I sat in on another one of Bella’s Maths sessions this evening; this time, with Sophie – a Year 12 student. Honestly, it was really impressive to watch. The HSC Maths paper is literally tomorrow, so they were going through a full practice paper together… The focus in the room was next-level. Bella kept things super calm and relaxed, which I think really helped take the pressure off. You could tell Sophie was anxious at first, but Bella was really reassuring and explained things in a way that clearly made everything seem much more manageable.

They tackled the paper question by question, and Bella didn’t just hand over the answers; she got Sophie to talk through her thinking at first, which was cool to see. When Sophie got stuck, Bella would gently guide her back by breaking down the problem into smaller parts or using the whiteboard. She never made her feel wrong or stuck, just gave her the space to work it out with a bit of support. That kind of patience and encouragement goes a really long way, especially with the exam so close.

There was one especially tricky probability question, and instead of just giving Sophie the solution, Bella turned it into a back-and-forth brainstorm. They bounced ideas off of each other until Sophie finally exclaimed, “Wait! I’ve got it.” You could literally see her confidence click into place.

By the end of the session, Sophie looked way more sure of herself. Bella wrapped up by going over a few final strategies; time management, staying calm and double-checking answers. It didn’t feel like a tutoring session, exactly; more like a coach or a mentor getting her athlete ready for a big game. Just really supportive, thoughtful, and honestly, really inspiring to watch.

Great stuff, Bella 😀

Thomas Koutavas