Kumon Learning Centers

I agree with the others, ask around for a private tutor. We did Kumon and we were not impressed at all. When we were there it was a worksheet based program that we did at home! We were never actually at the place for more than 20 minutes a time. There was absolutely no progress at all after a couple of months. We went to a private tutor and we started seeing improvement pretty quickly. The one in town, it had a monopoly (no Sylvan close by), closed about 4 years after it opened.

We did Sylvan when my daughter was younger, but honestly it wasn't the greatest thing. The best thing we found was asking at the school for teachers or former teachers who tutor. They can spend more one-on-one time with your child and know the curriculum. We have the best math tutor this year, and she was a former teacher. She regularly talks to my daughter's math teacher because she used to work with him. They bounce ideas back and forth on how to help my daughter.

first of all have you asked the school to evluate her for special services at school? My son had a reading delay and he was tested and found to need special services. He's had extra services for reading and language skills since first grade and it's been a life-saver.

Second - in general the chain "learning centers" are overpriced and provide only adequate services and minimal improvement. Many younger (lower paid) teachers happily provide tutoring services. Ask your child's teacher if she knows of anyone who tutors. My son's resource room teachers had a list of teachers in the district who provided tutoring - some are teachers my son had in other grades.

Finally - for my son motivation was key - so to keep him up to speed during vacations we would pay him a fixed fee per book her read. We often read together (it became a bed-time ritual) we'd take turns reading paragraphs, pages & chapters as he got older.

Just recognizing that she may need a little extra help is half the solution. You go mama!

We had great success with Kumon. It is not a "quick fix" solution- it is a learning method. Most people who don't like it are usually those who didn't see results immediately. We did it for two years and my daughter is stronger than ever in both reading and math.

Yes, it is worksheet based and it requires discipline from both the child and the parent. We were committed and the results paid off. If you feel that there are just a few areas of concern, then I would not recommend this.

Kumon is actually used more for enrichment and acceleration, but we needed the practice and simplicity of this program. Hop on to their website and see if it fits your needs. Kumon will evaluate your child for free and give you a plan of action, so it won't hurt to give it a try.

If you have any specific questions about the program, feel free to PM me and I'll be glad to answer and give you examples of what worked/didn't work for my daughter. Good luck!

ive never used kumon but highly recommend sylavans

I second one-to-one tutoring over places like Kumon.

We did Kumon for about 6 months - both my kids hated it. It's a great concept but I'm not sure it works well in the execution.

One of the reasons I started homeschooling my younger son (3rd grade) is we finally came to the conclusion that - if we were going to re-teach everything after school anyway (via tutoring), why not do it ourselves in the morning hours when he is fresh and alert? Things go faster then and there is much less frustration for the child (and lost time).

There is a limit to how much substantive knowledge young children can learn in after-school hours. We reserve that segment of the day for more creative pursuits, exercise and down-time. JMO.

I recently visited our local Kumon with our 4yr son. He is not able to start kindergarten until age 6 and we are looking for something for him to work on during the extra year of preschool. I am an educator and was very impressed with the staff and philosophy of Kumon. We chose not to participate at this time as there is a year obligation and it is very costly. If you can afford the financial contribution it seems to be well worth it!

I would not recommend sylvan.I worked there as a teacher for awhile, and didn't like how it is set up. Kids needing help in all different areas at different ages are placed at one table with 1 teacher and it is very prescribed. No room for the teacher to apply their expertise. I would also recommend a private tutor. There are tons out there.

Daughter with ADD went k-3rd without school support for ADD and therefore had many gaps in learning when tested. We moved across town and into a new school district by 4th grade. The new school recognized immediately, her learning challenges and that she was so far behind she needed tutoring to catch up to the class. We sent her to Sylvan Learning Center and she had 1000 hours of tutoring over 7 months. The child is tested/assessed to show where the weaknesses are and a tutor plan is devised. There is a monthly meeting with the head of staff to discuss progress/issues. Most of the tutoring is with a group of maybe 3 kids and often less. My daughter had one on one attention a lot. She is now 11 and started middle school this fall. We are satisfied with c's for her and she works for those c's let me tell you, but coming from d's & f's we know she's really trying. We received 1 report card so far this year and my girl made the honor roll - yep! the honor roll!!. The gaps in her learning were filled in at Sylvan as they promised, and gave her the base and confidence she needed to continue to learn and flourish. She never complained once when it was time to go, she enjoyed the staff and they earn rewards for good work and tests. She loved that!! I think of Sylvan as a tool now, and would in a second bring her back if/when she is struggling. I couldn't help but send a copy of her report card to the head of staff and she revelled in our joy!! The cost of tutoring IS expensive about $50/hour - I'm almost done paying for it. Some of the best money I have ever spent. Sylvan Works.

I personally would go the private tutor route myself.
I have some student going to Kuman. Not only is it worksheet heavy but also back to rote memorization. Very costly for what you are paying for.