LTC Student Satisfaction Survey

Students who visit the Learning and Tutoring Center between October 25th and November 6th can participate in our annual Student Satisfaction Survey!

This survey is a "report card" to let us know how well we're meeting the academic needs of students.

Students can complete a survey each time they visit, giving them multiple opportunities to win. The grand prize winner will receive a backpack stocked with GPC periphernalia and essential school supplies.

* Stop in (Building F, Room 1200)
* Get the Code
* Complete the online survey
* Win a prize!

Decatur LTC National Tutoring Week Challenge

Students Adrianne Ingram, Lydia Kamau, Kai Stenson and Kizzy Todd all won prizes during the LTC's National Tutoring Week Challenge.

The competition ran from October 4th through October 8th. On each of those days, a series of brain teasers was selected, and interested students tried their hand at answering. The brain teasers were drawn from a range of academic disciplines.

Daily winners received periphernalia such as t-shirts, portfolios and keychains. The grand prize winner received an hour-long tutoring session with the tutor of her choice.

Curious about the kinds of puzzles the students solved? Let's see how well you do:

A. There is a word in the English language in which the first two letters signify a male, the first three signify a female, the first four signify a great man and the whole word, a great woman. What is the word?

B. Assuming that you are paying, is it cheaper to take one friend to the movies twice or two friends to the movies at the same time? (Note: It does not depend on how much popcorn they eat!)

Congratulations, again, to all of our winners!

Answers: A. Heroine B. It is cheaper to take two friends at the same time; you would only pay for yourself once.

Photos: Kai Stenson (left), Kizzy Todd (right)

Li Li Li! /Read Read Read!

In parts of the world where electronic media isn’t dominant, storytelling is a means of sharing stories handed down from ancestors as well as a way to convey information relevant to today. Not only is it a form of entertainment for children; it is a powerful way to capture the imagination and interest of people old and young.

Haiti is one of those places where storytelling is a vibrant part of the culture. Traditionally, when listeners gather around to hear a tale, the very first word that comes from the storyteller’s mouth is a loud “Krik?” to which the audience knows to respond with an enthusiastic “Krak!” This call-and-response exchange signals that everyone is ready to give their full attention to the tale about to be told.

Like many other aspects of Haitian life, the practice of storytelling suffered a blow from the earthquake that struck earlier this year. In response, Li Li Li!: Reading Out Loud to Haiti’s Displaced Children was created. The organization-- whose name translates from Kreyòl to English as "Read, Read, Read!"-- describes itself as a “psycho-social, literacy promotion and jobs creation” program that centers on reading stories aloud to young audiences.

The celebrated Haitian-American author Edwidge Danticat sits on the advisory board of Li Li Li! Her essay, “I Used to Love the Rain” describes the resilient spirit of the Haitian children and the respite that can come from storytelling.

For more on Haiti, storytelling and Edwidge Danticat visit:

Storybook Ending, an Oprah magazine essay by Edwidge Danticat

Edwidge Danticat essays and short stories printed in The New Yorker magazine

"Sending Children's Books to Haiti" post from Summer Edwards' Caribbean Children's Literature Blog

Storyteller Diane Wolkstein describing her introduction to Haitian storytelling

Diane Wolkstein re-telling The Magic Orange Tree, a traditional Haitian folk tale

"Message in a Bottle" Poetry Workshop

Many people avoid poetry because there is a popular idea that true poetry is dull, vague in its meaning and intended for an elite audience. LTC tutor Anita Dugat-Greene's recent workshop titled "Message in a Bottle: How to Read, Enjoy and Write about Poetry" sought to rid students of these assumptions.

The session began with an imagined burning of the participants' apprehensions about poetry. Once the path had been cleared, each attendee was encouraged to recall poems that delighted them during childhood-- whether it was Dr. Seus, Shel Silverstein, Arnold Adoff, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Langston Hughes, Nikki Grimes or classic nursery rhymes. Anita also used selections from Edward Hirsch's How to Read a Poem: And Fall in Love With Poetry as a framework for this well-received workshop.

Some of the poetry explored included the work of celebrated artists like Jill Scott and Robert Hayden as well selections from the facilitator's own verse. Anita’s poem “Paradise,” incidentally, was published in the Fall/Winter 2008 Atlanta Review. More recently she won the International Merit Award in the Atlanta Review’s 2010 poetry competition.

Top image taken from Persian Arts Festival website.

Additional note: In many parts of the ancient world, poetry and music were closely related. The oud/lute that the woman in red is wearing was one of the instruments that was synonymous with poetry. Persia was one of the places where poetry was most highly-prized and respected. These poets frequently wrote about spiritual as well as romantic love.

College Reading & Learning Association Pinning of LTC Tutors

L to R: Lisa Allen (Communications), Kwabena Sarpong (Math/Science), Jeffrey Canfield (Math/Science), Hieu Tran (Math), Constance Britt-Whitehurst (Communications), Christopher Zagrodny (Math), Jené Watson (Communications) and Sohayla Mohebbi (LTC Coordinator). Photograph by Charlie Lyon.

On October 8, 2010 the Decatur campus LTC staff joined their colleagues from other campuses of GPC were they all were awarded CRLA certification.

The CRLA credential recognizes college-level tutors who have amassed ten hours of staff development work shops and engaged in at least twenty-five hours of tutoring.

In honor of this achievement, a ceremony was held on the Clarkston campus where each qualifying tutor received a certificate and lapel pin bearing the name of the association.