How do I find a good tutor for my child? If your child is struggling with a subject or simply lacks confidence, you can hire a tutor to help them succeed. A great tutor can truly help your child to learn, allowing them to achieve specific goals.
When your challenge is choosing a tutor who will best be able to assist your child, here are a few tips that can help.
Why Are Tutors Important?
Is tutoring worth it? It absolutely can be! Here are some of the benefits of having a tutor work with your child:
- Your child will gain confidence in their abilities
- Tutors can personalize your child’s learning experience
- Students can work with tutors to reinforce or relearn skills so that they can catch up with their peers
- A skilled tutor can provide academic help with advanced subjects
- Parents who hire a tutor often deal with fewer academic-related conflicts with their child
- Students who are tutored perform better in the classroom and on tests
Why get a tutor? When you do, your child can work cooperatively with someone who has the skills to help them succeed.
Things to Consider When Choosing a Tutor for Your Child
While you may try to find the answer to “how to find a good tutor for my child” by searching online, it’s worth taking some time to be selective in order to find the perfect tutor for your child’s individual needs.
Here are some items to consider in your search:
Goals and Expectations
Before you can choose a tutor, you need to set clear goals and expectations. This will help you to select the best tutor and track your child’s progress over time.
Your goals should be specific and measurable. For example, helping your child to read better is a pretty vague target. Instead, you could set a goal of having your child reading at grade level by the end of the semester.
By setting goals, you can help your child’s high school or elementary school tutor, as well. They’ll know exactly what they are working toward, so they can plan their tutoring sessions accordingly.
Qualifications
If you have researched how to find a tutor, you already know that the average tutor’s qualifications can vary widely. For example, some tutors are high school students that are interested in earning a bit of cash by helping elementary school students with basic subjects. On the other end of the spectrum, you may find experienced educators that specialize in college prep and advanced placement tutoring.
Use the goals and expectations you have set to identify the minimum qualifications your child’s tutor will need. For example, do you want your child’s tutor to have a college degree? What about experience working with special needs children?
Skills and Experience
Are you comfortable allowing someone who has little to no experience to tutor your child, or would you prefer someone with a few years of experience? Someone who can tutor an elementary student with confidence may struggle to connect with a middle schooler.
Think about the academic subject you’ll want to focus on, as well. Are you hiring a tutor to help a younger student with basic skills and homework? Most high school and college students could probably fit the bill. However, if your student needs help with a specialized or advanced topic, you should focus on tutors that have proven capabilities in those areas.
Reliability
Once you know exactly what you want in a tutor, it’s time to learn how to find a private tutor that is trustworthy and reliable.
No-shows are unacceptable. If you are paying for tutoring services, you need someone who will show up on time and come prepared to help your child.
Here are some tips to help:
- Ask other parents for recommendations
- Search online and read reviews
- Request references
- Establish clear expectations on punctuality and availability
It’s essential for parents and students to be reliable, as well. Students should show up for tutoring sessions on time and be prepared to work.
Personality and Passion
Unfortunately, when students need tutoring, they may have already started to develop negative feelings towards school in general or the academic subject that’s giving them trouble in particular. Worse, they may clash with teachers and parents out of frustration.
When this is the case, the tutor’s personality can make all of the difference in the world.
If your child can truly connect with a tutor, they can often help them past any frustration or lack of confidence that might be holding them back. It’s not uncommon for parents to see a child that has fought parental efforts start to cooperate perfectly with a tutor.
How to Find Tutors in Your Area
There are several resources you can use to find the best tutor for your student. Start with other parents. You probably know at least one parent who has gone through this process before you.
Additionally, you can ask your school for input. A guidance or counseling office may have a list of tutoring centers handy.
Finally, look online for “tutors near me.” Once you’ve compiled your list of potential tutors, you can apply the tips listed above to find the best fit for your child’s needs.
UpReach Learning Offers Reliable Online Tutoring For All Ages
At UpReach Learning, we offer several online and in-person tutoring options for ages K-12, including math, ELA, SAT/PSAT prep courses, and more.
Contact us online today to get started!