December – HEART NOTABLES

December 15, 2013

Logistics

• Holiday Take-Home Games: Your students will be receiving a Deck of Cards and some other treats from HEART during the week preceding Winter Break. Please spend 10 minutes practicing the attached games with your students this and next week, so that they will know how to play at home with parents and siblings. In the past, students have improved their math skills over Winter Break as a result of practice at home. Encourage your students to play the games over the break!

• Winter Break is from December 23rd – January 3rd. Tutoring will take place through December 20th and begin again on January 6th. Let me know if your holiday plans interfere with tutoring, and I will make arrangements for your students.

• Thank you for your patience with the new sign-in computer at Winterfield. School staff and I are working to create an expedited process for HEART volunteers ASAP!

• Please return any take-home notebooks you no longer need so that others can use them.

Tutoring Tips

• Keep having fun! Your students are very excited to see you each week, and your consistency and encouragement is truly building their confidence. Enjoy it!

• Make sure your student progress log entries include the key pieces of information:

o Concept Notebook Name

o Lesson Number

o Activity (if you stopped in the middle of a lesson)

o Focus Number (only for those working in Combos to 10).

More Resources

• Research shows the importance of passing Algebra on the first take: Students failing algebra rarely recover. Fortunately, there are ways to begin preparing students to think algebraically in elementary school.

• There’s One Key Difference Between Kids Who Excel at Math and Kids Who Don’t (article). “I’m just not a math person” is a self-destructive fallacy.

Just for Fun

• Meet the Parents…

o This Friday, December 13th from 7:45 – 8:15 AM HEART is hosting our students’ parents to a Holiday Breakfast where we will demonstrate the Holiday Take-Home Games and recognize students for their great work in HEART Tutoring. If any tutors would like to come to this event at Winterfield, please let me know. We would love your help teaching parents the games you have been practicing with their students.

o Winterfield Curriculum Nights in January – HEART has been invited to attend school-wide Curriculum Nights, where parents learn ways to reinforce students’ learning at home. I will set up booths to demonstrate HEART’s activities. If you are interested in joining me, please let me know. They will take place from 5 – 6 PM January 14th, 15th, and 16th.

• Teachers and Staff say Thank You!

o “I just wanted to tell you that as I read the progress report for all of the students, I cried tears of joy for all of the progress our students have made. The Heart Tutoring Math program has been an extremely priceless gift for our students and they enjoy having one-on-one time with an adult. Please know that we are very thankful to you and all of the volunteers for dedicating their precious time to educate our future leaders.” – Michelle Johnson, Principal at Billingsville Leadership Academy

o “I appreciate your dedication to the students and the program at Winterfield.” – Regina Boyd, Principal at Winterfield Elementary