Mathnasium Holly Springs

Creating Success for All Students

By Ellen Samsell Salas

Since 2016, Mathnasium of Holly Springs has helped students from elementary school through high school discover that they can be successful in math.

By meeting all students where they are in the subject and building the foundation they need to succeed, owner Karen Connelly and her team of compassionate and skilled instructors make math cool.

Meeting Students Where They Are

Mathnasium’s success in helping students reach their potential results from a three-step approach:

1. Assess what skills each student has forgotten or never really grasped.
2. Create a customized learning plan based on that assessment and other ongoing assessments.
3. Provide one-on-one instruction to fill in skills gaps and assist the student with current schoolwork.

“Our assessment process determines what level a student is at. If they’re at a third grade level in the fifth grade, we’re going to get them to where they should be,” Connelly said. “This program really changes their lives.”

Tailoring Instruction to Each Student Is Key

“While some students come to us because they are struggling in math, others are looking for more of a challenge. We address each student’s unique needs to help them achieve long-term success,” Connelly said. “Our services cover the full gamut: Catch up! Keep up! And get ahead!”

Instructors Build Student Confidence and Independence

To ensure that all students gain the skills needed for ongoing math success, instructors are trained in the Mathnasium MethodTM. Working at a three-to-one student to instructor ratio, students receive individual instruction and time to work independently. The instructor gives each student specific feedback on his/her work in real time.

“This process builds confidence and independence.” Connelly explained. “With our method, when students walk out the door, they believe in their skills.”

Finding the right instructors also contributes to student success.

“I look for instructors with strong math skills, the personality to relate to kids, and the ability to explain and teach math to someone else,” Connelly said.

To ensure students develop number sense, mental math skills, and critical thinking ability, instructors question their students, asking “How did you get to that answer?” and “How do you know it’s right?”

Because the center’s instructors are local high school and college students studying advanced math, they bring additional perks to their pupils. Instructors know what is being taught and can relate to student struggles. In addition, they are familiar with the courses needed for college admission and how to navigate the daunting process of the standardized testing that is involved.

Ongoing Help During the COVID-19 Crisis

While the center halted in-person instruction for several weeks, they did not shut out students. Already training to offer Mathnasium@home, which was scheduled to be released in the metro Atlanta area in March of 2020, Connelly’s team shifted to live, online instruction, enabling instructors to help students achieve success throughout the uncertainties presented by the pandemic.

“We found a way to keep teaching, and we did it,” Connelly said.

When they reopened for in-person instruction in July, nearly 95% of their students thriving in the Mathnasium@home program chose to stay online.

Because local schools have experienced closures and quarantining of exposed students, the center has needed to be ready for multiple scenarios.

“We’ve made it a priority to have a hybrid program, allowing students to easily switch between in-person and live, online instruction,” Connelly said. “When parents call and say their child is quarantined, it’s super easy for us to teach them online, face-to-face until they can return to the center. Our flexibility has been a lifesaver for our students.”

For those students who opt for in-person help, the center maintains strict safety policies. Masks, temperature checks, and handwashing are required, and pods are limited to three students who sit six feet apart. While instructors face their students, plexiglass dividers separate them. Students complete work on tablets using software that enables instructors to see their work on laptops, which eliminates the exchange of paper. Tablets and pod areas are disinfected before being used again.

Connelly says that while she loved the 15 years she taught math in a traditional classroom, she believes the Mathnasium MethodTM has a greater impact.

“While teaching in a high school classroom, there was barely time to get through the course curriculum, let alone time to take these kids back to where math went off the rails for them and build that foundation back up. I saw too many kids who had given up on math. When they close the door on math, they close the door to the STEM fields that rely heavily on math skills. We catch them and get them excited about math. We take kids from ‘I hate math; I’m never going to be good at it’ to ‘I’ve got this!’ Mathnasium unlocks potential and opens doors.”

Mathnasium offers monthly enrollment options, which include up to 12 sessions per month. Discounts are given for six-month or longer commitments. Easy online scheduling is available for elementary through high school levels.

For more information about programs and services, contact Mathnasium of Holly Springs.

Mathnasium Holly Springs
6768 Hickory Flat Highway, #102, Canton, GA 30115
678-880-7592
Mathnasium.com/hollysprings