Certified Tutors From American Public University System

The student and I worked on his college-specific essays. He wanted some help choosing which prompt to respond to, and then once the prompt was selected, he needed some help structuring his ideas. His attitude toward his work has been consistently excellent. He is focused, and he lets his voice come through in his writing. Best of all, he responds to criticism and guidance very well, and I've already noticed a tangible improvement in his writing ability. I asked him to send me his essays via email so I could look them over and offer any suggestions during future appointments. He did so, and I already have some insights to offer him at our next meeting.

I met with the student to finish her summer math packet. She had some difficulty with subtracting fractions because it required borrowing from the mixed number. However, after some guidance, she was able to complete problems on her own.

The topics we covered were atomic particles, ions, isotopes, basic periodic trends, nomenclature, writing empirical and molecular formulas, using % mass to determine formulas, metric conversions, and molar conversions. We used a mix of practice test problems provided by the course instructor and additional problems that I made as needed to assess understanding.

Today the student and I went through the math section and did several practice problems. A huge part of the PSAT is being able to read a word problem, and then generate an algebraic equation from that word problem. He did a great job with this. We went through some of the more complicated questions together, but he was adept with putting together the algebraic expressions necessary to solve a problem. At the end of the session, I talked over some quick test taking tips and strategies. I think he'll do a great job! Good luck on Wednesday!

We went over dividing polynomials and reviewed exponent rules. The student wasn't too confident with dividing polynomials and didn't understand the methods from learning it in class. We went over a few ways to approach the concept, and we decided to stick with the method she learned in class to be consistent. She started getting the hang of solving the division problems after going over similar questions. She can use more practice to fully understand the patterns and small details. We went over small details in terms of exponent rules, such as negative exponents and quotient rule if the denominator's exponent is negative. She can do great once she organizes the concepts and methods since she already knows most of the material!

During our session, the student and I worked through a practice test for her upcoming exam in Geometry. The concepts covered in the chapter include geometric proofs, classification of triangles, the distance formula, triangle congruence theorems, and applying geometry to algebraically solve for the value of a variable. As we worked through each problem, I would occasionally ask her what the answer to a question would be with different given numbers, or I'd ask an additional question about a particular figure to reinforce the concepts behind each type of problem and how to apply the knowledge of those concepts when presented with different numbers for similar problems on the exam. She did an outstanding job working through each of the problems and answering additional questions about certain concepts, and she seems very well prepared for her upcoming test.