English & Writing Tutoring
Good Writing Matters
Writing is one of the most important and practical skills taught in school. Mastering academic writing is the foundation for excellent business writing, which leads to greater professional opportunity. It’s also an incredible means of self-expression!
Let’s be honest, most of us don’t use that much algebra (we use some, though!), but writing plays into our everyday lives, regardless of job. Almost everyone writes emails and social media posts. College can be heavy on written assignments. Most jobs involve some writing, such as proposals, presentations, summaries, arguments, or articles. Even influencers need to write copy.
I offer tutoring in writing or reading for students having trouble in one area, as well as comprehensive English/language arts tutoring.
I offer one-on-one tutoring online and in person.
Why is it so hard to write well?
Young children may have a smaller vocabulary than teenagers, but conventions of good writing don’t change. The largest shift from middle school to high school is that students acquire research skills and writing becomes more analytical. Really, that means they are finding connections and distilling information, which is most often what I’m teaching with writing students. I’ve got a free Revision Checklist to help with that.
English is a very complicated language, which makes writing in it difficult. The English language was influenced by German, Latin, and Norman French, so it has lots of synonyms, non-standard conjugations, and nuances that many languages do not have.
How many synonyms for happy can you think of? How about sad? And how do you choose just the right word when describing how you feel?
Or, think about the verbs “to be” and “to like.” First, we have I am, he/she is, they are, and we are. Then we’ve got I like, he/she likes, they like, and we like. Am, is, and are look and sound nothing like “to be.” But for “to like,” we only have like and likes. And likes sounds plural, but we use it for the singular she or he.
Confusing when you think about it, right? And that’s just verbs. When it comes to syntax, synonyms, and spelling, it gets even hairier. Add more vocabulary, some research, and analytical skills, writing well is a challenge. A writing tutor can be invaluable to helping each student navigate all these nuances.
That’s where I come in.
I’m a Writing Expert
I’ve been tutoring for 15 years and I have an MFA in writing from Sarah Lawrence College. I tutor academic writing, like research essays, creative writing, descriptive writing, and fundamentals that students will need in all their classes. When it comes to boosting writing skills:
I keep kids engaged while building confidence. Once we have an “I can” attitude, the deeper skill-building work comes.
We work collaboratively. Tutoring is not a lecture! I ask prompting questions when needed, and I try to let students look for their mistakes before I jump in to show them the “right” way to do something.
I adapt. My teaching style is flexible because learners have unique needs, which includes adjusting for online learning.
My Tutoring Approach
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Assess
I review several different writing samples (e.g., descriptive writing, storytelling, critical writing) and assess areas of strength and opportunities to sharpen skills. I create a holistic profile of each student’s writing to help them excel.
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Review the Basics
If someone needs a deeper understanding of grammar and writing conventions, we’ll start on a granular level. If they’re struggling with the five-paragraph essay, we’ll look at the conventions of structure. We make sure they know the basics in and out before going deeper.
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Dive Deep
Once we’ve reviewed key challenges, your student and I will put new skills into practice and build on existing strengths. When tutoring writing, I do not stop when students are at grade level expectations—I work hard to help kids find their writing voice and maximize their analytical thinking.
I offer online tutoring for students anywhere, and I offer in-person tutoring in New York City.
While I sometimes offer written feedback for students who are advanced writers, or who have been working with me for a long time, the best learning happens on the spot. To best serve my students, I need to sit with them as they write and revise. This way, I can ask about their thought process and correct errors as they happen, rather than pointing things out after the fact. If a student is making the same mistake throughout a paper, they will learn much faster if we address it the first time they make it than if I send them notes on a draft three days later.
Working next to a student in the same room is the strongest way to build connection and retention of information, but face-to-face in a videoconference has advantages, too. I am equally adept at tutoring in person and online, and I can build a plan to meet your needs.
The virtual nature of work has made tutoring—both online and in person—more collaborative. Students can share their work with me via Google docs, or we can share screens while in a Zoom session so that we can work together in real time. The internet has also created an abundance of tools (some helpful, some less so) to help kids improve their grammar, vocabulary, and writing skills.
On the other hand, there are far more distractions than there used to be. This is why my conversational, on-the-spot method is important to the learning process.