Idaho Falls

IDAHOFALLSMAGAZINE.COM 19 ized learning plan designed to address each student's needs, whether they started out far behind or are already ahead in math." Brenda and Jeff work with six tutors in Idaho Falls who are all background checked and Mathnasium trained. "I also want them to be relatable because when a student comes in here, they don't want to sit down and feel like they're sitting in class with their teacher," Brenda said. "That's not what they need." When a student comes in for the first time, they are given an assessment to identify the gaps in learning and prepare the tutors to fill those in. According to the Barnards, the most holes appear when assessed after the third, seventh and ninth grades as students begin multiplication, pre-algebra and algebra. "A lot of kids will get those first couple of years," Jeff said. "But as soon as it goes from a plus to an X, there's several that are like —" He threw his hands up in the air. "— and then you throw division in there, and they're like, 'I don't even know what you're doing.' " Once the assessment is complete, the stu- dent works through problems with the help of tutors. They move around the room from person to person, so each student gets more than one tutor to help with any difficulties. Brenda and the tutors also use other tactics to teach the students. They draw pictures, bring out blocks, coins and other learning tools. Occasionally, they'll play games as a group to help learn some of the concepts. Mathnasium also has a rewards system in place, allowing the students to work towards prizes by learning concepts and completing mastery checks. "It's amazingly very motivating," Brenda said. "You know they're working hard, and they're going to get rewarded for it." Brenda said she loves to see the differ- ence in the kids. "Just recently, we've had a young girl who's only been here for — I would say, two weeks," Brenda said. "When she came in here, she would not make eye contact, would not look at us. And when she left today, she said, 'Bye, Brenda!' That makes me feel like I've achieved that one goal that we want this to be a comfortable place." Mathnasium continues to be a place with ground-breaking ideas and math help for the children who come through. And many of them, including me, can answer the question on Mathnasium's win- dow due to Brenda, Jeff and the tutors. What is 7% of 250? Most kids dream of being adults. They can't wait to be doctors, astronauts or paleontologists. Well, Kids' Town, located on 1520 N Hitt Rd in Ammon, helps chil- dren live their dreams today. Roys Tatton, who owns Kids' Town with his wife, describes the discovery center as a "miniature town for kids." The center offers 10,000 square feet of play areas designed to help children learn about the world while still having fun. This "miniature town" contains every- thing a tiny city might have including a pizza restaurant, a doctor's office, a school, a bank, a grocery store, a gas station and there's also little cars for them to drive around on a track. The "town" even has its very own castle and life-sized pirate ship. That's just half of the facility. The back half of the building is designed for the learning and exploration of older children with play areas like wind tunnel tubes, an earthquake table, a construction table and a dinosaur digging pit furnished with a large Brontosaurus. Each station is designed to be interactive and provide real-world, hands-on experi- ence for the children. Individual sections are equipped with dress-up clothes, tools, desks, chalkboards, etc. appropriate for each area. Tatton and his wife, Lauren, first found inspiration for Kids' Town while living in Connecticut four years before opening the center. The Tatton's had their first daughter while living there and spent many hours at children's museums. After moving to Idaho Falls, the couple realized there weren't a lot of the same interactive kids' centers for their children to attend, so they decided to bring one here. "You know, we wanted to improve educa- tion and improve kid's learning other than electronics," Tatton said. "We saw there were a lot of young families in the area so we thought this is something that would work." With children of their own, Tatton said he and his wife want to give kids in the com- munity a new creative outlet and a place where parents can teach and play with their children in new ways. Kids' Town offers educational entertain- ment beyond pirate ships and pretend gro- cery stores. The center also has a preschool for children three to five years old and dance lessons. Preschool classes for the 2019-2020 school year begin on September 4. Parents can reg- ister their kids at kidstownatthefalls.com/ preschool, though spots are filling quickly. The center holds six-week-long dance classes. These classes include a 2-year-old child and mom dance, three to four-year-old dance, three to four-year-old ballet, four to five-year-old ballet, four to five-year-old jazz, and jazz for children six years old and older. The Tatton's try to keep Kids' Town as an active part of the community by sponsor- ing parts of the library summer reading program, allowing public school field trips and reaching out to parts of the home- schooling community. Kids' Town Business Hours are: Monday 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Tuesday–Friday 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Closed Sundays Visit www.kidstownatthefalls.com for more information about planning events or signing up for the preschool or dance school at Kids Town. A New Kind of Learning Community BY TORRY BARNES IF IF

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