A Complete Parent Guide for WHEN and WHY a Child May Need a Tutor
As your child progresses through school, you begin to notice their academic strengths and areas of growth by simply observing their ability to do homework, reviewing their grades, excitement to learn, desire to participate in school/class, and feedback from their teachers.
It is often unclear whether or not they need the support of a tutor. That is why we compiled the following list indicating when a child may need a tutor to help them keep up, enrich subjects they love, stay ahead, or close learning gaps.
1. Your Child Struggling to Keep up in School
The most significant indications that your child may need a tutor is when their grades are dropping drastically or not improving. Rather than hoping they will get better or waiting until the end of the grading period, check their grades and performances on regular tests and quizzes. Besides checking their grades, you should also discuss your concerns with their teacher to determine if they are facing other difficulties in the classroom.
As the saying goes, “a stitch in time saves 9.” Providing immediate support once a parent has observed their child is struggling with learning creates a far better outcome rather than delaying for a better result before getting the support. The best way to deal with learning struggles is by hiring a private tutor. School is structured so concepts are built on each other, meaning the longer your child stays without getting help, the wider their learning gaps may become.
2. Your Child Seems Frustrated with Learning:
Does your child experience frustration when doing their assignments or attempting their homework? Are they avoiding schoolwork or shutting down whenever doing academic tasks? It would help if you got them a tutor whether or not their grades demonstrate a need for a tutor whenever you detect frustration.
Expressing frustration could be your child’s way of telling you that they need learning support. A private tutor can stop the frustration by identifying your child’s struggles and helping them to overcome them. They focus on the specific problems the child is facing and take extra time to ensure that they fully grasp them before moving to a new topic.
3. Your Child has an Identified Learning Disability or Difference:
Learning disabilities and differences can be lifelong challenges that may hinder your child from achieving their learning goals. However, your child can still achieve their goals if provided the proper support despite their learning differences.
An Educational therapist or highly trained tutor can help your child overcome learning challenges by applying specialized instructions. They design lessons tailored to your child’s unique needs and use the multi-sensory approach. Under this approach, students learn through seeing, feeling, hearing, and experiencing. A multi-sensory policy only applies in a small group or individualized setting with a specialized Educational tutor or therapist.
4. Your Child is Excelling and Needs to Be Challenged or Enriched:
Many people believe that tutoring is only for students that have learning difficulties. It is a misconception since private tutoring is about meeting students where they are and working towards creating new learning goals.
Students who have excelled in past learning and lack new challenges or enrichment are equally problematic as those with learning struggles. In addition, students tend to get bored with education and lose focus when they don’t find anything exciting about learning. Tutoring sessions ensure that your child is excited about learning by providing them with enriching tutoring sessions.
5. Your Child Does Not meet the Assignments or Homework Deadlines:
If you notice your child struggling to complete an assignment or homework, they have a problem with time management. It would help to consider time management a major problem even when your child completes the tasks correctly.
How much time do they spend completing the homework? Is this affecting their time, self-esteem, and emotional health? Answering these questions will help you determine if there is a need to hire a tutor or not. Get your child a private tutor to help them manage time more effectively and handle other hidden struggles.
6. Lack of Reading and Math Progress:
Have you noticed that your child lacks progress in maths and English despite all the interventions done in school? It is probably high time to hire a private tutor. One-on-one tutoring is an excellent strategy for students that need extra help, including those under unique education plans. Ensure that you get tutoring interventions that match your child’s needs. A one-size-fits-all intervention program is infective to children under this category and can cause significant learning gaps.
Hiring a Math or Reading tutor comes with so many benefits. Not only will your child experience better performance, but they will also gain more confidence in the learning programs. In addition, these tutors provide one-on-one attention to students making it easy for them to understand concepts. Notably, a Math or Reading tutor ensures that your child continues to gain learning experience in the subjects even when schools are closed.
7. Your Child is Unorganized:
It is common for young learners to lack organization since they struggle to use executive functioning skills. You may notice your child does not know how to prioritize, are poor organizers, and doesn’t know how to create a plan. However, the organization plays a crucial role in your child’s education and can significantly improve their overall performance.
A tutor may use the following steps to teach your child organization:
- They may help your child break down school projects and assignments into smaller, manageable steps.
- They may help them to create to-do lists and checklists where they can check off accomplished tasks.
- A tutor may also teach your child time and calendar management skills. This will make it easy for them to prioritize tasks.
- They may help them create daily routines and use different time management strategies.
- They can also teach them how to use color-coding when doing assignments. This strategy makes it easy to determine already accomplished tasks.
- A tutor can also help you to create an organized learning space for your child.
Frequently Asked Questions:
What makes up a good tutor?
Motivation: A good tutor is not motivated by the money they get from the job. Rather,
by the desire to see your child grow and improve in learning.
Adaptability: A good tutor adapts to your child’s needs and learning style. They are flexible and willing to change their teaching style as your child progresses in learning.
Patience: A good tutor demonstrates expertise in the subjects and patience while teaching. They are willing to repeat points, concepts, and processes until your child grasps them. They also show calmness at all times.
Empathy: A good tutor should emphasize with students. They are willing to listen to students and clearly understand their needs and struggles. By so doing, your child will feel more valued and loved.
Enthusiasm: Look out for an excited and enthusiastic tutor about what they do. They should express their love for what they teach to help students develop a passion for learning.
Communication: A good tutor demonstrates good communication skills by speaking clearly, listening patiently, using simple language, teaching examples, and engaging well with nonverbal communication.
Humble: Lookout for a person who is humble. A humble tutor admits when they are wrong and admit when they don’t clearly understand an issue or concept.
What questions should I ask a prospective tutor?
Here are some of the questions you can ask prospective tutors during an interview to find the fittest for your family’s needs:
1. What are your qualifications and experience in tutoring?
2. Do you have any reviews from past clients?
3. What type of approach to learning do you use?
4. How many sessions can you offer per week?
5. Do you provide your services online or in person?
6. How do you handle students with learning struggles?
7. Do you assign different projects or homework to your students?
8. What should I expect at the end of the tutoring period?
Is tutoring a worthy investment?
Yes! Tutoring is a worthy investment. The investment cost corresponds with the quality of instructions your child gets. It also exposes your child to hands-on activities that boost their academic and overall understanding. Tutoring is also personalized to meet your child’s needs and learning style. It is also flexible and convenient, meaning tutors are willing to work with your family’s schedule.
Our Parting Shot:
We use the Whole Child Approach in our tutoring sessions at Kids on the Yard. Our tutors, guided and mentored by Senior Educators, can significantly improve your child’s learning experience!
We know how to help struggling learners improve their performance and gain more confidence. It’s just what we do and more!
We are one CLICK away! Please reach out for more information!
