Tutoring:  An Odyssey Hallmark

A hallmark of Odyssey’s curriculum is the school’s intensive tutoring program.  In addition to learning in the classroom, each Odyssey student engages in fifty minutes of daily private tutoring with specially trained teachers who tailor each session to the child’s particular needs.  To determine those needs, tutors refer to testing conducted by Odyssey’s Speech-Language Pathology Department, tests from prior schools, and evaluations from psychologists and other outside experts.  Equipped with this knowledge, tutors are able to plan individualized programs for each child, incorporating the most effective teaching methods that have been validated by rigorous research.  These sessions bolster a student’s ability to navigate his or her unique learning style.  The bond between tutor and child is understandably very strong, for it is the trust that develops between them that spurs a child to persist. 

Tutoring focuses on the development of language and literacy skills.  The program emphasizes phonological awareness throughout all levels.  Each tutor’s goal is to develop the awakening of the students’ inherent potential.  The students’ ability to understand the inner workings of language is unveiled through direct, explicit, and systematic teaching instruction.  Sessions are designed to sequentially review and reinforce learning at the individual’s pace of learning.  The Odyssey tutoring program, in conjunction with the language program works to empower the students to utilize their strengths and apply compensatory strategies to demonstrate their potential as bright, capable, self-reliant and lifelong learners. 

Essential Tutoring Skills:

• Phonological Awareness
• Fluency
• Vocabulary
• Comprehension
• Decoding
• Encoding
• Written Expression
• Study Skills
• Organizational Skills 
• Reference Skills