Services
Summer Clinics School Clinics Individualized Help
SUMMER CLINICS
WHERE: Sterne School
838 Kearny Street
San Francisco, CA 94108
WHEN: July 11 - August 12
Morning clinics 9:00-11:30, Monday-Friday for two consecutive weeks
Afternoon clinics 12:30-3:00, Monday-Friday for two consecutive weeks
WHAT: Morning Clinics (you choose one for two consecutive weeks)
Math
Word and Sentence
Afternoon Clinics (you choose one for two consecutive weeks)
` Reading and Writing 1 (entering 5th-6th grades)
Reading and Writing 2 (entering 7th-8th grades)
Reading and Writing 3 (entering 9th-12th grades)
Clinic descriptions and availability are given below.
HOW THEY WORK
HOW THEY WORK
Our clinics are for children entering 5th-12th grades in fall of 2022
The five-week enrollment period runs from July 11-August 12
Each clinic is for two consecutive weeks, Monday-Friday
For example, July 11-July 22, or July 18-July 29, or July 25-August 5, or August 1-August 12
Morning clinics, Monday-Friday, 9:00 am -11:30 am
Afternoon clinics, Monday-Friday, 12:30 pm - 3:00 pm
Students can enroll in one morning clinic only, one afternoon clinic only, an all-day set of clinics, or a mix and match set of clinics over the run of five weeks, whatever best fits their individual needs
In the morning, students choose either Math or Word and Sentence for their two-week clinic. They cannot take both at the same time. In the afternoon, students choose the Reading and Writing level that matches their incoming grade level.
Students must be enrolled for a minimum of TWO-CONSECUTIVE WEEKS. After that, they can opt to continue for additional one-week extensions of any clinic they have already attended (if time allows).
Each clinic will have a maximum of 4 students
Each clinic will customize content to meet each student's needs
COVID PROTOCOLS
COVID SAFETY PROTOCOLS
The students and the lead therapists will only interact with members of the SYG learning pods.
We require proof that students have received a complete COVID vaccination (and if possible a booster shot) at least two weeks prior to the start date of their two-week clinic.
We also require proof of a negative COVID test 48 hours prior to the start of each and every week students attend.
KN95 and N95 masks are required, unless CDC guidance changes.
CLINIC DESCRIPTIONS
SSAT PREPARATORY CLINICS/ SAT AND ACT PREPARATORY CLINICS
For students entering 7th or 8th grades/students entering 11th or 12th grades
Previous test scores and other academic input will produce individualized study plans, with special attention paid to how best to take advantage of any accommodations and how best to shelter any vulnerabilities caused by learning and attention challenges. These considerations will guide one-on-one and small group instruction in subject matter and test-taking strategies, to be followed with mini-tests and progress tracking.
A final mock exam will assess overall progress and provide suggestions for continued study.
THIS CLINIC IS NOT BEING OFFERED SUMMER 2022. SHOULD YOU WANT SPECIALIZED TEST PREP ASSISTANCE, PLEASE CONTACT US!
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MORNING CLINICS 9:00-11:30
WORD AND SENTENCE INTENSIVES I & II
For students entering 5th-12th grades
Transitioning from Informal Speaking to Formal Writing
I. Starting the Transition
Students will learn to decode and encode words for both meaning versus sound, moving beyond the Germanic core of English to its French, Latin and Greek layers. They will use this knowledge to better understand how to use key tools, such as dictionaries and thesauri, to help them start to be aware of what makes for formal versus informal word choices. They will also learn how to make clear, complete sentences, by first reviewing basic punctuation and grammar and then expanding on both as time permits.
II. Mastering the Transition
Students will build on basic knowledge of sentence grammar, parts of speech, and decoding for sound and meaning.
They will learn how to use grammar, diction and punctuation to create well-focused, non-repetitive sentences. The will also learn how to use transition/linking words and phrases to connect parts of a sentence and groups of sentences into clear logical relationships. A key overall goal is to create mindful awareness about what exact process allows them to transform highly informal, oral-based first drafts that suffer from limited or no pre-writing planning into revised, cogent, and coherent formal final drafts. This activity allows them to explore and understand more deeply the uses of punctuation, transitions, generation of idea-based topic sentences, and the importance of pre-planning, drafting, peer review, and revision for moving from an informal to formal relationship to language.
Recent research indicates that for learners who have underlying language-specific challenges, such as dyslexia, long-term academic success in mastering more complex, formal vocabulary is best achieved by prioritizing meaning-decoding strategies that can be supplemented by sound decoding ones. To aid students in this task, they will learn more fully how to recognize the various levels of English (Germanic/French/Latin/Greek) as indicating levels of formality, and practice using that knowledge to guide them in more effective use of college-level dictionaries and thesauri, and in choosing appropriate diction to match task/audience/level of concreteness or abstraction.
MATH INTENSIVE
For students entering 5th-12th grades
Math fluency requires both understanding key concepts as well as applying them appropriately. This math sequence guides each student through the concepts, procedures and strategies that he or she needs to build success and confidence. The clinics are tailored to the individual needs of each student and provide assistance in mastering concrete and abstract problems. Each student will be given an initial informal assessement of math skills appropriate for their incoming grade level, and an individualized plan will be created, to address any existing gaps, consolidate key areas, and preview for the coming year, as time permits. Areas covered include math fact review, mutiples and factors, fraction and decimal operations, ratios and proportions, percents and conversions, exponents and roots, statistics and probability, geometry, and for older students, linear algebra, quadratic and exponential functions, logarithms, trigonometry, and the foundations of derivatives and integrals (pre-calculus/introductory calculus).
AFTERNOON CLINICS 12:30-3:00
READING AND WRITING 1 - Expository/Narrative
For students entering 5th-6th grades
Reading and writing at a descriptive level should be treated as two sides of the same coin, so this course focuses on helping students discover, articulate, and practice that key, co-ordinated set of academic skills. Students in lower middle school are required to read both narrative and expository texts not just for surface content ("What happened in this story?" or "What are some key facts in the article?"), but to use the core patterns and structures of such texts to accurately and completely summarize their key content. They then need to use that knowledge to help them in class discussion, peer group work, oral presentations, and written formats (tests and papers).
This kind of integrated thinking and working is expressed through more challenging reading and writing demands. In the afternoon over the two week we will attempt to cover the following topics:
Direct awareness of the different structures and purposes of narrative versus expository texts
Learning how to read for a purpose for different kinds of texts: comprehending, underlining and annotating appropriately
(creating story maps for narratives versus creating idea maps for expository texts)
Using these reading skills to guide skimming and scanning of a text, group discussion/understanding of its key content, and review of one's own writing and that of others for clarity and completeness
Providing explicit structures and tools to help students summarize their comprehension of a text's content into a clear, complete and well-connected paragraph
Having a clear awareness of the need for drafting, thoughtful and respectful peer input, and revision to produce higher quality writing
READING AND WRITING 2 - Expository/Narrative
For students entering 7th-8th grades
Reading and writing at a more analytical level should be treated as two sides of the same coin, so this course focuses on helping students discover, articulate, and practice that key, co-ordinated set of academic skills. Students in upper middle school are required to read both narrative and expository texts not just for surface content ("What happened in this story?" or "What are some key facts in the article?"), but to use the core patterns and structures of such texts to find deeper meanings and express them cogently and persuasively in class discussion, peer group work, oral presentations, and written formats (tests and papers).
This kind of integrated thinking and working is expressed through more challenging reading and writing demands. In the afternoon over the two week we will attempt to cover the following topics:
Direct awareness of the different structures and purposes of narrative versus expository texts
Learning how to read for a purpose for different kinds of texts: comprehending, underlining and annotating appropriately
(creating story maps for narratives and looking for relevant literary devices versus creating idea maps and learning how to skim and scan for hierarchy of ideas, their logical relationships, and relevant details/facts to exemplify them)
Transferring this more advanced, analytical reading into note-taking
Research skills and source evaluation
Pre-writing that organizes note-taking material into independently generated thesis statements and outlines
Having a clear awareness of multi-paragraph essays that are analytically driven, presenting and proving a novel claim, and not just descriptive reports summarizing read material
Having a clear awareness of the structure and purpose of thesis, body, and conclusion paragraphs, and their interrelationships
Gaining practice in how to better integrate direct quotations into one's sentences and provide appropriate source citations
Having a clear awareness of the need for drafting, thoughtful and respectful peer input, and revision to produce higher quality writing
READING AND WRITING 3 - Expository/Narrative
For students entering 9th-12th grades
Reading and writing at an analytical level are two sides of the same coin, so this course focuses on helping students discover, articulate, and practice that key, coordinated set of academic skills. Students in high school are required to read texts not just for surface content (“What happened in the story?” or “What are some key facts in the article?”), but to use the core patterns and structures of such texts to find deeper meanings and express them cogently and persuasively in class discussion, peer group work, oral presentations, and written formats (tests and papers). They are also required to begin to evaluate texts by placing them in academic discourses and historical, cultural and social context, either through direct or inferred evidence. For narrative texts, this higher-level work can involve considering genre and style as universal or historical artifacts, artistic movements, writer biographies, concepts of canonical works, or schools of criticism; for expository texts, this can involve schools of thought, knowledge of the history of a discipline, and appreciation of changing models and schema for a field.
This kind of integrated thinking and working is expressed through more challenging reading and writing demands. In the afternoon over the two week we will attempt to cover the following topics:
Awareness of the different structures and purposes of narrative versus expository texts
Learning how to read for different kinds of texts for a purpose, comprehending, and annotating appropriately
Awareness of different modes of situating a text in a discourse and using that to further analyze and evaluate its meanings and historical and contemporary value
Transferring this advanced analytical reading into note-taking
Research skills and source evaluation, especially with an appreciation for using multiple discourses as a means to set different texts or the same text into complex conversation with each other
Pre-writing that organizes note-taking material into independently generated thesis statements and outlines
Having a clear concept of multi-paragraph essays that are analytically driven, presenting and proving a novel claim, and not just descriptive reports summarizing material
Having a clear awareness of the structure and purpose of thesis, body, and conclusion paragraphs, and their interrelationships
Having a clear awareness of how to do direct quotations versus paraphrasing, and how to correctly provide source citations for either format
Gaining further practice in how to more fluently integrate direct quotations into one's own sentences and arguments;
Having a clear awareness of the need for drafting, thoughtful and respectful peer input, and revision to produce higher quality writing
Moving students toward an appreciation that their analysis of texts may be used to set up a critical evaluation of their historical and/or contemporary value for a certain research purpose
2022 SUMMER CLINIC SCHEDULE & AVAILABILITY
Morning Clinics 9:00-11:30 Afternoon Clinics 12:30-3:00
WEEK 1 July 11-15
Math Word & Sentence R & W 1 R & W 2 R & W 3
Student 1 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 2 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 3 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 4 Open Open Open Open Open
WEEK 2 July 18-22
Math Word & Sentence R & W 1 R & W 2 R & W 3
Student 1 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 2 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 3 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 4 Open Open Open Open Open
WEEK 3 July 25-29
Math Word & Sentence R & W 1 R & W 2 R & W 3
Student 1 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 2 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 3 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 4 Open Open Open Open Open
WEEK 4 August 1-5
Math Word & Sentence R & W 1 R & W 2 R & W 3
Student 1 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 2 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 3 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 4 Open Open Open Open Open
WEEK 5 August 8-12
Math Word & Sentence R & W 1 R & W 2 R & W 3
Student 1 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 2 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 3 Open Open Open Open Open
Student 4 Open Open Open Open Open
PRICING
PRICING
2-WEEK MORNING CLINIC $2,150
2-WEEK AFTERNOON CLINIC $2,150
1-WEEK EXTENSION OF ANY CLINIC $1,075
HOW TO ENROLL
We do not have enrollment forms online, as we want to talk with you directly about whether our program is a good fit for your child's needs, and if so, which clinic or clinics can best do that.
If we decide your child would benefit from being with us, we can send you a form, which you will fill out and send back with payment to the Sterne School, which handles administration and tuition.
Our job is then to give your child the best support we can!
SCHOOL CLINICS
Sparking Your Genius can provide customized clinics and support services to schools, in conjunction with and complementary to what is provided by on-site learning specialists. We can help with math remediation, language-specific remediation at the word-and-sentence level, higher-level integrated reading and writing remediation, and mindfulness and executive functioning remediation and coaching.
Please contact us for more information if your school might be interested.
INDIVIDUALIZED HELP
OVER THE SUMMER
Sparking Your Genius can provide individualized help for your child if they are not able to attend during the July 11- August 12, 2022, run of summer clinics, or if they need extended summer help beyond what they receive while attending the summer clinics. Contact us for more information.
DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR
Christine and Paul both have separate educational therapy private practices during the school year. If you are interested in having one of them work with your child on an ongoing basis, please contact them!
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Any questions? Please call or email us!
CHRISTINE - 415-840-4989 christine@sfspark.com
PAUL - 415-310-6640 paul@sfspark.com
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