VANI S.

Vani is an Ontario Certified Teacher who grew up in Toronto and completed an Honours Bachelor of Arts in English at the University of Toronto. She completed her Bachelor of Education at Niagara University, where she is now pursuing a Masters in Education Leadership and at Ontario Tech University, a Post Graduate Diploma in Education and Digital Technologies. During her teaching internship, Vani has taught at Toronto and Durham District School Boards as well private institutions abroad in Thailand and Australia. During the summer, she coordinates Specialty Camps (Dance, Arts, Cooking, Sports, Gymnastics, etc.) with the City of Toronto Recreation where she trains staff and plans programs that encourage children and youth to participate in diverse interactive experiences. For over 10 years, Vani continues to guide students in grades 6-12, building their knowledge and understanding in language, social sciences, math, science, and basic French. She also works one-on-one with university students and newcomers who require assistance with essay writing, resumes, and career exploration. In her spare time, she enjoys strength training, swimming, calligraphy, reading and performing Indian classical music and dance. Vani believes in building a strong relationship with her students, developing a confident growth mindset and supporting extra-curricular interests through diversity and inclusion, as these are key to each students’ identity, achieving learning goals and ultimate success.

Michael C.

Michael has a Master’s degree in Social Psychology from McMaster University, a BA in Sociology from Ryerson University, and is currently applying for PhD programs in Psychology for Fall 2021.

Michael has been a teaching assistant through his graduate school tenure, where he taught large groups of students (~80+ students per class), but also held countless hours of one-on-one office hours with his students. As a result of being a TA for students not much younger than him, Michael has a uniquely approachable, friendly and understanding nature in his teaching style.

Michael has developed the skill of communicating complicated ideas in concise and understandable ways. Therefore, he is dedicated to giving an engaging and enlightening tutoring experience to any prospective students.

ENRIQUE R.

My name is Enrique Ramirez, I am a French as a Second Language (FSL) and Math teacher from Toronto, Ontario.

 

My Bachelor of Education was conferred as part of the first Consecutive cohort of French teachers trained at the Glendon campus of York University. I also earned my undergraduate double major in French Studies and Math (along with the Trilingual Certificate of Excellence in English, French and Spanish) at the same campus. 

 

I started my Masters of Education (with a focus on math teaching) at the end of August 2020.

 

From October 2019 to June 2020, I completed a work year abroad in southwest France as the official English language assistant and Spanish tutor. My duties principally entailed leading classroom activities and reinforcing the teacher’s lessons, in both the elementary and secondary levels, at “Lycée Jean Taris” in the Bordeaux Academy school board.

 

I look forward to bringing my strengthened French skills to the classroom when I teach FSL (and math in French) along with elementary and junior school subjects in an english or francophone classroom environment.

ANDREW F.

David D

David completed his Specialized Honours Degree in Kinesiology and Health Sciences at York University in 2011. He then pursued his Bachelors of Education at York University in 2012. While at York, David competed on the Varsity Tennis Team and achieved 2 gold medals. He is currently qualified to teach the following subjects: All Primary and Junior subjects, Health and Physical Education, French, ESL, Special Education, Cooperative Education, Religion and Science. His additional qualification courses allow him to teach all the way from primary to the senior level (K – 12).

David is a passionate and devoted teacher who is a Specialist in Health and Physical Education. He is currently teaching Health and Physical Education with the Toronto Catholic District School Board. For the last 10 years, he has devoted his time to working with kids in summer camps, tutoring, and summer school programs within the TCDSB, TDSB, and various private schools. David has many years of experience working with kids who have behavioural challenges, are ESL, and children who have special needs. He has worked with kids who are autistic, non-verbal, ADHD and who possess other learning differences. He has been able to create lessons that meet the needs of all of his students and helps to make learning fun and practical. He is a true believer that all kids have a passion for learning!

David is a huge sports enthusiast and enjoys coaching. He has worked with many kids from beginner to collegiate level athletes in basketball, volleyball, soccer and tennis. David firmly believes that a healthy body allows for a healthy mind!

SHAHRAM A.

Shahram has been quite the globetrotter from an early age. He was born in Tehran, Iran; raised in Copenhagen, Denmark; socialized and educated in Toronto, Canada, which he now refers to as home. To date, Shahram has lived in 6 different countries (Denmark, Canada, Hong Kong, China, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates) and traveled to 62 others.  

Shahram received an Honours Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and Sociology and also a Bachelor of Education from the University of Windsor. Additionally, he completed his Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership and Management with a certificate in International Baccalaureate (IB) Administration from Royal Roads University in Victoria, British Columbia. Prior to making the transition back to Canada, Shahram taught internationally at prestigious private schools for nearly a decade. These schools followed the Ontario, British Columbia and IB curricula and framework. 

As​ an extremely passionate educator, ​Shahram’s teaching experiences have helped him refine a personal teaching philosophy and pedagogy in education that combines the importance of inclusion within the classroom, ongoing feedback, respect, and creating meaningful student-centered lessons. Shahram’s defining characteristic as an educator revolves around the joy, pleasure and passion that ​he receives from teaching beyond the required curriculum. He branches off into various learning atmospheres by becoming actively involved in the development of the ​​whole child.​​ The ‘aha!’ moment in students and seeing everything begin to click for them provides him with an immense pleasure and continuously drives his passion and pedagogy as an educator. It is important to nurture a child’s creative abilities to develop a sense of themselves, understand others and the world around them, and navigate information so that they can confidently take risks and solve problems. ​Reflection​ and ​introspection​ are fundamental components of Shahram’s pedagogy and also his own personal growth and commitment to lifelong learning. 

NICHOLAS P.

Nicholas currently works in the clinical research world within the healthcare industry. He has grown up in Toronto completing a BSc in Biology, MA in Health Communications/Policy, and a PhD in Health Management. Aside from the healthcare industry, Nicholas has recent experience as a lecturer and grader for university courses.
Prior to all his professional endeavours and most importantly, he was a camp counsellor for the City of Toronto summer camps where he discovered his passion for working with children of all ages and diverse backgrounds. Nicholas has supported many groups of children throughout various City of Toronto programs; after school program, pottery instruction, as well as skating lesson instructor. As a mentor Nicholas continues to develop strategies for working with children and helping them achieve all their goals and more.

SAMANTHA T.

Samantha is completing her Bachelor of Secondary Education in English Literature at the University of Alberta. She enjoys sharing her love of literature and language arts with students and helping them develop skills and strategies to find success in their coursework. She currently works one-on-one with several junior high and high school students. Samantha helps her students break down essays and navigate through the writing process.  She also collaborates with students to create individualized writing strategy plans. When she’s not teaching, Samantha enjoys spending time in the outdoors or curled up with a book, a cat and a cup of tea.

STEVIE K.

Stevie has a multitude of academic knowledge in the fields of psychology and education. She has recently graduated from the University of Toronto with a Masters in Education, specializing in Developmental Psychology. She has extensive experience offering one-on-one remedial therapy to kids with learning, cognitive, and emotional difficulties, and supported them in improving and refining their reading, writing, vocabulary, and math skills. This helped her foster a love for teaching and guiding children and adolescents to bettering their education and themselves. Moreover, she has comprehensive experience helping students organize their thoughts, and plan for their academic futures. Stevie believes that building a strong relationship with her students allows her to better understand and meet their learning needs, as well as understand how they process information. She has always had a passion for working with children, and this passion will only grow stronger through you being apart of her Prep Academy tutoring experience!

SIMON M.

Simon has a Masters Degree in Education focused on Curriculum and ESL from Mount Saint Vincent University in Nova Scotia. After volunteering as an ESL and ECE teacher, Simon gained a passion for supporting families new to Canada – particularly as they transition between different international school systems.

Simon focuses on grammar as the foundation of reading and writing. By zooming-in on sentences and zooming-out to see the connected meanings needed to complete complex assignments, Simon helps students improve basic grammar, plan clear writing, and understand exam questions under pressure.

With extensive experience working in international and ecological education in rural and urban areas, as well as with students who have a first language other than English, Simon also researches best practices in language education methods to support all types of learners.

Simon grew up in Brockville, Ontario, and attended MSVU and Saint Mary’s University in Halifax Nova Scotia. He has 12 years experience as an educator and holds TESL Canada Level 3 and CELTA teaching certificates. In his free time, he likes to cycle, snowboard, and read.