Tag Archive | Back To School

Random Echoes of My Neighbourhood

Aug31

Many weeks have gone by and I’ve not shared a post on Echoes of my neighbourhood. I miss doing so and blame it on the infernal heat in this place.

I have barely taken decent photos in the past weeks due to efforts to avoid heat stroke, melting into a puddle and baking in the sun.

I am one of those waiting for Autumns’ gate to open so I can dash out and play in nature. These past weeks have been from air-conditioned house to air-conditioned car, to air-conditioned locations and it’s getting a bit old for me.

So, I’m just going to stick some random shots taken here and there.

School Apparel, Bags, Children, Academics

 

We are getting ready to go back to school next week.

Father and Son, Smiling, Happy

 

At the aquarium. I love this photo. Their smile made me smile 🙂

School of fish, aquarium, sea life

I wonder if the school of fish is going back to school as well? Ha, ha! I couldn’t resist that pun.

 

Happy Dance, Hershey's

I guess when you eat the Hershey’s you feel sweet enough to dance the happy dance.

 

Fashion, Summer sales, clothing

Summer clearance sales at every nook and cranny to make way for Winter wear.

 

 

Mr. Pencil – A click a day.

Aug27

PicsArt_08-27-11.02.13[1]

Running around to purchase the last minute school items for the children, Mr Pencil captured below reminds me of how many pencils I have to purchase in a given term because the children somehow manage to misplace them often enough.

It makes sense to buy bulk purchase school supplies so that I don’t go out of my mind at the odd moment requests of ‘mommy I can’t find my pencil or pen, eraser or sharpener.’

Below are few tips that can help to ease into a new school year.

  1. Do a health check for your child/children
  2. Stock up on back to school supplies.
  3. Stock up on lunch/snack items.
  4. Ease back into a bedtime routine and invest in an alarm clock if necessary.
  5. Have a pep talk to motivate them and gauge their emotions.
  6. If they are joining a new school, anticipate the challenges that come with change and give them as much assurance as possible.
  7. Set new school year priorities for them.
  8. Plan for an engaging after-school activity for them.
  9. Pray for your children.

So are you ready yet?

Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

Out of the silent breath

Not By Rote Please…

Jan18

So many times, I have registered for an online program with a lot of enthusiasm, but halfway through it all, I just barely limp to finish or my interest wane’s completely and after settling down to analyse why my interest wavers, I got to realize way back before now, that for me to maintain an optimum balanced interest in a learning activity, it’s got to be interactive enough.

I like bashing ideas with other people, loosening the screws and bolts of a theory and piecing it back together, that way, years from when I learnt it, it stays with me.

I got to realize that though rote learning might work for a lot of people, to a large extent, I can do well by rote learning but I excel by interactive learning.

I would have returned to school long before now but due to family exigencies, I have been pushing it to the side. As a matter of fact, I registered for a Communication Arts program, but because it was online, I backed out and didn’t bother starting it off. I knew that within a few months, I would be bored to tears with it all.

Same issue cropped up with a program I enrolled for at the University of London, due to it’s online/distance learning nature, I had to be truthful to myself, knowing that I would probably start but not finish it and then waste money unnecessarily.

What works best for me really is reading on my own, then bringing a discussion group together and bouncing all the learning curves around.

I remember when I was taking my chartered exams and I knew Quantitative Techniques was not my fort, I hunkered down, learnt all the formulas, did loads of exercises on my own, then cemented my efforts by engaging my course mates in a discussion group. When the results came out, even I was surprised to have received a distinction for that course. Go figure. I probably wouldn’t have scored that high if not for the discussion groups.

That said, I am considering enrolling back in formal education in a year or two. I look forward to going to class, getting involved in adult education and maybe being the oldest Mama among the students, but that’s totally cool by me.

I am sure that it would be interesting because I will make it so.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

The Daily Post Learning Style.

What’s your learning style? Do you prefer learning in a group and in an interactive setting? Or one-on-one? Do you retain information best through lectures, or visuals, or simply by reading books?