How can I better tutor people?

Question:I have tutored two people, one in chemistry and one in physics.
both were in my grade in high school, though I excelled compared to both.
both times I had trouble:
-getting them to stay focused.
-presenting the material clearly, concisely.

how can I solve these problems?
to what degree are these solutions dependent on my ability to avoid procrastination?



Answers:
I think you need to give them your rules up front. This is what teachers and tutors do with their students.

I don't know if the kids are your friends, but even with them you need to separate business (your tutoring) from pleasure. Tell them you can hang out with them later, but for the next half hour or hour they will have to focus on the material because you are spending your precious time helping them. If they cannot do that, you will stop tutoring them.

Presenting the material clearly and concisely requires preparation. First you have to know how much your students already know about the subject. You can do an informal evaluation by quizzing them. That way you will know what to focus on in your tutoring. After that, it is a matter of breaking down the material into easy-to-understand chunks. Every time you teach it, check to see if they understand it. Have them practice it with you. Don't go further until they have mastered that chunk.
It is very difficult to tutor your peers, I know because I was forced to do it since first grade. The frustrating thing is that the reason a lot of kids do badly is because they don't catch on as quickly, don't understand as easily, and have trouble paying attention.
The best thing to do is to find out how the other person learns best. For example, they may be a visual learner. They might do really well with, for example, molecular models or other manipulatives. Just focus on one simple thing at a time and then have them repeat it back to you. When they repeat it back to you, you know that they are getting it. Have them paraphrase, rather than saying exactly what you said. Draw pictures. Create memory strategies using funny, even edgy or slightly inappropriate mnemonics.
Then, work through problems with them step by step. Set up a five point plan for problem solving...1) Write down what you need to find, with units 2) Write down the givens, with units 3) write down applicable formulae (such as PV=nRT) 4) Work with the problem until the unknown is the only thing on the left side of the equal sign 5)Plug in numbers with units and conversion factors!! Then solve it step by step.
Everything, including problem solving strategies, must be very concrete. Don't expect them to make the mental leaps to the solutions that you would make.j
Good luck
A good teacher should always be equip with different motivational techniques...This techniques can be in a form of a game, a motive question or can be pictures...You can find alot of motivational techniques in the net...
I suggest you have to keep a record of their performance during your tutorial class. Grade them or give them quiz ten minutes before you adjourn your tutorial lesson. Give them their Grade after each meeting.

Example:
Asihiro Koeki- 6-14-2007...Chem. Quiz= 100%
Kohei Minato - 6-14-2007...Chem.Quiz= 96%

Be sure both of them receive this daily record with your signature below so that they will know how they fair each other.

I hope this will work positively on your problem.

JOSEPH

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