Welcome

As a certified English teacher with decades of experience guiding students through the writing process, I welcome the opportunity to work with your student. I have taught high school composition classes for years, including units on the college essay. As a writing instructor, I benefited greatly from my work with the Connecticut Writing Project (UConn). I have particular expertise working with reluctant writers and those who have difficulty expressing their ideas fluently and organizing their thoughts into coherent and engaging essays.

College Essay

Experience has taught me that guiding a student through the writing process involves conversation at all stages:  discovery, draft, revision, and editing—and that these stages are recursive and messy.  Coaching a student writing a college essay could take between one and three hours if the most recent draft is ready for final revisions and edits — or ten-plus hours if the student is at the beginning stages, such as choosing a question and discovering a focus. Students may not need assistance at every stage: while some students write fluently and independently, others benefit from the structure of drafting during tutoring sessions.  In the planning consultation, we will discuss a reasonable timeline for the student and family.

Final thoughts about the college essay:  I will not supply ideas or wording for your student’s essay, which needs to sound as if it were written by an insightful adolescent, not a mature English teacher. Also, it is important to realize that while I can coach your student to write a strong college essay, which is a significant component of the admissions process, a strong college essay does not guarantee college admission.

Additional Services

I can also help your student succeed during distance learning, complete summer assignments and/or gain confidence in various writing skills:

  • getting started and managing writer’s block
  • building fluency
  • maintaining a focus and organizing thoughts
  • developing, clarifying, and supporting ideas
  • revising
  • editing

Fees

  • 30-minute planning consultation, free of charge
  • Current rate for online tutoring sessions:
    • $65/hour (average); prices determined by needs identified during consultation*
    • sliding scale available
  • Full payment is due for missed sessions or those canceled/rescheduled within one hour of the appointment time; a $25 fee will be charged for other cancellations/rescheduling within 24 hours of the original appointment time.  Consideration will be given to extenuating circumstances.
  • Payment accepted:  check or PayPal.Me/mmbwritingtutor

*I can answer email questions briefly between sessions, but lengthy conversations will be billed  as tutoring hours.