English and Maths at Le Loft

 

All tuition is provided on a one-to-one basis (and very occasionally, a one-to-two) and so our tuition strategies are individually tailored to each student for maximum effectiveness. This has proved particularly effective for home-educated students as we can approach any syllabus in a flexible and responsive way. It has also proved very effective in responding to any Covid-related disruptions that a student may have been forced to accept (after all, during the lockdowns all students were 'home-ed' ones). Hopefully, we have turned the corner on that, but some residual problems caused by the disruptions have knock-on effects and this is particularly damaging when the areas concerned are English or maths. Passes at grade 4 or above at GCSE are required for further education, and if a student doesn't have these grades, they will have to study and retake them as part of their first year at college.

English Tuition and Support

I studied English for my DEUG at Université de Perpignan. My third year was spent at Sheffield University under the Erasmus scheme, my fourth year earned me two maîtrises (Double Masters) one in French as a Foreign Language (FLE) and the other in English Literature; the two years of my CAPES were split by a year as an assistante in the UK. My CAPES was validated in 1999.

Over the years, I have also coached successfully students through their English Language GCSE and English A-Level exams. Focusing on analysing language and structure, planning written answers, and forming critical responses all contribute to boosting English GCSE grades. Obviously, as a linguist, I recognise too the importance of accurate 'SPAG' and good essay writing techniques. Going through elements of the English Literature GCSE and A-Level syllabuses, such as literature analysis, effective use of literary terminology or mapping ideas for essays is part of the work we undertake too.

Maths Tuition and Support

Maths is central to the study and practice of all the sciences. Strength in one lends strength to the other. This is why we talk of science being four subjects; our experimental protocols are both theoretically and statistically rich, and our science students are routinely put through their paces mathematically. It would be an unusual student who was strong in science but weak in maths; and we're not sure that such a student could exist.

We tutor maths from a scientific background. Although it is of enormous importance for those of us with overdrafts and credit cards, for a student facing their GCSEs, the accumulation of compound interest and financial depreciation is of less immediate relevance than the growth of bacteria, the mysterious Covid 'R' number, radioactive decay or the cooling of a hot object. Using an example taken from science in preference to one taken from finance means we are getting paid for both maths and science. The volume of a sphere is calculated by the same formula, whether that be used to calculate the density of a planet or the diameter of a cell. Identify a resultant force as a Hypotenuse and Pythagoras or SOHCAHTOA are your friends. And just to labour the point, the gradient of a straight line is the familiar y=mx + c whether we are measuring acceleration, the rate of a chemical reaction or photosynthesis. That's three GCSE practicals right there. We believe that most aspects of the GCSE syllabus can be covered in this manner and that makes them interesting; knowing that we are being paid twice makes it easier to swallow; and crucially, that means we have a bit of 'slog' up our sleeve when we have to deal with the more abstract stuff. "Oh, surds!" I hear you mutter, irrationally.

 

Please contact us for a chat; and if you check out our prices, we are confident that you'll see that it is surprisingly affordable.