Learning can be and should be fun. I believe that almost any subject can be easily understood if approached on a step by step basis. Why, then, do so many bright students get frustrated, struggling to barely get by? Why has the enjoyment gone out of their learning?

One problem is that an individual may have not learned one or more of the foundational steps. When a foundational step is missing or misunderstood, it can affect everything that is built above it.

That’s why, in teaching, the three most important principles are ‘Fundamentals, Fundamentals, Fundamentals’. As we work through today’s lesson, we are alert to any missing or poorly learned fundamentals. We take the time to conquer these, and create a toolbox appropriate to the subject. Because the same tools are used over and over, learning and problem solving become easier and more fun for the student.

I try to minimize memorization and maximize the student’s ability to reason, and, leverage the student’s intuition by relating what we are discussing today to what the student already knows inside and outside of the classroom. To deepen understanding, I like to ask questions such as, “Why does this work?”, “What would happen if we change this assumption?”, and “Why did the teacher assign this problem-what were we supposed to learn from it?” Learning should be a pleasure, and it is, when the student feels his/her mind expanding.

What goes into algebra and geometry goes into SAT/ACT as well, if reasoning and tools are emphasized.

If I can get the student a little bit ahead of the class, there is a great payoff. The in class lectures become far more meaningful because the student is seeing the material for the second time.

​

Typically, I work with each student once per week. If there is a lot of catching up to do or a special test coming up, we meet more often.  We usually work at the student’s home. O ther locations are libraries, Starbucks, or similar places.  A few students work at my home or in a room at their school.