Child-Centric: Dr. Meenakshi Singh the founder of SMARTS saw a need for a learning center in which curriculum could be customized according to the academic or enrichment needs of the child. At SMARTS, our program is Child-centric, instead of the child having to fit into rigid “cookie cutter” type of programs offered by some franchises which do not even cater to their specific learning gaps. We develop a structured program that starts with assessing the student’s needs and individualizing the program accordingly.
Emphasis on Learning Styles: We at SMARTS believe that kids learn the most when we customize and match their learning style. We have playrooms with manipulative and Lego walls for brain breaks and full libraries where books are classified by their Lexile reading levels.
STEAM Learning Center: In addition to the academic programs we offer other STEAM based programs including, Science Lab, Robotics, and computer programming. SMARTS teams have consistently been successful winning many trophies and recognitions over the years including Judges Award, Champions Award, and Spirit Award. In 2018, FLL team coached by SMARTS was recognized by the Frisco City Council for their achievements. SMARTS founder, Dr. Meenakshi Singh, is very active in the community and serves as an Ambassador of E-Cyber mission and as a virtual judge for E-Cybermission which is the Army Educational Outreach Program to promote STEAM in local schools for the US Army.
SMARTscore: After many pilot studies and research, SMARTS created a customized diagnostic test called SMARTScore which follows an algorithm to show parents the current academic skills of kids. The SMARTScore is used to customize the program to keep the child challenged beyond the grade level if and when it becomes necessary
Teaching Creative problem solving: Albert Einstein once said ‘Education is not learning of facts but the training of minds to think’, we at SMARTS strongly believe in that. It is important that knowledge acquired through education can be applied to everyday situations and problem-solving. We coach teams of elementary to High school kids participating in different competitions like Destination Imagination, First Lego Leagues, Future Cities, giving our students a good platform for problem-solving and come up with their own solution through design thinking. It is an exhilarating experience to see the teams work together and win trophies by young adults.
Annual Competitions: Being a big proponent of competitions, we started hosting our annual spelling bee and hosting Math Kangaroo which became a huge hit in DFW area as we included kids from kinder and above who are normally excluded from such competitions organized by public schools. From 12 participants, we have grown over 150 last year. We also offer USCF rated tournaments and Chess classes for beginner as well as intermediate and advanced levels.
For any questions or comments, write to meenakshi@smartsclub.net