...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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I am passionate about helping students because I believe that everyone can be successful. Whether you're an aspiring writer or an aspiring engineer, anyone can learn to do something new if they put their mind to it. I've worked with students who have been...
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...have been a part of Math Focus which aims to encourage creative and critical thinking in the solution of problems of mathematics, and entered students in Math Counts on numerous occasions. I have successfully prepared students for SAT, ISEE, and SSAT, and enjoy the rapport I seem able to generate with those I teach. I have travelled widely and experienced much. It enriches my world and feeds my enthusiasm for the subject. I encourage my...
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...a learning disability. I have a Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Michigan. I have taught college courses in psychology and organizational behavior, and recently received a Master of Arts in Teaching from the University of Northern Colorado. I enjoy working with students of all ages and backgrounds. My tutoring style emphasizes identifying and building upon student strengths, adapting my methods and explanations to best meet the needs of individual students. I enjoy helping...
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...Psychology, History, and I also guide students through test-taking strategies combined with techniques to reduce stress and test-day jitters. Drawing on my background in psychology, I integrate research-based strategies that help students think critically, strengthen memory, and build lasting understanding. I use principles of cognitive science from mnemonic devices and retrieval practice to multisensory engagement to make learning both effective and enjoyable. My teaching style blends patient, step-by-step scaffolding with adaptive techniques tailored to each...
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...at their own pace. I have been tutoring since 2012 in all subjects K-high school. My strengths are reading phonics, reading comprehension, English Literature and Composition, and math through Algebra 1. I love tutoring elementary or middle school math because I love filling in the gaps of knowledge and correcting the misconceptions that students have developed. Sometimes I find students have memorized a rule for solving a problem, but they don't know why the rule...
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...our time together. I take an integrative approach to tutoring, ensuring that we review topics holistically and work on how to attack the problems you might see on quizzes and exams. I find this approach keeps students from being overwhelmed with background information and helps them feel like they can tackle homework and practice problems on their own. I am currently on my gap year before medical school. I've taken the MCAT twice, first scoring...
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...your goals. Fully over 90% of the students I've taught have gained admission to their top choice schools, graduate school, or one of the most selective universities in the US. Outside of this work, I have also been fortunate to start a tech company, intern for The White House Chief of Staff when President Obama was first elected, and work in medical research, where I've also been fortunate to publish peer-reviewed articles on predicting Diabetes-risk...
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I am passionately pursuing my degree in physics and am committed helping students achieve their academic goals through Varsity Tutors. I believe that anyone can learn math and achieve their academic goals and I am happy to assist. I enjoy working with all age groups and have experience in tutoring children with A.D.H.D. and dyslexia.
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...Club's "Math Lab", an academic peer-tutoring session held every Monday for four years; as a college freshmen I was a tutor for Champion Learning, a company funded by No-Child-Left-Behind in order to aid struggling middle school students with the Common Core; as a full-time instructor, I managed classes for SHSAT and SAT and produced my own content while coordinating with parents and students on progress; during graduate school, I launched my own organization to produce...
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...job as a teacher is to collaborate with a student to overcome a challenge. Do you want to write a term paper? Great! Do you want to learn how to use a semi-colon? Let's do it! I'm on your side. With every lesson, I meet students where they are and together we tailor our lessons to fit their skills, interests, and needs. By approaching lessons collaboratively, we create an environment that emphasizes progress over perfection...
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...that had a variety of courses offered to students in grades 3-8. I primarily taught mathematics and standardized test prep (including exam essay writing) during my 5 summers with the program. I also spent a few months during college tutoring students in grades K-5 in reading skills. Most recently, I led a tutoring program for a local college access organization for under-resourced high school youth. One of my main responsibilities was to help tutors to...
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...clearly to a contemporary audience, unfamiliar with such language. My experiences with making classical texts more comprehensible have greatly enhanced my ability to take complex information and distill it into a clearer and simpler form. This, along with my knowledge of developmental and social psychology, has informed my teaching method of tailoring my style to the individual students needs. I am a strong believer that clear communication and open dialogue are vital to a fertile...
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...feel confident about the knowledge on which they will be examined. I understand that these important tests can be stressful experiences for many people, so I also work with students to develop strategies to overcome any anxiety that might get in the way of a student not demonstrating his or her full potential. I enjoy tutoring a variety of subjects, but I find it especially rewarding to guide students in taking ownership over their writing...
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...as the College Counselor working with students from grades 6-12. In my two years of experience, I have had the opportunity to network with college admissions counselors across the country, and I gladly connect my students to any college admissions departments I am familiar with. Although my tutoring specialty is test prep -- SAT, ACT, PSAT, SHSAT, and GRE -- I particularly love tutoring writing, and creative writing is a hobby of mine. My philosophy...
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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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...grade English and Reading classes, including a test prep class for ACT, SAT, CLT, and FAST. I have past experience teaching ELL adults English privately. I am the ESOL Specialist at my school. I have experience teaching English with speakers of various languages such as Spanish, French, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, and Russian. Outside of tutoring, I enjoy writing poetry and exploring different literary genres, which continuously inspires my teaching and enriches my...
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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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I aspire equally to knowledge and goodness. I am committed to encouraging students and adults to respect, inspire, and learn. Education is a force multiplier and promotes a balance of intellectual curiosity, engagement, leadership, and service in the pursuit of excellence: academic, civic, and moral.
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...students. In my previous job, I taught English in classrooms, tutored individual students, provided online classes, and even helped to developed workshops in subjects like environmental protection, computer basics, and menstrual health. I trained adults to teach English as a second language and get comfortable teaching in front of a class, often for the first time! I have found that teaching English has allowed me to travel the world and make a difference in the...
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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.
