Nicholas had a homework assignment that should have been in his folder. While the folder was in his bookbag, there were no worksheets there. We therefore concentrated on doing exercises out of the Go Math book to practice math facts, specifically addition and subtraction of single digit numbers. According to his teacher, Ms. Miner's notes, Nicholas should be practicing counting up to 120; however he has difficulty understanding the concept of counting sequentially by tens. For example, he was able to correctly count up to 49, but he then leaped to 60, after which he began arbitrarily guessing numbers, with a default response of 30. We reviewed counting strategies such as using the first digit as a guideline by which to figure out the next ten in the series, but Nicholas appeared tired and had difficulty sustaining attention to the task at hand. He was permitted to take some time out to create a model using Lego blocks while we continued to work on addition and subtraction facts. Nicholas was excited to get some answers correct but required the occasional reminder that subtraction meant to take away. It would be beneficial for Nicholas to continue practice counting by rote at home, using an abacus if one is available to aid in his understanding of one-to-one number correspondence. He finished the session performing a visual-perceptual task using shapes to replicate a model drawing and performed very well on this task. Nicholas also demonstrated excellent dexterity and bi-manual coordination in replicating the model.

Nicholas made up a scenario for dramatic play. He used a beat making app to create music.

- I read Officer Buckle and Gloria to Nicholas while he played with a stuffed dog.
- Nicholas practiced his sight words, and I grouped rhyming words together.
- Nicholas practiced ig and ag words.
- Nicholas wrote ig words on the board.
- Nicholas read Jig and Mag.
- I read Down Comes the Rain to Nicholas.

Today's session aimed to help Nicholas understand that the two digits of a two-digit number represent amounts of tens and ones. He was shown that 10 can be thought of as a bundle of ten ones — called a “ten.” We used an abacus to facilitate his understanding of this concept and to demonstrate how the numbers from 11 to 19 are composed of a ten and one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, or nine ones. When Nicholas's attention waned, we used Lego blocks to facilitate understanding through manipulatives he could touch in the hopes it would help him better process the information. We worked on 2 pages of his activity worksheet assigned by his teacher, and did two additional pages in his math book to further show him how to visualize the groupings. Nicholas required a few prompts to help him remain focused on the task, but the manipulatives and use of hands-on models appears to aid comprehension. We reviewed the work we did the previous day, showing that the numbers 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 refer to one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, or nine tens (and 0 ones). Next, we showed how to decompose two-digit numbers in multiple ways (e.g., 64 can be decomposed into 6 tens and 4 ones or into 5 tens and 14 ones). Nicholas had greater difficulty understanding this and tended to just repeat the last number he heard or saw rather than take time to use the tools and strategies to figure out the answer. We will continue to work on this skill and concept which addresses understanding of number and operations in base ten cluster and place value. (Standard MAFS.1.NBT.2.2)

We began today’s session by adding and subtracting within 20, looking for evidence of fluency for addition and subtraction within 10. We used an abacus to facilitate one-to-one number correspondence and as a means by which to inhibit impulsivity and using strategies such as counting ones and tens; making ten (e.g., 8 + 6 = 8 + 2 + 4 = 10 + 4 = 14). The magnetized tiles and pegs in the game of Magnetix were incorporated in the teaching strategy to further facilitate number correspondence. Nicholas did not have any homework in his folder and there were no loose papers in his book bag. This tutor emailed his teacher, Ms. Miner, early in the session to determine if he was correct when he said he had no homework because he had switched classes. When questioned, however, Nicholas was hesitant and could not remember. Ms. Miner did reply to the email so we practiced prior learning of basic arithmetic operations in efforts to reinforce and consolidate gains. The abacus was used to facilitate counting up to 100, as Nicholas was able to do so with about 80% accuracy. At times, Nicholas needed prompts to move forward in his counting; for example, he became stuck when counting past 69 and needed strategies to determine that 70 comes next, so we used the abacus to practice counting by tens to 100. This tutor attempted to show Nicholas number Patterns seen when counting by Tens (for example, when you count by tens all the numbers end with a zero, creating a pattern. Rhythm was also used as a means by which to engage and sustain Nicholas's attention and minimize frustration while he attempted to systematically count to 100. At times, his answers were random and he was therefore reminded of strategies to employ to arrive at his answer. Nicholas is expected to benefit from continued practice and the application of such strategies should help him better understand operations and algebraic thinking.

- I read The Three Little Javelinas to Nicholas while he played with a stuffed pig.
- Nicholas wrote ig and ag words on the dry erase board as I dictated to him.
- Nicholas read a Bob Book with ig and ag words.
- Nicholas practiced consonant blends.
- We played a game with letter sounds.

Nicholas created an outer space "backdrop." We came up with outer space melodies. We sang the song, "The Stars at Night."

- I read The Grouchy Ladybug to Nicholas while he played with the ladybug puppet.
- I read Beetle Bop to Nicholas.
- I read Old Black Fly while Nicholas chimed in on repeated phrases.
- Nicholas watched videos to see how to draw three different dinosaurs to practice following directions.

Nicholas participated in Imaginative play with dinosaurs that he pretended could sing. He used rhythm sticks to match beats. He practiced the song, You're Welcome, from Moana.

Nicholas used a counting chart to facilitate his numeric knowledge, awareness, and ability to write numbers and count upwards by 1. Nicholas had begun this homework in aftercare; however, this tutor reviewed it with Nicholas and pointed out errors he had made. He needed prompts to assist him in this upwards-counting task, experiencing some difficulty grasping the concept of grouping by tens; however he demonstrated improvement with increased practice, repetition, and drill. Nicholas also inverted the number 5, but was able to self-correct using the counting chart as a guide. We then practiced saying the numbers as we counted, and Nicholas was enthusiastic that he was able to count up to 100 on the chart. He was then tasked with using the chart to draw and write numbers to solve a word problem. We completed pages 13 and 14 of his math homework, but only page 13 is due tomorrow.