Sophia: Calumet City tutor

Certified Tutor

I am a young and enthusiastic political scientist with experience tutoring in three languages and teaching civic education to high school students. I graduated from Georgetown University in May 2017 as a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service with Honors in International Politics and a minor in African Studies. I am passionate and well-informed about international affairs, having lived and worked abroad in Chile, Fiji, Senegal, and the United Kingdom. While living and studying in Chile from 2015-2016, I worked with a non-profit startup called Observa Ciudadania that taught civic education workshops to at-risk high school students to get them involved in political action before they could vote. I organized and taught courses in Spanish in a small classroom setting, fostering discussion and thought in students who were accustomed to rote memorization. Furthermore, I worked extensively with high school students in Fiji as the Village Coordinator for Operation Wallacea, assuring the experience of living in a rural Fijian village was fun, educational, and safe. I believe understanding topics deeply and from multiple perspectives makes learning more exciting and meaningful, so I always make sure to put subjects in context such that they can be applied to a student's daily life.

During my time at Georgetown and in high school at Lakeside School in Seattle, I involved myself in one-on-one teaching, including acting as a college mentor for public high school students at Bell International High School in Washington DC. I have also tutored multiple students in beginning and intermediate Spanish, which I speak fluently. I am a native French speaker and worked as a French tutor for two boys, aged 7 and 8, in Washington DC, making learning fun by speaking in French with them as we played, rather than sitting them down for lessons. I try to be as flexible and creative as possible while teaching languages so that students understand how exciting it is to be able to communicate in more than one tongue.

I want to be as helpful to my students as possible, so I welcome a collaborative relationship with students and parents such that the learning is best tailored to each student's needs. I am very approachable and respond quickly to messages. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions or if you want to schedule a lesson.