Rebecca Zook - Math Tutoring Online

Could your child use some help getting back into “math mode”?

Join us for our FREE, virtual back-to-school math blastoff party!

Thursday 8/26

@ 1:30 pm eastern time

Virtual (on Zoom – link emailed to you when you register)

FREE

for students in 3rd grade & up, together with their parents

(this is not a drop-off event)

Wear your favorite “thinking cap” (or any type of fun accessory that helps you think)

Set out a tasty snack

Bring your enthusiasm!

We will learn effective, fun ways

of making math magical

as we practice math together

and learn from each other!

So you and your child can feel more ready

and even more excited

to go back to school!

I am so excited to see you there!!! Let’s get ready, together!!

Sending you love,

REBECCA, the magical math unicorn

PS. Know someone who you think might want to join our party? After you register yourself, invite them to come, too — I’d love to meet your friends!!

Could your child use some help getting back into “math mode”?

Join us for our FREE, virtual back-to-school math blastoff party!

Thursday 8/26

@ 12:15 pm eastern time

Virtual (on zoom – link emailed to you when you register)

FREE

for 1st/2nd graders and their parents, together

(this is not a drop-off event)

Wear your favorite “thinking cap”

Set out a tasty snack

Bring your enthusiasm!

We will learn effective, fun ways

of making math magical

as we practice math together

and learn from each other!

So you and your child can feel more ready

and even more excited

to go back to school!

I can’t wait to see you!

Sending you love,

REBECCA, the magical math unicorn

PS. Know someone who might want to join our party? Please share this with them!

The other day, a rising 4th grader who came to our first math tea party wanted to know, “When is the next one?” 

Well, good news! Our next math tea party is next week!

And you’re invited!

Do you feel overwhelmed by suddenly having to teach your kid math?

Wondering how you’ll make it through another school year full of unknowns? 

Filled with dread trying to explain math homework? 

Would you rather eat razor blades than face another year of trying to do this alone?

Do you wish you could actually make math…magical? 

Then come join us this coming Tues 9/1 and Wed 9/2 at 4 pm eastern,
as I join forces with beloved tea party legend, Mrs. B of Tea With Mrs B, 
for this fun virtual event.

We will unveil the secrets of making math magical that I’ve discovered over my career as a Professional Math Unicorn, helping creative, passionate, unique kids achieve true math mastery.

You will learn simple, effective, fun tools that can be used on any problem and at any grade level.

Then we will practice applying these tools together, 
choosing from problems you bring to class, 
with participants taking turns in the spotlight getting help directly from me.

Wear your favorite tea party hat, and bring your favorite tea!

This event is designed for:
– parents, 
– or parents and kids *together*,
– but is NOT for kids to attend solo.   
(This is NOT a “drop-off” event.)

NOTE: This time we’re splitting it into two age groups: 

Tuesday, September 1st 

Time: 4-5pm eastern

Grades: 1 & 2

Cost: FREE

Location: virtual, on Zoom (link will be sent 24 hours prior to event)

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER yourself & your 1st-2nd grader

—-
Wednesday, September 2nd

Time: 4-5pm eastern

Grades: 3 & up

Cost: FREE

Location: virtual, on Zoom (link will be sent 24 hours prior to event)

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER yourself & your 3rd-12th grader

I can’t wait to see you there!!

Sending you love,

REBECCA

PS. And please share with anyone who you sense could use this support! I’ve been making math magical online since 2009 and I know how to do it in a way that is effective, fun, and energizing. So come and join us!

Related posts:

Math tutoring is not cancelled

An 8th grader goes from “math meltdown” to “math touchdown”

What to do when your kid’s math fills you with dread

Three simple steps to actually tell if your kid understands what’s going on with math

Is your kid a creative, passionate, unique, visionary of the future?

You are invited to join me for:

Making Math Magical: How to End the Math Freak-out and Raise a Math-Confident Child
on Saturday 8/5
at the Hampton Library in Bridgehampton, Long Island!

For Parents & Guardians

Math can be a big source of parental anxiety, where even math-confident parents can find themselves stuck when it comes to supporting their child.

In this workshop, math mastery mentor and joyful learning expert Rebecca Zook will provide you with groundbreaking tools to build and nurture your child’s math confidence.

Learn how to support your child to achieve mastery, rise to the top of their class, and in time experience math as a source of joy and self-expression.

Walk away with clear steps, case studies, and tools you can use to ensure math confidence.

This talk is for: parents and guardians of kids from 4th-12th grade
Talk title: Making Math Magical: Raising a Math Confident Child
Date: Saturday, August 05, 2017
Time: 3:00pm
Location: Hampton Library
2478 Main St,
Bridgehampton, NY 11932

Come and join me! Tell your friends!

And YES, my cello will be coming to help with the presentation!

#Bridgehampton #HamptonLibrary #LI #LongIsland #makingmathmagical #mathmastery #backtoschool #mathforparents #mathworkshopforparents #mathjoy #mathanxiety #endthemathfreakout #raiseamathconfidentchild

PS. This will be my *last* presentation until I return from recording and performing with my cello in Iceland in mid-September!

I was recently talking with one of my favorite students about her goals for the upcoming school year.

She told me her big goal was to make straight As.

This actually made me kind of worried!

You might be thinking, what, Rebecca, are you CRAZY? Why would it be BAD for a kid to WANT to get straight As?

So … let me explain.

The reason why this made me a little worried is because what is most important to me as a math mastery mentor and joyful learning expert is that the students truly master the material.

I’ve found that when students are committed to the process of mastery, and receive aligned support, everything else just happens naturally – the confidence, the grades, successful classroom participation.

It’s all just a byproduct of the true foundation, which is the mastery process.

So I’m going to share a big secret with you – the same big secret that I shared with this student.

If you want to make straight As in math…

…focus on the habit, not on the goal.

I explained to this student that her success in math up to this point is all because of incremental habits that she’s been developing.

If she keeps doing these little incremental habits, those grades will come, whether or not she’s focused on them.

So here are the exact incremental habits that are the secret to getting As in math.

If you want to get straight As in math, this is what to focus on:

1. Keep track of your assignments so you know what’s due and when.

2. Give yourself plenty of time to complete the assignments and study for tests.

3. Practice new concepts until they are automatic (even if this means doing more practice than is assigned for homework).

4. ALWAYS make sure to get feedback on your work (like checking your problems in the back of the book) so you know whether or not you’re on track.

5. When you miss something on a test or quiz, go over it and figure out exactly what wrong and what you need to do differently next time.

6. Do extra practice of those types of problems you missed on the test or quiz, so they won’t be confusing when they come back in the future.

7. When you don’t understand something, keep a running list of problems, concepts, and vocabulary that aren’t clear and you want help with.

8. Ask for help with the things you don’t understand.

9. If the help you receive doesn’t work, keep looking until you find help that TRULY makes sense to you.

Do you want your creative, passionate kid to receive math help that actually makes clicks with their individual brain? Help that supports them in truly mastering math (and getting great grades and having awesome confidence as a result)?

Just click here to get started with your special application for my one-on-one math tutoring programs.

This application process has been meticulously designed to help us both get clear about whether the special, magical way I work is a match for you.

Once your application is received, as part of the application process, we’ll set up a special phone call to get clear if my approach would be a good fit for your child. I look forward to connecting!

Related posts:
On optimal challenge
What to do when your kid makes a math mistake
Tips for a happy math year – #1
Tips for a happy math year – #2
Tips for a happy math year – #3

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

It’s time for tip #4 from my super special series, Tips for a Happy Math Year!

Systematic review helps. Incorporating review into your kid’s math routine will really help them retain what they’ve already learned. If your book includes mixed review that’s not assigned, encourage them to do a few review problems after they finish their homework. Many books have review built into the end of every section, or every few sections, and it’s usually clearly labeled. If the book you’re using doesn’t include review problems, do a “time capsule challenge” and quiz your kid on two or three random questions from previous chapters.

From personal experience, I vividly remember that my happiest and most successful math year ever, in 9th grade Geometry, my teacher (who was awesome in many other ways), also consistently assigned us the mixed review sections. So instead of things sliding all the way into the category of “uh… have I ever done this before?” or “um, what does that symbol mean again?” it was more of a retrieval from slightly-dusty-and-not-so-far-away, and then into the category of “oh, yeah, I remember this now!”

I routinely use systematic review with my own private clients, and I encourage you to do the same!

Are you finding that helping your kid with their math homework is becoming a project that is exhausting you as a parent? Do you stay up late night after night to help, but still feel uncertain that you’re actually telling your kid the right thing… and then have difficulty sleeping, because you’re still worried about your kid’s math situation? Do you wish that your kid had the tools to thrive right now in math, and the foundation they need to succeed going forward? Do you wish that someone else could do this for you?

Then we totally need to talk!

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.

Sending you love,
REBECCA

Related articles:
Tips for how to help your kid with their math homework
Need to remember something important? Breaking news!
Three Simple Tips for the Night Before Your Math Exam
Math Study Skills Quiz

It’s time for tip #3 in my special series, Tips for a Happy Math Year!

And here it is…

Normalize error. Getting an answer wrong is just part of the natural learning process. So is getting an answer right. Neither situation calls for high drama. If a kid makes a mistake, say, “Okay, try again,” and ask them what’s the first thing they have to do. This tip comes from Doug Lemov’s great book, Teach Like a Champion.

If you notice your son or daughter beating themselves up over their mistakes, saying things like, “I’m such a bad kid since I got that answer wrong,” “I’m really not good at this,” or “I guess I’m just not a math person,” explain that everyone makes mistakes while they’re learning.

Normalizing error is a powerful way to support your daughter or son in developing a “growth mindset” and being resilient in the face of a challenge – whether that challenge is in math, or in life!

Would you like your kid’s math experience to be less like crying themselves to sleep over their math homework, and more like twirling a sparkly parasol of confident self-expression?

Less feeling like they’re stuck in a mire from which they fear they cannot extricate themselves, and more like Indiana Jones on a great math adventure?

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.

We’ll get clear on what’s going on in your kid’s math situation and explore whether or not it would be a good fit for us to work together!

Related posts:
The rhyme and reason of making mistakes
Failure is not the enemy
I think I see a mathematician!
Algebra tears

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

Joost Elffers & Saxton Freymann‘s delightful Melon School Bus

Happy back to school! I wish you a magnificent return full of friendly classmates, excellent teachers, awesome games at recess and cupcakes in your lunchbox!

As we head back into the swing of things, many parents realize that they want to help their kid with math, but aren’t quite sure where to start.

To help out, I’m sharing a special series of 5 tips you can use throughout the entire coming year — no matter what you’re working on or how old your kid is.

Here we go…with our very first tip!

When your kid gets stuck, help them try something different. Math is cumulative; today’s most challenging questions are on material that eventually your kid will need to have down cold. So if they’re hitting some math turbulence, help them address the issue now instead of hoping it will just blow over. Read the book together. Go over their notes from class. Look up a YouTube tutorial. Encourage them to ask their teacher to explain it again. If what their teacher says doesn’t make sense, try explaining it to them yourself in different ways.

Experiment: does your kid effortlessly memorize song lyrics? Download Rockin’ the Standards’ math songs together or make up some new ones. Does your kid freeze up when faced with times tables flashcards, but love to build things? Try building multiplication facts using Legos or math blocks.

Do you want your kid to get a totally individualized math experience? Do you want to ensure that your son’s or daughter’s math obstacles don’t prevent them from being able to live their dreams?

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 really clear on what’s going on in your kid’s situation, and explore whether or not it would be a match for us to work together!

If you have your own tips for a happy math year that you’d like to share, please leave a comment!

*If you’re visiting from the Math Teachers at Play Carnival hosted by Caroline Mukisa at Maths Insider, welcome! Here are some other posts you might find interesting:

Related Posts:
How to help your kids with their math homework
How to make it safe for kids to fail
Five fun ways to help your kid learn math this summer