Kayla
Certified Tutor
Undergraduate Degree: University of Wisconsin Madison - Bachelor in Arts, English Language & Linguistics, Spanish Literature (Minors in TESOL and European Studies)
ACT English: 34
ACT Science: 31
Tennis, Painting, Salsa dancing, Reading, Running, Traveling
College English
College Geography
College Level American History
Comparative Literature
Conversational Spanish
High School English
High School Geography
High School Level American History
Other
Spanish 1
Study Skills
Study Skills and Organization
What is your teaching philosophy?
I firmly believe in tailored, communicative teaching, working with the interests and strengths of each student to help them improve as much as possible.
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
First, I like to get a good sense of who the student is, and what their needs are. I'll spend about 20 minutes asking about their interests, goals, and struggles. It helps me get a good picture of what the student needs--and how I can deliver motivating and interesting lessons most effectively.
How can you help a student become an independent learner?
In a word: scaffolding. We start with exercises and activities that are very structured and guided, and gradually ease into tasks that require more independent thought, analysis, and work. Each activity builds into the next one, so that by the time a student reaches the point of independent learning, they have confidence in the solid foundation of the work they've already done.
How would you help a student stay motivated?
Motivation is unique to each individual student, so I like to tailor my approach based on personality, goals, and interests. My baseline strategy is to use materials of interest to the student; if I have a student learning reading strategies who loves basketball, we'll definitely be reading about basketball. That way, tasks a student might normally find unpleasant or boring are enlivened by interesting and engaging material.
How do you help students who are struggling with reading comprehension?
I'm careful to break down the reading process into manageable steps with students who struggle in this area. We look at pictures, subtitles, and titles before actually reading anything, and then make some predictions. Next comes skimming for main ideas, outlining, and finally, we read for detail. I find that segmenting a big task like this into smaller and more specific tasks give students more direction and room read a pace that might be more comfortable and better for comprehension.