Tutoring and Executive Function Coaching with Lindsay Zoeller of The Chicago Family Tutor

Lindsay Zoeller and her organization The Chicago Family Tutor help families to develop strong higher-order thinking skills such as goal setting, problem-solving, and critical thinking, as well as time management, organization, and self-regulation to improve the children’s performance at school.

During this time, the COVID-19 pandemic has forced families to alter their lifestyles and learn new work-at-home practices and support their children's education. This process has not been easy for many parents and families who lack the support, time, and knowledge systems necessary to fulfill these new responsibilities. However, as beneficial, what if the family and children have a tutoring service, effective strategies, and training for children and parents that could be provided online? In the next questions, Lindsay explains how their strategies, approach, advice, and practices have helped hundreds of children to achieve consistently at school.


Q: Could you explain more about your own educational background, and how you came to become a teacher, a lawyer, and a tutor? What services do you offer to children and families?

A:
I received my undergraduate degree in Psychology, and I intended to parlay that knowledge into a career as a family law practitioner. Over time, however, I came to realize that the antagonistic nature of law did not fit my personality nor did it allow me to support families in a way that inspired positive growth. After much soul-searching, I decided to pursue a career in education instead, and I went back to school to get my teaching certificate.

By the time I completed my program, I had spent several years as a babysitter and nanny, so I knew that I particularly enjoyed nurturing one-on-one relationships with kids. Therefore, I found that working as a tutor, as opposed to a classroom teacher, allowed me to combine my experiences as a caretaker, my love of learning, and my psychology education in an authentic way to cultivate deep, meaningful relationships with my students and their families.

This unique mix of skills and experiences also gave me the foundation to expand my practice into Executive Function work. Through Executive Function work, I help families to develop strong higher-order thinking skills such as goal setting, problem-solving, and critical thinking, as well as time management, organization, and self-regulation.

Q: In your opinion, what are the fundamental keys to improving the child’s performance at school?

A:
The most important thing you can do is to help them develop strong foundational skills at home. This means providing kids with appropriate challenges, chores, or responsibilities. Encourage your child to get outside of their comfort zone in the safety of the home so that they are more comfortable being uncomfortable and navigating challenges at school. Help them practice failure so that it doesn't seem so big and scary because failure and discomfort are a huge part of learning to do new things.

Another thing that families can do to help their kids improve at school is to provide structure and guidance. Start by walking your child through all the steps that are necessary to be a successful student. Some easy places to start are by making sure that your kids are doing their homework in a designated homework spot that is free of clutter and distractions. Make sure they are spending a reasonable amount of time and giving an appropriate amount of effort to their work. But don't overdo it. If a child is really struggling with an assignment, rather than stumbling through it with them (or even doing it yourself if it gets really frustrating), encourage your child to connect with their teacher. Teachers need to know that students are struggling so that they can give them the necessary support in the classroom. Without that feedback, you may find that the cycle of frustration and confusion will continue at home. So make sure your child is communicating with their teacher (especially if they are in 4th grade or older), which is really easy these days because teachers have email addresses.

Also, encourage your kids to review returned assignments, especially those with grades that could be improved upon. They can only do better if they know where they made their mistakes. This is a step that is often forgotten, but it's really important. So make time to go over returned work with them so that it is a habit that they eventually do on their own.

Finally, if your kids are struggling and you can't figure out why then reflect on whether or not the structures around them are setting them up for success.

Ask yourself some of these questions, and consider making adjustments as necessary:

Do they spend enough time on homework?

Are they doing it early enough in the afternoon before they get tired?

Are they doing it in a clean, calm, and quiet space?

Are they overbooked/over-committed?

Are they stressed about other things going on in their lives or in the family?

Are they getting enough sleep?

Are they eating a balanced diet?

Are they spending time being active?

How much time are they spending in front of screens?

There's no shame in needing to make some adjustments. That is what parenting is all about.

Q: Generally, what are the most significant outcomes of working with children and families?

A:
My students often improve their grades considerably through our work together, and that always feels really good, in the sense that it is wonderful when students get to see the positive outcomes that result from their hard work. More than the grades themselves, what I enjoy seeing for my students is how their confidence is renewed when they come to believe that they can do hard things. I don't believe in being "good" or "bad" at things - I believe that outcomes directly reflect the amount of time and effort spent working on them.

Q: What is the advice you give to parents you work with to collaborate with you for the success of their children?

A:
The best way to encourage and inspire change and growth in your kids is to lead by example. We all have weaknesses and blind spots, and if you can take a moment to honestly reflect on your own and then make small adjustments to work on them, you will be setting a powerful example for your kids. You may even find that you could use some brushing up in the same places the kids can, so use the opportunity to work together on a common goal so that it strengthens your bond rather than causes conflict.

Q: What do you think about the impact on education caused by COVID-19? Could you offer advice for parents that are managing their children’s education at their homes?

A:
I think that it is too soon to tell the long-term impacts of COVID-19 on education, but it certainly does present a challenge right now. Unfortunately, I think that, in many ways, it is a missed opportunity. I work with many kids and families who have diagnoses such as ADHD and anxiety. This home-learning environment could be a really positive change for students who have a difficult time sitting in their seats all day. So this could be a way to explore alternative education models. However, I think that schools are trying to impose a classroom model on remote learning, which leads to a lot of frustration and which is not super effective without a teacher at the helm. This puts parents in that role, which is, understandably, overwhelming, and frustrating.

I don't know what the future will hold, and neither do a lot of school districts, so my best advice for families who are working and learning at home, trying to juggle it all is this: determine your family's values and goals, and then do your best to remain true to them. Let all the other stuff go.

If that means skipping a day of remote learning, so be it.

Try to foster communication with teachers, and recognize that we are all struggling through this "new normal." Try to keep things in perspective- grades, at this point, have very little meaning and don't even count at some schools. So if "learning" is a value that your family holds dear, find ways to continue to learn, but do not sacrifice the well-being of your family, your relationships, or your mental health, to live up to standards that really don't exist because we are all still struggling to figure this out.

Take care of yourselves and pace yourselves. The road may be long.

Q: Where can someone find out more about you, read your content, or know more about the services you offer?

A:
You can find me on Facebook and Instagram at The Chicago Family Tutor, you can visit my website, and you can email me directly at lindsay@thechicagofamilytutor.com


We appreciate Lindsay's participation in sharing her strategies for managing effective practices of study habits, organization, time management, tutoring, and coaching, among others that I know, will be of great benefit to readers who may be going through these same situations and could find useful the information that Lindsay has shared us.

Visit The Chicago Family Tutor and get a Free Consultation.

_______________________



Diana A. Rivera is an Early Childhood Educator, with graduate studies in Educational Psychologist, and author of Be the voice for children. Diana believes and commits to the healthy development, growth, well-being, and learning of all children. The blog posts share ideas and knowledge about educational psychology, child and brain development, parenting, diversity, effective teaching practices, early childhood education, and care to support the empowerment of children and families.

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