Real Tutors Speak: 5 Tutoring Tips to End Your Week

So, I’ve decided to change the pace on the Socrato blog a bit.

On Fridays I normally run a column called “” where I hand pick articles on education throughout the blogosphere. However, I’m beginning to wonder if they are as helpful as I’d like them to be for our readers. So, I’ve decided to hand pick blog posts from real tutors across the web.

My goal with this change is to focus less on talking about what’s going on in education, but really dig deep into what tutors are thinking about, talking about, and sharing with other tutors. Let me know if you like the change in the comments!

Snowy Day and Kids Still Learn to Read

by Joanne Kaminski, SkypingReadingTutor

Though the concept is still very new, Joanne Kaminski embraces using Skype to teach students how to read. She explains that as a snowstorm hit her Southeastern WI, she could rest easy because no student had to travel in a blizzard just to learn how to read.

However, some people have trouble understanding the value of using online tools to connect with students rather than tutoring them in person. To those worries, Joanne has plenty to say and so I hope you’ll read them!

How Handwriting Helps Us Learn (Or, Why I Use Handwriting Instead of Typing)

by Rebecca Zook, Zook Tutoring

It seems that we are all a long ways off from the days of the fine penmanship Jane Austen might have experienced in her time, but Rebecca Zook of Zook Tutoring believes that revisiting our classic roots of (gasp!) writing things down actually helps us in remembering what we’ve learned.

Rebecca shares some data she’s found which describes the relationship between finger and hand movements and working memory. Despite the fact that Rebecca tutors students online, she still encourages students to write it out by hand, like they would on homework or tests.

Math is the art of stating the obvious

by Juan Carlos Castaneda, Math Tutor in San Diego

“In my math tutoring, the most relevant factor is not the math itself but how the student is feeling about the math,” says Juan Carlos Castenda, Math Tutor in San Diego.

To demonstrate to other tutors how he works through a student’s feelings about a problem he first shares a conversation that he exchanged with a 6th grade student. Then, he gives some bold takeaways on what he think caused the student’s difficulty in understanding the problem. It’s a fascinating read and I hope that you all will enjoy it.

Submit your College Essay as a YouTube Video?

by Brenda L., Test Prep Success

If your student wanted to turn in a YouTube video as their graduation essay, how would you feel about it? Would you encourage them to pursue that path or urge them to stick with a more traditional method?

Well, unless those students have their sights set on one of four schools accepting video applications, then perhaps creating a video isn’t for them. However, as Brenda notes this change in policy marks a change in the way that schools perceive new media.

by Admin, Tutoring Hand

Are you a tutor who is looking to transition into teaching online? Well, you may want to read the advice that Tutoring Hand has for you.

To help you stay on track, meet your goals and get the most out of your experience as an online tutor, Tutoring Hand recommends creating online boundaries with students, using formality and professionalism when communicating online, and to make a schedule and stick with it.

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6 Digital Trends to Watch In Education

A detailed review of the latest internet trends such as social media, video, game based-learning impacting education and how educators, teachers and tutors can embrace those changes with the rise of the digital- native.
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