Marcia
Certified Tutor
My name is Marcia and I have been in the teaching field for 18 years. I have my Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education and have taught Elementary Grades 1st, 2nd, and 5th. I have my Master's Degree in Special Education and have many years of experience with working with this population. My certifications are in Elementary Education, Early Childhood Education, and Special Education. I currently teach at risk young adults in a non-public school. My philosophy is that all children are capable of learning, but it should be a pleasant and enjoyable experience for the child. I reach each student where they are currently and work hard at getting to know them as individuals so that I can incorporate activities that relate to their interests.
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Undergraduate Degree: Florida Memorial University - Bachelors, Elementary Education
Graduate Degree: Nova Southeastern University - Masters, Varying Exceptionalities
I enjoy spending time with family and friends at cook outs or home gatherings and chatting on the phone with friends and family. I often go to Art Museums, live plays at dinner theaters. I also like to go the movies. I enjoy creating various green smoothie recipes and finding different healthy recipes I can create for my family.
- Adult ESL/ELL
- Elementary School Reading
- Elementary School Writing
- English
- ESL/ELL
- Middle School Reading
- Middle School Reading Comprehension
- Middle School Writing
- Other
- Special Education
- Study Skills
- Study Skills and Organization
What is your teaching philosophy?
I believe that learning should be an enjoyable experience. When teaching, I like to paint a picture to unlock a child's prior knowledge, that's relevant to real-life situations, in order to make it easier for the subject matter to stick in their memory.
How do you help students who are struggling with reading comprehension?
I will ask questions before reading to activate prior knowledge, give examples and think alouds during reading, and I will ask questions after. I will introduce them to graphic organizers to be used before, during, and after the story.
What strategies have you found to be most successful when you start to work with a student?
I will find out what areas they are weak in by asking them for examples of their work and giving them a brief assessment. Based on that, I will have a better idea on the types of lessons I will teach them.
How would you help a student get excited/engaged with a subject that they are struggling in?
I will give them high interest and age appropriate articles and short stories. I will focus on quality instruction not quantity. I will find out what their interests or hobbies are and use those types of materials to teach the lessons.
What techniques would you use to be sure that a student understands the material?
I will ask different types of questions as I go through the lesson. I will have them answer questions both orally and written.
How do you build a student's confidence in a subject?
I will praise the student for their efforts, no matter how small. I will focus on quality instruction instead of quantity and overloading them with independent assignments.
How do you evaluate a student's needs?
I will look at assignments they are having difficulty with. I will then give them a quick assessment to see what specific skills they need so no time is wasted on things they already know.
How do you adapt your tutoring to the student's needs?
I will look at the child's age and academic level to make certain that the skills being taught are on their level.
What types of materials do you typically use during a tutoring session?
I use worksheets and technology
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
I will get to know that student. Ask them about their interests and hobbies and what their likes and dislikes are about the subject matter. I can take a look of sample activities they struggle with.
How can you help a student become an independent learner?
I will teach them how to use a dictionary/thesaurus, show them how to use context clues to figure out unknown words, and teach them how to develop graphic organizers such as KWL, before, during and after reading.
How would you help a student stay motivated?
I will reteach the concept a different way. I will break it down more by giving more examples and checking for understanding.