Students of the Month – December 2015
Skid Row Learning Center
– Laeloni, 6th Grade. Quiet and curly haired, Laeloni has shown much growth since joining School on Wheels. In a group tutoring session, she is able to successfully advocate for herself. If the group is getting a little loud, she will move to a private table to ensure she can remain focused. If she is finished with her work, she spends time enjoying socializing with tutors and other middle school students. Laeloni also has a sketchbook where she beautifully sketches flowers, vines, and butterflies. Tutors thoroughly enjoy working with her since she usually leaves them with a wonderful piece of art as a thank you. Her creativity paired with her desire to learn will allow her to transform into a mature, strong willed woman!
Allison Maldonado, Skid Row Learning Center Instructor
Region 1 – East LA to Pasadena
– Cesar, 10th Grade. Getting to know my student Cesar who is 16 years old was definitely an amazing experience. Having the opportunity to guide him academically and mentor him have touched me because I see the positive impact in his life. For a student that hated reading and writing, he now writes in a journal every day and enjoys writing essays every week. Sometimes he even collaborates with me about what he wants to write. As a reward for his hard work, I taught him how to play chess. He even beat me in one game which was a rather proud moment of mine.
Jimmy Chan, Tutor
Region 2 – South LA
– April, 3rd Grade. April is this month’s Student of the Month because she comes to tutoring early and with a smile on her face, ready to learn. Her tutors love working with her because of her enthusiasm. She gives 100% effort and deserves to be recognized for it. I know April will be successful in the future. Great job, April!
Miriam Lesserman, Tutor Coordinator
Region 3 – Westside
– Kayla, 1st Grade. Kayla is a joy to be around and a very bright, creative student. She excels at everything she puts her mind to. Kayla is always up for a challenge; so we have been using sign language along with sand drawing to help her learn to write the alphabet. Each week Kayla comes ready to engage in our time together. We sometimes start the session with exercise because Kayla is quite an athlete. One of our goals has been to improve her reading. I am proud that Kayla completed the reading chart on time and with such enthusiasm.
Cathi Carlton, Tutor
Region 6 – Inland Empire
– Anthony, 3rd Grade. In our first tutoring session, Anthony expressed to me, with a beaming smile, that he loves videos games. Since our first session, he’s shared with me what he wants to be a when he grows up, a police officer, and the places he loves visiting the most, the beach. Each time, he enthusiastically shares such information with a beaming smile. That’s what makes Anthony an ideal student; his smile demonstrates the positive attitude he has at every tutoring session. To date, Anthony has tackled multiplication tables, math word problems, fourth grade vocabulary and reading with a positive demeanor.
This is what I’ve come to learn about Anthony; he’s a problem-solver. I’ve found myself gazing at a Scrabble board in amazement right after Anthony’s made a move that shows he’s out to win! A positive attitude and a problem solver, Anthony reflects a winning attitude and aptitude in pursuit of knowledge.
Tom Rodriguez, Tutor
Region 10 – South Orange County
– Lynette, 7th Grade. Lynette is in the 7th grade, bright, inquisitive, funny and warm. She loves to read, especially young-adult, fantasy-type novels where teens get to be true heroes. Lynette plays soccer every week and is turning out to be a great running player, moving from midfield to forward sometimes. She has two younger siblings that she helps take care of. Already, even at a young age, the little ones have really started to look up to her. Lynette loves her dog Odie and walks him every day. I can’t say enough about how amazing Lynette is! I love tutoring her. Most recently, we’ve been focusing on math; she’s quick to pick up the concepts. I look forward to our tutoring session every Wednesday.
Sabra Morris, Tutor
Region 12 – North Orange County
– Destiny, 10th Grade. I have known Destiny for about six months. Within those six months, Destiny has improved tremendously in math. She learns concepts quickly and still continues to beat me in Concentration Math. I specifically remember we had an in-depth conversation about history, discussing if America really has progressed from the Civil War Era. She easily drew from her American Civil War history and tied it to present day, pointing out areas where the US has improved and areas where there’s work to be done.
Besides being an intelligent young woman, Destiny is a free spirit. She has expressed wanting to travel and learn a different language. She excels at the arts and has an impeccable fashion sense. She radiates positivity and has a gift of saying things how they are. It has been a pleasure tutoring Destiny. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for her because it is a bright and fulfilling one. Good job Destiny for all of your hard work!
Elizabeth Mack, Tutor
Online Tutoring
– Carlos, 10th Grade. At first, Carlos was adamant about having his own way. He refused to participate during our sessions and hated reading aloud. After a few weeks of encouraging him, working with him, and, on the rare occasion that he read aloud, praising his progress, I noticed a huge change in him. I remember, as we were doing a reading activity, Carlos didn’t wait for me to read the passage first. Instead, he started reading the passage on his own. In fact, he kept on reading until the end! I couldn’t stop smiling and telling him what a good job he’d done by himself! Now he’s got his eyes set on graduating from high school.
Catherine Santizo, Online Tutor