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Lesson SN codes provide a lot of information once you understand the convention behind them. They will let you know what to expect from your student fluency wise, where they are in the course arch and more. Here are a few examples of recent class codes or "Lesson SN":
You'll notice that all buy the last are in a predictable pattern and the last is only missing the second set of numbers (I'll explain why below). This makes understanding how to decode these lesson assignments very easy. ____-____-____-____-____ 1 2 3 4 5 The first segment identifies the type of class that is to be taught. MC stands for "Major Class" which is your normal class and T1 classes are your trial classes. Trial classes are students that are taking up to 3 lessons with VIPKID before enrolling so you will likely have to do a bit more work with them... but if they enroll after a lesson with you then you are rewarded an extra $5-10 for the class depending on promotions at the time. The other codes in this segment of the string are for special classes typically offered when students are on break. The PH for example is their summer course, "Phonics". Segment two identifies the level (L) of the student. Level 1 is the lowest level (most beginner) and 6 the highest you will see currently. In the examples above I have L2, L3 and L4 students so my students are lower to intermediate level students for these classes. Segment three is the unit number. Levels 2 to 6 each contain 12 units of 12 lessons each before the student graduates up to next level up. That means each level (2 through 6) contains 144 lessons. Segment four is the 'learning cycle' number. Each unit is broken into two learning cycles with an assessment after each cycle. If you are in lesson 6 or 12 you will be doing an assessment, we'll talk about how to do these efficiently and fun in a future post. The final segment is, you guessed it, lesson number. So it looks like this: Class Type-Level-Unit- Learning Cycle-LessonThe last thing to take a look at is those pesky Trial Classes. While the naming convention is fairly consistent with what was discussed above it is always a good choice to check the lesson name as well as student info if it is available. With these classes you may have to jump around a bit to the next level up or down depending on the student's ability but VIPKID will let you know where they think you should start in the Lesson Name area in the Classrooms tab. I hope this quick and simple guide to Lesson SN codes helped you in your VIPKID adventures.   My referral code is: HEATH0116
Its been a long but productive weekend on this Quebec trip and, to be honest, I'm pretty exhausted. I did want to pop online to give you a quick update on how the Keto Challenge has gone so far though. Basically... it's going really well. Both myself and my coworker have been making smart choices when it comes to meal time and are feeling pretty great and confident that we're both back in ketosis again based on our past experience. Any Keto Flu? Not this time, thankfully. I think I've got it figured out for my body this time around and with the added water and electrolytes I didn't have any headaches or muscle cramps in the first few days. I'll have to stay diligent though as I'm spending a good amount of time in non air conditioned areas and/or outside right now so losing both water and electrolytes quicker than I would normally back home. What Has Mealtime Looked Like? Breakfasts have been at the hotel every day I've been here and have consisted of eggs, cheese, a small amount of meat (usually ham but one day I had a slice of bacon), and possibly a small amount of something with a couple of carbs as I knew that the first few days would have a nice calorie burn before lunch hit- some nuts or 1-2 ounces of fruit. There hasn't been a lot of snacking really, some nuts or fresh veggies and ranch occasionally here at the hotel here or there but that's about it. Lunches and dinners have been a little all over the place depending on the schedule and what my coworkers wanted. I can usually find something anywhere and am happy to let them choose so long as there is a gluten free option that I can manage with my eating style (its rare that you can't make that happen here which is pretty great). I'll just write out a list below to make it easy. Lunches:
Dinners:
Have I Lost Weight? I don't know as I don't have a scale with me here at the hotel but my pants feel a little loser which is always a good thing and I am feeling great so I'm content to stick with it. I'm really hoping for a nice amount to have come off by the time I get back home though. The first several pounds will just be water weight, I know that... they came back on within a couple days and will go back off in the same time frame but I'd really like to lose at least 7-8 pounds in the two week period (including the water weight). 10 would be amazing but pushing it I think, even with the addition of all the stairs I'm climbing here and the change of work environment adding more movement and calorie expenditure to my day. I'm not counting calories, at all, on this trip, by the way. We'll see but I'm hopeful. Even if I lose very little I will be ok with it though as I'm feeling great and my mind is working at full capacity with all the extra fats I'm throwing at it so I'm getting a ton done. Keto's worth it for those two alone in my opinion- weight loss is just the bonus that makes me do a happy dance at the end of the week. Until next update!  You may have seen that I had a last minute to trip to Quebec crop up and wondered how I was going to handle it since I'd probably already committed to my teaching schedule for that period. Simply... I set up a classroom in my hotel! To be fair I did have to cancel two classes due to the time change not working but the classes I had scheduled were weekend classes so I was able to work it out with my coworker who is also on this trip that I would come into the plant about 90 minutes after he did just for those two days. I'm thankful to him for working with me. I don't think many other people will run into similar problems with the time shift and last minute travel but since you may want to work a couple of mornings/evenings while on your summer or winter break while traveling I thought a walk-through of my 'teaching on the road' kit was in order. It is essentially a paired down version of my classroom and its working great. Have a wanted a couple specialty items during class time? Yes. Have I needed them to do the job? No. And that, right there, is all that matters. So... here we go
I didn't think to take photos until I had already packed (oops) so I quickly pulled everything out on the ironing board across from my suitcase for a few quick snaps. First I have a plastic zipper bag that has my pronouns/conjugation chart in it as well as a few decor pieces I haven't actually used in my normal classroom yet that I got in case I wanted to change it up. I've also got some white board markers and my WOW eraser to go with the white board I packed, my rewards charts and my tigers (I use these two plushies the most as we can do so many different concepts with them). In the next photo you can see that I brought all of my popsicle stick bags, some flashcards, the laminated Dino from my classroom wall and my headset. Here's what it looked like packed and ready for my suitcase.  It didn't take up much space at all which was the goal. I originally had a few more odds and ends but they didn't make the cut when packing for this rather long trip. Your next question is probably something along the lines of "How did you set up a classroom in your hotel room?" Pictures to the rescue again! I actually have two different set ups that I tried. The first would have worked great had the lighting been a little better and the desk been able to be moved over about two feet.  It didn't take up much space at all which was the goal. I originally had a few more odds and ends but they didn't make the cut when packing for this rather long trip. Your next question is probably something along the lines of "How did you set up a classroom in your hotel room?" Pictures to the rescue again! I actually have two different set ups that I tried. The first would have worked great had the lighting been a little better and the desk been able to be moved over about two feet.   So there you have it. My classroom in a bag. Quick to assemble and teaching has worked great so far. I've taught 8 classes while here with minimal issues so far. In the future I think that I will look into a small ring light or other portable light source that I can travel with to avoid the light situation at the desk. I may also look more into creating/gathering digital props so that I can pack even less but that is still a topic that I am looking into myself so I won't be recommending going that route until I've fully explored it and used it in quite a few classes and levels so that I can give a good picture of the pros and cons of digital props. Until next time!   My referral code is: HEATH0116
I wanted to jump on to do a quick blog post as the next couple of weeks will probably be a little crazy for me as I'm in Montreal on a business trip. I'm looking forward to the crazy as always but it means I'll be changing up my blog post plan to accommodate the trip just a bit. Another coworker (who is on this trip as well) suggested that we do a keto challenge for two weeks as we've both "fallen off the wagon" and will be out of our normal routines together so can hold each other accountable. I, of course. said "let's do it"... then our first evening here we went out for Italian food with a coworker from this office. We didn't make a great start of it *sad trombone* but we're going to start fresh tomorrow and get this challenge knocked out. I'll be making periodic updates about how its going. I'm hoping this reset sets me up for success again once I return back home. My starting weight before I left:  Not my best weight, obviously I gained a few pounds through the last few months of being lackadaisical with my habits but I'm determined to hit my under 200 goal this year so this keto reset is exactly what I need. Let's do this!  I'm slowly but surely headed towards a positive net worth. August should have a fairly large bump as I've been able to throw a nice chunk of change towards it after:
I'm thinking about doing a monthly blog post (like this one) to track my progress. Would that be helpful to you all? It would break down the money I was able to save and or make additionally (and how for that particular month as it is usually a mix of things) to throw at each category of debt and track my net worth progress. So far this year hasn't been consistent in its monthly pay offs for a lot of reasons... lot of ups and downs but I averaged about $500 a month in positive change as you can see below (this doesn't mean I paid $500 average as there's interest built into payments that isn't counted). I'm not ok with that level of progress as it will take me much longer to reach my goal than I would prefer. That realization is what spurned me to really turn the pressure up on my plan and I should have much larger jumps going forward. Over the last two months I've paid off... June: $534.52 July: $1,834.47  The debts you see represented here include:
Assets are:
I'm really excited about this journey and hope that sharing it will inspire you to work towards whatever dreams you may have.  One of the things that I worried about when I first started with VIPKID was the cost of props and knowing which props I would need for various classes. I didn't want to funnel everything I made right back into props or spend hours on end prepping for classes. I wish someone had told me not to stress so much right from the beginning, props can be free/cheap and a quick flip through the slide deck and 9 times out of 10 I'm ready to teach. On the props front you can DIY or gather items you already have in your home and be good to go (any of your older students will appreciate realia and the little ones will appreciate your enthusiasm more than almost any amazing/costly prop). Once you start teaching and you try out a few ideas you'll have a feel for what kinds of things will work for your students and then can decide if you want to spend a little more money on those puzzles, the letter puppet or (insert cool prop here). To be an effective teacher you only need a few basic props, nothing fancy and definitely nothing expensive. The only props I had for the first month or so of teaching were:
The white board is extremely versatile and I could get by without much else with most of my students if I really needed to. Ideally though, you'll use 3-5 props in each 25 minute lesson. Don't over use props or you will loose sight of the lesson topic but you want the class to be interesting to the little ones you work with... its about balance. After the first month or so I added a few more rewards charts and my popsicle stick collection followed by several of my dollar tree finds like small balls, dry erase cubes and the magnifying glass. I find that else is just gravy... not necessary but makes class time a little easier and more fun. I spent $50 max for everything I use in my classroom outside of the ink for printing... to be honest I don't remember how much I spent on that (oops). That includes all my decor, the props, rewards charts, and a small laminator. Take a look the props I have in my current classroom in the video below. I hope you find this helpful on your VIPKID journey. Feel free to ask questions, send suggestions and etc. for future posts. What would you add to my collection of props?   My referral code is: HEATH0116
The smell of fresh pancakes brings forth memories of Saturday morning cartoons, family fun in the kitchen and breakfast for dinner creativity. Once I stopped eating gluten I realized pretty quickly that while I could deal without bread pretty easily pizza, pasta and pancakes were quick staples that I'd grown up keeping on hand for meals after an exhausting day and I missed them. I've been searching for a truly great gluten free pancake for ever since... for years now... and I've finally found one I love. This recipe is one that I have been regularly working into my meal preps for a while now and feel confident saying I will keep using. They have a touch of cinnamon, a hint of vanilla and just enough sweetness to sate the desert craving should I want to stuff them with whipped cream and some chocolate shavings or a few berries. I freeze them in 2-3 pancake stacks and microwave them once I get to the office most days but occasionally I'll do breakfast for dinner and pair them with scrambled eggs or an omelette. Either way they are delicious! A couple quick notes: these are not the thick fluffy pancakes you get at breakfast restaurants (but if you let the mixture sit for a little bit to thicken up you will be able to get them a bit thicker but they will still be a thinner pancake). The reason these pancakes work is the blender, I've tried making them with a whisk and I couldn't get them quite the same. Ingredients:
Other Items Needed:
Directions:
 Chances are you have a smart phone and spend quite a bit of time on it. In this series we're going to be going through some ways to make your smart phone pay for its own data plan. Over the next few months I'll be trying out money making apps, coupon apps, and other similar programs that can either save you or make you some extra cash. The first app we're going to be chatting about it Easy Shift, one I've been using on and off for about two years now. What exactly is Easy Shift? What will I have to do?Essentially, its a market research app that pays you to complete small tasks at various retail stores for a few dollars each. Typically the tasks, called "Shifts" will involve taking photos of an aisle or aisles and/or finding specific items to see if they are being sold at that location. You may also be checking prices, promotional materials, or noting what items are grouped together. The average time to complete a task ranges from 10 to 30 minutes (based on the shifts in my area) and pay is $2 to $20 per task. I've never been asked to make purchases at a store to complete a Shift but some people have and have stated that they are reimbursed once the shift is processed. Easy Shift was created by Quri, Inc. and is available for Apple and Android devices. Go to www.easyshiftapp.com to download the app. Now for the review... How much will I make?This can vary quite a bit unfortunately. If there are only a few shifts available near you on a specific day then it will be difficult to get enough well paying shifts to make it worth your while but then other days you may open the app to see dozens within a few blocks of where you're going shopping anyways. Those are the days I reserve as may as I can and spend a couple hours knocking out shifts. For example, I just opened the app and only see a few shifts near me currently... not really worth the time to run around and try to make $25 over the two hours they would probably take based on locations but there's one with $6 plus $0.20 per display found just a few miles from me that I could easily grab on my way home from work with fairly little effort or time. That will pay for my gas to/from work easily. Easy Shift is one of my go-to apps if I need to make a little bit extra money to add something small to my budget without shifting priorities. Its a quick way to make $50 extra on a day off if there are shifts near locations I'm going to be already. Last time I used the app I made $68 for an afternoon of taking photos of drug store shelves for market research.  How and when will I get paid for my Shifts?This is the big perk as far as I'm concerned... unlike with other apps there is no minimum payout amount so you get paid only 48 hours after your shift is processed! Processing can take a few days but is often done within just one so you can get your money before the next weekend pretty easy. It may take a little longer for reimbursements from purchases (I've never had to be reimbursed so I'm not 100% here) but with my experience with their payment time I would highly doubt it. All payments are made to PayPal so you don't need to give them any banking information and you won't pay any fees to then transfer it to your bank account (or use it for your Netflix bill the next month straight from PayPal!). Who can use this app?Anyone with an iPhone or Android phone who is at least 18 years old (some Shifts may require you to be 21 or have a printer but they seem to be fairly infrequent from what I've been able to get Reserved), This is one of the ones that I've never taken off my phone and fall back on when I need a little extra gas money. I made $108 in my most active two weeks and the shifts were all along my route to other places I wanted to go. Like I said, I made $68 in a few hours when I put my mind to it a few weekends ago so I think its really what you make of it (and if they have Shifts available near you at that time) and definitely something to keep in your back pocket in case those concert tickets you've been wanting go on sale.   So you've joined VIPKID, congratulations! After you've set up your classroom and recorded your intro video you'll be teaching your first student in no time. That's exciting, I hope you have as much fun as I do! I'm sure you still have questions so I'm going to be answering those I've seen a lot of as well as ones you submit. The first one I'll be tackling is level certifications procedure. How do I remove add to the levels I can teach?This question has two parts. The first one is simple though, thankfully, if you don't want to teach a certain level student you just submit a ticket at the FreshDesk. Let them know that you would like a certification removed and they will process it within about 48 hours. Once the certification has been removed parents will no longer be able to request you for those classes. If you are wanting to add a level however there are a couple different options...  You may find that after you've been teaching a while you see an email come up that says you may be qualified for an additional level. If this happens you just click over to read & watch the information they provide for the course and then take a short test. If you pass then the certification shows up immediately and you can begin getting bookings. If not then you can typically retake the test and eventually gain your certification.  The next option is that you will see notification in the Teacher's Portal on the Academy tab. Click in and you'll be presented with not only all the available workshops you can take to become a better instructor but with a list of suggested certifications for you. All of the ones with colored badges you have already acquired but the available one(s) will also be there in grey... click it to go through the course information and take the quiz. Simple. The last option is to submit a ticket to FreshDesk like you did for the removal of a course. The current rule is that you may only go up or down one level from where you are currently certified to teach with each expansion. This makes sense as it lets you adjust as you add age and language fluency levels to your lessons. I have used this method on all but the summer courses personally. One you submit a ticket they will usually get back to you within 24 hours to let you know they are reviewing your request and you will see the new certification or a new test appear within a week if they agree that you should expand your levels taught. The last time I requested the summer courses as well as Level 5 and here is the reply I received about two days later. 
  My referral code is: HEATH0116
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