“Thank you Focus Education for returning our daughter’s belief in her gifts rather than her challenges. She no longer fears what she cannot immediately grasp, believing in herself and knowing that it’s OK if she doesn’t get it right the first time. Focus Education has taught both me as a parent and my child, that children learn in different ways and to learn successfully begins with knowledge of self”

Hi Sean & Catherine,

Mackenzie was awarded an Academic Achievement Award at yesterday’s mid year Academic Assembly!! This was such a nice surprise for all of us and we are so pleased with the way he has approached his start to Year 11 studies.
Many thanks to everyone at Focus for the support and encouragement, he really does enjoy the sessions with you and now he can see the results 🙂
Thanks again and we look forward to another great term!

Kind Regards

“I learn more in my weekly lesson at Focus than I do in three Maths lessons at school”

Dear Catherine, Sean, Jess and the Focus team,

“Thank you so much for all the time and effort you have put into Ava this year. We have really seen her confidence grow from her time spent at Focus. Even though there is a long way to go, the results are already paying off based on her report card and looking at her school work. Thank you for recognising the way she learns and imparting that knowledge to us. Thank you for being patient and making learning fun. Thank you for everything.”

“Focus Education has provided me with a sound background and knowledge needed to achieve way beyond my expectations. A thorough grounding in Maths and English has enabled me to approach all of my lessons with confidence and understanding. I now have the ability to achieve goals and perform at a level I would have never thought attainable. I have been in the Focus family for some time now and have grown stronger with the knowledge and learning that a caring and warm environment can provide. Thank you, Catherine!”

“Now that I know my times tables, I can finally do division like the really smart kids in my maths class. My teacher actually moved me up two Maths groups and I can even keep up. ”

“I used to find essay writing a real problem. I would often stray off topic and not have any real structure to my work. Since coming to Focus I now know how to structure my essay properly. I’m now getting the English marks I think I’m worth.”

Thank you soooo much Catherine and Sean for giving my son Zach such a great start to the year. He really enjoyed himself and told me that he’s feeling so much more confident already. I’m so pleased to see him so inspired about learning 🙂

Dear Sean, Catherine and Jess

Thank you for all you efforts with Flynn’s tutoring over the past 12 months. It has made a huge impact on his performance at school and his self confidence with regards to his own abilities. We were thrilled with his achievements towards the end of last year which included a school term maths award, a distinction in the Newcastle Permenamt Maths Competition and selection for extension class placement for year 7. A definite reflection on the work he has been doing at tutoring and the support of his year 6 teacher.

Kind Regards

Hi Sean and the Whole Focus Team,
Just wanted to send you a quick note to let you know that Daniel has been successful in obtaining a place at Gosford Selective High School. He is very pleased and looking forward to moving on to the new year!
Thank you again for all of your support.

“My teacher says that I’m the best reader in my class now. She has to go next door to Year 2 to get me harder books. I’ve read most of the books in my Year 1 class.”

My son came out of his first session with a big smile. He said, “well mum, I know it sounds strange but I actually liked it.” He only had good things to say. He loved the mindfulness and the singing bowls and he marvelled at how much he got though without feeling like he was struggling.

Thank you for making him feel welcome, and safe at your school. It warms my heart. This is the best feedback a mum can hear.

Focus Education provides excellent support in both English and Maths. My time here has been beneficial, with evident improvements in my overall academic results. The tutors here are kind and friendly and is always ready to assist you.

I first started tutoring when I was in Year 9 and was very hesitant at first. I have never been very gifted with Maths but from the first day at Focus Education I knew that it would be worthwhile. Before class had even started, the teachers at Focus Education made an effort to get to know me as a person and understand my strengths and weakness. Since I began tutoring four years ago, my Maths has improved dramatically and I have moved up several classes since, my results have improved, and Maths is far less of a challenge than it has ever been. I would strongly recommend Focus Education to everyone, the people are great, the teaching style is effective, and it has seriously helped turn my learning around.

Our daughter has been having tutoring with Catherine and Sean from Focus Education for the past 3 and 1/2 years. After an initial assessment, a targeted program was implemented to work on key areas where she was behind. As we know with mathematics, if stages are missed or not laid down thoroughly before moving on to the next topic, it is often extremely difficult to pick up the slack and the gap continues to widen. Success in Maths is largely to do with confidence. Catherine, Sean and their team’s approach really targets this area, together with gentle guidance and stress management techniques. This really suited our girl, we noticed that her confidence was improving, along with her results in a relatively short period of time. In the space of 2 terms she moved from 89th in the year to 40th….a remarkable achievement! She would not have attained this result without their dedication, structured program and assistance with exam preparation. Even though our daughter was committed and focussed, she needed an individualised, regular program. Catherine, Sean and their team have a holistic approach acknowledging the role of stress management, whereby they employ calming strategies which help the children tap into their potential, creating an optimal learning environment. Our daughter is progressing really well and is now in year 11, she received an A on her Semester 1 report. We have decided however, to continue with tutoring to ensure that she continues to reach her full potential in this subject. She has gone from hating maths, to it being one of her favourite subjects, this is due to the fantastic efforts of the Focus Education team and for this we are truly grateful.

We discovered Focus Education in my son’s final year, when he was struggling with Maths. Catherine, Sean and the team took him from hating Maths to loving it and it ended up being one of his highest HSC marks. Mal – Umina Beach

We cannot thank you enough for everything you have done for both our daughters. You have definitely given Kasey the learnings she needed to control her own education and to have our daughter talking about being in the top maths class just shows how much she has learnt.

After a rather disappointing parent-teacher interview where I was informed that my daughter was a lovely girl but math wasn’t for her, I left feeling like I had let her down. So I decided to go searching for a tutor. Through my google search I came across a tutoring service that developed their technique around the style in which your child learns…awesome! Obviously a school teacher cannot tailor the class to every individual. My daughter has now attended tutoring with Focus for over 2 years, at the start she was only achieving approx. 50% in any math exam, after 12 months she was at 96-98%. My biggest regret is that I didn’t start her earlier but better late than never! Catherine has done a fantastic job with her, not only in a results orientated way – she has also helped her to understand how important a study plan is & this has made her more organized.

Receiving tutoring at Focus Education for Math has taught Bianca that through extra work she can improve her ability to do something that she previously found difficult. It also helped her to break the cycle of finding Math difficult, then not liking it and then not wanting to do it. The other day she was even explaining concept to other kids her class, which really boosted her positive feeling toward Math as a subject!

As a long-time student of Focus Education, I believe that they have enabled me to further my education and academic skills. Additionally, they are fully committed to my studies and have honed my academic weaknesses to improve it. Truly, Focus Education has aided me in achieving high marks and formed a backbone to my school life.

I have no doubt that our son Alec’s English grade would not have improved without the help of Focus Education! He is more confident in his studies and has greater self-esteem.
Focus Education identified the areas that needed work and the year of tutoring brought him up to speed. Alec’s writing skills and ability to develop ideas are markedly improved, and he is well on the way to developing his essay writing skills for not only English, but all subjects.
Alec was taught by Sean in primary school and commented on several occasions that it was one of his favourite years! Last year he asked if he could have some English tutoring and our prior experience of Sean made it an easy decision to contact Focus Education. Sean’s ‘holistic’ approach to education has renewed Alec’s love of learning!
From the bottom of our hearts – Thankyou!

My stepson had always struggled with his school work. I knew by the time he got to year eight, we had limited time to get him the help he needed. I knew conventional tutoring would not work, we didn’t need another regurgitator of information, we needed people who could connect to him and understand his learning needs. As a life coach, I noticed my stepson was a kinesthetic learner, and it was imperative that we found people who understood what this meant. We found Focus Education at Erina and enrolled him in maths and english. Two years later, and now having just completed year 10, we have a boy who has gone from failing maths, english and other subjects to now having a boy who achieved distinctions for his maths final – topping the end of year exam and also, achieving 76% in English. His other subjects having been positively affected too. The most wonderful thing is, observing the positive shift in his confidence. He has gone from being a child who believed he was ‘stupid’, to a boy now who is confident about his abilities. The first time he scored a great result in maths, he rushed to the office and asked if he could call his dad. The staff thought he was sick and enquired as much, he said, “no, I just want to call my dad to tell him about my maths mark”. That response (to me) means more than the mark itself. Because it is evidence that he was awoken to his ability. How outstanding is that?! This process has lifted his personal standards, he now expects more from himself, informing me after an 89% exam result, that he was disappointed. This boy has changed!

I cannot recommend Focus Education enough. They are not just tutors. They are people who are capable of waking a child out of their negative belief systems and introducing them into a world of great personal achievement and therefore expanded possibilities.

If you are considering tutoring for your children, I highly and thoroughly recommend you contact Focus Education.

I have had a great experience with Focus Education. They are super friendly and happy to help with anything that you are unsure with. Since the start of the year I have moved up to the top math group all because of the help of Focus Education. I would 100% recommend Focus Education to a friend as it helps with math or English and is fun at the same time! The teachers there are encouraging towards your work and will explain anything that you don’t know. I really enjoy going to Focus Education every week and I would definitely recommend it to anyone.

Catherine and Sean have helped me with Math since I was in Year 7. Starting high school was very different from primary school. The lessons moved very quickly and we didn’t stay on the same subject for long. I started having trouble keeping up and understanding. Catherine has helped me to understand the concepts by showing me a way of learning differently.
Catherine has been very patient with my learning. Going to tutoring has increased my confidence and my grades! I am now learning things ahead of my class so that when we come to a subject I am aware and confident.
Thanks for your time Catherine and Sean!!