Know What To Look For In A Math Tutor
Looking for a quality math tutor can feel like a treasure hunt sometimes. There’s a lot of “X marks the spot” but no actual treasure. I know it can be a bit daunting with so many options available, each promising to boost your child’s academic prowess. But don’t worry, you’re in the right place! Let’s take a journey together as we explore how Drew Laiche at Portland Math Tutor, LLC can meet the Standards in Math Tutoring you’ve been looking for.
The Professional Edge: Why It Matters
The gig-economy is typified by a mobile app and a stable of low paid workers filling their idle hours for extra income. In the tutoring world, platforms like Wyzant.com, VarsityTutors.com, Superprof.com, and Care.com provide access to many tutors, but the level of professional expertise varies greatly. And frankly, for the most part, the tutors that hawk their services on these websites generally can’t be called, “professional educators.”
There are exceptions, however, like myself. Having experimented with these platforms when starting my business, I quickly realized that working independently is really the only option if you want to make a living in this profession.
As a licensed math teacher with years of experience in math education and a master’s in teaching, I am dedicated to honing my skills as an educator and furthering students’ understanding and abilities with math – this is no side-hustle. And as a true professional does, I continually reinvest in my business so that I can provide my clients with exceptional tutoring and the results to match.
Portland Math Tutor, LLC: Professional Math Tutoring
Part of what sets tutoring with Portland Math Tutor, LLC apart from math tutoring with a grab bag services like VarsityTutors.com is the additional resources that come along with tutoring sessions. One of those resources is guided notes and practice materials, complete with answer keys. This is an example of what can be expected from a high quality tutoring service–a standard that should be demanded of professional tutors.
With Portland Math Tutor, LLC, students have access to pre-structured notes which support mini-lessons as well as practice work with answer keys. These improve retention, and students have the takeaway resources needed to continue learning outside of tutoring sessions. Your student can revisit all the topics we’re working on at their own pace. And, with answer keys readily available, your child can independently check their work. It’s like having a friendly math genie confirming if the answer is right!
These resources not only enhance your child’s understanding, but they also fill in the gaps often found in school textbooks — assuming a textbook is even provided by the school. Unfortunately, it is increasingly the case that students don’t have a reliable reference to consult when they are outside of the classroom. This puts the burden on students to shoulder the responsibility of good note-taking habits, which we all know is a skill many students don’t truly master until college when reality hits like a ton of bricks.
Guided notes give students a structured reference that can make a world of difference when students are studying outside of class.
Getting the Best Bang for Your Buck in Every Tutoring Session
At the beginning of tutoring sessions many-a-time have I heard, “My teacher didn’t give us an assignment,” or the common refrain, “We just took a test and I don’t know what our next topic is.” Fortunately, at Portland Math Tutor, LLC, I am able to turn these uncertainties into opportunities.
Regardless of your child’s school district — Portland Public, Beaverton, David Douglas, Gresham, you name it — I’m prepared. I have access to the scope and sequence documents guiding math classrooms in all the local school districts. By utilizing the wide breadth of supplemental material that I have at my disposal, we can eliminate uncertainty about what’s coming next and front-load a personalized mini-lesson on the upcoming topics in the student’s class.
Your child will have a powerful confidence boost when they show up to class already familiar with the new topic. Math anxiety is quickly forgotten when students can preview new math concepts in a one-on-one setting. Many of my students have shared how these proactive sessions made their classroom experiences far less stressful and much more enjoyable.
Boosting Progress with Online Assessments and Tracking
Another way that choosing a professional tutor provides additional value that you won’t find through a tutor-for-hire clearinghouse like Thumbtack.com is our online placement assessments and progress tracking. Like the starting clue on a treasure hunt, initial assessments provide a snapshot of your child’s current knowledge, which informs the path we take during the tutoring sessions moving forward.
But it doesn’t stop there! We also offer free ongoing progress tracking. It’s like having a trail of breadcrumbs that show us how far your child has come and what areas need more focus. This way we catch any potential knowledge gaps early which saves us from math meltdowns down the line.
These are value-added perks from tutoring with Portland Math Tutor, LLC. However, participation in initial placement tests and ongoing progress tracking is optional. Sometimes a student just needs assistance in a specific area, in which case we can focus just on what is needed at the time.
Standards in Math Tutoring
So when you’re in the market for a math tutor, remember to consider the value of a professional teaching experience, the importance if technical resources, and the depth of supplementary learning tools that the tutor brings to their practice.
At Portland Math Tutor, LLC, we’re not just about teaching math; we’re about shaping confident, self-assured students. With a combination of professional expertise, high-quality educational tools, and progressive learning analytics, we offer a math tutoring experience that is hard to match.
Are you ready to embark on a transformative math journey? Don’t be a stranger! Contact Drew Laiche at Portland Math Tutor, LLC today, and let’s set sail towards mathematical success. See you soon!
Have Questions?
If you have any questions about my services, use the contact form below to get in touch. If you’re ready to get started, use the registration form and we can get the ball rolling to setup math tutoring for your student.
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