Six Application Essay Mistakes

Six Application Essay Mistakes Scholarships a college students best friend, one of the few things to actually mitigate the seemingly insurmountable amount of college tuition, the simplest way to reduce debt after college graduation. Yes, scholarship applications are important, and sometimes it can be hard to find that extra motivation to apply for them, especially when youre not even sure if youll get any money out of it. Below are six common mistakes to avoid while writing a winning scholarship essay, from the US News World Report. 1. Hurried writing: Sure its great if you can work quickly and well under pressure. But, there is no need for that with a scholarship essay. Start thinking of fresh concepts early; seek help from a writing tutor, parent or English teacher, leaving plenty of time for polishing up your essay. Consider writing it over the summer when youll have more free time away from school. 2. Ignoring your audience: Scholarships can be funded by various organizations, some professional, some creative and some a little quirky. Try to ascertain the personality of the organization that is funding your potential scholarship and write appropriately for it. Check out the organizations website and look specifically for its vision statement, history and programs. Then, write your essay correspondingly. 3. Choosing a plain topic: Topics such as something interesting about me, or what my favorite class is and why have been done before. Try something new, something original that speaks to your personality. Write about your favorite pen or compare yourself to Mt. Rushmore, the Grand Canyon or any one of Saturns moons. Try to stand out, increasing your chances of getting that scholarship. 4. Boring, uncreative writing: Imagine reading hundreds, thousands of scholarship essays. It probably gets pretty boring after a while. Try to be as creative as possible without losing clarity. Instead of writing, MVP first basemen Joey Votto inspires me because we are similar, write, MVP first basemen Joey Votto and I are both left-handed hitting, right-handed throwing quietly aggressive men, never content with good, always pursuing excellence in every aspect. Motivation? Please, the man absolutely inspires me to always be great. Try to take every sentence you write one step further because that makes for a more interesting essay. 5. Colloquialisms: If your essay sounds anything like a text message, youre doing it wrong. Write professionally. Use all those vocabulary words you learned in English class, helping your essay stand out and sound more intelligent. 6. Not paying attention to grammar: Run on sentences, fragments, blatant grammar errors are all the obvious signs that youre rushing through your scholarship essays. These organizations will be looking to quickly eliminate applicants, and simple, careless grammar errors are a sure-fire way to get your essay thrown out. Allow yourself plenty of time to write, rewrite and edit it. A writing tutor or one of your English teachers could help you correct petty grammar errors, making your essay more polished and intelligent.

What is it Like to Attend Colorado College

What is it Like to Attend Colorado College The tutors behind Varsity Tutors are not just here to teach theyre sharing their college experiences as well. Melissa is a Chicago tutor specializing in Algebra tutoring, Geometry tutoring, Pre-Calculus tutoring, and Trigonometry tutoring. She graduated from Colorado College in 2008 with her Bachelors in Mathematics. Take a look at her review of her school: VT: Describe the campus setting and transportation options.How urban or safe is the campus?Are there buses or do you need a car/bike? Melissa: My college campus was just north of downtown Colorado Springs. We werent allowed to have a car freshman year, but I didnt have a car during the entire four years. Although there were times when having one would have been convenient, I got by just fine without one. I had enough friends heading up to the mountains on the weekends, that it was easy to get a ride if I needed to go somewhere. There are buses that run through the city, but having a bike was sufficient for what I wanted to do in the community. The campus setting was always exciting. There was always something going on with a group of free-spirited liberal arts students who showed a great amount of passion. The campus is small and beautiful. In just a few city blocks, there is a lot of open space on several quad spaces, where you can always find a game of Frisbee or a study group happening. VT: How available are the professors, academic advisers, and teaching assistants? Melissa: My college functioned on what is called a Block Plan, so we took one class at a time, each lasting three and a half weeks. Because of the structure of the schedule, the professors were extremely available. I really had to dedicate myself to each class, and immerse myself in what I was learning. I really enjoyed that about the school, and being such a small liberal arts school, professors are also passionate about what they are teaching and want to be available. VT: How would you describe the dorm life rooms, dining options, location, socialization opportunities with other students? Melissa: Most of the dorm rooms were pretty typical. We also have a couple of old mansions that were converted into dorm buildings, so I loved living in those buildings. We had to live on campus until junior or senior year, but with such a small campus, it really wasnt a hassle living there. The dining food doesnt compare to my moms casseroles, but it was fine. Keeping activities and living on campus provided an environment to really interact with my classmates, and now I am grateful for that. VT: Which majors/programs are best represented and supported?What did you study and why? Did the university do a good job supporting your particular area of study? Melissa: I studied Math with an emphasis in Statistics. I double minored in Education Studies and Art Studio. The math program was actually incredibly small, with just eleven of us graduating the year that I did (and if I remember correctly, eight of us were girls!) The Political Science, Environmental Science, Biology, Sociology, and Economics departments were probably the most popular. The sciences were not incredibly specialized, like you see at some bigger schools. You can major in Physics, but they dont have specific Engineering programs, for instance. I loved studying math because it was such a small department and I formed a lot of great relationships with the faculty. I loved immersing myself in math for a block, and then balancing it out the next block with an art class. I would say the college did a great job of supporting me, but it was really up to me to take advantage of all the great opportunities there for me. VT: How easy or difficult was it for you to meet people and make friends as a freshman? Does Greek life play a significant role in the campus social life? Melissa: Less than fifteen percent of students were involved in Greek life at my school. They certainly put on a lot of great events, but they didnt have an overwhelming presence on campus. I met a lot of my closest friends by playing sports, and brushing my teeth in my hall. Classes are small, so that is another great way to form connections with people. I would say it was pretty easy meeting friends as a freshman. VT: How helpful is the Career Centerand other student support services?Do many reputable companies recruit on campus? Melissa: I was recruited with Teach For America on my campus. There were career fairs and the Career Center was certainly available to students. They have a great alumni pool that is an incredible resource. Most of my friends went into some sort of non-profit experience when they graduated, which usually werent recruited for on campus, but many of them had connections from the college in some way or another. VT: How are the various study areas such aslibraries, student union, and dorm lounges? Are they over-crowded, easily available, spacious? Melissa: Everyone has their own preferences, but the library was usually a great quiet place. It isnt the prettiest building, but I know they have plans to renovate it. I did a lot of my studying in the departments of the classes I was taking. The math department had a great study lounge, where my professors were close by for questions, and it was nice having the space to collaborate and use the boards. I think it was pretty easy to find a study space regardless of how you like to study. Some people like to have more going on, so there were certainly always people in study lounges. There are also a few great coffee shops near campus if you needed to get away. VT: Describe the surrounding town. What kinds of outside establishments / things to do are there that make it fun, boring, or somewhere in between?To what extent do students go to the downtown area of the city versus staying near campus? Melissa: Downtown was really close and accessible, so it was easy to walk down there. Colorado Springs is a pretty conservative place, which creates some tension between the very progressive school and the city. Colorado Springs is home to many mega-churches and Focus On The Family. However, what I appreciated about being there was the proximity to the Garden of the Gods, lots of hiking, and Pikes Peak. Going to ski at any of the big resorts was about a two and a half to three hour drive. Students tend to stay on campus during the week, and plenty of people leave to ski or hike or participate in the plethora of outdoor activities on the weekends. Denver is also just an hour away, with plenty of sports, concerts, or whatever you are looking for. VT: How big or small is the student body? Were you generally pleased or displeased with the typical class sizes? Melissa: There are roughly 1900 students, with only a small graduate program in Education. I didnt necessarily know every person I graduated with, but it was nice that I had at least recognized them. I always thought it was overwhelming to think about being at a school that was bigger than my high school, and this was actually smaller. I think my biggest class was around 25 or 30, and had a few classes with five or less students. Sometimes I had two professors, so I felt like I got all of the individual attention I needed. VT: Describe one memorable experience with a professor and/or class. Perhaps one you loved the most or one youregretthe most. Melissa: As I look back, I am really amazed that I was actually able to study abroad through the school three times. I wrote a grant and designed my own project studying symmetries and geometries of Greek and Turkish mosaics. I also took a couple art classes in Paris one summer with the school, and lastly, I studied abroad for a semester in the Netherlands. Although I loved my time on campus, the college gave me opportunities abroad that I am so grateful for now because I was able to so much of the world. Check out Melissas tutoring profile. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of Varsity Tutors.

Top 5 College Study Tips

Top 5 College Study Tips Carving out study time in college can be tricky because there are often more distractions than in high school. There are always people around, events to attend, social activities to partake inin addition to a schedule with more freedom to control. Build upon some of the study methods you used in high school to implement these top college study tips: 1. Make a study plan As soon as it makes sense to youa week out, a month out, etc.make a study schedule for yourself for the days leading up to a test. This can be extremely helpful in spacing out your studying so you wont have to cram the day before and pull an all-nighter, which often causes more stress. You can decide to study an hour or two each day, or choose which concepts or units to review per study session. Remember to include breaks, as well! While studying straight through for two hours might work for some, a lot of us truly benefit from scheduled breaks. This helps us double down on the actual study time, minimize distractions, and better enjoy the breaks themselves, as theyll feel more earned. 2. Find settings that suit you A popular location to study may of course be your campus library. Its well-liked for good reason: it stays open late (and sometimes 24/7), offers print and electronic resources, and is quiet. Check out the librarys study rooms, which you may need to sign up for ahead of time, as they can provide a bit more silence and privacy. Top floors can be great for this as well. Your school might have other designated quiet spaces; perhaps a campus art museum or a certain area of the student union that you could take advantage of. However, if you like working with more background noise, such as music or the hustle and bustle of people around you, consider a local coffee shop or your dorm common area. You might even bump into a friend from the same class, which can help refuel you for more studying. Also, if you have access to a car or other transportation, you may wish to explore what other hidden gems are available near your college town; this can provide much needed different scenery. 3. Rewrite notes or make flashcards Writing down key concepts from a textbook or rewriting your noteson the page or on flashcardsare excellent ways to better cement information into your mind. The act of writing slows you down, allowing you to be with the concepts longer and spend more time actively focusing on them. The process is effective, as well as the productyou can take your page of notes or flashcards with you as portable study guides whenever you have a free moment. Waiting in line at the bank or at the DMV? Both great times to whip out your study aids and make the most out of a few stray minutes. 4. Prioritize your best time of day Think about what time of day you have the most energy, and schedule your study time accordingly. Are you one of the few college early birds? Do you like mid-day studying or do you slide into an afternoon slump? What part of nighttime works for you, early evening or closer to midnight? Once youre aware of this, youll want to use your most energetic hours for your most difficult subjects, which can help you make the most of your time. Also, as a college student, your schedule is likely to vary greatly day-to-day, so dont be afraid to try different things throughout the week and see what suits you best! 5. Visit office hours A unique aspect of college, and of school in general, are the professors with open doors to help you. Take advantage of this by visiting them during their scheduled office hours or possibly setting up a separate appointment if you have time conflicts. Meeting with a professor a week or two before an exam can be useful in directing your study plan or clarifying a confusing concept. If you wait until the last day before your test to meet, your discussion may not be as helpful, as youll have less time to process the take-aways from your conversation. You might consider attending office hours on a regular basis; youll get to build a professional relationship with your professors and the one-on-one setting is one of the easiest and best ways to learn. [RELATED: Set Up a Study Plan with Your Tutor that Works for You] These college study tips, as well as others youve picked up in high school, can help build your confidence as a college student as you become more aware of who you are as a learner. While repetition of study strategies builds stamina and helps you make the most of it, keep in mind that one strategy may work for you better at one point in your life, and not so much in another. To that end, keep trying new things and talk with classmates and professors for new suggestions. Any topics you want to know more about? Let us know! The Varsity Tutors Blog editors love hearing your feedback and opinions. Feel free to email us at blog@varsitytutors.com.

Strategy for College Applications and Admissions

Strategy for College Applications and Admissions The following piece was written by Dr. Joan Martin, Ph.D. Joan has been featured in our Admissions Expert series and is the founder of CollegeStartOnline.com. She holds degrees from the University of Michigan, Harvard University, and MIT. The Stealth Applicant: What Not to Do Travelling incognito, this new type of student who applies to colleges without much contact other than the application has a new name Stealth Applicant. The Common Application and the internet have fostered the phenomenon of these faceless applicants, and admissions offices are bombarded with their applications. Admissions officers continually face the question: do we accept the stealth applicant with the high SAT/GPA or the one who has demonstrated unusual enthusiasm through visits, interviews, and continued contact with the geographic representative? As a rule, if two students with similar GPAs/SAT scores, extracurricular activities, and strong essays are competing for the same spot, the one with the strong connection to the campus will always win out even if the academic index is a bit lower. How to Create a Strong Connection Be Proactive! Research each college on the website prior to any contact so you can determine your fit with that college. Fit is defined as finding specific programs, departments, courses, professors and their research that fulfill your academic and intellectual pursuits. If you can make a connection here, you are on your way to outdistancing any stealth applicant. Even if you do not know what you are going to major in, just find something that piques your interest. Take the information in #1 and start making your connections. Email a professor about your interest in his/her courses and research. Ask if you could see a reading list from those courses. Ask if there are any links to his/her research. If the professor emails back, continue the correspondence with the professor by asking more detailed questions and ask if you could meet him/her when you visit the campus. Come prepared with even more dynamite questions. It is a good bet that the professor will CC your correspondence to the Admissions Office. Now, email the geographic representative for your area and describe your interaction with the professor. Or if there has been no interaction, describe in detail your connection to the college, the information gathered in #1. At your interview and in your application, refer in some way to this active involvement. You have now demonstrated fit, perhaps the most important element of acceptance. Demonstrate Enthusiasm! If the geographic representative visits your high school, be the first person in the room, introduce yourself, and present him/her with your resum, if you have one. Send an email to that person thanking him/her for the presentation; attach your resum. Attend any Road Show of that college that may come to town. Again, introduce yourself and send an email. Seek out alumni in the area. If you do not know anyone personally, then check with the college for an alumni chapter in your area. Email the president and ask if you could meet with members to talk about their experiences at the college. Document this meeting by sending an email to the geographic representative. The Ping Letter Send an email to the geographic representative by November 10th, if you are applying Early Decision/Early Action, and March 1st if you are applying Regular Decision. In the email, update the representative with any new activities, increase in grades and scores, and anything else that is academically exciting to report, like a new award. If you participate in Theater or Band, send the representative information about any new plays or concerts. If you do not have anything new to report, send an email stating your enthusiasm for the college and something that demonstrates your fit even better. Recap The point of this blog posting is to show you, the prospective student, how to stand out against all the other students. Applying to college is a strategy; most students only think about sending in their grades and scores and then writing the application essays. But there are so many other ways that a student can present his/her case to the admissions committee. If you make connections with professors and geographic representatives, you will stand out. Be a giraffe or a peacock and leave the stealth to Jason Bourne and the CIA. VisitCollegeStartOnlinefor more information. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of Varsity Tutors.

Learning Guitar Understanding Minor and 7th Chords

Learning Guitar Understanding Minor and 7th Chords Megan L. What are minor and 7th chords anyway? TakeLessons teacher Brian T. breaks down the music theory behind building these chords Learning guitar chords is one of the early challenges of learning the guitar. Very often a new student will find themselves presented with a host of fingering patterns that make little sense. Why this set of frets and not that one? the student wonders Why, when I move my E major down a string does it become A minor? With just a bit of music theory and a willingness to work things out, we can answer these sorts of questions on our own. With a bit of effort, we can even free ourselves from dependence on chord books and other reference materials! Finding Notes on the Guitar To make sure were all on the same page, were going to start by discussing the notes used in the western musical tradition and where they are found on the guitar. Western music is made up of twelve notes, which are commonly labeled in one of two ways: Observe that A sharp labels the same note as B flat, C sharp likewise labels the same not as D flat, and so on. For our purposes, we can treat these alternate labels as interchangeable. Lets review how we find these notes on the guitar. Moving one space to the right on the chart above (this is called, confusingly for guitarists, a half step) is the same as moving one fret up the neck of the guitar. If we start with the 5th (A) string open, we have an A. Moving to the first fret yields an A sharp; the second fret is B; we find C on the third fret, and so on. With the charts above and your the open strings memorized (E-B-G-D-A-E), you can find any note on the guitar! A Brief Overview of Chord Construction Though there are twelve notes available, any given song will stick for the most part to a set of seven notes that form the key of the song. For simplicitys sake, well look at the key starting with A and containing no sharps or flats; this key is known as A minor. Now that weve established our key, were ready to make some chords! Each chord has a root note which gives the chord its name. We start by labelling the root 1, and count up from it until all the members of the key have a number (we may need to loop around). If were making an A chord in our chosen key of A minor, it looks like this: To form the chord, we play the notes labeled 1, 3, and 5; in the case of our A minor chord, these are A, C, and E. Thats all there is to making a basic chord! Now of course, your guitar has more than three strings, so youll usually need to double up a few notes. Just make sure that the deepest sounding note is the root, and youll be good to go. Lets look at building another chord in A minor. This time well form a C chord. This time our 1, 3, and 5, are C, E, and G respectively. What Makes a Chord Minor If youve been playing along (and I hope you have, as this is the best way of learning guitar chords) you may have noticed that the A and the C chords we constructed above sound markedly different. The A chord sounds somber, even sad, whereas the C chord is cheerful. This is because the A chord is a minor chord, while the C chord is Major. Lets look at why this is: The distance between two notes, in half steps, is called the interval between them. As we saw before, each chord consists of a 1, 3, and 5. The interval between 1 and 3 is called, quite reasonably, a 3rd. Not all thirds are the same size. A look at the chart of the key of A minor shows that there are three half steps from A to C. There are, however, four half steps from C to E, which is also a 3rd. The smaller three half step version of the 3rd is called a minor 3rd, while the larger four half step version is known as a major 3rd. A minor 3rd leads to a minor chord, and likewise a major 3rd yields a major chord. We can see this using the two chords we built earlier, A minor and C major: A minor 3rd yields a minor chord. Thats really all there is to it! Adding 7ths to Your Chords We need not limit ourselves to chords with only three notes! If we wish, we can add another just as we did before by skipping one note in the key. We end up with a chord containing 1,3,5, and 7; not surprisingly this is called a 7th chord. Much like 3rds, 7ths come in two varieties: major and minor. The most common combination is a major chord with a minor 7th. This is usually formed on the dominant (V) member of the key, and heralds the return of the tonic (I/i). Lets look at an example, again from the key of A minor: E major 7(V7): Other combinations are possible, however try them out! I find that the major 7th on a major chord yields a warm, sweet sound, while a minor chord with a minor 7th sounds a bit gloomy. The minor chord with a major 7th inspires in me a sense of foreboding. What does it inspire in you? Conclusion Hopefully this post has given you a bit of a better sense of what minor and 7th chords are, and how to construct them. Ultimately, the best way of learning guitar chords is with fingers on the fret board. Name a chord, figure out what notes make it up, and find it on your guitar preferably somewhere down the neck where things are a bit less familiar! Brian T. teaches Economics, Geometry, Grammar, and Math in San Francisco, CA. He has been playing guitar for 14 years. He received his BA in Mathematics and Economics at University of San Francisco, where he studied Classical Guitar and Music Theory for three years.  Learn more about Brian T. here! Interested in Private Lessons? Search thousands of teachers for local and live, online lessons. Sign up for convenient, affordable private lessons today! Search for Your Teacher Photo by  Dusty J

Volume Rectangular Prism

Volume Rectangular Prism There are different kinds of prisms depending on the type of base the prism has, and therefore the prism consisting of rectangular bases is known as the rectangular prism. All the surfaces of the rectangular prism are rectangles. Volume of any prism can be calculated by multiplying the area of the base with the height of the prism. In a rectangular prism since the base is a rectangle, hence its volume is given as the product of the area of the base rectangle and the height of the prism. Example 1: Find the volume of the rectangular prism whose length is 4m, width is 1m and height is 5m. Given the length of the rectangular prim, l = 4m Width of the rectangular prism, w = 1m Height of the rectangular prism, h = 5m Volume of a rectangular prism, V = (length) * (width) * (height) Hence, volume of the rectangular prism, V = 4m * 1m * 5m = 20m3 Therefore, the volume of the given rectangular prism = 20m3 Example 2: Find the volume of the rectangular prism whose length is 8cm, width is 7cm and height is 11cm. Given the length of the rectangular prim, l = 8cm Width of the rectangular prism, w = 7cm Height of the rectangular prism, h = 11cm Volume of a rectangular prism, V = (length) * (width) * (height) Hence, volume of the rectangular prism, V = 8cm * 7cm * 11cm = 616cm3 Therefore, the volume of the given rectangular prism = 616cm3

17 Tips For Recording Acoustic Guitar At Your Home Studio

17 Tips For Recording Acoustic Guitar At Your Home Studio Suzy S. Curious about recording acoustic guitar tracks at your home studio? Check out these helpful tips for before and during the session from Perth Amboy, NJ teacher  Jeff S... If youve tried recording acoustic guitar before, theres a good chance you know how demoralizing it can be to think youve captured a wonderful performance, only to learn later that its sonically flawed. Id like to offer some tips, with hopes they will assist you in rendering consistently clean and clear acoustic guitar tracks. Before you even begin, here are some tips for setting up: Find the place in the room that you feel your acoustic guitar or voice sounds best, make a mark on the floor, and also take detailed notes. Include the height of the mic off the ground, the distance between you and the mic, and the angle of yourself and the guitar in relation to the mic. Better yet, have someone take a picture of you recording in your “sweet spot.” Spend some time choosing and verifying the tempo at which you’re going to record the song. Experiment with a few different tempos until you find just the right one. Determine the mood of the song  you are recording and base all your decisions around that. Is the guitar meant to be gentle? Aggressive? Graceful? Attacky? Both the guitar part and the vocal approach will fly or die by your accurate assessment of the mood! Record acoustic guitar and vocals in mono, as these are monophonic sources. Once you get a beginning-to-end performance of the main guitar part, you can think about recording it again and either using the second part to beef up the sound or run one guitar track on the left channel and one on the right. Some engineers like to record with two different mics simultaneously, pointing one at one part of the guitar and one at another part of the guitar. Experiment and see what floats your boat. Record both guitar and vocal without any reverb, effects, or EQ adjustments. Add what you wish after it, but cut the tracks dry. This gives you much more flexibility when you mix. Set your volume levels so that you don’t end up pushing the meter into the red more than once or twice per track (even that might cause distortion enough to ruin an otherwise good track) and then focus on maintaining that level and waveform size as you replay or re-sing the part. Count in one or two measures before you start recording the guitar part. Don’t have the volume of the click track up so high that it bleeds through the headphones into the microphone. Its prudent to record with a click track, but you need to make sure its not so loud that the clicks get picked up in your vocal or instrument mic. Consider extra purchases. If your recording room isnt soundproofed and you dont have the time or the budget to make it so, dont worry. There are several effective and reasonably priced options that will quell the bleed-throughs. Three you might consider are sE Electronics Reflexion Filter X Portable Vocal Booth (just under $125), sE Electronics Reflexion Filter Pro model (just under $250), or the Auralex Pro Max (just under $350).  You might also want to consider getting a wind screen. Next, heres a list of some of the most important tips to keep in mind during your session: Be cognizant of noises, including your own breathing, arm, and hand noises as you move them on the guitar, and other noises that could come from the chair you’re sitting on, the floor, and so on. These will all contaminate your tracks. Nothing is more agonizing than thinking that your performance and recording were pristine, only to later discover that your stomach rumbled or the chair creaked. After you record a track or two, listen to the guitar track for squeaks. Some guitarists hands and styles lend themselves to more squeaking than others. Squeaks are hard to avoid altogether, but aside from being aware of them, you can get coated strings that help reduce squeaking. If youre generally pleased with a performance you record, but it has a few squeaks, write down the times where they occur and then decide whether you’re going to punch in replacement sections or look for a squeakless performance of the section in another part of the song (that you can cut and paste into the squeaky area). Remember to re-tune your guitar (and all other instruments) often during the recording process. As soon as you think you have recorded an acceptable main acoustic guitar part, throw down a quick reference (scratch) vocal (one or two takesâ€"don’t finesse the performance) to see if the vocals work well with the guitar part. In evaluating their synergy, make sure the guitar is not “stepping” on the vocal (i.e. interfering or drawing attention away from) and that there arent any glaring rhythmic or chordal anomalies. Sometimes when you separate the guitar and vocal parts and record them independently, you might alter how you play the guitar part, which makes for a stilted performance. Also, listen to make sure you are not holding out chords or notes too long (or not long enough). If your digital audio workstation (DAW) doesnt automatically save your recordings as they evolve, then you need to remember to click the save button early and often. If applicable, let the final chord of the song ring out until you can’t hear it anymore. And be ever so quiet as it does. Be sure not to breathe loud or move your hands or body. If the song has a fade-out ending, play the fade at least 15 seconds longer than you think you need. Before you decide to end your recording session, listen to the track all the way through. Its easy to lose perspective when you are doing both the engineering and recording. Take notes as to possible EQ modifications you need to make, possible spots you need to punch in, and times and specifics about any performance or recording anomalies that you hear. This way you have a game plan of things to tackle when you return to the project. As you can see, there are a lot of important details to keep in mind when recording acoustic guitar on your own.  But along with those concerns and oversight measures comes an enpowering experience with lots of advantages.  Those include the freedom of recording any day and time youd like without a reservation, deposit, or committing to a minimum block of hours; the ability to leisurely listen and evaluate the quality of various takes;  experimenting as much as youd like with  altering the position of equipment and recording environment without oversight or added expense; using and comparing different types of mics and guitars, etc. So take your time, enjoy the experience, remember to have fun, and pat yourself on the back every once in a while. Jeff S. teaches guitar, ukulele, speaking voice, songwriting, and more in Perth Amboy, NJ, as well as online.  Jeff has created and taught songwriting and music business classes at colleges, universities, and music schools throughout the country for many years. Learn more  about Jeff here!   Interested in Private Lessons? Search thousands of teachers for local and live, online lessons. Sign up for convenient, affordable private lessons today! Search for Your Teacher Photo  by erik  forsberg

Ideas for Teaching Outside the Classroom

Ideas for Teaching Outside the Classroom Sometimes, your students need a change of scenery. Taking your students outside the classroom can be highly beneficial, energizing students and giving them the chance to interact and learn in a totally different way. Below are a few ideas from Huntington to help move your teaching venue beyond the traditional classroom: Field trips. The field trip is the most obvious way to take students into the real world, but dont think that your only option is the art or science museum. Tour your citys sports arena. Explore your areas trails, hiking spots, rivers, or lakes. Visit a historic site. Check out a college campus. Take science outside. Whats on or near your schools campus? A grassy field? Trees? A body of water? Wildflowers? Use the area as a learning ground to study plants, rocks, or insects. Team up with other classes. Could you pair older and younger students for a mentorship or book buddies program? Could you let small groups of your students observe another class that is covering a topic your class is also studying? Use the weather. The changing weather and seasons create obvious teaching opportunities for science teachers, but English teachers might take students outside for creative writing or poetry units to let the sounds and sights inspire them. Math teachers could have students track and graph rainfall, wind direction, and temperature. Make it active. Use the spaces within your school to make your learning more active when feasible. Could you invigorate a lecture by moving to the auditorium or library? Could the gym serve as an occasional venue for student discussions or group presentations? Understandably, most teachers feel best equipped in their own classrooms. However, you can boost your students growth and enrich their learning by periodically changing things up. Try something and see how it goes!