What is your teaching philosophy?

My teaching style is to create an approach to learning by maximizing your child's strengths and understanding your child's learning style. I have experience using these techniques and have a strong educational background that emphasized this model for learning.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

I am an avid reader and very much appreciate the importance of helping a child unlock the joy reading. I will do this by using individualized, interesting, and multi-sensory activities to motivate and excite any child to want to read. Allow me to help you and help your child improve upon reading skills while seeing progress being made in the process.

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

My specialty includes using phonics and sight-word recognition teaching techniques for a child who is struggling with reading competencies. Such instruction incorporates focus on the acquisition of reading comprehension, spelling, writing, speaking, listening, and study skills, as well.

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

There are several strategies I use for children who are struggling with reading comprehension. These strategies can be adapted to any age level and various types of reading materials. Books should be of interest, complete with pictures and/or drawings. Using reading materials that contain words children can already decode will allow children to be able to focus on the meaning of the material. New vocabulary words can be reviewed before reading begins. Before, during, and after reading, children can be asked questions. For example, after reading the title of a book, children can be asked what the book might be about and then discuss how this story might relate to an experience in their life. Talking to children about the components of a story such as setting, characters and the plot (problems and solutions) is a good reminder for children to visualize these ideas as they are reading. This will prepare children to start to think about what the meaning of a story may be, as well. Teaching reading comprehension can help children enjoy the ideas put forth in reading material. A more positive experience can be had when children begin to find meaning in what they read.

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

When starting to work with a child, it is helpful to have input from parents and educators when possible. This information can be relayed objectively by sharing a child's skill assessment, learning style, classroom curriculum and materials that the child needs support to master. Planning ahead in this way will allow a clear plan of action to be implemented as soon as tutoring starts. It will also allow the tutor to come prepared with individualized materials and activities designed with the child in mind. When considering the logistics of a tutoring environment, a quiet place in which the child is comfortable, yet still able to perform academic activities, can be agreed upon beforehand. Once tutoring begins, it is important that the tutor place emphasis on developing a positive, trusting rapport with a child. This can be accomplished by doing ice breaking activities, have the child share interests, hobbies, favorite subjects, and to ask what the child hopes to gain from the sessions. Getting to know each other in a positive light can make the learning process fun and rewarding for both the student and tutor. All efforts should be focused on this most important desired outcome; an outcome that can be measured when all parties can see the progress made by a child in mastering academic skill areas.