Stephen Simmonds

Stephen Simmonds
I am an English Teacher B.Ed, QTS, CELTA, (current DBS) with over 20 years of experience teaching students from KS2 to KS4 including preparing them for their 11+ exams and for GCSE English. I have taught students at various levels of ability in several educational settings including Primary Schools, Secondary and Higher Education. I also teach English as a foreign language to those students who need special tuition to improve and upgrade their writing and spoken language skills for IELTS, ESOL or other English language needs.

Tutoring Experience
I have taught and continue to teach English language and Literature to students from KS2 to adulthood depending on their particular needs, both 1:1, online, at home and in the classroom setting; preparing students for exams, or simply endeavouring to enhance their skills. During the course of my career I have accumulated a broad spectrum of teaching skills, including teaching children with special needs. This enhanced my abilities and taught me how to explain and convey complex ideas to students with limited understanding and has become an invaluable tool when instructing very able students.
I have extensive experience teaching students online, especially as this was a necessity during the Covid-19 pandemic, both 1:1 and as a class. I have also taught English abroad, including the USA.

Tutoring Approach
Owing to the fact that I have had the experience of teaching students with very different levels of abilities, I am uniquely placed to devise lessons that are appropriately designed for their individual needs to ensure good progress. I believe in positive confirmation and encouragement coupled with a challenging curriculum that enables confidence. I welcome student’s contributions and thoughts concerning the texts being studied, and provide opportunities for them to expand and elucidate their ideas and opinions.
For exam goals, such as the 11+, I often create quizzes and present mock exams from previous years set by Grammar Schools, thereby building confidence with exams and exam techniques to improve the skills required. Through practice, students understand how to study and comprehend exam questions, thereby, responding with more assurance. I also work with students in KS3 to enable them to access and analyse the texts, they are presented with as part of their coursework, to enable them to better understand and respond to those requirements.
I always enjoy seeing students improve; it is an endless source of delight for me and I’m happy to be of assistance should you decide to engage me.