Thank you for your interest! I graduated in Ukraine (1988) and obtained a bachelor's degree in Computer Economics Science. My experience working with children began in Cuba, where I worked four years as an elementary teacher for math and science. Here, in the United States, I worked as a private teacher for middle school students. Now, I am working as a substitute teacher for Miami-Dade Public Schools. I am also attending courses in the Educator Preparation Institute. On May 2013, I will obtain my Teacher's Certificate.
I have had several tutoring experiences with elementary and middle school students. I also tutored 2 Spanish language learners. I think that the most important thing is to let the student know that they can learn, and to teach them how to get the concepts on their own. Every day, I see students who struggle with questions and problems. I realized they do not know how to follow the steps to get the answers, especially in Math. In addition to that, I see a lot of ESOL kids who look frustrated because they do not understand what is being explained. When I have those cases, I teach them how to use the online translator, to find the meaning of the main words related to the problems. I also assign a peer tutor to them. The entire class benefits from it. The ESOL students begin working and try to participate. We encourage them to read few words, etc. The tutors feel important and responsible. They do their best. I encourage ESOL children to begin with learning the words that are similar to their language, etc.
I am an "eternal" learner. From my own experience, I know that knowledge is the only treasure nobody can take away from you. Everything I learned helped me to keep going with my life. That's the message I try to transmit to all children and people around me.
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