By Carolyn Jones

Cesar Conriquez, 12, was doing OK in math until 4th grade, when the curriculum turned to division. He got stuck. Really stuck. As his class moved on to more complex mathematical equations, Cesar was increasingly mired in confusion, and his grades in 4th and 5th grade plummeted.

“My teacher was helping me out but I still didn’t get it. Fractions, whole numbers … I couldn’t do it. It was stressing me out,” said the Pittsburg youth. “I wasn’t happy with my report card and my parents weren’t either. So I asked if I could get extra help.”

His parents enrolled him in Pittsburg Unified’s Summer Math Institute, a free, five-week intensive math program for middle-school students of all abilities, with special classes for students whose math skills are several grades below where they should be.

Source: Summer and school year programs give the very lowest math achievers answers, and hope | EdSource