What is your teaching philosophy?

My teaching philosophy combines experiential learning that allows students to make and learn from mistakes, and conversational inquiry to encourage students to think creatively and critically. I believe that both personal experience and conversation are incredibly helpful in not only learning, but also internalizing and remembering new information.

How can you help a student become an independent learner?

As a former homeschooler, I have personal experience in creating independent learning strategies, and I hope to share my experience in this with my students!

How do you help students who are struggling with reading comprehension?

I believe that focused one-on-one conversations about the reading materials combined with creation of a personal reading strategy helps students both improve their reading comprehension and engage with what they read.

What might you do in a typical first session with a student?

In a typical first session, I would ask a student what they are struggling with as well as what they feel their strengths are. I believe that engaging with more than just the problems that a student is having is ultimately more helpful than focusing only on difficulties, as it allows students to think creatively and recognize and use their strengths to their advantage.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

Putting the things that the student is learning in larger contexts, encouraging and facilitating creative thinking, and recognizing progress are ways that I would help a student stay motivated.

If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?

I would ask questions and try to relate the concept to the student's interests and experiences.

What strategies have you found to be most successful when you start to work with a student?

I find a conversational approach that prioritizes learning the student's interests and the challenges they're facing, and setting clear and achievable short-term goals to be successful strategies when working with a new student.

What techniques would you use to be sure that a student understands the material?

I believe that asking students to define concepts with their own words is a great way to be sure that a student understands the material.

How do you build a student's confidence in a subject?

I try to provide perspective and draw attention to the student's strengths and progress.

How do you evaluate a student's needs?

I evaluate a student's needs both through asking them what they think is challenging about the material and by starting conversations about the material to find any gaps in understanding.