Rebecca Zook - Math Tutoring Online

Recently, one of my students shared with me she’d gotten a disappointing test grade. At first, instead of analyzing what went wrong and figuring out what she could do differently, she started blaming her teacher, saying she didn’t know what was going to be on the test, and started panicking, trying to calculate how the disappointing grade would affect her overall grade.

I thought this was so interesting, because this student has a completely different mindset when it comes to her passion of musical theater. We talked through what would happen if she made a mistake at a big audition, like missing a high note.

She laughed and she said, “Well, I wouldn’t blame the pianist for sneezing and then singing the wrong note because I was matching the pitch of his sneeze! I would figure out why I missed the note, and ask for help from my singing teacher so I could be more accurate next time!”

Somehow, she knew exactly how to adjust her approach with musical theater, and we talked about how to transfer that over to her math mastery process.

So let me share this exact same process with you – what to do and NOT to do when you’ve gotten a disappointing math test, so you won’t get stuck and can keep moving forward and creating what you want in your life.

1. Don’t despair. Even if you feel like you got EVERYTHING wrong, there is hope. It just means there are things you haven’t learned yet, and if you work on them, you will improve. I’m serious!

2. Don’t internalize the failure. A lot of times, when you get a crappy grade on a math test, it’s easy to think, “I will never get this,” “I am not a math person,” or “I guess I just don’t have a ‘math’ brain.” I know, because I used to have those thoughts all the time myself. Somehow getting a bad grade becomes like part of your identity! Even if everything feels completely, utterly impossible, remember, math is something EVERYONE can learn. It’s all about breaking it down and practicing.

3. Don’t give up. A failure is only a true failure if you don’t use it as an opportunity to learn.

4. Don’t blame others for what happened. It’s really easy when you get a test back to think, “Well, my teacher didn’t tell me THAT was going to be on the test,” or, “I didn’t know the test was going to be THAT day,” or whatever it is. But when you blame others, you completely give away your power to someone else.

Instead…

5. Take personal responsibility for what happened. When you take personal responsibility, you have the power to change your life. If you are willing to look at what actions you took and choices you made, you can change them and get a different result next time.

(Note: I know this can seem so hard, even ridiculous, to say, “Yes, I’M taking responsibility for the fact that I don’t get this.” I used to REALLY struggle with this. So maybe just try it as an experiment. Being willing to take more and more responsibility for the results of my choices has created so much change in my life. Even though I really resisted this initially.)

(And, taking personal responsibility can be as simple as admitting to yourself, “Yes, I do need help with this, and I’m willing to ask for it.)

6. Ask yourself what went wrong. Did you not know what was going to be on the test? Did you forget to study?

7. Ask yourself what you can do differently next time. Can you ask your teacher for a list of topics to study? Can you write the test date into your planner, or put it into your phone? What will remind you to study?

8. Make a different choice. Decide to ask your teacher for topics, and then do so. Write the test date into your planner. Create a reminder to study, and then study!

9. Ask for help. If you are doing everything you can and you’re still not getting the results you want, ask for help! You don’t have to do this alone!

Do you wish someone could help walk you through this process and help you learn the parts that are confusing to you in a way that is fun and makes total sense? Are you tired of getting disappointing test results? Are you willing to invest in high-level support?

Then I invite you to apply for my one-on-one math tutoring programs!

Just click here to get started with your special application. Once your application is received, we’ll set up a special phone call to get clear if my approach would be a good fit for your child.

I’m excited to receive your application!

Sending you love,
REBECCA

Related posts:
It’s eraser time! (and other math mantras)
How to make it safe for kids to fail
Failure is not the enemy
The rhyme and reason of making mistakes

It’s time for our next tip in my special series, tips for a happy math year!!!

Make word problems routine. The reason why our kids study math is so they can solve real world problems. Yet word problems sometimes get a bad rap. While translating English into math is a separate skill that goes above and beyond simple computation, everyone can develop this ability.

If your kid’s math book includes word problems, invite them to do one a day just for fun, even if it’s not assigned for homework. You can get free word problem worksheets at teachnology.

You can also make up your own word problems together while running errands or at mealtimes. A lot of kids like to make up their own math problems, and it helps them feel like math is something that is part of them, that they can create, instead of something arbitrary that comes from a textbook.

Practicing this can be empowering and fun at the same time.

Does your son or daughter struggle with word problems? Do you wish your kid had enough in their toolkit to be a confident, creative math problem-solver? Do you dream of your kid being inspired to see math as an ongoing source of inspiration?

Just click here to get started with your special application for my one-on-one math tutoring programs. Once your application is received, we’ll set up a special phone call to get clear if my approach would be a good fit for your child.

I’m excited to connect!

Sending you love,
REBECCA

Related posts:
Case Study: a 7th grader goes from “I don’t get it” to getting 100 percents
When in doubt, talk it out
Case Study: a 5th grader emerges as a confident student and enthusiastic mathematician

Hey there! It’s time for the second tip in my five part series of Tips for a Happy Math Year!

And here it is…

Slow can be fast. Sometimes kids need more time to digest or absorb information than is planned for in their classroom curriculum. Maybe their teacher expects them to memorize all of their times tables from 2s through the 12s by the end of the grade, and but they’re panicky and spotty about their 4s.

It’s okay. If your kid needs more time, just keep working on it together and be patient. It’s better to thoroughly learn one new multiplication fact a day than to try to cram stuff in their brain that’s not sticking because the pace is too fast.

In my experience as a tutor, it is far more powerful and paradoxically, faster, to slowly learn something really well the first time, instead of having to go back and re-learn it over and over, or deal with the repercussions of everything else that doesn’t make sense because the prerequisite concepts are shaky. It’s all about staying focused on the process and not giving up.

Do you know that your kid needs more time than they’re getting in the classroom, but feel like it’s just not possible for you to give them that one-on-one undivided customized attention yourself? Do you want to invest in your kid having a safe space to ask any question they want without feeling embarrassed, and get all the practice they need to truly get math deep in their bones? Do you dream of your kid having a huge smile on their face about math, and embodying the attitude that, “hey, nothing can stop me from choosing to go for my passion, because I know I can do math, and it will never get in my way!”?

TJust click here to get started with your special application for my one-on-one math tutoring programs. Once your application is received, we’ll set up a special phone call to get clear if my approach would be a good fit for your child.

I’m excited to connect!

Sending you love,
REBECCA

Related posts:
Tips for a happy math year – #1
How to learn math when you’re in the car
How to find a good math tutor
When a math problem just takes For-EV-ah
How to help kids be okay with things being hard

Yesterday I was working with a student on some very sophisticated geometry problems that require a lot of synthesis and creativity. She had come to me with the questions she hadn’t been able to figure out from her summer geometry homework assignment.

For a second I thought she meant she hadn’t known how to start on the problem, but while I was putting the diagram up on the whiteboard for us to refer to together, she said, referring to her preparation, “I was just doing this big thing, and I don’t even know if it’s right.”

I was like, awesome! I was so happy that my student dove in and explored, even though she wasn’t sure if she had done the right thing.

When math becomes more demanding, it frequently requires two completely different skills: really internalizing everything you’re learning so much that it’s completely automatic, (like writing your name or eating with a fork); and THEN, being able to creatively combine those ideas, concepts, and strategies in ways you’ve never done before when you’re faced with something mathematically completely unfamiliar.

I told this student how proud I was of her that she had tried to solve the problem so extensively even though she wasn’t sure what to do – instead of just giving up or waiting.

I explained, “It just means that you’re in the exploration and experimentation zone, instead of the repeating and recycling zone.” We go through the process of internalization in order to flourish when faced with the unfamiliar.

And then, we train ourselves to be comfortable – even lighthearted and jubilational – when faced with something we’ve never seen before. To be comfortable with being uncomfortable, and to ask ourselves questions like:

What could I try here?

OK, if that didn’t work, what could I try instead?

So, is it OK to not be totally sure? Absolutely! In fact, it is an extremely important space to become acquainted with, and to befriend: “the not-totally-sure-if-it’s-right space.”

Are you worried that your kid’s current math issues will prevent them from understanding math in their own unique way and being able to live their dreams?

Do you deeply desire that your kid receive high-level, super-customized math support that feeds their autonomy and helps them really do what they’re here to do in the world?

Just click here to get started with your special application for my one-on-one math tutoring programs. Once your application is received, we’ll set up a special phone call to get clear if my approach would be a good fit for your child.

I’m here for you, and I’m so glad we’re connected!

Sending you love,
REBECCA

I don’t normally put testimonials on my blog — they have their own beautiful lil’ zone over on the testimonials page — but I wanted to showcase one of the BEST things that happened to me this past week — doing a video interview with one of my favorite clients of all time, Miranda Lynch, and her mom, Sheri Lynch!

Before we talked, I really didn’t know what Miranda and her mom were going to say. I had no idea that Miranda is now taking *two* math classes (because she wants to), and I also hadn’t heard about most of her other amazing results (like consistently getting straight As in math since we worked together–way to go, Miranda!!).

But what got me even MORE excited was hearing Miranda talk about how our work together helped her feel more comfortable solving any kind of problem. Amen, sister! It is not just about math!

AND hearing Miranda, who is a filmmaker, talk about how she is totally confident about applying to her dream schools for film — because her math skills are so strong, she had no worries about her applications — GIVES ME GOOSEBUMPS!

An amazing healer who I am privileged to work with once told me that what she really does is remove obstacles. Many of my students come to me because they are experiencing obstacles to their learning… or math itself feels like an obstacle in their life. What we do together is remove the obstacle, lovingly, slowly, patiently, step-by-step… and in the process, my students learn to remove obstacles on their own.

This is something I think about, but don’t usually talk about with my students. It was amazing to hear one of my students express this to me herself.

Thank you, Miranda and Sheri, for taking the time to share your experience with the world!

*In other news, my website has a new tips page, which showcases some of my best tips all in one handy place.

Related posts:
Encouraging independent problem solving–subliminally?
Self-taught hero: Pearl Fryar
On being yourself while doing math

Yesterday, I was working with a seventh grader on translating words into equations.

While translating the statement “three diminished by twice a number is eight,” he wrote this:

Wow, I guess he really was enjoying what we were doing! It’s the happiest eight I’ve ever seen! Hooray for kids customizing their math, expressing themselves, and having a good time while learning something challenging!

Related posts:
How to help kids be okay with things being hard
Algebra tears
Five Tips for a Happy Math Year
A Cosmic Imperative to Customize

Just in time for Pi day, here’s a delightful musical interpretation of pi from Michael John Blake, using a piano, ukelele, autoharp, accordion, and bowed something-or-other, not to mention some totally sick handclaps!

I have already listened to this 3 times today. Maybe I should go listen to it another .14 times to bring the total to 3.14!!

If you’re not sure about this song, hang in there until around 2:33, where it really starts to rock.

Makes me want to make my own cover/dance music video of this song!!

Happy Pi Day, everyone! (Thanks to my Dad to bringing this video to my attention.)

Related posts:

It’s 3.14 – Happy Pi Day 2010 (beautiful song and video about 3.14159…)
Five fun ways to help your kids learn math this summer with rock songs and raps
There’s always room for cello

I’m quite honored to be interviewed today over on the Maths Insider blog!

Maths Insider is the brainchild of my intrepid colleague Caroline Mukisa, whose blog fills a crucial need for parents looking for advice on how to help their kids with their math homework. (Caroline is British, thus “maths” instead of “math”).

Caroline asked me great questions about my mentors, whether I’ve always loved math, and my top three pieces of advice for parents looking to support their kids’ math learning.

So click on over and check it out!

Related posts:
Tips for how to help your kid with their math homework
Guest Post Alert: Q & A with Danica McKellar about Hot X: Algebra Exposed!
Five fun ways to help your kids learn math this summer

I want to give a MASSIVE shout-out to my dear friend Nan Kemberling, who created this awesome rap video about cello technique!

Not only did Nan come up with this totally creative, fun, sassy, helpful, and accurate rap full of cello do’s and don’ts, but she also directed and starred in the video, honed a new persona as a rapper, showcased her own students, and created a viral youtube phenomenon!

This video is also a powerful example of what can happen when artist/teachers create educational music that you actually *want* to listen to.

When I asked Nan about the creative process of writing this rap, she said that she was always telling her students the same things, so why not make a rap song about it? This seems to echo the sentiment of Tim Bedley, veteran teacher and creator of the “Rockin’ the Standards” album of math songs: “My students just have the hardest time remembering some really important concepts. I have to keep reteaching and reteaching. If only I could get them to sing the information, they would NEVER forget!”

Here’s to a world where there are more awesome songs to help us learn the important stuff!

Related posts:
Five fun ways to help your kids learn math this summer with rock songs and raps
Happy pi day (beautiful song and video about 3.14159…)
“Simple, but not easy” (Lynn Harrell)

Do you need to remember a crucial math concept? Pretend that you’re a news anchor delivering a breaking “math story.”

I stumbled on this strategy totally by accident. I was working with a sixth grade student who told me she missed the “field trips” we used to take to my kitchen to practice unit conversion and act out word problems.

But how could we practice the algebraic order of operations in the kitchen? Looking for another way to take a “field trip,” I asked her to use my whiteboard to do a “mathcast” of what she’d just learned.

We pretended that she was the news anchor of a “mathcast” and that I was her student or producer. I made up a theme song to start the program and also signal “commercial breaks.”

While she taught the material back to me as a news broadcast, I was struck by her confidence and enthusiasm. I’d never seen her do a presentation before, and here she was gleefully holding forth about the order of operations.

It also turned out to be a really clear, fun way to evaluate what she understood. The stuff she was confident about she would declare in a loud voice, and the concepts that she wasn’t sure about she would whisper questions to me about. Sometimes when she needed to remember something, I held up her math class handout and pretended it was a teleprompter.

Once I realized what my student was confused about (because she’d whisper questions to me about it), I asked her to recite the part she didn’t understand to me over and over. She even spontaneously made up a little dance to help herself remember the material.

Without giving her a test or written assessment, I’d stumbled on a way to figure out exactly what I need to clarify and reinforce.

Why does this matter?

To quote a great NYT article by Benedict Carey, Forget What You Know About Good Study Habits:

“…cognitive scientists see testing itself—or practice tests and quizzes—as a powerful tool of learning, rather than merely assessment. The process of retrieving an idea is not like pulling a book from a shelf; it seems to fundamentally alter the way information is subsequently stored, making it far more accessible in the future.”

For example, an experiment found that when college students did two study sessions back to back, they did well on a test soon afterwards but had already begun to forget the material a week later. However, students who did one initial study session and then took a practice test during the second session could remember the material a week later.

The psychologist who conducted this experiment, Dr. Henry L. Roediger III, remarks, “Testing has such a bad connotation; people think of standardized testing or teaching to the test. Maybe we need to call it something else, but this is one of the most powerful learning tools we have.”

Doing mathcasts can be a way to do just that, giving students a chance to practice recalling something under pressure—while taking a field trip and sharing their knowledge.

Related posts:
How to help your kids with their math homework
Gallon man to the rescue!
Mind meld is real!
Math study skills quiz