The presence of friends helps studying. Math and Reading Help quotes Barbara Gross Davis, author of "Tools for Teaching," as saying, "students working in small groups tend to learn more of what is taught and retain it longer." After-school homework clubs offer children the chance to work together, reinforcing and explaining concepts to each other. The child teaching can learn as much as the child being taught.
In addition to peer support, many educational support groups provide free one-on-one volunteer tutoring. Programs like Reading-One-to-One, which places at-risk children with volunteers, boast a four to six month increase in reading ability in one study conducted at a Dallas elementary school. Targeted children included "low-income, minority and second-language English learners." Many opportunities exist to hire private tutors from established companies as well.
Washington University offers a tutoring program called Each One Teach One. Students, faculty or staff commit to three hours of weekly tutoring to children in kindergarten through sixth grade or 10th through 12th grade. Each One Teach One provides transportation and training. In Milwaukee, Manpower employees tutor children at corporate headquarters, giving some children their first glimpse at the corporate world.
Evidence shows the effort to enroll your child in a group is worth the effort. Find Youth Info sponsors a website where parents can seek aftercare programs by ZIP code. Also check with local community centers, settlement houses, full-service schools, museums and libraries. Contact your school and inquire if anyone there is interested in starting a group. Contact the school counselor. The American School Counselor Association lists academic skill support as one of its roles.