Gwen Nelson English Tuition

Good afternoon!

I potentially have space for 2 tutees on Tuesdays after school. As I’m not tutoring locally Monday evening, I’d love some local tutees, or 2 tutees online, or 1 local and 1 online that evening.
All of last year’s tutees got the grades they needed for:
FE/College
6th Form form for A-Levels

Some did WAY better than their predicted grades, or WAY better than their set of particular circumstances suggested they’d be able to do. I played A role in that, not THE role; for the most part it was their will and determination to succeed.

Do get in touch via messenger if I might be the right kind of person to help your youngster with their English at school.

Thank you to everyone who has got in touch recently regarding tutoring, what a lovely position to be in.
Here’s my process for sorting out my tutoring for September, such as it is:
1. Confirm with folks who got in touch in July that they still want tutoring in September.
2. Agree days & times with those people
3. Go through the most recent enquiries in chronological order, phone if needed and sort admin & enrolment etc
4. Decide when I’m ‘full’ (harder than it sounds…)

Note: some of the recent enquiries are for November re-sits, so I may fill up quickly, then have spaces opening up from November.
If there’s anyone I can’t fit in from September, I’ll give you first refusal as a new slot opens up in November.
Hope that a) makes sense b) is fair

Some stories behind some very different grades from a couple of tutees. Some specifics not given for GDPR and Safeguarding reasons.
GCSE English Language

Pupil 1: mum passed away during Covid while they were around Yr 8. Had a huge impact on them. Yr 10 SEMH issues significantly affected attendance.
Grade: 9

Pupil 2: Has significant range of barriers to learning, eg SEMH, SEND and various other things I cannot and will not disclose. Not attended school since part-way through Yr 9. As well as that they had a genuine dislike of English as a subject (NOT my fault 😊🤣).
Grade: 3

I’m immensely proud of both pupils and both grades. Both achievements are brilliant for different reasons.

GCSE grades are a National measuring stick & provide a snapshot of a pupil at a certain time.
What that grade MEANS to each student is different, significant and often contains a story of triumph over adversity.
For both pupils to even attempt those exams was a massive achievement.
Perspective REALLY matters when understanding what a grade means to that pupil (your son, daughter).

GCSE results day is here all of a sudden.
Wishing my lovely tutees from last academic year the best of luck this morning. In that exam hall I know you would have all absolutely tried your best - remember that as you stare at those numbers this morning.

Oooooooo

Year 9 end of year exams are either done, or due soon, along with their end of year reports. It may be that one or two term's tuition in year 10 will prevent potential issues with English and English Literature GCSEs later on in Year 11.
English is a subject where you need to play 'the long game' - mastering the subject and intricacies of the exam does not really have any quick fixes, even for the very able pupil., but everyone can get better at English, no matter their starting point.
Most of the time, 1:1 tutoring improves confidence in the tutee, and then the improved competence naturally follows.

If you would like to discuss this with me - do drop me a message, and I'll reply as soon as I am able to, and then arrange a time to call you back.

The final GCSE English exam is on Thursday 6th of June, meaning all current slots I've had with my year 11 tutees become available for new tutees. I shall really miss them and their families.

Days/Times (some room for manoeuvre depending on demand):
Monday: from 4 pm to 7pm
Tuesday from 4 pm to 7pm
Sundays from 12 pm to 5pm

Rate is £35 per hour (Key stage 3 and GCSE) but sessions do not have to be an hour, e.g. 40 minutes would be £25, or 50 minutes £30.

I can tutor online, or in person - in person would be at your home.

Me in a nutshell: 20 years teaching in the state education sector; genuine nerdy interest - still - in my subject; lots of experience tutoring too; day-time tutoring involves supporting pupils unable to attend school for various SEMH reasons (love it!); MA and PGCE in my subject area; enhanced DBS; fully insured; I'm calm and patient with my tutees; I genuinely love what I do; if your house has a dog (or several) I'll be over-joyed.

Best way to get get in touch: a message via Whatsapp, Facebook messenger, or a good old text is the best way, then I am happy to call you back. My phone number is available on this page. (I'm an introvert, which, admittedly, is a bit of a disadvantage when it comes to marketing yourself....)

How do you know if I am any good? Here's a testimonial from a lovely student I taught at Warwickshire College, Rugby in the 'before times' (pre-pandemic):

“I studied A-Level English Language and Literature with Gwen. She was passionate, approachable, and I genuinely enjoyed her lessons. Her support, patience, and diligence were crucial in achieving my B grade. I would recommend Gwen to anybody looking for an experienced English tutor. Gwen is a exceptional teacher who has made a lasting impact on me.”
Gemma Rouse

What Gemma doesn't mention is that I taught her 2 of her 3 A-Levels at Warwickshire College, equating to about 10 hours per week as my student. The other A-Level I taught her was Media Studies. She achieved great results in both, so had plenty of choice of where to do her degree afterwards.

First GCSE Literature exam today. Wishing all my lovely and brilliant tutees the best of luck, and I’m hoping for a paper with good extracts and fair questions.
Reminders:
Don’t forget your pre & post-exam flapjacks
Read the question, read it again, then read it AGAIN.
THINK don’t guess.
Watch the clock like a hawk
Aim to do yourself justice
Don’t autopsy what you wrote in your answers straight after the exam - you can’t change anything
DO reflect on how you used your time today, as you can do something about that next time.

I’m proud of you all already.

Good morning followers and visitors to my page,
My current batch of Yr 11 tutees will finish when the last GCSE English exam is sat on 6th June, which I’m in a bit of denial about as they have all been a delight to teach and their families (& their dogs) have been equally lovely.
This means I’ll have tutoring slots opening up for new tutees.
Currently I tutor on:
Monday & Tuesday evenings
Sundays - working around football match fixture times.
KS3 & GCSE £35 p/h
A-Level and undergraduate tutoring £45 p/h
My undergraduate work can involve assistance with essays & academic writing, dissertation proof reading, and depending on degree subject, help with understanding of content.
Tutoring can be in person or online.
I have an enhanced, rolling DBS certificate, I am fully insured and totally ‘kosher’ regarding taxation.
It’s best to get in touch via messenger or WhatsApp as I’m often busy tutoring or dog-walking/pet sitting, so don’t take calls when busy. I’ll happily call you back.
Huge thanks to my current tutees, their families, AND their dogs, who have made my gamble of going self-employed, mid-cost of living crisis, a much better experience than I had any right to hope for. Your youngsters are an absolute credit to you all.

Hoping all the mums of my lovey Yr 11 tutees have had a great Mother’s Day and that you have been well pampered.
Getting a teen through Yr 11 is no mean feat.

Erm, hello again....
This is a new page for the same tutoring business. The aim was to appease the Facebook Gods and maybe shorten this odd ban I have from making comments on ANYTHING, including my own posts. As yet, it seems to have had no effect, as I can't comment on here either.
Anyway, thanks for following this page for effectively the second time - if you have done so.
I'll add things as I go, so there's not much here to look at yet.