...I believe that every student is capable of boosting his or her baseline score on these tests, so long as he or she works hard to get to know the format of the tests and the most popular types of questions. I tutor because I love seeing students develop a genuine passion for the subjects they once disliked (such as math and science), once they understand the power of these subjects and their applications to...
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...experience of graduating from Medical school as an ophthalmologist, then pursuing a Ph.D. from PennState, followed by an M.H.A from PennState, has really trained me to be a lifelong student and learner. My almost four years of experience as an instructor/professor has given me the opportunity to pass on learning skills to students. My most rewarding feedback is when students learn how to learn independently. Then I know they are on the path to success,...
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I have spent more than 20 years working with elementary, middle and high school, college and ESL students on research, grammar, diction, and writing clarity and organization. I have degrees in Library & Information Science, Journalism, American Studies, and Sociology.
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...I also know how much having someone to guide and help you through the process can make a difference. Having been fortunate enough to have dedicated teachers and mentors help me through my own education, I want to do the same for you! Whether it be test prep tricks and tips, working on college essays, formatting resumes, learning to interview well, or just getting academic help in your classes to make sure you get the...
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...Having a strong foundation in quantitative and business courses allows me to tutor a wide range of subjects including algebra, statistics, finance, and business principles. My tutoring philosophy is centered on patience, adaptability, and clarity. I specialize in dissecting complex questions into manageable, logical procedures to build confidence and foundational comprehension. I have significant experience creating an inclusive learning environment for students with disabilities. For example, I once tutored a college student who was struggling...
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I have taught intellectual property law for the past two years and SAT preparation for the past 10 years. I am a great tutor because not only are my fundamental verbal and quantitative skills strong, but I am able to communicate my reasoning and problem solving skills quickly and clearly.... My teaching philosophy is to help empower students to stay calm and use what information they know to arrive at the correct answers on tests through...
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...experience in tutoring Latin, Attic Greek, math, science, test preparation, ESL, and college application essay editing. I attained the bulk of this experience tutoring students in the North Shore suburbs and students at selective enrollments high schools in Chicago. I believe that compassionate teaching based on the understanding that each student is an individual with particular strengths and weaknesses is the key to helping students improve and gain academic confidence. I provide my students with...
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...goal as a teacher and tutor is to break concepts down to make things easier to understand. In other words, I don't want to make things harder than they need to be. I use technology as much as possible and like to find resources that I can provide to my students to make their academic careers more enjoyable and manageable. I retired from the US Navy in 2015 after serving for 22 years on active...
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...both in person and working online with students across the country. My focus in coaching has been to emphasize philosophy and critical thought to prepare students to think through novel arguments on their own. I am passionate about teaching and tutoring because I love seeing students learn to be intellectually independent and think through problems on their own terms by developing their critical thinking skills. I have devoted my life to education because I am...
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...that they can understand by breaking the subject down using examples to make it simple and clear to understand. I have few hobbies besides my books, I love drawing flowers and traveling. I visited few places in the Caribbean and I took the opportunity to take pictures of the most beautiful flowers i could find to later draw and frame them. I also like going to the movies, comedy movies are my favorite.... I like to...
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...for an improved quality of life, and I try to impart this appreciation to all of my students while also showing them that going back to the basics and having fun while doing homework and studying for tests is absolutely possible and necessary in order to succeed in school. In my spare time, I enjoy reading, playing competitive volleyball, cooking healthy meals and creating new recipes in my kitchen and spending time with my nieces.
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...students move from planning a writing assignment to publishing it in a final draft! It is fun to ask students questions about their writing, help them edit their work, and offer words of encouragement. I learned fun and dynamic grammar and writing strategies when I taught English Language Learners in Beijing, China for 13 months two years ago. In my free time I love to read, watch old TV shows, spending time with friends, and...
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Hi! I am a retired teacher who taught Business and Information Technology for 23 years. I currently live in beautiful Wilmington, NC and am excited about being a Varsity Tutor!
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...a tutor I understand that each student learns at their own pace. I focus on mastery based learning where the student must demonstrate adequate aptitude in the theoretical and practical aspects of a subject before we move on to a different one. Emphasis is placed on teaching principles and nurturing independent thought for problem solving. As a tutor, I rely on being patient, having dynamic lessons, and on demonstrating how various aspects of a subject...
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...a little bit of personalized attention can go a long way when students are missing just one or two key points of understanding. I love seeing a concept click and inspiring confidence in my students as they advance through increasingly difficult topics. I also like tutoring test prep because there is no hiding behind the raw numbers, and I enjoy helping my students maximize their potential and achieve their goal scores. Sometimes, a little motivation...
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...interest is to utilize my knowledge in General Chemistry and Math to tutor others who are having difficulty with these subjects. I am currently attending the University of Maryland at Baltimore County for Math and Chemical Engineering B.S. degrees. I have been tutoring for over two years and absolutely love it! My teaching style depends on the student I am teaching. I am comfortable with any type of student and all learning styles and tailor...
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...and 12 graders and they achieved top 10 national rankings . These subjects include history and social studies. I also help and maximize students' potential for exams such as the SSAT, ISEE and the HSPT.Overall my tutoring style and philosophy is to essentially cover all bases so that my students or myself won't be surprised by any "trick" questions.I always try to be fair, patient and interesting so that students stay focus and can retain...
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...reading and writing abilities as they progress through their schoolwork. I firmly believe that instilling confidence in students about their ability to read and write well is key to high academic performance: oftentimes, students perform better than they believe they do, so they just need a person to encourage them to believe in themselves, which frequently occurs when they achieve academic success in the individualized setting that is tutoring. In my spare time, I enjoy...
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...worked with kids of all ages, ranging from elementary school to college students through various subjects. I have also worked extensively with special needs children, doing everything from teaching special education to one-on-one in-home mentoring. Through my experiences, I have continued to carry my passion for working with children and have developed my skills in making successful and individualized learning fun. Math, science and test prep are the subjects I'm particularly passionate about tutoring, as...
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...I've always tried to make lessons engaging and fun for my students. I believe that students learn best when they experience knowledge for themselves, while receiving guidance and encouragement from their teacher. I truly enjoy tutoring and want to help my students achieve academic success. I'm especially passionate about helping struggling readers. If a child has difficulty deciphering words and sentences, how can he/she be expected to grasp math, science, and social concepts presented in...
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Receive personally tailored ISEE- Upper Level lessons from exceptional tutors in a one-on-one setting. We help you connect with the best tutor for your particular needs while offering flexible scheduling to fit your busy life.
ISEE- Upper Level Tutoring FAQ
The Independent School Entrance Exam, or ISEE, is leveraged by independent and private schools for admissions and placement. It is offered for three different levels: Upper, Middle, and Lower. Each test includes questions in multiple-choice format, as well as an essay question. The amount of time given, the difficulty of the questions, and the number of questions is dependent upon the level taken. Varsity Tutors can help you find a skilled tutor who can help your child study for the ISEE Upper Level exam.
The Upper Level is for students who are entering grades 9-12. The test consists of five sections: Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, Reading Comprehension, Mathematics Achievement, and the essay. Your student will have 2 hours and 40 minutes to complete the entire exam.
The Verbal Reasoning section consists of sentence completion and synonym items. They assess your child's vocabulary knowledge, and his or her ability to reason. Children have 20 minutes to complete the 40 questions on this portion of the exam. Your child's ISEE Upper level tutor may work with your child to increase his or her vocabulary by utilizing flashcards with grade-level appropriate words, or they may use other techniques based on your child's current level of mastery.
The Quantitative Reasoning section of the exam uses multiple-choice questions to determine your child's ability to problem-solve and to think mathematically. It does not assess specific math skills. Your child will have 35 minutes to complete 37 items. The ability to think critically is a key factor in answering these questions correctly. Your child's tutor may work with your student on identifying what the question is asking, as well as time management techniques.
Both the Reading Comprehension and Mathematics Achievement portions of the exam are designed to measure your child's ability to answer grade-level questions in math and reading. Your child will be given 35 minutes to answer the 36 questions in the Reading Comprehension section, and 40 minutes to answer the 47 questions in the Mathematics Achievement section. These sections are skill-based, and your child's tutor will spend time determining which skills your student needs to focus on in order to pursue the highest score possible.
The final section of the exam is a single essay question, which is not graded by the ISEE. Instead, it is sent to the school or schools identified on the registration form. While it will not be part of the ISEE grade, it is an important factor in admissions for many schools and should be given the same care and attention as the other sections. Your child's tutor may work with him or her on creating a clear and concise outline to answer writing prompts in preparation for this portion of the exam.
It is important to note that the ISEE only looks for the number of correct answers and does not impose a penalty for those items that are answered incorrectly. Because of this, your child's tutor may also work on making educated guesses, as there is no benefit to leaving a question blank.
The Varsity Tutors live learning platform allows you to schedule your child's private ISEE Upper Level tutoring session at a time and location that is most convenient for your schedule. Private tutoring sessions can be scheduled in a virtual setting or in person. To connect with a tutor who is eager to work with your child, contact Varsity Tutors today.
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Recent ISEE- Upper Level Tutoring Session Notes
I first went over some practice tests the student did in the prep book. He did rather well on them. We then worked on an essay the student had started previously, so he finished writing it. After that, we worked on some more complicated square root problems, and finally finished with some synonyms practice.
We started to look the math section and began with geometry. We went through questions on squares, rectangles, parallelograms, rhombi, other quadrilaterals, kites, and hexagons. I had the student find the measure of angles, length of sides, area, perimeter, and diagonals. Some of the questions included other material such as finding the mean or a percentage. She needs to break the problems down into smaller parts and diagrams are very helpful. She is used to working with the metric system but the ISEE includes questions in both English and metric; she's going to need to learn how to convert between the two systems and within the English system. She also needs to make sure to read questions carefully so that she answers the question being asked. We will work together to make her proficient in all these areas.
We made some great progress with math. We're going through each concept covered on the test and reviewing things he forgot. We also did an overview of reading comp strategy and how to look at the questions given. Great work!
It was great meeting this student today! She's a very bright, very friendly student, and I appreciate the amount of hard work that she puts into our sessions. We began by reviewing the way that the ISEE is structured and basic math vocabulary. When it was clear that she could jump into more advanced topics, we immediately started working on percentages and word problems associated with algebra and percentages. She did a great job with translating those word problems into equations.
The student finished the lessons for all sections on the ISEE today. She feels confident about her progress thus far and is using the notes we took as a guide.
