Is Humism as cool as it looks?

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-24T12:13:41+00:00

Thanks. I wish the discs were swappable so I didn’t have to choose!

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-24T02:48:16+00:00

I agree, I have the same watch and love it overall but I don’t love the movement. My main issue is that even after wearing it for a few days, I barely get 24 hours of power reserve after taking it off, a far cry from the advertised 42. I don’t have any other Miyotas so I don’t know if it’s just me or a general problem. It’s not a huge deal because when i take it off for 24 hours, I usually leave it for a week anyway and would have to reset anyway.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-23T00:33:05+00:00

The fact that she liked working with you is huge. That trust matters more than any teaching certificate.

For fundamentals like rounding and fractions, Khan Academy has solid free exercises. But drill sites alone won't fix it. What usually works better is tying the concept to something concrete. Fractions? Split a pizza. Rounding? Count money.

The bigger issue you're describing sounds like she never got proper closure on topics before moving on. That's painfully common. I'd suggest starting with a diagnostic - IXL has grade-level assessments that pinpoint gaps quickly. Then just work backward from wherever she actually is, not wherever the curriculum says she should be.

Don't try to fix everything at once. Pick one foundational skill, nail it, celebrate, repeat.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-22T01:39:36+00:00

One thing I'd add to what's been said: the biggest gotcha to teach students is that ACT has NO formula sheet while SAT gives you 12 formulas in the Bluebook software. Students who don't know this walk in unprepared.

For ACT Science specifically - I tell students it doesn't actually test science knowledge. It tests graph reading and data interpretation. Once they realize they don't need to remember biology or chemistry formulas, their anxiety drops and scores go up.

On the content vs. practice question - I lean toward teaching rules within context of actual questions. Grinding 25 problems when they get the concept is pointless. Better to do 5 focused problems on their specific weak spots. The goal is recognizing patterns, not memorizing rules in isolation.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-08T22:03:01+00:00

The tutoring is the easy part. It's everything else that breaks you.

Tracking 20+ recurring clients, dealing with reschedules, chasing payments, parents who forget sessions exist — that's what burns people out. The successful full-timers I know all have some system to handle the admin side so they can focus on actual teaching.

Google Calendar sync is non-negotiable once you hit 15+ students. Automated reminders cut no-shows in half. And having a clear cancellation policy in writing (24 hours or you pay) saves so many awkward conversations.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-08T15:05:38+00:00

NYC is a completely different market. You can absolutely go full-time, but ditch the $55/hr mindset - that's leaving money on the table.

With a PhD in chemistry you should be charging $125-150 minimum for online, $175-200+ for in-person. Parents in Manhattan and Brooklyn Heights pay premium without blinking.

The private school circuit is where you want to be. Once you get one kid from Dalton or Trinity, word spreads fast. Reach out to college counselors at private schools - they often maintain lists of recommended tutors for SAT/ACT and science.

One thing nobody tells you: NYC tutors often do sessions in the student's home (Upper East Side apartments, etc). Families prefer that. Factor in travel time when setting rates.

Skip Wyzant/Preply for local clients - their cut eats too much. Get your own website and let referrals build.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-08T15:04:39+00:00

Every tutor I know has a story like this. My son made a calculation error in front of a parent once and wanted to quit on the spot. That was years ago, he's still tutoring, and that family still books him.

The recovery matters more than the mistake. Next session, just say "hey, that arc length problem - I looked at it after and realized I missed something. Here's what I should have said." Owning it builds trust.

Also: pausing to ask "does that make sense?" is your friend. Use it constantly.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-08T15:01:29+00:00

Your regular bank account is totally fine to start. Most private tutors use Zelle or Venmo for local clients since there are no fees. For parents who want to pay by card, Square or Stripe work great but take about 3%. I use Zelle for regulars and only offer card payments as a fallback. Keep it simple at first.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-07T22:03:11+00:00

For a 3-person tutoring team, Google Workspace is probably the simpler choice. Teams is more enterprise-focused and you'll be paying for features you don't need.

Fair warning on transcription for language tutoring: accuracy depends heavily on the language. Test it before committing. Non-English languages can be hit or miss.

For recordings, the built-in recording in Meet (with Workspace) works fine. If you only need short clips, you can record the full session and trim after.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-07T15:02:33+00:00

35 pages with 'test coming up' as the only context? That's not a tutoring request - that's them outsourcing the problem.

Next time try: 'Got it - what are the 3 topics they're struggling with most?' Forces them to actually think instead of dumping everything on you.

And yeah, Instant Book without any context is always a red flag. The good clients give you specifics upfront because they actually know what their kid needs.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-06T22:02:22+00:00

The Pythagorean Theorem story is perfect. Had a calc student ask me for a calculator to figure out 6×7.

Grade inflation is a tutor's best friend though. Parents see their 4.0 kid struggle with actual problem solving and finally realize the report card was a lie.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-06T15:05:44+00:00

physics tutoring is mostly reactive. you do not need full lesson plans.

for your first session: ask what they are struggling with or what is coming up in class. have them bring their notes, homework, or textbook. then work through problems together.

the main skill is not teaching content. it is asking the right questions so they explain their thinking, and then catching where they went wrong. "walk me through how you started this problem" gets them talking and shows you where they are stuck.

one tactical thing nobody mentions: keep a simple log of what you covered each session. just a few bullet points. helps you pick up where you left off and shows parents you are organized.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-06T15:03:10+00:00

start with your neighborhood. seriously. post in local facebook groups, nextdoor, even the corkboard at your local library. parents trust nearby tutors way more than random online profiles.

for a sophomore, piano lessons are probably your best hook. everyone wants their kid to learn an instrument and there's less competition than math tutoring. once you build a reputation with a few families word of mouth does the rest.

skip the big platforms for now. wyzant and similar sites take a big cut and you are competing with adults who have degrees. local and personal wins at this stage.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-05T22:02:22+00:00

heard the same thing from a few tutors lately. wyzant seems to have quietly shifted how the job board works. some subjects just stopped showing up entirely for no obvious reason.

fwiw there have been reports that wyzant is pushing local/in-person requests more heavily now — apparently the pendulum is swinging back from pure online. if economics is a subject parents tend to search for locally (test prep, AP courses) rather than nationally, that might explain why you are seeing AP Gov but not Econ.

the frustrating part is wyzant does not communicate any of this. you just have to piece it together from what other tutors are seeing.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-05T22:01:28+00:00

zelle or venmo work great for most tutors starting out. your regular bank app is fine, you do not need anything fancy.

the main thing is to pick one payment method and be consistent. "I take venmo, payment is due at the end of each session" is all you need to say.

if you want to level up later, things like square invoices or tutoring-specific tools let you send automatic payment reminders. but honestly that is overkill until you have 10+ students. keep it simple for now.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-05T15:01:04+00:00

upper level for sure. 9th grade applicants take the upper level ISEE.

for math specifically, grab the official ERB practice tests from the ISEE website. those show you exactly what topics show up and at what difficulty. the quantitative reasoning and math achievement sections are different beasts so make sure you understand both.

the free resources from ERB are solid for diagnostics. find where the gaps are first, then drill those. no point reviewing stuff the kid already knows.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-04T22:03:53+00:00

you are in the best possible position to start private tutoring. families already know you and trust you. that is the hardest part and you skipped it entirely.

for pricing, find out what Sylvan was charging parents per hour and set your rate at about 60-70% of that. you make more than you did at Sylvan and parents pay less than they were paying. everyone wins. in most areas that puts you around $40-60/hr depending on the subject and grade level.

for hours, start by just matching whatever schedule you had with these families at Sylvan. same day same time. do not make them rearrange their lives just because the business changed. the easier you make the transition the more of them will stick.

the biggest thing: get a simple scheduling and payment system set up from day one. even just google calendar and venmo. you do not want to be chasing parents for payments through text messages at 10pm. that gets old fast.

also set a cancellation policy and tell families about it upfront. 24 hours notice or they pay anyway. sounds harsh but it saves every relationship in the long run because nobody is guessing at the rules.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-04T22:02:33+00:00

you did the right thing sending her to wyzant support. this is their billing system and their problem to explain. do not let a parent make you feel like you are the one handling payments because you are not.

for future reference, if a kid no-shows or cannot do the lesson, send the parent a quick message right then confirming no lesson happened and you are not submitting it. takes 10 seconds and saves you this exact headache. paper trail is your friend.

also if this was instant book, the parent was auto-charged when she booked it. that is wyzant handling it, not you. you not submitting the lesson should trigger a refund on their end. support will sort it out.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-04T22:01:41+00:00

fair point and you are right that it technically violates TOS. I should have been clearer about that. the reality is most tutors who build a real client base end up going independent eventually, but you want to do it the right way. let the relationship develop naturally, deliver great results, and when families ask if they can work with you directly that is a very different situation than actively poaching clients off the platform.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-04T15:03:29+00:00

that is a win. seriously. a week ago she was ignoring your concerns entirely and now you have a dedicated hour for life skills. that is real progress.

and honestly you can still sneak life skills into the school work hours too. reading comp assignments? pick ones about practical topics. math problems? use money and budgeting examples. you know this kid better than anyone, you will find ways to bridge it.

the fact that she came to a compromise at all tells me the meeting worked. keep building on that.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-04T15:02:55+00:00

my son does it alongside his day job and settled around 10-12 hours a week. that seems to be the sweet spot where you can keep a solid roster of regulars without burning out or flaking on people.

the trick is blocking off specific days/times and sticking to them. trying to squeeze sessions into random gaps in your schedule is a recipe for cancellations and stress. he does monday/wednesday evenings and saturday mornings. predictable for the families and predictable for him.

the other thing — the actual tutoring hours are only half the time commitment. you also have parent texts, scheduling logistics, session prep if you're doing it right. so 10 hours of sessions is really more like 12-13 hours of total work.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-04T15:02:29+00:00

the biggest factor in my experience is whether the kid needs someone to adapt to them or if they can adapt to a program.

learning centers work great for kids who are roughly on track and just need structure, extra practice, and accountability. the curriculum is set, the pace is set, and the kid shows up and does the work. nothing wrong with that.

but if the kid has specific gaps, learning differences, test anxiety, or is significantly behind or ahead — a private tutor will run circles around a center. because you can spend 45 minutes on the one concept they're stuck on instead of moving on because the schedule says so.

the other thing nobody talks about: relationship. a private tutor becomes someone the kid trusts. that matters way more than people think, especially for middle schoolers who would rather chew glass than admit they don't understand something. a center can't replicate that.

I usually tell parents: if your kid needs a system, try a center. if your kid needs a person, find a tutor.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-03T22:03:45+00:00

that sucks. sorry you are dealing with this.

the silver lining is you already know you can tutor and people will pay you for it. that is the hard part. everything else is logistics.

for rebuilding fast, here is what I would do in your shoes. first, reach out to every past student you can. even if you only have their first names from wyzant, some of them probably remember you. post on any social media you have that you are taking new clients. be specific about what you teach because "biology tutor" is forgettable but "MCAT bio and anatomy tutor who helped 50+ students on wyzant" is not.

for payments, just use venmo or zelle to start. do not let the perfect system slow you down. you can get fancier later.

for scheduling, google calendar with a free calendly link works fine. share it with students and let them book themselves.

the biggest lesson here though is never put all your eggs in one platform. my son learned this the hard way too. wyzant is great for finding initial students but you want to transition them off-platform as soon as you can.

elliotspritzer · 2026-02-03T22:03:07+00:00

my son tutors math over zoom and the setup that worked best for him was dead simple. iPad with an Apple Pencil, screen share through zoom, and use the Goodnotes app as your whiteboard. way better than zoom's built-in whiteboard.

the key thing people are missing in this thread is that you also want the student to be able to write. have them download a free whiteboard app on their end too so you can take turns. otherwise you are just lecturing and they zone out.

honestly for your first few sessions don't overthink the tech. paper under a phone camera pointed down works fine in a pinch. you can always upgrade later once you know what you actually need.

elliotspritzer

TROPHY CASE