t.i.e.s. - One-on-One Tutoring

A great deal of the volunteer work that goes on in TIES is individual tutoring. Yalies help children from kindergarten through fifth grade with primarily reading or math, or just by being a friend.

Never tutored before? Interested in tutoring, but have no idea how to go about it? That's OK! We have several resources to help you out, whether you're tutoring for the first time, running out of ideas, or have specific problems or concerns. Every volunteer will receive the TIES Survival Guide, which has some general instructions for tutors. You are welcome to ask your college coordinator(s) any questions, as they have substantive tutoring experience and additional resources. And following are some tips to help get you started:

For worksheets galore, visit http://www.edhelper.com/. The site features worksheets on math, science, geography, spelling, reading comprehension, and more! Worksheets can be a structured way to keep your tutee interested and challenged. This site's worksheets are even broken down by grade level, which can really help to gauge his/her progress!
Most of our elementary schools have a large volume of resources, including books. So books are readily available if you prefer to read with your tutee rather than complete worksheets with him/her. Contact the educational resources coordinator at your TIES elementary school (which in most cases is the librarian) for an orientation to your school's resources.
As a third option for tutoring, you may just want to consult with your tutee's teacher and find out in what area(s) the tutee specifically needs direction. This can include working on homework, prepping him/her for an upcoming quiz, or hammering out multiplication tables to improve his/her math skills.
Kids also appreciate word games on dry-erase boards (or pieces of paper if no boards are available). Playing games with your tutee on the dry-erase boards can be an effective way to work on spelling, the letters of the alpabet, etc. For example, you may want to scrawl several words on the board, leaving one word misspelled, and have your tutee pick out the misspelled word. Another idea is to simply write words on the board and have your tutee pronounce them. The possibilities are endless! Check with the educational resources coordinator at your TIES elementary school for the availability of dry-erase boards; if the school has none, ask your college coordinator to acquire one.
The best atmosphere for tutoring is probably in the school library, although a teacher may prefer that you stay in the classroom. Distractions in the classroom (the tutee's friends shooting rubber bands at him/her or doing something more fun in front of him/her) may limit the effectiveness of a tutoring session. However, if your style is to be more of a friend/mentor than a tutor, remaining in the classroom may make the experience more fun.
The first time you meet your tutee, you probably don't want to jump directly into tutoring. In order to form a bond with the student, which will facilitate the learning process, you should engage in activities with the tutee that will help you get to know him or her as a person. You may let the tutee give you a tour of the school, shoot some hoops with him/her (get permission first, of course), or play a game.
We ask that you tutor for at least one hour a week (not including transportation time). Consistency is important to the tutees, as they are easily disappointed and disillusioned. If you are unable to tutor, please call the school and either talk to or leave a message for the TIES contact at your elementary school. Try to reschedule for that week if possible.
Most importantly, HAVE FUN!!! Don't be afraid to wing it. This is supposed to be fun for you, and if it isn't fun for you it probably isn't a heck of a lot of fun for the kid either. Most of us know from economics how hard it is to learn when you're bored.

For more extensive tip-age, visit the thorough resources at http://www.pinellaseducation.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Mentoring.Tutoring_Tips, http://www.sfusd.k12.ca.us/sfsv/tutor2.html, http://www.csufresno.edu/scs/reads/tips.html, and http://www.ysd.wednet.edu/wrc/page6.htm.