Mr. Calbeck has been a teacher since 2007 and has taught in 5 states. He has won awards in all five states and was a finalist for teacher of the year in Colorado in 2019. Mr. Calbeck’s class was named Calbeckistan by his students in Colorado and the name stuck. Since then, Calbeckistan has come to stand for any place where his philosophies on teaching are alive and well and students are put first.
We pay money for puzzles and puzzle games. We love mysteries and challenges. If the ultimate puzzle game of the universe isn’t fun, somebody is doing something wrong. We focus on concepts and not memorization, so you truly understand what’s going on at a deep level. You’ll see the beauty and interconnectedness of math in new way. But we promise not to tell your friends if you find you end up enjoying it.
In Calbeckistan we teach students not content. You and your needs are always more important, and we work to make sure that you feel cared for. It means we love it when you ask questions! Don’t ever feel bad! There is never only one way to do math. If one way of explaining content isn’t working, we’ll find another way that does make sense. If you didn’t get it right the first time as we practice, that’s okay too!
If we learned nothing else since 2020, its that certain subjects are hard to learn online and that community is important. You can’t ask questions to a computer screen, a teacher can’t help you correct errors and learn from them on zoom. You can’t build community and relationships when everyone has their videos muted. We work in small groups so that every person gets individual attention but we have the benefit of multiple perspectives and the chance to make new friends.
Most tutoring companies want you to come in every week so that you continue to spend money all semester on their services. Our hope is to prepare you in a deep enough way that you don’t need our services any more. Our foundations class hopes to replace a weekly tutoring sessions all year with a focused 5-lesson class designed so you don’t need extra help throughout the semester.
Our most popular class. Instead of frantically trying to catch up before a test or desperately trying to understand a difficult assignment, what if you already understood the math? What if everything already made sense and you didn’t need help? How would it feel to be the expert in your class?
That is the goal of the Foundations class. A five week course taken right at the beginning of the semester, this course will give you everything you need so that you understand things during class! We fill in all the important concepts and strategies so you can be successful the first time.
Take 20% off or get a free final review session with the purchase of the entire class.
These are longer than normal classes split up into two parts. The first hour will be spent reviewing key ideas that will absolutely show up on any test a teacher might give you. The second half is for you to ask specific questions you have or go over your personal review. We keep the class size on this one even smaller than normal so we can guarantee that you get the one-on-one help you need.
If you are interested in a subject matter not currently offered, consider a personalized class! We can cater the content to your specific needs. Some examples of some custom classes include: Intro to Calculus, Preparation for High School, second semester Algebra 1 crash course. We can also do workshops for math educators or special study sessions for high school groups. To schedule a personalized class, please email Robert at robert@calbeckistan.com for pricing and details.
Here is our pricing, where you can set prices for different packages
Homework is not a typical part of any of the Calbeckistan classes. We do provide a review packet and materials so that you can study any necessary background information required before you come to your first class. Also we provide study guides and optional practice for anyone who wants to review our content at a later time.
We do not currently offer a virtual option. Calbeckistan Academy was started partly because of how terrible most virtual classes have been for so many students. We believe that there is something important and fundamental about being together in person. Currently all classes are offered in a small group setting.
It depends on the class, but we would hope you would have a basic concept of whatever class came directly before. For example, if you take our Trig Foundations class, we would expect you to have passed Algebra 2, or integrated 3, depending on your school. When you reserve a spot for a class, you will receive a list of content to review, as well as materials to help you remember anything you may have forgotten.
There are many things different about Calbeckistan Academy. First of all, our teachers are actual teachers in high school. Not only that, they are the best teachers. Have you ever taken a class from a teacher that completely transformed your view on the subject (in a good way)? We only hire teachers who fit this mold.
Secondly, we don’t try to fix the spots you are confused about, or help with homework. Our goal is to prepare you before the class starts or as a way to get you started. By giving you the foundations, the core ideas of your class, we help you not need tutoring in the first place. You’ll understand the WHY, so the HOW will feel so much easier. We will help you not have any gaps to fill in the first place.
Lastly, because we are helping before your class starts, we help make class more productive. Since you have the foundation, when your teacher is teaching you in your regular class, it will make so much more sense. When you do your homework, it won’t be confusing, it can actually be practice. Essentially our goal is to help make all the stuff you already do in class much more effective, so you can maximize your free time over the semester.
Calbeck cannot confirm or deny any abilities he may or may not have regarding hacking. Direct grade change is not a service we offer at this time, and would not recommend trying it, as it is illegal. However, we can guarantee after taking one of our foundations classes that you will have a better experience in math class, understand far more, and be more likely to have one of the best grades you’ve ever had in math.
Would you be interested in tutoring? Then here is our contact information.
