Identify the thought process
It’s really important that I first figure out whether my client is a visual or an auditory learner. I ask the student to tell me what they remember about the topic that they want to discuss that day (usually it’s verb conjugations in a particular tense). Then I ask what they thought about to recall those rules…notes, the book or the teacher’s voice. This way I know whether to conduct the session with verbal pneumonic devices or drawings.
Set an agenda
At the beginning of the session I ask what the student would like to get done that day. If there is a specific assignment, I wait until we have done about 10 minutes of work and then use the speed at which we have been working at to judge whether or not finishing is a realistic expectation. If it is not, we go through and identify key ideas until the student is confident that he/she will be able to complete the rest on their own.
Address the task
It usually takes me about 5 minutes to get fully into the mindset of whatever it is we are doing. During this time I ask the student to take my answers / recommendations cautiously. This encourages both of us to lend our full attention to the material. After that, we take turns answering questions or correcting mistakes, explaining our reasoning each time.
Summarize the content
Towards the end of the meeting we go back through the main ideas as I fill out the tutoring sheet. I say what I am writing out loud and elaborate where it is necessary. I ask the student what he/she remembers as well and we make connections where we can.
Summarize the process
This gets taken care of in the previous step.
