Headway Tutoring - Specializing In Language Arts, And Humanities
About
I strive to meet each student where they are, while also helping them to exceed their own expectations. When a student falls behind in their academic work, it can be devastating to their view of themselves. It's important to me that every student I work with feels confident in their ability to learn, that I help to inspire in them a desire to know more about the world around them, that they begin to search for connections between, seemingly, disparate ideas, and that I help provide a foundation for their continuing academic success.
I'm a former kindergarten teacher, a mom to two brilliant (if I do say so, myself) grown children, both of whom I taught to read, and an English, literature, and writing tutor, with close to 30 years experience. I have tutored students of all ages, including young children and professionals long past their official academic careers.
I love helping students to thrive in school, and by extension, in their lives. Reading, reading comprehension, and writing mastery are the most fundamental skills necessary in order to learn just about anything, from science to math to history. They are also crucial in order to accomplish things as basic to life as following a recipe, and telling a good story. As important as helping ensure a student's academic success, reading can be a source of genuine joy throughout the entirety of a reader's life.
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skye M.
Samuel G.
Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
It's important to for me to learn what prompted a student to seek a tutor, to learn whether there are any specific goals they would like to attain, and to discuss how my services fit into the attainment of their goals.
My approach to helping each student is as varied as each student's needs. In my experience, there is no single magic method that works for each student, and I think it is a mistake to attempt to make every student fit a single model approach. Part of what makes institutional education so difficult for so many students is the notion that one teaching approach fits all. I prefer to take a far more individualized approach. Moreover, I think a top-down, authoritarian approach to education is wrongheaded. Learning is a first person activity, and the enjoyment of learning is something that cannot be imposed from the outside. I prefer to guide each student, rather than dictate the route they must travel to reach their learning goals.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I come from a long line of professional writers. My grandfather was the managing editor of the evening paper in San Diego for 30 years, my severely dyslexic father was the managing editor of San Diego Magazine for 7 years, while he supported a family and put himself through law school. My mother is an award winning journalist, and my middle brother is an Emmy Award winning investigative reporter for KPBS TV news in San Diego. I taught myself to read at the tender age of four, and I wrote my first story as soon as I could hold a pen.
I was a gifted student, and always loved school. I graduated with honors from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a BA in Philosophy. A month after graduation, I married, and 10 months later my son was born. I began reading to each of my children as soon as they could hold their heads up, and they each have always been avid readers, excellent writers, and engaged students.
While in college, I began working in the tutoring center on campus as an English and writing tutor. My first year working for the center, I won the award for best tutor, something that still makes me proud. Two years before graduation, I began working as an assistant teacher in a private school in Los Angeles, and was subsequently promoted to teach kindergarden the next year.
I wrote a recurring column for The Examiner Online, and have worked as a freelance publicist and marketer, on top of my duties as an at-home mom. Even when working in other fields, I maintained ongoing tutoring clients.
Do you have a standard pricing system for your lessons? If so, please share the details here.
As a general rule, I charge $60 an hour, though I understand that some families simply cannot find an extra $60 a week in their budget. To that end, I am always willing to use a sliding scale. No student should be relegated to the lower rungs of the academic ladder because their family can't afford to get them the help they need.