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31Jul
How To Make Your Bar/Bat Mitzvah A Joyous And Anxiety Free Journey – Part 1

As a Bar/Bat Mitzvah tutor for 20 years I have a lot to say about this process. Bar/Bat mitzvah is a very significant occasion. It means a lot to parents who want to share with family, friends and their own parents the continuation of a tradition; the uniqueness of belonging to a particular and unique group. It is a day of joy and happiness and yet, it can also be nerve wrecking for the Bar/Bat mitzvah boy and girl and for their parents.
Of course, it is natural that one would get nervous when he/she stands in front of a hundred and more people, getting all the attention and expected to do a good job and not fail. It is natural. Do we fight it? Do we accept it? What do we do to make it less of an ordeal for the parents or the young man and young woman?
From my experience in tutoring thousands of young adults and adults, and preparing them for that special occasion, I have found that there are ways to minimize the chaos, nervousness, butterflies in the stomach and such like.
For tutors, parents, the Bar Mitzvah Boy and girl; this is for you.
Sometimes parents that ARE temple members will need that extra bit of help if their kid is falling behind for whatever reason. They may just need that little extra push and encouragement. There are times when temple members want their son or daughter to have their Bar/Bat Mitzvah in Israel or a place other than the temple sanctuary. In this case the requirements for the special day are different and more flexible.
For the parents who don’t belong to a temple or choose to have a private Bar/Bat Mitzvah, the options are many. But before I get to talk about those, I would like to put to bed a common myth.
The Myth: It takes FIVE OR MORE YEARS to prepare one for his/her Bar/Bat Mitzvah.
The Truth: The above is NOT true. One can get ready for and do an incredible job within a year to two, depending on: a) how much time one is put into it and. b) How fast one learns. One can learn how to read Hebrew from scratch and be taught all the material he/he would need for their special day in ONE year. It is important to choose the right tutor and the right material.
Let’s start with the right tutor: How does one choose the right tutor? What qualities does one need to look for in a tutor?
The right tutor to aid your son and or daughter on their special journey would have most if not all of the following qualities:
• The most important thing is that your son or daughter likes the tutor and feel comfortable around him/her.
• The tutor is very patient and kind.
• The tutor must have a perfect command of Hebrew; this is very important as every word or line your child will read or chant must be clearly translated for him or her. (Understanding the meaning of words make your child more certain and less anxious.)
• The tutor should have a fun method of learning the chants. When a child has fun with the chanting, it goes faster.
• The tutor needs to be well organized so that everything that needs to be covered is taken account and the child is ready on time without any added stress.
• The tutor should be resourceful, knowledgeable in Jewish/Israel history, Biblical stories, Jewish customs, holidays and philosophy. One has to spice up the Bar/Bat Mitzvah journey with Jewish tradition and soul so that the child enjoys the experience.
Look for part 2 of this series where I will cover the things you and your child will need to really get fully prepared; without stress.…
30Jul
New Home Buyer Tax Credit: What Every Enrolled Agent Should Know

New Home Buyer Tax Credit: What Every Enrolled Agent Should Know

The 2007 mortgage meltdown and subsequent collapse of the financial system brought about significant change on practically every front. The impact of these events on the tax system was both far-reaching and substantial, as most any enrolled agent or registered tax return preparer can testify. One aspect of this change included an at-times dizzying number of new tax breaks in the form of credits and deductions designed to help both alleviate the financial strain on average Americans and stimulate the economy in the process. One such credit, the Home Buyer Tax Credit, is so popular that it occupies a focal point in tax CPE and EA CPE, enrolled agent continuing education courses that enrolled agents take to maintain certification.

Below is a summary of what enrolled agents need to know about this credit to ensure their clients receive the full tax credit offered by the government.

Qualifying for the home buyer tax credit

Contrary to popular opinion, both first-time homebuyers and long-time owners are able to apply for a credit. If the house was purchased on November 30, 2009, to qualify taxpayers must not have owned their homes since December 1, 2006. The earliest date to qualify for this credit is January 1, 2009.

To qualify for the credit as long-time homeowners, taxpayers must have owned their existing home for any five-year period during the eight-year period ending on the date of purchase of the new home. The earliest date of purchase to qualify for this credit is November 8, 2009.

For either credit, if the date of purchase is in May or June 2010, taxpayers are required to verify that they entered into a contract to buy the house before May 2010. Below is a summation of the required documentation.

Restrictions

Even when taxpayers qualify as first-time homebuyers, or as long-time homeowners, and you have purchased a home within the permitted time frame, they still may not qualify for the credit. Taxpayers will not qualify if any of the following scenarios apply:

Purchased the house after November 6, 2009, and the price of the house is more than $800,000.

Modified adjusted gross income is $95,000 or more ($170,000 if married filing jointly) and the home was purchased before November 7, 2009. A phase-out of the credit begins with a MAGI of $75,000 (or $150,000).

Modified adjusted gross income is $145,00 or more ($245,000 if married filing jointly) and the home was purchased after November 6, 2009. A phase-out of the credit begins with a MAGI of $125,000 (or $225,000).

Another individual claims the applicant as a dependent on their tax return.

Purchased the house after November 6, 2009, and the buyer was under the age of 18 on the date of purchase.

Is a nonresident alien.

The house is located outside the US.

The house is sold or ceases to be the main residence before the end of the year in which it was purchased.

The house is a gift or is acquired through inheritance.

The house is acquired from a relative or a related corporation or partnership.

The amount of the credit.

First-time homebuyers qualify for a credit of 10% of the purchase price up to a maximum of $8,000 ($4,000 if married filing separately). Long-time residents qualify for a credit of 10% of the purchase price up to a maximum of $6,500 ($3,250 if married filing separately). Again, when the modified adjusted gross income exceeds a certain level, the credit will be phased out until it is eliminated entirely.

Claiming the credit

Since the IRS requires a slew of documentation, taxpayers hoping to claim the homebuyer tax credit must file federal tax returns on paper through the mail need to print the paperwork and send it in.

Below is a step-by-step guide for claiming the credit for clients:

1. Complete the revised Form 5405. First confirm the taxpayer qualifies for the credit, and determine the amount of the credit.

2. Collect required documentation. Gather Form HUD-1 Settlement Statement or other settlement statement outlining the names and signatures of all parties to the sale, the property address, the price, and the date of purchase. If the taxpayer does not have a settlement statement (as in the case of a newly-constructed home), collect the certificate of occupancy and attach it.

If a taxpayer is under contract but has not taken occupancy of the house by the time their taxes are filed, include pages from the signed contract, including the signatures and names of all parties, the property price, the address, and the contract date.

If a taxpayer qualifies as a long-time homeowner, include Form 1098 (Mortgage Interest Statement), property tax records, or the homeowners’ insurance records. Remember, the forms must cover a full consecutive five-year period within the …
29Jul
Homework Help Gives Support to the Students

Students need homework help for them. They are very good helping hand for the students. Students want to do homework on their own. They are convenient with this sort of resource. The internet is flourished up with numbers of websites that offer these resources that provide them easy and convenient method of doing their work. Students are much benefited by those websites. They are much benefited with these websites. This resource provides friendly websites. They are needed by the students.
Students use this resource to do their homework. They want to get the task done with the help of the those websites that deal in offering these resources. They are making the people charm. There are various websites which provide online help to the students to get the task of their school done at the time when they want. The students are much happy with this resource. They are making their homework at their home. They are doing their work on their own. They are happy because they do not need to go to the private tutor.
Homework help provides interactive method of doing homework for the students. They provide the solution of the questions of the exercises of the text books. They are much helpful for the students. In the past days students use to go to the private tutor to do the same. The tutors differ from each other for their techniques so the students were in the confusion and they cannot understand which method is correct. Now this sort of help or you can say resource is available online to do the homework.
They access the guidelines to do the homework from the internet. This resource provides them the unique method which students prefer. They are in a convenient stage to make their homework at their home. They do not need to go outside. They can access this resource from their home with a computer and an internet connection. The homework help website is user friendly and it is easy for the students to handle the website.…
26Jul
Simple Steps to Making a Sale

Simple Steps to Making a Sale

The sales process is not brain surgery, but everyone cannot master it. Some individuals are just good at sales while others are not. Some are born with skills to be an effective sales representative, but many are trained. Sales training is one of the leading tools companies invest in. Whether they hire an outside sales trainer or promote someone from within they have no problem investing into their future sales leaders. Sales are typically the primary way a company generates revenue. So, the better the sales team the more money the company makes. In this article we are going to discuss some of the simplest steps a sales representative should take while trying to close a deal.

The first step is easy, but not everyone thinks of it. No matter what you are selling you must qualify the prospect. For instance, if you are selling an online MBA program does the prospect have a bachelor’s degree? Or if you are selling a timeshare unit does the applicant have the funds or credit to finance the property? Whatever you do don’t assume the person you are speaking with is automatically qualified. You must ask them specific qualifying questions to find out.

Second, what is the prospect’s motivation for requesting more information on your product or service? In the example above, why are they looking to go back to school? Do they want a promotion or a new job? Figuring out the motivation is very important early in the sales process. If the prospect gets cold feet later on you may be able to close the sale by reminding them why they were interested in the product or service in the first place.

The third step after the discovery phase is selling the benefits of your product or service. Why is yours better than your competitors? How will the benefits help accomplish the prospect’s goals? For instance, will your MBA program help the applicant get the job he/she wants? Talk about the flexibility, networking capabilities, career services department, and everything you can to convince them this is the perfect program for them. This is a very important step because many individuals do a lot of research before making any decisions. The internet allows them to find information very quickly.

Now that you have sold the product or service you always want to follow-up and ask for a referral. Make sure they are satisfied with their purchase and see if there is anyone else they know in the market for the same.…
26Jul
A New Gateway of Learning – Etutoring

E-Tutoring has opened a new gateway of innovative learning through computers. Whether the deal is about completing your homework, projects or preparing for exams, e-tutoring is fast catching up with school and college going students who seek knowledge on basic or in-depth fundamentals of a particular topic or subject.
The Internet has made it possible for the parents, teachers, students or institutions to crawl information from anywhere in the world at anytime. In other words, online tutoring has transcended the concept of traditional classroom learning to virtual online classes that gives learners a chance to stay way ahead of time and expand their knowledge base as per their convenience. That’s right. It has accentuated the process of learning by providing more flexibility and convenience to the knowledge seekers.
Apart from the benefits pointed, the concept of e-Tutoring is also effective for one-to-one learning. Thus, any student can get personalized assistance from remote tutors at anytime. Remote tutors are experienced panel of mentors who can aid students, teacher or parents to understand the concepts of a particular subject. Online quizzes, chat, test papers, worksheets etc can assess the level of the user’s understanding with respect to a particular topic.
Empowering knowledge is the main motive behind e-Tutoring. Many online tutors offer educational content and online assistance to school students of grade one to grade 12. They try elaborating on subjects like Math, Science, English and Social Science. The group of remote tutors or mentors who assist students in completing their homework or assignments is a panel of experienced and certified tutors. Some tutors also provide remote online learning through whiteboards and chat.
E-Tutoring imparts an invaluable experience to the knowledge hunters. By just sitting at home or cyber cafe, you can get information on any topic, any subject with just a small price to pay. Plus, you do not need additional materials or textbooks to refer. The content is recognized by accrediting agencies. Just be ready with a fast Internet connection and a web browser to dig your way in the world of intellectuals!…
23Jul
A Great Help Is Homework Help

The proper work done is ensured by good writers as well as experts. The errors are minimised. A homework help serves the students in the form of some institutes that provide homework help or there are websites that teach online. Normally they are present in form of different packages that charge a few bucks and sometimes they provide help for free. Online libraries are also available now a day to help the needy students.
The way of thinking also matters. For some parents and children doing homework is a hectic piece of work and very troublesome. But for many, doing homework means adding more to the knowledge and go to the depth of the topic and gaining more and more knowledge. Homework are given to the students to enhance their knowledge, so when a child comes from the school at that time, everything taught in the school is fresh and if he or she sits with the tasks then they will get a clear picture of what they are reading or writing.
For such conditions homework help is the best solution as it helps in successful completion of homework and gives a lot of new information. One can learn time management also. There are plenty of websites launched that provide this facility and encourages the students as well as their parents to explore more into the knowledge, hence making homework a joyful experience.
To complete all the assignments in time the children need help. Here homework help is required. The students who want to do well in academics for them it is a miracle. It increases the performance of the students. A little bit of help and they can complete their home work with great ease and with interest. This thing also saves their time. It guides the students in a systematic as well as synchronised way that develops the habit to be productive and on time.…
22Jul
Give Your Child the Academic Advantage With Math Tutoring

Math can be one of the most challenging subjects for students to grasp. Math tutoring services provide a way for your child to make headway, even when he or she seemed totally confused before. With individual math tutoring, a student can overcome those difficult concepts and take tests with confidence.
Most children do well with basic addition and subtraction. However, when the problems become more complex and challenging as in the case of Algebra and Geometry, many begin to falter and get behind their classmates. This gap in comprehension can lead to poor test scores, causing the student to feel inferior and potentially lead to poor behavior in other areas of life. Tutoring can be focused on areas that your child specifically needs help with.
In most cases, a math tutoring program can be customized to fit your child’s needs. By speaking with your child’s teachers, you can identify where the child is struggling and map out a plan to help your child maintain the same level as his or her classmates. If a child is further behind than expected, it is helpful to utilize math tutoring services to help him or her catch up. Once the child is consistently testing at levels expected for their age group, you can then devise a strategy to accelerate their learning with the result being high test scores.
Tutoring in Math will help identify how your child solves complex problems. Since each child has a different style of learning, using a program with your child’s learning style in mind will greatly increase the likelihood of success. Some children are visual learners and require visual aids to grasp more difficult concepts such as trigonometry and calculus. Using analogies and visual imagery helps them to “see” the solution. Math tutoring services should utilize whatever methods help your child learn.
When receiving math tutoring, it’s always recommended that students be recognized for their accomplishments. When they have been struggling with complicated formulas or shapes, this challenges their problem solving skills and can be quite taxing on a mental and emotional level. By rewarding the smallest achievements, this encourages the child to try again. This is positive re-enforcement that a child might not otherwise receive in a standard classroom setting.
If your child has been struggling in math and you’re both becoming frustrated with lack of progress, consider tutoring services as a solution. Receiving extra support and encouragement will go a long way in building your child’s confidence in tackling difficult problems and will improve their test scores.…