5 Ways To Make the Most of Your Tutoring Session
Deciding to bring a tutor into your child’s life is a big decision and a big investment. Tutoring will have a significant impact on a student’s life by increasing knowledge, boosting confidence, and developing pride in the hard work of education. But in order for this to happen, everyone involved needs to step in and step up. At Connections Academics, we are constantly working with our tutors to be sure they bring their A-Game to each tutoring session. Here are 5 ways for students and families to get the most out of your tutoring session.
Be prepared. The more material your tutor can see from school, the more he or she will understand exactly what you are learning as well as your teacher’s expectations. Have classroom notes, study guides, homework assignments, recent exams, and anything else that can paint a fuller picture of your classroom learning. It isn’t your tutor’s responsibility to complete all the homework with you, but this is a great place to start so that your tutor can see what’s going well and what is confusing.
Ask lots of questions. Not only is it important to come prepared with classroom notes, text books, and other study material, but it extremely beneficially to come with lots of questions. Your tutor is there to help untangle the confusing knots that have slowed down your progress. Speak up and ask when you are lost or need a few more examples. Pull out recent tests or assignments and ask for help in correcting your mistakes. Take out notes and ask your tutor to reexplain a section where you felt lost. Not sure what to ask? Try any of these! “Can we go over this? What did I do wrong here? Can you explain this in a different way?” Your tutor wants you to succeed, and they want you to have lots of questions so they can help in impactful ways.
Communicate regularly. Don’t hesitate to reach out to your tutor during the week. Our tutors can modify their plans based on your feedback or specific concerns. If a certain assignment is particularly difficult, it can be helpful to give tutors a heads up, so they can be ready with new ways to approach the learning. Our tutors use TeachWorks as a means of communicating details and observations about each session. If you want further suggestions or more insight on how sessions are going, tutors are often willing to schedule a Skype session midweek.
Continue the systems and strategies your tutor teaches. Tutors will be reviewing all kinds of study strategies and organizational systems that can help you succeed in your learning. Most of these will not be effective if only done during the hour-long tutoring session. Keep utilizing systems and strategies all week long to stay organized and prepared.
Stay positive. Never speak with shame or embarrassment about having a tutor. We all learn differently, and most of us learn best in 1:1 settings. The individualized attention your tutor can give you is a great gift! More than half of our students are high achieving students who want thrive and reach their highest potential. By reviewing material in a personalized way, your tutor can empower you to feel more confident in your classroom and better prepared to take on new material. Now that’s something to be positive about!
Written by Joy Becker, Mentoring Coordinator.
