Susan

Certified Tutor

I graduated from Bowling Green State University with a degree in education and a concentration in Spanish. I also have a Master's degree in Spanish from Michigan State University. I hold a K-12 teaching license in the state of Ohio. I have also traveled extensively and studied abroad in Spain and Mexico. I am an award winning teacher, best known for my dedication to students, with over 26 years of teaching experience in a wide variety of settings including elementary, secondary, community college and university. I have taught both children of all ages and adults. In my most recent teaching position, I trained military linguists for the Department of Defense. It was an intense 9-month course and students were expected to be fluent upon graduation, so I have a proven track record helping students become extremely proficient. In addition, I have taught many types of Spanish courses over the years, including immersion for both kids and adults, Spanish for elementary school kids and Spanish for adult learners.

During my 26 years of teaching, I participated in a lot of intervention for students, helping them organize themselves, manage their time and create better study habits and stop bad habits. As a result of that experience, I am very skilled at helping with executive functioning/working memory.

In addition to 26 years of Spanish teaching, I have also served as a long term sub (3 months or more) for elementary school (3rd and 5th grade), and also served as a long term intervention specialist. Because of those experiences, I have gotten very skilled at teaching English and language arts, reading and writing. I would say I'm an extremely well rounded educator, with a love of all things related to language, and a commitment to students that goes beyond the lessons.

My philosophy of teaching is that anyone can learn anything, but some learning environments/assessments are difficult for students. My goal is to create the perfect environment for you with personalized, engaging, interactive and fun activities. As your tutor, I will help you figure out how you best learn, and will design every lesson with your learning style in mind. I am a huge advocate for students, and believe in including them in their education. My job as your tutor is to listen to you and ensure that every lesson is a reflection of you and your needs. As a huge advocate for students, I will always have your back, and will never give up on you no matter how much you struggle. I will go back to the drawing board as many times as I have to. I can also help with time management, study strategies, executive functioning and academic coaching, as these are skills I regularly taught as an instructor for the military.

Whatever you're looking for, be it reading, writing, foreign language, executive functioning, I can help. My loyalty always lies with the student, so with me, you will have input and your opinion will matter. Little by little, I work on helping students learn to advocate for themselves, so as they grow up, they are skilled at that, and are not afraid to ask for what they need.

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Susan’s Qualifications

Education & Certification

Graduate Degree: Michigan State University - Master of Arts, Spanish

State Certified Teacher

Hobbies

As a lover of the Spanish language/cultures, I love to travel. On my bucket list are trips to Argentina and Costa Rica! I am an avid reader and writer, and honestly, prefer to spend my down time with my nose in a book and my cat in my lap! I read both fiction and nonfiction, and read in both English and Spanish to keep my skills sharp. I strive to read difficult material to keep my vocabulary and analytical skills sharp. I am an animal lover, and have my own pet sitting business, as well. So, when I'm not teaching or tutoring, I'm walking dogs! I fell in love with running about 15 years ago, and have spend the past decade and a half running marathons. My ultimate goal is to someday run a 50-mile race! I also like to cook, and experiment with many different ingredients to see what new dishes I can concoct. I'm obviously a huge fan of ethnic foods from all over the world. I've been known to assign my students a video blog while they explain to me how to make their favorite dish!

Tutoring Subjects

Academic Coaching

ACCUPLACER Prep

ACCUPLACER ESL

ACCUPLACER ESL - Reading Skills

ACCUPLACER ESL - Sentence Meaning

ACCUPLACER Language Use

ACCUPLACER WritePlacer

ACT English

ACT Writing

Admissions

Adult ESL/ELL