We’re passionate about your child’s learning.
Hi, and welcome to Miniteaching,
My name is Andrew, and as a born and bred Aussie guy who had a passion to see the world and a dream to help others, I found my way to London a couple of decades ago and now live here permanently. I have a close-knit family of whom I’m very proud.
After building a career in Education and moving into leadership over the past 30 years, I realised that the most rewarding aspect of education is helping individual children make leaps and bounds in their knowledge, skills, and love for learning, especially when they think they aren’t clever enough. Presenting techniques and strategies for English, Maths, Self-Esteem and Confidence is my forte.
The many staff and pupils I have worked with have shaped my optimism for life and my positive communication skills. I have a solid career in education as a classroom teacher, a Headteacher and an Education Consultant.
My Heartfelt Beliefs
I believe every child deserves a chance to reach their full potential. Faith and encouragement in their strengths and abilities is the way forward. Enthusiasm, warmth and friendliness in communication are the way to achieve it.
Any curriculum can provide a roadmap; however, it’s the way it’s delivered and the experiences provided that drive the desire to remember the facts and methods, and the understanding of the concepts behind them.
We all know that classroom sizes are just too large. Despite the excellent teaching methods and accountability of my teaching colleagues these days, nothing is as effective as one-to-one and small group teaching.
My Qualifications and Experience
I hold a Bachelor of Education (Honours); UK Department for Education Qualified Teacher Status, Advanced Skills Teaching and a National Professional Qualification for Headship.
With an insatiable curiosity for personal development and human potential, I have also completed a Graduate Diploma in Counselling. I have studied NLP with Paul McKenna and Richard Bandler and completed an Advanced Diploma in Clinical Hypnotherapy. This may seem weird and wacky, but I can assure you, the language techniques all help when communicating and teaching.
I also hold a Graduate Certificate in Business Management, earned when I worked 6 years as a manager for The Australian Commonwealth Department for Employment, Education and Training in the early 90’s.
When I first arrived in London in 1998, I originally travelled the supply teacher route throughout London. I then worked as a Primary English as an Additional Language Teacher and classroom teacher in Camden. A Primary classroom teacher, Literacy Coordinator and Middle Manager in Muswell Hill, Deputy Head in an infant Prep School in Hampstead, Head in a Prep school up to Year 3, and then Head of a school for pupils with high anxiety in North London.
Life is a journey of learning and I aim to instil this love in all the pupils I work with.
What I can offer you
Wherever your child is at, I aim to give them the strategies, skills and confidence to progress. Of course, I cannot work miracles, and some children have cognitive challenges that are beyond even the most professional of practitioners, or concentration difficulties that effect their ability to focus. These pupils usually have an IEP or EHCP which helps guide in their provision. This is why we also offer the services of a specialised SEND Hub.
Some pupils are not ready for entrance examinations, despite their parent’s dreams. They either have begun preparation too late, are not academically or emotionally ready or able, or are not driven to take the test (as much as their parents want them to). Entrance examinations require thorough preparation in answering reasoning and non-verbal reasoning questions; plus, the confidence, desire, and often a natural academic ability. The competition is high, with dozens often applying for one position. There are many very good independent, state and academy schools out there that don’t demand these tests. Most pupils applying for 11+ should begin preparation from the beginning of Year 5.
I can help build your child’s problem-solving skills, expose them to, and teach them how, to answer the right test questions and build their confidence, if you’re certain your child is suited to an entrance-examined school and the school ethos too.
I have complete faith in your child’s unique set of gifts, their personality, their ability to problem-solve, their ability to be light-hearted and positive, and most importantly, their good intentions to learn.
I have worked with many, many pupils who are on their own learning journeys:
Prepping children for 11+, 13+ and SATs
Children who need a boost academically
Children who need to work towards passing tests
Children learning English as an additional language
Children with additional needs and neurodiversity (SEN)
Children with behavioural difficulties
Children with high anxiety
Children who are school refusers
and children who are Home-Schooled.
Let us help your child improve their confidence in learning. You won’t be disappointed!
We can help.
Improve your Child’s Academic Performance
From no matter where your child is starting from academically, we can improve their performance and achievement.
Build your Child’s Confidence
Children can quickly lose their confidence at school and it will affect their performance. We can guide them to become less self-critical and more focused and resilient through their personal skills and strengths.
Increase your Child’s Learning Potential
We want your child to succeed in their learning and open up their future chances in the outside world by providing them with a love for learning.