Experience Summary
I graduated from the University of Texas at Dallas in 1980 with a BA in psychology. Hoping to go further with those studies, I took the GRA exam and planned to begin the Master's Degree program that fall. However, I was married when I was in college and by graduation, I found out I was expecting our first baby in the coming fall, so I laid those plans aside to be a stay-at-home mom , and once she was ready for kindergarten, I had researched all the school/education options thoroughly and decided with my husband that we should homeschool.
Since then we have had 7 more children, with the last being born in 2000, and have homeschooled all 8 of them the whole time they have been school age. The oldest two are now graduated from college with Master's Degrees and one is a college speech/communications/drama professor and the head of the college drama department as well. The third oldest is a senior at a university on a tennis scholarship, and the fourth is a freshman at our local community college. The other four are still at home with me homeschooling, 11th grade, 9th grade, 5th grade and 3rd grade.
Since the economy is taking a downturn I am looking for ways to stay home with my children yet help with our family's obviously large budget (five boys still at home eat a lot! HA! ) and tutoring seems a natural way for me to work around my family , and do something I know well.
My best subjects are English and Literature, and any elementary or middle school level subject is very easy for me to teach, however I have taught all the subjects all the way through 12th grade.
I would prefer not to be tutoring high level math or science if possible, such as trigonometry or calculus or physics and chemistry, given the choice.
My hours are flexible for the most part, with the exception of the time I am schooling my own children, but that would be when anyone needing tutoring would be in school as well, so that should not be a problem anyway.
Teaching Style
I have a very relaxed teaching style when teaching my children at home during their homeschool, but they know if they don't do their work, they won't get far in life, and so far, of my eight children, there are four that are out of homeschool and have moved on to advanced education. The two oldest have their master's degrees from college and the third oldest is a senior in college on the dean's list and on the tennis team with a tennis scholarship. The fourth oldest is a freshman at the local community college with a high GPA so far.
I am loving but firm in my teaching style, and show my love for learning and knowledge, which can be a way to make children love to learn as well. I go over everything very thoroughly until I know they understand the idea/concept before moving forward.
I try to make them think on their own, figure things out as they go, but when they hit a rough spot in the road I am there to help them over the bumps. I use old fashioned methods such as phonics and memorization to learn some things because I think they work best in most cases, but I do employ many types of learning as well, since children learn different ways.
With my degree in psychology, I feel I can analyze a child's personality type fairly quickly and easily, and adjust my teaching style accordingly.