Choosing a Tutor

When people start having children they never foresee certain problems. We all just assume we will have happy and healthy children that will go to school and do well. Sometimes we miss the signs that there are even problems because we aren't sure what to look for. Before we go into what to look for in a tutor we will briefly touch on when to think about a tutor.

When you may need a tutor:

• Progress slows in one or more subjects.
• The student has a learning disability that keeps them from grasping concepts in a reasonable amount of time.
• The student is not confident in their abilities at school.
• The student has behavioral issues or medical issues that get in the way of their education and need some extra reinforcement of educational concepts.

How to go about getting a tutor:

1. Talk to you child and let them know that you think a tutor is necessary. Be sure to explain why but help your child realize that it isn't because they are inferior as people. Kids need to understand that EVERYONE struggles with different things at different times in life. Getting help in no way makes them less than anyone else.
2. Approach the student's teacher and/or school administrators to discuss where the child is in their education and what help is needed. The teacher or staff may have great ideas on who can tutor the child and best fit the needs.
3. Be sure to check out the tutors references and credentials. You do not want just anyone spending such one on one time with your child. You also want to be sure that the tutor is competent in the subjects that need to be addressed.
4. Be clear about your expectations to the tutor. You need to be reasonable but if the tutor knows what you expect it can help keep some misunderstandings from cropping up.
5. Ask the tutor if they are available for appointments when the child is ready to learn, not tired and restless.
6. Let the tutor know that you will want to observe some of the tutoring that goes on. If they are uncomfortable with that for any reason let it be a red flag to you and move on to another tutor.
7. Ask the tutor how they measure progress and how they will keep you informed.