• Before meeting a student, it is very difficult to understand what level of knowledge he has, what teaching aids use, and so on. Therefore, it is important to ask as many questions as possible before class. If you have a lesson with a schoolchild, ask the parents how long the child has been studying English at school, what grades he has, whether he has any difficulties in doing homework, whether he has ever studied with a tutor before. Be sure to ask what textbooks your child uses at school, this will help you figure out which topics the student is currently studying at school and which ones have already been covered.
• If you are going to study English with an adult student, the most important thing is to find out the purpose of the study. Maybe a person has got or is going to get a job where English is required, perhaps even preparation for passing some kind of certificate is necessary. In this case, you will need to focus on grammar and writing. If a person just wants to improve his language a little for traveling, then the main time of the lessons should be devoted to conversational practice.
• When preparing for the first lesson, try to select as many diverse tasks as possible to test the student’s knowledge in different aspects. You can even create a short test with tasks for listening, reading, writing and grammar. Then you will have a better chance of understanding the student's level of knowledge.
• When you first meet a student, try to get in touch with him right away. Behave kindly and attentively with your child, ask what problems he has in learning English, look at his textbooks and notebooks to understand how the child studies at school. With an adult, you can start the lesson with a short interview, during which you can find out more about the person’s work, hobbies, and goals for his education. This will help you relax, and at the same time give you more information to prepare for further classes. If the student’s level of knowledge allows, it is better to speak English, at least partially.
• If your student is a preschooler or elementary school student, try to prepare the first lesson in such a way that it contains more interactive material: educational videos, songs, cards, games. Grammar assignments for students of this age should also be presented in a playful way; explain the rules using cards, books with beautiful, attractive pictures. This way the child will immediately develop an interest in English language.
• At the end of a lesson with your child, be sure to give him homework for the next lesson. Immediately explain to the student how important his independent work is, and that this way he will be able to achieve success in learning English much faster. Adults can print out a book to read, for example from the Cambridge English Readers series. Usually these are either detective stories or small exciting stories. At the next lesson, it will be possible to discuss the chapter read in the form of a retelling and questions about the text. This is excellent conversation practice and an opportunity to learn new words.
• A properly conducted first lesson will create a positive impression of you. Further in the learning process, the main thing is not to lower your standards, continuing to select interesting materials for both adults and young students.

The first thing I asked my ward’s mother was: does HE want to learn the language, or is it mom and dad who are eager for their son to be in business? She looked at me respectfully and assured me that the boy was dreaming about this, that he was studying with a teacher who urgently left, and the child really didn’t want to give up learning English.

As I realized later, my question is very the right step for those who are starting a “career” as a tutor. Unfortunately, I realized later that my mother would always say, “Of course he wants to.” How things really stand is a more complicated story.

We started with a simple textbook for children - the most accessible and at the same time rich vocabulary, classical exercises. We studied twice a week, and I immediately said that this was the minimum for the language to be absorbed. At first everything went quite well - my student taught and worked conscientiously, and even called me “you,” even though I was much younger than his young mother. Having studied English quite intensively since the age of seven, I decided that to follow the classical scheme - transcription, alphabet, basic grammar, reading and translation skills - this optimal step so that the child has fundamental knowledge.

After about a month, classes were reduced to one per week. As a rule, there were good reasons for skipping the second one. Homework was completed before going to class, and oral assignments were completely ignored. Therefore, attempts to learn texts, dialogues and just words were unsuccessful. He clearly had no desire to study anything, and I lost the desire to teach anything. At one of the classes, he said that it was the last one, since the holidays were coming soon. After them, he didn’t show up at all.

IN next year I started training with three girls. One admitted that English is not her element, but it’s necessary, it’s necessary. And I tried to find an approach to it, moved away from the textbook and took up the texts - in order to master everything - reading, pronunciation, and translation. Her level was very weak, and taking this into account, I took a Russian fairy tale to begin with (much simpler!). It was later that I realized that nowadays, at the age of 13, this is not even interesting for them to translate - access to the Internet and communication with maturing peers gives them much more interesting and piquant information.

The other two girls were quite smart and diligent, quickly grasping and showing interest in everything that was happening. I set myself the goal of not being a strict teacher, but an assistant. And at first we succeeded - they studied everything with pleasure, we diluted the process with funny stories, tied it to English. At the same time, they could gossip with me about school life and show off your new blouse. Keeping your distance turned out to be difficult. Soon they began to be interested in my personal life, and I realized that you also need to be a friend in moderation.

It’s good that such experience is not only teaching, it is also everyday. I'm glad I gave these children what I could. And that they took what they could and wanted. Now I don't tutor, and I know exactly why. And that’s why I know what advice to give to those who would benefit from it.

Immediately determine your role for yourself - teacher, friend, mentor - who you will be for him. Of course, this role will become clear in the process of work, but you cannot rush from one extreme to another - here to be kind, and here to be strict. Let me remind you that Mary Poppins was distinguished by enviable constancy... But, being a classical teacher, do not create a wall between you, otherwise it will be difficult to understand each other. And, choosing a role good friend, don’t let it sit on your neck.

Decide on the choice of training strategy. The younger the student, the more variety and playful elements can be introduced into the study of the subject; a computer and audio recordings can be good helpers. Just don't lose the essence of the language in recreational activities. Your main goal is to teach your child the basics, not to play games with him. Teenagers are more adapted to perceive a serious format. Enter your own assessment system - although this is not a school, assessments create an incentive.

And, of course, be an example for them - develop and improve. Show that you are working on yourself and your knowledge, that you are a master of your craft. Don't be afraid to give constructive criticism, be fair in your assessments and generous with praise.

… Main. Successful work is collaboration, when you invest and feel the return. Therefore, in addition to advice, I have one big wish - smart, diligent and grateful students!

Pauline
Russian language tutor

“I was studying with a student, and everything seemed to be fine, but one day I came, her brother opened the door, with the words “Come in, but Masha is not at home.” I pass by and see their mother, who is trying to find Masha. After half an hour and about a dozen unanswered calls, an SMS arrives: “So today is it really? Tomorrow?” What amazes me most about stories like this is the students themselves. Each time I ask them to write down the class time in their notebooks and set a notification on their phone. How do they manage to survive until grades 9–11 with such irresponsibility? We worked with her for a short time. The last straw was the situation when I arrived at her class, as usual, and she opened the door in a dressing gown: “Didn’t your mother call you? I'm sick." It’s not entirely clear why she herself was unable to call or write.”

Irina
English tutor

“There was a not very adequate woman who wanted me to work with her five-year-old child. At the same time, she taught me how to conduct a lesson, she was going to attend the lesson and bring the children of her friends to it - that is, it was no longer an individual lesson, but a group. The most fun thing about this was the payment: 350 rubles for half an hour, despite the fact that they had to study at their home, which was still a bus ride from the metro. In general, I refused under the pretext of a busy schedule.”

Susanna
Italian language tutor

“I studied with two sisters: the eldest was 20 years old, the youngest was 12. Initially, it was agreed that I would teach only the eldest, and then I was confronted with the fact that both would study. Their age difference is significant, and a completely different approach is needed here, but no one listened to me. Since I was just starting, I didn’t dare refuse. They were strange, in class, like first-graders, they laughed at Italian words. And once a class was canceled five minutes before the start - considering that it took an hour and a half to get to them (by metro, then by tram and then on foot), and it was quite late in the evening.”

Good pre-winter day everyone!

Autumn is coming to an end, there is an incomprehensible snowfall outside, and your phone suddenly rings and, having picked up the receiver and getting ready to refuse to take out a loan or do a very necessary procedure in a beauty salon, you hear that someone is eager to learn a language, and certainly under your sensitive leadership.

What to do and where to run?

Let's try to figure out what to talk about on the phone and what to do on first lesson in English.

Telephone conversation

I always try to discuss points that concern me over the phone in order to understand whether we can cooperate or not. And the answer will be negative if:
1) does not fit time or place conducting classes;
2) not satisfied price;
3) target the student’s learning does not coincide with my goals in teaching (for me this is when a mother wants me and my child to do homework in English or an adult declares that he will only talk, without tedious rules and memorization of words);
4) at the other end of the line they speak as if I have already done something should to the caller.

If everything suits us, we agree on the place and time of the first lesson. I warn you that the purpose of the first meeting There will be a determination of your language level, it is free and lasts about 40 minutes. You need to take a notepad and pen with you.
I’ll also learn how a student can determine his or her level of knowledge in order to know what level of material to prepare. As a rule, adults assess their capabilities quite adequately, while with schoolchildren one cannot be sure of anything.

It happens that parents say: “We’ve been studying with a tutor for two years, but she can’t study with us anymore, so we turned to you,” I prepare A2 level materials, come to class - and the child can barely read, and say he can’t do almost anything... The student feels embarrassed for not meeting my expectations, his mother sees his discomfort and also begins to worry... It’s a stupid situation, I usually try to encourage him in every possible way to smooth out this moment, otherwise after the first meeting there will be an unpleasant impression.

First meeting

If the first lesson is at a student’s place, I always leave early and try to dress more formally in order to make a good impression, it will determine the opinion of the teacher for a long time. When we get to know each other better, we can wear torn jeans and a T-shirt...

We made an impression, let’s proceed directly to the lesson:

1. We start the meeting with dialogue. I have never seen a single student who cannot speak English at all. Before the conversation, I tell you to speak English as they say, without being afraid of making mistakes. If he doesn’t understand or doesn’t know something, let him speak Russian.
   I ask standard questions: How are you? What's the name? Where do you study/work? What does he like to do in free time? If I see that I am coping well, I ask about the purpose of the study and wishes for conducting classes in English; if not, in Russian. (Accordingly, if there is a schoolchild in front of me, I ask this question to the parents, who always sit next to me during the first lesson).
2. Next I give vocabulary and grammar test(about 20 questions), for about 5 minutes. (If the student is an adult, I can email him before the meeting so as not to waste time in class.
   It is better to save the results in a separate folder specifically dedicated to students. For what? If during training the popular phrase “we’ve been studying for six months now, but I don’t feel like I’ve made any progress in learning the language” comes up, show it every time I hear it. This is especially popular among Unified State Examination students; recently one wrote me a sample for 86 points (versus 72 points six months ago), and still the same song: “I know the language worse than before”...
3. While I'm reviewing the test, I give a small text for reading-comprehension, with post-text speaking tasks and ideally with listening tasks, where the ending of the story is written (for example, for adults I like the text about the hotel with a ghost from lesson 6B New English File Elementary).

After all the manipulations, I say what the student’s level is (as a rule, the dialogue-test-text repeats the same thing in unison, but there are also cases when the student understands what he read and writes the test well, but can say almost nothing and understands poorly by ear ), and which textbook and why we will choose. When choosing a textbook, I focus not only on the level of knowledge, but also on the tasks assigned to us.

At the end, I ask you to once again express any wishes for conducting classes and, for my part, I warn you that:

• at cancellation of class(sick, work, urgent matters) must be reported 24 hours in advance. If a lesson is canceled more than three times in six months right before the lesson, I transfer it to prepayment and increase the price. If I cancel a lesson (due to my or a child’s illness), we can reschedule it at the student’s request for the weekend or a window in my schedule;
• at unfinished homework(more than three times in six months) we break up. I don't believe in progress without independent work. I can make an exception for adults, who may not do their homework for one lesson and we chat with them the entire lesson, but for the second they do double the amount;
• raise the price I won’t study for a year (unless, of course, my goal changes - I suddenly want to pass the exam), and if I decide to promote from the next academic year, I will report this three months in advance;
• if the student has something don't like it during the lesson, you want to focus on some type of activity or any other doubts arise - all complaints are accepted and considered.

Results

It's just great if you have a business card with coordinates. It looks professional and makes it clear that you take your business seriously. I keep wanting to make one for myself, I even came up with a design, but I just can’t get around to it.

Over time, at the first meeting, it becomes clear whether the person is serious. This helps to avoid that feeling when you allocated a place in the schedule, prepared for classes, tried to captivate and entertain... and after a vacation or vacation it disappears irrevocably, leaving an unpleasant aftertaste in your soul.

I don’t want to end the article on a sad note, so I’ll say that the percentage of students who go nowhere is small - two students left me in a year. When I remember our first meetings, I understand that I wouldn’t waste time now. The first one said bluntly over the phone, “Your place is expensive,” but still started studying, the second one told me every lesson: “I like everything, I’m ready to study and do everything,” and also disappeared after the holidays.
There are much more of those who come by word of mouth, so look at everything philosophically - “when one door closes, another will certainly open.”
Everyone New Year's mood and good luck!

P.S. I am writing about the first lesson with those who are going to prepare for the Unified State Exam or Unified State Exam.