Wiz Kid Tutor

www.wizkidtutor.com

Hi!  My name is Maria.  I am the owner of Wiz Kid Tutor.  I have an extraordinary almost 14 year old daughter.  We pretty much grew up together as I had her when I was a teen.  People say they should follow in their parent's footsteps.  Well if that's the case I made new footsteps for her to follow.  Education became my new path.  I am always challenging myself to explore new horizons as well as putting her in different challenges.  I always seem to have something to say and as my best friend I tell her (almost) everything.  It was suggested that I start blogging, so let me start by introducing how Wiz Kid Tutor was born.

I was in a very different career field a few years ago.  The market was going down and business was beginning to slow down while the pressure was quickly rising.  I needed a change but with having only sales experience I was limited on my picks of careers.  A special friend at the time encouraged me to continue my education.  I was only a high school graduate at the time with a lot of experience in sales making good money, did I really need an education?  I decided to look into my education.  When I went to enroll in college, I needed to take an assessment test to place me in the correct math and English levels.  I was a bit arrogant and figured it was a piece of cake; I would score high and be finished in no time.

I answered those questions with ease.  I felt confident.  When I received my test scores, I was shocked!  "How could this be?  There had to be something wrong with their grading system.  I could not have possibly scored in the lowest level?”  I went straight to the testing center and asked to see my test.  There was no doubt; I did score at the lowest level.  I had two choices, either enroll in the classes I was assessed into or just not go, what did they know about what level I should be in anyway?

The first day of class was a slap in the face.  All I thought I knew had been forgotten.  In math, my rules and formulas were all mixed up.  I had forgotten the basic mathematical fundamentals that were taught in elementary school.  All of a sudden, everything started clicking together.  Whole numbers, multiplying decimals, adding and subtracting fractions, multiplication tables, dividing with decimals, converting decimals into fractions, dividing fractions, adding and subtracting integers, and so much more was taught in that first month of class.  I was doing the same math my 4th grade daughter was doing.  In English, I had forgotten the writing process, proper grammar, parts of speech, connecting my ideas with my thesis, transition from one idea to the next, principles of composition, and so much more that I had to re-learn.

This experience really humbled me.  I realized the reason why so many people struggle in their education.  Some how some way along their educational path some parts are forgotten or not fully understood.  Once I understood it all of a sudden, everything made complete sense.  Unfortunately, for some of my classmates it was still difficult.  We started study groups and I was able to explain to them in more simple ways than the professor was.  It started to become easy for me to teach others.  By practicing and then teaching it to others it was becoming easier and easier for me.

I soon began working for a tutoring company servicing children in K-12.  My turn around was at least two grade levels higher.  I was able to help several children comprehend what was currently being taught to them simply by providing that individualized attention and simpler teaching methods.  I had also challenged myself by teaching children with disabilities.  I thought it might have been difficult but they were my best students.  I tutored for this company for a while until one family implanted the idea to become my own business.  Thus, Wiz Kid Tutor was born within a few weeks after.

I strongly believe in education and felt the need to help others that had difficulty understanding certain subjects.  My theory is that as children continue to be bumped to the next grade level, regardless of their understanding and grades, they begin to get behind.  It is not noticeable until they are failing all their classes.  Through my experience, I realized it was due to not fully understanding the current lesson.  The teachers have to move on regardless.  I am so grateful that I scored in a low level for English and Math.  It helped refresh my memory of the basic fundamentals I had forgotten or never understood.  I probably would not have understood the rest of my classes.  I graduated with honors from East Los Angeles College in 2009 with my first Associates Degree.  In 2011, I graduated with honors again when I obtained my second Associates Degree in Child Development.  I will be pursuing my Bachelor’s Degree soon as possible as it is a bit pricey. 

Maria Serpas