What I Offer
Initial Consultation
Writing well is a uniquely human skill, and just like humans, no two writers are exactly alike. Just because one strategy worked with one person doesn’t mean it will work with another. In this free consultation, I’ll be looking to meet and learn about the student: their struggles, previous experiences, and goals for working together. It’s also where students (and parents/guardians) can meet and learn more about me to decide whether it’s a good fit.
Academic Writing Coaching (general)
In our first session, we’ll start with a general assessment of the student’s writing based on previous work, discuss the mental challenges that make writing difficult or painful, and set small, realistic goals for upcoming school assignments. Further weekly (recommended) sessions focus on reviewing, discussing, and revising written work as we slowly but continually move the bar higher. Students learn to cope with and push through the initial discomfort of writing to produce thoughtful, focused work that they are proud of. While these sessions often focus on how to structure and organize thinking for academic essays, the goal is ultimately for students to acquire the critical thinking and executive functioning skills that they can apply to all types of writing.
Our meetings can be booked as 30-, 45-, or 60-minute sessions, depending on a student’s hourly package.
Admissions Essay Coaching
Admissions essays can be one of the most paralyzing forms of writing known to humankind, regardless of whether you are applying to high school, college, or postgraduate programs. In this more intensive type of coaching, I gently steer students past their mental hurdles to help them pinpoint the narratives and personal qualities that make them great candidates for admission. Under my guidance, students brainstorm, develop, structure, and edit their essays and free-responses, becoming more confident in their writing skills and their personal stories.
Our meetings can be booked as 30-, 45-, or 60-minute sessions, depending on a student’s hourly package.
Creative Enrichment
Creative writing is a subject that often gets passed over in traditional schooling because it’s not “academic” enough. And yet, self-expression is one of the core components that make for an enriching and fulfilling life. (Not to mention, creativity is one of the sought after “21st-century skills” that employers are looking for!) In these sessions, I support students in exploring different creative genres of writing, developing their imaginative and abstract thinking skills, and/or guiding them through the drafting process of full-length projects, including novels and portfolios.
Our meetings can be booked as 30-, 45-, or 60-minute sessions, depending on a student’s hourly package.
Standardized Test Preparation
Many selective schools and institutions of higher education rely on standardized testing to assess students’ knowledge and critical thinking skills. Doing well on these tests requires familiarity not only with the material being covered but also with the format of the test, its questions, and its timing. Over the last fifteen years, I have supported middle and high schoolers in raising their scores on the SAT, ACT, HSPT (High School Placement Test), SSAT (Secondary School Admissions Test), and ISEE (Independent School Entrance Exam) in both the United States and England. In addition to addressing gaps in students’ subject matter knowledge, I also teach them both general and specific test-taking strategies. Under my tutelage, students grow more confident, insightful, and successful in their test-taking endeavors.
It is my experience that these types of sessions work best as hour-long meetings.