Will Heikkinen - Summer Jobs for Students

Will Heikkinen is currently attending college at William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. Prior to this experience, he went to school overseas. He took an adventurous step when he enrolled in Nebrija University in Madrid, Spain. When you are a college student, you incur some significant expenses during the school year, and you may not have much time to work to earn extra income. The solution for many is some hard work during the summers. If you want to put aside money that you can bring back to school with you after your vacation, a summer job can be the ticket. Plus, even if you don't have the financial need, you can spend free time constructively and build your resume if you work during the summer months.

In 2015, Will Heikkinen landed a summer job that can lead to future opportunities that can be fun and somewhat lucrative. Kennebunkport, Maine is a major tourist destination during the warmer summer months, and restaurants and bars are very busy. He worked as a bar back at Federal Jacks, which is an eatery that is very popular with tourists. A bar back is someone who makes sure that the bartender has everything that is needed, and the role can be a stepping stone to a job as a mixologist. If you know how to perform bartending tasks in a busy, hectic environment, you can potentially take home some hefty gratuities. This can be a fantastic summer job for a student, and Will Heikkinen may have the opportunity to graduate from bar back to full-fledged bartender in the future.

Will Heikkinen - Interview Tips For Teachers

Having already gained experience in teaching through his work with the Frost School of Lawrence and Canterbury English, Will Heikkinen understands that one of the major challenges facing teachers is getting past the interview process so that they can actually start working and developing their skills. The following pointer should prove especially useful if you aim to impress during your interview.

Dress Properly
While suit and tie is not always going to be required as a teacher, you need to understand the difference between dressing for the profession and dressing casually. Make sure that you have appropriate clothes for the interview, as this will help you to make a good first impression. Consider what other teachers wear and try to match your clothing to that sort of style.

Be Prepared
You will want to understand as much about the school that you have applied to as possible as it is likely that you are going to be asked a few questions about why you want to work for that school in particularly. Going in unprepared not only shows that you don’t really care about the role, but more also reflect poorly on how you would approach the job if it was given to you.

Understand Your Approach
Will Heikkinen knows that teaching requires more than being able to deliver lessons. You need to be prepared to answer questions about how you structure your lessons, the techniques that you use to keep students engaged and how you might handle meetings with parents. It is important that you have considered all of this before the interview.
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Will Heikkinen - Mistakes That New Language Learners Make

As somebody who is now proficient in three languages, in addition to having been an English language teacher at various points in his life, Will Heikkinen understands the many difficulties that people face when they start learning new languages. This can lead to a number of common mistakes being made, with all of the below being blunders that new learners should aim to avoid.

Being Inconsistent

One of the keys to learning any new language is constant practice, so if you find that you go long amounts of time without speaking the language that you are trying to learn you will probably end up stunting your development. Try to schedule time to practice the language every day and make sure that you attend regular lessons.

Not Having A Goal

Many people make the mistake of having the vague idea that they want to learn other languages, without really putting much thought into why they want to do so. By defining a goal for yourself, such as being able to communicate with a friend who speaks another language, you will be able to focus your efforts and give yourself the motivation required to keep learning more.

Dwelling On Mistakes

Will Heikkinen points out that all new language learners will make mistakes, especially when they are trying to get to grips with pronunciation and different sentence structures. This is all part of the process, but many allow themselves to be discouraged when they make mistakes. Instead, you should focus on learning what you did wrong, so that you can make improvements to your skills.
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Will Heikkinen - Improving Your Basketball Skills

Will Heikkinen is a skilled athlete who was involved in a number of sports while in high school. One of his favorite sports to play was basketball, and he became quite successful on the varsity team. Basketball is a fast paced sport that requires a constant practice if you want to improve. Here are some tips for improving your game.

When you’re playing basketball competitively for an organized team, make sure you learn the plays. Due to the fact that basketball is a fast game, you need to have your offensive plays memorized if you want to make them successful in the game. This may mean that you practice some outside of team practices in order to get your plays memorized and to the speed they need to reach.

You also need to work on your ball handling skills in order to improve your game. Even if you aren’t the primary ball handler, you still have to be able to move with the ball in order to avoid tough situations. Practice dribbling during practice, and make sure you commit some time outside of team practice to ball handling as well. This will improve your game drastically.

Finally, take shots. This doesn’t mean chuck the ball up every time you get it during the game, but make sure you take enough shots during practice and on your own so you’re more comfortable during actual gameplay.

Will Heikkinen worked on his basketball skills a great deal during high school, and he was successful because he committed time to the game outside of team practices. Putting in the time is the most important.

Will Heikkinen - Teaching Younger Students

Will Heikkinen has an advanced understanding of the Spanish language, and has experience teaching English to younger students in Madrid, Spain. Working with younger students has helped him develop his Spanish-speaking skills even further, and it’s also taught him the importance of teaching the right way. Here are some tips for teaching younger students.

When teaching younger students, you have to be able to relate the material in a way that makes sense to them. Many of the kids won’t be able to retain or stay interested in the material by simply listening to you talk. Make sure you teach your younger students in a way that gets them to participate and communicate with others. This is especially important when teaching a second language.

You also have to teach younger students by providing exercises for them to complete and practice with. Don’t overload them with too much information; give them portions of a lesson separately, instead of the whole thing at once. This will give them the opportunity to practice exercises and digest the information in parts, while giving you the ability to make sure they understand each step in the process.

Lastly, make sure you give each student some individual time. Many students learn far more easily in a one on one situation rather than in a classroom setting, so it’s important to give each student the opportunity for individual attention.

Will Heikkinen made sure that the students he taught all had the opportunity to receive personal attention, that they could relate to the material, and that they had material to practice on their own.

Will Heikkinen - Common Mistakes That New College Students Make

As a fairly new college student in his own right, having started studying at the College of William and Mary in 2015, Will Heikkinen knows that students face a number of difficult challenges while transitioning to such a different style of education. This naturally leads to some of them making mistakes that can have an effect on their educations, with all of these blunders being common amongst new students.

Prioritizing Their Social Lives

While the time that you spend with your classmates and friends is a very importance aspect of the college experience, it can become detrimental if you end up prioritizing your social life over your studying. Don’t allow social engagements to distract you from classes or personal study sessions and be wary of anybody that tries to lead you down that path.

Wasting Free Time

College represents an interesting period in the lives of students, as it is something of a gateway between the rigidity of the high school system and a full-blown career. As such, students tend to have more freedom than they have experienced before. Those who do not take advantage of their free time when it arises may find themselves lamenting the fact once they have graduated.

Ignoring Resources

Will Heikkinen makes use of every resource that he can to improve his educational experience. Many new students make the mistake of thinking that attending lectures is all they need to do in order to achieve. This is rarely the case, so take advantage of college libraries and ask for help from your professors whenever it is needed.
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Will Heikkinen - Three Reasons to Recommend Canterbury TEFL

Will Heikkinen isn’t necessarily interested in teaching as a career. He’s more interested in Government and the Spanish language. He’s attending the College of Will and Mary, and while he hasn’t officially declared a major yet, he’s leaning towards Government with a minor in Hispanic Studies. Heikkinen took Spanish in high school and became so proficient at speaking, writing, and understanding the language that he started tutoring first graders at an elementary school in Lawrence, Massachusetts soon before he graduated from high school. After high school he enrolled in Nebrija University in Madrid, Spain for one semester. While there, he worked for Canterbury TEFL (Teach English as a Foreign Language) as well, teaching students how to speak and write English. Here are three reasons why Canterbury TEFL is a great choice for those who want to teach English overseas:

• Guaranteed teaching jobs in Madrid during the school year.
•  The Canterbury TEFL Program adequately prepares teachers, even with very little or no teaching experience, for a positive, life-changing experience teaching English to non-native speakers in Spain. It’s taught small, supportive classes by a team of caring and well-rounded individuals who want to see all TEFL participants like Will Heikkinen succeed.
•  20 hours of paid practice for teachers. This is a rare opportunity for TEFL programs. Most don’t offer as much or any paid practice hours for participants such as Will Heikkinen.

Will Heikkinen learned much from his experience teaching English to Spanish speakers in Madrid and he hopes others can take advantage of the Canterbury program like he did.