How Our System Works
Start with an Academic Evaluation — or an Initial Consultation if you prefer to talk first. Evaluations can include English & Math, or focus on just one subject. English always includes writing and also covers phonics, vocabulary, and grammar. After the evaluation, we meet with parents to review results and goals, then design a personalized program. Daily scores, quizzes, and tests are recorded to track progress and guide regular parent meetings.
- Academic Evaluation (English & Math, or single-subject)
- Initial Consultation (ask questions, set goals, plan next steps)
- English: writing, phonics, vocabulary, grammar, comprehension
- Math: grade-level standards (CCSS) by domain to find strengths & gaps
We review the evaluation results together, align with your family's academic goals, and answer all questions.
A customized plan targets the exact skills your student needs — at the right level, pace, and challenge.
Letter–sound mastery, blends/digraphs, multisyllabic decoding, fluency.
We focus on the specific skills flagged as weak in the evaluation (e.g., main idea, details, sequencing, inference) to lift overall comprehension.
Author's purpose, tone, structure, evidence, and analysis.
Building Higher-Level Thinking
Instruction follows a cognitive progression inspired by Bloom's Taxonomy — from foundational recall to advanced creation.
Great writing shows what students can produce. We make progress visible through clear, scaffolded goals from sentences to essays.
Strong input supplies vocabulary, sentence patterns, and style. Guided reading feeds the writing program at every stage.
How Writing Progresses
Each level builds directly on the last — from mastering the sentence to producing polished, argument-driven essays aligned with academic standards.
- Simple, compound, and complex sentences
- Punctuation, conjunctions, varied starters
- Borrowing patterns from model texts (INPUT → OUTPUT)
- Hooks and clear topic/thesis sentences
- Relevant, well-ordered supporting details
- Transitions and concluding statements
- CER framing: Claim → Evidence → Reasoning
- Thesis building & paragraph unity
- Planning/Outlines & time-bound drafting
- Descriptive · Expository · Narrative · Persuasive · Argumentative
- Evidence integration, citations, counterclaims
- FRQs, DBQs, AP-level prompts with rubric alignment
Every major assignment reinforces CER. Students learn to make a clear Claim, support it with specific Evidence from texts, and explain it with logical Reasoning — a skill set that transfers to science labs, history essays, and standardized exams (FRQs/DBQs).
The IUSD Math Pathway — Where Does Your Child Land?
IUSD uses an Integrated Mathematics sequence. The track a student enters in middle school determines their entire high school trajectory. Students who want to reach AP Calculus by 12th grade need to be on the accelerated path as early as 7th grade — and once in Math II or higher, private support makes a significant difference.
Getting onto — and staying on — the accelerated track requires strong foundations built in middle school. Once students reach Math II and above, the pace and rigor increase sharply. We help students qualify for the accelerated track, keep up once they're on it, and excel through Math II, Math III, Pre-Calculus, and AP Calculus.
Ready to Build a Stronger Student?
Schedule an Academic Evaluation or Initial Consultation — we'll review results with you, answer every question, and design a plan around your child's exact needs.
Schedule an Evaluation or ConsultationNo commitment required · Irvine and surrounding cities