"Hello! My name is Matt and I am a local math tutor. I am an Arizona certified former middle/high school math teacher & "interventionist" (5 years) who has taught courses ranging from Pre-Algebra to Statistics. In a formal teacher evaluation I was scored into the top category, 'Highly Effective Teacher.'

As a tutor, my focus is helping students arrive at a feeling of autonomy in navigating their math courses. Any number of factors can lead to falling behind in a math class. I work to identify knowledge gaps and explain things in a way that builds confidence.

There are over 350 math standards (from the Arizona Department of Education) that make up the core K-12 math courses. While very arguably not all of these standards need to be mastered, there are certain core competencies that, if not adequately developed, will likely continue to create mental “drag” and inhibit a student’s ability to learn new math topics. These include competencies such as (1) arithmetic fluency (e.g., mastering addition/subtraction by 4th grade, multiplication by 5th grade, etc.), (2) “number types” (fractions, negatives, decimals), and (3) algebraic manipulation (i.e., working with expressions and equations).

By identifying and addressing any missing/underdeveloped competencies students not only: (a) become able to learn topics which they otherwise would not have been able to (e.g., knowledge of multiplication being necessary to understanding exponents), but also (b) free up space in their working memories to last them their entire math careers (i.e., now every time multiplication comes up a student does not have to use up their mental space and energy to recall multiplication facts or lose momentum by going for a calculator - factors which may be the difference between successfully learning a new topic and becoming mentally overloaded)." less...