Recently, a study released described the true disruption to learning that the pandemic had. For the average 9 year old, between 2020-2022, reading scores dropped 5 percentage points, and math dropped 7 percentage points. (via NPR) While teachers scrambled, and pivoted to teach virtually, it just wasn’t the same. My experience pivoting to online learning was challenging: how did I know that a student was learning, like they would be in my classroom? There were many challenges, internet access, student motivation, camera preferences, social and emotional needs, learning challenges, and even challenges of their home life.
Humans are social creatures by nature, we rely on verbal and non-verbal cues to communicate. With technology issues, an abrupt change in how school worked, staff shortages, and absences due to quarantines or infection, it’s no wonder that student test scores are behind. Students missed the opportunity to learn key skills for their grade level, which compounds over time. What if you missed a week or two on how to multiply numbers, and then had to learn how to do long division without having the skill of multiplying? What if you missed a month’s worth of time when fractions were taught, or how to write an informational essay because your internet was slow or non-functional? School and learning wasn’t what students had grown to understand and anticipate, and it was really hard to pivot to something new.
And while the broader educational system could adapt and shift to acknowledge that everyone is indeed behind, that is unlikely to happen, and therefore we need to adapt and work harder to address the gaps in learning.
That is where I can step in. Did your student struggle with learning during the pandemic? Did your student need more support? Chances are your student experienced some gaps in what they learned, and while they moved on to a new grade level, they may be lacking some foundational knowledge. This foundational knowledge, be it a skill in math, or reading, may prevent them from feeling confident in learning new skills, and therefore performing well on tests.
I offer homework support, but I also offer skill building. One of my clients missed key information on fractions in a previous grade. This made it more difficult for them to fully understand how to manipulate fractions to be able to add, or subtract them. They didn’t fully understand how ½ is equivalent to 4/8, or 50/100. This made them feel less confident converting ½ to a percentage, or a decimal. We spent several sessions working on basic fraction skills to really address the foundational gaps. Each session we tackled a different skill, from equivalent fractions, to adding and subtracting, multiplying and dividing, and converting to decimals and percents. Now my client is feeling more confident entering their new grade level, more confident in their math abilities, and with more confidence they’re more willing to take on new content and risks with their learning.
If your student experienced some gaps, and is struggling to keep up with new content, I can help. We can revisit skills, and we can do this in a fun, 1:1 way! With my previous client, we utilized games, student interest to create problems, snacks, and other ways to make it fun. My sessions are personalized, each session with each student is different. I take into consideration what makes your child excited to learn, what they are interested in, and what skills they feel they need to work on.
Sign up for a free connection session to chat with me about how I can help your student fill in their learning gaps!
Rooted in STEM 