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. 

ESHA P.

Esha’s teaching experience of more than three years has provided her with necessary skills in pedagogy and she is adept in a physical as well as a virtual classroom instruction setting, with various modes of teaching to reach children of all learning styles. In addition, her high-energy and creative personality make Esha ideally suited to teach grades K-3. She loves teaching because of the exploring, learning and fun.

Before becoming a full-time teacher/tutor, Esha worked as an early childhood assistant, a copywriter and a lawyer. Esha’s favourite subject is Language and she could teach it all day, literally!

DIANE H.

Diane has an Advanced Early Childhood Education Certificate and has been working with children both in early learning environments as well as child care programs for over 30 years. Diane’s experience as a manager and child care provider have given her a tremendous amount of experience. Her creativity and supportive learning environments ignite an excitement and joy of learning.

SAMANTHA I.

Samantha is an award-winning Canadian and international educator, who has presented her teaching strategies at the University of Toronto, the Solutions Tree Conference in Singapore, and contributed her lesson plans to the First Nations Caring Society. She received her undergraduate degree in English and Philosophy from the University of Western Ontario in 2009, and her Bachelor of Education from the University of Toronto in 2012, where she was awarded the prestigious Kathy Bickmore Peacemaking Award in Education. She has experience teaching in Toronto, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. She has attended intensive professional training in Italy, and facilitated workshops for teachers in Cambodia. Samantha approaches her students with kindness, a sense of humour, and encouragement. Her teaching philosophy is to view herself as a learner, responsible for learning about, and adapting to, her student’s needs. She has experience with the following curriculums and pedagogies: Ontario, AERO curriculum standards, International Baccalaureate (PYP), and Reggio Emilia. She has experience in tutoring a wide range of subjects, with a passion for literacy coaching, organizational learning, and supporting English language learners. She is working toward her Guidance Counsellor qualification. In her spare time, Samantha has traveled to over 35 countries, and practices martial arts and yoga.

STEPHANIE L.

Stephanie graduated from the University of Toronto, where she received her (Honours) Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and Psychology and completed her Bachelor of Education with York University. Stephanie is an Ontario Certified Teacher, who is qualified to teach all divisions (Primary/Junior/Intermediate and Senior). She has taken Additional Qualification courses in Special Education, English, Social Sciences, and Physical Education, to strengthen her skill set. Stephanie has many years of experience tutoring, both in group settings and one on one. Her experience in the classroom includes students ranging from kindergarten to high school, including a year of teaching Core French. In addition, Stephanie has a background in teaching students with various exceptionalities such as autism, dyslexia, and ADHD. From her time working at Holland Bloorview she has gathered a variety of strategies and resources to help with meeting the learning needs of many diverse learners. Stephanie is also creative with a high interest in arts and sports which she uses to create a fun and interactive learning environment. She is an energetic teacher who aims to make learning engaging and meaningful to all her students.

MARISSA B.

Marissa joined Prep Academy Tutors in 2014 after completing her Bachelor’s of Education (Primary/Junior) with a program focus in Special Education at Queen’s University. Since then, Marissa has taken additional qualifications in Special Education (part 1 and 2), Communication Needs: Autism, Reading, Kindergarten, and Primary/Junior Mathematics. In 2015, Marissa participated in a conference in Oregon to learn how to train teachers in Direct Instruction. In addition to Direct Instruction, Marissa also has trained teachers in the Wilson Reading System.

Marissa is passionate about making learning come alive for her students.  She works hard to find new and creative ways to reach every learner.  As an educator, it is her mission to inspire her students to become life-long learners who strive to ask questions and find answers.  Developing confidence and making learning fun are top priorities during Marissa’s tutoring sessions.  Students learn that it is through challenging themselves that they can learn and grow (even if they make mistakes along the way).  Marissa firmly believes that all students are unique and deserve to be educated in a way that incorporates their strengths and interests into their learning process.  

When Marissa isn’t teaching, you can find her hanging out with her puppy Rufus, or riding her horse, Rex.