I charge $20 per half-hour session or $35 per hour for individual tutoring via Zoom. I will work with you on rates for group classes and custom materials depending on what you need. I am registered as a Hope Scholarship provider. 

When I mention online tutoring sessions, I frequently hear parents say that their child would never be successful in that format. "He hated virtual school." "She doesn't have the attention span to sit on a computer all day." I get it, believe me. We were all broadsided with these types of worries when the pandemic hit!

The good news is that there are so many ways to make virtual learning fun and effective! Some learning is actually easier to accomplish online because of the ease with which digital content can be gamified! I use a platform called Koala Go, which is sort of like Zoom meets Minecraft. There is a build-in game as well as a host of features that allow me to engage your student virtually.

If you're not sure whether your child will be successful in virtual tutoring, please reach out to schedule an introductory session. I'll meet with your child via Koala Go, we'll play some games, have some fun, and troubleshoot barriers to online learning. 

At minimum, you will need a computer or tablet and access to reliable internet. Koala Go is not funtional when accessed via phone.

Once you've begun tutoring, if you're interested, I'll provide you with an optional equipment "wish list" that will enhance your child's experience in my classes. But all you need to get started is a computer or tablet with an internet connection and a setting without a lot of background noise.

If you're in the Cabell-Putnam-Kanawha area of West Virginia, I may be able to accommodate you for in-person tutoring. Reach out and we'll discuss it further.

In traditional models of education, skills are frequently taught in the context of the project for which they're needed. While there is value in that model, it skips over a lot of the foundation skills that underpin student achievement. When a child has tackled project after project or test after test and continues to find themself falling short of mastery, it can be a serious blow to their self-esteem, engagement, and willingness to continue to try.

Direct Instruction flips traditional education upside down. Rather than starting with a project and then working backwards to fill in skill gaps, we start by identifying, and then sequentially teaching, each individual skill in isolation. As we teach those basic skills to fluency, we also provide increasing opportunities to combine and apply skills. Eventually, students are able to apply their now-fluent abilities to a variety of progressively complex projects and problems. In this model, students are able to experience success with each small step, thus increasing their confidence as well as their knowledge base and their willingness to engage.

Frequently, Direct Instruction programs also incorporate a system of pinpointing and measuring known as Precision Teaching. Precision Teaching relies on the Standard Celeration Chart to observe and make decisions about a student's learning fluency on a sequence of precisely-defined skills.

In our fluency-based tutoring sessions, your student -- and you -- will have access to up-to-date data regarding their progress, trajectory, and upcoming goals using the Standard Celeration Chart. Students become participants in the charting process and gain ownership over, and pride in, their progress.