Classical students coach Breed middle schoolers

LYNN – For eighth-grader Caitlin Wilson, going to school on a Saturday to study math was a no-brainer.”I like math,” she said. “I’m usually stressed out and math makes me less stressed out.”Wilson participated in a five-week program that had Classical High School students coaching Breed Middle School students for two hours each Saturday in math.Breed math teacher Kathie White said the turnout has been stunning.”We’ve been averaging 95 kids a week,” she said. “These are students who are really trying to keep their proficient or advanced status in MCAS.””They are really dedicated,” added Classical math teacher Michael Bastarache.With the two schools located just across the street from each other, Bastarache and White teamed up last year for the pilot program that was only open to eighth-graders. This year they opened it up to sixth- and seventh-graders as well, White said.Bastarache said his students love working with the younger students and the passion that all students felt for math was clearly evident.On a recent Saturday morning the Breed cafeteria was filled with a low buzz as middle schoolers sat with their heads bent over a variety of math problems while older students and staffers moved among them.Classical senior Anthony Ong said he comes because “math is important and when they don’t get it, I think I can help.”Ong said he likes math because there is always an answer but there could be different ways of getting to it. He sees his job as helping students find their own way to think about problems and in doing so, find the answer.Zachary Say, also a Classical senior, said he comes out because he likes helping people.”They are smart,” Say said referring to the younger students. “They don’t really need the help so what we give them are the tricks, hints and little shortcuts. I like teaching them.”When asked what brought him out on a cold, gray Saturday to study math, eighth-grader Louis Brooks joked that most of the kids probably had no place else to go. He came only for the extra credit and a homework pass, “otherwise it’s too early in the morning for math,” he said.Not everyone was quite as blase.Eighth-grader Jonathan Chase said he was only four points away from making it into the advanced category for math MCAS last year and his goal is to make it this year.”I wanted to do something productive with my Saturday,” said classmate Jenry Rosa.Meagan Molea said she signed up because she thought it would be fun to see the school and teachers in a different light, on a Saturday.”It’s hands on and it’s cool working with other teachers you don’t normally see,” she added.The program also has an added bonus, White said. Eighth-graders, who will cross the street to attend Classical next year will likely see at least a few familiar faces in the hallway thanks to the Saturday math program.”I think it’s awesome and I really appreciate the partnership with Classical,” she said.The Saturday program is just one of several that White is rolling out this spring. At the end of April she will launch a math-related after school program but first, this week White said she kicked off an afternoon program for sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders who will be doing “kinesthetic problems that I hope will transfer into wonderful things.”