I have many clients with learning challenges. A senior with dyslexia and ADHD was expected to memorize a list of words. She studied with me as I presented photographs and other context clues to learn. However, I decided that the teacher must change his approach. I recommended that she write an essay, and I made sure that she used context clues such as synonyms, antonyms, examples, or a restatement. Struggles More Complicated Than Vocabulary Can Express Whenever I mention that I struggle … [Read more...]
Put prepositional phrases in their proper places
Ever wondered how prepositional phrases could cause the demise of a personal statement or simply a confused reader? Perhaps your learning how to diagram sentences (many of my clients are experts at diagramming) will help you visually see how parts of a sentence fit together. I use Eugene Moutoux’s book, Drawing Sentences—A Guide To Diagramming. A client regretted submitting a personal statement with the following sentence: I will never forget when I saw someone die for the first … [Read more...]
I heard you the first time
Do you listen to your writing? Probably the best way to listen is to read it aloud. Sometimes when you read silently, you might not realize the number of times the word that or therefore or however appears in a one-page essay. You may be using those words correctly, but the repetitiveness will not keep the reader riveted to every message you’re trying to convey. I challenge you to draft an essay. When you are close to writing the last draft, read it aloud. Then, search and find any word or … [Read more...]