Tips for Avoiding the Flu this Season

If you have already gotten a flu shot this year, then you are on the right track to staying flu-free.  However, given that there are more than 500 strains of flu out there, it can’t hurt to take some additional precautions such as the ones listed below.  Even if you have not contracted a flu virus, the winter months bring lots of bugs floating around that necessitate the need for following protective measures:

·         Wash your hands often and/ or use hand sanitizer frequently.  Be mindful of things you touch such as door knobs and/or computer keyboards that have been used by other people.  Wipe down key boards and desk surfaces and use a paper towel, if possible to open doors to avoid sharing too many germs.

·         Use a humidifier to improve mucous production that help in warding off flus and other viruses which thrive in dry air conditions.

·         Maintain an exercise program to improve circulation that keeps white blood cells mobile which helps to fight off flu bugs.

·         Get plenty of sleep each night to ward that helps to strengthen your immune system in an effort to keep flu viruses at bay.

·         Be mindful of how often you shake hands with others and how many people you interact with.  If you are feeling under the weather, it is perfectly fine to nod your head and smile to achieve the same effect without the potential for contracting germs.

·         Eat healthy by ingesting foods that are packed with beneficial nutrients like yogurt which has probiotics to fight off bad bacteria.  Citrus fruits that are packed with vitamin C are another great choice and most importantly, your green, leafy vegetables which contain a variety of minerals.

·         Stay home if you are sick to prevent getting other people infected.  If you know you are sick, especially when it comes to the flu, wait until you are out of the woods before returning to work or hanging out around large crowds of people.

·         Incorporate regular relaxation and stress reduction techniques into your routine as another immune boosting strategy; when your body is under less stress, your immune system is stronger.

With these tips in mind, you can keep yourself strong enough for a healthy winter season.  For more information on this topic, follow this link. 

What do I want to be when I grow up?

 

 

Every student is faced with the heavy task of choosing a major.  Although it is a big decision it doesn’t have to be a stressful one.  In fact, many students spend the first two years of their education taking general education classes to help ease the process and grow through their studies.  Here are some ideas and questions you can think about to get you started in that decision process.

• Think about the present

What do you enjoy most about your daily routine? Are you more energized in the morning or do you feel your best at night? Do you enjoy talking to others during your morning coffee stop or are you happier reading the morning paper while waiting for your coffee? Are you comfortable driving around while doing errands or would you rather utilize a computer and internet for all your needs?

•  Keep in mind your interests

In your free time, what do you find yourself doing? Are you outside in your garden or in your kitchen trying your hand at a new recipe? Do you enjoy volunteering or are you at the gym lifting weights and taking yoga classes? Is fixing up your vehicle exciting or do you like reading about the newest fashion trends? Perhaps you frequent the movie theater or visit the dog park often.

• Consider the future

Do you see yourself living in the same state and town or are you in a new setting with different cultures around you? Are you in the process of raising a family or entertaining friends with drinks and catered appetizers every Friday night? Is the airport a familiar place to you due to your monthly travels or are you content in your local commute? Do you have a graduate degree underway?

 

These are just a few questions and thoughts to use when considering your path of study and more importantly your career.  Keep in mind this decision is about you.  No one wants to wake up every morning dreading work.  After all the more engaged you are in your major the happier you’ll be in your education and future career. 

If you’d like to take a quiz to find a major that’s right you, go to www.MyMajors.com   



Promoting Your Success: Free Tutoring at NOVA

As an ELI student, you are eligible for a wealth of academic resources to promote your success at NOVA!   In addition to the online resources offered exclusively to ELI students, you are also eligible to use on-campus resources!  Among the abundance of resources, free tutoring is available to ELI students on-line and on-campus.

If you are struggling in a class or just need a little boost, you are encouraged to take advantage of our free tutoring services.  If you are enrolled in an ELI class, discover the benefits of free tutoring through Smarthinking! 

ELI students can access this free  one-on-one tutoring, on-demand or by appointment.  Need feedback on your paper? The Smarthinking Online Writing Lab provides students with the ability to receive a detailed, personalized critique of any written assignment through a formal critique process. Also, Smarthinking is available 24/7 (appointments are recommended).

Although Smarthinking does not offer tutoring in all subjects, they cover most to include; writing, mathematics, science, business, English for speakers of other languages, Spanish, and nursing & allied health. Students can receive assistance in these areas at a variety of levels -- from developmental mathematics to advanced calculus, or from introductory biology to organic chemistry, and more.

Prefer meeting one-on-one in person?  Explore the on-campus tutoring centers. On-campus tutoring is offered on a walk-in basis or by appointment.  Please refer to the website for hours and information.

Your tutor will guide you, provide constructive feedback, and help you understand and master course content. As your course knowledge increases, completion of assignments will be a breeze and your confidence will increase as well!  Don’t put tutoring off, be pro-active and take advantage of this valuable resource now. 

If you are looking for additional resources to help promote academic success, the ELI Student Success Coaches are also here to help you.  Your success coach can help with study strategies and academic resources to include time management, free online success workshops, study skills and more.  To contact your Success Coach, please send an email to ELISuccess@nvcc.edu or please call 703.764.5076.

Moments of Joy for Every Month of the Year – Part I

If one of your New Year’s Resolutions is to create more fun and joy into your routine, the following tips can help you create moments to look forward to as you are easing back into the swing of school, work and life:

·         Develop a “fun list”- Write down a list of things that you are interested in doing to carve out some fun in your day such as reading a chapter of a novel, playing a crossword puzzle, chatting with a friend(s) or watching an old movie that made you laugh or cry tears of happiness.

·         February provides a great opportunity to celebrate history.  Many historical holidays and events are popular during this month such as Martin Luther King Jr’s Birthday, President’s Day; check out local museums and art exhibits to enlighten yourself on the significance of these moments in history.

·         March is National Nutrition Month which is a great time to think about preparing some new and creative recipes with friends and family.  Plan a potluck celebration and if you are feeling super creative, implement a theme such as Mediterranean Monday or Salad Sunday!   If you have competitive participants, award a 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd place prize for the most creative and tasty dishes.

·         April is Assault Awareness Month; this is a great opportunity to sign up for some self defense or kickboxing classes and reinforce your goals of staying fit for the new year!

·         For May, Celebrate National Bike month by checking out bikeriding meetups (www.meetup.com)  or getting a group of friends and neighbors together to go on a group ride.  Even if you don’t own a bike, you can get them pretty cheap at local consignment shops. 

·         Plan a beach trip for June; it is a great time for soaking up some rays while reading a good book under your beach umbrella or walking your dog on the sand when the sun rises or sets.  Savor your relaxation time as you breathe in the sound of the waves and watch the sun glisten on the ocean.

·         July is Dance Appreciation month so what better time to get out there and take a dance class?  Identify a type of dance that you are interested in, be it ballroom, hip hop or salsa just to name a few.  Once again, you will be contributing to your fitness goals in the process.

·         With the summer well underway and only a few weeks left before school starts again, in the month of August, take a moment to spend some extra time with your pet, significant other, best friend or close family member.  Take your dog for an extra walk or take your best friend out to lunch.  Reinforce the close connections that you have while the days are still long and the weather still sunny.

The above suggestions will help you approach the year ahead with zest as you consider the plethora of fun things to do in the midst of our hectic lifestyles.  Stay tuned for Part II of this article; there’s lots more fun to be had in the ensuing months.  For more information on this topic, visit the following link.

ELI Book & Cinema Club: ARGO

Sign Up:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dGNrRDNFQ1dTendQUDRCVEQ3SVlySnc6MQ

Virtual Student Union: http://elife.nvcc.edu/vsu/

Through the Eyes of a Student: The beginning of an 8 wk. Course

My 8-week course has started, and so far, I am relieved to find that I can handle it. I am very glad I purchased the textbook early, because there were 3 chapters of assigned reading in the first week. If I had gotten behind on that, I would feel very overwhelmed. As it is, I am finding that I need to adjust my way of studying to accommodate the course-work.

I don't really have time to read the chapters two or three times before the exam. Memorizing each word independently also takes a lot of time. Instead of those strategies, I am using a different technique that Scott Young describes in his blog post: “How to Ace your Finals without Studying.”

He recommends what he calls Holistic Learning. In that style of learning, you try to make analogies between the new concepts you are learning and concepts you already know. To do this, I try to think about the material and visualize a situation that illustrates the concepts for me. For example, since I am studying statistics and plan to apply them to educational settings, when I am studying mean, median, and mode, I think of a test taken by a class of students which produces a list of scores.

I imagine a group of students lined up in front of a classroom in order of scores from lowest to highest. For median, I draw a line that splits the class exactly in half. For mode, I imagine myself calling out test scores and having each of the imaginary students take a step forward when their score is called, before stepping back. The score that had the largest group of students stepping forward is the mode. For mean, I imagine each of the students holding a handful of pennies representing their scores. Each student steps forward and dumps their pennies in the basket. The students then split the pennies into equal groups and each one takes the same amount. This helps me envision the mean or average. I then think about the kind of situation in which one of these three concepts would be more useful to me than the other two. I don’t move on to the next section until I have done this for each of the new points I have learned. Sometimes, the textbook helps by suggesting metaphors like these. Sometimes the examples in the book don’t work for me, so I have to make up ones of my own instead.

While creating connections and visualizations like this causes me to read at a slower pace, I can already tell that they will save me time in the long run. Today, I was able to recall the material I studied last week without reviewing it or making mistakes. (Although a friend pointed out that trying to recall the information in the first place was itself a kind of review... ) Furthermore, not only has my memory for concepts increased significantly, these strategies have made studying fun!

What tactics do you use to study more efficiently or make the studying enjoyable?

NOVA's Office of Pregnant and Parenting Student Support

Office of Pregnant and Parenting Student Support

(OPPSS)

Providing Support for Pregnant and Parenting NOVA Students through the establishment of the OPPSS

oppss@nvcc.edu

Main Number: 703-822-2010

www.nvcc.edu/oppss

OPPSS is commitment is to provide student support services to pregnant women, expectant fathers and newly parenting students in an effort to increase student success and retention

703-822-2010