You know your child is bright...
They've had their heart set on going to college.
If only math weren't a barrier.
They are taking all the right classes, using their summers to gain experiences that will help their college applications, and you've been saving for college since they were in diapers.
That's why it's heartbreaking to think that math may be the roadblock to their future.
Your teen has big dreams and everything is in reach, except their math grades and the intense anxiety it brings.
And teachers are not as helpful as you'd like. Teachers and counselors tell you they expect your teen to be able to manage their assignments and ask for help when they need it. But, your teen doesn't do either very well or often.
Homework battles where you're butting heads over the kitchen table, the slammed doors, the irritating shrugs...and that very cold feeling in your gut when you open your teen's grade portal...
They have so much potential. They've got everything going for them.
Some days, it looks like your teen is on track and you feel powerful, grounded, and hopeful...other times - you feel worn out, a little sad, and worried as you watch them continue to struggle in math.
Nothing is worse than not knowing how to help your child. I’ve been there. Your heart aches with every failed attempt to help, leaving you feeling confused and questioning your worth as a parent. Feeling like you are failing your child cuts like a knife. I've walked in your shoes and I've had the same overwhelming fears.
Your teen's math failure is not your fault; nor your teen's.
Schools rarely teach math test-taking skills for neurodivergent teens and that makes learning tough.
How math is taught rarely results in adequate processing of information for teens who have compromised working memory and other executive function challenges. This disconnect makes an already challenging situation feel insurmountable.
Science tells us that a stressed brain struggles to learn, which makes "math anxiety a "hidden barrier to math success."
Once your teen can recognize and respond to their math triggers...
They realize they are not alone and are motivated to explore strategies to manage math anxiety. No more hiding or masking, which frees up attention and memory so real learning can occur.
...and can access the right level of support during those moments...
Our coaches are educators who have personal and professional experience with teen anxiety. Our curriculum was created by an educational therapist who specializes in working with teens who have anxiety, depression, and ADHD; in consultation with a licensed clinical social worker with 20 years of experience working with teens.
...while learning in a way that allows their brain to fully process information...
They experience a "math reboot" - a new way to approach math challenges that break the cycle of anxiety-poor performance loop, which means teens can fully engage in math (vs. avoiding or rushing through math problems to get it over with.)
... then everything falls into place.
Where students can feel calm completing math homework - even if they'd rather do something else.
They know the right questions to ask and where to get support.
They feel a sense of pride and accomplishment.
They build confidence and self-esteem.
They no longer have sleepless nights before math tests.
And you can both, together, start planning ahead and look forward to the day they move into their college dorm.
This success might feel like it's a million miles away, but I'm here to tell you it's possible to turn the corner in a short period of time [actually in just 8 weeks.]
Have we met?
Hi, I'm Dynell
As a seasoned educational therapist and mother of a twice-exceptional student, I deeply understand the unique challenges faced by high-achieving teens with ADHD, anxiety, or depression in rigorous, college-prep academic environments.
For a decade, I've helped these exceptional students navigate the complexities of their academic journey. The relentless pressure to excel, the high-stakes exams, and the fiercely competitive atmosphere can amplify their symptoms, making it incredibly difficult for these brilliant minds to showcase their true potential.
My students have been able to:
- Go from complete disengagement to passing grades in just 12 weeks.
- Go from having average performance to honor roll status in as little as 8 weeks.
- Reduce math insecurities to the point where they are rocking AP math classes with confidence.
My approach is firmly grounded in the brain's learning processes and evidence-based emotional regulation strategies. By equipping students with these powerful tools, they can maximize their learning potential, retain information effectively, and manage frustrations while learning. These are not just temporary fixes. They are life skills that will serve our students well beyond their academic years.
As a parent who has walked this path, I know all about sleepless nights, walking on eggshells, intense frustration, and the kick in the gut when you log into your teen's grade portal.
And, I've witnessed the joy and relief both parents and teens feel when we unlock the barriers to learning without shaming our students.
This is why I've created the Math Confidence approach.
WHY TUTORING OR THERAPY, ALONE, MISSES THE MARK
- Math anxiety is a complex mixture of psychological, emotional and academic challenges.
- Tutoring alone addresses math skills, but not the psychological or emotional aspects of math anxiety.
- Therapy is wonderful when needed and should always be considered. However, students need to practice managing their math anxiety IN AN ACADEMIC ENVIRONMENT in order to create new patterns of behavior.
- When students can simultaneously address the emotional and cognitive aspects of learning math, they are better equipped to raise their math grades with less anxiety.
Math Confidence Academy:
This powerful approach, with evidence-based practices, helps your teen:
- Lower math anxiety, replacing feelings of dread and overwhelm with a newfound sense of calm, confidence, and control over their learning process.
- Develop elite math skills and study routines that eliminate avoidance, close knowledge gaps, and propel them to the top of their class, even in the most challenging math courses.
- Use proven test-taking strategies that optimize performance, boost scores, and ensure their hard work translates into the grades they deserve.
- Embrace a mindset of calm focus, resilience, and adaptability, where your teen can embrace setbacks and thrive in competitive, academic environments.
- Build a strong foundation of college readiness strategies by equipping your teen with essential academic skills, unwavering self-advocacy, and a robust emotional toolkit they can access whenever needed.
What makes this so powerful is the Math Confidence method.
The only skill-building program developed specifically for high-achieving, college-bound teens with anxiety or ADHD who want to conquer math anxiety and earn top math grades so they can attend their dream college.
Our frameworks do more than build math skills. They reduce the cognitive and emotional loads of math anxiety so students can focus on learning and understanding rather than fear, dread, or uncertainty.
The result: higher grades, less stress, greater independence, and a newfound sense of control over their math journey.
Unlock Your Student's Success Path
We don't believe in a one-size-fits-all approach. There are many opportunities to personalize our material and frameworks for your teen's unique temperament and strengths.
College-Worthy Test Scores
In MATH CONFIDENCE, we'll tackle one of the most critical challenges faced by college-bound students: low math test scores that threaten their academic advancement and college prospects. Our process optimizes test performance so your student can achieve the scores they need to secure their futures.
Here's how your teen benefits:
- Using active math learning strategies to bolster understanding and retention, which also helps students become comfortable asking for support when needed.
- As a result of creating personalized study routines that include 15-minute reviews and weekly summaries, your teen will develop the consistency and habits needed to learn and retain information in advanced math classes, without feeling overwhelmed.
- Once they adapt our our test-prep blueprint, including detailed 10-day, 48-hour, and day-of plans, your teen will enter each exam feeling fully prepared, supported, and empowered to achieve their target scores.
- By up-leveling your teen's test-taking approach, they'll gain the confidence and skills needed to perform at their best under pressure, ensuring their true abilities shine through on exam day.
- By mastering time management while testing, your teen will have the cognitive and emotional stamina to complete their tests and check their work before they hit "submit."
In just 8-weeks your teen will have the tools, strategies, and confidence to perform well on high-stakes tests and secure test scores that open doors to future opportunities. They will possess the elite math skills and study habits of top-performing students; skills they will use throughout their academic career.
We start with an assessment to ensure a customized approach to your child's learning...
...and with Calm Focus Practices
This is the benefit of working with someone who intimately understands how ADHD and anxiety can intensify learning challenges, leading to devastating emotional and psychological consequences. In the first leg of our program, we use a proprietary math anxiety curriculum created by a therapist, exclusively for Math Confidence Academy, to help your teen gain the tools and strategies to dramatically reduce feelings of math dread and fear.
Here's how this transformative program will benefit your teen:
* By identifying their unique math triggers and developing personalized coping strategies, your teen will build the resilience and self-awareness needed to confront challenges head-on, fostering a growth mindset that will serve them well beyond math class.
* Through mastering proven techniques to achieve a state of calm and focus while working on math, your teen will unlock their full learning potential, allowing them to deeply engage with the material and experience the satisfaction of genuine understanding and progress.
* With the guidance of expert coaching and feedback as they apply these techniques in class and during homework, your teen will develop the self-assurance and independence needed to succeed, knowing they have the unwavering support and resources to overcome any obstacle.
The bottom line: Your teen will possess the tools to effectively manage math anxiety and avoidance, laying the groundwork for the deeper work of building advanced math and test-taking skills. This shift will not only improve their academic performance, it will also enhance their overall well-being, motivation, and self-confidence. (Note: This is not a therapeutic program. Our focus is on emotional well-being for academic success.)
Here's what can happen when students get the right levels of support
“I scored 89 on my math final.”
I still hate math. I just do. But, at least I know how to get through it. And, I guess I'm pretty good at it. I scored 89 on my math final. I usually bomb these tests because I get so nervous I can't think. But this time I used my power words and brain breaks...a ton of brain breaks.
~ Tanya, 10th grade student with a diagnosis of anxiety and PDD
“My AP Stats grade went up.”
The amount of work in my AP Stats class was overwhelming. But, I needed this class so I could stand out on my college applications. My coach showed me how to study more efficiently. We changed my schedule so I could do more assignments while I was at school, which helped. My AP Stat grade went up and that's cool."
~ Craig, 11th grade student with a diagnosis of ADHD
“I'm getting better at doing practice problems on my own.”
“Some of the things I will do differently are take my time and not rush through math problems, try to be more patient when I get the wrong answer (that's going to be tough), and send my questions to my teacher so I don't get stuck. I'm getting better at doing practice problems on my own."
~ Rick, 9th-grade student with a diagnosis of ADHD and a history of math avoidance.
For the insights of mental health professionals...
They have influenced my parenting and educational therapy practices.
That's why I asked a licensed clinical social worker with over 20 years of experience helping teens, to create math anxiety coping strategies exclusively for Math Confidence Academy.
Her expert insights on anxiety and behavior pairs perfectly with my teaching approach, which is rooted in how the brain learns best.
Your family gets the best of both worlds: top-notch expertise that delivers fast results without overwhelming your student. It's a unique academic approach you won't find anywhere else.
Please note: This is not a therapeutic program.
When you work with us...
Personalization
Choose your focus based on your teen's primary challenge. Whichever path you select, your teen will follow a customized plan tailored to their specific needs.
Intimate Start for Trust & Connection
Students enter the program in cohorts of 5 to ensure they have a supportive peer group and receive personalized attention. This small-group orientation creates a safe, low-pressure environment where anxious teens can gradually build confidence and comfort with math.
Targeted Skill-Building
Following orientation, your teen will engage in weekly Saturday Zoom sessions that blend skill-building and self-management training, applying new techniques directly to their current math assignments. Led by a coach versed in our methodology, these interactive sessions introduce new skills and provide ample practice time, ensuring your teen can implement what they learn.
Coaching & Accountability
Your teen will benefit from weekly check-ins with a dedicated coach, ensuring consistent support and guidance. These personalized sessions provide problem-solving strategies, motivation, and accountability, empowering your teen to overcome obstacles and achieve their math goals with confidence.
Progress Reports
Weekly progress reports keep you informed of your teen's growth and achievements, motivates students and allows us to fine-tune their learning plans. These insights provide you with peace of mind and equip you to effectively support your teen's journey at home.
Parent Office Hours
Our Parent Office Hours provide you with expert answers to your most pressing questions about supporting your teen's math journey. These sessions also offer a valuable opportunity to connect with fellow parents who understand the unique challenges of nurturing our teens' success and self-esteem in competitive academic environments.
But you'll only pay a fraction of this!
Choose from these flexible payment plans
Register by September 30 and receive:
BONUS #1: A ticket to our invitation-only October parent event with a College Admission Counselor (date TBD). Hear advice on what to disclose about anxiety and ADHD on college applications. Learn how to address past academic challenges on college application. Can't make it live? Send your questions in advance and listen to the session recording.)
BONUS #2: A copy of my new ebook for teens when it's published Math Test Mastery.
Unsure if this is the right fit for you or have questions?
Message me hereLittle Victories => Big Wins
Our secret sauce is our ability to motivate and engage students with continual progress monitoring. Every week we collect client wins. These wins aren't just feel-good moments—they're signs of real progress in getting unstuck, tamping down math anxiety, and working independently.
Some of the wins our students have shared...
And, here's what can happen when your family addresses math anxiety & builds skills
A parent shared this in our parent group...
"She sent me a text right after class saying she felt good. This has never happened before. Usually she's in tears."
Parent of a high school freshman with a diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder who just took her math final.
A fun email from a sports parent...
"He said he used the visualization exercises at the free throw line! He made all of his shots [laughing emoji]. Thanks so much to you and your coaches. He ended the year just where we needed him to."
Parent of a highly ranked high school player seeking college athletic scholarships.
A parent's self- reflection…”
"I was terrible at math. And, I was inadvertently passing on my fears to my girl. She's very bright but has always struggled in math. Your coaching came at the right time. Her confidence is so much better. She's even looking at majors that require considerable math. She believes in herself more."
Parent of a high school sophomore with a diagnosis of anxiety.
But you'll only pay a fraction of this!
Choose from these flexible payment plans
Register by September 30 and receive:
BONUS #1: A ticket to our Invitation only to our October Zoom event with a College Admission Counselor (date TBD). Hear advice on what to disclose about anxiety and ADHD on college applications. Learn how to address past academic challenges on college application. Can't make it live? Send your questions in advance and listen to the session recording.)
BONUS #2: A copy of my new ebook for teens when it's published Math Test Mastery.
Unsure if this is the right fit for you or have questions?
Message me here
You watch in amazement as your teen tackles an hour of math homework with laser focus and unwavering confidence, a stark contrast to the frustration and tears that once filled your evenings.
Your teen's math teacher pulls you aside after class, smiling, as she shares how your child's steady progress and growing confidence have been a joy to witness over the past few months.
Your teen shares a heartfelt "thank you” for your unwavering support and investment in a program that changed the trajectory of their academic journey and life, affirming that every sacrifice was worth it.
The best strategies for teens?
The ones they'll use :).
Seriously, in my experience, a handful of simple, well-used strategies will outperform a confusing, overwhelming system every time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is this program best suited for, and how does it address the unique challenges faced by teens with anxiety, ADHD, or depression in learning math?
How does it differ from regular math tutoring, and what makes it more effective for struggling students?
What results can we expect, and how do you measure progress throughout the program?
What does a typical week in the program look like, and how much time will my child need to commit?
How is the program delivered, and what technology or materials does my child need to participate?
What are your coaches’ qualifications?
Can this program help with standardized test preparation, and how will the strategies taught benefit my teen in other subjects?
Is there homework outside the sessions, and how does this fit into my teen's existing school and extracurricular schedule?
How are parents involved?
What if my child's math grades don't improve?
What happens at the end of the 8 weeks?
What are the payment options, and is there a payment plan available?
What is your refund policy?
What if I have additional questions?
But you'll only pay a fraction of this!
Choose from these flexible payment plans
Register by September 30 and receive:
BONUS #1: A ticket to our Invitation only to our October Zoom event with a College Admission Counselor (date TBD). Hear advice on what to disclose about anxiety and ADHD on college applications. Learn how to address past academic challenges on college application. Can't make it live? Send your questions in advance and listen to the session recording.)
BONUS #2: A copy of my new ebook for teens when it's published Math Test Mastery.
Hey there super-parent :)
Do you ever feel like you're drowning in guilt and frustration when it comes to your teen's academic struggles? Like no matter what you do, you just can't seem to get it right?
I see you, and I want you to know you're not alone.
When your teen is dealing with ADHD, anxiety, or depression on top of the usual school challenges, it can feel like the weight of the world is on your shoulders. You're not just trying to help them excel in their classes; you're trying to navigate a whole system that doesn't always understand your child's needs.
But here's the thing: you're doing an amazing job. Even when it doesn't feel like it, you are exactly the parent your teen needs.
And I want to let you in on a little secret: there are strategies, tools, and resources out there that can make a world of difference for your teen and your whole family. It's just a matter of finding the right fit.
I've seen it happen time and time again with the families I work with. When you have a support system of folks who truly get it and when you're armed with the knowledge and the skills to advocate for your teen, school gets better.
The academic struggles are not longer insurmountable. Your teen starts to gain confidence, feel more in control of their learning, and believe in themselves.
And that is a beautiful thing to witness.
So if you're feeling stuck, if you're tired of going it alone, I want you to know that help is out there. Don't be afraid to reach out, to ask for guidance, to lean on those who have been where you are.
Because at the end of the day, this isn't just about your teen's college acceptance. It's about setting them up for a lifetime of success and happiness. And, giving them tools to chase their dreams, overcome any obstacle, and become the best version of themselves.
You've got this. And I'm right here cheering you on every step of the way.
With love and respect,
Dynell