The first session focuses on understanding your student's current reading level, strengths, and specific challenges. A tutor will assess skills like phonemic awareness, decoding, fluency, and comprehension to create a personalized plan. This foundation helps ensure every subsequent lesson builds directly on what your student needs most.

Tutors teach evidence-based strategies like previewing texts, asking questions while reading, making predictions, and summarizing key ideas. With personalized instruction, students practice these strategies with texts at their level and get immediate feedback. This approach helps students move from simply decoding words to truly understanding and engaging with what they read.

Reading fluency—the ability to read smoothly and with appropriate expression—develops through repeated exposure to texts and guided practice. Tutors use techniques like repeated reading, modeling fluent reading, and selecting engaging texts matched to your student's level. As fluency improves, students can focus more mental energy on comprehension rather than decoding individual words.

Tutors in Columbus are familiar with the reading standards and approaches used across the district's 156 schools and 89 school districts. Whether your student attends a Columbus City Schools building or another district, personalized tutoring complements classroom instruction and reinforces the skills teachers are emphasizing. This alignment ensures tutoring supports—rather than conflicts with—what happens in the classroom.

Falling behind in reading can feel urgent, but personalized tutoring is designed to help students catch up by addressing foundational gaps and building momentum. Tutors work at your student's pace, breaking reading skills into manageable steps and celebrating progress along the way. With consistent support, many students who struggle early can develop strong reading skills and confidence.

Varsity Tutors connects you with tutors who have expertise in elementary reading instruction, whether through teaching credentials, specialized training, or years of tutoring experience. Each tutor understands how children learn to read and can explain their approach clearly. You can discuss a tutor's background and experience before your first session to ensure a good fit for your student.

Start by telling us about your student's reading level, challenges, and goals. Varsity Tutors will match you with an expert tutor who fits your needs and schedule. From there, you'll have a personalized plan in place and can begin seeing progress with consistent, focused instruction.