Maria's Math Tutoring
About
As a current middle school math teacher, I have experience teaching a variety of grades and math topics. Currently, I teach 5th through 8th grade, which is 5th grade math through high school Algebra 1 Honors. Besides this, I have tutored students from 5th grade through Calculus 1 for the past 4 years. This will be my second year teaching since graduating from University of Illinois, which means Calculus and Geometry are still subject areas very fresh in my mind. As a young teacher, I also consider myself to be patient, approachable, and enthusiastic in working with students, and I look forward to continuing these rewarding tutoring experiences.
My favorite part about my job is helping build students' confidence in math and developing strong student-teacher relationships. I find these relationships grow best in one-on-one tutoring, and it is where students really start to recognize their potential and math identity.
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Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
When working with a new student, I first like to give them a short survey to assess how and where they see themselves in terms of their math identity. Once this is done, I address their biggest areas of need by seeing their current math work from school. If not currently in school, I try to keep open communication with the students to see where they feel they need areas of improvement. As we begin to work on material, I can gauge other areas of focus as well. Occasionally I will contact students current math teachers to get a sense of topics to focus on as well.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I graduated from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in May of 2018 with a major in Middle Grades Education (5-8) with concentrations in math and science. I currently teach 5th through 8th grade Algebra at a K-8 school in the western suburbs of Chicago. For the past 4 years, I have taught or student taught in middle school science and math classrooms ranging from 5th grade remedial math to Algebra 1 Honors, and 6th grade Biology to 8th grade Physics. Outside of teaching in the classroom, I have also been tutoring students from 5th grade math to Calculus 1 for the past 4 years.
Do you have a standard pricing system for your lessons? If so, please share the details here.
I typically charge $45-50 an hour for my one-on-one tutoring, but am willing to be a bit flexible based on location.
How did you get started teaching?
Teaching has been the only profession I can remember ever considering since I was a child. I had no doubts about getting my major in Education from University of Illinois, and the program did a fantastic job at introducing me to a variety of schools and communities.
What types of students have you worked with?
Throughout the past 4 years, I have taught in rural Mahomet junior high schools, Catholic K-8 schools, and diverse Champaign public schools both socioeconomically as well as ethnically. These rural and Catholic schools had a primarily white, middle-class student body, while the LaGrange public school was about half white, half low-income and Hispanic. In Champaign, many of the schools have a high low-income African American population. All of these schools have given me valuable experience working with students from all types of backgrounds and cultures, which has made me able to connect and empathize with a variety of students.