Compassionate, Patient, and Understanding Personal Tutor

Lynn C.

American History

I am qualified to teach American history, Civics, Government, and the Constitution on a high school or middle school level.

Elementary (K-6th)

I have taught beginning reading to 4 year-old students, reading, writing, mathematics and science to 7 and 8 year old students, and have 4 year's experience teaching 6th grade English and Writing in middle school.

Elementary Math

Most students who have difficulty with middle school-level mathematics have problems due to a combination of two reasons: first, they do not believe in their own ability, but instead are convinced that "I am no good at math." Secondly, they were never taught the real meanings of numbers and the operations we do upon them. Once those two hurdles are passed, student may go on to excel in mathematics, as well as their other subjects.

English

I take an analytical, functional approach to English grammar. In this way complex grammar concepts may be readily explained and understood by both native and non-native students. I have taught 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th grade English, and have also taught essay and term paper writing at the college level. My approach is to discover what each student's interests are, and then develop English lessons in both reading and writing on those same subjects.

Essay Writing

My experience includes two years of teaching high school writing, six years of middle school writing, and four years teaching college term paper writing as a required part of the philosophy courses I taught.

GED

In addition to having more than nine years of teaching adult learners, I specifically have 2 years' experience in teaching G.E.D. classes at Mansfield Business School, 1 year of teaching business mathematics and business English at The Texas School of Business, and more than a year's experience doing individualized tutoring of G.E.D. students. Mathematics: Undergraduate minor in mathematics, including both integral and differential calculus, theory of numbers, and modern mathematics. English: Texas Certified teacher, Secondary English. I have both undergraduate and graduate transcripts available, if the student wishes to see them.

Grammar

My graduate school studies included the analysis of the logical structure of language. I take an analytical, functional approach to English grammar. In this way complex grammar concepts may be readily explained and understood.

Literature

My expertise is in American literature of the Twentieth Century. While I have a passing knowledge of the great English writers such as Chaucer and Shakespeare, I do not have any expertise in that area. But I am also certain that if a student is working with a Shakespeare play, for example, I could certainly read it and explain its underlying meaning for him or her.

Philosophy

M.A. in Philosophy from Rice University. ABD for Ph.D. Specializations in teaching Introduction to Philosophy, linguistic analysis, and ethics.

Phonics

I have taught reading using phonics to beginning readers through third grade.

Reading

I have previously taught reading comprehension, writing, and English grammar from middle school through college

Social Studies

I continue to be a student of ancient civilizations, European culture, and American history. I have one year's formal experience teaching sophomore high school social science. The philosophy classes I teach are targeted towards showing how philosophical ideas from the far past to the present have affected and continue to affect the way we think and behave. In all of my philosophy classes I show the students how the American Constitution and the ideals we consider to be uniquely American are actually derived from the philosophical ideas developed by the ancient Greeks and Enlightenment philosophers. Moreover, it is impossible to understand the way our Founders thought and the ideas which even today are the justification and foundation of our Constitution without studying philosophers from Socrates to Descartes to the British Empiricists.

Special Needs

While working at Deady Middle School in the Project Excel program for at-risk students, many of the students with whom I worked, and who met the criteria for at-risk, were also special needs students who required individualized programs and personal attention in order to succeed. I believe that my own experience as a Special Education student in the 8th grade provided a certain empathy which enabled me to work successfully with these students.

Study Skills

Study skills begins with being organized and ready to work. It includes having rough outlines of what needs to be done, and knowing in advance what work needs to be accomplished. I am a strong proponent of the SurveyQ3R method of study, and use it as the foundation for instruction in study skills. Study skills need to be modeled for students; they cannot simply be told what to do, but have to be shown what to do and how to study. They need to be shown how to pace themselves, take timed breaks, and return to work. Students also need to learn without distractions. Cell phones and instant messaging need to be turned off, though some students actually learn better with music in the background. The most important thing for the study skills mentor is to be there to lead, instruct, observe, and correct the student's methods of studying. Finally, although there is naturally some carryover from all subjects to others, the skills needed for successfully studying history and different from those needed to successfully learn mathematics. Students need to be taught the proper technique to use with each object and the reasons for the differences. My experience includes 2.5 years working individually with students ranging from 4 - 17 in a Learning Center environment; five years of teaching, coaching, and mentoring inner-city middle school students in English and computers; four years of working with carefully-defined at-risk middle school students aged 14-16, and administering individualized programs for each student with the aim of increasing his achievement levels in English and mathematics 2 years within a single 9-month school year. I am certified to teach secondary English and reading in the State of Texas, and hold a Master's Degree (ABD for Ph.D.) in philosophy with specializations in learning theory and the logical structure of language.

United States History

Through a lifetime of studying American history using collegiate and graduate school-level materials, I am well-qualified to tutor middle school and high school history and civics classes.

Writing

I have four years' experience teaching term paper and expository essay writing at the college level. These papers are required as part of the philosophy courses I teach; since most of my students are woefully unprepared to write at the level required by the class, I have to teach them these skills.