Megan: Ottawa tutor
Certified Tutor
I went to a small high school on a base overseas in the UK, and went straight to Tampa after I graduated as salutatorian in 2008. I graduated from the University of South Florida in 2012 with a Bachelor's in English, Creative Writing, and a minor in History, and it was the best decision of my young adult life! I am currently pursuing my teaching certificate through Hilsborough Community College's Educator Preparation Institute (EPI), and hopefully, assuming there won't be too many bumps along the way, I will have it by the end of August!
I have been tutoring off and on since I was old enough to be a babysitter on base. I grew up overseas in England from the time I was twelve, so I worked with students who were catching up to their new classes because they just moved, or helping them to prepare to take their finals early so they could move before the end of the semester. I worked with my Girl Scouts and helped tutor the younger girls in subjects they had trouble with, from 5th grade Math to reading comprehension. For my senior year, I had to take Career Practicum, and I worked with the Elementary School's Read 180 teacher. I helped two first graders (one a semester) get their reading levels from 0 to 17. I volunteered in a variety of positions in the school, to include teacher's helper, and a summer school assistant. When I graduated from USF, I went back to England on my own and worked on base, and spent my free time working in a teacher's classroom helping students with 7th, 9th, 11th, and AP English, as well as Spanish II. I tutored a couple of students in Spanish II (they were 9th and 10th graders), and I also helped a student who couldn't attend the school for a few months keep up with both his Spanish II and his Algebra, so when he moved back to the states, he'd be on par with his fellow students. I helped an ESL student in Geometry comprehend the math, and get his average for the semester up from an F to a C+.
My favorite subjects to tutor, understandably, are English (and more specifically, writing) as well as History (European History is the best!). My teaching philosophy is that everyone is very much able to succeed, and that all students succeed differently. What might have worked for one student I worked with may not work for another, and that is perfectly alright. With that in mind, I try to keep my tutoring style very open and comfortable, as well as positive and encouraging. I want to do what is best for the student, and what will help them to succeed.
When I'm not tutoring, I am either working at Starbucks (I LOVE coffee, and making all the different drinks is a lot of fun!), or doing something at home. I love to read and write (I am currently working on my own novel in my free time). I have most recently taught myself how to crochet, and I am looking forward to being able to make something that isn't a scarf. I love to watch Doctor Who, and most importantly, I love to travel, and I hope to go as many places as I can in my life.
Connect with a tutor like Megan
Undergraduate Degree: University of South Florida-Main Campus - Bachelor in Arts, English
reading, writing, drawing, watching Doctor Who, anime, manga, travelling, trying new foods, learning new skills (current skill I'm learning: crocheting)
- College English
- College Level American History
- Comparative Literature
- Conversational Spanish
- Creative Writing
- English
- English Grammar and Syntax
- Essay Editing
- European History
- Fiction Writing
- High School English
- High School Level American History
- History
- Introduction to Fiction
- Languages
- Literature
- Reading
- Social Studies
- Spanish
- Spanish 1
- Spanish 2
- Vocabulary
- Writing
What is your teaching philosophy?
My teaching philosophy is simple: You can do it! I believe that every student is capable of achieving the goals that they set for themselves.
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
Introduce myself and get to know the student - what they like, if they like this subject, etc. - before getting in to the subject itself and seeing how they're doing currently, and then starting off and seeing what we can do together before our time runs out. I stay super casual so we can feel comfortable enough together to work and to learn!
How can you help a student become an independent learner?
I can help them by making sure I give them all the help I can provide, all the opportunities I can find, and all of the skills that will help them to become independent.
How would you help a student stay motivated?
Aside from compliments and praise, I would remind them of how far they've already come from when we first started. I would also always come to sessions motivated and ready to go myself, making sure I brought positive energy to the table.
If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?
Use their learning style to break it down and work on it with them. If that doesn't work, then we'll try another approach.
How do you help students who are struggling with reading comprehension?
In my classroom, I give quizzes. They don't like to hear the word quiz, but what they don't realize is that it helps them to learn what they should be looking for and paying attention to when they read!
What strategies have you found to be most successful when you start to work with a student?
Honestly, making sure to take the time to get to know the student is a lot of help. Students have a lot going on in their personal lives, and treating them like a young adult is important, and helps them to feel respected and willing to work with me.