Young people feel pressure in two dimensions: quality and time. Students, particularly AP students, feel that they must be the best within a finite amount of time called childhood. Try though we must to alleviate their burdens, there are a few cases in life where the pressure is real. Einstein’s theory of relativity predicted just such a union between the dimensions of pressure: college test prep.
Totally joking about Einstein’s theory (we offer AP Physics prep on his actual theory). But our team of nerds at Study Hut Consulting has a serious answer to the conundrum of the SAT and ACT. To master quality, we respond with one-on-one tutoring that’s tailored to each student’s strengths and weaknesses. To defeat time, we answer with experience. Our homemade courses are administered via online portal and workbook, achieving the constant feedback of online grading and the realism of paper tests. Each student progresses through our course in a unique order with unique emphasis, and completes many practice tests and problems along the way. As Bill Murray taught us in Groundhog Day, the easiest way to get a problem right is to have done it before.
Speaking of past experiences — as a student, I participated in Princeton Review’s SAT course. Having already scored very highly on their practice test, I was placed into the small, elite group that was likely to score perfect on the real deal. I was one of the lucky ones. But why should only those students with high first-time scores receive good tutoring? At Study Hut Consulting, we give every student one-on-one VIP treatment, regardless of their first attempt. We believe in the process. A student starting at 900 and one beginning at 1300 can both achieve hundreds of points of improvement in our college test prep. As tutors, we have the power to make both of those kids’ dreams come true. That’s why we do business.
But don’t take our word for it. We encourage our kids to do their due diligence, and we’d love for you to do the same. Stop on by for a free practice test and free consultation. You can reach us at (310) 379-1400 or practice those fill-in-the-blanks skills on our Contact Form, below. I’ll sign off this post with a College Test Prep Prayer:
Diagnostic testing is an essential first step to any training program. However, there is a difference between doing old practice problems at home in your free time and taking an up-to-date, full-length test in an environment similar to the real AP exam. Diagnostic testing and subsequent personalized tutoring at Study Hut will make sure that you go into your AP test with the confidence, knowledge, and experience to achieve the high score you deserve.
Here at Study Hut Tutoring, we host diagnostic tests in our office every other Saturday starting at 8 am. We host an accurate AP testing environment that is free of noisy or entertaining distractions, filled with other like-minded students, and timed by an experienced proctor to simulate the real exam as closely as possible. When taking a diagnostic test at Study Hut, you no longer have to worry about keeping track of sections or breaks, or about being interrupted or getting too comfortable at home. Furthermore, some tests change year to year, so we are constantly updating our materials to ensure that you are taking the most recent version of the AP exam. After you take your initial diagnostic test to get your baseline score, you will receive prompt, detailed feedback on your strengths and weaknesses. No more guessing; you will see a score report explaining your score and all of your problem areas. Even better, this follow-up consultation to receive your results is free! You will leave your free consultation having discussed your performance on the practice exam and your fears and expectations leading up to the real test. Our primary goal is to make sure that you go into your AP test with the confidence, knowledge, and experience to achieve the highest score you can, and secure your place at the university of your dreams!
The first step in your AP test prep process is to take a Free Diagnostic Test>. Practice AP tests are offered every week at Study Hut for your convenience. After taking the test, we encourage all of our students to come in for a Free Consultation in order to discuss current strengths and weaknesses. Once properly assessed, we pair each student with a specialized tutor in the given content area as well as create a personalized curriculum tailored to each students’ needs.
Once the curriculum is designed, you will work with you tutor on AP Test Prep. We start by first brushing up on key concepts before diving into one-on-one focused sessions of areas of that need improvement. Because all of our tutors have great experience and familiarity with the structure and commonly tested content, we devote crucial time to teaching test taking strategies.
For best results, we recap lessons and we move through practice questions. If needed, we support the lessons with take-home work. Throughout the tutoring process, we frequently administer practice DBQs, FRQs, and Multiple Choice sections. All homework is reviewed during the next lesson to make sure the lesson sinks in. Once you can demonstrate mastery, we move onto the next concept.
Next we track your progress through regular full-length practice tests. These also ensure that you will have experience in executing the strategies and content proficiency that you will develop during your tutoring sessions. We hold them here in our office twice a month on Saturday mornings. Taking them in a simulated testing environment like that ensures an accurate timing schedule, and the added stressor or not taking it in the comfort of your own home. Our primary goal is to make sure that you go into your AP test with the confidence, knowledge, and experience to achieve the high score you deserve.
AP or Advanced Placement classes are a great option for students who want to take a challenging class that can reward them with college credit! What is an AP class? An AP class is a class offered high schools that is taught at the college level. It all leads up to a national test in May. Every student enrolled in each AP class takes the test on the same day across the United States. There is an assigned test date and time for each subject. For most subjects, there is a multiple choice section as well as free response questions that are essays. For the foreign language APs, there is also a speaking portion of the test.
The APs are a great option for students that think they can handle the work because some schools will accept passing AP scores for college credit. The AP is graded from 1 to 5, where 3 through 5 are passing grades. However, some colleges only accept scores of 4 or 5 to earn credit.
The work for an AP class is comparable or sometimes a tad bit more challenging than an Honors course. There is a lot of content to learn, and students need to know the content like the back of their hand. The course is also taught at an accelerated pace because the final test is in May, rather than in June like regular school courses. However, if you can keep up and put in the hard work, it looks great for colleges, and may get you some credit in the end!
1. During the school day, teachers’ attention is spread among many students. A tutor can create a targeted plan for your child’s specific needs.
2. Today, kids have increased access to technology, busy parents, and have extremely busy schedules, all of which can potentially distract them from their studies. Time with a tutor gives them the time to focus only on homework or studying.
3. Tutors have the time to explain a concept in several different ways, instead of having to move class along at a certain pace.
4. Tutoring can also teach study skills, which can then be applied to what’s going on in school.
5. Even for students who are doing well in school, tutoring can provide a competitive edge to do even better.
6. Summer tutoring can prepare students for upcoming difficult subjects, such as algebra, or reinforce what was already learned that year so September isn’t spent playing catch-up.
7. For high school students, individual or small group tutoring can be essential for APs and SAT subject tests.
8. For younger kids, tutoring can help boost standardized test scores.
9. A tutor can be a useful sounding board for an upcoming project, paper, or exam, and can help prevent the stress and frustration of leaving an assignment for the night before.
10. Whether it’s third grade math, high school chemistry, or middle school history, tutors have expertise in their subject and can make it more engaging and maybe even fun.
Here at the Study Hut we have a unique teaching method that seems to work very well. At the Study Hut we hope to empower students. Here’s what it says on our website:
“Our tutors are young, local, and experienced. We offer one-on-one subject tutoring, SAT test prep, and a variety of other services. Students love coming to Study Hut because it’s cool and they see results. There are many large, impersonal tutoring companies out there. Study Hut is proud to say that we’re not one of them.
Instead of using a “one-size-fits-all” method, we focus on each student’s unique learning style and teach to his or her strengths. Our tutors emphasize progress and growth for all students at all levels—no matter how unmotivated or defeated they may start out feeling.
Our highly trained tutors have all graduated from local high schools and universities. Study Hut tutors have experience teaching every subject you can think of, from elementary school through AP high school courses, we have done and seen it all.”
I am one of the tutors here at the Study Hut and proud to work for such a great company. I normally tutor elementary and middle school students and truly enjoying working with each of my students! Here’s a story about one of my personal tutoring sessions!
I tutor a little girl whose a 1st grader and together we work on her homework packet. Each week she has a different number of packets… each for a different subject including but not limited to – Math, Social Science, Literature, and English. She mostly struggles with math (subtraction)… and refers to the numbers as “big numbers” – which make her nervous. During tutoring we work on the homework packet and if she gets it done early we play Word Bingo since Bingo is her favorite game.
Some of the assignments in the packet include coloring different pictures and words – which the little girl certainly enjoys! We work on pronunciation of words, spelling words, definitions, and other fun assignments.
The little girl also has started to learn Spanish, so we work on Spanish vocabulary as well and basic phrases every week. I write the words down for her in English with the Spanish translation and she always highlights the English words with a highlighter. She studies them at home and does a great job!
Every student you tutor is different and they each work well in their own ways.
Taking Advanced Placement (or “AP”) classes in high school are very important to completing lower division requirements in college, yet they move at a fast pace and try to cover dense material as quickly as possible. AP History classes, such as U.S. History (APUSH), European History (EHAP), World History (WHAP), and Art History provide a very unique set of difficulties since they are all covering such a broad and substantial amount of information. Here are some good study tips that might make your life a little easier in these classes:
Make a timeline – a list of dates or a timeline written in chronological order will help keep track of important events, the key players and the significance of the event.
Keep multiple lists – This is a great way of keeping track and studying the various leaders, governments and political movements that occur. Write a small paragraph under each word to have short and easily memorable ideas that are easy to understand for complex essay writing assignments.
Print out maps – both from the time period you are studying and the present. Coupled with your timeline, this is a great start to visually understanding connections between countries of the past and now. Everything will make more sense!
Keep a record of vocabulary, chapter by chapter – A small vocabulary list is also important for quick studying, so when test time arrives you have cumulative, yet specific, information to look over instead of a huge textbook.
Skim through the chapter first – This will give the overall sense of what the main purpose is, then you can go back to the beginning of the chapter and read it with that purpose in mind. For instance, if the main purpose of the chapter is Neolithic civilizations in Africa and their significance to archeology and present day African civilizations, then you know to read for types of Neolithic African civilizations, their region on a map, their artifacts, their religious beliefs, their language, etc.
Although history has a bunch of memorization, try not to think about it in that way. Understanding the concept is the most important thing. History is a story of the past, so when you read pretend it’s a story instead of a bunch of dates, names and facts. Furthermore, learning about history is really about understanding the significance of events to both the time period you are studying and the present day; when you read and take notes, always write the significance.
