We appreciate your time at the Upper Room, and we want you and the students you work with to get the most out of your visit. To help you be a great tutor, this page contains a tutoring plan, the three rules of effective tutors, the three most common problems for students, and a short list of what makes great tutors. Take a few minutes to look this over and feel free to ask questions both now and anytime in the future.
What is a good tutoring plan?
- Reread one or two books the student has already read. Rereading helps students gain fluency and develop confidence. (Rereading previously read books can be just as important as reading new books.)
- Pick a new book to read. Make sure the book is within the student's appropriate reading level.
- Do something different. Read a book to the student or switch roles and let the student "tutor" you as you read a book and make easily correctable mistakes while reading.
- If you have more time, pick another new book or two to read.
If you can do all of this, you have had a very successful day!
The 3 Rules of Good Tutors
- Keep an active, brisk pace. Students will be best-behaved and learn most when they do not have time to get distracted or cause problems. Move with purpose from one activity or book to the next.
- Avoid negativity. In the context of learning, "no" and "wrong" are almost never the right responses to students' mistakes. Try to ask guided questions to help the student discover his or her mistake or offer the correct answer if he or she cannot correct the mistake.
- Never ask a yes/no question. Always ask questions with two or more answers. For example, do not ask "Would you like to read?" Instead, say, "Now we are going to go read. What book would you like to read?" This will keep you in control while giving the student a sense of ownership.
The 3 Most Common Student Problems
There are three things which often make early readers reluctant to read: lack of ownership, frustration, and boredom. Here is how to deal with them:
- Lack of Ownership: Remember that, ultimately, it is the student who is learning to read: you are helping him or her accomplish that exciting goal. Let The student feel as "in-charge" as possible without losing control. As the tutor, you ultimately make all the important decisions, but you want to let the student be a part of the process. For example, you can say "Now we are going to read. Why don't you go pick a book to read?" Or, "Let's look through the book's pictures before we start reading. Do you want me or you to talk about the pictures?"
- Frustration: The most common cause of frustration for students is reading books that are too hard. Unless the student just switched reading levels, the student should know at least nine out of every ten words. Preclude a loss of confidence in the student by selecting books within the student's reading level and, if necessary, by beginning to read to the student instead of having the student read, if the book is simply too difficult.
- Boredom: Boredom is in many cases solved by dealing with the previous two problems. In addition, students can get bored by a repeated routine. If this is the case, feel free to change the routine. For example, allow the student to be the "tutor" and you to be the "student". Allow the student the opportunity to correct you by having difficulties with words the student probably knows. Be creative.
What makes great tutors?
- Get excited about reading. Nothing excites students more than a tutor who is excited about reading. Be excited about the book, about the student reading, and about the students' accomplishments. Students thrive in a positive, supportive atmosphere.
- Remember that there are two major goals for a learning reader: word fluency (being able to pronounce the word correctly) and comprehension. For example, a student may know how to pronounce "John eats apples often" but have no idea what that sentence means. As a tutor, your job is to help with both goals. Help a student pronounce and identify words correctly, but remember that words mean nothing without comprehension.
- Be an active reader with the student. For example, ask the student questions about what might happen next or what has happened previously. For example, ask "What do you think is going to happen next?" or "Do you remember what happened to Mrs. Pearson?" or "Do you think Joe likes John?" This will help the student engage with and comprehend the story.
- Do a quick "pre-read" with the student before starting new books. This is one thing many tutors do not do intuitively, but it is very important. Early readers do not know many words. They need pictures and context to help learn the words, and this is fine. Encourage it. Before starting a new book, flip through the book with the student, looking at pictures and discussing what the story seems to be about. This will help the student be successful while reading.
At the Upper Room, we demand excellence from ourselves, our students, and our tutors. Based on this high standard, the following behaviors and attitudes are unacceptable:
- Indifference
- Laziness
- Childishness
- Poor behavior
- Violence
This list represents five behaviors we are particularly concerned with but does not include every potential behavioral or attitudinal problem. If you behavior or attitude is a problem, we will tell you.
At the Upper Room, we have a general two-strike policy. For first-time infractions or problems, we take volunteers aside, explain how their actions(s) are causing problems, and how we would like them to change. However, if a volunteer has the same or another problem, we reserve the right to ask that the volunteer leave and not return. The exception to the two-strike policy is violence, for which we will ask anybody to leave immediately - staff, student, or volunteer. For student volunteers who are asked to leave, we reserve the right to contact parents to explain the situation.
Please know that, for most volunteers, these behavior standards are not needed. Most volunteers at the Upper Room do great work and make a significant difference in the reading ability of the children. We appreciate your understanding and compliance and look forward to seeing the results of your work.
