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This session was a mathematics session, with Sophie tutoring Max mostly on different forms and complexity of long division. What I observed was the revision of this topic, where Sophie first started with simple questions. As the student gained a better understanding of the fundamentals of this topic, Sophie continued creating progressively more complex questions allowing Max to begin to understand the topic more and grasping the concepts even as the questions got harder. She created these questions and went over each solution with the use of the available whiteboard, which seemed to assist the student in their understanding as both the questions and the solutions were laid out well and clearing. You were also able to see Sophie go through and explain each step of each question as she laid it out on the whiteboard. As the lesson progressed, I could clearly see the student starting to understand each aspect of the topic and start to improve in his responses and overall understanding. Towards the end of the session, Sophie created many questions for the student to try on his own. I found this to be a valuable part of the session as the student was then able to take all the practical knowledge he had learned on long division and apply it himself, allowing him to further understand the topic. Of course, Sophie was there to help if the student had any problems, but the action of giving the student time to attempt questions on the topic himself seemed to be a great way to sort of solidify the content he had learned, and I assume would allow him to better retain it for future application. At the end of the session, Sophie assigned the student homework to further advance his understanding of the topic and allowing him to practice it over multiple days. Overall, I think this session was one of value and education, as the student seemed to clearly further his understanding of long division through Sophies effective and efficient delivery and structuring of the session.

Lishai Rubinstein

Hey everyone! When I was thinking about what I could write about for this post I wanted to make it something I really felt was valuable and worth sharing – then it hit me. The most valuable trick/hack/strategy I’ve gained from tutoring at first ed -> THE TIME MACHINE.

I first learned about the time machine when I was actually a student at First Ed and Harry was taking me for a HSC Maths Program session (the image is a screenshot of the zoom when he explained it to me -> I’ve kept it ever since haha). He introduced me to a concept that I’ve never forgotten about and taught to every one of my students since!

So, the idea is; if you could send a piece of paper back to your former self before you took the exam, what would you write on it to help you get full marks? Before every past paper you attempt, you read through your time machine and after every past paper you mark, you add new hints/reminders to it. Rather than copying down the answers, the emphasis is on making your hints generalisable for any similar questions but specific enough to give relevant detail. For example; when integrating an equation with no bounds, don’t forget to add +C

Over the course of your studies, your time machine sits in the cover sleeve of your binder or slipped in the back of your exercise book and grows into a master cheat sheet of all the silly mistakes and weaknesses that you have solved and won’t make again!

As I mentioned, I think this is the most valuable thing I’ve ever taught or been taught at tutoring and it is now a staple of my sessions (ask any of my former students haha!). Glad to share this with other tutors and students and hope it helps – I know it works!

Simon Naglost

I had the opportunity to observe Sophia’s lesson, tutoring a Year 5 student in Maths and English. The session highlighted her ability to create a learning environment that is both structured and flexible, adapting to the student’s abilities. Sophia started the session by reviewing the student’s progress and identifying any areas that needed additional support. This allowed her to pinpoint learning gaps and encourage the student to be more comfortable in addressing concerns and challenges they were experiencing. This built an initial strong foundation for the lesson, helping the student feel more at ease, and setting a positive tone for the rest of the session. The English session emphasised spelling and sentence structure. Focusing on making language concepts accessible and enjoyable for the student. To achieve this, Sophia employed a variety of interactive methods, including spelling challenges, sentence rearrangement activities, and visual aids. These strategies were specifically chosen to address different aspects of language, learning in an engaging manner. The spelling challenges provided a fun and competitive element to the session, encouraging the student to actively engage with word formation and correct spelling patterns. This approach helped reinforce the student’s ability to recognise and remember correct spellings, particularly for more complex or commonly misspelled words. By breaking down language structure into smaller refined parts not only made learning enjoyable but also promoted confidence in the student’s ability to construct sentences independently. To finalise the lesson, Sophia provided a summary of the student’s strengths while providing constructive feedback on improvements that the student could make in the future to avoid challenges and concerns. This helped proactively concise the lesson content in an overview. Sophia’s attention to detail and his creative use of teaching resources made the session both educational and enjoyable. Her patient and adaptive approach helped the student feel supported, while his enthusiastic teaching style ensured engagement throughout. Well done, Sophia! It was a thoroughly productive session that showcased effective teaching techniques.

Evanna Manavis

Today, I observed Briana teaching Alyssa, her Year 5 student. They began with a focus on spelling and comprehension, essential areas for improving vocabulary and reading fluency. Briana started by encouraging Alyssa to read aloud, a practice that helps develop her confidence and familiarity with new words. The atmosphere Briana created was supportive and relaxed, ensuring that Alyssa felt at ease. By doing this, Briana effectively built a foundation where Alyssa was comfortable making mistakes and learning from them, a key aspect of developing strong literacy skills.
As Alyssa read, Briana asked questions about the text to assess her comprehension, and encouraged discussions about the meanings of new or challenging words. This strategy kept Alyssa engaged and provided her with opportunities to use newly learned vocabulary. This highlighted how Briana’s methods balanced patience with active engagement.
After reading, spelling, and vocabulary, they shifted to a creative activity: designing their own advertisement. This segment allowed Alyssa to apply her language skills in an inventive and practical way. They began with planning the main points and themes for the advertisement. Briana enthusiastically encouraged Alyssa through this process, making the activity feel like a fun challenge rather than a task. Throughout the planning stage, Briana incorporated spelling practice seamlessly. She encouraged Alyssa to think of appropriate words that fit the advertisement’s theme and tested her spelling of these words.
By integrating spelling practice into the advertisement design task, Briana provided Alyssa with meaningful contexts to apply her knowledge. Overall, Briana’s teaching was well rounded and effective, as she easily adapted to Alyssa’s learning needs, keeping the session both productive and enjoyable. The way she interacted and communicated with Alyssa was nurturing and supportive, demonstrating skilful teaching practices that promote learning in a fun and encouraging environment. It was insightful to observe Briana’s teaching style, and the ease at which she interacts with her students.

Pamela Casiou

Jordan Udler demonstrated exceptional communication skills while helping his student (Felix) refine and improve his Year 8 English essays. His approach was thoughtful, engaging, and clearly aimed at empowering his student rather than simply correcting mistakes for him. Throughout the session, the Jordan maintained a warm and encouraging tone, which created a positive and open learning environment. He listened attentively to the student’s thoughts and ideas, which made the student feel heard, boosting his confidence in expressing his thoughts. Further, instead of pointing out errors, the Jordan guided his student to identify and correct them on his own. For instance, when the student struggled with structure, the tutor asked open-ended questions like, “What do you think could make this sentence clearer?” or “How can you connect this idea back to your topic sentence?” These questions encouraged critical thinking and allowed the student to engage more deeply with his work. Jordan also broke down complex ideas into more digestible and understandable phrases, which made it easier for Felix to understand and incorporate into his work. Additionally, he was mindful of the student’s pace, frequently checking in to ensure that the student was following and understanding what he was writing into his essay.
By focusing on guidance rather than simply giving solutions, the tutor effectively helped the student develop his own writing skills. His patience, adaptability, and encouragement allowed the student to take ownership of the writing process, which not only improved the essay but also enhanced the student’s confidence and enthusiasm for writing. Jordans tutoring approach is a great example of how effective communication and supportive guidance can significantly impact a student’s learning experience.

Lewin Fairbairn

I had the opportunity to watch James tutor Year 8 Maths. Today, James and his student focused on ratios and rates. James made great use of the whiteboard to keep relevant and foundational information on the board as he guided his student through more and more examples. Initially, James even performed the calculations for his student on the calculator so that he could watch, which clearly gave his student an extra confidence boost when he eventually got to do them all by himself. We all know how difficult it can be to keep students on track as the end of the year rolls around… With assessments finishing up, it can be a real challenge to keep the students focused. James maintained his student’s attention wonderfully by implementing a game of UNO in the middle of the session as opposed to the end, as a kind of intermission before a final 25 mins of solid focus. James also made sure to remind his student of the importance of writing neatly as we solve problems, to avoid errors and to make life easy for our teachers and markers. Overall, a very engaging and productive lesson.

Thanks James!

Thomas Koutavas

Tutoring has always been a deeply rewarding experience for me, and there are a few key reasons why I love it so much. First and foremost, there’s a unique sense of fulfillment that comes from helping a student build their confidence. Watching them move from uncertainty to a place where they not only understand the material but also feel proud of their progress is incredibly satisfying. Over the years, I get to see them grow—not just academically, but as individuals. When you can see that a concept finally makes sense to a student, it’s a reminder of why I do what I do.

What makes tutoring especially fulfilling is the ability to form a personal connection with each student. Everyone learns differently, and that means I have to approach each lesson with a fresh perspective. The challenge of teaching the same concept to two different students, each with their own learning style, keeps things dynamic and exciting. It’s never a one-size-fits-all approach, and that variety makes every tutoring session a unique problem to solve. Whether it’s breaking down a tough math equation or explaining a tricky grammar rule, I enjoy finding creative ways to make the material click.

Sharing my knowledge with others has always been a passion of mine, and tutoring allows me to do just that in a more intimate setting. It doesn’t feel like “work” because I genuinely enjoy the process—whether it’s helping a student catch up on a lesson or pushing them to go beyond what they thought possible. Each tutoring session is an opportunity to not only teach but also to learn from my students, to see their perspectives, and to help them grow both academically and personally.

Lainey Ku

Today, I observed Toby teaching Mattia a Year 9 Maths lesson on angles, parallel lines and perpendicular lines. It’s one of those topics that can feel confusing until it’s broken down properly, and Toby did a great job of making it click.

Instead of just focusing on definitions, Toby started with real-life examples. He compared parallel lines to two roads that never meet, and perpendicular lines to intersections or crosswalks. This approach helped Mattia connect the ideas to things he actually sees every day, which made understanding them a bit more natural. For students, having that context can really make a difference, especially with concepts that can feel abstract. He was great at keeping Mattia engaged and on topic.

One thing Toby did really well was helping Mattia visualise different angles. They went through examples on the whiteboard, and Toby had Mattia create his own versions to test his understanding. They explored different types of angle pairs – co-interior, corresponding, alternate etc – and practiced identifying and measuring them in different ways. Gradually, Mattia got more comfortable identifying and calculating angles without needing much prompting.

It was great to see Mattia start to feel more confident as they worked through each example. Topics like angles and lines can be tough to grasp at first, but with enough practice and the right explanations, they start to make sense. Seeing students build these foundations is one of the best parts of tutoring. These skills not only help them in school but also improve problem-solving and logical thinking in the long run. It’s rewarding to watch students develop these skills and see that moment when everything clicks into place.

Allegra Pezzullo

Today I observed Sophie’s session with Annika for Year 10 Maths. During the session they were working on probability and how to navigate a wide variety of questions.
Sophie started by providing an enrichment question for Annika to challenge her and fully understand where her knowledge was at. From this, Sophie noticed that Annika could work on understanding harder worded questions involving Venn Diagrams, particularly those including more than two circles. While doing these questions, Sophie asked Annika to attempt the question on her own first without her guidance. This allowed the student to recognise her own level of knowledge which encouraged a boost in confidence. The student still asked questions which Sophie provided a very extensive answer to ensure the student fully understood what was being said.
The enrichment question also involved other topics such as simultaneous equations. This provided a perfect segway for Sophie to further strengthen her student’s knowledge on simultaneous equations which the student had somewhat forgotten how to do. Sophie then explained how to set up two equations and solve them simultaneously. She also provided an extra question for her to do to fully understand the topic and revise her student’s knowledge.
Once noticing some gaps in her knowledge, Sophie went back to the basics of probability to revise her student’s understanding. This made sure the student fully understood all aspects of probability before delving into harder exam style questions.
Throughout the session, Sophie was extremely encouraging and kept a very positive mindset which fostered an environment where the student felt extremely comfortable asking any questions. As a result, I noticed a deeper level of understanding was reached which I will definitely try to include in all of my sessions especially with students who may be a bit shy when it comes to asking questions.

Lily Powell

Today, I had the opportunity to observe James working with Owen, his Year 6 student, on his weekly homework. Their lesson covered a range of subjects, including science, geography, and maths, and it was encouraging to see the strategies James used to engage Owen and support his understanding across these topics.
One of the standout elements of James’s approach was his use of interactive questioning throughout the session. Rather than simply providing answers, James asked Owen guiding questions that encouraged him to think critically and arrive at conclusions on his own. For instance, when they tackled a challenging maths problem, James would ask questions that led Owen step-by-step through the process, allowing him to build confidence and problem-solving skills. Observing this reminded me of the power of questioning techniques in helping students develop independent thinking, which I plan to incorporate more in my own lessons.
James also demonstrated excellent communication skills, adjusting his tone and language to match Owen’s comprehension level. For example, when working on a science concept, he used real-world examples that Owen could relate to, making the subject matter more tangible and understandable. James checked in regularly to ensure Owen was following along, and I noticed that this kept Owen engaged and confident in his responses. This approach reminded me of the impact of clear, relatable communication in helping students feel comfortable to ask questions and express any confusion.
Finally, James included positive reinforcement throughout the lesson. Each time Owen successfully completed a question or grasped a challenging concept, James acknowledged his effort, reinforcing his confidence. This small but impactful approach encouraged Owen to stay motivated and participate actively. I plan to incorporate this consistent encouragement in my own lessons, as it fosters a supportive learning environment that celebrates progress.
Overall, observing James and Owen’s lesson provided valuable insights into effective tutoring techniques, which I look forward to applying in my future sessions to enhance my students’ learning experiences.

Demetria Koutavas