Tag: How do I become a private tutor. Tutor Jobs Cambridge

Why-a-maths-assessment-is-key-to-getting-the-best-tutor-for-your-child

Posted on by Rachel Law

At Tutor My Kids, tutors in Cambridgeshire, a maths assessment is a usual part of our process of putting in the right tutor for your child. It enables us to assess your child’s abilities, their maths gaps and how they approach their work. The importance of getting the right tutor in terms of personality and approach, who will bring out the best in your child is, in our opinion, an integral part of getting the best tutor for your child.

Whether your child is struggling with the basics or the more advanced work makes a huge difference in finding the best maths tutor for them. A strong mathematician may benefit from a tutor who can really question and stretch them, whilst an underconfident student needs a much more gentle, encouraging approach. Establishing this can make the all the difference between ‘ok’ tutoring and exceptional tutoring.

Establishing where your child is with their learning

How confident a student is with their maths is a key determiner to the kind of tutor who will work best with them. Students who are working on the higher paper and are looking to get the best grades for sixth form, invariably need a supportive approach, but one which challenges them to think strategically to tackle the type of questions at level 8/9. A student who has always thought of themselves as a weak mathematician will need someone who can fill in missing gaps, gently, to raise their confidence and enable them to gain the marks they need to pass their GCSE maths. The new GCSE exams need a particular set of skills – see What’s different about the new GCSEs and what skills are needed?  Whilst dyscalculia is rare, it can be a problem. At Tutor My Kids, we do offer dyscalculia screening. Take a look at How dyscalculia screening helped a parent. So, it’s absolutely key to establish where your child is with their learning. Then we can look at the personality match between the student and the tutor.

Getting the personality match right

At Tutor My Kids, we think that getting the right personality match for your child is absolutely key to great tuition. We always meet you and your child in your home, to get a feel for your home ‘culture’ and your child’s personality. We establish what kind of approach will best support your child. We meet all our tutors at Tutor My Kids face to face and know the kind of students that they most prefer to work with – some love pushing the most able students, others simply adore helping the students that don’t ‘get’ maths. This joint knowledge and personal approach helps us to get the best possible match of tutor for your child and your family.

Putting it all together

This is where the magic happens. We put together your child’s level, approach to learning, confidence and personality and bingo we get a great tutor matched to your child to help and support them in their goals. It’s brilliant when we get this right! Student’s simply fly! See our client testimonials and tutor testimonials for a taste of this.

If you’d like more information on tutors in Ely, Cambridge, Newmarket and Huntingdon, take a look at our For Parents page, email Rachel or call Rachel on 01223 858421.

If you’re a teacher interested in finding out how to join our amazing team and working with really well assessed students, please take a look at our For Tutors page, email Rachel or give her a call on 01223 858421.

 

Could-you-earn-enough-by-tutoring-alone?

Posted on by Rachel Law

TutorMyKids private tutor

This is a question that we’re asked quite often, especially when teachers are thinking of leaving a teaching post. It is a bit of a ‘how long is a piece of string question’ as it almost entirely depends upon how much you need to earn, however a number of our tutors at Tutor My Kids only work as private tutors. These tend to be teachers who tutor English, maths and science in Cambridge, Ely, Huntingdon, Newmarket and surrounding areas, but there are options that can supplement income too.

Daytime and evening tuition.

At Tutor My Kids we have tutoring opportunities in the daytime and evening. We usually tutor students after schoool, for our private clients, but we also work with home educated children to support parents in the teaching of their children during the daytime. We also work with schools in Cambridgeshire to support their inclusion work, alternative provision and providing tutors to support Looked After Children. This provision can be after school or during the school day. We’re increasingly needing teachers who have daytime availability to satisfy this demand for Alternative Provision work.

Combining tutoring with other options.

Many of our tutors in Cambridgeshire combine their teaching with other options. Some teach part-time and/or supply teach in the local schools in Ely, Cambridge and surrounding areas. Some have caring responsibilities for elderly parents or young children. And a number mark exam papers which provides additional income as well invaluable insight into the nitty gritty of exam marking schemes! Private tuition provides great options to work in a more flexible way.

Curious?

Do take a look at our For Tutors page, one of our recent blogs – Are you a teacher who’s forgotten what a joy teaching is? To find out what some of our tutors think of working as a Tutor My Kids tutor, take a look at their stories. For an informal chat, please email Rachel Law or call her on 01223 858421.

 

How-to-choose-a-good-tutoring-agency

Posted on by Rachel Law

TutorMyKids private tutor

Choosing the right tutoring agency is a combination of a number of factors – where they’re based, what they specialise in, who they recruit, what they’re like to work for and their fit with you.

Geography

Check the geography that the agency covers and, most importantly, where most of their clients are. Tutor My Kids teachers tutor in Ely, Cambridge, St Ives, Huntingdon and Newmarket.

Specialism

Does the agency specialise in certain subjects? What do they have most demand for? Most agencies will have most need of maths, science and English tutors, but will also need other tutors too.

Teaching Experience

Some agencies are very happy to take on a wide variety of tutors, other specialise in just teachers. If you’re a teacher, you may find yourself better valued in an agency, such as Tutor My Kids whose tutors are almost exclusively teachers.

Size of agency

Large agencies may have more opportunities, but you may get lost amongst the many other tutors, or it may simply feel less personal. A smaller agency is more likely to know it’s tutors and clients well and offer a more friendly service. At Tutor My Kids we think all our tutors are amazing and because we’re small get to know our tutors well.

Clients

It’s also worth asking what a typical client is for the agency? Are they largely independent school or state school – you may have a preference. We’re really lucky at Tutor My Kids as at least 60% of our clients are referred to us by other clients. This means that we tend to have like-minded clients and typically our clients want their students to have more confidence in the subject but also generally. We feel that they’re arranging tutoring for their kids for the right reasons.

What are they like to work for?

This can be hard to work out, but check out their testimonials and ask to be but in touch with existing tutors if in doubt. We’re always delighted when we get testimonials from clients and tutors. Check ours out by clicking the links. I’m also a firm believer in trusting your gut instinct when you chat to them.

Get in touch with Tutor My Kids

For more information on becoming a tutor click the link, email Rachel, or call Rachel Law on 01223 858421 for a chat.

 

 

 

Why-tutor-through-a-tutoring-agency?

Posted on by Rachel Law

7 reasons why working through a tutoring agency is a great solution.

You don’t need to be your own sales and marketing department

Most teachers are not experts at marketing themselves – if fact usually it’s the other way round. At Tutor My Kids, we know all our tutors personally and can ensure that the client is aware of all your strengths (even the ones you haven’t spotted but we have!) You can sit back and be assured that you’ll be put with great students who are on your wavelength.

We match you to the perfect students for you

We meet clients and tutors in person and take the time to work out what everyone wants. This enables us to match you with some amazing clients. See our client and tutor testimonials to see how well we achieve this.

You’re paid regularly

When parents are busy, it’s sometimes difficult to ask to be paid. At Tutor My Kids, we invoice our clients directly and pay our tutors separately, so you can focus on the important business of the teaching without worrying if you’ll be paid and any awkwardness that can result. Agencies vary, but don’t assume that you’ll lose part of your fee by working with an agency. At Tutor My Kids we paid in full.

You’re still able to have private clients too

Check the small print, but all reputable agencies should allow you the freedom to take private clients too.

Clients aren’t axe murderers!

OK, I’m being a bit silly, but on a serious note, working through a reputable agency give you the reassurance that the parents and students that you’ll be working with are safe to work with and aren’t going to waste your time.

Obviously agencies vary hugely – take a look at How to choose a good tutoring agency. At Tutor My Kids, tutors in Cambridgeshire, we always visit our clients in their homes prior to us working with them. One of the many reasons we do this is to assess if it’s a safe place for our tutors to work.

Safeguarding

As teachers, safeguarding is very much part of our DNA. We check that our tutors have a current DBS and also ask their current or latest head teacher for a safeguarding reference too. It’s one of the ways we look at safer recruitment. But what about staying secure yourself? At Tutor My Kids, when we arrange tuition we talk about safeguarding with parents – we insist that there is an adult in the house and that tutoring occurs in a downstairs, family friendly room – we’re a great fan of dining room or kitchen tables. It ensures that our tutors are visible and reduces that likelihood of any false allegations.

Get out of jail free card

When you’re working with a client, it’s very difficult to say if you feel it’s not working out with the student for fear of upsetting the family. Working through an agency enables the agency to have that conversation with the parents to help resolve a situation or remove the tutor from it. At Tutor My Kids, because of the great work we do before you meet the student, it’s very unusual that we need to have these conversations, but occasionally we do and we find it’s a great relief to the teacher for us to be able to help in this way.

For further information, take a look at our tutoring page, email Rachel Law or call Rachel on 01223 858421 for an informal chat.

 

5-reasons-for tutors-to-use-a-tutoring-agency

Posted on by

Private tutor Cambridge

Tutor My Kids is different from many agencies, so we’re probably a bit biased, but this is our thoughts why tutors and teachers can benefit from using the right agency to find students.

At Tutor My Kids, the vast majority of our private tutors are fully qualified teachers. Working in Cambridge, Huntingdon, Newmarket and Ely, our tutors teach at the students’ homes. So we think it’s really important to visit our clients personally.

Student and Parent Visits

We always meet with the student and their parents/carers in their homes in Cambridgeshire. Doing this achieves 2 key things. Firstly, it enables us to check that there’s a good place for tutoring to occur – a kitchen or dining room table, to allow space to work and set the right tone for tuition. We always suggest a ground-floor, family friendly area. It’s one of our safeguarding criteria. Secondly, by meeting the child in the parent’s home, we have a really good idea of the home ethos and culture which means we have a great idea of which of our tutors will fit in well with that. That means that when you meet the student and their parents, you can be pretty sure you’ll get along.

Assessment

In many cases, we’re able to do some assessment with our students, so the tutor already has a starting point for the tuition. Invariably, this information is supplemented by information from the child’s class or subject teacher, with the parent’s permission. We also think that it’s important to play to the tutor’s strengths.

We match your skills and preferences to our clients

We’re a small agency, with local knowledge, which means that we know all our tutors personally. We know which of our primary school teachers prefer to teach maths rather than literacy, which ones are happy with both. We know which of our maths tutors prefer to tutor the stronger and which prefer the weaker students. We know how far our tutors are happy to travel and accommodate this. We have the view that if the teacher is tutoring what they want, where they want, when they want, it all runs smoothly. Add onto this a great personality match between student and tutor and we’ve got a winning formula.

We stay in touch with the tutor and client all the way through the process.

Rachel’s favourite bit of her job is talking to our clients and tutors to see how well the tuition is going.  Everyone likes to feel valued and we love to hear how well the tutoring is going. Having an agency to talk to means that any potential problems can be headed off too. The vast majority of the time, our clients and our tutors in Cambridge, Ely, Newmarket and Huntingdon, say how well we match our clients and tutors. In fact, only the other day, Rachel made a first call to a new client to see how the first session of tutoring had gone and the feedback was, ‘You couldn’t have found us a better tutor, Rachel.’ It’s not unusual to hear our tutors say, ‘All our clients are fabulous.’

Won’t I lose part of my fees?

At Tutor My Kids we pay our teachers a good hourly rate and our tutors keep all of it. We think it’s important for the tutor to be able to focus on their students, so we invoice the client and pay the tutor, to avoid the awkwardness of the tutor having to ask to be paid.

5 great reasons to join Tutor My Kid as a private tutor in Ely, Cambridge, Newmarket and Huntingdon areas.

So, good rates of pay, keen, well matched students, with Rachel having visited their home first of all, some assessment often done and the support of an organisation to bounce ideas off as the tuition progresses. What’s not to like? For an informal chat, please call Rachel on 01223 858421 or email Rachel to get in touch. We look forward to hearing from you.

How do I become a private tutor?

Posted on by

Many teachers are leaving the profession or
changing the way they work – perhaps opting for part-time or supply teaching and/or
private tutoring. 

We’re increasingly being approached by great teachers who are
simply ‘greyed out’ by the politics and paperwork but don’t want to stop doing what they love – working with children.Teachers are looking at
other ways to use their skills.


Teacher are looking at new ways of working, often combining things together, such as part-time or supply teaching and private tuition. The supply situation seems to vary enormously across the
country, but in Cambridgeshire, there’s no shortage. Ditto with private tuition
– demand for private tutors in Cambridge, Ely, Huntingdon and surrounding areas
is high.

The following is a quick guide to setting up as a private
tutor:


Where do you want to tutor?

You will need to decide if you want to be a private tutor who sees clients at your home or the clients’ homes. There are pros and cons for both. Being a private tutor at home can be distracting if you have your own family or may work out fabulously because you’ve got all your resources there. You may prefer to travel to your clients so you can be fully focussed on your student and not worry about keeping your house tidy!

How much should I charge for private tuition?

This, again, is a personal choice. Take a look at what other tutors are charging and what you feel is a fair reflection of your time and experience.

How do I find clients?

If you want to find clients yourself, start telling people
that you’re going to work as a private tutor. Word of mouth will be your best
advertising. If you’re on Facebook, mention it there – even set yourself up a Facebook
page dedicated to your tutoring and don’t forget cards in the local shops. You
can also register yourself on the various tutor boards.

If you feel uncomfortable about selling yourself or you want
to get off the ground more quickly, you could consider an agency. Agencies vary
enormously in terms of their approach so speak to a few and see who you feel
you ‘click’ with.

Working with an agency means that you won’t have to sell yourself.
Go for an agency (such as Tutor My Kids in Cambridge) who visit their clients
personally first to ensure you know that you’re going somewhere safe and vetted
to work as a personal tutor. Most of our private tutors in Ely, Cambridge,
Huntingdon and surrounding areas are women. We think it’s really important that
we’ve visited the client’s home first. We only accept clients who we’re happy
with and also we do a great job of matching the needs of our students to your
skills and experience.

Some agencies simply match you with a client based on your
skills and the client’s requirements. E.g. if you teach GCSE maths and the client’s
child is sitting GCSE maths they’ll match you up.  Others offer a more personalised service. At Tutor
My Kids in Cambridge we view these things differently. It may be a GCSE maths
student (especially if taking the foundation paper) may benefit from a primary
trained maths tutor who can help fill in gaps that are preventing the student
from progressing fully. 

How do I get more clients?

At the end of the day, whether you find clients yourself or
through an agency, I’d suggest that you go with your instincts. If you feel
that you connect with the family/agency then great. If you’re really not sure
at all, then better not to start the assignment.  With the right client or agency, you’ll get
more bookings through word of mouth without fail.

How many clients are too many?

This is a personal thing, but if you feel you’re able to fit
in the prep and planning before the session to the best of your ability, then
you’re about right. If you’re struggling to find the time, then definitely don’t
take any more clients on. Doing things well will bring you more clients and
recommendations but be careful not to overstretch yourself.

Feeling Appreciated.

Schools can be tough at the moment, with sometimes little
praise. Being a private tutor for many teachers is a hugely liberating thing;
it reconnects them with seeing directly the link of their efforts to the child
and it’s also really lovely for teachers to be really valued by their clients and/or
agency. 


If you’re interested in becoming a private tutor in Cambridge, Ely, Huntingdon or Newmarket, please get in touch with Rachel Law on 01223 858421 or take a look at the Tutor My Kids Website www.Tutormykids.co.uk

How do I become a private tutor?

Posted on by
 
Many teachers are leaving the profession or changing the way they work – perhaps opting for part-time or supply teaching and/or private tutoring. 
 
We’re increasingly being approached by great teachers who are simply ‘greyed out’ by the politics and paperwork but don’t want to stop doing what they love – working with children.Teachers are looking at other ways to use their skills. Take a look at When was the last time a parent thanked you for teaching their child?
 
Teacher are looking at new ways of working, often combining things together, such as part-time or supply teaching and private tuition. The supply situation seems to vary enormously across the country, but in Cambridgeshire, there’s no shortage. Ditto with private tuition – demand for private tutors in Cambridge, Ely, Huntingdon and surrounding areas is high.
 

Here’s a quick guide to setting up as a private tutor:

Where do you want to tutor?

You will need to decide if you want to be a private tutor who sees clients at your home or the clients’ homes. There are pros and cons for both. Being a private tutor at home can be distracting if you have your own family or may work out fabulously because you’ve got all your resources there. You may prefer to travel to your clients so you can be fully focused on your student and not worry about keeping your house tidy! 

How much should I charge for private tuition?

This, again, is a personal choice. Take a look at what other tutors are charging and what you feel is a fair reflection of your time and experience.

How do I find clients?

If you want to find clients yourself, start telling people that you’re going to work as a private tutor. Word of mouth will be your best advertising. If you’re on Facebook, mention it there – even set yourself up a Facebook page dedicated to your tutoring and don’t forget cards in the local shops. You can also register yourself on the various tutor boards.
 
If you feel uncomfortable about selling yourself or you want to get off the ground more quickly, you could consider an agency. Agencies vary enormously in terms of their approach so speak to a few and see who you feel you ‘click’ with.
 
Working with an agency means that you won’t have to sell yourself. Go for an agency (such as Tutor My Kids in Cambridge) who visit their clients personally first to ensure you know that you’re going somewhere safe and vetted to work as a personal tutor. Most of our private tutors in Ely, Cambridge, Huntingdon and surrounding areas are women. We think it’s really important that we’ve visited the client’s home first. We only accept clients who we’re happy with and also we do a great job of matching the needs of our students to your skills and experience.
 
Some agencies simply match you with a client based on your skills and the client’s requirements. E.g. if you teach GCSE maths and the client’s child is sitting GCSE maths they’ll match you up.  Others offer a more personalised service. At Tutor My Kids in Cambridge we view these things differently. It may be a GCSE maths student (especially if taking the foundation paper) may benefit from a primary trained maths tutor who can help fill in gaps that are preventing the student from progressing fully. 

How do I get more clients?

At the end of the day, whether you find clients yourself or through an agency, I’d suggest that you go with your instincts. If you feel that you connect with the family/agency then great. If you’re really not sure at all, then better not to start the assignment.  With the right client or agency, you’ll get more bookings through word of mouth without fail.

How many clients are too many?

This is a personal thing, but if you feel you’re able to fit in the prep and planning before the session to the best of your ability, then you’re about right. If you’re struggling to find the time, then definitely don’t take any more clients on. Doing things well will bring you more clients and recommendations but be careful not to overstretch yourself. 

Feeling Appreciated.

Schools can be tough at the moment, with sometimes little praise. Being a private tutor for many teachers is a hugely liberating thing; it reconnects you with seeing directly the link of your efforts to the child and it’s also really lovely for you to be really valued by their clients and/or agency. 
 
If you’re interested in becoming a private tutor in Cambridge, Ely, Huntingdon or Newmarket, please get in touch with Rachel Law on 01223 858421 or take a look at the Tutor My Kids Website www.Tutormykids.co.uk