Ask Micki: Last minute cancellations

Question: Hi, Micki, I have a question about a problem I've been having with one of my tutees.  We usually meet twice a week to go over his chemistry, but it seems like he has been canceling a lot of tutoring sessions lately.  I'm talking about 3 or 4 every month.

I understand if he is busy, or something unexpected comes up, but this is happening a lot. Plus, it is getting difficult to figure out my tutoring schedule, because I never know whether or not I'll be free for that hour of the week.  Well, that, and it is just plain frustrating to get a "I have to cancel" call 10 minutes before the session begins.

Any help you could give me would be unbelievablyappreciated, thanks!

~~~ Signed,
a Frustrated Chem Tutor in Alabama

Answer: Hey, there, Frustrated Chem Tutor - Last minute cancellations can be a huge pain to deal with, not only because they are irritating, but also because they interfere with your schedule planning.

The next time you meet with your tutee, take a few minutes to go over what has been happening lately.  Bring it up in a friendly manner, though - you don't want your tutee to feel attacked.

Mention that you have been noticing that about half of the tutoring sessions for the month have been canceled, and ask him if he wants to reschedule some of the sessions to days and times that work better for him.

If his schedule doesn't allow for rescheduling, mention that, if he is doing well in the chemistry course with only an hour per week of tutoring, maybe the second hour every week isn't necessary.

Now I know what you're thinking - you hate to lose the extra hours every month from an established client.  Trust me on this, in the long run your tutoring business will be better off - think of it this way, by freeing up that hour time slot every week, you will have the opportunity to schedule a more devoted tutee. 

If your tutee can't reschedule, and doesn't want to drop the extra hour per week, let him know (in a friendly tone of voice) that you need at least a few hours before the session begins for cancellations.

Let him know that because of your drive, your schedule that day, etc. that it would be really appreciated if he could let you know a few hours in advance that he will need to cancel...even better, ask if he could try to cancel 24 hours in advance if he thinks something may interfere with the tutoring appointment (i.e. a non-sick related reason, since sickness isn't planned).

Good luck and, as always, happy tutoring!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Photo Credit: Cema© 
http://www.sxc.hu/profile/cema

Tips From Charlie: Respecting Different Learning Styles

Recently I was talking to James, a friend and fellow tutor; he's been a French and German language tutor for quite a few years now. 

We were talking about learning styles, and he mentioned that one of his tutees wasn't doing so well with French language retention and vocabulary.  James was perplexed.  He had pulled out virtually every worksheet, game, and flash card trick he could think of, and even tried to put together some fun quizzes hoping that they would help.  No luck.

Then suddenly it dawned on James that every technique he was trying had been visual in nature.  Maybe what his tutee needed was audio based learning tools.  True, many people are visual learners, but some respond best to the non-visual.

So, James' next French tutoring session included speaking drills, fun spoken word games, and an audio CD that included some basic French conversations. 

It was a success! James' tutee aced his next test, felt much more confident with his French language skills, and suddenly his vocabulary was improving dramatically. 

James' story got me thinking - how often do I stick to the same old routine, and not pay close attention to the non-visual learning styles that some tutees respond to? 

Maybe it's time for me to re-evaluate my tutees' needs and see if I can help them perform even better!

Ask Micki: Summer Tutoring

Question: Hello, Micki. I'm tutoring a 2nd grade kid in reading, and her parents have asked that I continue to tutor her once a week throughout the summer.  The thing is, right now we work with her school worksheets and homework.  Any ideas how we can stay on track during the summertime?

Thank you for the help!
Maricel from MN

Answer: Hi Maricel, thanks for the question - with summer coming up soon, I'm sure your question will help a lot of tutors out there who are wondering the same thing!

First of all, that is great news that the parents of your tutee have asked you to stay on during the summer months.  Not only is it a great professional tutoring opportunity for you, but it is an excellent way to keep your tutee on track (and give her a head start) for the next school year. 

Even better news: reading is one of those tutoring subjects that naturally lends itself to extracurricular work.  Get some fun, exciting books for the two of you to read together. 

Look into summer reading programs at your local library - I always loved those as a kid, and I felt a huge sense of accomplishment when I got my "Gold Medal Reading Award" for reading 50 books.  I was ecstatic!

If there isn't anything available locally, you can also set something up yourself.  Keep track of books your tutee reads, ask your tutee to give you short reports of what she has read, and have prizes on hand for when she meets certain goals. 

Last, but certainly not least, check out the resource page on the ITA site for some fun reading and language activities for kids.  There are a bunch of them on there, and it is always good to have a few surprise activities to keep things interesting.

Have fun and, as always, happy tutoring!