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Grainne

11+, 13+, 7+, 9+, Autism / SEN, Drama, Dyslexia, English - 11+, English - 13+, English to A-Level, French, History - GCSE, Italian, Maths - 11+, Maths - 13+, Music, Primary, Religious Studies

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Profile

With over 20 years teaching experience, and 15 years in tutoring, I’ve helped countless amounts of students (and parents) in the SE London area. Being a tutor who is at Educational Consultant level, I’m someone who not only can bring students forward educationally, but also bring them forward emotionally. By instilling confidence and creating a safe space for learning, my students excel beyond their wildest dreams. I’m particularly gifted at working with students with various SEN (dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADHD are common in the students I’ve helped) and those who have fallen behind and through the cracks of the educational system. It is quite usual for me to be given students who have been let down by the school system, and to bring them to 11+ success at all of their chosen schools. 

Take S, a student with severe undiagnosed dyslexia until Year 5, who started off our sessions unwilling to engage. Recently his mother wrote: 

“It was so helpful when you had that chat with S and myself a few weeks ago. Where he realised it wasn’t just me thinking certain things. That support was so appreciated. 

This audition for [school of choice] has been a big learning/developing curve. The fear, the avoidance, the understanding of what’s going on in him, the change in mindset needed to overcome the fear and engage in what he does have control over, to practise, to let go of I want this outcome and if that can’t be guaranteed I won’t do it. 

My god it wasn’t easy but he got there. He listened and took it in and he came out of the audition pleased and happy. This evening I received the letter that he has received a full music scholarship. He’s delighted!”  

S is not an unusual case – this is a normal result for me. I always look at what is unique in a student’s personality, dig a little into what has been happening on their learning journey and build upon where they are while fostering confidence that they can achieve their goals. It’s also important in my methodology to work as part of a team with parents, so we are all rowing the boat in the same direction! 

I work primarily with students on entrance examinations, even at very short notice. An example of this is L, a student that went from barely passing their Maths exams, to gaining entrance to a prestigious SE London school – with only 6 weeks of tutoring! I also work with GCSE and A-Level students on specific subjects. I tutor exclusively online as I have found it to be by far the most effective way to tutor, including in terms of results. Please don’t just take my word for it – numerous parents have attested to this – please see a small sample below. The way I teach not only improves students’ narrative academically – it often changes their lives radically at an emotional level. It gives me great joy to see my students thrive and parents often come back to me for further tutoring, sometimes for younger siblings - because what I do works. 

Testimonials

I want to thank Grainne for helping my daughter pass the 11plus and get offers at the highly competitive schools she went for in quite a short space of time. My daughter really enjoyed the online sessions, which Grainne always made fun and interesting. She is kind, patient and gives lots of positive encouragement, which has helped my daughter reach her potential and build her confidence, particularly with interview technique. Thank you!

Reviewed by: C.F.

I also agree that Paris’ singing has come on leaps and bounds and really do feel Grainne should receive the praise for her fantastic vocal training.

Reviewed by: C. Hale

Thank you so much for appointing Grainne as a tutor to my daughter. In a space of 4 months she has made a big difference. My daughter felt comfortable with Grainne from day one and said she understood everything so much better than she had with her previous tutor. She has now taken all 4 entrance exams that she wanted to and has already been called back for an interview for one! Thank you Grainne for bringing out the best in my daughte

Reviewed by: N. K.

Grainne is an outstanding tutor. Not only is she on top of her subject (in our case, Maths), she is also expert in making sessions fun and calming nerves. She gave my daughter vital support before entrance tests exams, boosted her confidence immensely and taught her relaxation techniques that will serve her well for the years ahead

Reviewed by: L.B.

Grainne has the key to unlock your child’s potential. My son benefitted greatly from his sessions with her as Grainne was able to find and fill the gaps in his knowledge in all areas required to sit the SATs and entrance exams for secondary schools. What was so amazing was that all sessions were held online, and at every session, Grainne had him engaged from the second the session started. That’s a gift! Grainne is so approachable and kind and I can do nothing but highly recommend her.

Reviewed by: K.W.

Gráinne tutored my daughter in Music GCSE. We both felt a lot was achieved in terms of topic knowledge in a short space of time and she was highly professional, passionate about her subject and always punctual.

Reviewed by: C.K.

We highly recommend Grainne. She has a wonderful, friendly-but-firm manner and prove to be extremely reliable and consistently provided weekly progress updates. Most importantly, she made learning positive, fun and something our 10-year old looked forward to (on a Sunday too!) Not only did Grainne equip our son with all the additional academic skills he needed for school entrance exams, she gave him the confidence to approach these without any fear.

Reviewed by: L & G W

Grainne was wonderful! She was really upbeat, proactive and picked up exactly where L needed to focus his attentions on for the upcoming test. I was very pleased she came to give an injection of energy. She worked him pretty hard and gave him some good tips. She engaged very well with L who initially was nervous to have a new teacher, but she worked gently through this. I must say I would highly recommend her.

Reviewed by: A.C.

The summer before our daughter’s exams Gráinne woke us up to the reality that our daughter had a lot of work to do to pass her 11+ to boarding school. Gráinne set us up with a realistic learning plan that we followed, and it worked! Gráinne gave our daughter a great sense of motivation and she enjoyed her lessons.

Reviewed by: L.M.

Gráinne tutored our elder son for English in the 18 months leading up to his 11+ exams. Right from the first session, she instinctively knew how to spark J’s interest and motivation. She was engaging, encouraging, positive and patient. Gráinne made learning and improving fun; not a chore. J’s writing, in particular, improved dramatically over the course of his 18 months with Gráinne. The confidence she instilled in him meant he went into his final 11+ English exam undaunted and positive about having to write for 50 minutes. He / we were delighted that he was offered a place there – his / our first-choice school. Gráinne also tutored our younger son in English and Maths for 6 months for 9+ entry. He is a very different character, but she easily adapted her style of tutoring to engage and challenge him, quickly identifying any gaps in his knowledge and bringing out the best in his skills. He was also offered a place at his / our first-choice school. We cannot recommend Gráinne highly enough and are hugely grateful for the positive impact her involvement had on our boys.

Reviewed by: R.W.

I can safely say that without Grainne's advice, knowledge and patience with our son he wouldn't have got to this stage at 4 of the hardest entrance exams in London. Thank you Grainne. 

(Interview offers from Dulwich College, Alleyns, Emanuel and City of London Boys.)

Reviewed by: A.V.

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