Tutoring is a powerful tool for helping students reach their academic goals. As a tutor, it is important to understand how to structure a tutoring session in order to maximize the effectiveness of the lesson. To ensure that each session is successful, it is important to evaluate and understand the needs of the student, familiarize yourself with the student's learning method, and keep your main goals simple and attainable. Before beginning the lesson, it is important to build trust and a relationship with the student.
Ask them about their week and what they have learned in school. You can also play a game to help them relax and feel comfortable with you as their tutor. Once the student is relaxed, you can begin the lesson by introducing the topic and making sure you are in the main part of your lesson plan no later than 15 minutes into the session. When teaching a memory-based subject such as biology, it is important to help the student retain important facts and figures. If you are teaching a foreign language, you can throw away the textbooks and put on a song in their target language if you notice that they are having a difficult day.
It is also useful for tutors to have a lesson template that they can refer to in order to ensure that each session is steadily paced. At the end of each lesson, it is important to recapitulate what the student has learned so far. This will help them retain information and feel more confident in their abilities. Additionally, taking notes of all the positive aspects of your tutoring will help you repeat successful processes over and over again. Finally, before your first tutorial, conduct a Meet the Tutor session to establish what your student needs and what parents expect from the sessions.
Tutors who are constantly on the ball will end up with more students, better recommendations, and ultimately charge higher fees.
