Gregory

Experience

I am passionate about doing and teaching maths and my tutorials aim to instil that love in you, too. I am very patient and friendly. I have been tutoring maths for over six years.

I have taught a wide range of students from those starting their journey in Maths to those at University. In particular, I have a lot of experience helping students towards their 11+, 13+, GCSE and A-Level examinations.

Primary school: 

I have helped several students begin their journey in maths and so am aware of how important there first few steps can be. 

Natasha, KS2 maths, year 3: Natasha was changing schools and the standard in her new school, Eaton Square, was much higher than in her previous school. Over a small number of sessions we quickly bridged the gap in standards, giving her the confidence to start at her new school. 

11+ & 13+ Maths, verbal & non-verbal reasoning: 

I have successfully helped students prepare for 11+ and 13+ examinations in maths, non-verbal & verbal reasoning. The students were applying for schools including: Latymer Upper, Eton, St Pauls, Godolphin & Latymer, Ibstock, Dulwich, City of London, Sevenoaks, and Uppingham. 

Maddie, 11+: Maddie was at a state primary school so hadn’t been exposed to some of the material and the problem-solving questions that are part of the 11+ examinations. I quickly identified the gaps in her knowledge and filled them in, then taught her how to approach and answer the 11+ questions. She got into Ibstock and came top of her year at her primary school (despite being a year younger than the other students). 

Callum, 13+: Callum was struggling with the Common Entrance exam; initially he was getting less than 30% on the paper. After a few sessions his marks soon shot up, he passed the exam and was offered a place at Eton, his preferred school. He also struggled with his revision schedule so I helped him organise his time and come up with an effective revision plan. 

GCSE maths

I have worked with a number of exam boards (OCR, Edexcel, AQA, CIE) for both iGCSE /GCSE and thus have a strong understanding of the content. I have helped students achieve the top grades and enabled students at the lower end of the grade spectrum to gain a solid grasp of the contents and achieve and exceed their desired grades. 

Stepan, GCSE Maths: Stepan injured his leg and as result missed a lot of school. I helped him cover the areas he was missing, I then helped him revise and learn how to answer the exam questions. He went on to get a 9, the top grade, in his Maths GCSE and an A in Additional Maths GCSE. 

A-level and IB maths:

I have worked with a number of the A-Level exam boards (OCR, Edexcel, AQA, CIE) and taught many students the IB course (Standard and Higher). 

Paul, A-Level maths: Paul, like many students, struggled with the leap from GCSE to A-Level maths. I helped him develop his understanding of the content, his ability to answer exam questions and his confidence. He went onto exceed his expectations by achieving an A in maths and by getting a place in Engineering at Warwick, his first choice university. 

University preparation (STEP, MAT and interview preparation): 

I have had a lot of experience with STEP (Maths examination for Cambridge and Warwick) and MAT (Oxford’s entrance exam for maths related courses). I am aware of how daunting these longer, difficult, problem-solving questions can be - but with the right preparation, I’ve seen many students succeed. 

Job assessments. Stuart, Numeracy tests: Stewart was applying to be a Music teacher in secondary schools but struggled with the required numeracy tests. I showed him how to approach and answer each type of question. We worked on ways to save time, including various mental arithmetic tricks. Within a few a sessions his test scores and confidence shot up. He passed the exam and is now enjoying life as a music teacher!

Home schooling: I have experience teaching students who are home schooled or who are doing a course separately from school. In these instances, I have delivered the entire syllabus to the students.  This included preparing monthly plans & targets, setting weekly homework, and monthly tests to monitor their progress. 

SEN students

I have taught students with social, emotional, behavioural and learning difficulties. As such, I am aware of how different conditions can affect a student’s learning but in my experience, they need never stop their progress. 

Thomas:  Thomas struggled with a social communication disorder and dyslexia; on top of that English wasn’t his first language. As advised by his psychologists report, I employed a multi-modal approach and helped him with his organisation. 

Biography

I spent my first few years in York before moving to London. After taking my A-Levels in Maths, Further Maths, Physics and Art I went on to do a Mathematics degree at Warwick University.

After my degree, I returned to my other passion: art! I recently completed an MA in Sculpture at the Royal College of Art. I find the creative process in art and maths very similar, whether solving a problem in maths or creating something in art, there is a difficulty involved which forces me to think, pause, and give my mind some space to find a solution. This is followed by an immense satisfaction once a result is achieved.

Personal Approach

During the sessions, you will guide what we cover and we will go at a pace that works for you. In maths basic understanding is key - so before we do exam questions, we will focus on this. I will use as many different ways (diagrams, words, analogies) as possible to explain a concept until you are confident enough that you can explain it to me (or anyone else... the cat... the goldfish!).

The sessions will be fun – and a lot can be achieved in an hour especially if it is made enjoyable. Maths is amazing, and if you didn’t think that before, you will by the end of the session!

What I do when I am not tutoring

I'm currently tutoring maths full-time but as this is primarily in the evenings I have a lot of time for my other passion: art! I love this set-up and can’t imagine it changing in the next few years.

I am a Leader at a Boys Brigade group. I supervise boys (ages 11-18) in a variety of sports including: Hockey, Football, Basketball and Gymnastics.

When I'm not doing any of these things you can usually find me rock climbing up a cliff face!

Testimonials

Natasha and Svetlana: My daughters Natasha and Svetlana were changing schools. However the maths level at their new school was considerably higher than at their previous school. Over just a few sessions Greg managed to help the girls bridge the gap and greatly improve their confidence in maths. Not only did the girls learn a huge amount they also thoroughly enjoyed the sessions and now have a much more positive attitude towards maths!

Paul: I started being tutored when I was in Year 12 and coming up towards my A-Level exams and I was really far behind in terms of understanding, Greg helped me understand the concepts and problems and I ended up getting a B in my AS Level. I worked a lot on maths in Year 13 and got an A in my A Level and now I’m studying Engineering at the University of Warwick.

Ashley, IB Maths: Goes through and explains things extremely clearly; great examples which can be done to reinforce the understanding. Helped me understand some concepts which I couldn't understand in class!