The Key Ingredients to good online instruction are:
- A video conferencing platform that is high-definition and interactive. I use Zoom because my students and I can see each other even when we are sharing a screen. Zoom allows students to use their mouse to interact with the programs I share.*
- Engaging interactive programs that are simple and fun for children to use. I have experimented with many white-board programs to find those that are easiest for students to work with. I incorporate inviting graphics into learning games and activities that students really enjoy!
- Consistency as well as choice for the students. Many children are feeling anxiety about the separation from their schoolmates, teachers, and school environment. They crave a sense of normality (don’t we all?) and control over their lives. I provide opportunities for choice among activities within the structure of a well-ordered literacy lesson.
Combine with the Key Ingredients to ALL effective instruction!
- Caring and fun engagement between tutor and student. Though I am not sitting beside my students during remote sessions, I remain responsive to their questions and needs, and ready to adjust my lesson plan with flexibility.
- High-quality, evidence-based, science-aligned curriculum and pedagogy. Decades of research have clarified how the brain learns to read and which instructional approaches encourage the most learning. My literacy instruction is based on Orton-Gillingham principles, constantly updated to reflect current consensus science. Effective literacy instruction is explicit, systematic, multisensory, prescriptive, and comprehensive. That is what I provide.
- Instruction that is tailored to students’ strengths and interests. I develop materials and activities with my students’ passions in mind, so that their learning feels valuable and meaningful to them.
- An unwavering belief that every child can learn. Not all school instruction and environments are conducive to effective learning for every student. I aim to provide the individual scaffolding that my students require in order to feel confident and to achieve to their potential. Struggling students work hard every single day, exerting effort that is too often not rewarded with the kinds of success other children seem to achieve easily. I honor their effort and ensure that my students experience success in every session.
Mix well and serve with a side of smiles.
Whether online or in person, I incorporate brief, age-appropriate mindfulness instruction into every session, so that children learn how to be aware of their emotions and regulate their responses to challenges big and small. When students learn to calm their bodies and their minds, they learn how to be ready to learn and grow.
*Students using iPads and Chromebooks aren’t always able to share the mouse on Zoom, but there are work-arounds we can use.
"A calm mind is a mind that is ready to learn."
Please contact me at Lauren.Thompson.Tutor@gmail.com or 646-286-6758.
Please contact me at Lauren.Thompson.Tutor@gmail.com or 646-286-6758.
Let’s talk about how I can give your child — and your family — a fresh start with homework.
