Teaching is an ever-changing profession, so I take it upon myself to be a "Lifelong Learner" on a daily basis. I seize every opportunity to learn something new about myself or the world that I live in, along with finding new ways to apply what I've learned.

In a typical first session with students, I like to "break the ice" by assessing the types of students that I'm working with. I like to do activities that help me to learn about each student’s academic/personal likes and dislikes, and his or her academic strengths and weaknesses. This can be done with a "Getting to Know You" questionnaire.

The road to helping students become independent learners begins with helping them build their confidence in their own abilities to become successful learners. They need to know that they can successfully complete whichever task is placed in front of them. And as their parents and teachers, they need our overwhelming support in this process.

I would help students stay motivated by meeting with them regularly to give them a snapshot of their progress. With the help of basic assessments and progress reports, you can further guide students on where their strengths and weaknesses lie. Also, I would set reachable goals for my students to strive for that compliment on their hard work and efforts.

When a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, I first assure them that we can and will gain a better understanding. Then, we will proceed to viewing a few examples with me and the student working each problem together step by step. From there, I will have them try a few practice items on their own to see if they still need remediation, highlighting any victories along the way.