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25 Years in the Classroom | History, Essays, Media Literacy & College
Susan P.

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Hourly Rate: $75
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About Susan

Bio

I'm Susan, a New York State high school social studies teacher with 25 years of full-time classroom experience. I am fully certified in social studies for grades 7–12 and have spent most of my career teaching 11th-grade U.S. History and Government, which culminates in the state Regents examination. I have also taught Global History and Geography and an elective in Holocaust Studies. Throughout my career, I have worked with students of every ability level, from those on IEPs and 504 plans to...

I'm Susan, a New York State high school social studies teacher with 25 years of full-time classroom experience. I am fully certified in social studies for grades 7–12 and have spent most of my career teaching 11th-grade U.S. History and Government, which culminates in the state Regents examination. I have also taught Global History and Geography and an elective in Holocaust Studies. Throughout my career, I have worked with students of every ability level, from those on IEPs and 504 plans to honors candidates, and I mentored a student teacher through her full clinical placement.

With over 25 years of experience in the classroom, I have developed a tutoring approach grounded in the reality of student learning: history becomes truly engaging when students can connect the pieces, practice the specific skills required for success, and have the space to think out loud. My sessions balance content review, primary source analysis, and rigorous writing practice. I prioritize media literacy and civic reasoning, helping students evaluate sources, recognize bias, and navigate the information they encounter online.

For Regents preparation, I simplify the exam by focusing on its core components: stimulus-based multiple choice, the Civic Literacy essay, and short-answer document sets. I provide concrete strategies for each section, utilizing the same scoring rubrics I have used to evaluate thousands of student responses throughout my career.

Beyond exam prep, I work with students who want to deepen their historical understanding, refine their analytical writing, or engage in meaningful dialogue about primary sources. I meet every student where they are, whether that means building a foundational knowledge base or pushing a strong writer toward a more sophisticated argument. My goal is for students to leave every session feeling clearer, more confident, and better equipped to think critically and independently.
Hourly Rate 60.00
online only .

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Education

State University of NY at New Paltz
History
State University of NY at New Paltz
Masters
SUNY at New Paltz
Graduate Coursework
  • Licensed teacher

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Approved Subjects

American History

American History

I have 25 years of experience teaching 11th-grade U.S. History and Government in New York State at the Regents and Honors levels, and I am fully certified in social studies for grades 7–12. My U.S. History expertise spans the full NYS Framework — constitutional foundations, Reconstruction, industrialization, both World Wars, the Cold War, and contemporary American government and politics. I have graded thousands of Regents responses using the state scoring rubrics and know exactly what earns points on stimulus-based multiple-choice, short-answer document sets, and the Civic Literacy essay. I also teach Global History and Geography, Holocaust Studies, and media literacy and civic reasoning skills for evaluating sources and identifying bias.
Career Development

Career Development

Across 25 years in a high school classroom, I have counseled hundreds of students on next steps after graduation — college, trade programs, military, and direct entry into the workforce. I have mentored a student teacher through her full clinical placement and written many letters of recommendation, which means I know how to help a student articulate their strengths, interests, and goals in a way that resonates with an employer or admissions committee. I can help students identify transferable skills, build a working résumé, and prepare for the professional communication expected in adult settings. My focus is practical: helping young people move from "I don't know what I want to do" to a concrete, achievable next step.
College Counseling

College Counseling

As a veteran 11th-grade teacher, I have worked closely with hundreds of juniors as they begin the college search and application process, and I have written detailed letters of recommendation for a wide range of students. I can help students identify colleges that fit their academic profile and goals, understand what admissions officers actually look for, and manage the timeline from junior spring through senior fall without becoming overwhelmed. I also coach students through the Common Application essay and supplemental essays, drawing on 25 years of teaching analytical and personal writing. My goal is to help students present themselves authentically and strategically, without turning the process into a source of anxiety.
Essay Writing

Essay Writing

Essay instruction is one of the strongest parts of my classroom practice. Over 25 years I have taught students how to build a clear thesis, structure body paragraphs around evidence, and revise for clarity and voice — skills I have graded on thousands of Regents essays, DBQs, and analytical assignments. A core piece of my writing instruction is source evaluation and media literacy: teaching students to assess where information comes from, weigh credibility, and use evidence honestly in their own arguments. My approach is to start with the student's own thinking and help them shape it into a well-organized piece of writing, rather than imposing a rigid formula.
Film

Film

I currently teach a semester-long film studies course in which students use documentary and feature films as primary texts for historical, cultural, and media literacy analysis. My work covered narrative structure, cinematography, editing, sound, and mise-en-scène, alongside the historical context in which each film was made and the persuasive techniques it uses on the viewer. I can help students write strong film analysis papers, prepare for film studies coursework, and think critically about how movies construct meaning, shape public opinion, and represent history. My background in both history and film makes me especially useful for students studying historical films, documentary, or the relationship between cinema and society.
Government & Politics

Government & Politics

25 years teaching 11th-grade U.S. Government in New York State, covering the Constitution, the three branches of the federal government, federalism, civil rights and civil liberties, the electoral process, and contemporary policy debates. A major focus of my teaching is media literacy applied to civic life — helping students evaluate political claims, recognize bias and manipulation, and distinguish reporting from opinion and propaganda. I prepare students for the Civic Literacy Essay on the U.S. History Regents, which requires them to analyze a constitutional or civic issue and take an evidence-based position. My approach combines primary source analysis (Federalist Papers, Supreme Court cases, executive orders) with plain-language explanation of how the system actually works.
Interview Prep

Interview Prep

25 years of classroom teaching have made me a specialist in helping young people communicate clearly and confidently under pressure. I have prepared students for scholarship interviews, college interviews, and their first job interviews, and I have coached a student teacher through the professional interviews that came with her clinical placement. My approach uses realistic practice, immediate feedback, and specific coaching on posture, pacing, eye contact, and how to answer common behavioral and situational questions. I also help students develop their own strong questions to ask an interviewer, which is often the most memorable part of an interview.
Political Science

Political Science

My work as a U.S. Government teacher gives me strong grounding in American political institutions, political behavior, public policy, and constitutional law — the core content of an introductory political science course. Media literacy is woven through my instruction: students learn to evaluate polling data, read across sources, identify bias, and think carefully about the political information environment they navigate every day. I also bring comparative context from years of teaching Global History and Geography, which covers political systems and revolutions around the world. Students working on political science coursework benefit from both the content depth and the analytical writing skills I have taught for a quarter century.
Regents

Regents

Over 25 years of teaching in New York State, I have prepared students for both the Global History and Geography Regents and the United States History and Government Regents with a 98% pass rate. My strongest area is Regents essay coaching — the Enduring Issues Essay in Global and the Civic Literacy Essay in U.S. History — where I teach students how to build a clear thesis, integrate document evidence, and connect specific historical examples to a broader argument. I also specialize in the short-answer Constructed Response Questions (CRQs), walking students through exactly what the rubric rewards: sourcing, context, and using document evidence to answer a targeted historical question. My deep experience with DBQ content and document-based analysis means I can help students read primary and secondary sources carefully, identify point of view and purpose, and turn what they see in the documents into strong, point-earning written responses.
Thesis Writing

Thesis Writing

Analytical thesis writing has been at the core of my teaching for 25 years — every Regents essay, DBQ, and honors research paper begins with a defensible, arguable claim, and I have helped thousands of students craft one. I work with students on identifying a clear focus, framing a research question, evaluating and organizing sources, and building an argument that responds to counterarguments. Source credibility and media literacy are central to this work: I teach students how to assess who produced a source, why, and how to weigh it against other evidence before it enters their argument. Whether the student is writing a short thesis-driven essay or a longer research paper, I can help at any stage — from brainstorming and outlining through drafting and revision.
United States History

United States History

have 25 years of experience teaching 11th-grade U.S. History and Government in New York State at the Regents and Honors levels, and I am fully certified in social studies for grades 7–12. My U.S. History expertise spans the full NYS Framework — constitutional foundations, Reconstruction, industrialization, both World Wars, the Cold War, and contemporary American government and politics. I have graded thousands of Regents responses using the state scoring rubrics and know exactly what earns points on stimulus-based multiple-choice, short-answer document sets, and the Civic Literacy essay. I also teach Global History and Geography, Holocaust Studies, and media literacy and civic reasoning skills for evaluating sources and identifying bias.
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Hourly Rate: $75
Contact Susan