Joined Dec 2005
L8: Grand Teacher
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Has anyone's kids used Sylvan Learning, Huntington Learning, or Kumon centers? How did you like them?
April 26, 2008 at
07:22 AM
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There are lots of free/low cost ways to keep up with skills over the summer.
There are lots of free/low cost ways to keep up with skills over the summer.
Has anyone used Huntington or Kumon before? What were the programs like?
We wouldn't do the full program, just a few hours in July and August to get ready for school.
First grade skills:
http://www.internet4cl
Second grade skills:
http://www.internet4cl
1st grade math review
http://www.ixl.com/math/grade/first/
1st grade language arts review:
http://www.ed.gov/pubs/Compactfor...ab
Also, this is a great age to pick up workbooks. You can find them at teacher supply stores or even Office Depot!
Here's what I've found out so far. Odds are you can do what is needed thru your local library or hiring a private tutor yourself.
Sylvan uses an assesment and pre-set teaching technique. It works great for some kids, others not as much.
Huntington uses an assesment and a little more flexible teaching techniques. Comparable cost to Sylvan.
A third alternative is Kumon. It's much cheaper and has worked when other system/standard teaching has not. They start where the child is at, not the age or grade level, they call it self movitated learning. It's work done consistantly within a certain timeframe. Think lots of worksheets.
Also, Sylvan, Huntington, and Kumon are independent franchises so the quality/abilites of the tutors can vary dramatically.
If you are going to use Sylvan, Huntington, or Kumon, I would look for a personal referral that has used one office and liked it.
Kumon, on the other hand, might be good for "keeping-up" purposes if shelling out the money is not a big deal to you. They might have changed their ways since it has been a couple of years now, but they don't really target a specific skill and have worksheet/workbook like things that they give to the kids to work on. It gets really repetitive and depending on which center you go to, sometimes there's like 20 kids in there and like 3 teachers. If you're think a Kumon-style thing will work, you might consider just making worksheets yourself, looking some up online, or buying workbooks at the store instead - their worksheets are nothing special.
For a 2nd grader, you might try looking into the computer games that promote learning skills. I'm not talking the expensive XBOX-like TV systems, just the $10 ones you play on the computer. There's probably a whole bunch of free ones online too. If you want her to have a teacher and not just work from a book/computer, you could consider going to your local college and hiring a tutor to work with her on the book/computer. You can also call your local high school and ask to speak with the AP English/Calculus/whatever subject teacher and ask to see if they wouldn't mind announcing your job to their class - that way you limit your applicants to AP/honor students.
Good luck!
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It is a website full of free math practice, English programs, social studies and Gifted & Talented programs. My little James started school last year, but he really hated the boring math. Then his teacher recommended Beestar to us. He began to like doing the weekly math practice, because there are interesting stories and vivid pictures for kids. He also likes checking the honor roll every week, and he is so happy when his name appears. Registering as parent, I can receive the Email from beestar every week to notice me how James was doing in beestar. I am considering registering other programs for him.