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Online Lessons - Now More Than Ever
At the beginning of 2020, about 25% of my lessons took place online, with the remainder of my students meeting with me in my office in downtown Berkeley. In mid-March, I made an immediate switch to conducting lessons online only. I greatly appreciate my in-person students' willingness to switch to meeting online on short notice, before it was legally required of us.
Thanks to the availability of tablet devices that allow writing on the screen with a stylus, I have years of experience using an electronic platform to help students build understanding and improve their skills. This has allowed me to meet remotely with students from the other side of the Bay to the other side of the country.
Students and I write on a shared online document (preferably using a tablet device with a stylus) while conducting a video call, usually on a separate device. In this way we can maintain the personal connection of seeing each others' reactions as well as hearing each others' words. This is a highly important component of teaching, where nonverbal cues provide crucial feedback if we are sensitive to our students' needs. By writing simultaneously on a shared online document, we maintain the directness and fluidity of drawing pictures and graphs, as well as working through algebraic solutions, by hand, for which there is simply no substitute.
If you or a loved one are in need of lessons to improve understanding and ability in math or physics, please contact me to schedule an online lesson. I look forward to hearing from you and wish everyone reading this peace and health.
Daniel
Autumn Leaves Little to be Desired in the East Bay
Every year, my return from summer travels to the work that I enjoy so much coincides with my favorite time of year in Northern California: Labor Day through Thanksgiving. Mid-day light falls more obliquely, highlighting exterior walls, rocky outcrops, and tree trunks as the daylight hours wane. The overcast-clear-overcast cycle of summer becomes interspersed with dramatic cloudscapes that produce, when illuminated from below as the sun approaches the horizon, the most dramatic sunsets of the year. The air is drier than it has been during Summer's foggy doldrums, but also crisper and cooler, particularly at night. If we are lucky, the rainy season is in our not-too-distant future.
Academically, the new school year is a chance for a fresh start in new courses, often with a new teacher. This beautiful season happens during the part of the school year when fundamental skills and concepts should be emphasized and reinforced, before moving on to more advanced applications later in the year. If you are interested in additional academic support, lessons with me can help students truly understand and master concepts that underlie the topics they encounter during the year. Whether you or a loved one are confident or struggling, starting our lessons early in the school year will allow us to focus initially on the fundamentals, as opposed to playing catch-up later in the year. I encourage you to contact me to get started with lessons while still early in the school year, when I have more flexibility in my schedule. I look forward to hearing from you.
Daniel
Fall is Underway
The equinox is a few weeks behind us, the air is noticeably cooler in the mornings and evenings, and we look forward to the first rains of the season in the next few weeks. The Fall 2017 semester is well underway and many students are about to receive midterm grades.
If you or a loved one are looking to improve understanding and ability in a Math or Physics class, don't hesitate to contact me; having a once-a-week lesson starting now is far more effective and less stressful than trying to cram in multiple review hours at the end of the semester. While some of my weekday afternoon/evenings are fully booked, I still have a few after-school times available. For those with more flexible schedules, I am also available many days before 3pm.
Please accept my warmest wishes during the change of seasons, and I look forward to hearing from you if have any questions. Simply follow the "Contact" link above.
2017 is Underway
Happy New Year 2017 to everyone. Now that we have taken a day off to honor Martin Luther King, all of the school districts and colleges are back from their winter breaks. For most students, this is also the beginning of a new semester, whereas for others, final exams loom and the fresh start of a new semester is still over a week away.
Whether you are a parent of or a student in middle school, high school, or college, now is a good time to get some expert help, whether it be for catch-up, reinforcement, or mastery, while I have some availability and before you or your student get too far behind. A weekly lesson can go so far to improve students' skiils, understanding, and confidence in a challenging Math or Physics course.
Fall is Here
Fall has officially begun. It's almost undeniably the most beautiful time of year for the Bay Area, and it's a time that I associate with the end of the baseball season, Halloween, and looking forward to the possibility of skiing in the mountains and camping in the desert in the coming months.
For students and parents, it means that courses are in full swing and midterm grades are around the corner. I still have a couple of openings for new students in the after-school "prime time" hours. For college students or others with a more flexible schedule, I have a bit more flexibility in the late mornings and early afternoons. Regardless, now is the best time to schedule a lesson with me, while I still have availability and before students get too far behind!
Summer Travels
I am currently on break for the summer and will begin meeting with students again in September after Labor Day. Feel free to get in touch with me now to schedule lessons for September and beyond. Please excuse me if it takes some time for me to respond in the meantime - I will be checking email on my phone and will sometimes be without service.
Spring is in Sight
As February draws to a close, I am finally beginning to notice the days getting longer. For some students, sports seasons have just changed over, resulting in a bit of schedule shuffling for me. Although my schedule is extremely packed, I can usually find the time to fit in one or two new students, depending on the flexibility of the students' schedules. If you or your child are finding a Mathematics or Physics course challenging, I encourage you to get in touch with me now, before the challenges turn into struggles, and while I can still accommodate new students. Simply click "Contact" on the toolbar above to fill out a web form or to email me directly.
Entering the Holiday Season
Our clocks are back to where midnight is truly the middle of the night and noon is actually high noon, sports seasons have changed over for many students, and Thanksgiving will be here before we know it. After Thanksgiving, many students have but a few short weeks until finals, while many others look forward to the respite of Winter Break before returning to school for finals in January.
I am running at full steam but there are still a couple of openings into which I could squeeze a new or returning student. If you or your child needs help reviewing for finals, I encourage you to contact me now while I still have some availability and so that we can get started as soon as possible. Reviewing in a relaxed fashion will always be more effective than last-minute cramming!
I will not be meeting with students during the week of Thanksgiving. My warmest thoughts are with you and your family during the holiday season and beyond.
Looking forward to 2015-2016
As Labor Day approaches, so does the first day of classes for local middle and high schools as well as colleges and universities. If you or a loved one may want or need lessons in math or physics this school year, I urge you to get in touch with me as soon as possible. Having reinforcement and enrichment from the beginning is always preferable to playing catch-up later in the year. Also, my schedule fills up rapidly once the school year begins. To secure lessons at a time that works for you, send me an email or fill out a webform by following the contact link above.
Preparing for Final Exams and Thinking About Next Year
The 2014-2015 school year is drawing to a close as I write this post. As some of my students finish their courses earlier than others, I have one or two openings in my weekly schedule that are available now through the end of the school year. If you or your child need help preparing for final exams, I encourage you to get in touch with me to schedule lessons as soon as possible - a few lessons spread out over a week or more are much more effective than last-minute cramming! I can also help prepare for the June SAT or any other standardized test.
Finally, now is a good time to think about weekly lessons for the coming school year. I will be on summer break from mid-June through mid-August, but I have already begun to schedule weekly appointments for the 2015-2016 school year, beginning in late August. Since my after-school lessons tend to be fully booked, I often have difficulty finding time for new students once the school year is underway. I encourage you to get in touch with me now to ensure the availability of lessons in the fall.