…Where Paris Hilton Loved Math
December 12, 2013
By Sarah Vander Schaaff “It’s a really, really, chill place. Every tutoring session involves tea latte and some candles.” That’s what Vanessa Vakharia told me on the phone a few weeks ago when I asked her about her math tutoring studio in Toronto, The Math Guru. Vanessa personifies the name. She’s on a mission to get people, especially girls, to think of themselves as capable in math. “Anyone can do well at math and science,” she states on her website, “students simply need a teacher who can communicate with them in a language that they understand.” She’s confident in her philosophy because she experienced it in her own life. “When I was in high school, I failed math twice,” she… Read More
Learning with Lego
November 22, 2013
By Sarah Vander Schaaff Lego is synonymous with STEM. That’s what the representative from Lego Education told me and a room full of parents who were eager to hear about our school’s new partnership with his company. I was, I admit, a little concerned. How was the science teacher going to keep track of thousands of Lego pieces? I can’t seem to do that and I only have two kids losing them behind cushions. Rest assured, Lego Education bricks, unlike most retail ones, can be replaced a la carte. With that concern addressed, I was able to focus on how Lego Education is in fact synonymous with Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. We watched three videos (and you can too… Read More