Tutoring in Kansas City, Missouri
Kolu is software. Nobody from Kolu will drive to your house in Kansas City, and we have no office there. If you want a person, this page says how we would look for one. If the question is which skill is missing, we can help with that part.
The city limits of Kansas City take in many separate school districts. Kansas City Public Schools serves the central city south of the Missouri River. North of the river, most addresses fall in North Kansas City Schools or Park Hill, and the south and east sides belong to Center, Hickman Mills, Raytown and others. Inside the Kansas City Public Schools boundary, families can also pick from independent charter schools, and the district runs signature schools that take applications. One of them, Lincoln College Preparatory Academy, has admission requirements.
State tests Kansas City students take
| Grade | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading and writing | MAP Grade-Level | MAP Grade-Level | MAP Grade-Level | MAP Grade-Level | MAP Grade-Level | MAP Grade-Level | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested |
| Math | MAP Grade-Level | MAP Grade-Level | MAP Grade-Level | MAP Grade-Level | MAP Grade-Level | MAP Grade-Level | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested |
| Science | Not tested | Not tested | MAP Grade-Level Science | Not tested | Not tested | MAP Grade-Level Science | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested | Not tested |
- MAP Grade-Level (Missouri Assessment Program Grade-Level Assessments): reading and writing, math, grades 3 through 8
- MAP Grade-Level Science: science, grades 5 and 8
The A+ Scholarship requires a score of proficient or advanced on the Algebra I end-of-course exam, or on a higher-level math end-of-course exam. A student who takes Algebra I in middle school is sitting a test that counts toward that scholarship years later.
Testing dates and graduation rules for the whole state are on a separate page. Missouri guide
Kolu finds the missing skill and goes back to it
It starts with a skill check, a short test that gets harder or easier depending on the last answer. The result is a map of the subject broken into skills with their prerequisites drawn in, each one marked as solid, still being learned, or a gap.
After that, each session is a handful of activities picked for that student, usually something due for review, a gap to repair and one new skill. When an answer is wrong, Kolu looks at which earlier skill the mistake points to and goes back to it. Here is what that looks like for a sixth grader who can't divide fractions.
The problem on the page
3/4 ÷ 2/5
Dividing fractions
Grade 6
Multiplying fractions
Grade 5 · rests on the one below
Equivalent fractions
Grade 4 · usually where it started
Multiplication facts
Grade 3
Kolu does not call a skill mastered after one right answer. That takes correct work on different kinds of problems on different days, and a skill that fades gets brought back.
Kolu is not test prep for MAP Grade-Level. It has no bank of released questions. It teaches the skills the test draws on, and it will not do tonight's homework.
It runs in a browser, so it works the same in Independence, Lee's Summit, Liberty, Raytown, Gladstone and Blue Springs as it does in Kansas City.
When to hire a person instead
Some students need a person, and software is the wrong purchase for them. That includes a child who shuts down when the work gets hard, a student with a learning disability who needs someone trained in it, and anyone with an exam in ten days.
In Kansas City, ask the school first. Teachers know who tutors, and a counselor at Kansas City Public Schools can tell you what the district already offers at no cost. After that, try students at University of Missouri-Kansas City, Rockhurst University, Kansas City Art Institute or Metropolitan Community College, who took these courses recently and usually charge less than an agency.
Whoever you hire, ask one question before the first session: how will you find out what my child doesn't know? If the answer is that they will go over the homework, keep looking.
Free for one subject, $15 a month for 5
Kolu is free for one subject at a time, with one full skill check every 30 days and up to 4 sessions a day. Plus is $15 a month, or $120 for a year, and covers 5 subjects at once with unlimited skill checks. A learner under 13 needs a parent or guardian to set up the account.