IBDP Chemistry and Biochemistry Examiner, HL, SL, and DP Chemistry Curriculum Reviewer; Holds Ph.D. in Chemical Sciences and Bachelors in Chemistry with 6+ Years of Teaching Experience.
IBDP Chemistry and Biochemistry Examiner, HL, SL, and DP Chemistry Curriculum Reviewer; Holds Ph.D. in Chemical Sciences and Bachelors in Chemistry with 6+ Years of Teaching Experience.
Ph.D. Candidate in Chemical Sciences
Bachelor Science in Chemistry
Diploma in Virtual Education
I believe in the powerful capacity to amaze to create the necessity for learning. I love to teach using day-by-day examples, letting them know that science is more than just assignments, that science is a window to see wonderful phenomena beyond our imagination and the best way to do that is by building bonds with the students, and creating a safe environment where any question is allowed, and any answer is a step forward to the truth.
First I introduce myself, then I ask him/her to introduce himself and tell me what his/her favorite hobby is. I then use this information to make examples or explain things about science through his hobby. I ask what task he/she is having trouble with and what strategies he has used to solve it. Then we go through a couple of similar exercises where I give him/her all the tools to solve the problem and he/she has to use them to solve the problem using his/her imagination.
Enhancing the use of critical and creative thinking skills to analyze and take responsible action on complex problems. And using exercises that encourage reasoning rather than just answering the question.
Give them a couple of minutes to break using topics of interest to them to keep them focused, but at the same time avoid overwhelming them with too much information. Also, trying to make them laugh at every opportunity is a great strategy.
The best option is to change the strategy to explain a similar subject. With this, I run a diagnosis to know if the difficulty is due to a basic misunderstanding of a subject or if the concept is abstract. In the first case, I give him/her the tools to build a better idea about this phenomenon, and second, I search for day-by-day examples that help them to see the problem with a different focus
My favorite strategy is teaching thinking strategies. I read with them each sentence of the question aloud. Meanwhile, I ask questions about what is telling us each sentence and I open a discussion about the general and main idea of the assignment and highlight the keywords. If it is possible, I try to connect this idea to a personal experience of my student to help him/her understand the question and encourage them to propose a solution to the problem.
Create a safe environment that allows them to make mistakes and learn from them. That encourages participation and self-esteem. Letting them focus only on the problem and not on the opinion of their analysis.
I show them that everything is possible with the right analysis, confidence, and serenity. So I break the problem into pieces that are easier to assimilate than the entire assignment. Also, I let them know that I also struggled with that problem or subject when I was a student, and finally, I teach them the keys to understanding everything flawlessly.
I ask tricky questions where is easy to get confused if you don't have the perfect understanding of the problem.
Acknowledging their efforts and congratulating them on their actions. Also, it is often effective to challenge them with increasingly complex problems to build in them the confidence to solve complex problems.
I openly ask them where they feel they are failing and how that makes them feel. In this way, I create a plan to nurture the qualities they feel vulnerable to and help make them self-sufficient.
Every mind is a new universe, that's why I focus to meet them first. Recognizing their strengths and weaknesses is the best way to build a strategy suitable for them.
Graphic tables, periodic tables, simulators, formula generators, graphs, and my hands... I make many gestures with my hands.
Carlos was very kind and very helpful in preparing me for my IB chemistry exams. During our session, he was very supportive. We managed to cover a variety of topics with only one session. I feel like he did help me perform better on my final exams!
Thank you Carlos. My son was happy after taking MYP Chemistry lesson with you.