Getting Your Degree with Minimal Student Debt
by Laura Pearson While you're in college, you'll probably be racking up knowledge as well as debt. But getting your degree doesn't have to spell long-term, insurmountable financial troubles. Courtesy of Inspiring Test Preparation, here are some ways you can start reducing the economic burden of your education even before you step off the graduation stage. Work While You Learn With work-study arrangements, you may be able to go right [...]
Best Passion Project Ideas for High School Students
byline Jonathan Pizzutti In an increasingly competitive college admissions landscape, high school students are looking for better ways to stand out from the crowd to get into their target schools. Many are finding that the best way to maximize your chances of acceptance is through a passion project. A passion project lets you take a passion that you have and turn it into something impactful that you can showcase on [...]
The Power of Play
by Miss Grace of consultingandtutoringedu.com School, learning, academics, and tutoring are often synonymous with sitting in a hard chair at a table or a desk with the expectation that you will learn based on what the teacher or tutor is telling you and complete some sort of worksheet or drill. I want to shift the perception of learning and highlight the incredible benefits play provides to a child’s educational [...]
Creative Ways to Help Kids Learn
Creative Ways To Help Kids Learn by Laura Pearson of edutude.net Every child learns differently, and it can be tough to watch them struggle in the classroom. Fortunately, you know your child best, and there are a number of creative ways you can help them tackle even the toughest subjects by providing at-home support. Learning disguised as fun can be particularly beneficial when it comes to catching and keeping their [...]
Introducing Flex Prep
WHAT IS FLEX PREP? Want to skip the classes and online group prep? Looking for a customized prep? Don’t despair! Flex prep is year-round tutoring ONLINE for the SAT and ACT. […]
Introducing Mindprint Learning Assessments
We are exciting to announce that Inspiring Test Preparation is now offering Mindprint assessments to determine the best approach to preparing students for standardized tests such as the SAT and ACT. WHAT IS MINDPRINT? Mindprint is a self-paced online cognitive assessment. It was developed by scientists at Penn Medicine with a grant from the National Institute of Mental Health. It measures the ten cognitive skills most closely correlated to [...]
What are the SAT Question and Answer Service and ACT Test Information Release?
From time to time students will be confused by their performance on their SAT or ACT. They will say: "I don't understand why my English score dropped", or "I thought I aced the math, what happened"? To better understand test performance, both College Board and ACT provide a service that allows you to purchase a copy of the test you took. This service is not available for all test [...]
Lighthouse Career Coaching – Deciding on a College Major and Career Path
WHY IS DECIDING ON A COLLEGE MAJOR AND CAREER PATH SO HARD? There are more than 12,000 careers and 315 academic majors. No wonder so many students struggle to find their direction! An investment in career assessments will your student discover and select the study and employment options that “fit” them This insight will help them graduate on time, be happier and do better with their studies, and [...]
TJ Portrait of a Graduate Sheet 2022
Well, we are having another exciting year helping students gain entry into Thomas Jefferson High School of Science and Technology. There is no longer a math, reading, and science test that you have to pass to make first cut, but there are some hoops to jump through: a math question and several essay questions. If you would like help preparing for the written essays for the TJ Portrait of [...]
Score Results for 2020 Are Coming In
Wow. What a crazy year it has been. We started the new year moving from our McLean, VA office to a new location in Vienna, VA. We were so excited to be in a new space near so many of our clients; it was such a promising beginning . . . then Covid hit. Bam! We went from 60 to 0 over night. Students' SAT and ACT test dates [...]
Why Do My ACT Scores Fluctuate So Much?
Recently I received an inquiry about test preparation from a parent who said her daughter (not a student of mine) had scored a 32 composite the previous fall on the ACT. She was frustrated because the science sub score was only a 29, yet she had been scoring as high as a 36 in practice. Part of her problem on the real test was timing. [...]
SAT vs. ACT – Which test is right for you?
Now that it’s prime time to start studying for the SAT and ACT, we’ve had a lot of students ask us which test they should take. Nowadays, most colleges accept the SAT and ACT and weigh scores from both tests equally, so that’s no longer a reason to take one test over the other. The College Board recently redesigned the SAT and it is now [...]
New! Virtual Fireside Chat with Dr. Sybil Gohari, Founder of Admissions Company
Join Dr. Sybil Gohari, founder of Admissions Company, for a virtual Fireside Chat on College Admissions on Wednesday, December 2nd, 2020 at 7 pm. This event is sponsored by Kate Dalby, owner of Inspiring Test Preparation. Contact Dr. Gohari directly to sign up at info@admissions.company. Seating is limited. Dr. Gohari brings over a decade of experience as an educator and entrepreneur; she spends her time at the intersection [...]
May You Live in Interesting Times: TJ’s Merit Lottery
"May you live in interesting times": a blessing to some and a curse to others. But there is no doubt, we are living in interesting times. We are fortunate to live in a country with so many opportunities for people who take the initiative to prosper. And while our country is reeling under the challenges of Covid-19, quarantine, protests, riots, and economic turmoil, some in our own community [...]
Insight Into Yelp Reviews
Have you ever written a Yelp review and had Yelp refuse to post it as legitimate? Inspiring Test Preparation has had a number of reviews not approved and we have been mystified as to why some are approved and others rejected. We also have had some rejected and then mysteriously accepted later (most curious). I had an interesting conversation with a Yelp representative today who gave me insight into [...]
TJ SIS Workshop 2021
SIS Workshops Will Be Online Via Zoom! […]
I Love Vienna!
We are excited to announce we are moving our offices to 226 Maple Avenue West; 402 Vienna, VA 22180 We are scheduled to start all classes and private tutoring on February 1, 2020 from this new location. While not convenient for everyone, hopefully our clients west of McLean will be happy with our new digs on Maple Ave. near Nutley St. Check out the Tom Yum Thai's scrumptious green curry. Yum yum.
A Thank You Note from a Client
To Dr Weinstein: From: MIA MCINERNEY <miaxxxxcom> Sent: Monday, October 7, 2019 7:53 AM To: Aimee Weinstein Subject: Amazing - we have progress and thank you Hi Aimee, I don’t know what magic potion you gave Alex when you met with him yesterday, in jut an hour no less but he came out of there more enthusiastic than ever!! He asked me not to talk on the way home [...]
Another Thank You Note
Dear Ms Dalby My daughter Bhuvana Pandalai was one of your students . She and I have been helping a lot of parents and students through college application process and preparation during high school. Most of these parents and students don't even know ACT tests agreed and they have been asking where Bhuvana did her ACT tutoring. I have recommended your center to multiple parents. [...]
At Home TJ Math Drills
When clients call for advice to get into TJ, the first thing I do is have them take a one hour at-home math test to see how strong the student's problem solving skills are. My test is extremely predictive: a poor score means acceptance to TJ is nil unless the student takes action to improve basic math skills. To address the deficit, we conduct math drills for 7th graders [...]