Rebecca Zook - Math Tutoring Online

A lot of students get the concepts of “zero slope” and “no slope” confused when they’re first introduced.

Most students think something along the lines of, “They’re the same thing, right? Because zero equals nothing…..?????????? Wait… no, they’re totally different — BUT HOW DO I REMEMBER WHICH IS WHICH?”

Here is a super easy way to remember the difference:

Zero slope means that the line is horizontal. Just like the line that makes the top of a “Z” is horizontal.

No slope means that the line is vertical. Just like the line that makes the beginning of a “N” is vertical.

(If you’re interested in a mathematical explanation to go with the visual reminder, check out Elizabeth Stapel of PurpleMath’s lesson on slope. The part about zero slope and no slope is towards the bottom of the page.)

Many of my students have used this tip with great success — so spread the word! No one needs to be confused about this anymore!

Do you wish someone would just explain math in a way that really makes sense to **you**? Do you yearn for the confidence that comes from really GETTING it? Give me a call at 617-888-0160 or send me an email at rebeccazook@gmail.com, and I’d be happy to set up a time for us to have a complimentary conversation to explore whether or not it would be a good fit for us to work together!

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I’ve been getting a lot of questions about what technology I’m currently using to work with my students. So I’m gonna lay it all out for you!

Whiteboards: For students with PCs, I use talkandwrite pro as our online whiteboard. It works as a plugin on top of Skype. (One of my favorite features is that it’s super easy to save the notes from each session as PDF and then print them and put them in your math notebook or binder.)

For students who have macs, I use groupboard designer as our online whiteboard.

I am no longer using Team Skrbl, which unfortunately is no longer functional.

I have tried every single whiteboard I can find out there, and these are my current favorites. If you have one you prefer, let me know, and I’ll be happy to give it a try.

Video: All students now use Skype video during our sessions so we can both see and hear each other.

Pen Tablets: Also, re: which bamboo pen tablet I recommend — every single one I’ve used has worked great with the whiteboards above. I just use the most basic model because that’s all my students need for writing math out — they just don’t need the fancier functions of a professional graphics tablet.

Thanks to all the developers who have made these awesome products a reality! I use them every day with my students, and I really want to spread the word about the good stuff.

Are you intrigued by using this kind of fun technology to work one-on-one with a caring mentor to master math, increase your confidence, and really improve your grades? Give me a call at 617-888-0160 or email me at rebeccazook@gmail.com and we can set up a time to talk about what you’re going through and explore whether or not it would make sense for us to work together!

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Celebration! Danica McKellar has released her latest math book for girls, Girls Get Curves!

McKellar recently did a really thoughtful interview with NPR about her latest book, which focuses on geometry. One of my favorite parts is this bit, when she talks about taking her first college math class at UCLA:

I was actually worried about taking a math class. I didn’t know that I’d be able to handle it. And here I scored a five on an AP Calculus BC exam. Talk about perceptions. I didn’t see myself as being good at math even though I was. And that’s one of the things I’m tackling in the books. But when I did jump into that math class, despite my concerns and my fears, I did really well and I was hooked.

I was like, wow, I suddenly felt valued and important for something that had nothing to do with Hollywood. It had everything to do with something that I was building from the inside out, and you don’t have to have been on television to struggle as a teenage girl with your self-image. And that’s why I know that math is an amazing tool for all girls to find themselves, to find something that they value themselves for.

Because I admire Danica and share with her a mission of helping girls (and guys too) really GET math in a way that is fun and meaningful, I’ve read a lot of her interviews very closely (and I even got the chance to interview her myself about her third math book for Wired’s GeekMom blog — check it out here). I’ve heard her talk about how doing a difficult math problem during college would make her euphoric, and her journey of becoming a math major.

But this is the first time I’ve heard her talk about experiencing math as a refuge – a place where you can incubate and develop your own abilities and intellectual strength and work “from the inside out” in a way that has nothing to do with appearances.

This vision really resonates with me — and I hope that all girls (and guys) can experience math this way.

Would you love to experience math as a refuge – even if right now, you might not be sure that it’s possible to ever regain your confidence? Give me a call at 617-888-0160 or email me at rebeccazook@gmail.com, and I’d be happy to set up a time for us to have a conversation about what’s going on and look into whether or not it would be a good fit for us to work together one-on-one!

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What do you do when a math problem just takes, like, for-EV-ah?

In other parts of life, it’s considered normal if it takes a little while to …. complete a book report, learn how to serve a tennis ball, or bake a cake.

But a lot of times, when a math problem takes a while, many people start to feel like something is “wrong.” Why haven’t I figured it out by now? Did I take a wrong turn 15 minutes ago? Am I lost? OMG when am I EVER going to finish my math homework?!

How do you deal with these situations? Watch today’s video for specific tips!

Do you wish there was a way to actually enjoy math problems that take a long time to finish? Give me a call at 617-888-0160 or email me at rebeccazook@gmail.com, and I’d be happy to set up a time for us to talk, as my gift to you, about whether or not it would be a good fit for us to work together!

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OMG! This is so cool! Kara Koskowich, a Canadian teenager, made her own graduation dress out her math homework! Check out CBC news for the full story here. Designed to look like “an explosion”! You know I love stories about girls and math, and this is one of my recent favorites!

When I was growing up, I loved making my own clothes and digging for amazing thrift store finds, but it never would have crossed my mind to create a graduation dress out of my actual homework. (Even though I went on to do things like go out dancing in college in a skirt made out of a reflective metallic poster.)

I thought it was interesting that Kara’s best friend, who made her dress out of reused plastic bags, didn’t get the same level of press as the math homework dress, even though her dress is clearly also awesome. I think it’s because of that extra layer of poetic resonance of making a graduation dress literally out of the work you did in order to graduate.

In conclusion: way to go, Kara and best friend! I look forward to seeing what you create next!

Do you want to learn math in a way that’s creative, fun, and intuitive–like making your own original dress (or tuxedo, for that matter)? Give me a call at 617-888-0160 or email me at rebeccazook@gmail.com, and I’d be happy to set up a time for us to talk about what’s going on and whether or not it would make sense for us to work together in one of my math tutoring programs!

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Here are two examples worked out of how to convert from standard form (Ax+By=C) to slope-intercept form (y=mx+b).

This is something that you get asked to do a lot as you start to get more comfortable going back and forth between different equations of a line.

And another example, because it’s nice to see more than one example when you’re learning something new:

If what you see here resonates with how you like to learn, and you’re looking to work with someone one-on-one to really master math, give me a call at 617-888-0160 or email me at rebeccazook@gmail.com. I’d love to set up a time for us to have a complimentary conversation to explore whether or not it would be a good fit for us to work together in one of my math tutoring programs!

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Today’s video tip is about how to deal with the parts of math that you… just… ok, I’m going to say it… hate.

I mean, how are you supposed to cope with the parts that are just niggly-wiggly, yucky, or don’t make any sense? Are you doomed to feel this way forever? Should you just accept that there will be certain parts that will feel incomprehensible?

No — there is hope! Watch the video below for more details!!

Do you wish someone would explain the parts of math that you hate right now in a way that really makes sense – and might even be fun? Send me an email at rebeccazook@gmail.com or give me a call at 617-888-0160. I’d be happy to set up a time for us to have a complimentary conversation to explore whether or not it would make sense for us to work together!

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Today’s video is about a situation that can really eek out a knee-jerk reaction.

What do you do when your kid asks something like, “Am I smart enough?” or some other similarly out-of-left-field question?

It’s really, really tempting just to give empty reassurance, like, “Of course, you’re a smart kid!” But the problem with that kind of reassurance is that it tends to get kids fixated on “looking smart” or “looking good” (also known as a “fixed mindset”) as opposed to letting them know that it’s OK to put forth effort to learn something (which is known as a “growth mindset”). It also tends to feed into a cycle of kids turning to the outside for validation, instead of learning how to validate themselves.

Today’s video shares some tips about how to turn these situations from awkward or knee-jerk-reaction moments into opportunities to help your kid develop a growth mindset.

Would you like your kid to be working on math in a way where they’re not only mastering the subject itself, but also learning that they can overcome challenges and obstacles in general – in a way that’s intuitive and genuine for them? Send me an email at rebeccazook@gmail.com or call me at 617-888-0160 to set up a time for us to talk and explore what you’re looking for to see if it would be a good fit for us to work together!

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Finally, I get to visit the NYC High Line!! This beautiful and unique park – which draws people from around the world and is now one of the top destinations globally – used to be an ugly, useless eyesore that would have been destroyed if a small group of determined citizens did not decide to rescue it and turn it into something new and intriguing.

Being here reminded me of watching the movie Moneyball – which you may have seen my other videos about. To me, one of the best parts of the movie was when the narrator talked about how baseball players get overlooked for all kinds of reasons – because they’re old, or weird-looking, or because they pitch funny.

At this point in the movie, tears started streaming down my face. I thought of all the times in my life when I was overlooked, and of my math tutoring students, how often they are overlooked.

The danger is if enough people overlook you, you can start to overlook yourself. You can start to let other people’s ideas about your potential determine what you become.

But what if there’s something inside you, neglected and unseen, just waiting to become a beautiful place that people all over the world want to visit and experience?

*Special thanks to my dear friend and magnificent video queen Therese Condit, who shot this video! Without her this would not have been possible!

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Today’s tip is my first shot “in the wild” — on the streets of Times Square, NYC!! Super special thanks to my camerawoman and amazing friend, Missy Mazzoli, who made this episode possible.

A little while back, I was working with a student who got stuck on a math problem.

“Can I call my brain on the phone?” she asked.

“Sure,” I said. I didn’t know where this was going, but I wanted to see what my student meant.

She held her hand up to her ear in “fake phone” position. “Hello, brain?” she inquired. “I need some help with this problem. Okay, I need to do this… all right, and then I need to do that… Uh-huh….. Okay….All right the answer is….Thank you brain! I’ll talk to you later! Bye!”

It totally worked.

Why? It’s so silly. It’s a little crazy. Why does it work?

1. You’re talking out loud. Researchers in Spain found that students who talk through a problem out loud have a greater chance of solving the problem correctly. I’ve often wondered if part of the reason tutoring works so well is just because it forces students to talk through what they’re doing. Paradoxically, we are frequently conditioned in school to think that when we’re working on math by ourselves, it needs to be a silent solitary activity, but talking through a problem out loud can really get the math juices flowing.

2. It’s totally proactive. Instead of letting your eyes glaze over, moving on to the next problem, saying “I hate this and I’ll never get it,” or giving up completely, my student took an active approach.

3. You’re trusting yourself and relying on yourself. Even though my student was characterizing her brain as something “else,” she was really trusting herself, trusting that she had some untapped inner resources she could access if she came at the problem from a different angle.

4. You’re being yourself. When you’re really yourself when you’re doing math, you plug into all kinds of resources that you would cut yourself off from if you believe you have to behave a certain way or be a certain kind of person in order to succeed at math.

5. It’s a little bit silly. In my experience, being a little silly — doing something crazy like “calling your brain on the phone” or doing math in a silly voice — not only keeps things fun but also prevents students from shutting down or going into panic mode. And like talking things through out loud, it seems to open up more possibilities.

I’m proud to report that my student has used this same technique several times since she first introduced it to me, with great success.

So today’s tip is, when you’re stuck on a math problem, talk it out!!! Whether that means calling your brain on the phone, just talking it through out loud in a silly voice — or in a normal voice.

Have you ever called your brain on the phone? Is there a special (possibly silly) technique you like to use when you’re stuck? Leave a comment because I’d love to hear all about it!

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