
Julie
Certified Tutor
Undergraduate Degree: University of Illinois at Chicago - Bachelor in Arts, French and Francophone Studies
Graduate Degree: University of Illinois at Chicago - Master of Arts, French and Francophone Studies
I enjoy reading, movies, spending time with my family, and attending (and sometimes winning) local team trivia nights.
What strategies have you found to be most successful when you start to work with a student?
I find that getting to know a student and their individual interests greatly improves their experience and hopefully their interests in the subject. Foreign languages offer plenty of opportunities for varied interests, whether they're sports, music, movies or nearly anything else! Incorporating these interests into lessons makes learning more enjoyable and more beneficial to the student.
What techniques would you use to be sure that a student understands the material?
To ensure students understand the material, I believe practice and then review is key. After practicing a new concept with a student, I usually use more involved activities that require the student to generate their sentences or examples to demonstrate their understanding. An occasional quiz also helps assess their progress.
What types of materials do you typically use during a tutoring session?
I believe a variety of materials and activities help students learn more while also keeping lessons more interesting for students and tutors. Written activities are great practice, but videos and listening activities can often offer great listening practice and cultural value when learning a foreign language.