Glad you asked! Let’s take a sneak peak inside your local Mathnasium of Brandon and ask their instructors!
Q: What helps students in your center stay motivated?
A: Instructor Support and Encouragement/Reward Items, each student is different in their needs so some respond to game time, some respond to the opportunity to draw a picture, some just want talking time, some want a peppermint, some want sticky hands, so we try to customize each student's experience at our center. One thing the students love is shooting the basketball for extra punches when they get a 100% on a mastery check.
Q: Tell us about the reward cabinet!
A: We have a large reward cabinet that is full of a variety of things from stickers, candy, balls, games, Mathnasium swag, squishmallows, skateboards and so much more! Our kids are all unique: some students want to spend as soon as they get a card, and others want to save and buy something bigger so we stock the cabinet accordingly.
Q: How do students earn prizes from the reward cabinet?
A: Students can earn punches for wearing their t-shirts, participating in theme days, complimenting each other, referring a friend, binder pages, assessments, mastery checks, double punch days, referring a friend
Q: How does your center celebrate student success?
A: Brag Board, Best Score Yet, high fives, positive reinforcement, shooting the basketball
Q: What is your favorite student success story?
A: One of my favorite success stories would be a student that started with us in 4th grade, and he was failing school. His mom was crying, I was crying based on her story and her passion for helping her son. The student did not want to be here as he was totally deflated. His mom was so desperate to help him and trusted us with the task. This student we will call E truly took this opportunity and ran with it. E worked hard every time he walked through the door and I don't think ever missed his session. His grades started to go up and his confidence grew. By the end of 4th grade, he was making A's and decided he did not want to take the summer off and continued working hard all summer. E was dedicated and I think that he felt so great each time he left that he decided he wanted to continue. I will never forget the day he walked into the center after he went to meet and greet at middle school. He told me that surely, the school made a mistake because he was in advanced math. I looked at his scores and told him that no, the school was right. He was so proud of himself. This student stayed with us all through HS and is now an engineering student in college.
