"Why is writing so hard?"
Writing encompasses everything from coming up with ideas, planning, understanding the purpose of an assignment, shaping paragraphs, assembling sentences, to staying focused--down to the last spell-check.
I want to help learners of every age find greater ease in self-expression, whether writing a college application essay, generating a paper of literary analysis, or studying vocabulary. I want them to become stronger readers, writers, thinkers.
When I get to know new families, I strive to understand their goals, and I develop strategies to strengthen skills for every student. Whenever possible, I love to tailor the materials to their interests.
In addition to overall language arts and humanities studies, I support students with language-based learning challenges, including dyslexia and dysgraphia. To better serve all learners, I studied Wired for Reading, a kid-friendly linguistics program designed to strengthen reading, spelling, and vocabulary.
Past elementary school, few schools continue to focus on writing fundamentals. So for many students, with all kinds of minds, a structured approach, beginning at the sentence level, is the place to start.
Before becoming a mentor for writing and learning, I worked as a journalist and writer for Microsoft and other Seattle-area ventures. As a writer, I tell stories through a human lens, designed to make businesses grow and individual lives better.
Bringing together my professional background in communications and my passion for lifelong learning, I encourage a skill-based, conversational writing and thinking process with time-tested tools, craft, and heart.
Whether your focus is remediation, enrichment, or a college application essay, I'm happy to be a resource.
michelle.writingmentor@gmail.com