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When Liana started tutoring a little over a year ago, they were so scared of doing it. For so long, they'd been left behind by teachers and their school. No one bothered to help them, and when I tried to do so, it was nothing but screaming matches. Liana genuinely believed that they would never understand math, that they disappointed me, and between not being able to keep up in class and the neverending bullying, Liana absolutely and unequivocally hated school.
The very first tutoring session Liana had, they were all smiles when they came back out to the car, screaming, "MOM! I DID MATH!" Liana was in the 5th grade at this time and, for the first time ever, was able to add single digit numbers. They'd never been able to do that before. 2+2 was a struggle and always ended in tears, and here was this kid coming out and telling me they were able to do this thing that was so impossible for them.
It kept going after that. Liana was excited for tutoring, but not just tutoring, they were excited for math. They loved coming out to the car and telling me all they learned and how much they got done and asking me to ask them math questions. They can do mental math now! MENTAL MATH! In just a few months, Mathnasium took this small kid who was so miserable about math, who couldn't do even the most basic of questions or add on their fingers, and now six months after they started, they were doing two and three digit addition in their head! Liana had been able to do math the whole time--but having people that could support their needs and give them individualized attention was so important.
When Liana went to 6th grade, they went to a brand new school instead of the middle school all the kids in her elementary went to. It was a fresh start, but I admit, I was worried. I thought maybe being in a new school would set them back. And while we still have work to do when it comes to taking tests (this being a test issue, not a math issue), they excel at homework. Liana has a B in math! A B?! in MATH! But it's not just math. Liana is excelling at all their other classes, too. A tiny little thing like confidence in math had given them the chance to thrive and they don't have a grade lower than a C. They've never gotten a grade higher than a D- before.
While I'm disappointed that their elementary school failed them, no matter how much I begged them to help, no matter how much I begged for answers, I'm forever floored at how seriously Mathnasium took me. And not just that, but they never looked down on Liana. The owner of the Aurora, CO branch on our first meeting said that this was more common than I thought and that so many kids are struggling. And they knew just what to do.
Liana is so happy to do math now. They're still behind in tutoring where they are in school, but they understand the math they're learning in school. They're more willing to try. They have the tools and the ability to learn, all because someone finally listened.
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