Hi.

I am sorry if someone already has told you this but I am kinda lazy to read everything what was written before. I only took a glance at it.

I once new a girl who had a tutor in maths. I don`t think it was a bad tutor, or better: I cannot tell you because I have never met him. That girl asked me to, additionally, help her out a little bit.

She is not a dumb girl, and I assume no child/person is unintelligent, but the real problem was that once the tutor was gone, she did not practice at all. It did not help her to see her tutor for an hour once a week because she didn`t have the practice afterwards.

So, my advice is: make sure that your student has to work at least a little bit during the week when you do not meet with him. It doesn`t have to be a torturing programme lol, just make sure that he does something in order not to go back to point zero when you meet him again.

If the goal of your practice is getting higher grades in class, I think you should focus on what they learn in class. If I were you, I would first look at the materials they study in class: their textbook, assignments, class projects, etc. Then, I would try to find his weak and strong points. Now, you have a broad picture of what he need to know, and what he have already learned. Then, you can make a goo plan for your practice sessions. 

I believe your practice can help him in two ways: First, by improving his weak points. Here you can work on grammar, new words, reading, writing, speaking, whatever the instructor expects them to do. Second, by giving him more confidence to benefit from his stong points and what he learns from you.

I have no experience with learninh Spanish yet ( I will probably start it in Summer), yet I learned English by selfstudy anf getting help from italki native English speakers (not teachers) who were and still are kind to me. Let me know if I can be of any help, and good luck.

This thread is alreayd filled with excellent advice.  I just want to stress what Julia said.  Often times students who need a tutor not only need help in the subject area but also need help in getting organized and becoming more self-disciplined. 

I have a few students... only a few... who need me not so much to learn content but to *ahem* focus.

Oh.. sorry. I wrote to Amene rather than Paari. My mistake.

Anyway  Paari, if you are teaching Spanish,  I would recommend that you teach this in Spanish at some point.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttTDDa5r_vo

Prisoner: "But you see Cervantes, there is a difference between REALITY and ILLUSION, and a difference between

these prisoners and your men of LUNACY.

.

Cervantes: "Say rather...men whose ILLUSIONS are very REAL.

.

Prisoner: Much the same thing, isn't it really?

Why are you POETS so fascinated with MADMEN?

.

Cervantes: "We both SELECT from LIFE!"

.

Prisoner: "A man has to come to terms with LIFE AS IT IS."

.

Cervantes: "LIFE AS IT IS? I've lived for over 40 years and I've seen...

LIFE AS IT IS; Pain! Misery! Cruelty beyond belief!

I've heard all the voices of God's noblest creatures; moans from bundles of filth in the street.

I've been a soldier and a slave.

I've seen my comrades fall in battle or die more slowly under the lash in Africa.

I've held them at the last moment. These were men who saw LIFE AS IT IS;

but they died despairing. No brave last words...only their eyes filled with confusion...

questioning, "Why?".

.

I do not think they were asking why they were dying; but why they had ever lived.

.

When Life itself seems LUNATIC who knows where MADNESS lies!

.

Perhaps to be too PRACTICAL is MADNESS;

To SURRENDER DREAMS, this may be MADNESS;

To see TREASURE where there is only TRASH...

TOO MUCH SANITY MAY BE MADNESS!

...And MADDEST of all, . . . to see LIFE AS IT IS,

and not AS IT SHOULD BE!"

 Amene:  This is about  1/16  of a rather long   lesson taken from my "Common Book".

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Mesopotamia is in the Tigris and Euphrates River Valley in the location of Modern Day IRAQ. This is where the Sumerian Civilization flourished between 4500 B.C. to 2300 B.C. The Sumerians were the first civilization to use:

(a) IRRIGATION

(b) THE WHEEL

(c) WRITING

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The seven Continents are:

(1) Asia

(2) Australia

(3) Antarctica

(4) Africa

(5) Europe

(6) North America

(7) South America

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"In 1492 Columbus sailed the Ocean Blue."

(Thus, discovering the "New World" later termed "The Americas".)

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The Universe is Finite, rather than Infinite.

INFINITE refers to that which "goes on forever" and never Ends.

Nothing in the physical universe is INFINITE.

Our Universe is FINITE, which means that it has a BEGINNING and an END, and then just stops.

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