“At our school, it’s cool to like math and science,” says Black Pine Circle, and from 5th grade on students can join one of three after-school math clubs, whose teams enter MATHCOUNTS and the AMC 8. Our UC Berkeley tutors enjoy a hard problem as much as those students do, and they are patient with younger learners.
Tell us about your student, and we’ll match them with a UC Berkeley tutor who fits.
We tutor Black Pine Circle students from 5th grade through 8th: math and math team problems, lab science, English essays and, for 8th graders, high school entrance tests.
Meet our tutors
Mild, medium or spicy
In Upper School math, students finish a set of foundational problems and then choose how far to go, from optional Higher Order Thinking problems to algebra sets labeled mild, medium and spicy. A tutor gives your student the footing to pick the spicy set, and works through competition problems with students on a math team. Learn more about our middle school tutoring.
Science every week
Every Black Pine Circle student does hands-on science each week, and the Q Lab has its own classrooms for earth, physical and life science. In 7th grade, students study human anatomy and physiology, with dissections. A UC Berkeley tutor goes deeper with your student into whatever the class is studying. Learn more about our science tutoring.
Our tutors, in parents’ own words
All reviewsFind a math tutor“Our tutor is truly amazing! He is so patient, explains things well, asks great questions, and checks for understanding. Owen really enjoyed working with him and they accomplished so much. This is really a game changer for us! I had high hopes and he exceeded them.”
Find a reading tutor“The girls have loved their time with her, and it showed: Clara's CAASPP score was excellent and Ruby has done tremendous improvement in her reading from below grade level to at grade level!”
“Thanks for your tremendous partnership over many years!”
Find a math tutor“Your program really helped us. Henry pulled up his English last year to an A, and his next tutor helped him pull up his math and bio.”
“Everyone is looking for tutors and I said you're the best.”
Find a math tutor“She found a perfect match for my son… He is stellar. My son has grown leaps and bounds in math. Our tutor is not only a subject matter expert but teaches very well, highly prompt, flexible when needed.”
Find a math tutor“My daughter went from a C in Algebra II to an A- in one semester. The tutor was great, she really related to my daughter and made learning fun for her.”
Find a reading tutor“We had an incredible experience with our daughter's previous tutor from Cardinal for a couple of years!… She is doing really well with her reading and comprehension and I think our tutor put her at two grade levels ahead.”
Find an online tutor“Their response time is outstanding. Neil responded quickly to my tutoring request for my 15-year-old. Love knowing that I have access to these high-quality services for my children. And, we use them via Zoom since we live in Tennessee. I cannot say enough great things about this business:)”
Find a Tutor“Very professional service with excellent teachers. My son loved his teacher, called him the best he ever had! I can very highly recommend it.”
Find a Tutor“I am usually not one to write a review, but I wanted to communicate how great Cardinal Tutors was for my child. They had a very flexible plan which helped accommodate my child's needs and I saw a tremendous return (grade-wise) from their services. Could not recommend more highly.”
Find a coding tutor“I have been absolutely impressed by her lessons over the past few months. Lily also loves working with her. She has been making great progress with her programming and writing.”
“I find your tutor quality to be excellent and a perfect fit!”
Find a math tutor“The subsequent long term tutor that we had for pre calc and for ACT tutoring was amazing. She was completely professional, organized, thorough and easy to work with.”
Find a math tutor“You have been a wonderful inspiration for Eli and we are very grateful for having you in the past half-year!”
Find a math tutor“My son had a wonderful experience with Cardinal Tutors when he needed help with his High School math and science classes. It turns out my son also needed help staying organized with all his assignments, something that the tutor helped with as well.”
Find a coding tutor“The program has been awesome for us. Theo loves working with our tutor and has learned so much.”
“Our tutor is just outstanding — great with Theo and very communicative with me. Super helpful!”
Find a Tutor“I reached out to Cardinal Tutors and was lucky enough to find the most amazing tutor. I wish I had found him earlier.”
Find a math tutor“We used Cardinal Tutoring again in the Spring 2018 for precalculus. Once again, she had a great tutor she really liked and who really helped her this year. My daughter is a senior so we won't need Cardinal Tutoring again, but I highly recommend them!”
Find a math tutor“I wanted to thank you for finding our tutor who tremendously helped Sam with his math.”
Find a Tutor“We have had an excellent experience with Cardinal Tutors for the past two years. Neil was very responsive whenever we had any questions. We definitely strongly recommend them and plan on using them again in the near future.”
Find a math tutor“It was great to find a couple of really smart young women who helped not only with the subject matter, but became great role models.”
Find a Tutor“You connected Leo with a great tutor and made the process seamless.”
Find a math tutor“We used Cardinal Tutors and were happy with the level of professionalism and responsiveness we received. The math tutor selected for our son was a good match for him.”
Find a math tutor“Perfect fit to jumpstart my son's new habits and attitudes towards math.”
Find a math tutor“Nora enjoys her sessions with her tutor and it's already helping her confidence with math.”
Find a Tutor“CT is awesome-- they found a great tutor for us. Only wish they could find more!”
Find a Tutor“She is doing great at school, on top of her stuff… We loved working with you and will recommend to friends.”
Find a math tutor“My son looked forward to his time with his tutor and felt good about his efforts and progress.”
Find a Tutor“You and your team are doing an amazing job. Thanks for all the help!”
Find a Tutor“Iris loved working with her tutor!! … Also, I have another student for you — a friend of Iris's that needs help.”
Find a Tutor“Your matchmaking service is very clever and provides great options.”
Find a Tutor“We love our tutor! A great start, she is excellent and has jumped right in.”
Find a Tutor“We had our first tutoring session yesterday and it was fantastic!”
Find a math tutor“Our tutor has been a great fit for our family - she’s patient and friendly and explains math concepts in a way that my 10 year old daughter enjoys. My daughter says that her time with her tutor is the highlight of her day. She goes from a state of panic about math to confidence in just one hour.”
Find a Tutor“We have had an excellent experience with Cardinal Tutors for the past two years. Neil was very responsive whenever we had any questions. We definitely strongly recommend them and plan on using them again in the near future.”
Find a Tutor“She's a great tutor who has helped June progress.”
Find a Tutor“Thank you for selecting an excellent tutor for her.”
Find a Tutor“Our tutor is great! We are very happy with the service.”
Find a Tutor“It's been a great experience for our daughter with her tutor.”
From seminar to essay
Seventh-grade English is built around Socratic Seminar: the class reads one text closely and answers a launching question with evidence and reasoning. A tutor helps your student carry that discussion onto the page, in an essay that argues from the text. Learn more about our English and writing tutoring.
Applying to high school
About two-thirds of Black Pine Circle graduates go on to private or parochial high schools such as College Prep, Head-Royce, Bishop O’Dowd and Saint Mary’s, and the rest to public schools such as Berkeley High and Albany High. For 8th graders applying, our tutors cover every section of the HSPT, ISEE and SSAT and the pace each test sets. Learn more about our HSPT, ISEE and SSAT prep.
Tell us what your student is working on at Black Pine Circle, and we’ll match them with a UC Berkeley tutor. Sessions are one-on-one, at your home in Berkeley or online.
Tell us about your student, and we’ll match them with a UC Berkeley tutor who fits.




















