"As a Special Educator since 2004, it has been my responsibility to teach students the skills necessary to be successful in high school. Student age groups have been 10th, 11th, and 12th grades during the school year, and 5th through 8th grades in the summer. It is my belief as a teacher to allow students to take control of their own learning, develop short and long-term goals, recognize their progress, and achieve the ability to express their accomplishments in their own words, both at home and in school.

My teaching skills include reading comprehension and writing in the English Language Arts. Using oversize “Post-It” notes, I find these useful for students to help them identify the direct and indirect information read, and then gradually move to the abstract and universal concepts that develop in stories. In writing, students learn that there are three types of sentences: simple, compound, and complex. By using all three, they become their own architects during the writing process as they develop sentences and construct paragraphs.

In Math, students may struggle with basic math operations or with concepts in Algebra, Geometry, and Trigonometry. For example, fractions, decimals, two sided equations, or positive and negative numbers can be confusing. Over the years, I have put together a collection of math worksheets, along with problems taken from State Assessments, to help students practice their math skills and to build the confidence needed to feel more comfortable when they are working with numbers.

Given the rapid advancements in global communication, I realize that students have access to almost all the information they would need to be successful in life. With this understanding, I believe tutors today will want to spend more time as facilitators with their students, where they would guide them through the process of recognizing their interests, strengths and challenges, and to value the importance of being a life-long learner. In a Global Society, students should want to grow and feel t" less...