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Question: Hello! My Bay Area scholar is thriving at school and has been recently accepted into research program and needs help with following:

1. He is planning to take SAT and is looking for a tutor or coaching place for Reading and Writing section of SAT. We reached out to several places but are worried they wouldn’t work for him. Please kindly suggest some good places that have worked for families whose children excelled in math and struggled in English. We need help with only English part.
2. Need help with AP Language and Composition. We are looking for 1-1 help for not just doing well but actually learning the skill to write effectively and become a better communicator and learn rhetoric. Please kindly suggest best teachers who understand this demographic and are supportive.
3. He is planning to release an album but doesn’t know how to make it huge success. He needs help with spreading the word. He came up with inspirational pop music for teens. I would love to hear what can be done to increase the view count on Spotify.

We hope to hear from you soon. Thanks again for all your hard work, support and love.

Dear Young Scholar parent,

Thank you for writing in. First off, congratulations on your Young Scholar’s acceptance into their research program!

In preparation for that, it sounds like there’s a few areas where you’d like to pad out the support that your Young Scholar has. So, let’s dive right into answering your questions.

The first things that you mention—about supporting your student with test preparation—are common topics of conversation in our community. The types of writing that happen on the SAT and the AP Language exams are specific, so it makes sense that you want to find effective tutors for your Young Scholar. Since the SAT and AP exams are both administered by College Board, many of the strategies that students use on those exams are transferrable from one to another, so the answers to your first two questions can be summed up below.

• Amanda Yskamp is a tutor that has worked with many Young Scholars before.
• On this DMC thread, a parent mentions that they recommend Casey or Ashley at Eclipse Academy, which offers customized courses. Young Scholar families receive a discount at Eclipse; just mention your affiliation with Davidson Young Scholars when speaking with them.
• On this DMC thread, two Young Scholar parents and educators mention that they take private students.
• Independent education consultants and college planners may also be able to help with test prep and essay writing. You can find a list of such professionals that have worked with other Young Scholars in “Educational Consulting for the Gifted.”

Now, moving to your other question about your son’s pop music album: you’re already advertising for him by asking this! While that’s not an automatic ticket to streams on Spotify, it’s a great start. So, what else can your son do to get his music out there?

Since you mention that your family is in the Bay Area, let’s consider how you might get plugged into the local music scene:

• Formal Connections: San Francisco State University has a music program where students can earn a certificate in music production. We’re not suggesting that your Young Scholar pursues this path necessarily but getting to know some of the people in the program and how they get their projects out there can be a great start. Additionally, one of the SF Public libraries has a recording studio as part of their facilities. Librarians at that location might be additional points of connection—or they might be able to facilitate some networking opportunities for your Young Scholar.
• Local Businesses: If your Young Scholar is already attending concerts at local music venues, that’s great! If your family is looking for local venues to get plugged into the music scene and be around other musicians, you may try becoming a regular at local cafes, art studios, record/music stores, makers spaces, and other collectives. These places often allow local venues to hang posters about upcoming events.
• Open Mics and Performance Spaces: Many of the places listed above might also advertise their own open mic nights. Performing at an open mic is a great advertisement for one’s music (if your Young Scholar wants to perform). If they’re not interested in performing, attending open mic nights might be another place to break into the scene and connect with others on similar paths.

While none of these are straightforward methods to increasing music streams, one of the things that many independent musicians remark on is the value of their community in boosting their music to a wider audience. Since your Young Scholar is releasing an album, that’s a great time to get out there and share himself with the world a little bit more. Imagine this: He becomes a regular at a café, and attends their weekly open mic. After a few weeks of attending the open mic, he gets confident enough to sign up for a slot. After performing, some of the other regulars from the open mic start to chat with your Young Scholar and become friends. Eventually, your Young Scholars hosts an album release party at the open mic café with his group of friends.

By frequenting spaces with other musicians and starting to put himself out there in small ways, your Young Scholar is opening himself up to the possibility of his music reaching a wider audience. But, this path should be unique to your Young Scholar. If open mics aren’t his thing, keep trying and keep an open mind to unique ways to connect with other music lovers. If your Young Scholar has an artistic side, maybe he gets a foot in the door by drawing posters for other bands. The point is that this networking and community building doesn’t happen overnight. But building community over a shared love of music and desire to move others is a wonderful pursuit that many of us on earth share—so there are people out there!

As a final note, when your Young Scholar releases their album, we encourage you to post about it on the Davidson Exchange to share with other Young Scholar families! The families in our community are supportive of a diverse range of interests and are eager to offer their support to Young Scholars with passion and ambition.

If you’d like to dig deeper into any of the suggestions here, or if you have any follow up questions to anything mentioned in this discussion, please submit another Ask a Family Consultant. Otherwise, we hope to see you at an upcoming virtual event.

Warmly,

Your Family Consultant