Shyla began by reviewing a topic that the student had learned earlier in the day (Cartesian Plane), carefully guiding her through her homework to ensure she fully understood the content before moving forward. Shyla encouraged independent thinking by allowing the student to attempt each question on her own first. If the student struggled, she provided subtle hints and guiding clues rather than simply giving away the answer. This approach was highly effective, as it not only built the student’s confidence but also strengthened her problem-solving skills so she was able to tackle a similar problem independently in the future.

Once the student had fully understood the current content, she pivoted towards NAPLAN prep and began going through a practice exam with her. She introduced relevant practice questions, reinforcing key concepts while adapting her explanations to fit the student’s level of understanding. She guided the student through problem-solving strategies for particularly harder questions, helping the student build confidence in tackling more complex problems.

Additionally, I appreciated Shyla’s ability to make sure the student stayed on track as she was particularly chatty considering she had just started a new school and had lots of stories she wanted to share ! Whenever the student began to go off-track, Shyla redirected her attention back to the task, remaining firm yet patient and understanding. She made the student finish her work first before making her choose one story to tell, which gave the student incentive to finish the work and made sure she wasn’t distracted.

Overall, it was a great session ! Good job !

Annaliese Lakis