The Math Tutor's Handbook
Strategies and Tips for Success
Corwin Mathematics Series
Boost confidence, reduce anxiety, and spark those “aha” moments for students through effective math tutoring!
Filled with research-backed guidance for tutors to ensure students develop the confidence and skills they need, The Math Tutor's Handbook: Strategies and Tips for Success is the ultimate guide for effective math tutoring. As national data suggest that students are falling behind in mathematics performance, the role of the math tutor is more critical than ever before.
The authors bring decades of wisdom and know-how to the tutoring table. Steve Leinwand—a renowned leader in math education—and Caroline Welty—a sought-after tutor who brings current insight into today’s learners—have blended their collective experience into a comprehensive handbook that offers clear guidance for effective tutoring in grades K-12 mathematics. With their conversational style, the authors provide hands-on resources to help diagnose individuals’ mathematical strengths and needs to make sure that each tutoring session carries the necessary impact..
Through a range of activities, checklists, examples, stories, and suggestions, this handbook
- Focuses on the importance of personalized instruction that no computer program can match
- Describes how to develop strong, supportive relationships between tutor and student
- Identifies common stumbling blocks around the big ideas in mathematics across grade levels and suggests how to overcome them
- Celebrates mistakes as valuable learning opportunities to foster a deeper comprehension of mathematical concepts rather than just getting the right answer
- Promotes skills needed for the future, such as problem-solving and critical thinking, which are beneficial not only in future math classes but also in various aspects of life and work
Let The Math Tutor's Handbook empower you to create a positive learning environment for your students and help them boost self-confidence, reduce math anxiety, and master essential skills. Whether you are a private tutor or parent, you work in a tutoring center, or you are an in-school K-12 math teacher, coach, or specialist, this is the resource you need for the math tutoring strategies and practices that are foundational to successful learning.
This book is the complete guide for well-developed math instruction for single students or for small groups of students. The book not only emphasizes the basic needs of the students, building relationships, but incorporates all the important elements of math instruction in the
21st century.
Clear and concise! Highly recommend for new and experienced tutors.
This one-of-a-kind book is the ultimate guide to achieving the ‘Oh! Now I get it!’ moments every tutor strives for. The intergenerational duo Steve and Caroline provide readers with a perfect mix of research and practicality.
This book adopts an asset-based approach to tutoring support. Firmly rooted in research and best practices in math tutoring, it also humanizes tutoring support by offering real-life examples and strategies. It provides guidance on fostering strong relationships between tutors and students, and techniques for reducing and eliminating anxiety. This book effectively links strategies, actions, and research to promote successful tutoring.
Thank you, Steve and Caroline, for such a practical and robust guide for tutors of mathematics, written so that tutors of various experiences can effectively support their learners. Each section offers many excellent suggestions that focus on developing the learners’ competence and confidence—an excellent resource for school tutoring programs as well as professional tutors!
Steve Leinwand brings the wisdom of experience, and Caroline Welty brings empathy with students, together creating an essential guide for math tutors. They demonstrate how math tutoring isn’t just social or cognitive work but both simultaneously, and they’ll show you how to excel at it.
Finally, a toolkit for tutors that offers practical strategies, concrete examples, and tips to create an asset-based lens that cultivates positive math dispositions. Grounded in research, this guide considers different types of learners, the role of math anxiety, and the importance of relationships in a successful tutor–tutee relationship. The Math Tutor’s Handbook: Strategies and Tips for Success is a must-have resource for tutors looking to create productive, positive, and engaging tutoring sessions.
