Who loved maths at school? It certainly wasn't something that was for everyone. The fractions, the decimals, the division, the algebra...
Maths is great if you find it easy. It is a nightmare if you find it difficult and can be something that you actively avoid.
At ELC we look to inspire our students with the beauty of maths. Why do the angles in a triangle always add to 180 degrees? How long is the proverbial piece of string? If a rocket aimed at the moon was only 0.1mm out in direction, how much would it miss it's landing point by (it is more than you might realise). Ultimately, we look to engage our students with maths and give them not only the confidence for their 11+ exam but also for use as they grow and continue their life adventure.
To build a love of maths we have a two step view for what is 'success' when doing maths.
Firstly (and perhaps most importantly), we look for students to understand the logic of the question and once they have identified whether to add/subtract/divide/mulitply etc, they then apply their arithmetic skills. If a final answer is slightly out because of a calculation error we are positive in the response and look to highlight the success in actually understanding how to understand the question. It is important to us at ELC that students taking part in our maths lessons are confident learners who know that mistakes are not only ok, but also can be a huge positive if a review of the question takes place.
Now, as with most things we learn, often the initial experience means it doesn't always sink in fully. To support all of our students further we provide follow up explainer videos on our homework platform. These are available throughout the year and offer students the chance to review and reflect upon the maths they are learning. For students who are doing the 11+ exam these videos are an excellent way of revising as the exam gets nearer. Oh...and if further recap of the maths and 11+ preparation is wanted, we also have a recap lesson on Saturday morning.
Through our tutoring we enable students to approach their 11+ and St. Anselm's exams confidently. We love it when we hear from them saying the exam was 'straightforward' and 'no problem'. Equally we enjoy hearing back from them in Year 6 and telling us the SATS were 'easy'.
Ultimately, we want students to capture the love of maths that could open many doors for them both in secondary school, further education environments of their careers.
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