Regents Specialists

Online Tutoring for the New York Curriculum

One-to-one tutoring built around New York's Next Generation Learning Standards, from elementary through AP coursework. Every tutor is matched to the Regents examination your child will actually sit, including the newly redesigned science exams.

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New York tutor
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Supporting families from Buffalo to Brooklyn
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Regents-Ready

Next Generation Standards in every lesson

Trusted by families

Recommended by parents and students for New York curriculum tutoring

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What New York Actually Tests

New York runs state assessments in grades 3–8 and Regents examinations in high school. The Regents are course-specific rather than grade-specific, which changes how preparation should work.

Next Gen

Next Generation Learning Standards, ELA & math

Grades 3–8

Annual ELA and mathematics assessments

Regents

Math, ELA, science and social studies exams

NYSSLS

NY State P-12 Science Learning Standards

A Regents examination is tied to a course, not a school year, so a student sits Algebra I whenever they take Algebra I, whether that is grade 8 or grade 9. Scores run to 100, with 65 the conventional passing threshold and 85 generally treated as the mastery mark for distinctions and scholarship consideration.

Recently Changed

The Science Regents Have Been Rewritten

New York has replaced its science Regents examinations with new exams aligned to the New York State P-12 Science Learning Standards. Earth and Space Sciences and Life Science: Biology were first administered in June 2025. Physical Science: Chemistry and Physical Science: Physics were first administered in June 2026. These replace the long-running Living Environment and Physical Setting examinations.

This is not a cosmetic renaming. The NYSSLS are an adaptation of the Next Generation Science Standards, which assess science differently: students are asked to interpret unfamiliar phenomena, analyse data and construct explanations, rather than recall content. The new exams also carry required laboratory investigations. A student who prepares by memorising the old reference tables and drilling past Physical Setting papers will be well prepared for an exam that no longer exists.

Because the transition included an overlap period so that students could sit the exam matching the instruction they received, it is worth confirming with your child's school which version applies to them. We match tutors to the specific examination your child is entered for.

Subject Specialisms

Targeted support across every core subject, from elementary foundations through AP and college-level coursework. Each subject links to a dedicated page with tutor profiles and topics covered.

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Where Students Need Help, Grade by Grade

Difficulties rarely appear where they are first noticed. These are the stages where New York students most often lose ground, and what tends to be behind it.

Grades K–2

Number sense, place value and reading fluency. Nothing is formally tested yet, which is exactly why gaps at this stage go unnoticed until the grade 3 assessments begin.

Grades 3–5

The first years of state ELA and mathematics assessments. Fractions are the usual sticking point, and the shift from decoding words to analysing texts is the one in ELA.

Grades 6–8

Ratios, proportional reasoning and algebraic thinking. This determines whether a student takes Algebra I in grade 8, which is the point at which Regents examinations begin for many students.

Grades 9–12

The Regents sequence, diploma type decisions, and the 85-plus scores that matter for distinctions and scholarships. Earlier gaps become expensive here.

Diploma Pathway

Local, Regents and Advanced Regents

New York issues more than one kind of diploma, and the difference is decided by Regents performance. The Advanced Regents diploma requires a broader set of examinations, typically including three mathematics Regents and two sciences plus a language requirement. It is the recognised marker of a full college-preparatory programme.

Mathematics is usually the deciding subject. A student who struggles through Algebra II often steps back from the Advanced Regents pathway, and that decision is made quietly in grade 10 or 11 rather than deliberately. It is the single place where tutoring most often changes which diploma a New York student leaves with.

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Common Regents Examinations

  • Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II
  • English Language Arts
  • Life Science: Biology
  • Earth and Space Sciences
  • Chemistry and Physics
  • Global History and US History

Diploma and assessment requirements are set by the New York State Education Department and the Board of Regents, and are currently under revision. Always confirm current requirements with your school counselor.

Why Math Make Smart Works for New York Students

Matched to the Right Exam

With the science Regents newly rewritten, the exam a student sits depends on when they took the course. Tutors are matched to the specific examination your child is entered for, not to a generic subject.

Rubrics, Not Just Content

Regents scoring rewards method and explanation, and constructed-response questions carry partial credit. We teach students how marks are actually awarded, which is often worth more than additional content review.

Progress You Can Read

Written summaries after every session and a bi-weekly report showing which standards have been mastered and which still need attention, in the language of the Regents syllabus.

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New York Curriculum Questions, Answered

The questions New York parents ask us most often about the Regents, standards and diplomas.

Are the Regents exams being phased out?

The requirement to pass them in order to graduate is changing, but the exams themselves are not simply disappearing. New York is moving toward a broader set of ways for students to demonstrate readiness, and the graduating class of 2027 is expected to be the last cohort required to pass Regents examinations to earn a diploma. The exams are still being administered, and federal law still requires testing in mathematics, English and science. In practice, a student in high school now should prepare exactly as before, and the change matters most for families with children currently in middle school.

Why is my child sitting a different science Regents than their older sibling did?

Because the exams were replaced. Earth and Space Sciences and Life Science: Biology were first administered in June 2025, and Physical Science: Chemistry and Physical Science: Physics in June 2026, all aligned to the New York State P-12 Science Learning Standards. They take the place of Living Environment and the Physical Setting examinations. Past papers from the old exams are of limited use, because the question style has changed rather than just the content.

What score should we actually be aiming for?

Sixty-five is the conventional passing mark, but 85 is the number worth planning around. It is widely treated as the mastery threshold and carries weight for diploma distinctions and scholarship consideration. The gap between a 78 and an 85 is usually a small number of constructed-response marks rather than a large body of missing knowledge, which makes it one of the most achievable targets in the whole system.

Should my child take Algebra I in grade 8?

Only if the grade 6–8 material is genuinely secure, because in New York this decision means sitting a Regents examination a year early. Accelerating a student who has not consolidated ratios and proportional reasoning tends to produce a weak Algebra I result that then sits on their record. Taking Algebra I in grade 9 still leaves a full pathway to Algebra II, Precalculus and Calculus.

Does New York still teach Common Core?

Not under that name. New York revised its standards and adopted the Next Generation Learning Standards for English language arts and mathematics, which are now what state assessments are built on. Science follows the New York State P-12 Science Learning Standards, an adaptation of the Next Generation Science Standards. The practical consequence is the same one that applies across the country: national tutoring materials sequence topics differently, so tutors need to be matched to New York's standards and to the specific Regents examination a student is entered for.

Ready to build real confidence in the New York curriculum?

Start with a free assessment. We'll find out where your child actually stands against the Next Generation Learning Standards and match them with a tutor who knows the exact Regents examination they are preparing for.