tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-88593710355569763102024-03-14T00:55:20.607-07:00How to Become a TutorTutoring is a great way to earn money while helping other people.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-62888121745207252702010-10-23T21:30:00.000-07:002010-10-25T16:56:53.793-07:00How to Tutor the Adult Learner<b><a href="http://how-to-become-a-tutor.blogspot.com/">How to Tutor</a> the Adult Learner</b><br />
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Most of the time, your tutoring students will be school-aged children. Sometimes, however, you may be approached to tutor an adult. An adult student could be someone who is doing upgrading in college, or an older adult who is changing careers and needs a refresher to get into a different program.<br />
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It is important to respect and understand your adult learner. As a tutor we should be promoting the idea of people being life-long learners, and we should also be doing that ourselves. Continually working toward being a more effective tutor involves learning and growing.<br />
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Adults may face a lot more stress and pressures in going back to school or procuring tutoring than children might face. For example, adults will be juggling family and work, and now adding being tutored to the mix. Adults may be facing pressures to pass exams for upgrading in their work, or they might not have family support in their learning endeavors.<br />
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As a tutor you will want to be very sensitive to these issues. In the end, as their tutor you will need to balance being sympathetic to their issues and demanding the right amount of commitment from them to ensure they get the most from your tutoring.<br />
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Read the previous post to learn <a href="http://how-to-become-a-tutor.blogspot.com/2010/10/teaching-jobs-how-to-become-online.html">how to become an online tutor</a>.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-48475453778935684082010-10-22T23:01:00.000-07:002010-10-25T16:59:55.040-07:00How to Become an Online Tutor<a href="http://how-to-become-a-tutor.blogspot.com/2010/01/tutoring-to-supplement-your-income.html">Teaching Jobs</a>: <a href="http://how-to-become-a-tutor.blogspot.com/2010/10/teaching-jobs-how-to-become-online.html">How to Become an Online Tutor</a><br />
By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Brian_A_Scott]Brian A Scott <br />
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If you are a teacher or you have been one in past, or even if you have never been a teacher but have a passion for this profession, you can try your luck to become an online tutor. <br />
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Among online jobs, this is one job that is gaining importance day by day, and at the same time, is very rewarding. There is a huge demand for online tutors as a large number of companies throughout the world are now outsourcing their tutorial services to countries where competent teachers are available at lower wages. The internet has made this world a global village and the high technology tools have made it possible for a person living in any part of the world to be a teacher to students living farther away.<br />
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To be an online teacher, you need to have the required skills and knowledge of the requirements of the market or the subject you are serving. You also need to have basic knowledge about how to use the equipment that is required to carry out online classes.<br />
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There are two ways to give online tuitions which are discussed below:<br />
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VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol)<br />
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VOIP allows tutor and tutee to talk over internet. In this form, tutor and tutee converse with each other through microphone and speakers. It's an easy way of carrying out conversation as they can easily discuss the subject and tutor can understand when the tutee is confused about something. Similarly, tutee can ask about any problems that he/she is facing. If camera is used in this conversation, it gives a human and live touch. Such tuitions are not less than the real form of tuitions, because books, notes can be used as well and even if there is any important diagram or information it can also be shared through camera. <br />
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Chat Technology<br />
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Through chat technology, tutor and tutee carries out conversation in the form of chatting. It is the traditional form of online tuitions. It lacks a human touch as not everything can be explained properly through chat. However, there are a few subjects that don't need deep explanations and thus, they can be taught over chat. To make this form of tuition more interesting, the tutor can provide links to important topics that the tutee can use to get in-depth details. However, as with VOIP, camera can be used in this form of tuitions to make it more interactive.<br />
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How to Become an Online Tutor?<br />
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When you decide to be an online tutor, you first need to decide whether you are more comfortable teaching through VOIP or chat. Then find the right sources that will help you become an online tutor. If you search on the internet you will come across a large number of websites that offer online tutor employment. Go through the application process. If they need your CV, attach it. Else, fill the forms on the website. <br />
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After you have gone through this process, all you'll have to do is wait. Soon, you will get the opportunity to be an online tutor.<br />
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Visit Brian's website, <a href="http://www.literacynews.com/" target="_new">http://www.LiteracyNews.com</a> and receive free <a href="http://www.literacynews.com/category/literacy-help/" target="_new">literacy help</a> and advice on teaching students.<br />
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Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Teaching-Jobs:-How-to-Become-an-Online-Tutor&id=5145598] Teaching Jobs: How to Become an Online Tutor<br />
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When you are learning <a href="http://how-to-become-a-tutor.blogspot.com/2010/10/aspects-of-tutoring-1.html">how to become an online tutor</a>, the general aspects of tutoring are important to learn.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-33547748291078338362010-10-22T22:19:00.000-07:002010-10-22T22:21:58.111-07:00<a href="http://how-to-become-a-tutor.blogspot.com/">How to Become a Tutor</a>: General Aspects of Tutoring:<br />
1. How to promote yourself<br />
2. How to stay safe<br />
3. How to do your income taxes<br />
4. How to become an effective tutor<br />
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1. Promoting yourself: A tutor looks and acts professional, including the image you give, how you are dressed, punctuality, and orderly conduct. A tutor is confident but not prideful. Your image is your promotion of yourself to people around you.<br />
Promoting your tutoring business will involve finding effective advertising, which doesn't cost you too much. Word of mouth is cheap and works well, but you must know a lot of people and have good connections for this to work for you.<br />
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2. Staying safe: Make sure you are covered at all times; in other words, don't put yourself into a situation where you could be accused of inappropriate behavior. Tutoring in public can be a good answer, or wait until you are very familiar to the student and their parents before suggesting in-home tutoring.<br />
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3. As a self-employed tutor, you must educate yourself as to how to handle income statements, income tax declarations, etc. for your own country. Do everything honestly, with everything above board, and you will never have to worry.<br />
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4. Become the best you can be. What can you do to become a more effective tutor? Look for online training, for workshops being held, read books from the library, get tips from experienced tutors. There's always room for improvement, and being the most effective tutor you can be is the best investment in yourself that you can make.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-78525996845167350052010-10-13T12:12:00.000-07:002010-10-13T12:12:53.376-07:00How to Become a Tutor: Strengthening Trust<b><a href="http://how-to-become-a-tutor.blogspot.com/">How to Become a Tutor</a>: Tips for Strengthening Trust</b><br />
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Trust is a really strong glue that holds relationships together. This is very important to remember in the tutor-student relationship. It is also crucial in the tutor-parent relationship when working with young children who will be represented by their parents.<br />
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7 Tips for Strengthening Trust <br />
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1) Don't make promises which you may not be able to keep-- this is especially important in your promotional and advertising material. Don't promise outrageous results. Instead, remain truthful both to yourself and to your students. Encourage their full potential while balancing this with realistic goals for their growth.<br />
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2) Follow through on the promises that you do make. Keeping your word shows your students that they can count on you.<br />
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3) Offer information about yourself when talking with your students. This makes you more approachable and more of a 'real person' in their eyes. <br />
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4) Admit when you're wrong. We all make mistakes. It won't be your first nor your last time. Just admit it, make a humorous comment about it if you like, let the student laugh with you, and move on.<br />
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5) Be sensitive. If you sense that something is wrong; your student is not quite themselves, then pause the lesson and try to find out, in a sensitive way, if there is something they want to talk about or need your help with. Many students do open up to their tutors. Be prepared to respond in a supportive and sensitive way.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-84494955284036715872010-03-03T12:45:00.001-08:002010-07-06T07:55:28.252-07:00How to Become a Tutor OnlineOnline Tutoring has really exploded over the last few years. There are dozens of respectable online tutoring franchises that you can sign up with to get some tutoring jobs. Basically you follow their application process, and choose what subjects you want to tutor. To be a tutor online, go online and search under "Be A Tutor Now" or "Tutoring Jobs", or "Online tutor jobs".<br />
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Most agencies which hire people to be a tutor online have a qualification process where you indicate why you are qualified to tutor the subjects you choose. Some of them also have some standard tests you take to test your skills. It is not too difficult to get in as a tutor, especially if you have already identified that you have strengths in the subject areas. (Of course, someone who is not good at math should not be applying to be a math tutor and hopefully wouldn't be accepted.)<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;"></span>If you decide to be a tutor online, here are some of the advantages you might enjoy:<br />
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1) You don't have to pay advertising money to find clients. They are funneled through the agency you signed up with and assigned to you based on the subjects you chose and the schedule you agreed to.<br />
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2) You do all the work from the comfort of your own home computer. That means no travel time, no more commuting, no paying parking, etc. If you are the only one home when you are tutoring, then background noise wouldn't be an issue. If you tutor when others are at home, you will want to have a room where you can close the door to filter out background noise.<br />
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3) You get to decide your rate of pay. Most agencies which hire you to be a tutor online allow you to set your own rate of pay. This is great because you decide what your time is worth. Also, you can go in to the website and see what other tutors in your field are charging.<br />
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4) You decide what hours on which days of the week you want to work. To be a tutor online is one of the most flexible jobs you can imagine for setting your own schedule.<br />
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5) When you sign up with your chosen agency to be a tutor online, you will most likely be offered some training. This training may cover how to handle sticky situations, give you access to worksheets and other resources, and educate you on the rules of conduct for both tutors and students.<br />
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6) To be a tutor online as opposed to in-person tutoring also gives you the advantage of not having to collect the money yourself. The agency handles money collection from students and distribution to tutors. (You get paid!)<br />
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Don't delay another day! Check out the great opportunity to be a tutor online starting now.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-16805006995843877002010-03-01T21:33:00.000-08:002010-07-06T07:51:07.310-07:00How to Become a Tutor: Keeping Track of BusinessOne important aspect of learning how to be a tutor is taking care of the business end of things. You do spend a lot of time making sure the student's needs are being met, but don't forget to stay organized and keep good records.<br />
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If you are going to be a tutor as your own business (self-employed), you will need to keep track of business income and expenses, and make sure you are following all the guidelines to pay taxes etc. It is a good idea to keep a file box just for your business and have files for categories related to your tutoring business. I also found it helpful to keep a file of student names, phone numbers, addresses, etc. I used this once in awhile when someone asked for references.<br />
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You may want a shelf on a bookcase for all your reference books on tutoring, starting a tutoring business, how to be a good tutor, etc. You will probably also have text books in the subjects you are tutoring. Keep them all together for handy reference.<br />
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Buy an invoice book and a receipt book you can use when billing and collecting from your clients. Make sure they copy in duplicate or triplicate. You will need one copy for your clients, one for you, and one spare in case they lose their first copy. It is handy if you keep your copy connected in the book and only tear out their copy.<br />
Keeping invoices and receipts in good order and matched up is a great way to keep your financial records organized.<br />
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It will be up to you to decide the billing period. Do you want them to pay each time they come or by the month? Maybe weekly is more convenient. You can decide this and then work out the details with your clients.<br />
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If you are employed through an agency, a lot of these details will be handles a certain way through the agency. Find out how they take care of billing and collecting. Most of the time, they handle those details and then pay you a certain amount for your time.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-1798138271220203842010-01-22T18:09:00.000-08:002010-10-13T11:46:50.389-07:00How to Become a Tutor: Building Confidence<b>How to Become a Tutor: Building Confidence</b><br />
You may have heard it said that "Confidence is the memory of past successes." If you think about this, it really makes sense. We are confident in doing something that we have done several or even many times before.<br />
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What happens, though, when you have tried something several times and you always fail? How does that make you feel? We as tutors may not have memories of failing academically, but we can look at other areas of our lives to answer this question. Maybe you tried to play tennis but just couldn't polish the skills. This little exercise will help us to understand the feelings our students are experiencing.<br />
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Can you imagine struggling at math and never seeming to get the knack of it? That must be very frustrating! Or putting all your efforts into a literature assignment only to have it handed back all marked up in red and with a poor grade.<br />
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Sometimes as tutors we may feel impatient when our student just can't get what we are trying to teach. That's when we need to sit back and take a deep breath (figuratively speaking) and try a different approach.<br />
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So back to the original question, if confidence is the memory of past success, how do we help our student feel confidence in something they don't think they've ever experienced success in?<br />
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You must create it for them.<br />
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That's right, you must create a situation that they can be successful in, and let them experience the elation of having succeeded.<br />
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It starts small. Don't try for a big success before the student has a established a pattern of small successes.<br />
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After the first couple of tutoring sessions, when the student is starting to feel a little more comfortable around you, encourage him to repeat some of the positive affirmations you are saying. When he has solved a problem correctly, even if you helped him, get him to say out loud that he did a good job. It's one thing for the student to always hearing you say it, and quite another for him to say it out loud himself.<br />
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The main key here is that you are trying to instill in him some belief that he can do this (whatever the subject is.) The belief will be a strong factor in creating success, which in turn will boost confidence.<br />
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The following book is recommended reading if you are really interested in helping your students build their confidence. It is a fairly quick read, and gets quite to the point. It is not full of a lot of fluff or re-hashed concepts. <br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=FFFFFF&IS2=1&npa=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=quieaschemea-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&m=amazon&f=ifr&md=10FE9736YVPPT7A0FBG2&asins=184312257X" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><br />
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The process of helping another person build confidence can sometimes be a rocky road. People are different, and you will have to individualize your strategies.<br />
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Encourage your student to talk to you. Encourage him to express his feelings about how he is doing. Even if it starts out sounding negative, it gets him used to talking to you and confiding in you. This gives you a basis to work on. <br />
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Have him take one of the negative things he says and turn it into a positive. If he acts a little shy about doing this, you do it for him to show him how its done. Then have him repeat it after you.<br />
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For example, he may say "I can't do long division. I always mess up."<br />
You could get him to say, "In the past I couldn't do long division. Today I can. I am learning how and I will get at least one done correctly today."<br />
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Then help him work through a long division successfully. Keep encouraging along the way. He doesn't have to do it all by himself yet. That will come. Reinforce the successes all along the way.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-47716337036720528962010-01-01T11:50:00.001-08:002010-10-13T11:52:47.054-07:00How to Become A Tutor: Tutoring to Supplement Your Income<b>How to Become a Tutor: Tutoring to Supplement Your Income</b><br />
While tutoring is a great way to supplement your income, the income should not be your focus. Tutoring is not like a day job you dislike that you just "show up for every day." While it is important to you to make money tutoring, trust me that you need to care more about your students than about the money to really shine at this job. The money will definitely come, but make sure your focus is in the right place.<br />
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When you tutor, you are going to be on a very personal, individual level with another person. You become that person's mentor, and a level of trust is built up. Your student will be able to tell how much you genuinely care. If you are only in this job for the income, this will be very clear to the student, and you will not be successful.<br />
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I have found in my 25+ years of tutoring that the student's success is built as much upon confidence as it is upon skill set.<br />
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Fostering confidence in your student is going to be one of your main objectives. How will you do this? If you were given the assignment to build your student's confidence in a way that is not based on teaching them more skills in the subject being tutored, how would you do it?<br />
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Get a pencil and paper and start brainstorming. I am not going to give out any ideas until the next post. :)Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-7453012954092795852009-12-13T12:30:00.000-08:002010-10-13T11:53:47.047-07:00How to Become a Tutor: Teaching Students to Read<b>How to Become a Tutor: Teaching Students to Read</b><br />
A tutor who teaches reading skills should have a repertoire of reference material. Whether you are tutoring children, teens or adults, it is very helpful to own some resources you can use to base your lessons on or to supplement what you already have.<br />
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A good starting point for your reference collection is the book by Siegfried Engelmann, titled, "Teach Your Child To Read In 100 Easy Lessons."<br />
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This is a highly successful program for beginning readers, one that you cannot afford to be without.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0671631985?ie=UTF8&tag=quieaschemea-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0671631985" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5414824488647652514" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_4pF61BsENmA/SyVSLvbt9KI/AAAAAAAAAAw/NCgdUsiaK_8/s320/Teach+Your+Child+To+Read.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 160px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 123px;" /> </a><br />
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Rating: 4.5/5 Stars<br />
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I have outlined building relationships and building confidence in other posts. These are also very important areas when teaching children to learn how to read. In a future post I will cover some basics on teaching adults how to read, and in teaching english as a second language.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-16950077866008444992009-12-13T07:26:00.000-08:002010-10-13T11:54:45.777-07:00How to Become a Tutor: What Qualities do You Need?<b>How to Become a Tutor: What Qualities do You Need?</b><br />
A tutor is a very special person, someone who can teach and coach a student, can identify the problems in the learning process of the student, and then formulate and carry out a plan to help the student work through the difficulties and become successful in their subject.<br />
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Four of the basic traits a tutor should possess are:<br />
<ul><li>Knowledge of the subject</li>
</ul>It probably goes without saying that a good tutor would have some knowledge, experience and background in the subject they are tutoring. Your combination of knowledge and experience will be one of your greatest assets in your tutoring business.<br />
<ul><li>Skills in communicating</li>
</ul>As a tutor you should be both a good listener and a good communicator. Being able to effectively transfer your knowledge to your student is paramount. A tutor does more than just transfer knowledge; a tutor is also good at identifying why the student is having a learning barrier and helping the student to break through that barrier. The ultimate goal of a tutor is to prepare the student to no longer need the tutor.<br />
<ul><li>Patience and understanding</li>
</ul>You are working one on one, most of the time. Each student will be an individual with their own personality. You need to learn to exercise both patience and understanding, even when you have explained something very clearly and the student is just not getting it. You must show the student that he/she can trust you and that you will be understanding as he/she works through the difficulty.<br />
<ul><li>Ability to make a plan and carry it out</li>
</ul>As you are working with your student, you will be looking for the areas which are tripping up your student. You will be making a plan for the student to take him/her from the current level they are in to the level of success you both think they can attain. You need to be realistic in these goals while at the same time giving your pupil a challenge to reach up to.<br />
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Your students will be able to tell if you genuinely care about them. Sharpening your people-skills through practice and study gives you more confidence as a tutor and as someone your student will both look up to and be able to relate to.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-40769186954448065382009-11-14T19:19:00.000-08:002010-10-13T11:55:14.919-07:00How to Become a Tutor: Essential Tutoring Resources<b>How to Become a Tutor: Essential Tutoring Resources</b><br />
A successful tutor has great resources at their fingertips. First let's touch on personal development as a tutor. As a tutor, no matter the subject(s) you are tutoring, you can grow and improve. You are interested in learning as much about your craft as you can, and that's why you are here.<br />
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Emily Meyer's book, <span style="font-style: italic;">The Practical Tutor</span>, is an invaluable tool to tutors of all levels. This is my most highly recommended tutoring resource.<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=quieaschemea-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0195038657&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><br />
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<h3 class="productDescriptionSource">Review</h3>"Useful on every level for both the administrators and the tutors of writing centers."--Rosalee Stilwell, Peninsula College, Forks Campus<br />
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"Not only offers excellent tutor training, but it is also a valuable synthesis of contemporary composition theory."--Charyl Brown, University of Texas at Arlington<br />
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"As a course of study for new, especially peer tutors, this text is unequaled....In its scope and thoroughness, The Practical Tutor does more than provide a course in tutoring instruction; it illustrates more vividly than any text I have seen the varied work of a writing center....This is a text well worth considering for training new tutors to teach writing."--College English<br />
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"There is much to be learned from The Practical Tutor, learned by tutors and by teachers who teach tutors. The thoughtful and thorough selections of composition theory and practice brought into play and the clarity with which they are summarized are useful to anyone interested in teaching writing. The intense and valuable experience that the authors have had with tutors and with tutoring resonates throughout the book."--The Writing Center Journal<br />
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This book focuses on tutors of writing and composition. However, Emily's instruction lends well to tutors of other subjects as well.<br />
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Tutoring Matters, by Jerome Rabow, has to be my second favorite. In fact it comes so close to first place that I might as well call it a tie with Emily's book, above.<br />
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Here is a taste of some of the reviews. How can you not be convinced?<br />
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<h3 class="productDescriptionSource">Review</h3>"This book offers a scholarly and practical perspective on tutoring both as an art and [as a] science. It is a must read for those who hope to be effective tutors, for those who intend to establish serious tutorial programs, for educators and policy-makers." --Walter R. Allen, Professor of Sociology and African American Studies, UCLA<br />
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"...The authors do more than prepare tutors to teach; through poignant vignettes and judicious advice, they prepare tutors to form relationships and, in the process, to learn more about themselves." --Sonia M. Nieto, University of Massachusetts<br />
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"This book targets and solves the many relationship problems between tutors and clients with insight and sensitivity" --Selma R. Zimmerman, New York City Board of Education<br />
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"What the novice tutor needs is reassurance. That is exactly what Tutoring Matters offers through the accounts of others and the concrete details that are so clearly presented in this book. Well done!" --Wilbur Rippy, New York's Bank Street College of Education<br />
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"The most practical, concrete, appealing, and intellectually coherent preparation material I have seen. We will use it, not only in our school tutorial program, but also in our work with juvenile detention systems and the homeless." --Mark A. Chesler, Community Service Learning Programs, University of Michigan<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=quieaschemea-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=1566396964&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><br />
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In a tutoring business, <span style="font-style: italic;">you</span> are your business. Invest in yourself and you will reap the rewards. You are worth the time, effort and cost to personal growth.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-91509057365152632992009-09-13T15:28:00.000-07:002010-10-22T21:40:11.520-07:00How to Become a Tutor To Make Extra Money<b>Become a Tutor to Increase Your Income</b><br />
Many people these days are interested in making extra money to help pay their bills or to have some to put away for savings. Tutoring in some of your spare time is a good way to earn extra money. You can become a self-employed tutor, apply online for a tutoring position at one of the many tutoring sites, or apply to a local educational institution to be hired into their tutoring program (not all schools have this program, but many universities do.)<br />
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To be a tutor that is self-employed, you will generally work out of your home, or pay a visit to the pupil's home for the tutoring session. The best way to find students is through word of mouth. If you are just starting and don't know anyone looking for tutoring, put an ad up at the school, or phone the office and ask if they have a list of tutors. If so, ask about being added to the list. The school does not pay you to tutor, they only pass on the names to students who are asking about obtaining tutoring. You will still need to set your own rates, set up the meetings, and collect your fees from your students.<br />
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An online tutoring position can be sought at one of the many online tutoring agencies. Go to each website and look around. Most tutors can set their own rates, but there will be a fee added on top of that that the pupil will have to pay which covers the costs of the tutoring agency. This type of tutoring will be done online and you may have students from many countries around the world.<br />
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If you have a university or a student learning center which offers tutoring in your area, these are worth checking out for tutoring possibilities. You may want to make an appointment to go there in person and check out their facility. This type of position would probably lend itself well to those tutors who are already established and have a greater confidence in their tutoring abilities.<br />
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For information on <a href="http://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Become-a-Tutor-and-Earn-Extra-Money&id=2145357">how to become a tutor</a> without previous experience, this article will give you the tips you need now: <a href="http://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Become-a-Tutor-and-Earn-Extra-Money&id=2145357">How to Become a Tutor and Earn Extra Money.</a>Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-32356479949131686232009-09-12T18:34:00.000-07:002010-10-22T21:41:32.105-07:00How to Become a Tutor for Distance Learning Centers<b>Become A Tutor for Distance Learning Centers</b><br />
If you would like to be a tutor for a distance learning center, you can begin your search by looking for institutions which offer classes by correspondence, and then look over their application process to learn how to be a tutor with their agency.<br />
Many schools offer distance learning options for their students. These distance learning centers hire tutors to assist in marking papers, giving tutoring help to students by email or phone, and even live in person through webcam. <br />
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A distance learning center may be a high school, college or university. There are also some virtual schools which are online education only. Search for schools in your area and then broaden your scope to schools in your country. (Some educational institutions only hire tutors who dwell in the same country of origin.)<br />
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It is worth the effort to contact as many distance learning centers as you can if you are interested in this type of tutoring. Not all distance learning centers require their tutors to hold an education degree. However, be prepared to show that you have the skills/experience to apply for a tutoring position. You may need to demonstrate these skills by completing a tutoring exam. This exam will test you on your ability to mark a student's work, and explain how to solve a problem.<br />
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You have nothing to lose by exploring this option. In fact, this can be a very satisfying mode of tutoring. You don't have to worry about no-shows, nor about collecting your pay. You are given all the necessary materials, and you set specific tutoring hours which can work within your schedule.<br />
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Your search will involve the following aspects: Identify possible institutions which offer distance learning, locate their website, and look for an employment or job opportunities tab. Click on that and see what positions they may be advertising. Even if tutors are not on that list, it is worthwhile to contact the institution and let them know you are interested in becoming a distance learning tutor. They may refer to it by a different name; check out their site before you phone or email them and see what name they are using for that position.<br />
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In your contact with the institution, let them know that if they are not hiring at the current time, you would be interested in finding out the next time they are hiring.<br />
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Keep a list of institutions you have contacted and what the results were. Refer to that list to determine whether someone needs a call back, when their next hiring blitz is on, etc. This is all useful information, and may help you land that job you want.<br />
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Often, competitions to hire distance learning tutors become available yearly; sometimes they are in need of a tutor to fill a position due to a maternity leave or other health problem. You may get hired on a contract basis to fill a temporary need, or get hired on a more permanent basis if you are interested in making this more of a full-time job for yourself.<br />
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Remember to come across with enthusiasm and confidence, but not with too much pride. First impressions really are important.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-47103383662751872892009-04-14T14:05:00.000-07:002010-10-22T21:42:06.682-07:00How to Become a Tutor: Teaching Methods<b>How to Become A Tutor: Teaching Methods</b><br />
As a tutor, you will want to have a "portfolio" of different teaching methods. One teaching method that I will cover today is the Learning Through Teaching method. In this method, you ask your student to teach you the concept, as if he is the teacher and you are the student. You tell him that you are going to pretend you know nothing about this concept.<br />
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Give the student a few minutes to go over the concept that he is having difficulty with. Most students will make an attempt to play this role-reversal game.<br />
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This technique works very well, actually. You may have to help the student along a little the first time he tries it, but persevere. It's worth it.<br />
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As the student tries to explain the concept, it gets him talking out loud about it. It helps you clearly see what he does understand and what he doesn't. As he continues, look for areas he is missing, and ask him questions in those areas. Remember that since you're the student right now, it is normal for you to have questions about what he is teaching you. (You're tutoring him without him knowing it because your questions spur him to learn more.)<br />
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Part of the "game" is that he is free to use his books to look up answers to questions you are asking.<br />
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Treat your student with respect in this exercise and compliment him often. Remember to try to be the student even in your compliments, so you might say something like, "I really liked how you taught me that part. I was able to understand what you were saying."Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-32341169469685533632009-04-08T12:42:00.000-07:002010-10-22T21:49:40.204-07:00How to Become a Tutor: Investing Time<b>How to Become a Tutor: How it All Started</b><br />
You have probably noticed that several of my posts have been about building relationships. Yes, it is a very important thing to do. There is a really good reason for building relationships when you become a tutor. You see, your students and their parents are your best advertisers. So even if you are so successful at tutoring a child that the child reaches a point where he no longer needs you, the child could have other siblings who will. Also, parents have a way of bragging about how great their child's tutor is!<br />
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My career basically started with one family. The mom was talking about her child struggling in high school physics and I said that I did tutoring. She hired me right away, and I ended up tutoring all her children younger than that particular student, over the course of 10-12 years. He was oldest of 8 children. Not only that, but at least 2 dozen references to other families came from that same mom. <span style="font-style: italic;">Don't underestimate the power of 1 good relationship!</span><br />
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<b>Become a Good Tutor:</b> Investing some time<br />
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When you have established a client who will be coming on a regular basis, consider becoming involved with the student in an area of their interest which takes place outside of tutoring time. This involvement of time on your part is an investment in the relationship. It is a building up of trust.<br />
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For example, one of my students was an avid baseball player, but was struggling in math. He set up 2 weekly tutoring sessions with me on a regular basis. He was coming to see me Tuesdays 8-9 as well as Friday afternoons 1:30-3:00. He was quite an amiable young man, and had a great interest in playing baseball.<br />
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I invested in the tutoring relationship by attending a couple of his baseball games. The first game I attended was about 1 month after he had started coming to see me. By that time, I had gotten the chance to get to know him- by listening and by asking the right questions- and he had been telling me how his season was going. When I expressed an interest in coming to see a game, he was very pleasantly surprised and made sure I knew where and when the game was to be.<br />
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I not only enjoyed the game, I built a relationship. He could see that I genuinely had an interest in him and his success, not only in math but in things he was interested in. It makes people feel good when someone is interested in them. It also gives him the message that tutoring isn't just for me making money. And its true. Money is a nice side-effect of tutoring but the real rewards come from seeing growth in the student.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-5728694477480841052009-04-08T12:32:00.000-07:002010-10-22T21:51:35.017-07:00How to Become a Tutor: Work for Yourself or Someone Else?<b>How to Become a Tutor: </b>Work for Yourself or Someone Else?<br />
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When preparing to be a tutor, you will be choosing whether to work for yourself or someone else.<br />
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I spent 25 years as a private tutor, self-employed. I loved it because I could choose my own hours, my own clients, and the flexibility worked very well for me. I did most of my tutoring at my own home. When my children were very young, I would put them to bed and then do a couple hours of tutoring.<br />
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This schedule also worked well for my students. I would see one student at 7-8pm and another at 8-9pm. I also had one student who came over Saturday morning, when my hubby could watch the kids, from 10-11am.<br />
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When the kids got older, I would sometimes tutor from 4:30-5:30pm. I would have a snack ready for the kids after school, and then send them downstairs to play games or watch tv for that hour. I would have put supper in the crockpot early in the day so it would be ready when my student left, or I would have something in the fridge ready to warm up.<br />
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I had all the students I could accommodate and more. I often had more students request tutoring than I could handle. I never once spent a penny on advertising. It was all done by word of mouth.<br />
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Maybe working for yourself is not a viable option for you. If you cannot seem to get your first clients or word of mouth is not getting you enough clients, then consider where in your local area you could get hired as a tutor. If you're good at crafts, check out craft stores and see if they run classes- or would consider running classes that you could teach. If you want to tutor high school subjects, go to the high schools in your area and see what they have for programs. You could advertise at universities and colleges as well.<br />
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Also, check out local tutoring services and see if they're hiring.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-7498665160260729252009-04-05T13:20:00.000-07:002010-10-22T21:52:25.764-07:00How to Become a Tutor and Build Good Relationships<b>Become a Tutor and Build Good Relationships</b><br />
When you are a tutor, trying to build up a clientele, you are going to want to be the kind of person that relates well to other people, someone that your students feel they can relate to, and a tutor that can relate very well to the parents of their students.<br />
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Have you ever read the book,<br />
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<span style="font-style: italic;">How to Win Friends and Influence People</span> by Dale Carnegie?<br />
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If you haven't, you should. This book is amazing and will provide you with a great knowledge foundation for relationship building. This book points out several important things you can practice doing in your communications with others.<br />
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Here are two things you can start working on today:<br />
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1) Say the person's first name in your conversations. Yes, it sounds really simple, but the truth of the matter is that people love to hear their name. It makes them feel like you really care about them. It also helps them pay closer attention to what you are saying. (Remember when your mother would scold you by shouting all your names in full? Like Richard Scott Andrew Harmen! You come here right now! Or maybe Shauna Elizabeth Nancy Leeman! You're in trouble now! Well, it's no fun to remember getting scolded but the example shows how you really pay attention when you hear your name)<br />
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Just remember to use the student's first name only, and not in a scolding tone (wink).<br />
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2) Find out things about your student. What does he like to do? What are his hobbies? What sports does he like? Where has he gone on vacation? Then, you can bring little tidbits into conversations with him that he can really relate to. If he likes baseball, ask him what he thought about the most recent game. You will want to do a few minutes homework ahead of time about that game so you can comment on it too.<br />
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These two things, saying the person's name in conversation, and talking about something that interests them, are two simple yet very easy things to do. These two things will help you build relationships with your students as well as with other people in your life!Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-85350409163309396172009-04-02T09:26:00.000-07:002010-10-22T21:53:03.736-07:00How to Become a Tutor: Building a Relationship<b>Become a Tutor: Building a Relationship</b><br />
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Learn What to Ask<br />
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When building a relationship with a new student, it can be difficult at first to know how many questions to ask and what to ask to get to know him better. After you become a tutor and have had some practice in this area, it will come easier to you.<br />
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With teenagers, generally, I would suggest treading carefully in this area at first. While I have never had a teenage student who didn't like to talk about themselves and their life, it usually came with time. (Let it ripen)<br />
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Elementary school children usually love to talk on and on about themselves and what they are doing, like to do, their friends, etc. Let this flow freely at first. However, you will need to take the reins and re-direct them to the tutoring task at hand, when necessary. Feel free to do so and they will learn to take cues from you.<br />
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I had one teenage student who was unusually quiet. In the tutoring session I could also tell that there were too many things on her mind to be able to concentrate on what I was teaching. A direct question like, "what's bothering you?" or "is there something you want to talk about?" will usually get the answer, "nothing." It will also leave a cold, dead silence in its wake and make both of you feel more uncomfortable.<br />
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It's better to ask a question such as, "so...what's your math teacher like?" or "I guess the basketball team is playing this friday. Do you usually go to the games?" After you get a response, ask another vague but related question. This exercise is just to get the student talking.<br />
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This is what I did with my quiet teenage student. After about 2 questions, she just spilled what was on her mind and then looked at me and said, "You know, you're really easy to talk to. I can't even talk to my parents like that." Well I must say that was one of the greatest compliments I had ever received as a tutor.<br />
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After she had spilled her problem out and told me what she thought she would do to solve it, I gave her one encouraging statement such as, "Well, I can tell you're a smart girl and I think you've done some good thinking about your situation. That's a great first step in solving any kind of a problem." She was not looking for a solution, only someone to unload on.<br />
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After that, she was able to soak in everything I was trying to teach her. The 10 minutes we took to have that conversation had several positive outcomes: 1) It built a relationship. I knew she trusted me. 2) It made the remaining 70 minutes of the lesson much more productive.<br />
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A student needs to feel comfortable enough to tell you when they don't understand the material. Building the trust relationship is the first step. Learn what questions to ask-- and when to ask.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-22267914161877210302009-03-27T23:11:00.000-07:002010-10-22T21:53:39.448-07:00How to Become a Tutor: Building Relationships<b>Become a Tutor: Building Relationships</b><br />
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When you want to be a tutor, there is much more to it than just having knowledge in your field of specialty.<br />
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A good tutor knows how to build a relationship with her student. This is an important step, as the student must learn to trust you and learn to feel comfortable around you. (For ease in writing, I will refer to the tutor as "her".)<br />
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<span style="font-weight: bold;">Learn How to Listen</span><br />
The first step in building a relationship with your student is learning how to listen. Often, your student will want to talk to you about things that at first don't seem related to the material. (For ease in writing, I will refer to the student as "him".) It is important that you allow the student to open up to you, and find a balance between conversation and tutoring. It is true that you are being paid--most of the time by the hour--to tutor the student in a particular subject. However, you will find that your tutoring will go much better and your student will be more receptive, if you allow for some discussion of other topics.<br />
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Most of my students have been high school age. I discovered that if I listened and tried to relate to their humorous anecdotes about what happened in school that day, or laughed at their jokes, they were much more at ease in asking me questions about the subject matter. A few minutes of conversation at the beginning of each tutoring session can be very beneficial in relaxing both the student and yourself. I would suggest this be limited to about 4 or 5 minutes. If they seem quite talkative, then make a suggestion like, "Well, we better get to work." This suggests that you are enjoying the conversation as much as they are, but you both have work to do.<br />
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Next in the Series on Building a Relationship...<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Learn What to Ask</span>Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-66525421817226924772009-03-26T08:58:00.000-07:002010-10-22T21:54:39.510-07:00How to Become a Tutor: Sharpening the Saw<b>How to Become a Tutor: Sharpening the Saw</b><br />
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Whether you want to be a tutor, or be a better tutor than you already are, you must learn to sharpen the saw. Sharpening the saw is a figure of speech, and what it means literally is that you can cut more wood, faster and with less effort if you take the time to sharpen the saw once in a while.<br />
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How this relates to your tutoring business is that it is a good idea to refresh your memory and your skills periodically. Preferably before the tutoring sessions begin.<br />
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In preparation to be a tutor, do a little bit of research. For example, I started tutoring high school chemistry after having been out of University for couple of years. To prepare myself, I obtained a copy of the high school chemistry textbook and perused it to refresh my memory.<br />
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How to obtain textbooks: There are several things you can try in order to be able to borrow a textbook for the class you will be tutoring. First of all, find out about the curriculum requirements for that class. Search on your state or province's school district site. Find out the books they require for that class. You can also phone your local school and ask about which books that class requires. If it's a high school class, often you can pay a deposit and borrow the book over the summer, when the school is not using it. After summer, return the book to get back most or all of the deposit. This process works extremely well for me.<br />
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If you are teaching a college or university class, try to obtain the textbook through a used book sale.<br />
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Sometimes your local public library can be a source of good information.<br />
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Sharpening the saw does not need to take a lot of time and effort, and will give you a boost in confidence.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-85164301667163408052009-03-25T21:17:00.000-07:002010-10-22T21:55:39.431-07:00How to Become a Tutor, or Why be a tutor?<b>How to Become a Tutor, or <i>Why</i> Become a Tutor?</b><br />
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If you have been thinking that you want to be a tutor, have you really asked yourself why be a tutor? Seriously, as compared to a teacher or something else? Is it because you want to be in education, do you have a passion for it? <br />
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First of all, it is very satisfying to watch your student learn and grow while you teach, instruct and demonstrate. You and your student will end up learning and growing together. You will become amazed at the relationships you can build through tutoring. I tutored many high school students who would confide in me and then remark how surprised they were to be telling me that, when they wouldn't dream of telling their own parents!<br />
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Secondly, being your own boss and running your own tutoring business offers you flexibility and income tax breaks as well. Check into your area and find out what local or federal laws are for home based businesses. It may be to your advantage to obtain a business license; you may find out you can claim a whole slug of tutor-related expenses against your income, and that's always nice. You can decide when, where, and how much tutoring you want to do each week. Sometimes you may want to be flexible towards the students as well, if they are requesting more tutoring time close to exams.<br />
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Thirdly, being a tutor generally pays very well. If you can, scout around your area and see what other tutors are charging. You may be able to find out by looking in the phone directory, calling schools or tutoring services, etc. I have found that a good tutor in Canada or the U.S. can easily make $25+ per hour. If you are highly specialized and live in a big city with a University, you can possibly make $40+ per hour. You may want to give a price break to your first students in order to build up some references, but never sell yourself short.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859371035556976310.post-90783026814254853872009-03-25T19:06:00.001-07:002010-10-22T22:00:49.017-07:00How to Become a Tutor: Getting Started!<b>How to Become a Tutor: Getting Started!</b><br />
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Welcome to my blog. You must be thinking you want to be a tutor. Great! Here you can use my personal experiences in 25 years of tutoring to launch and maintain your very own personal tutoring business.<br />
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Tutoring is a business that you don't need certification for (make sure you check the requirements in your country), you decide the hours you want to work, work location, age range of your clients, how you will get paid, and how much you will get paid.<br />
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To become a tutor you do need a skills set. Some of these skills you may already have and some you can work on getting starting today.<br />
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Don't worry, you don't necessarily need to be a brain in math to be a good tutor. Tutoring covers many subjects and math is only one of them.<br />
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Word of mouth is going to become one of your best forms of advertising for your business. There are also other ways to advertise your business, such as ads in the local paper, ads on bulletin boards at schools or universities, and by putting your name on a tutor list available at many schools, especially high school. Just phone some local schools and inquire. Many parents will ask at the school office about where to look for a tutor, so they will often carry a list of tutor's names to pass on.Mathgirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18333169888202041743noreply@blogger.com