Swapna

Certified Tutor

I'm a Science of Teaching Reading Tutor.

I help elementary students with Math.

I am an IXL Certified and Licensed Tutor, holding an official IXL Tutor account.

I help elementary & middle & high school students with reading and writing.

Mastery of Reading and writing is needed across all the grades and across all the subjects.

I tutor especially on these critical skills that build upon one another, like stepping stones. Together, they form a strong foundation in reading and writing that supports success not only in elementary school, but also in middle and high school. Here's how each one contributes across grade levels:

1. PA = Phonemic Awareness

Elementary: Children learn to hear and manipulate the smallest sounds in words (e.g., /c/ /a/ /t/). This is the bedrock of reading.

Middle: Strong phonemic awareness aids in decoding multisyllabic words and improving spelling accuracy.

High School: It continues to support vocabulary growth and fluency when students encounter complex academic words.

2. LS = Letter Sounds

Elementary: Recognizing letters and their sounds helps students map spoken language onto print.

Middle: Reinforces decoding of less common words, prefixes, and suffixes.

High School: Supports word analysis in advanced texts (scientific, historical, and technical vocabulary).

3. SB = Sounding Out and Blending

Elementary: Students learn to connect sounds smoothly into words, a key decoding step.

Middle: Helps students tackle challenging, longer words (e.g., "democracy," "photosynthesis").

High School: Strengthens decoding unfamiliar terms in literature, science, and SAT/ACT vocabulary.

4. RW = Regular Words

Elementary: Frequent practice with regular words (e.g., "cat," "jump") builds confidence.

Middle: Helps strengthen fluency and reinforces spelling rules.

High school provides a foundation for automatic recognition, freeing brainpower for the comprehension of complex texts.

5. IW = Irregular Words

Elementary: Students memorize high-frequency words that don't follow phonics rules (e.g., "said," "does").

Middle: Expands to academic irregular words (e.g., "colonel," "yacht").

High School: Supports efficient reading in specialized subjects and standardized tests where unusual words appear.

6. RF = Reading Fluency

Elementary: Students build accuracy, speed, and expression while reading.

Middle: Fluency allows smooth reading of content-rich textbooks without stumbling.

High School: Strong fluency enables students to read at a grade-level pace, engage with complex novels, and manage timed exams.

7. LC = Letter Combinations

Elementary: Students learn common digraphs and blends (sh, ch, th, bl, str).

Middle: Knowledge of letter combinations supports accurate spelling and pronunciation of academic words.

High School: Supports etymology and advanced vocabulary development (Latin/Greek roots, word families).

8. AP = Advanced Phonics

Elementary: Teaches vowel teams, diphthongs, r-controlled vowels, and syllable types.

Middle: Enables decoding of multisyllabic and academic vocabulary.

High School: Essential for analyzing new technical and discipline-specific terms across subjects.

9. Comp = Comprehension

Elementary: Students begin to make meaning from text by identifying the main idea, details, and sequence.

Middle: Comprehension expands to inference, author's purpose, and text structure.

High School: Critical for analyzing arguments, synthesizing across texts, and preparing for college-level reading and writing.

My favorite subjects are ELAR and Math. I enjoy learning as well as teaching these subjects, as they foster my cognitive skills.

My teaching philosophy:

"Every child is a capable learner. My role is to guide them in discovery, build confidence, and create joyful lifelong learners."

My favorite hobbies outside of academia:

Cooking, organizing the home, gardening, listening to music, spending time in nature, long walks, spending time with family, traveling, sleeping, stretching, meditating on the divine.