MY APPROACH
MY APPROACH
I carefully assess where my students have gaps in their knowledge and then build on them through grammar and vocabulary. I therefore give my students the building blocks to create their own sentences in writing and speech.
I work with their textbooks but also provide my own material to make lessons more interesting. I also use interactive material as well as focusing on past papers and oral exams to help gain confidence in the language.
I engage well with all my students and make the lessons enjoyable and less like an extension of school.
My conversation classes with adults are always fast-paced and fun, and my students very quickly widen their vocabulary and gain confidence in the new language.
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Pauline Martin
Helen really helped my daughter with her A Level French. Her class at school were largely fluent French speakers and so she lost all confidence. Helen gave her a safe haven to practice and very much built that confidence back. Going back to basics and working on vocabulary and grammar as well as focussing on all aspects of the course was just what she needed. Helen was not only patient and kind but really made learning fun. Highly effective too as my daughter passed her A Level with flying colours despite languages not coming naturally and on a recent holiday in France she really impressed us all!
Ivy Wilson
Helen has been a huge help for my A-Level French, which I didn’t realise at the time was such a huge step up from GCSE. I always loved going to her house for a warm, nurturing approach to tutoring and a lovely chat every time! Sylvester the cat was obviously also a big motivator and very helpful assistant to Helen! Thanks to her help I was able to go from a position of little confidence in my French ability to more knowledge and competence in my exams after many expert-level grammar sessions.
Alexandra Ashby-Bogoni
Helen has been of enormous help, guiding both of my daughters through their A levels. My eldest achieved the grades she needed to get into her first-choice university and my second was similarly supported throughout lockdown and ended up with an A* which helped secure her place at the same institution. Both girls credit Helen with being one of the main reasons for their success. Helen has always been approachable, supportive and rigorous in her methodology, making sure that no grammatical error was left unreported and all vocabulary checked and learnt. I was particularly struck by Helen’s attention to detail and ability to go above and beyond, when my daughter told me that she had contacted the son of the author of “Un Sac de Billes,” (the set text she was studying for A level) and had been able to arrange a zoom call with him for the benefit of her entire LVI class! That was truly impressive. I would highly recommend Helen to anyone looking for a friendly, thorough and knowledgeable language tutor who is willing to go that extra mile.
Anon
I started coming to Helen before my GCSEs for help with French and German speaking. She was immediately welcoming and put me at ease, and our lessons then developed into help across all of the core language skills. She gave me invaluable confidence for my speaking exams in particular, which was immensely helpful as my nerves were holding me back. I got high 9 grades in both GCSEs. I returned to Helen for help with French A-level speaking and essay writing - two areas where there is a huge step up from GCSE. Helen helped me break my research and essay plans into manageable chunks, which made the process less daunting and more focussed. With all the disruption from COVID, Helen was a calming, supportive and enthusiastic presence - I always looked forward to our lessons, in-person and online. I got an A* in my A-level, and am off to read Modern and Medieval Languages at Cambridge. Thank you Helen!
Anon
My son needed some help with iGCSE French and German speaking; he was good at both subjects but was very nervous and this was affecting his performance. Helen was recommended to me by a friend whose son she was already helping. Helen was very open to an initial discussion of my son's particular needs and personality, and how she might approach and help him individually; this was crucial and meant that, after his initial session, he was keen to go back. She helped grow his confidence in the speaking exams and generally, with invaluable revision support. He got high 9s in both exams, and took both forward to A level. My son returned to Helen during A level French; the step up to A level was exacerbated by Covid disruption. Again Helen helped him with his speaking exam, and also in distilling lengthy French resources into key essay points. She was a great support, online and in person. He got a high A* and is off to study French and German at university. I would have no hesitation in recommending Helen, for both academic and personal support tailored to her individual pupils - exactly what you would want in a tutor.
Maggie Zolinsky
Helen tutored my son Daniel for GCSE French and he achieved a 9 grade. She was a fabulous and excellent tutor – she quickly established the areas he needed to work on (which was grammar and the listening skills) and helped him to improve very quickly. She made the lessons very enjoyable, and gave a realistic amount of homework. Daniel looked forward to her sessions each week. She was also very flexible and understanding when on the odd occasion we needed to adjust the lesson times. When asked, my son acknowledges openly that she was the reason he achieved his Grade 9. She taught him French grammar so he could understand it! He is going to continue taking lessons with her when he can. Helen was highly recommended to me by one of my students who achieved an A* for her A level French. I warmly recommend her to you as a superb French Tutor.
Jack Fenner
Having received a rather poor result in my mock IB French exam, in particular I found myself especially struggling with the oral components. After being recommend to Helen by a friend I was very pleased by her original, fun and above all effective approaches to teaching. While I am yet to receive a grade for my exam, I am certain that Helen’s help will have improved my result dramatically from my mock. Above all her lessons have allowed me to better appreciate and enjoy the language, inspiring me to continue my study into the future!
I first started going to Helen before my IGCSE exam as I struggled with elements of French grammar After a few sessions, my confidence grew and I had a much better understanding of the more technical elements of the French language. She is well equipped with past examination papers for a range of qualifications and exam boards and I found this very useful, especially when approaching my AS exam and likewise my A2 exam. The best thing about Helen’s teaching approach is that she is informal and it is a very relaxed environment in which to learn and to ask questions. She also has the cutest cat called Arthur who is very friendly and loves a cuddle.
Max Coperman
I first started going to Helen about 7 months before my IB French Higher Level exam. I went to her because although French was my best subject and I had chosen to study it at university, I was struggling with the challenging IB Reading Papers. With weekly lessons, we picked apart countless texts taken from Helen's vast collection of IB past papers. Helen's laid-back style and encouragement meant that the lessons were extremely engaging. Soon I was not only more confident and able to tackle the papers, but I also had an exam strategy that Helen had helped me devise. I'm sure that her help was a major factor in me succeeding to achieve the French IB requirements I needed to get into university. I'm very grateful to Helen and I most definitely recommend her!
PFE
Helen is a friendly language teacher who makes the lessons fun. Whether it's end of year exams, public exams or entrance exams, Helen knows how to help. According to my son, "she has lots of exam tips". Helen always did her utmost to fit us in, when we needed lessons. With her experience and encouraging approach, she can take their languages to a higher level.
Sadia Naeem
My children started French classes with Helen during the summer holidays about 3 years ago. Her teaching style was very engaging and interesting. At the time, my daughter Rubaab was struggling with the subject however she enjoyed Helen’s lesson tremendously which piqued her interest and led her to take GCSE French.
They both got on very well and struck a great rapport. Helen was very patient and knew exactly how to teach her. In time, she not only helped her in French but also developed her confidence and love for the language...
Rubaab through her hard work and Helen’s guidance, not only got an A* in her GCSEs but she also scored the highest in the country. This would not have been possible without Helen’s dedication and support in encouraging excellence within my child.
Thank you Helen…You have not only been a teacher but also a mentor to my daughter.
Sam Kemp
As someone who struggled with French from primary school, Helen’s teaching style not only helped me pass my French IB school end of year exams, but also provided me with a much more solid foundation from which to learn than I received from school classes. This meant I was learning new grammatical structures and rules against a linguistic background that made sense to me. The informality of the sessions allowed me to voice any misunderstandings and admit to my (numerous!) mistakes. Helen’s expertise in all of the IB language papers I took meant every class was directed towards an end product, to the extent that Helen also helped with my application to read languages at Cambridge and helped me consolidate what I learnt during my first year.
Sarah C
Helen has taught all 3 of my children at various stages to get them through Common Entrance Scholarship, GCSEs and AS French levels. They all enjoyed her lessons and asked for more sessions. She helped with grammar, orals and knew exactly what each child needed. Mostly though she did wonders for their confidence. I would highly recommend her.
Sheila Culleton
My daughter Rebecca is not a natural linguist - Helen managed, I'm not quite sure how, to turn a very poor mock GCSE German grade into a respectable and pleasing B grade this summer. Excellent teaching, thank you.
Carolyn Seymour
With AS French looming just a couple of months away, my daughter Tamsin, despite being at a high-performing school and having been fast-tracked to sit the exam a year early, had lost all confidence in the subject. Helen was recommended to us and within a few lessons her vocabulary and knowledge of grammar had increased enormously, but perhaps the most obvious improvement was in her spoken French. Tamsin was suddenly fluent, articulate and had regained her confidence. Helen’s teaching style was not only engaging and enthusiastic but she was able to integrate aspects of French culture whilst reinforcing the curriculum and keeping it fun – quite a feat! Thanks Helen for all your help, I am now doing refresher lessons myself with Helen, 30 years after sitting O’ level French!
Andrew Harvey (Vice President, Human Resources, Antalis UK)
As my company is now French-owned and most of the meetings conducted in French, the necessity to learn the language became very important.
As a complete novice, I needed a tutor who could understand my business with its specialised terminology and at the same time encourage me to knuckle down and learn French from the beginning. My job requires me to travel a good deal and therefore lessons needed to slot into my rather erratic schedule. Helen is flexible, cheerful and innovative and put enormous energy into her work. She is positive, clear and a good communicator – all necessary qualities for a tutor. She combines the rather unusual attributes of being an excellent teacher as well as having a strong commercial background - essential requirements for corporate instruction.
Helen Reed
Although my daughter Katherine had opted to study Spanish at school we decided it would be a sensible idea for her to gain a French GCSE simply for the purpose of the CV. We engaged Helen to teach her the full curriculum in one year and not just as a support tutor. Katherine always enjoyed coming to see Helen - the lessons were superbly structured around her individual needs. The smile on her face when those puzzling aspects of grammar were finally unlocked; the immense confidence she gained in her spoken French; the feeling of total preparation when it came to sitting the GCSE - what more can I say?.....only that the whole experience of studying French with Helen has most definitely inspired her and she achieved an A* at GCSE. She is now seriously considering taking French at A level.
Bridget S.
Helen supported my daughter, Lucy, on a weekly basis to enable her to sit her GCSE French in year 9. Lucy was not a linguist by any means, but had been selected to 'fast track' in French. Her confidence was at a low ebb until Helen provided fun, well structured, knowledgeable support. Lucy's confidence shot up, stress at home reduced and she attained an A* in year 9. She then subsequently continued to tutor her for her AS Level. The following year she tutored my other daughter Becky for 2 years in GCSE German where her initial low confidence also massively improved and she achieved an A.
AG
Helen came into our lives at a low point for my daughter - having missed the A grade she desperately wanted (and deserved) in her A level French. They struck up a wonderful rapport and over the 3 months that Helen tutored her, my daughter's confidence returned. She worked hard and consistently and her re-sit result was fantastic - in just 2 papers, she improved on her original mark by some 50 points achieving an extremely respectable overall grade A, well above the A grade threshold.
Our family has remained in touch with Helen and, having just returned from a gap year trip, my daughter is planning to meet up with Helen (and Arthur!) before she starts university in September.
Trudi Kemp
Sam was doing French GCSE a year early and lacked confidence in exam technique, especially for the oral paper. He was ambivalent about a tutor but after one lesson with Helen he asked to go back. After 3 sessions, he came away with an A*! He will most likely be back for help with I.B.
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