Squared School’s Expectations of Students & Parents

Long-term View

The benefits gained from our program are directly proportional to the time and effort invested.  We expect parents and students to approach our program as they would approach any other important after-school activity – this is an investment in your child’s future.

Learning mathematics is a marathon, not a sprint.  Parents and students who understand it and take a long-term, multi-year view of our program, will get the most benefit out of it.

Attendance

Attendance is very important.  Sometimes missing a class is unavoidable. We ask parents to let us know ahead of time if a student will miss a class.  The student could attend the same level class if one is available on a different day, or attend the homework help session.  The student is still responsible for doing the homework, and the homework effort should be more intensive if a class is missed.  Missing a class occasionally should not be a problem.  But missing several classes, especially several classes in a row, can cause the student to fall behind.  We also ask for on-time arrival and pick-up.

Homework

“Mathematics, you see, is not a spectator sport. To understand mathematics means to be able to do mathematics. And what does it mean [to be] doing mathematics? In the first place, it means to be able to solve mathematical problems.” George Pólya, How to Solve It: A New Aspect of Mathematical Method

“Doing mathematics” means doing homework.  It is not enough to attend a class.  Students must do homework to ensure that they can independently apply the concepts they learned to solve problems.  Students will find that, unlike their regular school homework, they won’t be able to do Squared School homework “on the fly”, and will need to dedicate quiet time when they can fully engage their brains without distractions.  While we do not expect 100% accuracy on homework assignments, we do ask students for a 100% effort.  We recommend that students spend some time every day (or every other day) doing a part of their homework and that they begin their homework soon after their class, so the material is still fresh in their minds.