The Types of Classes Offered at Japanese Tutoring Center in Los Angeles

The Types of Classes Offered at Japanese Tutoring Center in Los AngelesJapanese tutoring in Los Angeles is the right choice for anyone who needs a little extra help with their studies. It's quite common for many people to find themselves having a lot of trouble with their lessons, but there are still some who could benefit from the help of the tutors. Getting help with studying and academic subjects can be really useful for students who don't have the time to study at all. For them, finding a good tutoring center can prove to be very helpful.The tutoring centers usually have a wide range of classes and programs for students to choose from. This is a great way for students to start their lessons with ease. It's also quite likely that most of these classes are free. All that they need to do is make sure that they keep up with their school work and to sign up for the regular course work.Students can also sign up for tutoring sessions that would offer any further assistance. This is a gr eat way for students to get more intensive help from the tutors and it would make them feel more comfortable with their lessons. These sessions are quite usual at the tutoring centers and it would be best for students to know that they are available all the time and they won't have to worry about any tutor calling them.Japanese tutoring in Los Angeles offers a wide range of classes to students who need help. There are classes for every kind of student. These include students who are learning English as a second language. Those who are studying in elementary or middle school level and so on.One of the most commonly requested classes is the kindergarten and the tutoring center in Los Angeles offers a lot of this for the kids. Other classes that students might want to try out our Spanish, math, music, computer science, and foreign languages. All of these classes are offered by different tutoring centers and they are very welcoming to students with any kinds of learning disabilities.For those who are already settled in LA and have been studying English for years, tutoring in Los Angeles would be a great way to continue their studies and they would find that they have an easier time with their studies. Students should also know that the Los Angeles tutoring centers offer a lot of services to people who want to learn more about the language. This is especially great for the people who are studying at an elementary or junior high school level.The tutoring centers in Los Angeles offer a great many classes for students to choose from. They are also quite comfortable to the students and they have the help that they need to be able to improve their skills. Students can sign up for these classes on the website or through the local phone numbers of the tutoring centers. The tutoring centers are often able to reach their clients faster and more efficiently than using the traditional means of communication.

Card Game and Grammar Rules for Sports, Games and Exercise

Card Game and Grammar Rules for Sports, Games and Exercise “Ski” is a verb. It is not the name of a game, so conjugate it as a verb or use the gerund form, “skiing.”     Do we say I do skiing, or I play ski or just I ski? Incorrect: I play skiing. I do skiing during the winter. I like ski.  Correct: I ski. I like skiing. I ski during the winter.Rule: “Ski” is a verb. It is not the name of a game, so conjugate it as a verb or use the gerund form, “skiing.”         Do we say I do soccer, or I play soccer or just I soccer? Incorrect: I soccer. I do soccer during the summer. I like soccering.Correct: I play soccer. I like playing soccer. I play soccer during the summer. Rule: “Soccer” is a game. Use a form of the verb “play” + the name of a game.         Do we say I do yoga, or I play yoga or just I yoga? Incorrect: I play yoga. I yoga all year long.  Correct: I do yoga. I like doing yoga. I do yoga all year long. Rule:  â€œYoga” is neither a verb nor a game. We use “do” + the noun.           Sports, Games, and Exercise Card Game Play a card game with your classmates to practice the grammar for sports, games, and exercise.   Play this card game in groups of three or four. Shuffle the cards and place them in the middle. Player 1 takes a card and does the action that will prompt player 2 and 3 to guess the answer given on the card first. Player 1 gives the card to the first player to guess correctly. The player to the left takes the next turn. The player with the most cards at the end is the winner. Sports, Games, and Exercise Card Game Link Please follow and like us:

Changes to the AP World History Course

Changes to the AP World History Course If you don’t follow the raging academic and educational debates of the day, you may be unaware that the AP World History course (or WHAP as we call it), has changed. Through last May, the test covered content spanning prehistory all the way until the present, over 10,000 years of history! There was frequent student and teacher feedback to the College Board that this was way too much information to cover in one school year. So, in the summer of 2018, the College Board announced they would be changing the start date of the content to 1450 CE. This then caused quite the debate.You see the AP European History test has a start date of 1450 CE, and arguably history from 1450 CE onwards is pretty much Europe slowly, and then more quickly, taking over much of the rest of the world. Also the students would miss several of the great empires that arose in the Middle East, South America, Asia and Africa that all had significant impacts on world history. For much of the summer of 2018 there wer e scathing Twitter threads, blog posts and beyond made by academics and teachers from all over. They all complained about the Eurocentrism (the focus on Europe interacting with the rest of the world) of the new proposed start date.  So the College Board reexamined things, and came back that they were going to switch the start date for WHAP to 1200 CE. So much to the partial relief of all, the course now covers the height of the Silk Road, the Mongol Empire, various Islamic Caliphates and the rise of some of the western hemisphere empires. It is still a controversial decision, since it leaves out the origins of most of the world’s religions and skips over fascinating ancient civilizations. We will have to see what happens moving forward.What does this mean for a student who is taking WHAP? To begin with the official name of the course is now AP World History: Modern. Next, the textbook companies and teachers have been scrambling to put materials together to fit the new path of the course. Also, a number of the teachers are still teaching some of the history that happens before 1200 CE, as not only is having some of the background helpful, but not all the textbooks have been updated. This means that the content from around 1200 CE is mixed in with content from 1000 CE or earlier in some books.  Luckily WHAP tutors here at AJ are trained in not only the current content of the course, but also former content of the course. This means that a WHAP tutor would be able to help support a student through the confusion of the AP test change and help them succeed in their WHAP class! We’ve also spent the summer updating our WHAP test preparation materials so that they reflect the changes, so we will be able to help a WHAP student prepare in the spring for the AP test.  The one other point to note is that while the College Board has updated the date range of their AP World History course, they have NOT updated the date range of the World History SAT Subject test. This test still covers all of human history, so WHAP students will be missing a good 8,000 or more years of content that appears on the SAT subject test. Typically we recommend that if a student has taken the AP class in a history subject, it is worth them possibly taking the SAT subject test in that history subject (there is a US History subject test and a World History subject test). This will no longer be the case for students who take WHAP, unless they are willing to do significant content review first. But guess what, AJ WHAP tutors can help with that too! We are currently putting together a plan for new WHAP students that want to try the World History SAT Subject test, and it will be ready in the spring when most of the new WHAP students will be thinking of taking the test.If you’d like to talk through your specific situation, make a plan, and get connected to a history test preparation expert, please reach out to us.

How to Speak Many Different Languages (Without Losing Your Mind)

How to Speak Many Different Languages (Without Losing Your Mind) How to Speak Different Languages Without Getting Confused Learning languages is just half the battle.The real challenge can be maintaining the linguistic arsenal youve worked so hard to amass.One second language might be a small time commitment, but as you add a third, fourth and more, the game will change.Sometimes you have the sensation that your Arabic has totally devoured the French you used to speak, or that your Czech grammar was turned upside-down when you learned German.  Other times you might feel like you dont know how to form a reasonable sentence in any language at all.Learning languages is one thing, but living a multilingual life and speaking different languages on a regular basis is a whole other matter entirely.It changes your brain and your personality. It opens you to different social networks. It makes you better at learning languages in general, and helps you improve your native language. It can also sometimes leave you confused, frustrated and worn out.If you want to turn your life into a linguistic juggling act, youll be glad to know  that not only is your  brain designed to keep learning languages at any age  but that multilingualism is  super common  throughout the world.While your brain does most of your linguistic maintenance behind the scenes, building a few simple good habits can ensure that you enjoy all the benefits of a life full of languages down the road. How Your Brain Handles Different LanguagesHave you ever heard the myth about how only kids can really learn languages well? In case  you missed it, that ones been debunked for a while now.The human brain is almost magically capable of adapting to new languages at any point in life, and theres a lot of evidence to suggest that a new tongue is  the best brain food there is.We  know this from looking at some of the differences between the brains of monolinguals and people who speak multiple languages. For example, multilingual brains are usually bigger and have more gray matter. Theyre also a lot more resilient to strokes  and theyre c hampions at keeping dementia at bay. Part of how your brain accommodates playing host to several different live-in languages at the same time is by physically adapting itself. As you might imagine, remodeling your brain has a lot of side effects, but you should think of them all as  upgrades.Speaking different languages literally remolds your brainLearning and speaking new languages physically reshapes your brain by building new neural pathways and adding new synapses. The more different languages you learn and use, the more new pathways are created. This is actually literally  growing your brain  and making it more efficient in the process.It makes sense that your brain grows when you use multiple languages, since studies show that different languages are stored in physically different parts of the brain.It seems like storing languages in different physical compartments of the brain is efficient for more than just neural functioning, but also for living your life.  Its thought to b e the cause of polyglots increased affinity for multitasking and filtering important information out of  less important distractions and background noise.Its these skills of filtering out certain kinds of information and dividing your attention between tasks that allow people who speak multiple languages to not only switch between them when they need to but also be able to subconsciously recognize social cues that tell when its appropriate to switch languages, otherwise known as code-switching.Code-switching: The polyglots Olympic sportCode-switching is when you switch between languages or language varieties, andâ€"as you might have already guessedâ€"its a feature thats included in the standard subscription to all human brains.This is the impressive feat  the Northern European linguistic Olympians perform so casually that makes them look cool and worldly in hostels. In the middle of a conversation in their native language with their friend from home, they smoothly throw an English h ey, how are you doing your way and then proceed  to strike up a new conversation with someone else in Spanish, all without breaking a sweat.Sounds exhausting, right? Not so much. Here are a few things  most people dont understand  about switching between different languages:You already do it, even if youre monolingual.  When you speak to your university professor and suddenly find yourself clearly pronouncing your -ings at the ends of words and switching your  yeahs for  yess  thats a kind of code-switching too, only between sociolects or particular ways of speaking that relate to class, education or group identity.Its mostly a subconscious reaction  environmental factors.  When you speak different languages, social  cues will prompt you to code-switch.  Hearing or reading a familiar language can easily evoke a momentary mental switch to it, and seeing the face of a friend with whom you speak it will almost certainly do so. Having this ability to subconsciously analyze and respond t o your linguistic environment is one of the things that makes multilingual brains so efficient and saves them a lot of mental energy.Youve got linguistic veto power.  When youre back home enjoying an authentic Mexican taco with your English-speaking family, ay, qué rico! may try to climb out of your throat, but youve generally got the final say on whether you release a Spanish exclamation into the world or an English one.  Most of the time, anyways.And thats where things start to  get a little messy.Polyglot problems: The struggles of speaking different languagesLike we said, most of the time your brain will take the lead on languages. But every now and then, all those environmental and internal  signals get crossed. Weird stuff happens.Speaking different languages is natural and good for you in the way that running is natural and good for you: the more the better, but sometimes you get cramps or just wear yourself out.The source of most of those cramps for people who grew up monol ingual will be your mother tongue. Its been around the longest, youve subconsciously made a lot of your assumptions about language in general based on it and its what hard-wired you to learn languages. It will often stick its micromanaging nose in where it doesnt belong. While sometimes your other languages will stand up to it, sometimes it just plows over them.Other polyglot problems arise from lack of practice, personal differences in  learning style and the same imperfection of the learning process that leads you to say something wrong in your native language every now and then. Here are a few  of the most common problems facing polyglots on a daily basis:Interference: This is the collective term for all those times you accidentally used German grammar in Portuguese, or when you tried to say something in Thai but pronounced it like an English word and someone thought you said something rude. When the structures or conventions of one language interfere with another, youre mixing k nowledge of different languages, which normally produces something that doesnt make sense in either tongue. The struggle is real, and most peoples reactions to it will range from patient to amused.Reduced  feeling of nativeness in your first language: This one normally comes in abrupt little bursts, and its often ridiculous and hilarious when it does. You literally translate an idiom from another language, or you cant remember what that thing over there is called in English. Sometimes you may find it momentarily difficult to say whether a particular sentence is correct in your mother tongue while you struggle to think consciously about rules that you normally use subconsciously. Its par for the course, so just learn to laugh at it.Tip of the tongue moments: The more languages you speak, the more tip of the tongue events  you have. This is actually the technical term for it, and its exactly what it sounds like: when youve almost got a word, its on the tip of your tongue, but you just cant remember it. This generally happens pretty evenly across all your languages, including the native one.Getting rusty or forgetting languages: Languages take time and attention, and the more you speak, the more time you need to keep them all alive and well. Many aspiring polyglots make the mistake of taking one step forward and one step back, letting one language languish while they devote all of their attention to the new one. Thankfully, relearning a rusty language is pretty easy.Wanderlust: Call it a benefit or a drawback, but many multilinguals are drawn to use their languages in the countries they come from. Practicing Spanish on your annual vacation to Andalusia is reasonable, but how many language vacations can you fit in a year? The answer might be to just pack up and hit the road permanently!Most of the problems that come from speaking different languages are better called amusing annoyances, and I dont think I ever met a language learner who told me well Im just giving up because Im too confused all the time and travel too much.Still, there are solutions to even the pettiest of polyglot problems!How to Speak Different Languages Without Getting ConfusedHopefully you agree that polyglot problems are more something to put a hashtag on and laugh about on Twitter than something to divert you from learning more languages.You were quite literally built for this, so your brain is quietly doing 90% of the work for you behind the scenes, but there are a couple things you can do in learning, using, and maintaining your languages to deal with the other 10%.What not to do during the language learning processIt seems like there are as many ways to learn a language as there are learners out there, and different approaches work better for different learners. But, if you want to keep different languages neatly arranged inside your head, there are a couple specific approaches that you should be warned against.1. Learning two very similar languages at the same time Learning two closely related or otherwise similar languages at the same time  is generally a no-no for language learners, especially those who want to minimize their polyglot problems down the road.This is because language learning is largely a game of finding patterns of difference. Languages that share a lot of the same or similar words and word parts are different systems with the exact same kinds of rules (rules about word order, how to form a question, how verbs are conjugated) and very similar parts, so figuring out which parts belong to which set of rules is a challenge even for something as efficient at language learning as the human brain.Thats not to say you cant learn more than one language at a timeâ€"some studies suggest the more the merrierâ€"but it means you should be careful in your choice. Japanese and Russian might be okay, but Spanish and Italian maybe not so much.2. Basing words and meanings in one language on those of anotherYou always hear it: dont translate. I nstead, try to think in the language youre speaking. But what does that actually mean, and how do you do it?On the surface, this means dont just think the blue house when you read or hear  la casa azul.  But this also means something deeper: la casa azul shouldnt only not be translated in your mind as you hear it, but in fact it shouldnt have anything at all to do with the English concept of a house or the color called blue.La casa azul should be a construction with walls and a roof and windows, where people live inside and cook and watch football, with blue walls that are blue from somebody having painted it with paint, not a cartoonish color on your computers Paint program. Try as hard as you can to tie the meanings of words in a foreign language to real things in the real world.You should strive to do all your thinking about meanings in a language in that language, to keep it from ever being tied to or dependent upon your understanding of English words. Prepositions, verbs and ev en nouns cover different properties in different languages, and looking at any one from the perspective of another makes it look sideways and upside-down.Maintaining your languagesOne way you can think of languages is like muscles that need to be trained. If you only teach them one repetitive back-and-forth motion, like ordering food or asking directions, they might tone up but theyll never grow very much. And no matter how big you get them, enough time in disuse will shrink them back down to their original size.The solution here isnt  new or innovative, but tried and true: use it or lose it!There are a few different approaches to doing this, but here are four  that are easy to incorporate into your life:1. Use each of your languages to accomplish a task every day.This doesnt mean that you need  to have a half-hour Skype session every day to keep on top of your languages. What it does mean is that you should use each language to accomplish a task of some kind daily or as close to it as possible.Accomplishing something can be paying bills or filing residency paperwork in your home abroad, or it can be as simple as using the language to entertain yourself with a couple of funny YouTube videos. Reading the news, catching up with a friend or researching something in a target language instead of your mother tongue can all be easy ways of incorporating your languages into each day.2. Try to develop a special relationship with each of your languages.As you become more and more fluent in a language, think about what you use that language for the most or what it naturally lends itself to. Its easy enough to tie each language to something culturally related to itâ€"maybe you look up recipes in French since you love French cuisine, or maybe you took a semester abroad studying finance in Hong Kong and now your Cantonese is good enough to do all your budgeting and banking in that language.When I lived in the Netherlands, I worked at an NGO where I spent a lot of time readi ng and talking about international affairs and development  in Dutch. Now, with more than a year out of the country, I find it easy and practical to read the days news headlines in Dutch or to watch the Dutch nightly news to catch up on world events.Similarly, Ive most recently lived in Mexico, and all it took was one conscious decision after I left to continue making my grocery lists in Spanish. This way, I keep using both of these languages in my daily life and, rather than stopping in the middle of my day for some artificial practice, I incorporate them both into my life in a natural and unintrusive way.3. Practice code-switching.Even if you use all your languages every day, switching between them can remain challenging and confusing without practice. But practicing rapidly switching between languages doesnt only make continuing to do so easier. Its like a composite exercise that works multiple languages from multiple angles at the same time, and has extra benefits for your brain and overall general language abilities.The best way to do this is to purposely put yourself in multilingual situations. Go to language exchange meetups, hang out in hostel common rooms or, if you live in a big global city, just go for a stroll outside and eavesdrop until you hear something familiar.When you can, practice switching between different combinations of languages, and especially between two languages that arent your mother tongue.  The point is to find ways to practice your ability to switch back and forth between languages, and youll notice it getting easier and more natural the more you do it.If you hit this muscle from all angles, youll be looking like a professional linguistic athlete in no time.Languages for life: Some considerations for a life full of languagesSo weve established that you either are or want to be a high-functioning polyglot, which, by the way, we think is great. But to truly reap the benefits, make sure speaking all these different languages become s a lifestyle rather than just an exciting phase of your adventurous student years!Multilingualism carries benefits throughout your life, so youll want to make sure you continue to nurture your hard-earned languages as the years go by. One way you can do that is by living in a multicultural, multilingual world city. The streets of London and Singapore and Cape Town are absolutely crawling with representatives of that 60% of the population who understand your polyglot struggles.How  would you feel about dating someone who has a different native language than yours? Were not suggesting you swipe left or right based on what languages someone speaks, but it is immensely helpful to have a romantic partner who speaks one or more of your target languages.And dont stop at romantic partnersâ€"its even easier to fill your social circle with speakers of your languages and maintain your speaking skills while maintaining your friendships. Itll be a challenge to lose your Portuguese when your bes t friend is Brazilian, and meeting your German friends for a game of flunkyball every other weekend means youll at least retain the requisite vocabulary for knocking over beer bottles and cheering about it.You dont have to move your whole life around to make it a life full of languages. Whether you live in a great world city or remote countryside, whether your social calendar looks like the agenda at the United Nations or youd rather be on the couch with a book, the key is to speak all of your languages all the time.Enjoy the many benefits they bring to your life, and learn to laugh when they make you a little crazy!Jakob is a full-time traveler, obsessive language learner, and dedicated language teacher. He writes about language, travel, and the many places they meet on the road at his blog Globalect. And One More ThingIf youre serious about maintaining multiple languages in your life, you could use a helping hand from technology.Thats where FluentU comes in.FluentU takes real-wo rld videos like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks, and turns them into language learning experiences. Just a quick look will give you an idea of the range of content available:FluentU App Browse Screen.FluentU has interactive captions that let you tap on any word to see an image, definition, audio and useful examples. Now native language content is within reach with interactive transcripts.Didnt catch something? Go back and listen again. Missed a word? Hover your mouse over the subtitles to instantly view definitions.Interactive transcript for Carlos Baute song.You can learn all the vocabulary in any video with FluentUs learn mode. Swipe left or right to see  more examples for the word you’re learning.FluentU Has Quizzes for Every VideoAnd FluentU always keeps track of vocabulary that you’re learning. It uses that vocab to give you a 100% personalized experience by recommending videos and examples.Start using FluentU on the website with your computer or tabl et  or, better yet,  download the FluentU app from  the iTunes store  or Google Play store.

Understanding Different Types of Intelligence

Understanding Different Types of Intelligence Understanding Different Types of Intelligence Many students, parents, and teachers become curious about the different types of intelligence. Although possible, it is very rare for a student to be gifted or talented in all areas of the brain. Additionally, intellectual gifts should not be confused with high achievement (READ: Ask a Nerd! IQ vs. SAT). Students who struggle with a particular subject can still study hard, work with a private Orange County tutor one-on-one and learn appropriate educational techniques and still improve. In the same vein, a student could be very talented in a particular subject or subjects but not receive a high grade. The latter type of student is sometimes referred to as an underachiever. So what are some of the different types of intelligence? Book smarts Some students have what we refer to as ‘book smarts’. These are students who can read and fully comprehend a text or a novel and who can study the right information for an exam without prompting and later recall the information for a test. These types of students tend to do very well in the traditional American school environment. High IQ Students with a high IQ, generally perceived to be about 130 or above (this particular number is highly debated by scholars and has changed throughout the decades), are often gifted in one or two areas but may be considered average in other areas. This presents somewhat of a problem for gifted and talented students in a traditional school setting. For example, if a student is heavily gifted in STEM subjects but struggling to comprehend character development in a novel, they may be confused as to why they do so well in some classes but receive C grades in others. Some private schools may be able to accommodate students who fit into different levels but it may be frustrating for the students and their parents nonetheless (READ: 4 College Prep Tips From an Irvine Tutor). It is important for high IQ students to know that it’s normal for them to do very well in one subject and struggle in another. Resilience and determination are part of growing up in our educational system. Social intelligence Some students may be considered average in certain academic subjects but may have a very high social intelligence. This is a valuable skill that can be used throughout life. Students who later become professionals will find that they probably interview well, get along with their coworkers, make good managers, and tend to have vibrant social lives. Students with high social intelligence are also good at finding loopholes and thinking outside of the box, and can generally find a way to make a situation work out whether they take the traditional path or an alternative one (READ: How to Balance Sports and Academics). Students with high social skills may still need help from a tutor in certain subjects. They may or may not test well and they may or may not have superior study skills. Students with a high social IQ social may find that they enjoy careers working with other people or serving in a leadership capacity. Technical intelligence Although this is not yet a recognized term, students with technical intelligence are generally very skilled at working with computers, machines, and other technology. For example, one student may be able to fix a computer or other electronic device by pressing two or three buttons while, on the other hand, one of their peers may struggle desperately to get their computers to work properly. Technical intelligence is becoming more and more of a lucrative skill as our society becomes more dependent upon and enticed by the convenience of electronics and other technological devices. Regardless of a talent in any particular type of intelligence, its important for students, parents, and teachers to know that each student is a unique individual and that everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses. Even the most brilliant students will likely need help or guidance at some point in their educational career. All blog entries, with the exception of guest bloggers, are written by Tutor Nerds. Are you an education professional? If so, email us at pr@tutornerds.com for guest blogging and collaborations. We want to make this the best free education resource in SoCal, so feel free to suggest what you would like to see us post about.

5 Ways to Learn about Art this Summer - TutorNerds

5 Ways to Learn about Art this Summer - TutorNerds 5 Ways to Learn about Art this Summer The summer provides a great opportunity to experience local arts and culture throughout California. Students will primarily focus on academics during the school year so they should have a chance to open up their imagination and be creative during the summer. There are tons of different places for kids to learn about art ranging from traditional art history to interactive arts and crafts. Many young students who have a chance to maintain a creative outlet will end up lowering their stress and improving their concentration, which can help them immensely once the school year starts up again. 1. Take a class at a craft store There are several arts and crafts stores throughout Southern California that offer fun activity classes for kids. In addition to being creative, kids will get to take home their creation and share it with the whole family. Arts and crafts classes can serve as an excellent alternative to a full day camp because it allows younger kids the opportunity to socialize and learn something new during their summer break. Some stores that offer classes include Michaels and Jo-Ann Fabrics (READ: 5 Great Reasons to Volunteer this Summer). 2. Have a ceramics party Another popular hands-on art activity is to paint ceramics. Southern California has several places that have pre-made ceramic sculptures that kids can glaze to create a fun and imaginative object. Families can get together and have an impromptu party where everybody can socialize and just have fun. Additionally, local art centers offer kids a chance to build a vase or sculpture from scratch. Some local options include the Irvine Fine Arts Center and Color Me Mine. 3. Visit a local art museum Another great way for kids to experience art over the summer is to visit one of the many local art museums in Southern California. Many art museums have family-friendly exhibits that are interactive and encourage a kids imagination to soar. Older students can learn about art history as well while they tour the galleries and view art from medieval times to present. Also, some art museums offer group tours or summer day camps where kids can enjoy the atmosphere of the artwork but also participate in creative hands-on activities. This is a great opportunity for a young artist who doesnt have as much time as they would like to participate in art during the school year. Local art museums include the San Diego Museum of Art and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (READ: 5 Awesome Educational Activities to do on a Summer Road Trip). 4. Get out the sidewalk chalk Playing with sidewalk chalk is one of the easiest forms of summer art. Kids only need a pack of chalk and a friend to create a gigantic and wonderful masterpiece in the comfort of their driveway. This has been a summer activity for kids for generations, and it encourages unstructured socialization, sharing, and working as a team. As an bonus the sidewalk chalk is very easy to clean up with just a little bit of water. 5. Have a picnic in the sculpture garden Several Southern California area art museums have a sculpture garden as part of their exhibit. Sculpture gardens can transport a young kid’s imagination to a whole new world of play and creativity as they tour these huge structures. Sculpture Gardens provide an excellent opportunity just to sit back, relax and have a picnic in this creative atmosphere. Kids dont always have to be creating something to enjoy art. Simply absorbing the artistic atmosphere can lead to an increased imagination. Balboa Park in San Diego offers a great Sculpture Garden. All blog entries, with the exception of guest bloggers, are written by Tutor Nerds. Are you an education professional? If so, email us at pr@tutornerds.com for guest blogging and collaborations. We want to make this the best free education resource in SoCal, so feel free to suggest what you would like to see us write.

Skip the Starbucks 11 DIY Specialty Coffee Drinks

Skip the Starbucks 11 DIY Specialty Coffee Drinks cincyshopper.com 1. Pumpkin Spiced Latte Oh, the PSL it’s one of Starbucks’ most famous drinks (besides their frappes) and people go crazy for it the minute September hits. With this simple recipe, you can enjoy Pumpkin Spiced Lattes all year round instead of waiting on Starbucks. All you’ll need are the same ingredients to make a pumpkin pie (minus the crust) and some coffee and you’re good to go! Find the recipe here. DontWasteTheCrumbs.com 2. Peppermint Mocha This is another famous seasonal drink Starbucks lovers wait all year for that you can make in the comfort of your own home. Using just five simple ingredients that can easily be found in the supermarket, you’ll be enjoying your Peppermint Mocha in no time! Make your friends jealous, or make them one too, with this recipe. Babble.com 3. Caramel Macchiato This recipe is a little more complicated to follow. You’ll need an espresso maker and a milk steamer if you want an authentic tasting macchiato. In just 15 minutes you will have your warm caramel macchiato ready to drink. Follow the recipe here. TheFoodieTeen.com 4. Almond Milk Chai Latte It may not be coffee, but the tea still has some caffeine in it to keep you going. You will be using a stove and a pan to make this Starbucks copycat drink. The best thing about making this drink at home is adding or substituting ingredients to fit your taste buds. Find the recipe here. HowSweetEats.com 5. Coconut Latte If you love the taste of the tropics, the coconut latte is the coffee drink for you! This recipe involves an espresso machine and a milk steamer along with coconut sugar, milk, and syrup. You can also top it off by sprinkling toasted coconut over the drink. Find this delicious drink recipe here. NewBlooming.com 6. Cold Brew Plan ahead by at least 12 hours and you can be enjoying a popular cup of cold brew in the morning on your way to class. This is different from iced coffee because the coffee grounds are submerged in the water instead of drip brewed and sit in the water over night. Make it your own by adding some cream or flavored syrups. Click here for more details. CookingCurries.com 7. Irish Cream Cold Coffee This one is for those of you who are over 21. This blended drink contains espresso, Bailey’s Irish Cream, sugar, and milk. Throw it all in a blender with ice and sip on your drink with a little kick! If you are underage, you can find Irish Cream flavored coffee creamers and still enjoy this delicious drink during the rest of the summer months. Find the recipe here. FantasticalSharing.com 8. Mocha Cookie Crumble Frappe For those coffee lovers with a sweet tooth, this is the perfect specialty coffee drink for you! Loaded with chocolate, Oreo cookies, and strong coffee, you can top it off with whipped cream for an even sweeter treat. Forget about spending $6 on a frappe at Starbucks, you can make this in your own home! Find the chocolatey recipe here. HouseofYumm.com 9. Snickerdoodle Latte This sweet latte takes only a whopping two minutes to prep and make before you can enjoy it. It only uses four ingredients that most people already have in their kitchen, so you don’t have to make a special trip to the grocery store during your busy semester. When coffee just isn’t cutting it for you, add some cinnamon and brown sugar. Follow the recipe here. FoxesLovesLemons.com 10. Caramel Brulée Coffee Similar to the Snickerdoodle Latte, this Caramel Brulée will satisfy both your coffee craving and your sweet tooth. With just three necessary ingredients and a stove top, you’ll be enjoying this specialty coffee drink in no time. Learn the process here. MostlyHomemadeMom.com 11. Cinnamon Roll Iced Coffee This super simple recipe will impress your friends when you have in-home coffee dates in your sweats. Just add some cinnamon, maple extract, and vanilla iced coffee from International Delight to make this delicious specialty coffee. Find the recipe and measurements here.