Im/Perfect Success

I want to get to know my students interests, what captures their imaginations, what they want to do in their spare time, what they want to do in the future.

Then, I want to know what they want to get out of our time together. What goals do they have short term and long term? What are their challeneges for the topic(s) and for learning in general? Is this a supplement or assistance for learning from another instructor such as a classroom teacher or homeschooling program, or are we tackling this freely on our own?

Finally, I want to find out what they already know. We don't want to get bogged down in boring stuff they can do just fine. Instead, we want to find their "growing edges" and a pace to move those forward that is fun, achievable, and rewarding.

I have been teaching in some capacity or another since I was still in high school. After taking the 16-week Instructor Training Course for our region, I started teaching martial arts at my local dojo, and quickly learned that I liked to teach - and that I was as good or better than my teachers in school.

I began a college degree program in Engineering Physics at WPI, then transferred to Worcester State to graduate with my BS in Psychology, focusing on development and education. 

I have taken graduate level courses in education, as well as public speaking, and have taken seminary courses in pastoral care, ethics, theology, and race gender and sexuality diversity which all inform my teaching style and attempts to meet students where they are and who they are.

Amidst all that, I have casually tutored homeschooling students as well as college peers in math, science, ELA, writing, and more.

As part of my graduate education, I worked in a charter school teaching physical education, and worked towards creating a martial arts and alternative sport based curriculum focused on the enjoyment of physical activity that works for you and serves more than one purpose in a person's life.

I have also worked as a substitute teacher, requested back by students and teachers alike, successfully adapting to diverse students and situations, ranging from the disturbing to the joyous. Even as a substitute, I helped some students take vital steps in their educational progress.

During my seminay year, I worked on campus helping to manage their "blended" and fully online learning program. This gave me practical skills in the newly exploding online learning platforms in 2010/11, as well as the opportunity to sit in on higher-level classes and areas of study outside my program - only further enhancing my experience and awareness.

I genereally charge $60 per student per hour. 

Most students will benefit from a full hour session two or three times per week, but some may prefer shorter sessions with higher frequency, and this can be negotiated. 

Families (or pandemic pods) with multiple students wanting simultaneous coaching as a group may negotiate group rates after our intial discussions. 

I have worked with classroom students and homeschool students, ranging from second grade through collegiate.

I have some experience helping students with learning disabilities including ADHD, autism spectrum disorder; as well as "gifted" students (a whole different set of challenges, really) - however, I have no certifications for special ed and make no claims to be an expert tutor for such students. 

I prefer to work with middle- and high-school aged students, who are passionate about something in their lives or futures, or who are curious about their world and how it works. 

I help run a summer educational 'S.T.E.A.M.' program called Wiogora School of Wonder & Wisdom, based around a popular book series about a certain copyrighted young wizard with glasses and a unique scar. 

This was our 9th summer running, but our first online experience. We adapted our extensive program of magical classes to a fully virtual experience, with a "magic box" of materials sent to each young scholar, and ran our two week program for 53 kids, 47 teenaged assistants, and a couple dozen adult staff entirely through Google Classroom and Meet. 

Despite blistering heat, connection challenges, being unable to play our version of quidditch, to hug each other or hold hands, or even to properly sing together, we had an amazing time. And every class, despite its magical context, is education focused. My "Dumbledore's Army" and "Sword Play" classes were real-world practical self-defense techniques, while other classes like "Defense Against the Dark Arts" or "Misuse of Muggle Artifacts" taught self-care and creative engineering respectively.

The Wiogora communty is also one of the most socially accepting and welcoming place I've ever been part of. Our young scholars and their parents regularly tells us that this is one of the few places they can just be themselves. We've always been one of the most queer-positive organizations in the area, and our teen "ELFS" program technically constitutes the largest UU youth group in the region (unofficially).

This is not a passive experience. 
I cannot just 'dump' information into your brain and have you magically grok it. If you want something more like that, try khan academy or youtube.

What are YOU prepared to do to reach your goals?
What ARE your goals? 
What are you afraid of (not just this topic!)?
What are your challenges?
What has helped you overcome a challenge in the past?
What feels like it should work, but hasn't?
What do you LOVE to do?
What do you love that someone else is currently getting paid to do?

What is something that you love, that someone is getting paid to do, that you want to gain the skills to have a job doing?

And what part or parts of the topic(s) you're coming to a tutor about connect to your goals, passions, interests, or that job you just imagined?