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What is this math program all about?

This program’s goal is to give students of any level of math a chance to have confidence in their ability to learn, and give them the skills they need to succeed on their own.

This program includes:

• Individualized study plan.
• Rigorous assessments to understand student’s learning.
• Daily practice questions that are carefully created to empower learning.
• Development of self-study and notetaking habits.

This program is targeted towards two types of students. First, students who struggle in math and need to ensure they are caught up for the coming year. For these students the focus is on identification of gaps in learning, and promoting effective studying techniques. Second, students who excel at math and want to explore new topics, expand their knowledge, and get ahead for the new year.

Who am I?

The basis of all my teaching is to effectively identify and fill in holes in my student’s knowledge. Learning math is like climbing a ladder, if you miss too many steps in a row and you’ll have a very hard time progressing any further.

I teach through visualizations, illustrative examples, fun use of technology, and understanding generalized thinking. I encourage my students of all ages to practice effective note taking.

How does this program work?

To begin, each student will take my standardized entry evaluation which covers a majority of the math topics from Kindergarten to Grade 12. The test is ordered by grade level, which allows me to immediately begin identifying gaps in the student’s math knowledge. You can find more information about the entry test on it’s cover page by clicking here.

This math program has three basic components to it:

• Private Virtual Lessons (1hr multiple times a week, alternating types)
• Individualized Daily Practice Work
• Rigorous Assessments

For a detailed explanation of exactly how each of these components are realized, continue reading in the Program Details section of this page.

All lessons can be recorded (with permission) so that the video is available for students to re-watch at any time, and all digital written work is saved and made available online as well.

Pricing for this program is based off of an hourly rate of $50/hr. As each student in this program has an individualized schedule and plan, the number of private virtual lessons (each 1hr) will dictate the weekly cost of this program, the daily practice work and extra assessments are all included.

If pricing is an issue, please contact me and we can figure a plan out. Notably if your child would like to bring a friend on the same schedule as your child, who is at approximately the same mathematical level, then we can split the cost evenly between families, and the group will be charged as if it is one student.

Additionally, as is standard for all tutoring services, if you wish to cancel a private virtual lesson with me you must notify me at least 24 hours in advance, otherwise I still charge for the lesson.

How to get started in this program?

The following are some of the questions I will ask to begin:

• What grade is the student in?
• How many lessons a week are you looking to have?
• Does the student have access to a basic geometry kit? (ruler in centimeters, protractor, compass, and grid paper)

Then, I will ask the student to take my entry evaluation which will give me a good idea of where the student is in their learning. From there we can begin our virtual lessons.

Program Details

All the following information is a detailed explanation of each component of the program, if you’d rather have this explained over the phone feel free to call me and ask.

1. Virtual lessons (minimum of 1 per week)

My lessons take place over Skype which is a free program by Microsoft used for video calling. This service allows me to share my computer screen with my students which is a necessary part of the lessons. Over the pandemic I have spent the necessary time to perfect this system and have had great success.

These virtual lessons take two forms, which I call type ‘A’ and type ‘B’. Take a look at the following graphic to get an understanding of what the purpose is of each lesson type.

A type ‘A’ lesson is where the new information all comes from, and most importantly consists of the new definitions, visualizations, theorems, and abstract ideas.

Example:

Take for example multiplication being taught to a 3rd grader for the first time. We would start by defining multiplication as repeated addition (definition), we would then go through multiplication by looking at it as a grid (visualization), then talk about how multiplication is commutative, meaning order doesn’t matter (theorem), and finally we would talk about how multiplication is really about groups of things (abstract idea).

Mixed in to this type of lesson are illustrative examples we work through together, through which the guidance from me is slowly eased off so that the student can solve problems more and more independently.

The goals of a type ‘A’ lesson are:

• Learning a new concept.
• Practicing solving problems using this concept to a point where the student can solve it on their own.
• Assigning practice work to do for the next lesson.

A type ‘B’ lesson is where we extend all the ideas of the previous type ‘A’ and think more generally about the topic. We go through all the practice work that was assigned for the student in the previous session, and correct any mistakes. If needed we continue to fill in any gaps in the student’s understanding before moving onto the next topic. If the student has no trouble with any of the content then we will take the time to do more challenging problems, and begin introducing content for the next type ‘A’ lesson.

Example:

Let’s continue the example of teaching a 3rd grader multiplication. After our type ‘A’ session, the student should have a good understanding of what multiplication is, and then by the next type ‘B’ lesson they should have had a chance to practice their understanding in the assigned practice work, after which they should have a good understanding of how to do multiplication. Now in our type ‘B’ lesson we would focus more on pushing the limits of the student’s understanding to fill in any gaps. What this would exactly entail could be for example: The student should be able to compute 5 x 3, but what if it was phrased differently? What if the question was: “How many sheep are there in total if farmer Tom has 1 barn of 5 sheep, and farmer Fred has 2 barns of 5 sheep?” This question is computationally equivalent to 5 x 3, however it forces the student to think about multiplication more abstractly, as groupings of items.

The goals of a type ‘B’ lesson are:

• Ensuring that the student has a solid understanding of that week’s concept
• Correcting any mistakes in the week’s practice work
• Extending the student’s understanding of the concept through the use of specially made, thought-provoking questions.
• Review note taking techniques.
• Promote general problem solving and critical thinking techniques.

Type ‘A’ and ‘B’ lessons are equally important, and are both required to get the full learning experience. Type ‘A’ lessons are important for their content, and type ‘B’ lessons are important for their solidification. Real learning needs both, as well as the independent practice work.

2. Independent practice work (less than 30 mins a day)

Practice is a very important part of being proficient in math. Being able to see a problem and use prior knowledge to solve the problem is the main skill that is developed in the study of math. Doing this independently is daunting, and takes work, but with tailor made questions this process can be made simple.

Some math educators (including myself) would say that independent study is where the real learning happens, not to say the other components of the program lack learning, but that it is during independent study that the student makes the mental connections needed to solve the problems, and internalize concepts.

Practice is offered through my custom written worksheets, which are either given to the student at the end of a type ‘A’ lesson, or given soon after if I feel there is some changes I need to make after the lesson.

It is absolutely crucial that the student completes their assigned work before the next lesson. The assignments are written with timing in mind, so that the student should be working on the assignment for less than 30 minutes a day. Students are encouraged to set a specific time of day to do some part of their work, and stay consistent with it.

Practice assigned from me is designed to be frustration-free and straight forward for the student to complete after our type ‘A’ lesson. If this is ever not the student’s experience, I am always available to help with questions via text, or an additional lesson can be booked during the week.

3. Individualized assessments

Assessments will be used to keep clear track of the student’s learning.

My personally written assessments are not aimed to trick students, or to make them doubt their confidence in their abilities. My assessments are a tool to genuinely understand the thoughts of my students while they complete a math problem, and as I will always tell my students: “Never be scared to say ‘I don’t know'”

Before our first type ‘A’ lesson, a new student will complete my entry evaluation which tests all math concepts taught in the standard Ontario curriculum in grades 1 through 12. For full details about the evaluation, you can read though it’s cover page by clicking here.

Following assessments will be done when it is felt necessary or when we reach the end of a particular section of math.

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Each and every one of the students in my Math Program will have an individualized version of these three main components. The purpose of this is to help each student adapt to new ideas in their own way.

If you are interested in enrolling your child in my Math Program, or have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me by clicking the button below: