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Tips for parents

What makes tutoring work.

Most of this happens on the days I don't see your child, and it makes more difference than anything I do at the table. None of it is hard. It is just easy to forget.

  1. A rested child does better

    A tired child cannot hold on to much, however good the session is. Sleep does more for an hour of tutoring than any worksheet I could set.

  2. A fed child does better

    Hungry children cannot concentrate — they simply can't. Something to eat before they arrive is worth the trouble it takes.

  3. Tell me when something isn't working

    If an approach isn't landing, or your child has started dreading the session, I need to hear it. I would far rather change course than find out months later that we spent them going the wrong way.

  4. Tell me what kind of day it has been

    A fight at school, a bad night, an exhausting day before. Send me a note on the day and I will adjust what we do rather than push a child who has nothing left.

  5. Say something early if homework is too much

    I do set homework. If it is becoming a burden, tell me quickly — the last thing a struggling child needs is one more thing on the pile to dread.

  6. Be clear about needs, allergies and restrictions

    Tell me anything relevant up front, and tell me when it changes. I can only work around what I know about.

  7. It is fine to decide we are done

    The aim is a child who doesn't need me any more, not a child who needs tutoring forever. If yours has got there, that is the result we were both after.

  8. It is also fine to decide it isn't working

    Not every child suits the way I teach. Saying so isn't a failure on anyone's part, and I would much rather you said it than sat quietly with it.

  9. Try not to over-schedule

    Children need time to be children and do child things. A packed week makes everything harder, and tutoring is not exempt from that.

  10. Please arrive on time

    Sessions are short as it is. Ten minutes late is a good slice of the hour gone, and it is the child who loses it rather than anyone else.

The short version

tl;dr — communicate early and often.

Tell me when something isn't working. Tell me on the day if your child has had a rough one. Tell me when anything changes. Almost everything above is a version of that, and none of it works without it.

Ready when you are.

Tell me what is getting in the way, and we can arrange an intro session.

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