Emily Hoffman/The Kearney CourierTerry Rennick of Kearney opened up the Northland’s first Mathnasium with his wife, JoAnn. Rennick is a self-proclaimed math enthusiast.
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2 + 2 = fun
Kearney man opens
Mathnasium in Northland
By Emily Hoffman
Terry Rennick of Kearney is a self-proclaimed math enthusiast. He loves math. He sees math in everything around him. That’s one of the reasons Rennick and his wife, JoAnn, opened up the Northland’s first Mathnasium. There are several hundred Mathnasiums in the U.S., mostly on the West Coast.
Rennick, an adjunct math professor at William Jewell College and the former IT director for Clay County, talks about the learning center.
Q: What exactly is a Mathnasium?
A: Mathnasium is a learning center that offers year-round instruction in math in a fun, supportive setting. Mathnasium tutors students outside of school who are facing trouble areas, need extra help preparing for the ACT or SAT, or for home-schooled children who may need structured math help.
Qualified tutors, who go through a background check and training, are there to assist students.
Q: What happens after a parent and child walk through the door?
A: The first thing we do is to understand who they are. We’ll focus in on the child. We’ll do a series of preliminary questions to get a feel for their math aptitude. We’ll have an oral assessment then a written assessment. Basically we go through problems they should be understanding according to their age and find out where the holes are. We then put together a notebook and exercises so that when they come in, they’ll pull out their notebook and start working under the guidance of our instructors.
Throughout the student’s time here, we’ll do reassessments to make sure they’re learning and progressing.
Q: What made you decide to open a math learning center?
A: Both of us have done math tutoring in the area for children for several years. We have always had a passion for mathematics. We felt with the need that this was a way to meet the need to help more students overcome the barriers of mathematics. Nobody hates math, but they hate being confused by math. Our mission is to help math make sense for them. It’s confusing for a lot of kids. What we’ve tried to accomplish here is helping students understand the methodology of numbers. It’s nothing new, but a way to reach out so more people can understand.
Q: What will kids do while there here?
A: Not just worksheets. Just like any gym, they’ll do a little warm up, with their homework or playing a game. Then they’ll go into the meat of it, having a good workout in math. After that, we’ll take about 10 minutes to cool down. Games and warmup exercises will be related to that. Kids can also win prizes for finishing their work.
Q: What is it that you like so much about math?
A: Math is so pure. It’s fun and so much a part of us. I think everyone ought to embrace math. There’s a mental hurdle much like the Berlin Wall. When that first stone came off that, it came down like butter. Once we have everything in place with math, it will all fall together.
MATHNASIUM
- Hours: 3 to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday
- Address: 249 Mill St., Suite 102 (look for the big A+ on the window) in Liberty
- Phone: 415-9393
- Online: www.mathnasium.com/libertymo.
Kearney Editor Emily Hoffman can be reached at 628-6010 or ehoffman@npgco.com.
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Rennick, an adjunct math professor at William Jewell College and the former IT director for Clay County, talks about the learning center.
Q: What exactly is a Mathnasium?
A: Mathnasium is a learning center that offers year-round instruction in math in a fun, supportive setting. Mathnasium tutors students outside of school who are facing trouble areas, need extra help preparing for the ACT or SAT, or for home-schooled children who may need structured math help.
Qualified tutors, who go through a background check and training, are there to assist students.
Q: What happens after a parent and child walk through the door?
A: The first thing we do is to understand who they are. We’ll focus in on the child. We’ll do a series of preliminary questions to get a feel for their math aptitude. We’ll have an oral assessment then a written assessment. Basically we go through problems they should be understanding according to their age and find out where the holes are. We then put together a notebook and exercises so that when they come in, they’ll pull out their notebook and start working under the guidance of our instructors.
Throughout the student’s time here, we’ll do reassessments to make sure they’re learning and progressing.
Q: What made you decide to open a math learning center?
A: Both of us have done math tutoring in the area for children for several years. We have always had a passion for mathematics. We felt with the need that this was a way to meet the need to help more students overcome the barriers of mathematics. Nobody hates math, but they hate being confused by math. Our mission is to help math make sense for them. It’s confusing for a lot of kids. What we’ve tried to accomplish here is helping students understand the methodology of numbers. It’s nothing new, but a way to reach out so more people can understand.
Q: What will kids do while there here?
A: Not just worksheets. Just like any gym, they’ll do a little warm up, with their homework or playing a game. Then they’ll go into the meat of it, having a good workout in math. After that, we’ll take about 10 minutes to cool down. Games and warmup exercises will be related to that. Kids can also win prizes for finishing their work.
Q: What is it that you like so much about math?
A: Math is so pure. It’s fun and so much a part of us. I think everyone ought to embrace math. There’s a mental hurdle much like the Berlin Wall. When that first stone came off that, it came down like butter. Once we have everything in place with math, it will all fall together.
MATHNASIUM
- Hours: 3 to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday
- Address: 249 Mill St., Suite 102 (look for the big A+ on the window) in Liberty
- Phone: 415-9393
- Online: www.mathnasium.com/libertymo.
Kearney Editor Emily Hoffman can be reached at 628-6010 or ehoffman@npgco.com.