Learn Phrases in a New Language with World Nomads!

Have you ever been stuck in a country wanting to be polite, but not even knowing the word for 'please'? Or been frustrated when you couldn't ask for the most basic directions to where you're going?

The WorldNomads.com German Language Guide gives you enough phrases to keep you travelling safely and get more from your holiday.

There are many other languages available! Click HERE for more information!

Overcoming Test Anxiety

OVERCOMING TEST ANXIETY 

Most students experience some level of anxiety during an exam; however, when anxiety affects exam performance it has become a problem.

Test preparation to reduce anxiety:

• Approach the exam with confidence: Use whatever strategies you can to personalize success: visualization, logic, talking to yourself, practice, team work, journaling, etc. View the exam as an opportunity to show how much you've studied and to receive a reward for the studying you've done.

• Be prepared! Learn your material thoroughly and organize what materials you will need for the test. Use a checklist.

• Choose a comfortable location for taking the test with good lighting and minimal distractions. • Allow yourself plenty of time, especially to do things you need to do before the test and still get there a little early.

• Avoid thinking you need to cram just before.

• Strive for a relaxed state of concentration.

• Avoid speaking with any fellow students who have not prepared, who express negativity, who will distract your preparation.

• A program of exercise is said to sharpen the mind.

• Get a good night's sleep the night before the exam.

• Don't go to the exam with an empty stomach. Fresh fruits and vegetables are often recommended to reduce stress. Stressful foods can include processed foods, artificial sweeteners, carbonated soft drinks, chocolate, eggs, fried foods, junk foods, pork, red meat, sugar, white flour products, chips and similar snack foods, foods containing preservatives or heavy spices.

• Take a small snack, or some other nourishment to help take your mind off of your anxiety. Avoid high sugar content (candy) which may aggravate your condition. During the test:

• Read the directions carefully.

• Budget your test taking time.

• Change positions to help you relax.

• If you go blank, skip the question and go on.

• If you're taking an essay test and you go blank on the whole test, pick a question and start writing. It may trigger the answer in your mind.

• Don't panic when students start handing in their papers. There's no reward for being the first done.
Excerpted from Overcoming test anxiety. Study Guides and Strategies.

Retrieved 06/12/2009 from http://www.studygs.net/tstprp8.htm Permission is granted to freely copy, adapt, and distribute individual in print format in noncommercial educational settings that benefit learners.

Austin ISD Middle School Fair December 1, 2018 at Fulmore Middle School

Families of current and future middle school students are invited to Austin ISD's 2018 Middle School Fair.

Students and their families can learn about the diverse and innovative programming offered in Austin ISD, enjoy student performances, and hear from current students, families and faculty from our 19 middle schools about the amazing programs and classes open to our middle school students.

This year's fair is 9 a.m.–noon Dec. 1 at Fulmore Middle School, 201 E. Mary St. 

Reagan and Crockett Early College High Schools will be running a shuttle to and from Fulmore Middle School starting at 8 a.m., with final pickup to return to the high schools at noon.

For more information, please contact Ollie White in the Middle School Office at 512-414-4481.

Brain Health Series: Your Brain, Sleep, and Relaxation

Did you know that not getting enough sleep is not healthy for your brain? New research shows that sleeping less than seven or eight hours a night has been linked to cognitive decline, memory loss, and possibly even Alzheimer's disease.

A sleep deficit can have dangerous implications for your brain, and not just because it makes you sleepy during the day. Parts of your brain are several times more active at night than during the daytime. One of them is a newly discovered drainage system called the glymphatic system. This is a bit like your city's sewage and recycling system. Its job is to clear out and recycle all toxins in the brain. One protein actively recycled during sleep is amyloid plaque. This plaque is the hallmark of Alzheimer's. Alzheimer’s disease is caused by many factors, but one of these may also be sleep deprivation.

A University of Pennsylvania study found that extended wakefulness can injure neurons essential for alertness and cognition, and that the damage to these neurons might be permanent. Other studies have led scientists to conclude that chemicals secreted during the deeper stages of sleep are crucial for repairing the body, including the brain.

One of the chemicals involved in creating memories, acetylcholine, is also developed during sleep and dreaming. Brain cells that produce acetylcholine are destroyed in people who are developing Alzheimer’s disease. So, these people do not dream as much.

Relaxation and meditation or mindfulness has been found to be very beneficial to brain and body health.  Deep relaxation and meditation, when practiced regularly not only relieve stress and anxiety but have been found to improve mood. Deep relaxation has many other potential benefits as well—it can decrease blood pressure, relieve pain, and improve your immune and cardiovascular systems

The brain requires substantial downtime to remain industrious and generate its most innovative ideas. According to Tim Kreider, of the New York Times, "Idleness is not just a vacation, an indulgence or a vice; it is as indispensable to the brain as vitamin D is to the body, and deprived of it we suffer a mental affliction as disfiguring as rickets,"

Let’s get a good nights sleep, remember to relax, and meditate. do it all for the health of our brains and become better thinkers in the process!

Sources:

https://healthybrains.org/pillar-sleep/

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/mental-downtime

http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/conditions/rest-relaxation-and-exercise

Daily Practice for the SAT

For more information, please click here.

East Austin Studio Tour - 11/10-11/2018 and 11/17-19/2018

Design Theme

Our design theme for 2018 uses trees as a way of emphasizing the importance of regionality and peace in response to our current tumultuous cultural climate. Ten EAST artists each illustrated a seasonal, native tree.

Artists include Karen Alexander, Federico Archuleta, Elizabeth Chiles, Ryan Davis, Gabe Langholtz, MakeATX, Ryan Sandison Montgomery, Ryan Runcie,Rachel Wolfson Smith, and Amanda Walker.

Dates & Times

Free and open on November 10–11 & 17–18, 2018 from 11am–6pm.

Boundaries

East of I-35
West of HHW 183
South of HWY 183
North of Riverside

Who We Are

EAST is a program of Big Medium, a nonprofit organization dedicated to championing and cultivating artists and the contemporary arts in Austin and across Texas. Through our programs and partnerships, we are working to foster the arts and facilitate an inclusive cultural dialogue between artists and their communities.

What We Do

Big Medium produces the East Austin Studio Tour, the West Austin Studio Tour, the Texas Biennial, and presents innovative exhibitions throughout the year in the Big Medium Gallery. We also provide studio space to artists at Canopy, and umbrella several artists and creative organizations through our Sponsored Projects program.

2018 Participants

The 2018 tour includes 555 participants, with 202 Artists in a Studio, 73 Guest Artists in a Studio, 47 Artists in a Gallery, 73 Group Exhibitions, 123 Artists in Temporary Spaces, 28 Happenings and 9 Libraries.

For more information, please click HERE.