
Laura-Joy
Certified Tutor
Undergraduate Degree: University of Colorado Denver - Bachelor in Arts, Creative Writing
SAT Verbal: 700
SAT Writing: 700
In my spare time, I love to read, write, craft, garden, paint, play tennis, and go hiking.
College English
Comparative Literature
High School English
What is your teaching philosophy?
It's important to be energetic and enthusiastic about the material; if a tutor can't get excited about the work at hand, why should her student? However, I would say that the true foundation of my teaching philosophy is this: tutors should always emphasize a student's strengths, not his weaknesses. Building a student's confidence is crucial to his academic success!
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
First, I like to get a feel for my student's strengths and weaknesses. For instance, in SAT prep sessions, I ask my student to complete approximately five questions from each reading and writing section (and an essay outline/introduction) so that I can assess our priorities going forward. We will talk about error patterns as well as the student's biggest concerns and frustrations, and we'll discuss previous methods that have proven unsuccessful before looking into more effective strategies. I always let my students know that they have a say in what we cover and that our sessions will not be lectures, but conversations.