Talented Caleb uncovers his passion for writing through Kumon

Ten-year-old Caleb joined the Kumon Elstree Study Centre earlier this summer to get ahead in his school studies and broaden his love for reading. His parents, Elsa and Flavio, were keen to nurture Caleb’s love of learning and they were already familiar with Kumon because Caleb's elder brother had previously studied the programme when he was younger. Elsa, got in touch with their local Kumon Instructor Hedy to arrange an assessment meeting for Caleb, and enrolled him onto both the Kumon programmes.

Now, only six months on, Caleb has made exceptional progress through the Kumon Maths and English Study Programmes, so much so, he has developed a newfound love for writing and has been encouraged to write two novels! Caleb is working on drafting his third novel and even has ambitions of publishing them all. Caleb continues to read an array of genres; his latest novel of choice is ‘Shadow’ by Michael Morpurgo, but he loves to read Alex Rider books too. Caleb’s parents as well as his Kumon Instructor, Hedy, are delighted with his passion for writing and the incredible progress he has made in such a short time.

Reflecting on the progress Caleb has made since joining Kumon, his mother, Elsa, told us,

“I couldn’t be prouder of Caleb's achievements. Since joining Kumon, he has developed a strong daily study routine and completes his Kumon after school, independently. It’s a joy to see Caleb's love for learning with Kumon. He looks forward to going into the centre every Wednesday and is eager to learn and excel through the programmes. I particularly believe the structure of both programmes has helped Caleb excel; the worksheets are clear, and the examples are the key resource to help students get started. When I look at the worksheets, I learn new methods too, I almost feel that I’m learning with Caleb.”

Like all students, Caleb started the Kumon programmes at his own, individually set starting point and was able to progress at his own comfortable pace. His confidence has grown along with his ability and through daily Kumon study Caleb has practised his skills and learned to take ownership of his learning.

Caleb said, “Kumon study continues to give me plenty of practice: I complete 15 minutes of English and 10 minutes of maths after school every day. I love the column method in maths - I’m currently studying column addition and will be starting column subtraction soon. I also enjoy the reading aspects of the English programme.

Writing is a new talent that I’ve discovered and the Kumon English Programme has helped me develop this ability, through improving my grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure. After being inspired by learning about dynasties in school, I wrote some notes and my mum told me that I should turn them into a book. I wrote two pages and started developing my first book titled ‘The Legend of the Samurais’ from there. I have read the first book to my classmates at school, and they can look forward to hearing the second book too!” 

Elsa added, “Caleb has progressed exceptionally in his schoolwork; he recently received a ‘star of the week’ award in school because of his excellent writing ability and use of vocabulary in his English work. I’ve realised Caleb now notices the finer details in all his work, such as the importance of correct punctuation. He often tells me that punctuation is very important because it’s one of many things you receive marks for in SATs exams, and he also tells me how he’s started to cover topics that he has already learnt at Kumon, which gives him a head start.

Caleb’s English teacher has read his first book and was very impressed. In addition, the Head of English at school would like to invite Caleb to read his book to other year groups in assembly.”

At Kumon, Instructor’s guide and support their students to achieve their maximum potential by encouraging them to ‘have a go’ and endeavour to work out answers by themselves.

Instructor Hedy is extremely proud of Caleb’s achievements, telling us,

“I soon realised that Caleb is a special student after he joined the centre; I could tell he was hungry to learn and wanted to progress quickly. It is lovely to see that he wants to do well. I remember when Caleb completed his second achievement test, there was a great improvement in his levels, and I can only imagine the progress he will make when he’ll start working above his school year level. He has developed a great study habit that will equip him well when moving into secondary school. When I read Caleb’s books, I was astonished and could visually imagine the story in front of my eyes. It was a pleasure to read, and no doubt Kumon study had a key part to play in his confidence and enjoyment.

At Kumon, students, parents, and Instructors work together as a team to ensure the maximum results are met. As Caleb’s Instructor, I‘ll ensure he swiftly moves onto the next levels and I will continue to encourage, support and guide him along the way.
It is lovely to see how Kumon is working for Caleb and his family!”

Elsa commented, “Hedy’s continued support and guidance has no doubt enabled Caleb to progress as much as he has today and become a prolific writer!”

A fellow parent at Caleb’s school noticed that he received a ‘star of the week’ award and asked me whether he has a private tutor. I explained how the Kumon programme works. I love how Kumon study develops important lifelong study skills in the early stages of the programme and I look forward to enrolling my three-year-old daughter to the programme next year. Enrolling Caleb at Kumon was the best decision we have made for him as parents!”

Perhaps Caleb will become a famous author one day, although right now, he told us he aspires to become the President of the USA! For Caleb, the sky’s the limit.

Well done Caleb; keep up the fantastic work!