Rob
Certified Tutor
I am excited to work with you in order to increase your abilities in English, Speech, or the Social Sciences!
A little more about myself, I am a 2009 graduate from the University of Puget Sound (a great liberal arts college) and earned a BA in English Literature as well as a BA in Political Science. I was accepted into Teach for America, and after graduation I moved to Denver to teach 7th Composition. I am a certified teacher for English 6-12, and have spent two years teaching how to craft a strong, persuasive essay! Anything to do with essay construction, literary analysis, argumentation, or creative writing I can do! Additionally, I also provide a teacher's perspective and can coach you through how to meet assignment expectations. As a teacher I also spent a considerable amount of time teaching test taking strategies, and many of my former students did exceptionally well on standardized tests.
Aside from writing, a major passion of mine is public speaking. I competed in Speech and Debate on the state and national level while in high school, and absolutely enjoy coaching students in becoming powerful public speakers! Naturally, this ties in with my interest in political science.
Please let me know if you have any questions for me. I look forward to meeting you and having the opportunity to helping you grow academically!
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Undergraduate Degree:University of Puget Sound- Bachelors, English Literature and American Politics
Rugby, Track, Football, Reading, Painting, Kayaking
- College English
- College Essays
- Comparative Literature
- CSAP/ TCAP Prep
- English
- English Grammar and Syntax
- Essay Editing
- High School English
- Homework Support
- Literature
- MAP Prep
- Other
- PARCC Prep
- PSAT Prep
- Public Speaking
- Reading
- Special Education
- Study Skills
- Study Skills and Organization
- Test Prep
- Writing
What is your teaching philosophy?
I believe that teaching is an opportunity to empower a student to be great. Every student has the ability to succeed, and it is the instructor's job to provide opportunities for that to happen.
If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?
Learning a subject or idea can be hard! A major way to succeed is to have the grit and determination to put in the time it takes to learn something new! Once a student is committed to succeeding, it is my job to find new ways of explaining complex ideas so that it is understandable.
How do you help students who are struggling with reading comprehension?
Reading comprehension is based off multiple skills that proficient readers do without thinking. This is not a natural skill, but is learned! I know several methods to increase reading comprehension that I have applied not only in tutoring, but also in my classroom.
What strategies have you found to be most successful when you start to work with a student?
Students are individuals, and in order to have a successful learning environment, students need to feel valued and respected. As with any working relationship, it is important to give that respect, listen to what the student wants to learn, and provide a safe space to learn and to fail. There are multiple strategies to creating this environment, but I have the practice of doing it.
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
Students need to feel comfortable talking to a tutor in order to be effective. I like to begin my first session with an opportunity to talk to one another. I like to know the interests of my students, areas of school that they enjoy, and areas that they want to improve on. At the beginning of all of my following sessions, I believe it is important to set aside a few minutes to get see how life is going, and cover any updates on subjects we are working on together.
What techniques would you use to be sure that a student understands the material?
There are several ways to teach any content. As a former teacher, I know of several strategies that can help a student engage with material. What they all boil down to is patience and the determination to see what works for a particular student. Everyone learns differently, and that is ok! All that means is that we need to work together to see what options work best.
How do you build a student's confidence in a subject?
Everyone can master any subject. However, sometimes it is important to thoroughly review the basics of a particular subject before jumping into the more complex nuances of it. Confidence is built by mastering specific areas, and then building off of them. I will help students gain confidence by guiding them to master the essentials of a subject.
How do you evaluate a student's needs?
I always ask a student what they believe their needs are in a specific area. When appropriate, the parent can also give me their ideas of what needs to happen. Then I make my own assessment through working with a student. Asking questions is key!
How do you adapt your tutoring to the student's needs?
Everyone learns differently! Therefore I have learned to adapt my teaching to be flexible in what a student needs. If it is breaking down material, reading a passage to a student, or simply letting them ask me questions as they work independently, I am always striving to make my tutoring style unique to every student.
What types of materials do you typically use during a tutoring session?
I always have a pen and paper nearby when I tutor. That can be to take notes on areas to work on in the future, or upcoming assignments (tests, essays, speeches, etc.) from students to follow up on. Naturally if we are working on a specific story or novel, I will have the excerpt ready so I can go over it with the student.