Letter from Betty for December 2014

Hello,

Happy Holidays! I hope you have a chance to relax and enjoy your family and friends. But also remember that the beginning of a new year is a good time to establish goals for yourself and children. See our feature article, "Resolutions and Goal Setting" for some great tips and hints about this. Planning ahead will make your whole year better!

Please remember to call us at Foundation for Learning if we can help your child reach his or her academic goals in 2015.

Happy Holidays!

Betty

Betty Bodenweiser
Director
Foundation for Learning

Focus on one: SAT or ACT

Free diagnostic test offered January 10 at FFL

Currently many high school juniors take both the SAT and ACT to determine which test is best for them. We feel that it is more beneficial for students to focus on only one test. In order to accomplish this, we can administer a complimentary SAT/ACT diagnostic test, including the essay portion, to help students determine which test is better suited to their abilities. Testing will take place the second Saturday of each month from November-March and then periodically throughout the other months. Testing will start at 8:45 AM and end at approximately 12:45 PM. Our next testing session is January 10. Please call (973) 425-1774 or email betty@foundationforlearning.com by January 3 to secure a spot as space is limited.

Test Schedule for December 2014

Mark your calendars! Here are the latest test dates.

Note: ISEE - Independent School Entrance Exam dates are for testing at the Morristown-Beard School, located at 70 Whippany Road, Morristown NJ, for any students entering grades 6-11 who are applying to independent schools. Learn more about ISEE at erblearn.org.
 

Resolutions and Goal Setting

The holidays are here! Decorations, family, friends, celebration, tradition, gift-giving, food, food, and more food. Many of us mark the end of the year by making New Year’s resolutions. We look to achieve something in the coming year that will enhance our lives or make us better people, but how many of us actually achieve our goals? By properly and formally setting goals, we stand a much better chance of staying on track and keeping these promises to ourselves.

To begin, think about where you want to go in life and what you want to accomplish in the coming year. 

This is an important step and will help you narrow down your focus, so do a little brainstorming. Now look at your list and narrow it down to just a few goals that are truly important to you. Pick one thing on your list and envision the end result. Break down the overall process into a series of small targets. If at all possible, break those small targets down into even smaller steps.  Use this strategy for each of the goals that you have chosen.

Hints on picking your goals:

State each of your resolutions in a positive way and be as precise as you can about what it is you want to achieve. Set realistic goals that you can achieve rather than shooting for a grandiose outcome that will only set you up for failure. Include timeframes for completion.

Now write it down! The act of putting pen to paper makes your aspirations real. Write down those steps to achieving your goal too. Post your goals in a place where you will see them often and set a regular time to sit down and review your target and your action plan for the coming week.

Pick a quiet time each week, perhaps every Sunday, to review your tasks for the upcoming week. If you’re finding that your action plan needs tweaking, then make the needed adjustments and reset you direction. Refining as you go is essential to achieving your final goal.

This is also the time to cross each step off your list as you get the job done. You’ll be able to actually see that you’re making progress on your self-improvement journey. When you’ve finished your tasks for the week, enjoy a steaming mug of hot chocolate. Who doesn’t like a reward for a job well done!

Now here’s the tough part: Stick with it! Remember, this is a process, an on-going journey. Those New Year’s resolutions and goals are much more than just stating that you want something to happen. You have to clearly define what you want and how you need to get there. By taking the time to move through these steps you greatly increase your chances of success.

Good luck to you as you begin your journey into the new year!
   

The Puzzler: Happy Holidays Word Search

We wish you a very merry and relaxing holiday season. Get those new pens and pencils out of your stocking and give this word search a try!

 

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LAST ISSUE'S PUZZLER: Atlantic Flyway 

New Jersey is a part of the Atlantic Flyway, a well-traveled migration route for birds. As it happens, New Jersey makes a perfect stopping point for thousands of species of birds.

Here are 9 birds that migrate through New Jersey. Match the names to the photos:
Yellow Warbler
Dark-eyed Junco
Hooded Merganser
Bufflehead
Indigo Bunting
Gray Catbird
Common Goldeneye
Ruby Crowned Kinglet
Common Yellowthroat



Can you match each bird in the photo to its common name? 


Answer below...

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ANSWER: