I am an experienced teacher and tutor with over 15 years of experience in public schools, supplemental education and private tutoring. I have an undergraduate degree in Elementary Education from the Honors College at Western Illinois University, where I also earned an endorsement in Middle School Reading and Language Arts Education. I later went on to complete graduate coursework to gain my Reading Specialist certification. I worked in public education for 8+ years as an elementary classroom teacher and Reading Specialist. I worked an additional 5+ years in supplemental education with Sylvan Learning Centers. I use a diagnostic and prescriptive approach to tutoring, first identifying where the learning gap exists and then working to fill those in, while helping students get on track with their schoolwork. I recognize that as parents, we often want multiple outcomes from tutoring. Those desired outcomes often include better grades, long-term understanding of content, more confidence and an overall better attitude about school. I seek to achieve all of those outcomes when working with my tutoring students.

When it comes to Math, I understand the metacognitive strategies that are necessary to create understanding. Starting with concrete representation and moving towards more abstract representation of concepts helps to build the foundation that students need to grasp challenging Math skills.

I know how to break concepts and ideas down into manageable chunks and how to help students synthesize those concepts and ideas to better understand challenging content.

I firmly believe that Reading and Writing are essential for success in other content areas...and in life. I am passionate about helping my students to become strong readers and writers. My education and experience in corrective reading and writing strategies helps me to quickly identify ways that I can help my students to improve their skills.

I look forward to working with you and your family to achieve your academic and learning goals for y