Emily T.
Brooklyn, NY
Teaching each learner in the way they learn best.
City University of New York, Hunter College
BA in AnthropologyBank Street College Graduate School of Education
MEdAbout Emily
I am a Bank Street College of Education graduate with 10 years of elementary school head-teaching experience. I have also assisted, subbed, taught library in a preschool, tutored, taught after school classes, run a mini-camp for toddlers, been the story time person for 7 years at a family restaurant and play space and taken care of children since
Policies
Cancellation
24 hours notice requiredTravel Radius
Travels within 3 miles of Brooklyn, NY 11201"Emily the Great!"
- Dereick, New York, NY on 6/23/17Emily has been working one-in-one each each week with my energetic 6 year old daughter over the last few months in an effort to help improve her reading skills. She has been wonderful in every way. She is patient and always finds creative ways to get my daughter to focus and enjoy the learning process. It's been great seeing both the advancements by my daughter and their relationship blossom.
My strategy at an initial meeting with a student is to put them at ease so that we can begin to establish a working relationship. I don't like to overwhelm them with assessment tests and lengthy tasks because meeting with a tutor for the first time can feel stressful especially when the child feels that a lot is expected of them. My years of experience have taught me that children need to enjoy learning in order to succeed, not see it as a chore or something they're not good at doing.
"Assessment Could Have Been More Entailed"
- Nerita, Brooklyn, NY on 7/6/17Pros:
Emily came off as patient and my son warmed up to her after a few minutes. She did interact with him in a thoughtful and friendly manner. He was comfortable enough to read for her so she was able to assess his reading level.
Con:
I thought the assessment would have been more entailed especially because I was paying for the session and having him only read was not sufficient; and if that's all it encompassed then I could have tutored him myself. I am looking for a tutor who can do more than I can. Bottom line is, I was not impressed. Also, she was late for our meeting. I did not receive a call or text message (we had exchanged numbers) informing me that she was running late. I had to call and when we spoke she sounded as if she had not intended to come but decided to come because we were at the location and we were waiting.
"Very patient"
- Amy, New York, NY on 4/9/17Very patient with my son who has a learning disability and attention issues. Emily has a positive reward system. We have been working with Emily for a couple years now.
"Passionate, personable tutor."
- Karen, Brooklyn, NY on 5/9/13My first-grader is very fond of Emily. She has been great with him and has helped with his reading fluency, bringing library books and using other methods to patiently coach him to sound out the difficult words. She also has a fun way of explaining the concepts to solidify them in his mind. In addition, she is dependable and flexible and provides detailed assessments of his progress. I highly recommend her.
Approved subjects are in bold.
Approved subjects
In most cases, tutors gain approval in a subject by passing a proficiency exam. For some subject areas, like music and art, tutors submit written requests to demonstrate their proficiency to potential students. If a tutor is interested but not yet approved in a subject, the subject will appear in non-bold font. Tutors need to be approved in a subject prior to beginning lessons.
Elementary (K-6th)
I have a master's degree from the Bank Street College of Education in New York City in early childhood and elementary school education. I taught Pre-K through 3rd grade for 10 years and part-time as a substitute, librarian, tutor, assistant and afterschool teacher. I am currently running a storytime program, where I read to children three days a week, and I am a regular caregiver to a 4, 7 and 10-year-old.
Phonics
As a teacher in contained elementary classrooms, I have taught all of the components of using language for reading, writing and learning. These include; phonics (decoding), reading (putting words back together, or encoding), spelling, vocabulary and creative writing. Phonics are the initial tools to creating the building blocks of language. Learning consonant sounds and basic short and long vowel sounds are only the beginning. The more complex vowel combinations and consonant/vowel combinations need specific study of the various rules and exceptions that exist in the English language.
Reading
In the early grades, K-2 students focus on letter sounds, phonics, decoding words and using invented spelling to create words to do their own story writing. As they move into more complex curriculum they are no longer learning to read but reading to learn. Learning how to break down the code of written language in order to use comprehension, critical thinking skills and to express their own thoughts is critical to a student's future success. As a teacher in Pre-K through 3rd grade I have worked with children in all of these areas.
Spelling
Whether or not you have access to SpellCheck, there is no replacement for a human being's ability to recognize a homophone or homonym that can change the whole meaning of a sentence. Some people are instinctively good spellers but anyone can learn to keep lists of frequently misspelled words, memorize rules, use resource books and other editing strategies to improve their spelling ability. Incorrect spelling can draw attention away from a writer's style, skill or intention and cloud the reader's judgment of the actual writing. I am a stickler for good spelling and because it can be frustrating, I like to make it fun by using word games, memory associations, rhyme and music.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary and context are the keys to understanding anything you are reading. As an early reader learning a lifelong habit of reading and enjoying books, a student learning new material, a listener understanding a story, play or conversation, or a writer, having a varied and extensive vocabulary is very important. Improving your vocabulary and knowing how to find out the meaning of a word are basic skills that I always stress in teaching reading and writing.
Writing
Whether expressing feelings, ideas or synthesizing information, it is very important to be able to communicate clearly through writing. As a 3rd grade teacher, I utilized the Writer's Workshop model created by Lucy Calkins, which I learned attending summer workshops at Columbia University's Teachers College. This process helps students edit their work by giving mini-lessons in specific writing challenges such as punctuation, run-on sentences, brainstorming for new ideas and focusing on having a clear beginning, middle and end. I enjoy creative writing as a hobby and have written children's stories and plays for my students to perform.
Other Brooklyn, NY Tutors
Emily T.
Brooklyn, NY
Teaching each learner in the way they learn best.