Award-Winning Reading Tutors
serving Tacoma, WA

A lifelong reader and writer who lists books among her favorite hobbies, Alice approaches reading instruction through the lens of active engagement — teaching students to ask questions of a text, predict where an argument is heading, and circle back when something doesn't track. Her experience editing college admissions essays for over a year sharpened her eye for how language works at the sentence level, a skill she now uses to help readers break down tricky passages with precision. Rated 5.0 by students.

Bilingual in Russian and English, Maria understands firsthand how readers decode unfamiliar texts — extracting main ideas, recognizing tone shifts, and making inferences from context clues. She applies that cross-linguistic awareness when teaching reading comprehension strategies, from annotating passages to identifying an author's purpose. Her experience ranges from elementary-level fluency building to college-level critical reading.

Majoring in both English and Spanish means Elizabeth reads across two languages daily — a habit that sharpens her eye for how sentence structure, word choice, and context clues work differently depending on the text in front of her. She brings that bilingual awareness into reading sessions, teaching students to actively interrogate a passage's structure instead of passively absorbing it. Her 1490 SAT reflects the kind of disciplined, strategic reading she passes along.

Years of reading dense research papers at institutions like Emory and the NIH taught Tsering how to break a text apart — identifying the author's argument, tracking evidence, and distinguishing main ideas from supporting details. She brings that same structured approach to reading comprehension, whether a student is working through fiction or nonfiction passages. Rated 5.0 by students.

I am a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania with a Masters degree in Education and have been an Elementary and Middle School educator for over thirty years. I have worked with students in the inner city, suburbs, Appalachia, and Deep South. I love teaching and children, and have discovered my passion in tutoring students who are struggling in Reading and Math. I have taught children with learning disabilities to read, and coached students with dyscalculia in math and reading. I worked as a principal for the past eight years, so was working with students from Pre-K to 8th grade, coaching teachers, analyzing data, and tutoring individual students in math and reading. I have worked as a national park ranger in the past, so social studies and history are areas of strength. Students that I teach respond well to my teaching style and enjoy working with me. I believe that education is extremely important for children's futures and do everything that I can to help them be successful.

I'm a current PhD student in the history department at Georgetown University who is also an experienced instructor with Varsity Tutors. As a recipient of several degrees, the most recent being a BA in history from Hillsdale College and a MA in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies from Stanford University, I have long sought to make teaching my profession. Meanwhile, as a volunteer grade school teacher and a tutor with this company, I have many years' experience helping students reach their full potential. I am capable of teaching students in many subjects, including reading, mathematics, test prep, Latin, and especially writing, history, and literature. In practice, I am comfortable adapting to different learning styles and specific student preferences. Outside of my academic and career endeavors, I enjoy cooking, reading, and listening to and making music.

I am expecting to complete my PhD within the year. I offer tutoring for English or AP English classes, and writing assignments for any class at any level, as well as SAT, GRE and GRE Literature preparation.

I'm especially passionate about math and science and work in a research lab at Oregon Health and Sciences University. I love helping students do well on tests such as the ACT, SAT, SSAT and the HSPT especially. I am attending Johns Hopkins University and majoring in Biomedical Engineering.

I am most passionate about tutoring is mechanics since this is usually a student's first exposure to synthesizing physical theories with mathematical concepts. Overall, I take a conversational approach to tutoring where I try my best to relate the material to the student's life experiences while drawing more conventional analogies that are proven to make the concept click.

I am an English teacher in Round Rock, Texas for students from grades 6-AP. My passion for teaching is rooted in my interest in my students and my desire to invest in them. In May 2017, I completed my Master of Arts in Teaching. I also have a Bachelor of Arts in English from Biola University as well as a California Single Subject English Credential and Texas English Credential. These programs and my work in the classroom have been meaningful experiences for me to develop my skills as an educator. I appreciate the need to address my students' according to their specific needs and capabilities. One of my favorite aspects of teaching is adapting instruction to suit the students I am working with, so that I get to see the moment when lessons "click" for them.

I'm a graduate from the University of Southern California with a degree in Political Economy and a minor in Digital Studies. I was in an honors reading and writing undergraduate program and have experience in a variety of subjects with students of all ages. Let me know how I can help you!

I am a graduating senior at Northeastern University working toward a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science. I have more than a year's experience of substitute teaching for grades K-12, and I have taught in less formal settings as a camp counselor, a youth mentor, and a captain on sports teams. I find great joy in teaching and helping others, and I especially enjoy helping people with their writing skills or ACT/SAT prep. I wholeheartedly believe that everybody deserves access to the most effective education and that learning is a lifelong experience, and I hope that my students grow to believe the same. By treating students with respect and attempting to truly make a connection with them, I get the privilege of seeing the enthusiasm light up in their eyes, which is a wonderful feeling. In my spare time, I love reading, writing, running, exploring the outdoors, and watching and playing all kinds of sports (especially Ultimate Frisbee and ice hockey).

I'm infinitely curious, always exploring and learning more about the people around me and how the world works.

Update: I completed a two-month full-time guest teacher assignment teaching World Languages Spanish to high school students (9th-12th) Spanish 1/2/3. By utilizing a student-centered learning approach, cultural competence, and equitable teaching, I support students with pedagogy rooted in inquiry, hypothesis, information gathering, problem-solving, and action. I encourage all students to adopt an open-minded approach, and provide support to gifted students, students with disabilities, English Language Learners, and Multilanguage Learners with equity. "Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced." James Baldwin I am in my second year of grad school, pursuing a dual master's degree in K-8 Elementary Education and K-12 Special Education (Mild to Moderate Disabilities). With my education grad studies and BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), I synthesize creativity and best practices in education to find creative ways of supporting learners. My pursuit and purpose is to guide with compassion and enthusiasm. I encourage students to take ownership of their learning. By promoting student agency, students empower themselves to achieve in academic, social, emotional, and behavioral development. As an ADHD adult, I enjoy working with ADHD students and adults experiencing anxiety + depression. What is effortful for our neurodivergent brains is also our superpower! In my career, I have lived and worked in NYC as an editorial photographer, actor, and dancer. I lived in Berlin and pursued performance art + music while honing my communications skills in digital art + copywriting in Marketing. In Los Angeles, I succeeded as a commercial and theatrical actor. My skill set is suited for collaboration with all students to support and develop their passion for learning, exploration, and critical thinking. I live in southeastern Washington State and teach in northeastern Oregon and southeastern Washington State public school districts. I support students in the following subjects: Elementary School Reading Elementary School Math AP English High School English Middle School English Middle School Math Digital Media & Graphic Design Fine Arts & Filmmaking Creative Writing Study Skills & Organization German 1/2 Spanish 1/2/3 Spanish Language Arts English Language Learners English Language Development Algebra 1/2 Special Education (all subjects) High School Math "We all have ability. The difference is how we use it." Stevie Wonder Thank you for reading! Ms. Anna C.

Hi there! I'm Harini, and I absolutely love helping students become confident readers, writers, and math thinkers. Whether your student is working through fractions for the first time, tackling a tough reading assignment, or getting ready for middle school, I'm here to make learning feel approachable and even fun. I bring fresh, relatable teaching strategies and a real passion for helping younger students grow. I break challenging texts, writing assignments, and math concepts into simple, manageable steps, so ideas finally "click." I believe every student can succeed with the right guidance and a little patience, and I want every student to feel comfortable asking questions, making mistakes, and learning at their own pace. When I'm not tutoring, you'll find me reading, sewing, trying new recipes, or hiking and rock climbing. Let's work together to build your student's confidence and reach their goals!

I am a native Seattleite, who graduated from Seattle Pacific University with a bachelor's degree in psychology and Elementary Education (K-8). I later received my master's degree in social work from the University of Washington. I taught grades 1-3 in Boston, Massachusetts (private school) and in Monroe, Washington (public school). I am passionate about helping children navigate through life both educationally and emotionally and found great satisfaction in working in Social Services for 11 years in a non-profit that provided mentors for children from single parent homes. While I was raising my children, I began tutoring Reading part time in public schools and found that I absolutely love working with emerging readers in small groups or one to one. It is extremely satisfying helping a child become a strong reader as it influences their success in every subject area. I try to instill a love for books in my students, while using humor and positive encouragement. I strongly believe that children need support at home, both by being read to and reading to their family members. I am enjoying working with students to provide phonics-based early reading education

Currently, I am a Research Technician at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, NM. I have tutored as an undergraduate student, and I have been the lead TA for General Chemistry courses at UC Berkeley. Chemistry is one of my passions, and I would love to share my experience!

A Government major at Harvard might seem like an unlikely reading tutor, but Richard's coursework lives in dense political theory, Supreme Court opinions, and policy arguments where misreading a single clause changes the entire interpretation. That habit of precise, skeptical reading — plus a year as a math course assistant where he learned to break complex material into digestible steps — gives him a structured way to teach students how to track an author's argument and pull meaning from challenging texts.

A triple major in Classics, Philosophy, and a third bachelor's means Austin has spent years doing the kind of reading most students never encounter — translating Latin texts where every word order choice matters, parsing dense philosophical arguments where one misread premise unravels the whole chain. That training built a habit of precise, active reading he now brings to comprehension work: teaching students to track structure, weigh an author's claims, and catch meaning that lives between the lines rather than on them. His 1570 SAT and 33 ACT confirm the approach holds up under timed pressure, too.

Political science coursework at Northwestern means Parag spends most of his week pulling apart op-eds, policy briefs, and academic arguments — texts where the real claim is often buried under qualifications and jargon. He teaches students to spot that structure in any passage: where the thesis actually lives, which details are evidence versus filler, and how to read strategically enough to answer questions without re-reading the whole thing. Rated 5.0 by students.

Parsing glioblastoma research papers at Duke Medical Center every day means Callie reads for precision — pulling key findings from dense methodology sections, distinguishing a study's actual conclusions from its speculative claims, and catching the one data point that changes the whole interpretation. She brings that same disciplined, detail-oriented approach to teaching comprehension skills like identifying main ideas, making inferences, and using context clues to decode unfamiliar vocabulary. Rated 4.7 by students.

Engineering textbooks don't reward skimming — Corrina's mechanical engineering training at the undergraduate level meant parsing technical passages where missing one conditional clause could derail an entire problem set. She brings that same precision to reading sessions, teaching students how to slow down, identify what a sentence is actually saying, and build meaning across a full passage instead of grabbing at isolated details. Rated 4.7 by students.

Graduate-level work at Yale and UPenn required Jessi to digest dense academic texts quickly — pulling out central arguments, evaluating evidence, and distinguishing main claims from supporting detail. She applies those same active reading strategies to any level, from middle schoolers tackling their first nonfiction passages to high schoolers preparing for standardized reading sections.

Molecular biology textbooks demand a particular kind of reading — scanning dense paragraphs for the one detail that matters, then connecting it to information three pages back. Agustin applies that same discipline to reading sessions, teaching students how to hold onto key ideas across a passage and figure out what an author is emphasizing even when the language isn't straightforward. His fluency in three languages also gives him a sharp ear for how context shapes word meaning.

Strong reading comprehension isn't just about understanding vocabulary — it's about tracking an author's argument, recognizing tone shifts, and distinguishing main ideas from supporting details. Tom, who scored a 1520 on the SAT, applies the same close-reading techniques from his literary training to help students decode everything from standardized test passages to dense nonfiction.

Studying ancient Greek and Roman texts at Duke alongside a biology major gave Emma an unusual reading range — she's comfortable unpacking everything from dense scientific literature to classical prose translated across millennia. She teaches students to slow down and trace how an author builds an argument or narrative, picking up on structural cues that make even unfamiliar material feel navigable. Rated 4.9 by students.

I am a recent graduate of the University of Chicago with a BA in English and a MA in the Humanities. My specialties are tutoring in test prep, writing, and reading. I am more than happy to spend time on my students outside of our organized sessions to ensure everyone meets their goals. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions. Looking forward to our tutoring sessions!

Someone who reads voraciously for pleasure — and who built both a bachelor's and master's degree around close textual analysis of religious literature — brings a genuine enthusiasm to reading sessions that younger students pick up on quickly. Alex treats every passage as something worth being curious about, teaching kids to ask questions of a text rather than just push through it. Rated 5.0 by students.

Strong readers don't just decode words — they predict, question, and connect ideas across paragraphs in real time. Sabira teaches these active-reading strategies explicitly, whether a student is working through a challenging novel or tackling standardized-test passages, building the kind of comprehension habits that transfer across every subject.