will relate to a different cartoon character –Dennis the Menace, Minnie the Minx etc.) After the participants have found everyone in their group, they must arrange themselves so that the sequence of frames is in chronological order to form the comic strip correctly and then sit down together.

I hope you like those and found them useful. If you want more ideas like this they can be found in our lesson improvement program:

http://www.needsfocusedlessons.com

Rob Plevin is the author of Magic Classroom Management and the originator of the Needs-Focused Approach to behaviour management. A full schedule of courses and free resources can be seen on his website at www.behaviourneeds.com

Sign Language in the Workplace

Sign language in the workplace is becoming more prevalent as the number of people increases who are hearing impaired, or are completely deaf. Being able to use sign language to communicate and to interact with a deaf co-worker is essential for establishing a positive working climate, and for building a strong rapport. It is equally vital for people to learn sign language who work in environments such as restaurants, hospitals, and retail businesses. In fact, it is not unusual, nor is it strange, to encounter people who cannot hear in every social setting imaginable.

Visualize the reaction a deaf person would have if he/she walked into your establishing to make a purchase, or to request help. You, or one of your employees, greet this customer in sign language by saying, “Hello. How are you?” Or, “Hello, can I help you?” How do you think this deaf customer will react? How good does it feel to this employee that he or she can sign enough to help this customer by communicating in their language? You do not need to be proficient at sign language to help a customer who is deaf. You can simply learn some basic signs and sentences in order to help out this person, especially if the signs are related to your area of employment/interest.

If you wanted to become an interpreter for the deaf, you would need to enroll in an interpreting program at a local college, or university. However, in today’s world, you have the opportunity to learn some basic phrases and words in sign language online, that would allow you to complete a sale, or to assist a deaf person. The World Wide Web has a vast amount of knowledge for people to learn American Sign Language. Some of the websites have themed lessons for people like you to learn what is needed. Some websites have a large video dictionary to customize to your liking. You now have the ability to select certain words that pertain to your workplace and to the deaf people you help/encounter on a daily basis.

The Deaf community is relatively small and cohesive. The moment you sign with your deaf patrons, the word of your interaction with them will spread like wildfire among the community. Deaf people seek out businesses and retailers that attempt to make a concerted effort to interact with them. Again, you don’t have to be proficient at sign language to ask a deaf person if he or she needs assistance. Having a basic understanding of sign language and deaf culture will go a long way. And if they ask, “Oh, do you know sign language,” you can simply reply, “A little bit.”

When looking online for a good sign language website, the following things should be considered:

Are the lessons themed, instead of a list of words?

1. Does the site offer ASL grammar and practice?

2. Are there retention exercises to help with memorization?

3. Can you review lessons if needed?

4. Is the site available 24/7?

5. Are the videos clear and large enough to see?

These are important criteria to have for your sign language learning. You want to seek out websites that has all of the above features. If it doesn’t, you may want to check out additional websites that will.

Regardless of your job status, the learning of sign language will be beneficial, rewarding, and worthwhile. After all, you may not even have a job, but you have a friend (or friends) who are deaf. Now you can communicate with them better and more effectively. How powerful is that? Have fun with signing and meet people from a diverse cultural background, especially the Deaf community. There, you will meet some tremendous people just waiting to communicate with you.

American sign language course and learn sign language online at: http://www.asldeafined.com/

Solar Power - The New Energy Source

If you want to go to solar power for your home or business then now may be the time to do it. Though you will probably still have quite a bit of out of pocket expense, if you live in the United States then you will most likely qualify for tax incentives to offset some of your cost. You should keep in mind that these systems are expensive but they may save you a lot of money as well.

A special system can be installed that will convert sunlight to solar power and run the electrical devices in your home or business. You will need a special box that will hook up to your current system as well as solar panels. These items may need to be installed by professionals for safety reasons. You local power company will need to approve and help with this as well.

Some companies sell do it yourself kits and videos. To me these seem more suited to science projects. As much as I would like to try these I am also very skeptical. Anytime electricity is involved there is a certain amount of risk. I have a hard time believing I could set up a system like this without starting a fire or getting electrocuted.

I have no doubt that solar energy is the way to go if you can. Not only can this cut your electric bill but it is also earth friendly. In years to come we may well see the end of fossil fuel use in countries around the world. This fuel simply can’t last forever and alternatives must be found.

Solar energy can be used with other energy sources to make sure you always have enough energy to run your home or business. Your regular power supply is still hooked up even with the solar power supply. This means that even if there is no sun for weeks at a time you can still have power you need.

At least one site did mention the need for permits. This may be a very complex project and you will need to do some research before trying any do it yourself kits. There are special boxes needed and it sounds fairly complex.

Some of the products that run on solar power are nice and you don’t need a special system installed. The outdoor lights look really great. They are easy to install and no cords to run or trip over. The cars are still a long way from being marketable though.

Keep in mind that electricity of any kind can be dangerous. Check all local laws and follow any safety instructions before you try to do any electrical work on your own. Professional advice may be helpful. If you know an electrician then they may be willing to give free advice on this matter.

Prices will probably come down in coming years. If you can’t afford this now then you may be able to before long. Solar power will most likely be around for a very long time to come and one day everything may be run at least in part by this energy source.

Solar power provides an efficient and environmentally friendly source for energy. In order to promote a greener society, wind power should also be considered as an alternative option.

A Review of Malcolm X - He Believed in Peaceful Resistant

Malcolm X was largely into Truth and Justice - but not the American Way. He felt “patriotism” was a crutch certain people were using to get at his own kind, as they were not letting them have their full civil and human rights. However, potent patriotic forces, albeit Black Nationalist ones, were what inevitably killed him. He had stood up to the leadership of the Nation of Islam, perhaps mostly as a political power play, and it had cost him. But he had grown in his appreciation of desegregation and the human rights of all people, and in his acceptance of the Islamic faith.

While a member of the Nation of Islam, Malcolm promoted a sense of racial pride in being black. While he promoted nationalism and retaliation against whites (Malcolm once said “Power never takes a back step - only in the face of more power.”), he also instilled a sense of strength in the black race. Along these lines, Malcolm said “A race of people is like an individual man; until it uses its own talent, takes pride in its own history, expresses its own culture, affirms its own selfhood, it can never fulfill itself.”

Malcolm X was born Malcolm Little in Omaha, Nebraska on May 19, 1925. His father, Earl Little was an outspoken Baptist preacher and an avid supporter of the Black Nationalist leader Marcus Garvey. The young Malcolm was to be moulded by his father and the terrible oppression that was inflicted upon his family. The family was forced to move twice after receiving death threats from white supremacists. The family eventually settled in Lansing, Michigan but their efforts to escape trouble failed, the family home was burned to the ground and two years later Earl Little was found dead in suspicious circumstances.

Malcolm’s childhood was full of struggle, as he grew up living in various state institutions and boarding houses. Apart from this, he was also sent to a juvenile home on account of delinquency when he was thirteen. Gradually Malcolm was drawn to a criminal life of gambling, drug peddling and also burglary. Soon, Malcolm was sentenced to ten years of imprisonment for burglary. During his sentence, Malcolm came to know about the Islamic religious organization called the Black Muslims.

He was finally paroled in 1952, and as he was very handsome, bright and articulate, he was immediately appointed a minister and national spokesman for the Nation of Islam. He became a media darling, having a tall, youthful and charismatic presence on camera, and he was seen as the best possible Nation of Islam spokesperson. Elijah Muhammad had him establish mosques in several cities, such as Detroit and Harlem, and Malcolm X used newspapers, radio and television to get the Nation of Islam’s political ideology across to Black America and others. His drive, conviction, obvious honesty in his political ideology and extreme devotion to the cause attracted a huge number of new members to the Nation of Islam, swelling its membership from 500 in 1952 to 30,000 in 1963. It is purported that he met his wife to be, Betty Sanders, outside of a radio station in a hallway around this period of time, but they probably actually met after a speech Malcolm X gave at a Harlem Islamic temple.

In summary, Malcolm X was the most outspoken and famous Islam member in America. His speeches and his debates on Face the Nation or Meet the Press made him known throughout America as a civil rights leader speaking against the unjust system of segregation. You’ll be surprised to discover that Malcolm X was not self-taught but became interested in reading and writing because of a phenomenal educational program intended for prisoners all across the country.

The Author of this article Colon Bolden is a Success Coach & Top Internet Marketing Mentor and Leader in the Home Based Business Industry, who works with other Top Industry Leaders around the world to help others achieve success and wealth through Internet Marketing. I have a passion for helping others achieve their goals, dreams and freedom! If you would like to learn more on how to make a multiple Six Figure Residual income part-time, check out Big Way To Wealth link right now.

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