Nicole: Forest Park tutor
Certified Tutor
I am a certified teacher in Arizona in Kindergarten through Twelfth grade. I have worked with students in the classroom for over ten years and most enjoy working with students struggling with English at all levels. I am competent in teaching decoding skills, working with sight words and phonics, teacing reading comprehension and fluency. I have taught preschool and first grade, and student taught in a third/forth grad classroom. I have spent six years in middle school English and four years in High School English. I've taught in an alternative school environment and have taught English language learners and students with IEPs, as a remedial skills teacher. I have a passion for reading and writing and I actually like working with teenagers. I am the mother of two boys under 5 and love seeing them grow. In my other job, I teach High School. I have both my Masters and Bachelors Degrees in Education.
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Undergraduate Degree: Arizona State University - Bachelors, Education
Graduate Degree: Northern Arizona University - Masters, Education
Spending time with my husband and kids, reading, cooking, working out ( when I have time), watching movies and learning!
- College English
- Comparative Literature
- English
- English Grammar and Syntax
- ESL/ELL
- Essay Editing
- High School English
- Literature
- Phonics
- Public Speaking
- Reading
- Writing
How would you help a student stay motivated?
Through getting to know them and seeing what they are interested in and using that as a part of the subject matter being covered. Also, attainable goals so that they can celebrate achievement often.
If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?
Break it down into steps and tackle one part at a time. This would enable them to have success and to see where they may be getting caught up.
How do you help students who are struggling with reading comprehension?
Discussion works best. Students learn differently, and some need to talk out what they're reading at any level. Also, using project-based activities to assess learning.
What strategies have you found to be most successful when you start to work with a student?
Getting to know them as people and establishing a safe space to learn so that they can take risks. Then we see what they currently know, where they need to get and set small, attainable goals to get there.
How would you help a student get excited/engaged with a subject that they are struggling in?
First, figure out what's challenging about it. Trying to tie it to a personal interest works well and working on it in smaller segments to prevent burnout.
What techniques would you use to be sure that a student understands the material?
Discussion, project-based assessments, having them teach it to me.
How do you build a student's confidence in a subject?
Tiny goals are a key to building confidence. Everyone wants to be successful, and you climb a mountain by stepping over one rock at a time. When we progress, we're more motivated to continue on something difficult.
How do you adapt your tutoring to the student's needs?
Seeing where they are trying to get to, comparing that to where they are now and setting goals to help them get there.
What is your teaching philosophy?
I believe that everyone can be a successful student through setting up a safe place to learn. People need to feel successful in order to be motivated to try difficult tasks, and the best way to do that is by setting big picture goals and then small attainable goals to get there so we can celebrate successes along the way.
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
I would preassess them by talking with them. Having students read aloud from something that interests them works well for fluency assessment, interviewing each other or journaling can also be great for seeing where their levels of reading and writing are. Also, if I can speak with a parent before the session to see what concerns are and/or see report cards or IEPs prior to beginning, so we can use our time more efficiently.
How can you help a student become an independent learner?
Through attainable goals. Each time we can celebrate success, we're motivated to keep learning. Attaining goals is fulfilling and allows us to see progress, which keeps us learning. With enough success, people develop an intrinsic drive towards more success.
How do you evaluate a student's needs?
Through seeing where they are initially through pre-assessment, and determining the discrepancy between where they are and where they need to get.
What types of materials do you typically use during a tutoring session?
Books that interest the student, slightly below level (to provide ease and enjoyment), at level (to work on progression) and slightly above level (for a challenge.) Journals, technology to engage, colored pens to encourage writing. Timers can help to break up the session into different activities, small incentives- varying based on student interest.