Tutoring is one of the best ways NHS can help our local community. We want you and whoever is being tutored to have fun and feel good about the session. That is how good friendships can be formed and how our school community can feel closer together. For that, the NHS board has collected a list of tutoring Do's and Dont's from our own experiences that may help you as you go on tutoring. If you have any tips, please let any officer know too!
What should you do while tutoring?
-
Be patient
-
Understand that everyone learns differently
-
Get to know them a little bit
-
Be on time
-
Try different teaching styles
-
Be mindful of how you conduct yourself
-
Use kind, encouraging language
-
Teach instead of just giving answers
-
Understand their circumstance; not everyone can learn at such fast speeds virtually so make sure to be polite
-
Make sure to give positive feedback once they grasp a concept
-
Work at their speed; keep checking in and make sure they don’t have extra questions
-
Ask them about their learning style - visually, explanatory, just need practice problems, etc.
-
If they need a little bit more help/clarification without them having to ask for it, explain your personal experience with the material/how you learned or remembered it
-
Give them your full attention while tutoring
-
On Zoom: Turn on your camera (if possible) and encourage whoever you are tutoring to do the same
-
On Zoom: Use the whiteboard feature to draw or write things out for whoever you are tutoring to see. You can open the white board by clicking Share Screen > Whiteboard > Share.
What should you NOT do while tutoring?
-
Don't say "Oh, that is easy."
-
Belittle anyone
-
Show up late
-
Come unprepared
-
Give up on them
-
Get frustrated
-
Give false information - if you don’t know either, be honest; use other resources together like Khan Academy or classmates
-
Do their homework for them; you can assist with problems but make sure they are understanding as well
-
Assume that something will automatically make sense to them