Sylvia is an amazing tutor who challenged my son to grow as a reader. In a short time she boosted…read morehis ability. She identified key areas in advanced coding where he needed help and mitigated them. Out of many Marin tutors we tried (at least 5) - she was the best. Sylvia had the most clear insight into his habits, strengths and deficits that could be remediated. In a short time he got better. I highly recommend her. Worth every penny (and then some)! If we have tutoring needs in the future we will come back.

Five years ago, I worked with Sylvia during 6th grade, and it had a profound impact on my academic…read morejourney. Surprisingly, last year, I found Algebra 2 to be my favorite subject, despite not being a math enthusiast. Now, I'm tutoring other students in math and even contemplating a future as a doctor. Currently, I'm working with Sylvia again for SAT preparation, and I can see how it's positively influencing my work. I can't emphasize enough how beneficial it is to work with Sylvia - she is a great and knowledgeable tutor.

Mike is a great math tutor for high school students. He is extremely professional and is known for…read morehelping students improve their grades, particularly in advanced algebra and calculus. He creates a great learning environment in his home office and is very reliable. Highly recommend him!

My daughter, a high school junior, has had a number of math tutors over the years. None come even…read moreclose to the pedagogical excellence and 'touch' of Mike Kennedy. My daughter went from a lowish B to a high A (if not the highest grade in her class, nearly so). I am an attorney and ex-college professor myself - someone who's endured, and compelled others to endure lessons. Although as they say, "results may vary", for my money, you can't do better than Mike.

My son recently attended a Roots to Branches Summer Camp and loved it. The camp was held throughout…read moreMarin, primarily in the GGNRA/Marin Headlands, a wonderful use of the beautiful area we live in! We recently moved into the area it was a great way for my son to meet new friends in. In addition, the facilitators were awesome, fun, very supportive and helpful. Such a great camp that we look forward to participating in the Roots to Branches yearlong program this year! Thanks!

My soon to be 13 year old son attended this years R2B summer camp and I wish I could give more than…read more5 stars as it really does deserve it. From the time the boys all met up on day one and clicked immediately with Armando taking lead to Zach coming in as well and creating a very different vibe to make the boys feel so welcome. Power tools, Lasar tag, making shelters, building fires, storytelling, and fun games on the beaches of the Marin Headlands were just some of the weeks activities. I have to say my son came home everyday with a smile on his face from ear to ear. He is already asking me when the year long program will begin! Please don't hesitate signing your child up for any program with Roots to Branches as what Armando and Zach are creating for our children as they become young adults in a very different and sometimes challenging world is so very needed and important. Thank you R2B!! Jackie H.

Matt Luetza has been a great support for my daughter in Advanced Math at Stanley, starting 2nd half…read moreof 7th grade. She fell behind in the first half of the year and he was able to help her catch up and excel by the end of last year as well as tailor a program to refresh her on some of the things she initially struggled with before launching into this year. Highly recommend!

We've had a great experience with Matt for my high school son's geometry class. He has been…read moreexcellent at explaining concepts in a way that really makes sense. My son's math teacher at school sometimes explains things in a way that confuses him, but Matt is able to break everything down clearly and make sure he truly understands the material. He's also been very flexible with scheduling, which we really appreciate with a busy high school schedule. Most importantly, my son genuinely likes working with him and feels much more confident in geometry because of the extra help. We're very grateful for Matt's support and would highly recommend him to anyone looking for a patient, effective math tutor.

The staff at Lindamoodbell on Union St. in San Francisco have provided amazing support to our…read morefamily over the past several years. Thanks to LMB's rigorous and free assessment, we were able to gain a deep understanding of our son's opportunities in reading. The way LMB teaches reading is scientifically proven to work (which is not true for all reading curriculum) and he made incredible progress. Despite spending 100s of hours at LMB, because the teachers genuinely care and have a fun approach to teaching, my son was engaged with the instruction. Thank you Paris, Karis, Gabriella and the rest of the LMB team!

Brining my son here for reading tutoring has literally been life changing. He is 7 and in second…read moregrade and we knew he was behind in reading. The Lindamood Bell assessment helped us to understand exactly where he was struggling and how big the gap was. We chose to put him through 200 hours of tutoring. Half way through, my son is reading!!! More importantly, he is loving it. They have given a huge boost to his self esteem. We are so thrilled we made the decision to send him here and can't recommend it enough to parents who have kids with reading challenges.

This is not strictly related to SAT or math, but it sort of is, so bear with me a sec. I've known…read moreWes for years, but until today he'd never "formally" taught me anything. He spent an hour today helping me learn to play the drums, and it was probably the most effective hour of instruction about *anything* I've ever had. And that's including 15 years of piano lessons, 6 years of clarinet/saxophone, and all kinds of other things I'd spent time trying to learn over the years. Why? The process sounds simple. First, he spent some time to figure out what I knew and didn't know. Second, he zeroed in on the areas where I was having problems, and broke them into a lot of smaller pieces. Third, he gave me concrete things to do to make each of those individual pieces easier to understand, and easier to practice. Fourth, he showed me how to start recombining those pieces, after practice, so I could fit the puzzle back together again having improved each individual piece. It *sounds* simple, but I think in practice it's quite difficult for most people to do in a way that feels constructive, positive, and encouraging. At each step, I felt like I was given the tools I needed to continue working on this on my own, and a clear path to improvement. I've been poking around trying to learn how to play the drums for a few years. In an hour, I learned more, and built up my capacity to learn more, than I would ever have imagined. Utterly spectacular. I think if you've got the chance to learn from Wes, regardless of the subject, you should take it. If you have a kid who's looking to learn math, or test prep, his approach is what I *wish* my teachers did when I was younger. It'd have helped me love the process of learning, not just focus on the test in front of me. Fantastic.

When it comes to virtual teaching, Wes Carroll is brilliant. In fact, he is so helpful that even…read moreother educators continue to benefit from his tutelage. As a teacher, Wes knows his audience and is always enthusiastic about the subject matter. In addition, he not only offers well-organized online courses but also video-conference tutoring. As one who has witnessed one of Wes's virtual sessions, I have seen how his expertise with technology can reach multiple students and help them remotely.

Our son started at Creative Gardens at 5 months old after being referred by friends in the area. He…read moreabsolutely loves it--we cannot thank the staff enough for the warmth and care we've felt since day one. The school's director Landy and all the teachers in his infant and toddler classes have gone above and beyond our expectations, and we feel so lucky to have found them.

I love creative gardens very much. My child attended there since baby. The teachers are super…read morenice and nurturing. The toddler and preschool teachers are super energetic. I see them hold dance parties with the kiddos often. I love how the school have many events (fire truck day, police day, puppet show, music together, bubble show, xmas photoshoot, petting zoo, etc). Teacher Tala (preK) was very knowledgable and my son learned so much from her preK class. My son was well ahead in his Kindergarten class thanks to the learning he had in the preK class. It was such a great experience. Will send my 2nd one there when I have another one :)

Leila is amazing and my family would have been absolutely lost without her help. We moved from LA…read moreto the Bay Area this year and she helped us figure out both middle and elementary school for our children. She has a wealth of knowledge about schools, teachers, pedagogy, the application process, how to write an essay, etc. She helped us every step of the way and also organized school visits for us on our trips up from LA. Every penny you spend on Sparkjoy Consulting is well worth it. In fact, I still text Leila with questions about extracurricular activities, restaurants, etc.! She is amazing and her sunny disposition makes her wonderful to work with through this process which would otherwise be very stressful!

I whole-heartedly agree with all these glowing Yelp reviews of Leila and her services. She brings…read morea wealth of experience as a teacher (check out her resume!) and parent to her work, and it feels like having a friend on the inside to guide you through the school selection process. Leila helped me navigate the process with more lightness, and homed in on the right questions to help us make important decisions. Leila provides a wonderful service for parents wading through the many great school choices available to East Bay families!