Josie’s Story
Josie is 10-years-old, studying three years above her grade level in the Kumon Program. In fact, she’s studying the same math material that her mom, who is an eighth grade teacher, teaches her students. Imagine that, a 10-year-old transforming equations, working with linear functions and simplifying monomials and polynomials. She’s well on her way to advanced algebraic expressions and she isn’t even in middle school yet.
One of the things that Josie likes most about Kumon is the fact that she’s studying above her grade level.
“Kumon gives me confidence because I know how strong of a student it has made me,” says Josie. “I know that I can do and learn anything if I do the work and practice daily. Kumon has taught me about the importance of focusing and to not be afraid of challenges, but to enjoy them and work through them because I know I can overcome anything.”
Josie embodies everything that Toru Kumon had in mind when he founded the Kumon Method. He felt that students would experience the true benefits of the Kumon Method if they acquired the study habits necessary for self-learning and advanced study.
Discover more inspiring success stories on the Kumon Blog !
Sherya's Story as a Program Completer
I started my Kumon journey when I was five years old and in kindergarten. I vividly remember my first day at the center when I had to take my pretest which would determine my starting level. I had to take a test on identifying numbers and shapes. I did well on it and was able to complete the starting levels quickly and easily. My knowledge from Kumon helped me tremendously in school. I was able to easily read passages and had already memorized my math facts my classmates struggled to learn. My strength in the foundations of math and reading allowed me to take higher level math and English classes in elementary school. Halfway through my Kumon journey, I decided to stop reading to focus more on math. I stayed consistent and diligently did my packets throughout elementary school and after a couple years I decided to restart reading. During the Covid-19 pandemic, I would pick up my tests from the center and then take them while on zoom with an instructor and then take them back to the center to be graded. It was an unfortunate scenario, but we all made the best of it, and I was able to advance through a couple levels while isolating at home. In middle school, it was hard to balance school homework along with daily Kumon assignments and led me to want to quit Kumon several times. However, my mom encouraged me to keep going as she had seen how much it had helped me progress in school. So, I continued to do reading and math assignments and quickly completed the entire Kumon reading program. This led me to want to complete the math program as well, and I also completed it a few months later. Completing both programs after 9 years gave me a huge sense of accomplishment and has improved my discipline and work ethic in school, as well as giving me a better understanding of mathematical concepts. Since completing the program, I have decided to volunteer at the center to help other students with their Kumon journey.