What is your teaching philosophy?

I believe that each person learns differently, so I try to expose students to multiple methods so that they can decide what works best for them.

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

In a first session, I often ask the student many questions and create mini-placement quizzes to evaluate their prior knowledge or to identify any holes they may have.

How can you help a student become an independent learner?

I try to indirectly answer questions by using colorful metaphors or examples that stress critical-thinking skills. I help guide students in a way that lets them solve the problem. I do not just tell students the answer and expect them to copy my work.

How would you help a student stay motivated?

At home, I have motivated students by using a point system for work and having a prize box. I also like to compliment students often and help raise their self-esteem so that they do not get discouraged as easily.

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

When students have trouble learning particular skills or concepts, I try using different methods or finding acronyms / educational songs that will help them remember the steps.

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

First, I check to see if students are understanding all of the vocabulary words in the sentence. I also will try to have the student read text from a genre they enjoy to see if the problem is that they are getting bored. I also introduce students to story timelines and other worksheets to try to help them retain the information as well as asking them a lot of questions. I also try to help students identify key words in questions so that they can go back and skim through the text looking for them.

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

Honestly, I have noticed that the easiest way to have rapid success with students is to praise every accomplishment. Be completely honest and change up the subject matter enough that they don't get too frustrated on one problem for too long.

How would you help a student get excited/engaged with a subject that they are struggling in?

Try to draw comparisons with material of interest that can be easier to relate to.

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

I like to create sample questions and do review every session as well as introduce new topics.