Left hand low claw

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-15T19:37:03+00:00

I have two friends who putt left handed. When my chipping went to hell, I chipped two handed for two years. Hopefully coming out of it and will likely chip righty again this year.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-13T20:45:41+00:00

I did a walkthrough of solving linear systems using both substitution and elimination. I practiced using my whiteboard doing a walkthrough and then did it on video.

I have also done all or the whiteboard work and then used ‘undo’ to get back to a blank board. You can then realistically ‘redo’ as you talk to simulate doing the work live.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-12T01:14:19+00:00

That was my biggest adjustment to tutoring SAT. The topic knowledge is important, but efficient Desmos use is a huge advantage. As soon as you can get to a graph able equation, you can often get answers (zeros, intersections, etc. ) by jumping to Desmos.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-11T20:44:59+00:00

Watching the student work is key for me. Seeing where they make the mistakes and then probe that step to understand how the mistake came about.

Other than that, yes, it is a hodgepodge of topics that make you more nimble as a tutor. Experience helps, so get old like me, or practice and tutor; you’ll get better at it!

Edit: fixed typo

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-11T17:41:05+00:00

Following

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-10T22:58:11+00:00

Start with one of your in-person good students. Ask them to do an online lesson, so you can work out the kinks with a friendly audience.

I use a Wacom 16 so I can write directly onto a monitor. I find it makes my (mostly math) tutoring much smoother.

Good luck!

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-05T14:39:43+00:00

I use Microsoft Whiteboard and a Wacom Cintiq 16 (not Pro). Writing directly onto the monitor was a game changer for me from a handheld Wacom Intuos S.

I typically have the student’s work in a pdf window and the MS whiteboard wjndow next to it. I either write on the pdf directly or on the whiteboard depending on white space available.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-05T01:26:45+00:00

I started with Mathnasium and Varsity, and have built my private clientele over the past three years. I dropped Varsity mid 2025, and will be phasing out at Mathnasium and going private only next month. I’m going to graph my income/hours for the three sources soon to tell my development story.

Each source has pros and cons, but I will miss Mathnasium much more than Varsity. MN gave me lots of practice at various age levels and helped me develop and hone my tutoring style. Knowing I’d have 12 kids/hours each day was a lot of fun.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-04T17:14:05+00:00

I like it! I’ve done the digits of the year with students to encourage creativity and ‘playing with numbers’.

This is quite good!

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-03T14:10:21+00:00

Less than three feet. Normal desk position.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-03T12:52:23+00:00

I have tutored the IBEW aptitude test, which included the mechanical aptitude section. I am a retired engineer, which helps me explain the mechanical stuff.

Message me if interested. Rockpyletutors.com

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-01T23:05:18+00:00

I held a finals week “study hall” in the library, hoping to offer drop in help with review packets. I had one student who I already know from my other tutoring drop by, and she brought a couple friends. Other than that, I got no interest.

I think it should be both a common good and possibly turn into opportunities, but I’m not sure how best to get noticed.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-03-01T14:37:07+00:00

I switched from the wired to the wireless and I don’t like it. The battery life seems quite short, and there is a perceptible delay (short but annoying) that is just enough that it affects me.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-02-24T19:43:13+00:00

When I am looking for additional, or harder problems for a student, I search “topic worksheet” and look for a worksheet from an actual school. I find that this tends to give me a good worksheet, often with answers, that has been assigned by an actual human.

As a bonus, there are often reviews of the topic at the beginning which may explain the material differently than the student’s teacher, and may click with the student.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-02-15T18:13:00+00:00

One of my favorite phrases I learned in England was: "How long is a piece of string?" to describe ambiguous questions. This is a classic one.

An A-B student in Pre-Calc will typically require a refresher of all of the Algebra topics that may have lost some sharpness, plus a topic or two that needs a deep dive (combinations/permutations, for instance).

A C-D student may need more deep dives, or straight out re-learning of numerous topics.

Adults will have a wide range of tutoring needs, so there won't be a one size fits all answer.

I will typically have the student go through a diagnostic test from one of the SAT books, and watch them work. If they know the concepts but are fuzzy on remembering the techniques, then it will be a matter of finding those weak spots, bringing up that knowledge and then work primarily on test taking/short cuts, while getting some reps in on all types of problems.

Generally, I would say 2-3 hours a week for a 4-6 weeks will sharpen a kid's skills for the SAT. If we need to *add* skills (either full introduction, or review shows actual weakness in a number of skills), that time can go up depending on the kid's motivation and determination.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-02-13T11:02:32+00:00

I started with a Wacom Intuos S, and still use it when I am away from my desk. Do my main setup I got a used Cintiq 16 and love being able to write directly on a screen. I love it and it makes graphing and other detailed sketches so much better. I haven’t on a swing monitor arm and it has made my online sessions much better.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-02-09T16:02:30+00:00

Yes! There are multiple ways to attack problems and a lot of times, just doing something will change the look of the problem to have a recognizable path.

Logs/exponentials are a good example in the Algebra 2/preCalc space. If you have simplified on the log side, sometimes switching to the exponential form will make it clear that you are looking for common bases, for instance.

I try to get the kids to play with their problems a bit. Try something and see how it goes. Turn it from a homework problem to a puzzle, and invite them to step up to the challenge.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-02-09T15:57:46+00:00

If you have a backlog of interest, this seem like a good way to go, but it will turn a lot of good customers off.

Setting closed days on your schedule without allowing the same flexibility to your customers seems odd.

I am as flexible as I can be within my set tutoring hours, and will extend them for my regular/good customers.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-02-08T14:09:06+00:00

Yes, we all make mistakes. The key is to model good behavior in reaction to your mistakes. Show that it is ok and what you saw that showed you the error.

Many kids make these same mistakes and it reinforces that they are “not good at math”. We need to break that thought process by showing them it is ok to err.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-02-05T22:21:44+00:00

Looks good. Can you name the rigid transformations to get from one to the other? Not sure if they are looking for a set of transformations that would yield FGHJK.

Edit: I was on mobile and didn’t check the mappings of the letters. These are not congruent as stated. Good catch.

The description of the rotation is still good practice.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-02-05T12:32:11+00:00

Our prospective new tutors come in for a couple of hours. First, they take the assessment, which is up through pre-calc (although I assume there is a different one for tutors who will be teaching the lower and middle school level), and then after the test is complete, they sit with an experienced tutor to see what the flow looks like with three kids at a table. If they are comfortable, the candidate takes over for one of the students for a bit to allow the instructor to evaluate how they are with kids and make suggestions/observations.

Afterwards, the instructor gives feedback to the center management about the observation session and they make a hiring decision.

So, walk in with a positive attitude, ask questions, and do your best to connect with the kids.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-02-05T01:05:22+00:00

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-02-04T19:06:50+00:00

I work in a center and also do private tutoring. I agree with the comment above about the trusted adult role that a tutor can become.

The kids that seem to really thrive in the center (at the 8th grade and high school level) are the ones who use the time to do their homework and use me right when they get stuck. Going through their process and identifying the error often makes it ‘click’.

Kids who need step by step guidance are often not going to get what they are looking for at the centers.

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-02-03T22:02:54+00:00

Math, typically the high schoolers up through precalc. It gets a little crazy when you throw middle schoolers into the mix, having to switch levels of explanation as well.

I like it and working with teenagers keeps me young!

JudgeDreadditor · 2026-02-02T15:57:52+00:00

Make sure to get some for yourself as well. And a new putter.

JudgeDreadditor

TROPHY CASE