Melody: Schenectady tutor
Certified Tutor
I have many years of professional experience teaching and tutoring English, grammar and ESL at college and adult professional levels. I spent six years working as a one-on-one ESL teacher at a language school in France and have continued teaching online since I moved back to New York two years ago. I like to be creative with my teaching style, I incorporate a students personal interests and make the lesson fun whenever possible. I enjoy languages and cultures. I studied French full time at a private university in Lyon, France and speak french fluently. I love books, music and history. I also like art, gardening and cooking. I grew up in upstate NY and have traveled extensively. My early career was as an EMT-Paramedic, examiner and instructor for the state of Texas so my background is very diverse. I have the skills, desire and methods to help you succeed.
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Undergraduate Degree: SAF San Angelo Texas, Inflexyon, Lyon France, ITTT - Associates, EMT-Paramedic, French language studies, ESL/TEFL Certification in 2006
Art, History, Gardening, Cooking, Cultures, Natural healing, Books, Antiques
- College English
- English
- English Grammar and Syntax
- ESL/ELL
- High School English
- Reading
- Writing
What is your teaching philosophy?
Learning should be educational, enjoyable, and tailored to each student's own pace and style.
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
Introductions are important, getting to know a student's likes and needs gives me the opportunity to create a learning program best suited for that student. Questions and example exercises allow me to evaluate a student's current level.
How can you help a student become an independent learner?
Exercises that are fun and topics that are interesting to the student help make English fun to study... even on your own.
How would you help a student stay motivated?
Setting reasonable goals and achieving them helps keep you motivated and moving towards the next level.
If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?
I use real life examples and interests to help them understand, and I spend as much time as is needed to make sure that they have understood correctly and can put it to practice.
How do you help students who are struggling with reading comprehension?
Starting with easy to read topics that are interesting to the student goes a long way.
What strategies have you found to be most successful when you start to work with a student?
I have found that making the student feel relaxed and confident makes the entire experience much more enjoyable and effective.
How would you help a student get excited/engaged with a subject that they are struggling in?
Motivation does not always come easy, but giving the student a sense of control and letting them decide goals is something that could help. Making sure the student is not anxious and has topics that interest them incorporated into their English lesson can also help.
What techniques would you use to be sure that a student understands the material?
Giving and explaining the material is just the beginning. Making sure that the student can put that to practice is essential. When a student feels comfortable giving examples and can explain why, they feel like they have it.
How do you build a student's confidence in a subject?
Making sure that a student isn't anxious or feeling overwhelmed, talking to them about their goals and setting reasonable ones. They should never feel hurried; patience is key.
How do you evaluate a student's needs?
Each student is different. I talk with them about their personal and professional goals and get a sense of their personal learning style and speed and incorporate this into their lesson plan, along with the materials.
How do you adapt your tutoring to the student's needs?
The material to be learned is unchanging but the speed, style, and information/topics used to learn it are all adaptable.
What types of materials do you typically use during a tutoring session?
The materials can vary according to the student's likes and dislikes. I try to incorporate written exercises, listening comprehension using video and audio, and real life news and articles.