Our success in assisting each student to explore and discover his or her potential is directly proportional to the number of caring, committed volunteers we have in our program. Therefore, we take the time you generously provide us very seriously.

We want you to have a clear, defined understanding of your role at our site so that you feel confident and aware of what is expected of you when you volunteer. Below find “job description” information to help clarify your role.

Volunteer Tutor

Objective

• To assist students with homework assignments and to help them prepare for tests when appropriate.
• To encourage and challenge students to do their best in every aspect of their lives.
• To be a good role model as you establish and foster a positive student-tutor relationship.

Responsibilities

• Check in with the Site Coordinator, fill out the sign-in sheet, pick up nametag, and ask what kind of help is needed.
• Challenge students to think and apply their knowledge, while solving problems and completing their assignments.
• Help enforce and maintain an atmosphere that is conducive to learning. If there are students who are misbehaving to the extent that it is distracting you or other students, persuade them to get back on track with their work or simply ask the Site Coordinator or Room Supervisor for assistance in addressing the situation.
• Know that there will be occasions, usually at the end of the day when you will have the opportunity to establish and develop relationships with the students.

Positive Attributes of a Tutor

• Commitment. Dedication to helping students succeed in school, thereby, encouraging them to seek positive success in life.
• Patience. Students don’t always give us the responses that we want when we want them. Have patience and the students will appreciate you for that.
• A sense of humor. Students in general and teens in particular can always sense when we take ourselves too seriously. Enjoy this experience – it’s a wonderful lesson for you and the student.

Helpful Tips

One of the key things we need to remember is that each student’s learning style is different; our tutoring styles are different as well. Therefore, it is important for us to use a variety of approaches or ways of answering questions when assisting with reading, homework, and other academic areas. This isn’t always easy of course and the best way to go about it isn’t always obvious. That is why it is necessary to remember some important qualities when working with kids: Don’t take yourself too seriously, have a sense of humor, and be patient. Even the very best teachers have walked away from a student feeling like they had failed to get the point across.
Don’t be hard on yourself… it takes time!

*Please let us know if you have a particular hobby, interest or skill that you would like to share with our students. We would like to provide a variety of enrichment activities and experiences throughout the year to encourage, motivate, and support students in developing their gifts, talents and interests.

Ready to begin? Start here.

Back to the top of the page