May 16th, 2011
There are some students who come into the Study Hut every week in Manhattan Beach with such a great attitude and work ethic that you have to take the time to give them a shout-out. The Manhattan Beach Study Hut wants to give these students that stand out on a regular basis by attacking their work, staying organized, and accepting challenges with a smile.
Kendall D. is one of the stellar students who happens to also have a very busy life. She’s in a challenging math class. She has club soccer practice twice a week and games on Saturdays. She has family commitments almost every weekend. Coincidentally, she also maintains a planner that most Study Hut tutors only dream about. Kendall’s planner is color-coded, complete everyday, and looks like it was written in Times New Roman. As a Manhattan Beach tutoring student who has many commitments every week and limited time to do homework, she has realized that time-management is her key to academic success (granted, if she is like most students, this may change when she gets to college- but until then, we appreciate her efficiency!).
Not only is she incredibly neat and organized when she comes into Study Hut Tutoring in Manhattan Beach, Kendall is also a very positive, ambitious student. Her recent math assignments have involved complicated logic problems that elicit groans from students young and old (tutors included). Even though this is the most difficult concept that Kendall has encountered in her math class, she tackles every problem with the knowledge that she can conquer it if she works through it methodically. She attacks problems at the end of the hour with as much vigor as the first five minutes and has incredible focus.
All of these stellar qualities make Kendall a pleasure to work with and a Manhattan Beach Study Hut Star. Great job and keep up the hard work!
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Posted in 6-8, Manhattan Beach, Positive Vibes, Self esteem, star students, Teaching |
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April 18th, 2011
Growing up I always had an interest in the sciences. The idea of crazy science experiments
and watching the Magic School Bus definitely played a major role in sparking my interests in the
sciences. The classes and labs I took in high school lead me to choose Biology as my major in
college. The labs especially sparked my interest. They allowed for a hands on experience and
which I feel gave me a better understanding of the material. One lab in particular in physics
class involved launching rockets on the football field and using their trajectory to try and
estimate the distance traveled. I feel that I am a visual learner and the science labs helped me
grasp the material much better than just reading the text or going to lecture. When I finally got
to college the labs got even cooler. The best was making a neon solution in my organic
chemistry lab and watching the fluorescence when the lights were turned off. Because I
majored in Biology, I feel very comfortable tutoring students in science and math at Study Hut. I
try to relate to the students when they complain about how boring the class is, or how they will
never use this stuff again, but stress they most likely will so its important they master the topics
now. Study Hut also provides a great resource for students going to college. We have tutors
here who just recently graduated from college so they can provide insight into what to expect,
and what direction student should try to focus on academically. I remember my freshmen
orientation, and it was kind of pointless. There wasn’t enough time to connect with the
orientation leaders and its a lot harder to approach a much older college professor who you’ve
never met before.
Tags: comfortable tutoring, Interest in science, Students going to college, Study Hut provides, tutoring students, tutors here who recently graduated from College, understanding of the material
Posted in 6-8, 9-12, Comprehension, General, General Articles, Learning, life skills, Teaching, Tutors |
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April 8th, 2011
A friend of mine recently asked me what I like about tutoring. I thought it was a strange question, because to me it feels to me like the perfect part time job. When I told him this he just shook his head and said that he was so glad that he didn’t have to read Jane Eyre or touch a geometry problem for the rest of his life. That made me smile, because his job – car salesman – is something that I know I would absolutely hate. It’s good to know that there’s an ideal job out there for everyone, and that it’s different for everybody.
So what is it that I love about tutoring? What is that drives me to help my students, makes me review statistics and calculus at home, causes me to dream up new explanations and tutoring techniques while I drift off to sleep at night?
It’s really two things. For starters, I genuinely find high school math and science genuinely interesting. A lot of people like sudoku and word problems. Me? I like SATs and word problems. There’s a puzzle behind every exam and homework assignment; when you sit down pencil in hand it is a battle of wits between you and the teacher. Although I must no longer take those tests myself, it is still a vicarious pleasure helping my students wrestle with a tough problem, turn their mental gears, and finally achieve that eureka moment.
Secondly, I really like helping people. That sounds cliche, but it’s the truth. When I was in school I struggled with a lot of my subjects and fell behind. It’s the worst feeling, and one we are all familiar with. Who hasn’t had that dream where you’re taking an exam for a class you’ve never attended? Well my students are still going through that, and I love be able to hoist them back onto dry land.
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Posted in 9-12, Calculus, math, retention, SAT, South Bay, Statistics, Teaching, Tutors |
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April 4th, 2011
Writing competency is a vital step towards academic success in middle school, high school, and higher education. The establishment of a comfort level with regard to essay writing is fundamental. Many students moving from middle to high school become overwhelmed when assigned their first paper. Most are even more flabbergasted when they arrive at college and are required to write term papers.
At Study Hut, our tutors work with your students to build an outline—a formula, of sorts—for a paper which we think can be applied to writing universally. This formula starts with and builds upon a thesis statement, which declares the general purpose of the essay. Thesis statement writing is too frequently overlooked in compulsory English or writing education, so many students don’t know where to begin or how to address a topic or prompt. By teaching them the simple skill of jotting down their first meaningful statement of purpose, we hope to provide students with a foundation upon which they can do nothing but grow and learn.
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Posted in 6-8, 9-12, Teaching, writing |
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March 28th, 2011
As a parent, you know that your child is a complex individual, full of surprises. You know their dreams and aspirations, their fears and dislikes, what influences and what motivates them. You know that though they may grow bored at school, frustrated with teachers or affected by their peers, that if someone could find the key to tap into your child’s potential they would shine as brightly as they do in your eyes. It is this uniqueness that we try to cultivate. There are a few special ingredients that make Study Hut such a sweet place to learn and one of them is that we recognize each student’s individuality. Tutors are paired students that allow us to foster genuine connections and have a real positive influence. That’s why we enjoy being tutors. While many of our tutors can teach multiple subjects, Study Hut takes the time to place students according to their personality and ambitions. Seeing our students strive for the same goals we’ve have sought to attain inspires us and we pass this inspiration onto our students.
A real understanding of who your child is also helps us tutor more effectively. Biology becomes a basketball team, physics becomes skate boarding and statistics becomes the probability the Lakers will win the championship (100%, of course!) Students are no longer just another face in a sea of students but part of the Study Hut family. Every child learns differently, and relates differently. Parents know this for their children; tutors should know this for their students. We don’t just teach a child, we teach your child.
Tags: custom tutor, high school tutoring, manhattan beach tutor, middle school tutoring, study Hut, Study Hut Tutoring, study skills, subject tutor, subject tutoring
Posted in 6-8, 9-12, Comprehension, elementary school, General, high school, K-5, Learning, life skills, middle school, retention, study skills, Teaching, Tutors |
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March 28th, 2011
El Segundo High School students that need chemistry tutoring are in luck. Study Hut tutoring in El Segundo is going to get you going where you want to go. We are experts in every subject, with tutors who’s knowledge is and teaching style is tailored to each of the students who come in for subject help and test prep. Take a look at this breakdown from Andy, our UCLA bio/chem major who dominates science like nobodies business (but ours!):
Sometimes balancing chemical equations is easy….unfortunately it can also be
a nightmare! When all else fails there is one way to balance an equation that will
always work; with ALGEBRA! Who ever said learning math wasn’t useful?
To solve balance chemical equations using algebra start by assigning a variable
to each part of the reaction. For example if we had the unbalanced equation
NaHCO2 + C6H8O7 ——-> CO2 + H2O + Na3C6H5O7
First we assign a value of 1 as the coefficient of the first compound. We then give
letter designations to the other coefficients.
(1)NaHCO2 + (A)C6H8O7 ——-> (B)CO2 + (C)H2O + (D)Na3C6H5O7
Now we can establish relationships between the variables based on the different
atoms.
Sodium: 1=3D
Hydrogen: 1 + 8A = 2C + 5D
Carbon: 1 + 6A= B + 6D
Oxygen: 2 + 7A = 2B + C + 7D
Now we solve these equations starting with Sodium
1=3D ——–> D=1/3
We then plug D=1/3 into the Hydrogen and Oxygen equations and solve for C
and B respectively:
1 + 8A = 2C + 5D ———> C = 4A – 1/3
1 + 6A = B + 6D ———–> B = 6A -1
Finally if we put these into the Oxygen equation we can solve for A:
2 + 7A = 2B + C + 7D ———–> 2 + 7A = 2(6A-1) + (4A-1/3) + 7(1/3)
This give A = 2/9. Now we can go back to Hydrogen and Oxygen and solve for C
and D.
C = 4A – 1/3 —–> 4(2/9) – 1/3 = C
C = 5/9
B = 6A -1 ——–> 6(2/9) -1 = B
B= 3/9
This give us: (1)NaHCO2 + (2/9)C6H8O7 ——-> (3/9)CO2 + (5/9)H2O + (1/3)
Na3C6H5O7
To get whole numbers we multiply by 9 giving us the solution!
(9)NaHCO2 + (2)C6H8O7 ——-> (3)CO2 + (5)H2O + (3)Na3C6H5O7
This method may seem complex, but it is guaranteed to work for any chemical
equation!
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Posted in 9-12, Balancing equation, Chemistry, El Segundo, high school, Learning, science, Teaching, Tutor Tips |
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March 28th, 2011
Well-roundedness—it seems like a harmless enough idea on paper, but the drive to become a “well-rounded” student is pushing today’s students to the limit.
Grades alone are no longer enough, so our kids are spreading themselves thin trying to be the combination of athlete, artist, musician and scholar that will catch a college’s attention. This is in addition to coping with being a teenager, which comes with its own slurry of issues.
Films like, “Race to Nowhere”, are bringing to light a problem that many parents and educators have been aware of for a while—our students have too many academic and extra-curricular responsibilities and not enough time for themselves. They spend so much time trying to be what colleges want that many don’t figure out what their own passions are, which leaves them vastly, and ironically, unprepared for college and the real world.
The Study Hut tutors, many not too far from our own high school experiences, understand the pressures that our students deal with inside and outside of the classroom. We know that our work is more than teaching academics and study skills. We take advantage of our positions as role models to help guide healthy emotional and social development, so when our students do decide where they want to go, they are able to get there.
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Posted in 6-8, 9-12, Comprehension, El Segundo, Hermosa Beach, high school, Learning, life skills, Palos Verdes, Peninsula, Redondo Beach, Self esteem, South Bay, study skills, Teaching, Test taking anxiety, Tutor Tips, Tutors |
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March 23rd, 2011
Today was very exciting day at Study Hut Tutoring. My first student, Jordan, came in
with some math homework. He was having a hard time understanding what side of the graph to
shade in on linear equations, so we tried to plug values in for x and y and see where they relate
to line. This made things very clear. Jordan realized he could just shade in the region of the
graph that makes the original equation true. With the key concept making more sense, the rest of
the homework was a breeze. We also talked about cool dissections that we’ve both done in our
various science classes. Jordan talked about how much he hated taking earth science, but really
enjoyed the life science class especially because of the dissections. Jordan heard that students at
PVHS get to dissect a sheep’s brain in their anatomy class, and it sounds like he’s really wants to
go there.
My second student, Matthew, came in with an assignment from his Police Academy
program. He has to format his notes in a precise order, and any mistakes would mean he has to
restart the entire page. Matthew got a 98% on his Geometry test and an 89% on his history test,
but he really wanted to complete his Police Academy assignment before his training on
Saturday. Unfortunately Matt made a spelling mistake, at the very end of his page so he had to
rewrite the entire page. Matt and I also talked about better note taking techniques for English
class. He was given a reading assignment, but there were no highlighted or underlined words. I
told him to make sure he makes marks or notes on the pages he reads, so when it comes time to
study or right a paper he can find his annotations a lot faster.
My third student of the day, Robbie, also came in with math homework. Robbie might
have enjoyed a little too much of the delicious Study Hut candy, because he had a lot of energy
tonight. He would fall a little off task, but he was still able to complete all of his math
homework and most of his spelling. Robbie had to multiply fractions and he had a strong grasp
of the overall idea, but was a little confused when to cross multiply in order to reduce the
fraction. But, after the clarification he breezed through the rest of the math problems and started
his spelling packet. Robbie didn’t understand the point of spelling homework, and that reminded
me of when I used to complain about getting tons of homework. Just a torture device teachers
hand out. He wasn’t able to complete the entire packet during his session, but he has enough
time tonight to finish it at home.
Unfortunately, my fourth student, Montana, couldn’t make it tonight. But, that gave me
enough free time to write about my day, so I guess it was a positive after all.
Tags: one on one tutor, one on one tutors, one-on-one tutoring, science tutoring, spelling tutor, spelling tutoring, spelling tutors, tailored tutoring, tutor one on one, tutoring one on one, tutors one on one
Posted in 6-8, 9-12, Comprehension, high school, Learning, math, middle school, retention, science, study skills, Teaching, Tutor Tips |
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March 22nd, 2011
Study Hut Tutoring is proud to announce its involvement in this year’s Scholar Quiz at Palos Verdes High School. As many people in the South Bay know, Study Hut has been sponsoring the Scholar Quiz at Mira Costa High School for several years now. And with our involvement level as high as it is with the Palos Verdes High School AVID program, it only makes sense that we are now sponsoring the PV High Scholar Quiz tournament.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with Scholar Quiz, it is a fast-paced academic tournament in which students on teams of four are asked to answer questions as quickly as possible. It is a lot like Jeopardy, except students can stop the reader and answer the questions at any time.
Scholar Quiz represents all that is Study Hut. We love trivia, we love studying, and we love when students work hard and receive the recognition they deserve for all of their efforts. One of Study Hut’s founders, SP, made it to the semis at Mira Costa’s 2003 tourney. Today, many of our tutors volunteer as readers, timers, and scorekeepers for the Scholar Quiz at Mira Costa, and the Scholar Quiz at Manhattan Beach Middle School. MBMS’s Scholar Quiz is always fun, because oftentimes parents come to support their kids, and even students who are not signed up for the program still visit various teachers’ classrooms to root for their friends’ teams. Teachers are always excited to host all of the students in their classrooms, and some teachers get really into it, reading questions and facilitating the tournament in their classrooms like professional referees.
We are as excited as ever to be entering the Scholar Quiz season, and for those of you who go to Mira Costa or PV High, we hope you enjoy the t-shirts this yea.
Tags: academic tournament, mira costa, mira costa high school, Mira Costa Scholar Quiz, Palos Verdes Scholar Quiz, pv high, PV High Scholar Quiz, Scholar Quiz
Posted in 9-12, General Articles, high school, Learning, life skills, Palos Verdes, South Bay, Teaching, Tutor Tips, Tutors |
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March 21st, 2011
Education reform is a hot topic in politics and our communities. With documentaries like Waiting for Superman and powerful people taking a stance in education, people are starting to realize that things need to change. Successful schools have proven that outstanding teachers, extra time spent on education and high expectations for all students are key to academic achievement. At Study Hut, our tutors put these educational goals into action have seen exceptional results in our students.
Why is it so important to have high expectations for students? High expectations show students that we believe that they are capable of achieving their full potential. This turns into motivation for students to prove to us and to themselves that they can do well in school. I often hear fellow tutors saying “you are going to do an awesome job on your test tomorrow!” Students leave knowing their tutors expect them to perform well. When students at Study Hut are as excited to come in and tell us about an A on a test as much as we are, we know we are doing our job.
Excellent tutors at the Hut also add to students’ academic success. Students come to us because they need clarity, review and a fresh approach to teaching. If it takes a funny song to remember Spanish Vocabulary, we’ll make one up and sing it with our students. If history isn’t making sense, we will relate it to something relevant in a student’s life to show them the importance of a historical event. Thinking outside the box and connecting with students is a common method we share with schools in our community. The South Bay School Districts all have a mission to “strive for academic excellence by forming partnerships with the community.” Study Hut enjoys working with schools and students to be part of this partnership in promoting confidence and academic success in our schools.
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Posted in 6-8, 9-12, Comprehension, El Segundo, elementary school, General, General Articles, Hermosa Beach, high school, K-5, Learning, life skills, Manhattan Beach, middle school, Palos Verdes, Peninsula, Poor Test grades, Redondo Beach, retention, South Bay, South Torrance, study skills, Summer Tutoring, Teaching, Test taking anxiety, Testing, Tutor Tips, Tutors |
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