RAIDAH MUSTAFA
How I learned to stop worrying and love the math!
Raidah (17) is currently doing Calculus Math 12 and English 12 at BrainBoost. Over the summer she did Pre-Calc 12 with Michaela. In the interview below, Raidah tells us about her experience.
What first made you come to BrainBoost?
I have an attention span problem. I?start daydreaming. So, my counselor sat me down and was like ” You’re smart! This is not what you want to do!” I kind of changed my whole mind at the last minute and I decided to go into commerce, so I needed pre-calc over the summer to do calc 12 during the school year.
Was the summer Pre-Calculus Math the first thing you did at BrainBoost?
Yes – it was a test run for me?because I have a major anxiety problem with tests. The summer program was to see if it was okay for me to shift some of my schoolwork to BrainBoost.
What was the first thing that you noticed that is different about BrainBoost?
It is more welcoming than your school is – no matter how long you’ve been there! The minute I walked in doing Pre-Calc that morning, Michaela was like sunshine – she just hit! She always made everyday a little funnier – because she would start off with a funny video!
Also, at BrainBoost, if you feel like you’re done, and don’t want to do it anymore, Michaela will be like “Okay! Go distract yourself for 15 minutes. Go read a book, go listen to music, do whatever you want. And then come back, and we regroup.”
BrainBoost is good for people who are fed up with having 30 kids, 1 teacher in a class. Here, you don’t really feel like there’s a teacher – you feel like there is a friend who’s helping you out – a smarter friend than you. Haha!
Tell me about summer Pre-Calculus Math at BrainBoost and how it works!
We had 6 hours, 5 days a week, with?lessons in the morning, and assignment work in the afternoon. Every Friday or Thursday, we had a test on that week’s chapter. It was a lot of work, but it was fun too, because Michaela and Yeasir are great teachers.
What did BrainBoost do to help you with your test anxiety?
I had lots of extra time to write the test, which was a great help. I got my own room, and I could darken the lights a little bit, cause I don’t like too much light. And I got to do it on a computer.
What was your favourite part?about summer Pre-CalculusMath?
Oh my gosh, there were so many favourite parts! Friday afternoon snacks were AWESOME!! BrainBoost trivia too, because it was something to bond over and we became kind of like a small family. Markie in Study Space is the BEST. If he saw that you were getting anxious – he would teach you, yet also take time out to just talk, venture out and regroup.
Would you consider your experience in summer Pre-Calculus Math a success?
Yes, definitely! I came into BrainBoost thinking, “I’ll pass this by 52%”. I got my first test done, and I was like WHOA! “Anything above 73%, and I’m good” and I ended up getting a class average of 84%, which I could’ve never imagined! No homework, meant no stress. If I could do it, I would re-do it again. Not Pre-Calc again, probably – HAHA!
In three words, describe BrainBoost.
Unique.
Family.
Friendship.