Tutor Admin & First Lessons

Hi Tutor!

We’ve put together a First Lesson Pack to provide you with some help and guidance in preparing for your first lesson (and lessons thereafter). We hope that that you feel confident, well-prepared and ready to make a great first impression with your client, as well as lay the foundation for a great working relationship. Here you'll find links to all the documents that you'll need for your first lesson. These are broken up into stages, to make things easier for you!

1. Tutor Responsibilities - Make sure you're familiar with your responsibilities as a tutor before you begin.

2. Learner Needs Analysis (LNA) - To be printed and completed at the start of your first lesson. 

3. Learning Styles Assessment (LSA) - Your new student's parent may request that you do this. Alternatively, we will provide you with the learner's results.

4. Package Logsheet - To print out and take with you to your first lesson.

5. Lesson Planning - These documents will aid you in planning your first and subsequent lessons.

6. Progress Report - This is to be completed by the end of your first term tutoring a new student.

7. Tutor Policies - The nitty gritty: everything you need to know about tutoring for us.

8. Tutor Portal Manuals - How to navigate our online portal.

Please make sure that you set aside some time to plan for your first lesson properly. This includes:​ ​ 

• • Contacting the parent prior to the first lesson

  • Being familiar with the Learner Needs Analysis (LNA) and how to fill it out. (You will have received the parent questionnaire prior to your first lesson if the client has opted to complete our online form.)

  • Taking note of the result of the learner’s Learning Styles Assessment (LSA) and thinking of appropriate study methods for this style. (This information will also be made available to you if the client has opted to complete our online form.)

  • You can find some fantastic examples of lesson plans on our Lesson Plan Hall of Fame.

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Ensuring you are paid on time

 In order to get paid each month, you are required to complete all of the following steps: 

• • Familiarise yourself with the Tutor Portal using the following link: http://profile.brightsparkz.co.za

  • Please make sure that your banking details have been updated

  • Log your lessons on the Tutor Portal  no later than 24-hours after the lesson takes place

  • Check your lesson logs to ensure that there are no errors, and that your dates, quantities and durations are all correct

  • Ensure that all your lessons have been logged by the last day of every month (or earlier if your last lesson for the month is a couple of days before month end)

**Please do not contact us with any payment related queries before the 15th of the month after submitting your timesheet. After the 15th, payment queries will be attended to via email only** (Please refer to our Tutor Policies for more payment related information).

Your First Lesson

​ A few things to remember:

• • Be on time! If you’re not sure about the location, plan ahead by checking Google Maps or asking for directions when you call your client to introduce yourself.

  • Be prepared! Know your subject matter well, bring along some additional resources, and be prepared to assign homework to the learner at the end of each lesson.

  • Be friendly and polite – to the parents and the learner.

  • Dress neatly and professionally, don’t chew gum or use your cell phone during lessons, and don’t smoke prior to the lesson (this may seem obvious, but it needs to be mentioned).

  • If you have ANY questions, not directly related to the learner or the lesson, please rather ask us first, giving us enough time to respond.

Most importantly - GOOD LUCK!  We are confident that you will do a great job! 

Once again, we are on hand if you have any questions, and we look forward to being able to WOW our clients and learners with an exceptional standard of tutoring and service.

Happy tutoring!