Students of the Month – September 2016
Skid Row Learning Center
– Myiona, 1st Grade. Sometimes I am reminded that the school system is supposed to be a launching pad for future success. Myiona, a reticent but precocious 1st grader, was that bright reminder this month for two reasons. She impressed tutors and staff with her indefatigable work ethic because she completed long worksheets without breaks or complaints. Also, the rate at which Myiona learns amazes me. After giving her a two-minute lesson on subtraction, she was doing whole worksheets by herself, doing them mentally with no finger counting needed. Myiona’s potent mix of diligence and incredible processing power led me to believe that she can become literally anyone she wants to be, from rocket scientist to president. I’m beyond pleased that the volunteer tutors and staff at School On Wheels were able to quickly close her educational gaps before she left the Skid Row Learning Center, reminding me of why School On Wheels’ mission is vital in this world.
Brian Lopez, Skid Row Learning Center Instructor
Region 4 – Long Beach, South Bay
– Paula, Kindergarten . From day one, Paula has been a “happy-virus” who seems to have an unsurpassable supply of giggles which she gives out bountifully to those around her. She shares wonderful stories with great imagination; she teaches me how to color within the lines, and she always seems to win during memory games. She is the ball of sunshine I look forward to seeing every week; and after each session, I’m inspired to share her happy virus with everyone around me.
Janet Cho, Tutor
Region 5 – Hollywood, Silverlake, Pasadena
– Gabriel. Gabriel is a great student! He has been with our program for over two years and in that time has definitely improved and excelled. At times he has made small strides, but nevertheless he continues to progress and more forward. Keep up the good work, Gabriel!
Michael Erzingher, Tutor
Region 6 – Inland Empire
– Arlenne, Kindergarten. One of my favorite students is a little girl named Arlenne. She is only five years old, but very motivated to learn during tutoring. Her mom thought her teachers didn’t give enough homework to practice at home; so we found worksheets to practice and extend concepts like rhyming and adding. Although the work was sometimes challenging for Arlenne, she never gave up, and in the end succeeded with a big, proud smile. Completing this work together seemed to make both of our days!
Megan Robbins, Tutor
Region 7 – San Fernando Valley
– John, 8th Grade. John just graduated from middle school and will be entering high school in a few weeks. His ambition is to be a veterinarian because he loves animals, as evidenced by the fact that he has three dogs! He enjoys playing video games and watching baseball on television. He is hopeful the Angels will win the World Series in the near future. He is also an excellent ping pong player – see the picture he drew for you.
Isaac Weingart, Tutor
Region 12 – North Orange County
– Sunny, 12th Grade. I have been tutoring/mentoring Sunny for three years and have seen her grow from an eighth grader who thought she knew it all to a soon-to-be senior in high school. Sunny has her eyes set toward a bright future. We work together on schoolwork, but as she gets older and her classes become more difficult, our relationship has turned into more of a mentorship. We work on life skills and talk about decisions as much as we solve trigonometry problems. Sunny has faced a lot of tough choices and has shown maturity and insight beyond her years. Sunny also works very hard in school and strives for excellence in all she does. We have recently begun taking college tours and looking at majors, scholarships, and other programs as well as studying for the SAT. I couldn’t be more excited to see what lies in Sunny’s future!
Katy Michaelis, Tutor
Online Tutoring
– Ethan, 8th Grade. Ethan is a motivated individual who is inspired to create programs and games during our online tutoring sessions. Ethan and I have been taking an online Javascript programming class together on Khan Academy for almost a year now. We spend each session viewing short teaching videos and performing programming lab activities together. I would like to say I’m tutoring him, but to be fair, I’m learning almost as much as he is! My favorite memory and activity was when Ethan had a math assignment about calculating the volume of three dimensional objects. Instead of laboriously calculating the answers to each question, we decided to go onto Khan Academy and write, from scratch, a program to perform these functions. Ethan has been a pure pleasure to work with, and I can see him going far with his skills.
Tomer Gurantz, Online Tutor