Kumon study helped ignite 13-year-old Hadiya's love of reading and writing

At Kumon we aim to instil a love of reading in all of our students regardless of their programme of study, for the skills gained through reading will benefit them in all areas of their lives.

One student who has developed a passion for reading throughout her Kumon journey is 13-year-old Hadiya, who hopes to be an author when she is older.

Hadiya has recently completed the English programme at the Kumon Wembley Park Study Centre and studied to an advanced level on the maths programme as well.

We caught up with Hadiya as she reflected on all she has experienced and achieved on the Kumon programmes.

Hadiya said: "I have learnt a lot about perseverance and to never give up. There is always a solution, it just sometimes takes time to find it.

"I have developed good analytical skills and an eye for detail, meaning I'm able to quickly skim texts to find key information. A few of the stories I studied with Kumon I'm now learning in school, so I'm at an advantage because I am already familiar with their themes and topics. I feel my learning at Kumon will help me a lot when I come to study more challenging texts at school.

"Knowing the basics of multiplication, division, addition and subtraction properly has really helped me to grasp the harder equations, and having studied algebra and graphs on the higher levels of the maths programme means I am able to finish work ahead of my classmates.

"I really enjoyed reading all the different book passages on the worksheets. When they left on a cliff-hanger I would go and buy the book afterwards so I could find out the ending; it was through reading these texts and others that I decided I wanted to become an author.

"Answering the comprehension questions also gave me ideas and inspiration for my own stories.

"The team constantly helped me and I was given a lot of encouragement by my Instructor; her constant praise gave me an extra boost!"

It's great to hear how the varied selection of books covered on the Kumon English Programme encouraged Hadiya's enthusiasm for reading and writing; and Hadiya's poem below clearly demonstrates her skill, creativity and passion for literature:

Wonders of the World
The ripples of the waves, glistening in the sun.
The sun shining high in the sky.
The sky, a vast area of sun and clouds.
The clouds a wondrous source of rain.
The rain, in different forms, sometimes a drizzle, sometimes a drop.
The drop, and the drip, as it falls into the sea.
The sea an enormous land filled with water and fish.
The fish, with a variety of magnificent colours.
The colours of a rainbow shining after a storm.
The storm full of bright thunder and lightning.
The lightning as it appears as fast as the Flash.
As I sit back and think about all that I've thought
I realise something I've never before.
Forget about the Statue of Liberty or India's Taj Mahal.
Or the Eiffel Tower or China's Great Wall.
Forget about all these things that have no importance to me.
Because I've found the true Wonders of the World, you see.

Congratulations to Hadiya for completing the English programme, and we wish her well as she works towards her dream job as an author!