Crystal: Palos Heights tutor

Certified Tutor

I am passionate about sparking a student's genuine enthusiasm for becoming better in reading and writing. I believe that with patience, guidance, encouragement, and practice, students can move through the frustration and anxiety and build confidence as beginner, intermediate, and advanced writers and critical readers. I've seen students start with a challenging skill or assignment and end with more confidence in what they thought they couldn't accomplish.

My teaching experience is extensive and spans over fifteen years. I've created inclusive classrooms and tailored lessons for students from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds, including in Title I schools, students with varied learning styles and abilities, including 504 accommodations, and students with diverse interests and skills. As an elementary and middle school reading and writing tutor, I've taught phonics, reading comprehension, vocabulary building, reading fluency, and writing including grammar, punctuation, and spelling, and writing proficiency.

I've taught high school English 9-12 covering foundational skills such as close reading and analysis of different texts, literary analysis, writing skills, grammar, vocabulary building, critical thinking, research skills, citation, public speaking, and study and organizational skills, journalism and newspaper. I've taught college level introductory courses covering critical reading, academic essay writing and editing, critical reading and thinking, research skills and writing and citation, digital writing and communication skills, and cultural studies. I've successfully helped college English as a Second Language students develop their college writing and research skills across many subjects such as history, sociology, business, and the sciences.

I received my B.A. in Writing from High Point University and my MEd in Education from Strayer University. The subjects I am able and passionate about tutoring are, but not limited to: Elementary and Middle School Reading Comprehension and Writing, High School and College English Composition and Literature, Essay Writing, Literary Analysis, Creative Writing, and Research Skills.

Some fun facts about me are that I like to hike and spend time in the mountains, I have a dog named Willow who loves frozen watermelon, I'm a certified yoga teacher, and if I'm at the movies it's Marvel on the screen.