You may have heard this one before. It involves a ceramics class.
It was a fairly large and popular class at the school, so the teacher had to split it into two sections: Ceramics 101a and Ceramics 101b.
The teacher, a brilliant potter but a capricious and insufferable man, decided that he’d grade each of his sections differently and arbitrarily.
On the first day of class he announced to the students of 101a the following:
“At the end of the semester you will be required to hand in one pot and one pot only. I will judge your skill, artistry, and technical prowess based on what I see in that one pot, and that in turn will decide your grade for the whole semester.”
An hour later, he announced to the students of 101b a very different message:
“At the end of the semester, I will grade your performance based solely on the number of pots you complete throughout the year. I don’t care how well they’re executed, what shape they are, or how quickly you worked on them. All I care about is how many you make. The more you make the higher your grade will be.”
In short, one group was to be evaluated on the quality of their work, and the other on their quantity.
Here’s where things get strange.
At the end of the semester, the students from the Quantity Class produced better pots than the students from the Quality Class. Far better. Truly masterful work. On the other hand, the final projects handed in by the Quality Class resembled the pots that the students from the Quantity Class were making on their first few days.
What is the lesson here? In short, it’s practice makes perfect. The only way to get to success is to first fail. To get good at something you need to do it. A lot.
So for that reason we here at Study Hut in Manhattan Beach don’t just recite information to our students and expect them to absorb it. We test them on it. Ruthlessly. We make them fail repeatedly when they’re with us, in the hopes that when they are in the exam room they will succeed.
Aside from taking challenging high school courses, an important part of getting ready for college is
taking a college prep test like the ACT or SAT. Both tests have changed over the years, but the main goal
is to score high enough for the colleges you’re interested in attending.
Many students take the test twice—once as a trial run and again after they’ve gotten a feel for the test
and have discovered their strengths and the areas in which they need some improvement. It’s a good
way to present colleges with your best and brightest academic face. Taking the ACT or SAT twice can
give you the advantage you need to land the college acceptance letter you want.
Test prep for the first time
Before taking either test, it’s important to find out if the school you’d like to attend prefers one test
over the other; for some, either test will suffice, while others have a preference. Once you’ve decided
which tests to take, you’ll want to invest in study guides or classes. Many companies like Study Hut offer both instructor-led and self-guided courses,
as well as free strategy sessions and practice tests. You can also reach out to your fellow classmates and
start a study group.
The second time around
Taking the ACT or SAT for the first time can be somewhat of a challenge, so it can be tough to get
motivated for a second round. But studies show that taking the test a second time can improve
your score: a study by the College Board revealed that while some scores dropped, 55% of high school juniors
earned higher scores the second time they took the SAT. If your first score isn’t as high as you
anticipated, taking it a second time could be worth the effort.
Once you’ve gotten the results from the first test, you can tailor your studying to focus on the areas
where you need improvement; work with your teachers and parents to find assignments that can help
you boost your score. Finally, stay in contact with your school’s academic counselor to make sure you’re
plotting a steady course with college prep classes.
The road to college
Even if you’ve earned low-to-middling scores on your college prep tests, there’s no reason to despair.
Remember that even though your ACT and SAT scores are important, they’re just one part of your
overall portfolio as a student. And traditional colleges are no longer your only option for higher
education: online programs offer the
same quality education as in-class programs and can offer benefits like scheduling classes around your
busy life and allowing you to work at your own pace. Online education is becoming more common
for traditional colleges and universities: according to the Pew Research Center, more than 3/4 of colleges and universities offer classes online.
Getting into college is just the first step in your higher education. And to make sure you afford yourself
the best chances, stay focused, ask for help when you need it, and concentrate on improving your scores
if you choose to take the tests a second time. Planning for the ACT or SAT should be taken seriously. If
you commit to doing well, you can lay the foundation for a quality college education.
There is a huge difference between what a student gets out of a classroom and how a student benefits from one-on-one tutoring sessions. A school teacher has to cater his lesson to a group of students, from many different backgrounds, learning styles and interests. While our teachers do phenomenally well at one of the toughest jobs, a student that receives one-on-one tutoring, catered to their needs, makes leaps and bounds academically.
First, they can gain a tutor that relates to who they are. This is important. Many students have a difficult time studying subjects that to them, are irrelevant. Having a tutor that they can relate to helps students understand: if their tutor feels the need to know it, maybe they should know it also. A musical student? Perhaps the tutor has a music background and understands why mathematics is still important for someone in that field.
One-on-one tutoring also allows for the lesson to be catered to a student’s particular learning style. Some students are visual learners, who need charts and diagrams of the concepts to really grasp them. Others need repetition to help them retain the information. Some students benefit from more example problems and the ability to ask questions throughout the practice. One-on-one tutoring really helps a student grasp the subject in a way that is most beneficial to them.
Lastly, a tutor can really get to know their student. Who they are as a person, their interests, families and events going on in their lives, all affect their academics. We get to know their aspirations, other stresses they are dealing with and who they are outside of the classroom.
There is no substitute for a good teacher. However, the benefits of one-on-one tutoring are invaluable for a student’s academic achievement.
Advanced Placement courses are a great option for students who can handle more challenging coursework and want to earn college credit or add sparkle to their college applications. AP courses also provide an opportunity to get a more in-depth perspective on subjects that students might find themselves interested in but would, otherwise, be unable to study at school.
The decision to take one or more AP classes is an important one because of the additional work and study time that is involved. The best way to guarantee success in an AP class is to have a plan for staying on top of coursework and to stick to that plan. Students should have a designated chunk of evening time to devote to their AP subject(s).
More importantly, students should have a dependable person to consult about difficult concepts, especially before exams. Whether this person is a friend who is also taking the class, a parent or a tutor, having someone to keep you on top of your study plan is the key to success.
Study Hut has many AP veterans in all subjects, so don’t hesitate to drop in if you need a study buddy or a sympathetic ear. Getting an outside tutor can help organize your daunting coursework, plan how to study for upcoming tests as well as pop-quizzes, and learn how the AP test itself can be conquered. We can help you with everything from AP Calculus to AP Spanish, and we will match you with a tutor you like, respect, and get along with.
It’s that time of year again, kids are getting ready for school. The back to school commercials are present during your favorite television shows, kids are counting down the days they have left in summer, and everyone is trying to squeeze that last minute vacation in. With all the hustle and bustle of getting ready for school, tutoring may be the last thing on a parent’s mind. What most fail to realize, is that it should be the first.
Each and every year at the Hut, without a fail, we see kids who come in after they have already received their first disappointing test grade. At this point, the student comes in and has already started digging themselves a hole. This automatically creates a negative self esteem that doesn’t set the right tone for the school year. We have found, time and time again, students and parents are happier getting their kid in here from the very start. Even starting them prior to that first day of school gets them back in the mindset. They have a chance to brush up on those skills that caused them trouble the previous year.
Our tutors are so equip with the curriculum for the Manhattan Beach School District that some of our students even have the chance look ahead and get a running start in their curriculum for the up and coming year. Even if kids do not get tutoring prior to the school year, that first week of school is an ample opportunity to get situated and come up with a game plan for the year. A good majority of our kids are in middle school and need help understanding how to prioritize their classes. A schedule with multiple teachers is a new concept. It is crucial to set up this plan in order to keep on task with each and every class. Starting at the beginning of the school year will allow for more time to study and less time figuring out how to balance multiple subjects with multiple classes. Bottom line, don’t wait for your kid to fail to start thinking about tutoring. The sooner the better.
We all know why Study Hut is the best place to learn: it is part of the community. Today as part of my
new responsibilities as supplier-in-chief, I had to visit all 3 Hut branches and check out the supplies. One
characteristic stuck out at all three. Each felt human. Each felt like a place that cares about its students.
Each felt like it was a product of its community.
This is because Study Hut really is a product of its community. The owners hail from Mira Costa High
School. Many of our tutors are from the South Bay area. Even the plants we use to decorate our rooms
are purchased from a local Manhattan Beach vendor. We take pride that we support our hometowns.
Other franchise organizations don’t have a stake in the well-being of our neighborhoods. Study Hut
does because we were born here, we grew up here and we reside here. As a tutor, I feel part of a
family, not a company. Our students feel comfortable here, encouraging candid dialogue that really
increases a students learning capability. Our study environment is pretty much the most awesome place
ever. Epic. What other place has a jungle theme room?
We are proud to announce that next year, we will be offering our first ever Study Hut ACT Group Course.
With the growing popularity of the ACT, we are now offering a course to get your student ready for the test coming next Spring on June 9th. Here are the details:
The course runs April 30th through June 6th.
It meets Monday and Wednesday nights from 7-9 pm (24 hours total)
It includes two full-length practice tests, and assignments catered to your student’s weaknesses.
This course is very similar in structure to our popular small group SAT course, which has been showing excellent improvement in student’s scores across the board. This is NOT a huge classroom or an overwhelming environment. Our SAT and ACT group courses are conducted in a small office, with a maximum of 10 students. Our instructors are young, fresh, smart, and witty, and we all have one thing in common: we know how to dominate both the SAT and the ACT.
Please email rob@studyhut.com or call us at the Hut – (310)-546-2408 to sign up or get any questions answered.
As much as it pains us to say it, summer has reached its peak. If you go to Redondo, PVHS, Peninsula, West or South, it is time to start thinking about the fall semester and the classes you’ll be taking. Right now is the best time to review for that tricky class from last semester or get a head start on a class that you might be dreading.
A lot of you might also have assigned projects that, until now, had been pushed aside for more leisurely activities. Whether it is a book report or a history paper, the best thing to do is let your sun-soaked brain ease back into thinking critically—Do not leave it until the week before school.
And if you do find that you need a little push to get back into the groove, don’t forget that the tutors at Study Hut are here to help get you back in gear for school.
Of all of the summers I have been tutoring, this year’s crop is by far my most energetic, enthusiastic, and eager to learn and get ahead for next year.
While there are always those students that need to play a little catch up and fill in some of the holes that were created due to poor teaching or a lack of attention during school last year, this year, more than ever, I have been tutoring students who just want to get ahead. Even cooler is that most of these students are self-driven, meaning that they are signing up themselves and getting appointments adjusted on their own, rather than having mom force them to come in for some summer enrichment.
The result is that these students are getting far more out of each session than the average student. While some of these young achievers come here for tutoring from West Los Angeles schools like St. Bernard’s, Corpus Christi, Loyola High School, Notre Dame Academy, and Westchester Lutheran, more of our summer tutoring students are from El Segundo High School and El Segundo Middle School.
We have been tutoring El Segundo students in all sorts of subjects, but I have been doing mostly math tutoring, critical reading tutoring, and writing tutoring. It is definitely going to pay off for these guys come Fall.
