Michael A.
Private tutor in Roanoke, VA
Education
I graduated with a B.S. in mathematics in 2006 with a GPA of 3.6 (magna cum laude) from Fitchburg State University, Fitchburg, MA. Since I double-majored, I also have a degree in computer science from Fitchburg State University from the same year. I also obtained an A.A.S. degree in Information Systems Technology (databases and programming) from Virginia Western Community College in Roanoke, VA in 2014.
Experience
For the last 23 years, it has been so fulfilling to tutor over 1,000 students of all ages in all areas of math, as well as college writing, adult literacy and English as a Second Language (ESL). I tutored for 5 years at Fitchburg State College in Fitchburg, MA, for 4 years at the Jefferson College of Health Sciences in Roanoke, VA and for the past 5 years at Virginia Western Community College in Roanoke, VA and have tutored independently for nearly the last quarter-century. I love tutoring more every year I do it. I am easy-going and take sessions at a relaxed and comfortable pace so students don't feel nervous and pressured. I joke around a little bit and get to know the student and build rapport before just jumping in and getting serious about the math. But there's plenty of time to get things done. If you watch me closely during our sessions, you can see me paying keen attention to you and how you learn best. For example, you might say, "It LOOKS like they want me to factor here." And I'll think, "Aha! LOOKS. Maybe you're a visual learner. On the other hand, you might say, "It SOUNDS like they want me to factor here." And I'll think, "Aha! SOUNDS. Maybe you're an auditory learner and like to hear things said and explained clearly and specifically. Or maybe you'll say, "I FEEL like they want me to factor here" (as you tap the problem with your pencil). And I'll think, "Aha! FEEL. Maybe you need to jump in and work a problem or two together step-by-step and discover the PATTERN of what's going on and pick up the FEEL of it. I understand what it feels like not to understand a subject very well. I wasn't good at math in high school. It wasn't until college that I got a really outstanding teacher who knew how to teach so that everyone who came to class and did their homework understood…and from then on, math was easy for me. And now math is going to get easier for you, too.
Subject Expertise
10th Grade math10th Grade Writing11th Grade math11th Grade Writing12th Grade math12th Grade Writing10th Grade Reading11th Grade Reading12th Grade Reading1st Grade math1st Grade Reading2nd Grade math2nd Grade Reading3rd Grade math3rd Grade Reading4th Grade math4th Grade Reading5th Grade math5th Grade Reading6th Grade math6th Grade Reading6th Grade Writing7th Grade math7th Grade Reading7th Grade Writing8th Grade math8th Grade Reading8th Grade Writing9th Grade math9th Grade Reading9th Grade WritingACT MathADDADHDAlgebra 1Algebra 2Algebra 3/4AlgorithmsAP Calculus ABAP Computer ScienceAP FrenchAP French Language and CultureAP German Language and CultureAP Spanish LanguageApplied MathematicsArithmeticASVABCalculus 1CLEP CalculusCLEP College AlgebraCLEP College MathematicsCLEP FrenchCLEP GermanCLEP PrecalculusCLEP SpanishCollege AlgebraComputer ProgrammingComputer ScienceComputer SkillsCreative WritingData StructuresDevelopmental AlgebraElementary AlgebraElementary MathEnglishEssay EditingExpository WritingFinite MathematicsForeign LanguageFrenchFrench 1French 1French 2French 3General ChemistryGeometryGermanGerman 1German 1German 2German 3Grammar and MechanicsHomeschoolIntermediate AlgebraIntermediate AlgebraMathematical Foundations for Computer ScienceMiddle School MathOtherOtherPersuasive WritingPre-AlgebraPre-CalculusProgrammingSATSAT MathSAT MathematicsSAT Subject Test in FrenchSAT Subject Test in French with ListeningSAT Subject Test in GermanSAT Subject Test in German with ListeningSAT Subject Test in Mathematics Level 1SAT Subject Test in Mathematics Level 2SAT Subject Test in SpanishSAT Subject Test in Spanish with ListeningSoftwareSpanishSpanish 1Spanish 2Spanish 3Study SkillsStudy Skills And OrganizationSummer TutoringTechnical WritingTest PrepTrigonometryVocabularyWritingChemistry
Availability
Any day at any time
Can Meet
Up to 20 minutes away for no additional charge
Hobbies
My family comes first. There's a lot of love in my family, and we'll spend any amount of time driving to see each other. My mom, a teacher, died in June 2017 and was one of my best friends and mentors in life. Dad, a Vietnam Vet and career military man and also one of my best friends and mentors in life, taught me how to teach with respect and gentleness so people will listen. My little sister (age 41) is a teacher as well and gets the best reading scores in the county where she teaches in the Atlanta, GA area where Dad and Mimi live nearby each other. My cat, Arnold, is 17 but is young and active at heart. He is super-friendly and loves people and thinks he's a dog. I have always owned dogs since boyhood, but Arnold was abandoned and looking pretty scruffy and came up and started petting me one day and I just had to give him a home. He lets me give him a bath and cut his nails without so much as even a meow, which is unusual for a cat. My hobbies are trying new food, collecting movies and music, reading, walking, and watching the Boston Red Sox.
Show More
Inquire About This Tutor
Thanks!
Most tutors respond within 48 hours.
Feel free to contact other tutors while you wait.