For students who struggle in certain school subjects, or those who are looking to get ahead in a specific academic area, online tutoring is an excellent resource for personalized learning. Online tutoring services provide students with trained, effective teachers who can offer them personalized guidance — all from the comfort of their own home. If your child is considering online tutoring, there are some important tips to keep in mind to make sure he gets the most out of his online tutoring sessions.

1. Get Ready Early

Getting to an online tutoring session is more convenient than getting to a session that you have to travel to, but there are still some steps you have to take to get prepared for a lesson. Make sure your child is ready for the tutoring session at least 10 minutes before it actually starts. This means you should turn on the computer, get on the internet and sign into the tutoring site (or communication platform). This will help you avoid any technical snafus that could eat into the session.

2. Set Up in a Quiet and Private Location

Distractions can ruin a tutoring session. Make sure your child’s session happens somewhere where she can remain quiet and undisturbed throughout the entire session. Choose a room with a door that closes to block out any noise, and let siblings and other family members know that they shouldn’t disturb the student during her session with an online tutor.

3. Take a Bathroom and Water Break Before

The most effective tutoring sessions go uninterrupted. At Growing Stars, we recommend that a child wears his headphones 100 percent of the time during his session with an online tutor, without a break. So, make sure your child has gone to the bathroom and gotten a drink of water or snack before the session so that there is no reason he would have to stop in the middle.

4. Prepare Specific Questions

It can be helpful to come to tutoring sessions with a list of questions about concepts or lessons that were particularly difficult. Have your child keep a list of homework questions he doesn’t understand, or topics that he struggled with in class. This will help ensure all the right topics get covered and that online tutors can help students with any particular challenges or roadblocks.

There are countless benefits to hiring an online tutor — including cost effectiveness and convenience. If you are interested in hiring a tutor for your child, check out the tutoring services we offer at Growing Stars.