Michael
Certified Tutor
Hey, you can call me Mike. I was an excellent student in school and college with a 3.92 GPA in HS an 3.84 GPA in College. Of all the environments I've taught in, my favorite is one-on-one. I love getting to change my style to fit the person learning. It's really meaningful to me to connect; not just as a tutor, but as a person, a mentor, a friend. When I see people months or years later after tutoring, it's always a great reunion, even if we're in the grocery store!
I've spent significant time in Spanish and German speaking countries as well as in the classroom, so my language skills go beyond the textbook and it gets really fun that way. As for music, my main instrument is trumpet, I have perfect pitch, and am a whiz at music theory. I'm excited to get together.
I spent two years in Central America and by the end people thought I was a native on the phone (until they saw me in person!) I have college level Spanish qualifications.
I did a semester of cultural, language, and university study abroad in Germany. After returning home, I taught as an adjunct German I Professor at DSU.
My Bachelor's Degree is in Music Education. I actively studied music for 10 years and have been playing music for 18 years. I scored a 5 on the Music Theory and Ear Training AP Test and Tested out of 2 years of Music Theory and Ear Training in college. I can privately tutor any band instrument up through High School level.
Let's schedule an intro visit and see what a good fit we are.
Connect with a tutor like Michael
Undergraduate Degree: Dixie State University - Bachelors, Secondary Education
Paragliding!
- Adult ESL/ELL
- Algebra
- AP German Language and Culture
- AP Music Theory
- Arrangement and Composition
- Audition Prep
- Chemistry
- CLEP Prep
- CLEP German
- College Math
- Composition
- Conducting
- Conversational Spanish
- Elementary School Reading
- English
- ESL/ELL
- German
- German 1
- German 2
- German 3
- High School Chemistry
- High School Physics
- Languages
- Math
- Middle School Math
- Middle School Science
- Music
- Music Theory
- Other
- Physics
- Pre-Algebra
- Psychology
- Reading
- Science
- Social Sciences
- Spanish
- Spanish 1
- Spanish 2
- Spanish 3
- Spanish 4
- Study Skills
- Study Skills and Organization
- Test Prep
- Trumpet
What is your teaching philosophy?
Everyone learns so differently. My teaching style changes depending on who I'm teaching. Enjoyment of the subject breeds success, so I go for the excitement of learning which facilitates learning.
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
Get to know them, what interests them, etc. Ask what their biggest challenges are for which they hired a tutor. Create a success plan together based on their desires.
How can you help a student become an independent learner?
I'm excited about my subjects. The best thing to do is help them discover what and why they love to learn. Once they find that, that's it.
How would you help a student stay motivated?
What motivates them? Incorporate that or some extension of that if possible. Relationship exchange is key. Deposit and withdraw frequently from the emotional bank account. Come to agreements, have plenty of back and forth, give and receive, whether in the form of high-five, encouraging message, reporting of assignments etc.
If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?
Try a different method. Get up, and try kinesthetic learning. Draw a picture. Explain it in a different way. Repeated exposure from multiple angles is where it clicks. Constructive psychology.
How do you help students who are struggling with reading comprehension?
Explain, demonstrate, act out, draw or approach comprehension in a different way. Use different reading, listening, writing, and speaking methods.
What strategies have you found to be most successful when you start to work with a student?
Find exactly what they want and what fires them up about the subject. Build off of that central desire and love for the subject they have, whatever it may be.
How would you help a student get excited/engaged with a subject that they are struggling in?
It has to connect, even ambiguously or arbitrarily, with something they DO value. They need to receive value out of what they are learning. If it's not worth the investment, why do it?
What techniques would you use to be sure that a student understands the material?
I want to see them analyze, apply, transfer, and incorporate something they've learned. They must express it through writing, speaking, movement, or some other means.
How do you build a student's confidence in a subject?
Repeated success is one way. If I'm going for the heart of the issue, it's confidence in one's self that needs to be addressed.
How do you evaluate a student's needs?
There are needs on different levels. For hard result-oriented needs, check out their external performance. For internal needs, observe intuitively as they work. Analyze their internal processes, and verify your observations with questions about their thought processes or with a second perspective observation.
How do you adapt your tutoring to the student's needs?
I may do more explaining, listening, drawing, showing with hands, moving around, demonstrating, etc., depending on their learning style.
What types of materials do you typically use during a tutoring session?
Something to write and draw with/on. Audio recorder/playback device. Phone for looking up images, videos, etc.