Just do the work EVERY day.

Welcome, Gideon Parents!

Attend all class sessions.

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Start with Success

After your student’s diagnostic evaluation from our math and reading center, we’ll determine a comfortable starting place for your child in our curriculum. This initial starting point is meant to not only provide review but also to build confidence and success from the beginning. With a solid foundation, your student is ready for all challenges.

Beyond Grade Level

The primary goal of our reading and math centers, online or in-person, is to enable children to succeed in academics beyond grade level by filling in any holes and gaps in their foundation. Your child will learn new concepts at his own pace without any pressure of grades. With a strong commitment, your student is assured of achievement.

No Limits

Our mission is to provide an affordable, individualized, self-paced, and most of all effective approach to learning that enables children to build confidence through mastery. We know what parents are looking for in tutors. With our over 30 years of experience in education, we have witnessed that through daily, disciplined effort with the Gideon curriculum, there are no limits in a child’s capacity to learn.

How can we help our child achieve the MAXIMUM results?

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Do come to class once or twice a week. We need to monitor your child’s progression at our in-person or online math and reading centers, answer any questions, make sure all corrections are understood, and provide encouragement to you and your family. We are your support system.

Do the Gideon homework each day. Make Gideon a priority before scheduling TV time or other activities. Gideon is very much like piano practice. Your child’s progress depends on this daily routine. Taking days off on a regular basis will hamper advancement. The recommended number of pages is clearly marked on the cover for each booklet. Be consistent!

Be involved with the work by listening to oral reading lists or math facts warm-ups. If your student is studying math, practice oral facts from the math drill booklet’s front inside cover and grade your student’s math drill work each day using the given answer key found in the middle of the booklet. Have him correct any of those mistakes and be sure the right answer is achieved before moving on. Young reading students will need your attention while they are learning letter names and sounds or sounding out words. Whether your student is receiving tutoring in-person or at our online reading and math center, you do not need to home grade any other booklets beyond the math drill. All others (reading, grammar, and math word problems) will be graded and corrected at the center. Parents looking for tutors need to know it is generally your child’s responsibility to complete this work independent of parent involvement in order to build a strong foundation.

Be patient with new concepts and/or repetitions of booklets. Repetition, if necessary, is so important to prepare for more advanced learning as well as standardized testing. While mastering a skill, sometimes extra practice is needed. Does anyone become proficient at scoring soccer goals during the first practice? Likely not! Addition facts should be treated the same way. Mastering a skill with confidence is different than simply understanding how to do it. Some students may want to stop the program when the work becomes more challenging. This is the most important time to encourage and persevere. It is better to learn and master new topics at Gideon and always stay a step ahead.

Communicate to your child that YOU always are in charge. Be ready to encourage your student on those days he may resist completing his work. Never allow your child to be disrespectful to you. Those bad habits will become difficult to break. Remember that Gideon is an investment for his future!

Communicate any concerns with your instructor. To all the parents looking for tutors, we are excited to work with your student! Feel free at any time to call or email questions about your child’s progress.

FAQs
Here are some answers to the most commonly asked questions about the Gideon Math and Reading program.

 

How long will it be before we see progress?

The key to speedy progress is doing the work EVERY day.  Taking one day off here and there will not make much difference, but taking three days off will slow the momentum.  While you will see some progress in 1-2 months with daily work, vast changes will be apparent after 6-12 months.

My child knows how to do this. Why are were starting here?
There is a large difference between knowing a concept and mastery of it. At Gideon we require mastery before further advancement in order to avoid having holes in the foundation. A child may be able to perform an operation or read a sentence, but he needs to be able to do it with speed, fluency, and without hesitation or doubt. A comfortable starting point ensures that your child will see success and progress early and helps ease in the discipline of daily Gideon homework. While you may only be concerned with the child’s grade level work, we want your child’s foundation to be solid and firm. Both math and reading build upon skills learned in previous years. How can we gain mastery of the new concepts without addressing any previous problems? Long division is terribly tedious if vertical subtraction is not mastered. With patience and discipline, your child will achieve his goals.

 

Why are we repeating this booklet?
In sports and piano, practice really does make perfect.  Gideon work is no different! MATH DRILL: Mastery is shown with speed and accuracy.  If the time and mistake standards are not met on the test, the booklet is repeated.  Oral facts drill every day is best. MATH WORD PROBLEMS: Repetition is based on the total number of mistakes in the booklet. READING: For young learners in Codebusters or Word Builders, the booklets are repeated until the child knows the letter name and sound or can read the word without help  For all other booklets, repetition is done at a later time for any booklet with a mistake count too high. GRAMMAR: Repetition is based on the number of mistakes and is common due to the large number of rules and small details.  This tends to be a more difficult subject for most students.

 

What is a typical Gideon center experience for my child?
Young Learners will have a specific appointment time and will sit at a table with a student to teacher ratio of no more than 2:1.  They are given extra attention for their oral reading and focusing needs.  Independent Learners can drop in at any convenient time and will sit at a table with a student to instructor ratio or no more than 4:1.  (Some center may have appointments for Independent Learners.)  Remember that all students are doing work specific to their starting point and performance unlike school where everyone in a grade does the same thing at the same time. MATH: Students will do an oral facts warm-up (unless still in Beginning Math) upon arrival.  Then they will complete four new pages either in the math drill booklet or its test that will be timed, graded, and corrected.  Afterwards, one page of math word problems will be completed.  All pages in this booklet will be graded once the booklet is finished.  New concepts will be explained, and once all corrections are completed, students will be sent home with enough work for daily homework until the next class. READING: Students will do four new pages in their reading booklet, and later Young Learner students will orally read a storybook if they are in Word Builders while Independent Learners may be doing grammar.  All pages in the reading and grammar booklets will be graded once the booklet is completed.  New concepts will be explained, and once all corrections are completed, students will be sent home with enough work for daily homework until the next class.

Why do I need to home grade my child’s math work?
Homegrading is quick and easy with our answer keys and gives your child the immediate feedback to learn from mistakes by doing corrections while the problems are still fresh.  Students tend to be more focused and accurate knowing their work will be graded afterwards.  Also, this is a good way to monitor and show interest in your child’s Gideon progress.

 

What is the best way to do Gideon work at home?

Setting aside the same time each day will help create the ‘Gideon habit’ and avoid arguments about when to do it.  Remove any distractions such as TV, pets, siblings, or friends.  Many children do best in the morning when they are fresh, but it may be less stressful to do it later in the day during the school year.  Decide on a routine that works best for your family and stick with it each day!

How should I handle resistance?
Many children at some point will resist doing extra work using excuses such as, “None of my friends have to do this!” , “I already have good grades!” , or “This is boring!”  We have heard them all!  First and foremost, remember YOU are the parent, and therefore, YOU are in charge.  Do not forget it!  Would you allow your child to decide whether he can have candy for dinner or if he should stay up until 3 a.m. each night?  Hopefully not, and do not let Gideon be any different. Rewards can help ease the Gideon lifestyle into place.  Small, immediate rewards are nice for good work and attitude, and larger, long-term ones help promote a good work ethic. When a child refuses to do work, our advice is to create an immediate penalty such as taking something away he enjoys such as TV or video game time. Gideon must come before play.  Do not give empty threats.  You must be willing to follow through with any penalties. Remember that ultimately, this hard work will pay off – no matter what he says!

 

I only want to challenge my child. Why can’t she work in algebra?
First of all, the Gideon program wants to promote a strong math foundation for your child.  Without mastery learning, it is difficult for most children to retain any advanced concepts.  The foundation must be solid for long-term math success.  If you are not going to master a concept, the child is not going to remember it.

 

Most importantly, believe in your child.  He will amaze you with what he can accomplish.  The possibilities are endless when you build confidence through mastery learning.

 

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Thank you for choosing Gideon Math and Reading!

Building Confidence Through Mastery