Students of the Month – May 2016
Skid Row Learning Center
– Taree, 7th Grade. If you have had the wondrous opportunity to meet Taree, you will not be surprised that he is May’s Student of the Month since he exemplifies everything you would want in a student. To start off, he’s kind and respectful; he greets people upon meeting them and asks for things politely. Secondly, he possesses a sharp, inquisitive mind. He not only enjoys learning school subjects (he’s at the top of his class) with his tutors but also what the tutor does for a living or for fun. Finally, Taree is such a joy to have around because of his positive outlook. Despite his living circumstances or scholastic workload, he looks at the bright side of life and makes the best out of every situation. If you haven’t had the chance to meet Taree, stop by and meet someone we’re going to be reading great things about in the newspaper one day.
Brian Lopez, Skid Row Learning Center Instructor
Region 2 – South LA
– Sarah, 5th Grade. Sarah is Student of the Month because of her eagerness to learn and positive attitude despite various distractions at the shelter. She has been consistently attending her sessions for a year. She has shown great improvement academically and really enjoys her tutor. Sarah is in her last year of elementary school. I believe she will be very successful in Middle School.
Kenisha Edwards, Regional Coordinator
Region 3 – Westside
– Aramie, 6th Grade. Aramie is a beautiful soul. Besides being incredibly intelligent and dedicated to doing her best in school, she is creative and kind. It’s always a pleasure to hear her sing and laugh, and it’s great to know that her love of reading is a big reason why she does so well at writing her own stories.
Aubrey Beck, Tutor
Region 7 – San Fernando Valley
– Nevaeh, 1st Grade. I chose to nominate six year old Nevaeh for Student of the Month. She is very hard working and has the kindest heart. When a fellow student was saying how they weren’t good a particular subject, she overheard me encouraging them and chimed in to tell them that mistakes are ok because we learn from them. She cares so much about all her friends and family.
A little bit about Nevaeh…
She wants to be a dancer when she grows up. She also loves to sing and act. In school her favorite thing is hard math problems. It makes her so happy when she solves them.
Devin McKinnon, Tutor Coordinator
Region 8 – Ventura County
– Marleth, 6th Grade. Marleth was born in Colorado but spent most of her life in Mexico. In September 2014 when Marleth first moved to Ventura, she was reading at a pre-kindergarten level. She was recently tested and now reads at a 3.6 grade level! Marleth is active in dancing, volleyball and music. She is learning how to play the violin and the granada guitar. Marleth has been a joy to teach, very cooperative and eager to learn. Marleth has good observational skills as well as a good sense of humor. She wants to join the army which would enable her financially to go to medical school,indicating to me that she has lofty goals. I suspect she will soar academically once she becomes proficient in English. I feel honored to be able to play a small part in Marleth’s educational process.
Anne Klein, Tutor
Region 10 – South Orange County
– Leo, 1st Grade. Leo, one of the first kids I worked with, was especially memorable. Even though there was a major language barrier between the two of us, we ended up really connecting. It was especially rewarding to see him improve his English speaking and reading skills because we consistently practiced each week.
Ramita Sawhney, Tutor
Online Tutoring
– Nelson, 5th Grade and Luis, 9th Grade. I have had the pleasure of working with Nelson who lives on Skid Row since the beginning of the year. Since then, Nelson has become faster with his math skills and has improved his reading and writing. Nelson has also become more confident; he now actively participates in our online tutoring session and in our free time, enjoys playing math and word games, and hangman. Nelson always says that the funniest part of his day is playing compound word games and sharing jokes during his online tutoring sessions!
Luis who lives in Compton has also grown in self-confidence. His attitude towards school has turned from negative to positive. He used to say that he was bored in some of his classes, but now he pays attention and achieves A’s in many of his classes! Luis says he enjoys being able to talk to someone about his day.
Both Luis and Nelson are extremely bright students who I believe have benefited immensely from digital learning and online tutoring opportunities provided by School on Wheels. I firmly believe that they will accomplish their dreams of becoming a scientist (Nelson) and a filmmaker (Luis)!
Alyson Gonzalez, Online Tutor