Online English Tutor and Writing Coach
Polly St John Hughes
(Veronica Hughes is my pen name)
Testimonials
Xinxin, my 19-year-old student, immigrated at the age of 10 and is integrating English as a second language.
“I have been a student of Ms. Polly's for 1.5 years. She is a very nice and helpful private tutor and teacher. She motivates me a lot! I am an Asian American and currently entering my first year of college. I was really struggling with my English skills until I started working with Ms. Polly in my junior year of high school. She helped me a lot with my homework, writing, reading, SAT preparation, speaking, and more. Before I started online tutoring, my English grade was not good. However, with help from Ms. Polly, I got better grades and just graduated from high school. I am enjoying Ms. Polly’s tutoring. Yeah! I love her so much! I am recommending to all students who are struggling in English or another study related to English to take Ms. Polly’s tutoring class!”
Kynan is 13 years old and in 8th grade.
Having tutoring with Ms. Polly increased my grades amazingly. When I started in July 2018, my Reading/Language Arts were a B- and my Writing was a C-. Nine months later my Language Arts grade is a B+ and my Writing is an A-. In our 1 on 1 tutoring, I was able to have the chance to comfortably ask questions about the unclear meaning of words and phrases, which improved my vocabulary and comprehension. With Ms. Polly’s support, I went from thinking reading was boring, to reading every night instead of being on electronics. Also, I went from a student who waited to the last minute, to a student who is ahead of the game. Ms. Polly and I have become such great friends.
When my brother and I started tutoring, we dragged ourselves to her house. However, after about three weeks, we were running over for our tutoring time, which was probably one of the most important parts of our day. Working with Ms. Polly as a writing and English tutor was so helpful. She also encouraged me to run for my school’s student leadership team, which now I’m on. I am appreciative of her work and company. Thank you for all you have done!
Sincerely,
Kynan
Jessie and Kyler Simon
My two boys (ages 10 & 13) have been working with Polly twice a week via Zoom since April. Polly is caring, kind, flexible, and calls upon them to be their best selves. She has been working diligently to find gentle ways to overcome their resistance to writing. I love that she has a different approach for each student, and does research to find materials and methods to bring out their interests and motivation. We feel very lucky to have found her. She cares deeply and it shows!
The Simon Family
Students from 6-18 years have benefited from my in-person and online tutoring since 2018. It’s been my joy to support them with homework, test prep, reading comprehension, grammar, ESL, and test prep including SAT. I’ve also helped those with ADHD. My love of writing began in high school as the editor of San Francisco’s Cathedral High School newspaper. It continued throughout my higher education at San Francisco State University--ultimately leading me to become a published author.
I am not just a writer and English tutor, but I studied leadership development, communications skills, time management, and emotional intelligence for years: first with Erhard Seminar Trainings and The Forum, then as co-founder of At the Heart of Communications, now Learning as Leadership. I taught these and other skills to adults in the SF Bay Area for 20 years. As a private tutor, I bring all these acquired talents to my online tutoring.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is my philosophy?
Mistakes are opportunities for learning and change, they help us, rather than hinder us. I encourage rather than discourage while seeking creative solutions to problems or issues encountered in the learning process. Excellence is accomplished by practice, hard work, cooperation, communication, support, and a lot of encouragement with a dash of grace!
How do you keep students motivated?
To keep students motivated I start with encouragement, small wins, and finding what are their true motivations and unique set of values, talents, and aptitudes; using these qualities as springboards to bigger wins and independent thinking and study.
What is a typical first session?
A first tutoring session would be proceeded by a consultation/conversation with parent(s) about the learning issues confronting their child, what is expected, hoped for and what materials would be needed or we would be using. Then in our first session, I would have a conversation with the student about what they think are their issues and challenges, hopes, and desires. From that, I research whatever materials or workbooks we will be using. I would have the student read aloud or work on something together to get a sense of his or her reading, writing, and comprehension.
How can a student become more independent?
It takes practice, repetition, confidence, and experience to become more independent. I have found with my current students that I need at least 3-6 months to create the long-lasting change needed. In the case of struggles with ESL, study habits, learning disabilities such as ADD or dyslexia, even longer. It really depends on what the issues are we are working to change. In my own experience of teaching adults and children, change takes time, it cannot be rushed, but rather needs to be nurtured. Behind every issue, there are emotions and beliefs about oneself that take time and trust to reveal and change. This is a long-term commitment to and investment in a child or young adult’s future. The younger the student - the easier it can be, unless there are cognitive issues.
