Enthusiastic eleven-year-old English Completer set on completing the Kumon Maths Programme too!

11-year-old Ann joined the Kumon South Norwood Study Centre in 2013 having been recommended Kumon by a family friend. Ann’s parents decided to enrol her whilst she was still in nursery to develop her English and maths abilities and give her a head-start in school.

Ann has now completed the entire Kumon English Programme and is heading towards completion of the Kumon Maths Programme too and yet she is still eleven and has just recently joined secondary school.

We spoke to Ann and her mother, Agnes, to find out how she’s stayed focused and reached such a phenomenal level of achievement, so young.

Ann told us, “I can vividly remember when I started Kumon. I was only four and so I started on a low level. My ability was initially limited, but I learned to complete my worksheets independently and over time I started to progress and develop my vocabulary.”

Ann describes the careful step-by-step journey that her Instructor planned out, refined and set for her at the just-right level; gradually challenging her but supporting her progress too. Ann committed herself to daily Kumon study, allowing her to develop the fundamental study skills and knowledge that’s helped her to progress consistently throughout the programme.

“Kumon study has helped me tremendously both in developing my academic ability as well as forming lifelong study skills that can be applied in my future education and career. Kumon helped me to structure paragraphs, improve my spelling, improve my writing techniques, analyse texts, use grammar correctly, and has helped to widen my vocabulary. As I progressed onto the higher levels, I certainly started to find the work more challenging.

Ann’s mother, Agnes, agrees that developing confidence has been a key benefit of Kumon for Ann. “Because of the study skills Ann has developed at Kumon, I have noticed a difference in her studies that has enabled her to advance to study higher school level material at an early age. The English Programme is challenging towards its higher levels but having had a fantastic Instructor and team at the South Norwood study centre guiding her, my daughter has gained confidence and has learned how to work things out using the worksheets.”

Additionally, Ann notes that Kumon has enabled her to self-learn and concentrate for long periods of time, which has greatly benefited her at school. She says, “At school, a lot of the work I have already mastered at Kumon. It makes many subjects at school a lot easier; I am working way above my school year level.

I am proud of what I have achieved. My Kumon journey has not always been the easiest, but it was all worth it in the end. My Instructor and the team have helped me get through the tough questions by being patient and helped me in a way that allowed me to work out and understand the work for myself.”

Interestingly, Ann’s older sister, Angie, also studies Kumon and has completed the Kumon English Programme in its entirety too. Their mum delights in the fact that they have both become hard-working and self-disciplined individuals who are willing to take on new challenges and says that this would not have been entirely possible without the support of their Instructor, Meena Jog.

Agnes told us, “The relationship with my daughters’ Instructor Meena is fantastic and the best you can ask for. Meena understands her students and they like her because she is a strong communicator. For example, both my daughters were very shy and doubted their abilities at the beginning and now, they’re full of confidence in what they can achieve."

Instructor, Meena Jog is incredibly proud of Ann’s achievements. She told us, “What a way to start secondary school, by completing the Kumon English Programme! Ann has already studied many topics of GCSE English whilst still in primary school – Shakespeare’s plays, Of Mice and Men, Poetry…

Ann has been an excellent student from the start. She has always been a quick learner, determined and very independent. I am so proud of her, especially as she is now focusing her efforts and working towards completion of the Kumon Maths Programme.

Well done, Ann! We wish you every success at school, and in reaching your goal of completing the Kumon Maths Programme.