Blake
Certified Tutor
I am a graduate student of history and working on an original thesis project in Washington, D.C. Although my independent projects specialize in Civil War history, I have strong extracurricular interests in all forms of global history as well and feel just as comfortable tutoring World History as I do European and US History. In the past year, I have worked in battlefield preservation and have won research grants with the Virginia Center for Civil War Studies and a graduate essay contest through Pittsburg State University. I graduated from Clemson University with a degree in history in 2011 (and continue to root for my Tigers!). I am an avid reader and especially like crafting practice questions and other activities that help students understand the deep connections that run throughout human history. My Varsity Tutor students have been both beginners and advanced history students, and I have enjoyed working with all of them!
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Undergraduate Degree: Clemson - Bachelors, History
Graduate Degree: Pittsburg State University - Masters, History
- LSAT: 161
reading history books, playing music (I play guitar, bass, keyboard, pretty much whatever makes noise), bocce ball
- Ancient and Medieval Heritage
- AP European History
- AP World History
- CLEP Prep
- CLEP History of the United States II: 1865 to the Present
- CLEP Social Sciences and History
- CLEP Western Civilization I: Ancient Near East to 1648
- CLEP Western Civilization II: 1648 to the Present
- College Level American History
- College World History
- European History
- High School Level American History
- High School World History
- History
- Music
- Music Theory
- SAT Subject Test in United States History
- SAT Subject Test in World History
- SAT Subject Tests Prep
- Social Studies
- Test Prep
- World History
- World Religions
What is your teaching philosophy?
Learning is a lifelong process, and I want to instill that passion in my students. Teachers should engage with students personally, as well as academically.
What might you do in a typical first session with a student?
Get to know what they want to accomplish with both the content and in life.
How can you help a student become an independent learner?
Get to know their particular learning style and what subjects they like. Incorporate their passions into the content.
How would you help a student stay motivated?
Let them know what is at stake with their education. Also, engage the content with their personal goals.
If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?
Be patient. Try new tools and analogies to help them equate the concept with something they know.
How would you help a student get excited/engaged with a subject that they are struggling in?
Work for that first breakthrough that makes them understand that they can learn the material, no matter how badly they feel they are struggling. Equate the material with their own goals.
What techniques would you use to be sure that a student understands the material?
Pop quizzes and asking them to explain the material in their own words.
How do you build a student's confidence in a subject?
Stay positive and patient. Give them opportunities to succeed through small pop quizzes and connect the material to their life.