My philosophy of teaching is student-centered, hands-on work. Students must take ownership of their work in order to learn best. I believe in catering to multiple learning styles, and having students show understanding through various assessments.

A typical first session with a student will start with getting to know each other. I will also ask about areas which you need help with, areas you feel strong in, and any particular subjects that you would like to focus on. I will explain my ideas and techniques to best help you in those areas, and we can set up a schedule for tutoring.

I believe that I teach the skills necessary for all of my students to eventually become independent. In learning and reviewing skills with me each session, students will begin to see their own mistakes and understand how to correct them.

Motivation can be hard. Often students will not want to study on their own or will not leave themselves enough time to draft and revise before a writing assignment is due. I would make a few appointments before the test or due date in order to encourage the student to start working on the materials ahead of time. This way I can hold them accountable for the work, without having it negatively impact their grade.

Not everyone learns the same way. If a student is struggling with a skill or concept, I would first try to teach it a different way, then have the student practice. If that still did not work, I would ask a colleague or research another way to teach the concept or skill.

The best way to improve reading comprehension, in my opinion, is to chunk the text. Breaking down the text into paragraphs and summarizing them with 1-2 words helps students recall information, locate key details, and better retain the main idea of the story without having to re-read the whole thing. Also, pre-reading comprehension questions is a great strategy.

Excitement is contagious. Most students are not excited about English or reading; however, when the teacher is excited about the materials, the students often also get excited about it. Or, if I am teaching a concept and I know that my student has an interest in a certain subject, I will use examples and readings about that subject to teach the concept.

Having a student demonstrate that they can properly identify and use reading and writing strategies on their own is the best assessment for me. Seeing students correct previous mistakes in current writing lets me know that they understand the topic. I may also have a closing question or mini-quiz to see how well the student retained the information from that specific lesson.

I like to get to know my students so that I know what learning style suites them, what interests they have, and what their typical reading and writing habits are. This way I can provide the most useful tutoring possible.

I believe that the best way to boost confidence is to show a student how much they already know. When they see that they already have most of a concept, or many other similar concepts, mastered, then they are more willing and excited to keep working at their area of weakness.

I listen for the skills that I perceive are lacking, listen to what the student perceives they are lacking, and usually look at assignments to see if the student is not meeting criteria.