Additional Needs Tutor & Learning Mentor ~
Unlocking your child's full potential...
Many children benefit from learning in a different way than the teaching format of a regular classroom.
Working as a Private SEN Tutor & Learning Mentor I offer engaging, structured and behavioural support.
I have over ten years of practical experience working alongside children with complex needs, including extreme anxiety, auditory & sensory processing, dyspraxia, dyslexia, dyscalculia, attention deficit hyperactivity and autism.
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One-to-One Lessons
Understanding and regulating emotions and behaviour so that a purposeful learning environment is established.
Motivate and progress pupils’ learning by using clearly structured teaching activities that are accurately matched to your child's learning profiles and ability.
Support and guide children who are experiencing difficulties in learning due to social, emotional or behavioural problems. Promoting and reinforcing a sense of self-esteem and independence.
Provide detailed written feedback on lesson content illustrating the pupil's response to learning activities and pupil behaviour.
About Me
From 2014 to 2019, I supported both the academic and pastoral progress of students in a private school. During this time I assisted pupils to overcome behavioral, social, and emotional problems that affected their learning. In September 2019 I decided to become a full-time Tutor & Learning Mentor focusing on English, Maths & Life Skills.
I have completed the following training/qualifications.
City & Guilds Level 3 NVQ in Advice & Guidance
Care Counselling for Children, Level 2- NCFEIIQ
Mental Well-Being in Children & Young People
Prevent Bullying, Raising Awareness of Peer-On-Peer Abuse
Teaching Assistant & SEN, Managing Behaviour Level 3
The SEND Code of Practice
Dealing with Bereavement & Loss
Child Protection
Child Neglect
Safeguarding Young People
Sexual Violence & Harassment Between Children & Young People
Substance Misuse Risks
The Prevent Duty
Online Safety
Raising Awareness of Honour-Based Abuse and Forced Marriage.
My ADHD son, automatically clicked with Jo when they met, this was really important as he was going be tutored in English which he found difficult to engage with, so to like/trust his tutor meant he would learn well.
Jo was so kind and patient & taught him at his own pace & explained what he needed to know for his English Lang & Lit GCSE in a way he understood.
Happy to report my son passed both his English GCSEs & Jo had a big part to play in this. Thank you so much Jo, we will be forever grateful.
Would you recommend me to your friends?: Yes
I would highly recommend Jo as a tutor. She has been helping my son since he started reception. She's helped him learn to read and he is now a very confident reader. My son enjoys his lessons with Jo and always looks forward to it. Jo provides really useful and regular feedbacks that I find valuable. She is patient and committed to helping her pupils. Thank you for your hardwork Jo.
Would you recommend me to your friends?: Yes
Our child has ASD & Hyperlexia & struggles with comprehension.
He has made great progress working with Jo & she 'gets' him which has not come easy with his teachers. She makes him feel at ease & can reduce his anxiety. She makes the sessions fun & interesting & he always comes out with a sense of achievement.
We highly recommend Jo as a tutor.
Would you recommend me to your friends?: Yes
Gary Prince - Year 5 Parent
“Jo has been working with my son for only 1 full term and the progress has been significant.
His handwriting has improved and he now has confidence in recording his thoughts in a way he never has before. His teacher has also commented on the improvement.
Jo also focuses on emotional development. Although this is a long term goal he has started to open up and recognise his own behaviours and what zones they may be in.
The journey with Jo will continue.
Thank you Jo for all you do.”
Fiona Hunt - Year 2 Parent
I would highly recommend Jo who has been working with our year 8 child for the last year. Jo has been wonderful in helping our dyslexic daughter unlock her potential and have given her confidence to enjoy learning. With Jo's tutoring support, she has even picked up her first book, and read it all by herself this year!
Would you recommend me to your friends?: Yes
Tash Frith
My daughter, now year 11 has been tutored by Jo throughout her GCSE years. It was a godsend to find Jo, she is patient and understanding and has great knowledge of how to teach my daughter in a way she understands due to being dyslexic and having ADHD. We continued learning via Zoom during the lockdowns, which my daughter did find hard but Jo was supportive the whole time. My daughter enjoys her English with Jo, which speaks volumes to us. It was great to find Jo and I would absolutely recommend her as a tutor.
Claire McDonald
I have been searching for about five years to find a tutor who was genuine, caring, and who could encourage and engage my son to learn. He really had lost any interest in learning. I have spent money on other tutors and have been left disillusioned and disappointed. But we have now found Jo and I can honestly say my search is over. From the moment I spoke to her, she understood exactly, and she is just such a lovely person. We have had online lessons whilst in lockdown and we are now having face to face. Over the last few months, Jo has been amazing and I can see that my son has progressed already. Not only in his learning but his confidence and self-esteem. I can't recommend this lady enough; it is so nice to find someone as passionate and determined to help the child she is working with.
Year 7 Parent
Jo has been a wonderful help to A during the first two years of his secondary school. She has worked with him on his skills of comprehension, grammar and spelling.
She has been a massive help to him in catching up two years of lost ground in these areas. She has a lovely, natural and caring manner with him and has built up his confidence hugely. We are so glad that she is working with him!
Year 8 Parent
Jo has been tutoring my Year 10 daughter since the beginning of the year.
She has been such a good influence and invaluable asset to us as she has provided not only educational assistance in various subjects but also excellent pastoral care. Jo has a lovely demeanour. She took time to understand and build a rapport with our teenage daughter, her needs and capabilities. She makes the lessons enjoyable and my daughter likes speaking with Jo. She has been a great support not only to our daughter but to us as parents as she provides prompt feedback as well as ideas on how to help our daughter gain exam skills in the run up to her GCSE year and during lockdown.
Year 10 Parent
Jo has been brilliant with our son who has recently been diagnosed with ADHD. During the first COVID-19 lockdown we were shocked at how much he struggled organising his thoughts onto paper. Verbally he can give intelligent, insightful answers - but his executive functioning issues mean he has significant difficulty in transferring those into a comprehensive written response. This difficulty has significantly affected his self-esteem and confidence in his own ability - especially as his teachers typically see the difference between his verbal reasoning and his written work as "laziness". Jo has been brilliant at building up his confidence and providing him with strategies to transfer his thoughts into a cohesive written form. This has resulted a huge step forward with his approach to his English work, but also with subjects such as History, where he has to provide detailed written responses.
Would you recommend me to your friends?
Yes
Anything else you would like to add?
Our son looks forward to his sessions with Jo and wishes all his teachers made the work as interesting as she does.
Julia Brunning, Year 11 Parent
Jo started tutoring my son just before lock down and they had an immediate rapport. She really gets him! I was loathe to stop a good thing when lock down started but thankfully Jo embraced the current situation and virtual lessons have continued. I can’t stress how much my son has benefited from Jo’s tutoring and her ability to really understand and nurture his learning. He’s gone from barely achieving a score in spellings to smashing it each week by using the Dyslexia method Jo is teaching him.
His Dyslexia diagnosis highlighted his high intelligence yet at school he feels he doesn’t achieve his potential which can be soul destroying. Jo has given him the skills to adapt and learn which in turn has given his confidence a massive boost. I can’t rate Jo highly enough.
Year 6 Parent
In February 2020 I took my daughter out of full-time education to be homeschooled because she was suffering from ASD, SPD, and extremely high anxiety at her school. At the time, the LA was not helping her at all so I was left with no choice but to try and home educate her.
To be honest I didn’t have a clue what I was doing!!......
Then I got recommended Jo Sylvester.
Jo you have been so amazing working with Olivia over zoom lessons, Olivia is now happy to try and start year 7 ( in a new school! )
This is all down to you Jo; you understood Olivia and took each lesson at Olivia’s own pace and gained Olivia’s confidence.
Olivia’s self-esteem has come on loads thanks to Jo taking the time to believe in her.
Although Olivia is going to try back at school we will still be seeing Jo for extra help,
we can’t let her go now we have found her.
You have been amazing with Olivia; she now enjoys learning again. Thanks so much, you’re a wonderful lady.
Rachel Thomson
We would like to share with everyone how lucky we are that a friend recommended Jo. Our son James who is ten years old was diagnosed at two with Autism. It has been a very long journey from this point to now. We can’t imagine finding a better person as Jo to helping James. Jo’s understanding of children with difficulties has had a huge impact with helping our child with his education as well as his manor.
With Jo’s huge help James has made a massive progress in school and he now works alongside and sometimes ahead of his peers in the classroom. He would never have been able to achieve this without Jo’s help. At the moment James is ready for secondary school. Thank you Jo.
Would you recommend me to your friends?: Yes
Beata & Steve
Jo has been providing my son who has Down Syndrome with online tutoring since the beginning of lockdown. She quickly assessed his abilities & took it from there.
She has been absolutely amazing! Keeping him engaged for the entire session & adjusting to his needs. She’s so lovely & always ready for a quick laugh, then back to work. She has loads of experience & clearly enjoys engaging with the students.
We are so impressed with his progress. Can’t wait for his 1-2-1 sessions. Can highly recommend Jo for tutoring, wish we had found her sooner. X
Jenni Modes-Samouilhan
The impact of Tailored Tutoring was evident almost instantly with our daughter’s confidence and self-esteem. Jo has given Jessica the confidence to approach new learning with a positive outlook and has used different teaching methods to suit her individual needs. Jessica’s ability to now approach tasks independently, with strategies in place, has improved significantly and we are very grateful. She loves her time with Jo and always comes out beaming and happy. We can’t thank you enough.
Year 3 Parent
Jo has been absolutely amazing with my little boy! I cannot praise her enough for her work, knowledge and understanding towards him. He has become so much more confident and is enjoying learning both at home and school. He loved going and always told me what he had done. Jo is such a lovely lady and always made my little boy so comfortable. Highly recommended!!
Gemma Fry
We have only used Jo on a few occasions over the summer holidays but already we have had an incredibly positive experience and look forward to having more sessions with her!
Would you recommend me to your friends?: Yes
Lara Mullins
What a difference Jo has made to my son. Through the power of insightful questions, honesty, and structured learning, she has built a wonderful rapport. I'd highly recommend Jo and the difference she can make, even with challenging children.
Paul Webb
I’d like to say that Joanna is a fantastic tutor. My daughter goes happily to her session every time and she asked for an additional day!! We are very pleased with her progress and with Joanna's support she will be fully prepared for Secondary school. Thank you!!
Year 6 Parent
Jo has just provided an hour of tutoring for each of my kids over Skype. My 8 year old ASD boy, and anxious 5 year old daughter. Jo is the most amazing tutor and has a wonderful rapport with both the children. The Skype session worked brilliantly. I’m so glad my kids can continue to interact with Jo at this crazy time.
Kathy Wilkins
Since Sept 2020 My Yr. 6 daughter has been tutored by Jo, Jo is a lovely fun person and makes learning exciting which gives my daughter confidence in her ability & achievements in learning. Since Sept I can see such an improvement. I would highly recommend Jo. 👍
Lorraine Milsom
Jo has been working with my year 5 son since the autumn of 2020 and throughout the current lockdown. I was very worried as to whether my son would engage or communicate in the lessons, but Jo has persevered and continued to support him, and he has improved so much. My son looks forward to the online lessons and engages with all the tasks.
Recommended to friends.
Salina
Highly recommend Jo. My daughter is home educated and has an anxiety disorder and Asd. Jo has made her feel so comfortable and safe. She loves learning with Jo and always looks forward to seeing her.
Louise-Amanda Jones
Jo has brought her wealth of experience in dealing with children/anxieties to the role of supporting (pupil). Jo has had a reflective approach to her role, always wanting to adapt and improve in support of (pupil). She has taken time to prepare excellent resources and she has directly contributed to the success (pupil) has had with securing the year 1 curriculum in English and Mathematics, also now moving on into year 2. Her experience, patience and initiative has been instrumental in supporting (pupil) to begin to deal with anxieties and to be more prepared to make mistakes and accept advice. Jo has performed above expectations in level of detail/accuracy independently given to plans and observations. Also going the extra mile to research and experiment with new resources.”
Head of Learning - Private School.
Having worked with Jo for many years in education, I am more than comfortable recommending her as a tutor. Jo is able to build a solid rapport with students of all ages and assist them to reach their potential by providing them with techniques to assist their learning. She has a relaxed but professional manner and is patient with students giving them time to develop skills at their own pace. I have been impressed by the progress that those under her professional care have made and the confidence with which they are able to approach their studies following her support.
Rebecca Mackay, Former Employer
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