Sonal M

I am an English graduate with a wide range of literary knowledge, ranging from Anglo-Saxon times to the modern era. I am also familiar with the English assessment objectives across the curriculum and different exam boards. I can help student develop their English skills at different levels, whether it’s developing early comprehension skills in primary school, or cultivating literary analysis at A level. For younger students I am experienced in teaching them how to think more deeply about the writing they are presented with and how to start analysing texts. With older students I specialise in tutoring them to engage with texts critically and how to develop their opinions within existing critical frameworks. I have experience tutoring across different literary genres and movements such as modernism and postcolonial, as well as specific earlier writers including Shakespeare and Chaucer. I also have experience working in schools teaching English as Foreign Language.

I have tutored for different ages with different needs since 2020. Here are a few examples of how I have catered the unique needs of various students. For an A level student I provided feedback on their written work and also offered advice on how to best meet the Assessment Objectives 1 through 5 with the correct weightings as required by the exam board. With a year 9 student beginning to think about GCSEs I focused on building their analytical skills through the importance of close reading, context, and literary devices. As well as introducing them to Shakespeare in its original form. I have helped year 5/6 student preparing for their 11+ with extract analysis and creative writing. With another year 6 student who was struggling with English I helped them learn what certain comprehension questions were looking for and how to analyse beyond the simple information retrieval. I also have experience working in British schools as a Learning Support Assistant for children with special educational needs and in German schools as an English Language Assistant.

My approach to lesson planning is very focused on the student’s needs and what areas need the most priority at any given time. When I am first referred to a student I will ideally get a few details before the first session, namely: age, what level of study, what they are currently studying in their English lessons, and what areas they are hoping to get more help with. In the first session I will do a short, informal assessment – usually some form of passage analysis (unless a different activity is more pertinent for their needs) – to judge their current level and how I can help them. I set homework tasks for the student, normally no more than one or two, and then will spend the first part of the lesson going through them with the student. For the main part of the session we will do a few active tasks according to what we have been studying and working through. Whilst it’s important for students to take notes on the discussions we have and complete any tasks I set; I will rarely set a task which has them silently writing for long periods of time during the session. At the end of the session I will set them the homework for the next session and let them know if they need to send me anything in advance.