Testimonials
Testimonials from parents
‘Initially, we wanted a tutor to improve my child’s prospects for a higher grade GCSE Maths to aid Computer Science A level studies and we were very pleased with the higher than expected grade. But it became very apparent through the lockdown that our child also needed Katerina’s mentoring abilities to see through A levels to keep motivation going and reduce anxiety levels through very difficult times.
She was able to teach our child how to break down essay writing into more manageable parts and show how to plan and construct using analysis as well as the facts. She would also spend some of the time just asking how things were going and how best to help organise time using her extensive knowledge and understanding of typical and neuro-diverse children to build a really great rapport.
She has been instrumental in helping our child learn how to cope with anxiety around learning, revising and how to absorb information taught conventionally in school where they were overlooked and ‘under-the-radar’; achieving but not at levels they should be. Meanwhile supporting me as a parent in how to understand and support my child at the same time.
We have been impressed with Katerina’s willingness to adapt to the needs of our child and how she is constantly developing herself professionally and trying new strategies for teaching and support.
We would highly recommend Katerina to anyone as a tutor and mentor for their child particularly if they have difficulty with concepts as they are taught in school and are diverse thinkers. If they are anxious, un-focused, dis-organised in their thoughts or time and need strategies taught to cope and remain engaged with learning then Katerina has all the skills necessary to help them succeed.’
‘Katerina has supported our son through a tough transition from primary school into secondary school. He had missed about 80% of his classes at the beginning of Y7 and fell behind with his work. We originally asked Katerina to help him with Maths but she approached him from a holistic view point and spent a lot of time helping him learn how to cope with his feelings surrounding school and finding more effective ways for him to learn, absorb information and express his ideas. He has gone up 5 sub levels in Maths this year but more importantly he is confident and happy and loves going to school now. Katerina has been instrumental in his recovery and her approach is kind, professional and sensitive, both to children and parents alike. She has a wealth of invaluable experience and an open mind, essential in teaching.’
Katerina has managed a shared session with our two lively boys, successfully bringing them up to the required Year 2 standard. She maintains calm and their levels of concentration, tailoring the sessions to the boys needs through a mix of classic exercises and games. Her patience and keen interest in building the boys’ confidence was exemplary and we would not hesitate to recommend her.
Katerina has been working with our son for five months now. She came to us as a result of a recommendation and she has certainly lived up to that recommendation. Her work has been invaluable in helping Louis through a very difficult transition to secondary school. He developed high anxiety and stress in relation to challenges he faces with written literacy that had not been properly picked up by the school. Katerina has been able to respond with appropriate activities and strategies that have helped him both with his feelings that at times he felt would overwhelm him and with his approach to his work and hi written literacy. She is always calm and kind yet also focused and directed in the work she does with him and Louis is without fail positively impacted by his sessions with her.
L. got his results. We are very pleased. 7As, A in German, so very, very pleased and grateful for your help and support.
Katerina has been providing my daughter, now aged 10, with additional tuition in Maths for almost two years. I have been very impressed with the way she has been able to identify how best to motivate my occasionally reluctant daughter to engage in the lessons, using a variety of different materials and techniques to make learning more interesting and fun. Her teaching background means she understands what the expected levels of achievement are for key stage 2 and she can offer support across the broader curriculum if required – recently I asked her to incorporate some elements of Literacy into the lessons and she was able to do this immediately. Even when my daughter is tired and fractious after a long day at school I know that Katerina, with her calm and engaging manner, will settle her down and it is not unusual to hear them laughing together as they work. My daughter likes Katerina and wants to work hard for her. There is no doubt in my mind that my daughter’s confidence and ability in Maths and Literacy has improved as a result of these additional sessions.
Katerina is very polite and has excellent communication and interpersonal relationship skills. She is very patient, especially when working with children with special needs. She is a very cheerful and flexible hard worker, I would highly recommend her to anyone.
My husband and I have been so pleased to see our daughter’s confidence in Maths improve. She has also worked on non-verbal and verbal reasoning tests for the 11+ and with the support she has received this has been going very well.
Katerina worked with my son and encouraged him to believe in himself and gain a place at the school of his dreams. Katerina is very patient and her creative methods really engaged my son in his numeracy and English. I would have no hesitation in recommending Katerina to other parents.
I am seeing an increase in K’s confidence since Katerina started seeing her.
We all knew that A. has the ability but Katerina gave her the confidence to believe in it.
The children said
Katerina is very good. She explains things well and she’s very patient. If you’re struggling with something, she’ll find a way of making it fun, like being in a game.
Katerina’s help really, really helped me.
I felt very confident in the tests with the help. And I felt happy and calm.
Thank you for letting me do it. It really helped me. We had best time ever! (L’s reaction to a motivational creative session)
Thanks a lot for teaching me. You are a great teacher!
Contact us on:
07786 628820 or info@outoftheboxteaching.co.uk