Lucy

About me:
Hello! My name is Lucy and I offer tutoring in GCSE and A Level biology and chemistry. I have a Masters in Chemistry from the University of Lincoln, focusing on pharmaceutical and analytical chemistry, and two years experience as a manufacturing scientist with a global pharmaceutical company. I am currently completing my second Masters degree at the University of Hull in Biomedical Science, a core component of which is an independent research investigation to identify novel drug targets in ovarian cancer. Personally, I have been diagnosed with dyslexia, and have worked with students diagnosed with ADHD, therefore I can relate to the challenges such conditions pose when learning the sciences.
Tutoring approach:
I tutor from a bottom-up approach, meaning the fundamental building blocks of the subject and level should be robustly understood, before more in-depth knowledge is built upon an existing foundation. Specifically, within any given topic, students and I will work though defining key vocabulary, before understanding related scientific concepts, and lastly executing any relevant calculations. Not only is this logical to developing understanding, but also breaks the syllabus into manageable pieces, allowing students to hit development goals and increase their confidence. My students often find once we have built a robust knowledge foundation, more complex concepts can be grasped with ease. Alongside this, I often set achievable tasks for students to complete between lessons, for example after a lesson on reaction kinetics, I might set the following task: "Record a 2-3 minute voice clip of yourself discussing the key definitions and overarching principle behind the enthalpy of chemical reactions, noting any relevant calculations". Such exercises take minimal time yet have maximum impact as they help students remember key facts, act as brilliant personalised revision resources, and enable identification of any knowledge gaps that we can work on in the next lesson.
I am flexible with module order - If a student/guardian has a specific request on module order this can be accommodated, otherwise I will teach the modules in the most appropriate order to match my bottom-up learning approach.

Availability: Broadly, I am available Monday to Thursday afternoon and early evening. Morning and early afternoon lessons, along with Saturdays and Sundays, can be scheduled on request.

Willing to travel: 10 miles

Experience: I have been tutoring in biology and chemistry, both online and in person, for the past three years. As a student myself, I am well attuned to the types of issues learners face when accelerating their skill set. Fatigue, frustration, and incompatible teaching style - learning style combinations to be just a few. Learning is not a sprint, its a marathon. I pace my lessons realistically based on each individuals learning rate, whilst using multiple methods of teaching (figures/illustrations, animations, process-flow diagrams, real-world examples, practice questions, scientific debate) to help students grasp the learning objective. My students have noted that our lessons helped them to understand what type of learner they are, an added benefit and important life skill to take forward beyond GCSE/A level education!