FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
♥ Who can sign up for Mind Growth Education?
→ Whoever wants to get their child, children or students motivated to read.
→ Whoever wants to make their classroom or home reading log program fun.
→ Whoever wants so save hours of their valuable teaching preparation on time.
→ Whoever wants to encourage independent reading time.
→ Students, parents, tutors, librarians, homeschool and classroom teachers, schools, book clubs…You get the picture.
→ Also available in French! Great for those in French Immersion too!
♥ How much does it cost to organize a reading program either at home for my children or at school for my students?
There are currently three subscription options available:
1) Home account: This subscription option costs $47.88 ($3.99/month). This option is includes one single account, perfect for one student or a classroom wanting to collectively accumulate their minutes. It also lets you assign a level of difficulty (minutes/kilometres ratios) and monitor progress on the map individually and as a class.
2) Classroom account (without access to digital library): This subscription option costs $99.99 (approx. $3.33/student). This option is perfect for smaller groups, tutors, librarians, learning assistance teachers, speech therapists or homeschooling families with more than one child to be subscribed, it includes one teacher account, up to 30 student accounts and a classroom blog to assign readings, recommend books, & goal setting. It also lets you assign a level of difficulty (minutes/kilometres ratios) for each individual and monitor each student’s progress on the map individually and as a class.
3) Classroom account (with access to digital library): This subscription option costs $300.00 (approx. $10.00/student). This option is perfect for bigger groups or classroom teachers, it includes one teacher account, up to 30 student accounts and a classroom blog to assign readings, access to our digital library, recommend books, & goal setting. It also lets you assign a level of difficulty (minutes/kilometres ratios) for each individual and monitor each student’s progress on the map individually and as a class.
♥ How does your reading log programs work?
Currently, we are offering two very exciting and interactive reading log programs entitled “Read Across Canada” and “Read Across the World” where a student records the number of minutes they’ve read at home or in their classroom on a daily basis by signing into their Mind Growth Education account. The program automatically converts the student’s minutes into kilometres and advances the student on their adventure across Canada or the world, through various towns and cities to form a route that spans from Victoria, BC to through every province in the lower part of Canada, and back again, through the higher part of Canada, which ends in Whitehorse, Yukon. Every time a student arrives at one of the major points on their adventure, a little blurb pops up with educational facts about that city or town. The students also get to earn badges as they progress on their reading journey.
♥ What if I have multiple reading levels in one classroom?
The program offers three levels of difficulty (beginner, standard and advanced) to accommodate each student’s abilities. Once the teacher subscribes to a teacher or classroom account, he/she will need to add all of their students and also need to select a level of difficulty for each student. By default, all students are set at the “standard” level (for every minute read, you advance 8 kilometres). If you have a very gifted, motivated reader, you can slow the student down so that he/she does not finish their adventure faster than what you were expecting; therefore, you can assign that student to the “advanced” level (for every minute read, you advance 4 kilometres). Also, if you have a student who has trouble reading or is unmotivated to read, you can speed up that student so he/she can keep up with the rest of the class; therefore, you can assign that student to the “beginner” level (for every minute read, you advance 12 kilometres).
♥ How many participants can a reading program have?
The “Home” account accommodates one single account and the “Classroom” accounts accommodates up to 30 accounts. If you are wanting more than 30 accounts, please email us at info@mindgrowtheducation.com.
♥ How long does the program take to complete?
Well that depends on the grade, the amount of minutes read a day and the level of difficulty. Put it this way…
→ If a child reads 20 minutes of reading per day x 180 days of school instruction = 3,600 minutes which is equivalent to 60 hours of reading.
→ There are 730 hours in one month (24 hour period).
→ There are 43,800 minutes in one month.
→ There are approximately 120 hours of school instruction in one month (that’s 7,200 minutes in one month).
Now, see below…
Advanced level: 1 minute read = 4 kilometres… it would take the student 3,029 minutes to complete the journey (therefore, approximately 151 days of reading).
Standard level: 1 minute read = 8 kilometres… it would take the student 1,514 minutes to complete the journey (therefore, approximately 76 days of reading).
Beginner level: 1 minute read = 12 kilometres… it would take the student 1,010 minutes to complete the journey (therefore, approximately 51 days of reading).
N.B. My calculations were based on 20 minutes of reading a day and just to give you a general idea of what to assign different students. Let’s be honest, teachers do not assign reading every single night for every single school day. i.e. A child who will read for more than 20 minutes at a time, well that child can do the standard level or the advanced level. A child that is less motivated or has difficulty reading and 20 minutes is the max, well that child can do the beginner level. Keep in mind, you can change the level of difficulty throughout the year, as you wish. Another factor to think about is how long you want the program to last… assign everyone to beginner for a shorter program or assign everyone to the advanced level for a longer school year program.
♥ Can I use Mind Growth Education for a “Read-A-Thon” event?
Of course! The program is perfect for tracking reading for a scheduled event such as a Read-A-Thon. Did you know? Your school or group can raise so much money just by focusing on READING! Here at Mind Growth Education, we offer great fundraising programs both for schools and non-profit organizations such as charities, sports clubs, etc. We’ve hosted very profitable “Read-A-Thons” in various schools across Canada. If you are interested in hosting a Read-A-Thon, please click on the following link for more information.
♥ Can I use Mind Growth Education for incentive-based reading programs?
Absolutely! You assign the books, you set the reading goal(s) for your reading groups and you can track who has reached the reading goal and award the incentive. You can also see who might not be reaching the goal and help them with their challenges on your Master map.
♥ What information do you collect from students?
We have very strict privacy guidelines. We only need the first name and last initial for minor children—information that is provided by the parent or guardian or teacher. No other information is collected. We comply with FOIPPA (the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act).
♥ How do I manage my reading program?
Once you sign up, you will have access to a user dashboard where you can manage all aspects and participants in your account, teacher blog, etc.
♥ What makes your program different from other online reading log programs?
Our program serves as a tool to track students accountability in an independent classroom and/or home reading program, as well as offers three levels of difficulty within the reading program to accomodate individual academic needs. We also offer students a way to explore Canada or the world from a variety of perspectives: artistic, cultural, historical, geographical, political and/or economical. It demonstrates growth in reading levels, comprehension, higher-level thinking, and can also be used in book studies and projects. We want to inspire students to become the best reader they possibly can be with Mind Growth Education’s home reading log program.
♥ Could you please give me more details on the following statement found on your website “exploring Canada or the world from different perspectives: artistic, cultural, historical, geographic, political and/or economic.” How are the various perspectives addressed?
For example, in our “Read Across Canada” program, whenever the student reaches one of the major points of their adventure, a small blurb appears with educational facts about this city or town. Within the educational blurb, we have set out some amusing facts that address some of these diverse perspectives. For example, the Revelstoke blurb reads “Revelstoke was founded in the 1880s when the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) was built in the area, and mining was a major industry in its infancy. was originally Farwell, according to a landowner and a local surveyor. The construction of the Trans-Canada Highway in 1962 further simplified access to the area. Since then, tourism has become an important part of the economy. The ski resort has become the main attraction and Revelstoke, British Columbia, is home to black bear and grizzly bear habitat, and Revelstoke holds the Canadian record for the snowiest winter. snow fell on Mount Copeland outside the city during the winter of 1971-1972.” This blurb therefore addresses information about its history, its economy and its geography. As you can see, only a few of these perspectives are exploited. I composed the blurbs by taking certain information from various websites to create a fairly simple but complete text that accommodates all the different grades from kindergarten to grade 8 (or 9!). The same concept applies for the “Read Across the World” program.
♥ You state on your website that the program demonstrates a growth in levels of reading, comprehension, and high level thinking. How is that demonstrated?
In fact, this statement was quoted thanks to the daily practice of reading for 20 minutes, I was able to see for myself, a huge progress for my students in terms of growing levels of reading and comprehension of texts. As for the high-level reflection, it depends on the assigned text and daily practice. The program itself simply helps them want to read daily which help them progress through different levels of reading. The program is a learning and motivation tool to encourage reading, but does not serve to show how to read or to situate the student in relation to his or her reading level. This must be determined by the teacher as part of the regular reading assessment programs offered by his/her school.
♥ One of my students cannot remember his username. What to do?
Please email me at info@mindgrowtheducation.com or through the contact form and ask for the username of the specific student. You can also asked for a document that states all of your students usernames.
♥ One of my students cannot remember her password. What to do?
The teacher needs to type the student’s username and then click on “Lost password”. The teacher will receive an email to be able to “reset” that password.
♥ When I look at my class list, it does not show me their individual user names. How do I access this information so that I can provide this information to students who have forgotten what their user name is?
Please email me at info@mindgrowtheducation.com or through the contact form and ask for a document that states all of your students usernames. Due to privacy issues, we cannot give you a list of your students’ passwords.
♥ Some of my students are close to finishing their reading journey. What will happen next?
Once the student has finished their reading journey, the student will be asked if he/she would like to “reset their journey” or upgrade to a begin another journey (at a discounted price). Resetting their journey will restart their avatar at the start of the reading route and allow you to journey across Canada or the World a second (or even a third!) time. All of their reading log minutes will be saved from their previous journey and you will get to revisit all of the cities and town across Canada or all of the countries across the World.The challenge can now be “how many times can you read across Canada or the World in one school year?”
♥ What if I need help setting up my program?
Just email us at info@mindgrowtheducation.com with your questions and we’ll be happy to help.
♥ Can I use Mind Growth Education for something other than reading?
Yes. You can use the system to track musical instrument practice, spelling test practice, handwriting practice, exercise minutes—really
anything that needs to be tracked.
♥ What’s next for Mind Growth Education?
I chose to launch our “Read Across Canada” program first. It’s a super popular one and used daily in classrooms across Canada. The following year, we launched our “Read Across the World” program. My intentions are to launch three more programs in the next few years: “Read Across the United States of America”, “Read Across the Solar System” and “Read Across Canada – Indigenous version” — as well as a variety of relatable lesson plans and activities in hopes to give teachers, tutors, parents, librarians, etc., a choice in programs for their upcoming school years.
To be honest, this is just the beginning! Amazing things are to come!
Have more questions? Contact us!
Happy reading!
IB 
♥
Founder of Mind Growth Education
