I like to look at the New Year as a time of reflection and new beginning. Many people set new goals at this time of year. I would encourage you to sit down as a family or with a friend and discuss one or two goals for 2013. Sharing your goals with others helps you to choose to become accountable. This is a great time to help your children learn about goal setting and perhaps the need to adjust the size of a goal. Most people stop at the goal setting stage and never think through the steps required to achieve that goal. Without a plan the goal is really more like a dream or a desire and often never goes past that stage. The lack of success in achieving goals can lead to not even attempting to set them.

I'd like to encourage you to set aside your past experiences with goal setting and try again. I once read, "The only reason to look back is to learn from our past and move forward." This time select one or two goals you

really want to achieve. Remember to create a plan of specific measurable

steps that you will take to accomplish it. Write the goals, steps and your new plan on a 3x5 card and read them daily out loud. If you weren't able to come up with a plan initially, I've found if I read the goals daily, the plan often unfolds.

Here's wishing you and yours a Happy New Year as you reflect and stir yourself and others to set and achieve worthwhile goals. Let's make 2013 a year of breakthroughs.

Making a Difference Together,

Pauline Turton

Time to Act - Learning Disabilities Don't Just Disappear, The Impact Continues

• Is your child struggling to remember what they've studied? This is frustrating for everyone involved when you cannot figure out what is causing the issue. Is it emotional? Is it effort? Is it something else? more... 

Congratulations to last month's winner Lisa who wrote:

Playing Scrabble and Trouble and watching Christmas at Little House On The Prairie with the whole family!

Dealing effectively with learning disabilities and emotional challenges is not only solvable, but at Breakthroughs in Learning we have specific programs that can help almost any situation.  Matthew Turton, Learning Disabilities Expert, will share specific techniques to help your child or adolescent get past their specific learning issues and thrive.  

At Our Seminar You Will:

• Learn that the brain is like a muscle: when you exercise it, it will grow.
• Discuss case studies indicating the specific changes that take place in the brain which will help your child achieve success over their specific learning issue
• Discover that overcoming learning issues is not only possible, but that we also have specific strategies that will help you deal with them on a daily basis

How do you balance your teaching style with your child's learning style? What are learning styles and how do they show up in your homeschool? Matthew Turton, long time homeschoolee and Educational Therapist at Breakthroughs in Learning will discuss how to help you and your child make the most out of your school time.