Sally
Primary Tutor
Leicester and wider area
I am a calm, creative, open-minded, teacher and tutor who is positive and flexible in adapting to people and situations. I have a proven record of delivering excellent lessons helping children progress, by providing positive learning experiences (both in and outdoors) in a safe environment where children feel respected. I use and maintain effective behaviour management strategies with positive praise, now and next boards and rewards and personalised behaviour charts.
"Sally has used a range of activities to inspire my daughter who usually avoids work at all costs."
Eliza
Availability
Online & Face-to-face Sessions
Wed & Thurs: All Day
Friday: 5 - 7pm
Saturday: 12 - 4pm
£110 per hour
How I teach children and young people who have autism
My approach to teaching children with autism is for the lessons to be structured in a fun and flexible way and be child-led as much as possible. I have tutored pupils with autism on a one-to- one basis and in a whole school setting. It is paramount that autistic children do not feel they are cognitively overloaded. I ensure this happens with personalised timetables and a “first, next and last” timetable as a visual aid. Creating a visual “first, next and last” timetable is an effective and widely used method. This involves placing images and simple words on a timetable, in chronological order, to describe the activities and transitions in the child’s day. Having this visual aid gives the child a sense of security, while also acting as a reminder for myself in supporting them. A calm and positive environment in the setting is essential so the children feel safe and not overly stimulated. Autism can impact a child’s ability to communicate and interpret meaning which may lead to misunderstanding. I give careful consideration to the words I use and how I structure my sentences. Idioms, metaphors and rhetorical questions should be avoided – messages need to be simple and direct.
How I teach children and young people who have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
Dual coding is an important tool for children with ADHD: I like to pair written instructions with oral guidance. Often children with ADHD respond better when the teacher gives clear, concise instructions. I like to use a timer to help with organisation as this helps the know how long they have to complete a task (if appropriate) and when to get ready for the next activity. Making eye contact and speaking when the child is paying attention is important It’s also important that there are clear rules of behaviour. Establishing a routine early on is useful so the child knows what to expect: a daily timetable – “first, next and last” and /or a checklist that can be posted visibly in the setting allows the child to see what has already been accomplished and what is left to do.
How I teach children and young people maths
Another important part of English is supporting your child to access basic reading and writing skills. I do this by supporting your child with learning the alphabet, writing both upper and lowercase versions of each letter. I use Colourful
How I teach children and young people English
Writing should be purposeful so I always look for ways I can achieve this. This could be writing instructions on how to score a perfect goal for an avid footballer or persuading someone to buy kitten for a pet lover. Through tutoring, learning difficulties that could potentially destroy a student’s confidence can instead be turned into confidence boosters because the pupil will gain a deeper understanding of a topic they may once have struggled with, giving them a real sense of achievement and developing their confidence as a result. I use a variety of ways to support children with learning difficulties in English. These include:
- Consistently revisiting previous learning
- I do, we do, you do approach to model to children first and gradually build up their independence
- A practical approach to spellings using kinesthetic methods – threading / magnetic letters, mnemonics, acting out, pictorial representations and the use of colour.
- Use of overlays for reading
- Unpicking unfamiliar vocabulary
- Use of oracy strategies (talking before writing, odd one out, etc.)
- Colour semantics
- Word banks
- Use of dictionaries and thesaursus’
- A writer’s “toolkit” – sentence stems, powerful word choices etc.
- Use of frames
How I teach children and young people who have concentration difficulties
As a teacher of 12 years and a tutor of 9 years, I have excellent experience at working with students with focus and concentration. The individual attention and support a child receives through tutoring has many benefits – one of which is the chance to learn in a distraction-free environment. If a pupil is struggling with a particular subject or feeling low in confidence, a classroom setting provides many opportunities for avoidance. Tutoring removes this possibility, helping the pupil learn how to focus, develop concentration skills, and start to believe in their own abilities. I aids children’s focus and concentration by:
- planning short, sharp activities
- use simple language that is clear and specific when making requests
-show them what I want them to do, or a finished example
- use positive praise specifically aimed at how well they have been on task or for completing a task
- high expectations shared with the pupil
- Ensuring the pupil is fully focused before talking at them by saying their name, making eye contact and making clear your expectations