Award-Winning Pre-Reading Super Skills Tutors

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Award-Winning Pre-Reading Super Skills Tutors

Camille

Certified Tutor

5+ years

Camille

Master of Public Health
Camille's other Tutor Subjects
Pre-Algebra
Middle School Math
Calculus
Algebra

I am a graduate of Brown University with a Bachelors Degree in Biology and Yale University with a Masters in Public Health. I also hold a Level 5 certification in TEFL. I am passionate about working with children and students of all ages to assist them in achieving their highest potential. My favori...

Education

Yale University

Master of Public Health

Brown University

Bachelor's Degree in Biology

Aaron

Certified Tutor

5+ years

Aaron

Bachelor in Arts, Education
Aaron's other Tutor Subjects
6th Grade AP Language Composition
Middle School Math
Calculus
Algebra

I am a recent college graduate with an A.B. in Education Studies from Brown University (Providence, RI). I have worked as a remote tutor for other online platforms throughout 2021. I am most passionate about English, especially literary analysis and essay writing. When I am not tutoring, I enjoy exe...

Education

Brown University

Bachelor in Arts, Education

Brown University

A.B. in Education Studies

Test Scores
ACT
32
Nicholas

Certified Tutor

5+ years

Nicholas

Bachelor in Arts, English
Nicholas's other Tutor Subjects
Middle School Math
Calculus
Algebra
College Essays

I am able to tutor a broad range of subjects, and across a wide-range of grade-levels, I am most proud of and most passionate about my work in literacy. Creating a joyful community of reading and writing - whether for an entire school, or for a small group - has provided me with my greatest sense of...

Education

Harvard University

Bachelor in Arts, English

Grace

Certified Tutor

5+ years

Grace

Bachelor's
Grace's other Tutor Subjects
6th Grade AP Language Composition
Calculus
Algebra
ACT English

I am a ballet dancer with Ballet 5:8 in the Chicago suburbs.

Education

University

Bachelor's

Test Scores
ACT
33
Heather

Certified Tutor

5+ years

Heather

Master of Arts Teaching, Elementary School Teaching
Heather's other Tutor Subjects
Calculus
Algebra
College Essays
Literature

I am New York State Certified in Childhood Education (1st-6th grade). I was a tenured New York City classroom teacher, before I decided to start my own family. For the past three years I have been teaching online classes to oversea students of all ages.

Education

Adelphi University

Master of Arts Teaching, Elementary School Teaching

Siena College

Bachelor of Science, Marketing

Jessica

Certified Tutor

Jessica

PHD, Medicine
Jessica's other Tutor Subjects
College Algebra
Calculus
Algebra
Honors Chemistry

I am a licensed physician from Florida who is currently changing careers. I graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2009 and have extensive tutoring and editing experience. While a student, I became a certified writing tutor through the Critical Writing Department. Since I completed my writ...

Education

Nova Southeastern University

PHD, Medicine

University of Pennsylvania

Bachelors, History

University of Pennsylvania

undergraduate

Test Scores
SAT
1540
Jai

Certified Tutor

9+ years

Jai

Bachelors in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Jai's other Tutor Subjects
Calculus
Algebra
Electrical Engineering
ACT Writing

I'm a recent Stanford graduate (Electrical Engineering and Computer Science), and have been working at a major Management Consulting firm for a few years now. I personally scored a 2360 (out of 2400) on the SAT and 35 on the ACT and was successful in gaining admission to several top universities. I'...

Education

Stanford University

Bachelors in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

Test Scores
SAT
1590
ACT
35
Kate

Certified Tutor

Kate

Masters, Environmental Engineering
Kate's other Tutor Subjects
AP Calculus BC
AP Calculus AB
College Algebra
Pre-Calculus

I'm available to tutor biology, chemistry, physics, math from Algebra up through AP Calculus, SAT test prep, and French. I've been tutoring students in science and math for 7 years. I also spent 8 months working and studying in France, and have tutored high school and adult students in French. When ...

Education

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Masters, Environmental Engineering

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Bachelors

Test Scores
SAT
1580
Erika

Certified Tutor

Erika

Master of Public Policy, Public Policy
Erika's other Tutor Subjects
Pre-Algebra
Middle School Math
Calculus
Algebra

I am available to tutor middle and high school math, history and test prep. I have tutored math and history in the past and I previously taught a test prep course at a school in Hanoi, Vietnam. I have a lot of experience teaching all the need-to-know tricks to doing great on the SATS/ACTS! When I am...

Education

Harvard University

Master of Public Policy, Public Policy

Test Scores
ACT
32
Rhea

Certified Tutor

6+ years

Rhea

Bachelor of Science, Biology, General
Rhea's other Tutor Subjects
AP Statistics
AP Calculus BC
AP Calculus AB
Pre-Algebra

I am a current student at the University of Chicago. I am working towards a Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences, and I am on the pre-medical track. I am extremely passionate about tutoring, and I have several years of experience tutoring students in my high school's learning center in various...

Education

University of Chicago

Bachelor of Science, Biology, General

Test Scores
Perfect Score
SAT
1550
ACT
36

Meet Our Expert Tutors

Connect with highly-rated educators ready to help you succeed.

Jeffrey

Pre-Calculus Tutor • +29 Subjects

I am enrolled in the Mechanical Engineering PhD program at Rice University which will begin Fall 2020, and I am hoping to return to academia as a professor after earning my PhD. In the meantime, I am looking to share my passion for gaining knowledge, specifically in STEM, by educating the up and coming members of such a great field. I have experience tutoring both Calculus and Physics at Notre Dame, as well as experience as a Student Assistant for Differential Equations and Mechanics. I believe the key to learning is much deeper than learning to solve problems and that seeking knowledge is one of the best means for personal improvement.

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Sami

Pre-Algebra Tutor • +19 Subjects

I am a Duke University graduate in Economics and Computer Science. I am currently pursuing an MBA degree at the Yale School of Management. I have worked in the financial field, both at a management consulting firm and a fortune 500 company. My hobbies include playing and coaching soccer. Hobbies: reading, writing, art, books, music

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Sharon

Pre-Algebra Tutor • +29 Subjects

I am a graduate of the University of Chicago, and I will be starting a graduate program at Columbia in August. I am about to complete a year of service with City Year, an education non-profit that places young adults into under-served schools. As a City Year member, I worked full-time in the classroom with middle-school students who were in approximately the 10th percentile for math (meaning they score lower than 90% of students). One-fourth of those students were able to grow around 15 percentile points by the end of the year! Hobbies: reading, cooking, gardening, music, art, nature, books, writing

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Annie

Pre-Algebra Tutor • +28 Subjects

I am currently a second year medical student. I was a Physiological Sciences major at UCLA (class of 2015), and pursued research during my gap year between undergrad and medical school.

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Tony

Calculus Tutor • +28 Subjects

I am a recent graduate of Yale University and incoming first year medical student at Columbia University. Originally from the DC area, I have always had a passion for science and medicine and pursued a degree in Biology while at Yale. During the 2008-2009 academic year, I tutored science, math, English, history, and Mandarin Chinese part-time with a DC-based tutoring company. At Yale, I worked as a freshman counselor to provide academic and career advice to incoming freshmen. I have taken both SAT and MCAT test prep classes and am familiar with both tests as well as the preparation necessary to score well. My personal career goals include attending medical school to pursue either immunology/infectious diseases or psych/neurology, teaching biology at the university level, and working in public/global health with either the CDC or the WHO.

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Matthew

Pre-Algebra Tutor • +39 Subjects

I'm a highly creative person who works best with visual thinkers. Very recently graduated from Stanford University, I majored in Human Biology with a concentration in Bioinformatics and Stem Cell Science. Technical though my background may be, I am currently gigging as a singer/songwriter/composer in NYC and tackle even the most hard-science of problems with a top-down, big-picture, holistic approach. If you have a propensity to look at problems in a cross- or inter-disciplinary manner (or want to learn how to do so), I'm the tutor for you!

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Charles

AP Calculus AB Tutor • +25 Subjects

I am a junior Mechanical Engineering major at Yale, and I hope to become a Naval Aviator after college. I am also a varsity sailor, and enjoy playing music with friends when I can get some free time. I have been tutoring my fellow students throughout my entire academic career, and I would best describe my tutoring style as one that adapts to each students' needs. For example, I have always tried to frame questions in a different way so that the student can better understand the question. Some students need visual representations of numbers and systems to understand them, and others benefit more by understanding the concepts behind each formula. I prefer to tutor in math and physics, and especially with real world application problems. I hope to help students improve their standardized test scores and their understanding of the math and sciences so that they can achieve their academic goals! Hobbies: art, books, running, reading, music, writing

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Tiffany

Pre-Algebra Tutor • +56 Subjects

I am available to tutor a broad range of subjects, I am passionate about test preparation, Accountancy, and Algebra.

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MaryAnn

Calculus Tutor • +21 Subjects

I am a published author who has enjoyed “coaching” our daughter, as she navigated through high school, college and graduate school. I mentor college juniors who are seeking careers in financial services, and I serve as a peer resource to professionals who are transitioning from private industry to the nonprofit sector. Hobbies: reading, cooking, writing, books, music, art, travel

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Samuel

AP Calculus AB Tutor • +29 Subjects

I am a freshman at Caltech majoring in Applied and Computational Mathematics. My favorite subject to tutor is math because I find it very rewarding to simplify complex topics to aid in understanding. I have lots of tutoring experience. In high school, I ran and taught an SAT prep class and was vice president of my school's NHS chapter where I ran our tutoring program, and I, myself, tutored. I also was a teaching assistant in the summer of 2020 for a class in discrete mathematics through a program called PACT (Program in Algorithmic and Combinatorial Thinking). I love learning and hope to make the process enjoyable for you!

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Frequently Asked Questions

Pre-Reading Super Skills are foundational abilities that prepare young learners for reading success, including phonemic awareness, letter recognition, print concepts, and vocabulary development. These early skills are critical because research shows that children who develop strong pre-reading foundations by kindergarten are significantly more likely to become proficient readers by third grade and beyond.

Varsity Tutors connects students with tutors who specialize in building these essential skills through engaging, developmentally appropriate activities that make learning to read an exciting process.

Common pre-reading challenges include difficulty with phonemic awareness (hearing and manipulating sounds in words), confusion with letter names and sounds, struggles with rhyming and syllable counting, limited vocabulary exposure, and difficulty understanding that print carries meaning. Some students also show less interest in books or have trouble sitting still for stories.

Personalized 1-on-1 instruction allows tutors to identify exactly where a child is struggling and create targeted activities that address those specific gaps while keeping learning fun and engaging.

Expert tutors in this area use a multisensory approach that combines phonemic awareness activities, letter-sound practice, interactive storytelling, and hands-on learning. They select materials based on each student's interests and developmental level, making lessons engaging rather than rote or drill-heavy.

Tutors also work closely with parents and teachers to reinforce skills across all learning environments. The goal is to build confidence and enthusiasm for reading while establishing the specific foundational skills that predict later reading success.

With consistent personalized instruction, students typically show measurable progress in phonemic awareness, letter recognition, and print awareness within 4-8 weeks. Many students develop stronger motivation for reading, increased vocabulary, and the confidence needed to transition into formal reading instruction.

Long-term outcomes include stronger early reading skills, better phonics understanding, and a foundation for decoding words independently—all critical predictors of reading proficiency in elementary school and beyond.

Pre-Reading Super Skills tutoring is most commonly beneficial for children ages 3-6, including preschool and early kindergarten students. However, the right time depends on the individual child's development and readiness. Some younger learners benefit from early intervention, while others may need these skills reinforced in first grade.

Varsity Tutors connects families with tutors who can assess where a child is developmentally and recommend the best starting point for instruction, whether that's intensive phonemic awareness work or letter-sound practice.

Parents play a crucial role by reading aloud daily, talking about sounds in words during everyday activities, playing rhyming games, pointing out letters in the environment, and creating a language-rich home. Tutors provide specific strategies and activities families can use between sessions to reinforce skills.

Regular communication between tutors and parents ensures that learning is consistent across home and tutoring sessions, which significantly accelerates progress and builds the strong pre-reading foundation every child needs.

Pre-Reading Super Skills focus on the foundational abilities that come before reading—like phonemic awareness, letter knowledge, and understanding how print works. Reading instruction, by contrast, teaches students to decode words and comprehend text, which builds on these foundations.

Think of pre-reading skills as the building blocks, and reading as the structure built from those blocks. Many struggling readers actually have gaps in pre-reading foundations that need to be addressed first, which is why Varsity Tutors connects students with tutors who specialize in identifying and filling these early gaps.

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