Please note:
Parents' reviews of tutors are the opinions of Berkeley Parents Net subscribers. Your own experience may be different.
Announcements from tutors are accepted without review as a service to local parents. Please always check references before hiring!

• 2011 - 2013 Parent Recommendations
• 2010 Parent Recommendations
• 2009 Parent Recommendations
• 2008 Parent Recommendations
• 2007 Parent Recommendations
• 2004-2006 Parent Recommendations
• Earlier Recommendations
• Announcements from Tutors
• see also: Organizational & Study Skills

2011 - 2013 Parent Recommendations

I would like to recommend Kevin Arnold as an excellent tutor. He has a way of communicating with teens that gets them engaged and motivated to learn. He worked with my son for a few years in high school and got this teen to begin to care about history and the world around him. He was also very good at teaching writing and my son tells me now that he wants to be a writer. It was Kevin more than his school classes that inspired him to think critically. Kevin came to our house to tutor (a big plus) and was flexible and friendly to work with. His phone number is (510) 495-7923 and his email address is: kevinarnold333@gmail.com. Amy

I just wanted to share with any parents looking for tutors the positive experience that we've had with Matt Baldwin. Our 11 year old son has always struggled with academics and was recently diagnosed with ADD. We found Matt through a recommendation and scheduled him to start coming for tutoring twice a week.

In the six months that they have worked together we've witnessed a great improvement in our son's overall performance and attitude towards school, especially in English - in which he had a particularly hard time. Matt's approach to tutoring work is relaxed and he is especially strong on reading, English composition, homework assistance, organizational strategies, and creating an overall sense of motivation. He keeps the sessions on track but never in a rigid way. Our son actually looks forward to their time together.

Matt is a Cal grad and is working on a master's in psychology. He is also a musician and gives guitar lessons - good at that too! Highly recommended.

His number is 831-915-3470. Email: baldwinunlimited@gmail.com Kat

Re: Tutor in Lamorinda area for math, Spanish, and study skills
I have used Beatrice Rey-Herme (in Orinda)for a number of years; she is excellent with math and can help with study habits. She is at 925-254-6978 alice

I'm a high school senior. Last year, I needed tutoring in English and History. I had to write essays and one research project, and study for the finals of both of those subjects. The workload was overwhelming (and already overdue), but I was fortunate to have had the assistance of Andrea Roemer. Within fairly little time, I had managed to produce excellent essays and be caught up with the rest of the class. Furthermore, I did very well on the finals. Drea is a lovely and patient person. She makes the studying easy and enjoyable. I highly recommend her! She can be reached at drearoemer@yahoo.com O.

I'm a very happy parent who would like to highly recommend Berkeley tutor Peggy Connell (510-644-1010). Peggy has worked with my son from 3rd grade to the present--he's now in 6th grade--helping him with organizational skills, study strategies, writing strategies, and more. In that time he has gone from being very behind in language arts to scoring in the advanced category on his 5th grade STAR test--with particular success in writing strategies. Peggy is kind, endlessly patient, and highly creative and resourceful in finding the approaches that work best for each individual child. My son is seeing her this year to further develop his organizational capabilities in order to meet the new challenges presented by middle school--and we are thrilled to have her support with this transition. -Valerie

We use an incredible tutor for our 10th grader here in Oakland. Cyrus Khambatta [ck2@berkeley.edu] is a brilliant, fun Cal graduate student who has a real gift both for tutoring a wide range of subjects (math, science, history, English) and for relating to teens. My son was sure any tutor would be too nerdy for his taste, but he and his friends think Cyrus is very cool. Cyrus comes to our house on a weekly basis and has reasonable rates, flexible scheduling, and great integrity. He has turned out to be a wonderful mentor, as well as a tutor. High marks on every count. KH

my family has worked with a tutor named Rachael Berger for a year. She is an English teacher and also provides private in-home tutoring. She has been a ton of helping our kindergartener with reading; support with phonics and lots of word sorts. She is patient and kind and my daughter loves her! Her number is 510-418-6495. I know she works with kids of all ages. Madeleine

2010 Parent Recommendations

I would like to recommend Adam Harris, who has been working with my sons for about three years now and who is starting an online tutoring service, available many hours a day and at short notice. Adam has been great with my kids (now aged 10 and 14), both of whom have special needs. His website for his tutoring service is www.nerdrightnow.com and since he graduated from Cal with degrees in Physics and Astronomy, there are a range of topics he can tutor. If you want to ask me more questions, please feel free to contact me. Heather

Tutor for a 1st grader

Hello, We would like to hire a tutor for our older son who will be starting 1st grade next week. He did really good in kindergarten, but we aren't native English speaker and we want him to have the high quality support during this year. Any recommendations and/or share experiences will be greatly appriciated. We expect someone with valuable experience. G.

If you need a tutor for your child, I know the perfect person. Last summer Katie O'Toole tutored my son in Math, specifically in place value, subtraction with borrowing, addition with regrouping, and multiplication. She lives in the Glenview neighborhood of Oakland and is looking to tutor over the summer. She was a 3rd grade teacher for four years and will be completing her first year teaching first grade this June. She can tutor students,grades K-5, in the subjects of writing, grammar, phonics, reading, and/or math. She has access to different manipulatives and supplemental materials that can be useful for struggling students or students who just need review.

She has excellent references. . . I am one of them!

If you are interested, please contact her at kot5ee@hotmail.com. Best regards, Alison Long time BPNer and Mom to two elementary aged boys.

2009 Parent Recommendations

I have a great tutor!
I continue to have conversations with other parents about tutors. There are many reasons to have a tutor for a child, particularly a teenager. Not all kids are great in every subject and simply need tutoring. Other kids at this age have trouble focusing and need guidance and homework assistance to stay on track. It's also wonderful to turn over the parent/child/homework relationship to a tutor. Or perhaps a child actually has learning disabilities and needs extra help.

I have searched for tutors and had many. Now as my kids are getting older I want to recommend and pass on a great tutor named Kevin Arnold. He has been able to bring out the best in my kids. Teaching them, supporting them, understanding the right moments to push and expect more from them (also when to let up). Kevin is fun. He relates well to my kids. He has figured out how each of my kids works best and gets the most out of them. Kevin is an excellent tutor for English, History and independent writing projects. He is a great homework coach. He will give your child study skills and help them organize their writing. He increases his expectations at appropriate times. Kevin has been a teacher at both public and private Schools so he knows the curriculum and understands the demands. He also worked for BHIndependent Study Program. He is currently working as a private tutor and as a teacher at The School for independent Learners. Grab Kevin while you can. He has put a smile on my face but more importantly my kids love him, they are doing great in school and feel proud! Kevin's cell: 510.495.7923 email: kevinarnold2004@yahoo.com
tracy

2008 Parent Recommendations

My son worked with Tutorpedia (www.tutorpedia.com) for three years. He first began as a sophomore at Berkeley High School, as he was failing Honors Algebra II. By the end of the year, he had pulled his final grade up to a high C. We were so pleased with his progress that we continued to work with Tutorpedia for the next two years, through Math Analysis and AP Statistic. He needed as much assistance with study habits and organization as he did with mathematical problems and principles, and Tutorpedia was excellent about this incorporating instruction and assistance into sessions. They were flexible in arranging and rearranging schedules around sporting schedules and other events.My son had an excellent personal rapport with his tutor. Because his tutor taught the whole student, not just the subject matter at hand, we saw marked improvement in our sons overall academic progress and in his self-confidence. Kate, Mother of BHS 2008 grad

looking for a college student/high school senior, to help my 8 year old son 1-2 afternoons a week with home work. There are no learning difficulties. Location would be at our home near College and Ashby. Please e-mail if you are interested or have referrals.

We are looking for an excellent all around tutor to help our son. Ideally someone who would come to the house. Appreciate any ideas. natalie

We are looking for a math and writing tutor experienced with tutoring kids at the elementary and middle school levels. Our son is a 5th grader. Will enter Middle School in Fall of 2008. Weekday afternoons and weekends work best. Kim

2007 Parent Recommendations

We are looking for a tutor for Chemistry and Algebra2 for my daughter who is a Junior. We live in Moraga.

My college bound daughter had a wonderful tutor, Erika Smith, through her 4 years in high school. She is versed in many areas, math - through Algebra II, Spanish, Writing and SAT prep. She also has extensive experience working with students with learning disabilities. She will work in Berkeley to Richmond area and will come to your home. I can't stress enough how helpful she was for my daughter. The two of them went beyond the tutor/student relationship to becoming friends. You can contact Erika at riceandsmith[at]earthlink.net
grateful parent

Fun math & English tutor for 7 yr girl

I am looking for a really fun and good math tudor for my 7 yr old, who is going into 3rd grade and needs just a little head start. I am also looking for a good spelling and writing tutor for her, as she has been in spanish immersion and needs some English work. I pay competitive rates. It would be in afternoon or evenings after camp. Carol

2004 - 2006 Parent Recommendations

I would like to recommend our exceptional educational therapist, Marianne DeCrane-Brent (phone 338-1242). She is very experienced working with a range of LD issues (former Raskob Day School teacher) and is warm and caring. She can tutor any subject (math only up to algebra 1)and any age. She has worked with my daughter for the last 7 years and has been extremely helpful. Feel free to email me if you want any more information. c.b.

Kevin Arnold is a tutor who has been very helpful in helping my 15 yr old son with organizational skillls and with overcoming difficulty with writing. He can be reached at by phone at 655-6612 or email at kevinarnold2004 AT yahoo.com. Mindy

I want to enthusiastically recommend Kevin Arnold as both a tutor and mentor. Kevin has been meeting with my 15-year old son once a week this spring and summer. He has provided my son with both academic support as well as a wonderful friendship. They have talked widely and with enthusiasm about the world, school and many other subjects, motivating my son to engage in a diverse spread of ideas and possibilities. Kevin gets my son to think about things he never thought could be interesting. This summer they have gone tide-pooling and played Nirvana on their guitars. If you'd like to contact me, I'd be happy to speak with you. p.s. Kevin also helped my son with his Spanish homework.
cbrownstein

I'd like to recommend Kevin Arnold as a coach or tutor for unmotivated, bright high school boys. He was my son's teacher at BHS Independent Studies two years ago, and I also hired him as a coach/tutor. He is now a full-time private tutor. Kevin's strength is his enthusaism for learning and knowledge. Because he is young and connected to youth culture, Kevin has the ability to get an apathetic, do-the-minimum kid fired up about reading and learning by exploring topics that are interesting, such as politics, culture, and music. I was very pleased that while working with Kevin, my son began to develop an interest in philosophy and psychology, began reading more and playing computer games less, and for the first time began to see himself as a curious learner instead of as an academic failure. My son did not magically become a high achieving UC applicant (!) but he absolutely did discover the joy of learning while working with Kevin, which continues to serve him well two years later. Kevin was also very helpful in just monitoring homework and assignments to get things turned in on time. Kevin Arnold kevinarnold2004 AT yahoo.com 510-655-6612
Ginger

Earlier Recommendations

I am looking for a tutor for my daughter who is learning disabled. She needs help mostly with Algebra, and some Physics. We also need to get her some SAT Prep. Realistically she is not the easiest student to work with, so I am looking for someone who has experience with the learning disabled and difficult students. I have tried normal tutors and it just did not work, so I need someone who specializes.

We have been very pleased with my daughter's tutor, who is a Classics graduate student @ UCB. She has been working with my daughter for several months now and Amber has found her to be very helpful. She has been helping her mostly with biology, math, & history. She knows about good studying skills. Her name is Melissa Kaprelian. Her contact information: msk AT socrates.berkeley.edu. Toby