I am sure you have heard this phrase many times, “Practice makes perfect.” It is so simple to understand, yet depending on what we want to perfect and what our personal likes are, it can be easy or difficult to implement a plan for consistent and meaningful practice. Since we are talking about math here on this blog, I can say from experience that it is challenging to put one in place, but I will explain how we can best do so.
In the context of tutoring, we meet with our students once or twice per week, or on the rare occasion, once every other week. The latter is not a schedule that I encourage because if you think about it, that gives you just two hours per month with your student. Unless your student is a motivated self-learner, this just is not enough time to put a dent in their progress. However, I do understand why families would take this approach, and I want to explain how we as tutors can make the best of it. Most importantly, we need to communicate clear and reasonable expectations with the parents of our students. They need to know that only so much can be accomplished in just two hours per month. There are ways to get around this and it requires more effort on the tutor’s and student’s part, but a minimal amount of time. As you, the tutor, prepare for each meeting, it would be a great idea to also prepare a work packet of sorts. This can be a printed version, digital version, or both. The point is to provide something for your student at the end of your session and encourage him or her to work on it for about 15 minutes per day until you meet again. That is a reasonable amount of time, even if they are busy with other school assignments and/or extracurricular activities. To hold them accountable is the most challenging part of this process. I remedy this with weekly check-in emails and encourage them to send me work they have already completed from the packet for review. All communication is done via email, and it is a good way to keep the math conversation going even though you are not physically meeting. Most students are not going to want to do this, but you should do your best to consistently push and challenge them. We are teachers, aren’t we? It’s our job to create an atmosphere of some challenge to help our students grow. What if the student doesn’t do the work? That is a completely legitimate concern. In spite of this, I would encourage you to continue to be there for them but give them digital versions of your work packets. At least you’ll save money on printer ink! On a more important and serious note, have a clear conversation with the parents about what you have been doing and provide a gentle recommendation for the student to make time for the extra practice. After that, there is nothing more you can do, so just make the most of those two hours per month! I encourage you to try this out and see what happens! Happy Tutoring! |
AuthorRossina here welcoming you to my blog :) Have you ever met someone who actually loves mathematics? Probably not, but that's me! I have been teaching math for 10+ years in a private one-on-one setting, helping families and students all over the country achieve mathematical mastery. Here, I share tips, insight, and provide resources to help you become a math master or tutor. I truly hope you find my blog helpful. Enjoy! Archives
September 2023
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