Introduction

What happens when a bright, motivated student isn’t challenged enough at school?

For Zoe, a dedicated 9th grader, this was her reality.

Despite being placed in a standard English class against her will, her talents and drive deserved more. Her mom was concerned that she wasn’t being pushed to grow as a writer—and that’s where I stepped in with proven strategies to develop writing skills in students like Zoe.

Here’s how I worked with Zoe to ensure she not only kept up but thrived beyond her school’s expectations.

Client Background & Overview of the Problem

Zoe is a bright and driven student who was in the summer before 8th grade when her mom sought supplemental tutoring. Zoe struggled with organizing her thoughts and some grammar, often taking longer than necessary to complete writing assignments, which sometimes resulted in cutting it close to deadlines. She had also just switched middle schools, and her new school’s curriculum was more challenging than the previous one. Her mom wanted to ensure she wouldn’t struggle taking an advanced 8th grade English class. While she showed significant improvement that first year and performed well in that class, her situation became more concerning in 9th grade when she was unfortunately placed into a non-honors class. Zoe’s mother felt the class wasn’t challenging enough and lacked opportunities to help Zoe prepare for the IB program she plans to enter in 11th grade.

Goals: Elevating Zoe’s Writing to the Next Level

The goal of our tutoring sessions was to address Zoe’s minimal grammar issues, help her become more organized and efficient in her writing, and elevate her skills to go beyond grade-level expectations. I also aimed to deepen her literary analysis skills in tandem.

Solution: A Tailored Tutoring Approach

To help Zoe, I used a mix of reading, writing, and grammar exercises tailored to her needs:

• We read and discussed both classical and modern fiction to keep her challenged and engaged.

• From these readings, I created writing prompts, and we also played vocabulary games to enhance her vocabulary.

• To improve her writing efficiency, I introduced brainstorming and outlining techniques, helping her organize her thoughts into bite-sized chunks before writing.

• We worked on grammar areas she struggled with, like comma usage, using worksheets for practice.

• I guided her in seamlessly incorporating textual evidence into her writing to strengthen her arguments and reviewed paragraph structure to ensure her essays flowed well.

Implementation: Regular Tutoring & Steady Progress

Zoe and I met once a week for an hour, starting the summer before she entered 8th grade, and we’ve continued to work together through her current 10th-grade year. Over time, her writing has evolved. She went from making occasional grammar errors to hardly any at all. Her essays have become more organized, thorough, and compelling, and her ability to analyze texts has deepened.

Results: Impressive Growth in Writing & Academic Success

• Quantitative Results: Between 7th and 8th grade, Zoe's score on her ELA assessment improved by 14 points, and she scored an impressive 770/800 on the English portion of the SAT in her first attempt. Her mom expressed her belief that Zoe couldn't have performed as well as she did without my help.

• Qualitative Results: Zoe’s writing process is now much more efficient, and she produces strong, well-organized essays without second-guessing herself. Her analysis skills have grown, and she’s become a more confident writer.

Conclusion: Continuous Growth & Future Goals

Despite the lack of academic rigor at her school, Zoe has thrived under my tutelage. By applying targeted strategies to develop writing skills in students, we’ve seen her essays become more organized, her literary analysis deepen, and her confidence as a writer soar.

Our next step is to prepare Zoe for the AP English Language and Composition exam in her junior year by incorporating even more focused practice into our sessions.

If you’re looking for personalized tutoring that uses proven strategies to develop writing skills in students, I still have availability for reading and writing sessions. Contact me today to help your teen grow as a writer and reader!

Testimonial

“Rachel is kind, nurturing, but also maintains a high academic standard. Rachel’s communication with parents has been excellent. She listens and incorporates into her classes. We enjoy working with Rachel and look forward to continuing to leverage her expertise.” – Zoe’s Mom