If you are considering a competitive private middle school or high school for your child, the HSPT, ISEE, SSAT or COOP will be an important component of your child’s application.
I offer a comprehensive private school entrance exam preparation program that integrates techniques from the Kaplan and Princeton Review preparation courses.
During my private school entrance exam sessions, students learn:
- Test-taking strategies for the reading comprehension, writing/language and math portions of the exam
- Guessing strategies (specific to the SSAT)
- Essay-writing skills (specific to the SSAT and ISEE)
- Techniques for avoiding common pitfalls
- Time management skills
- Latin root vocabulary games
Initial individual assessment
Your child will take a full-length practice exam to generate a baseline score. Based on your child’s performance on this initial practice test, I will customize a program that will fill in content gaps and address your child’s specific academic needs.
Private school entrance exam: essay
Both the ISEE and the SSAT require the test-taker to write a 30-minute essay. While the essay is not graded and does not affect the student’s score, it is sent to the schools to which the student applies and reviewed by the admissions department. For this reason, I encourage students to take the essay portion seriously and to see it as an opportunity to demonstrate thoughtful and interesting writing. The essay response helps each school get a sense of the applicant’s personality and opinions.
Additionally, preparing for the essay portion of the private school exam is helpful as students strive to improve their writing skills. I guide each student through the process of developing a cohesive five-paragraph essay with a strong thesis statement and introduction, supporting paragraphs, transitions and a solid conclusion. When appropriate for certain essay questions, I demonstrate how to incorporate literary and historical references, as well as current events, to boost the essay score.
Private school entrance exam: math
I provide tutoring for the math portion of the private school entrance exams that reflects the current content and best strategies on the tests. In addition to covering question interpretation and guessing strategy, I review fundamental math concepts such as fractions, decimals, percents, ratios, factors, exponents, scientific notation, inequalities, averages, algebra and geometry. I also recommend techniques designed to hone time-management skills.
My goal for private school entrance exam tutoring is for the student to achieve a strong test score and to walk away from our sessions with a set of skills that is transferable to the classroom.
“Lindsay tutored our 8th grade son for his HSPT test and we’re thrilled with the results. He connected with her and never complained about attending his classes with her. She was helpful to us with editing our parent section on the applications too. Aedan was accepted to his high school of choice and we have Lindsay to thank for that! We’re so grateful we found her!”
Support with application essays
Supporting students with private school application essays and short-answer responses is one of my favorite ways to connect with students and build their confidence. Students frequently tell me that they would much rather write English or history essays than write about themselves. For many youths, it is challenging to be introspective and to share their adversities and accomplishments in writing. I love the intimate conversations that arise during brainstorming sessions and the opportunity to help each student realize his or her unique talents.
Parents frequently request support with the parent responses that are required in the applications. I am happy to guide you and serve as a sounding board to share your perspective on your child’s strengths. I am available for all stages of this writing process, including editing.