FAQ.

All of our tutoring is virtual. We do not tutor in-person. Most tutoring is done on our website through a platform called TutorCruncher or through Google Meet.

The students we serve predominantly come from underserved, low-income communities across Canada, including families unable to afford private tutoring. Many of our students have also faced setbacks due to pandemic-related disruptions in education and come from households receiving government assistance, single-parent homes, and similar circumstances. Currently, our focus is on students in grades K-8 located near our active chapters. However, we are actively planning to extend our services to include high school students in the future. Presently, our team of volunteer tutors consists mainly of high school students, complemented by some university students students. This composition enables us to effectively support students up to the middle school level.

We were initiated in Ottawa, Canada, but we have chapters and volunteers from all over Canada and beyond!

Were you unable to find an answer to your questions in our FAQ? Send us a message at: youthtutoringproject@gmail.com

All of our tutors are volunteers, including high school and university students. While direct teaching or tutoring experience isn't required, a passion for educational equity and a commitment to helping students is essential. Tutors are asked to provide 60-minute lessons once or twice a week for a minimum period of six months, though many choose to stay longer. Scheduling is flexible, arranged to suit both tutor and student. Tutors aren't required to develop elaborate lesson plans; however, if a student lacks homework or needs test preparation, tutors are expected to research and prepare appropriate learning activities. Our tutors should be adaptable, open-minded, patient, and empathetic. If a student requires more than two tutoring sessions per week, please contact us at youthtutoringproject@gmail.com, and we will endeavor to arrange a second tutor.

YTP operates on a 'pay if you can' model. We encourage families who are able to afford it to contribute a monthly donation of $5-$50 to help us expand our services and reach more students. However, if families are unable to contribute financially, that is completely acceptable. There is no obligation to pay, and it does not affect the status of their application in any way.

All of our tutors are volunteers from across Canada and the United States, ranging in age from 14 to 30 years old. The majority are high school and university students. To join our team, tutors must complete a written application and participate in a 30-minute interview. Additionally, tutors over the age of 18 must pass a reference check. While our tutors may not always have direct teaching or tutoring experience, they share a strong commitment to educational equity. They are dedicated to helping others and also benefit by earning community service hours through their involvement with us.

At YTP, our tutors work with students in general K-8 classes as well as ESL (English as a Second Language). It's important to understand that YTP does not adhere to a specific curriculum, and our tutors are not specifically trained in particular subjects. However, they are intelligent, compassionate, and hard-working volunteers. They utilize online resources to provide the best possible assistance for any exams or academic challenges your students may face.

Please contact a member of the Youth Tutoring Project Team by sending an email to youthtutoringproject@gmail.com. There could be multiple reasons for this and we will help sort it out!

Direct message or text your tutor! Please respect their time and let them know with at least 24 hours notice. Tutors are volunteering their time and you should let them know if you can’t make a tutoring session. We know that emergencies happen, but if you are regularly unresponsive or miss more than 1 session without communicating, your tutor will have the option to release you and you will not be added back to the list of students awaiting a tutoring connection to be connected with another tutor.

Yes! As long as the tutor has the capacity we can connect you with them directly. Please reach out to YTP staff at youthtutoringproject@gmail.com and we will help.

Here is a checklist: A laptop/desktop computer with a microphone Headphones (optional) A quiet space to host the tutoring session. Something to write/take notes with. The school work or topics that your student needs help with, helpful to share with your tutor beforehand! A Parent/guardian should be nearby (especially if the student is younger).

Yes! It’s important so that if there are any technical issues, you can be around to help. And it’s also great for you to be around so that you feel comfortable with your student interacting with another person on the internet. We care about your student’s safety and if you are around, we feel like it is a much better atmosphere. If you aren’t able to be around every time, that’s ok. Once you get to know your tutor, you don’t have to be around at every session. But in the beginning, it’s important.

No. Youth Tutoring Project tutors are volunteers.

Our main volunteer opportunity is working with your student or taking on more students to tutor! Throughout the year we release applications to join the executive international team which works on various projects that support our organization such as recruitment, marketing, and education initiatives. Please reach out to youthtutoringproject@gmail.com if you have additional questions.

The majority of tutoring on our platform is to help with a specific homework question, assignment, or test preparation. The average session lasts 45-60 minutes, during which tutors will help students improve their understanding and solve problems. Tutors often include ice-breakers to get to know the student as well as educational games to maintain engagement virtually.

We don’t have a set curriculum at YTP. This means that we rely on you, the student and the parent to figure out what the student needs help with. This is a very independent process. We recommend you talk with your student/parent to find out what they need help with. Some quick googling should let you find some good PDFs that you can upload to the virtual classroom and work on with your student. There are also resources available on our website and on YTP Community. Knowing where to start can be hard but IXL is a helpful tool that can be used to understand where your student is academically in Math, Writing or Reading! This helpful resource has activities for students in K-8th grade and great curriculum for your student.

A lot of our families struggle with various difficult circumstances, and sometimes tutoring falls below some of the other priorities they have. Session cancellations, unfortunately, are pretty common. Please do not wait longer than 15mins in a possible "no-show" session. We recommend you message (or text) the family and find out what happened. Try to understand where they are coming from and work together to see if there is a better reminder system to ensure this doesn’t keep happening. If it does keep happening, use your best judgment to determine if you should release the student. We really value your time and never want you to feel that it is being wasted. So if you have put in the effort to connect with a student and you feel they are not valuing your time, you can release them.

Icebreakers are meant to help you build a connection with your student. If one of the activities below requires showing your personal space or a photo of your friends/family, please make sure your student is comfortable sharing and do not pressure them. Significant Objects: Ask your student to share 1 or 2 objects in their home/room that mean a lot to them. They should show it on the screen and share why it's meaningful to them. Tutors should do the same. Ask questions as your student shares to get to know them better. Snap Shot: Ask your student to share 1-2 recent pictures from the week/weekend and the story behind the picture. Ask questions as they share. Try to get to know the people and things in their life. Tutor should do the same. Two truths & a lie: You and your student should take 5 minutes to think of 2 truths and 1 lie. You will share your 2 truths and 1 lie with each other and will try to guess which one is the lie. *Optional-- you can ask each other questions to try and determine which one is the lie. Once you've determined the lie, you should still spend some time asking about the 2 truths to learn more about the student and share more about yourself. Bucket List: Outside of tutoring and academics, your student is a person with aspirations and goals. Ask your student to share some bucket list items they want to achieve in the future-- these can be school related or just fun bucket list items! Either way they will be inspirational and open the floor for you to encourage your student to pursue their dreams. Don't forget to share yours too! You can even create a fun way to share these via google slides or on a whiteboard using an actual image of a bucket and allowing your student to list them out visually. Would You Rather: A classic game played at summer camps everywhere, "Would You Rather" is an excellent, quick ice breaker. Here are a few "Would You Rather" questions to get you started: Would you rather only have summer or winter for the rest of your life? Would you rather never use social media sites and apps again or never watch another movie or TV show? Would you rather have a horrible short-term memory or a horrible long-term memory? Make up your own! Name that Tune: Music brings people together! Take turns whistling, tapping, or even playing an instrument (if you have one) to the tune of a popular song and try to guess the name. This is a great way to learn your student's taste in music and incorporate that into your lessons moving forward! I Spy: Ask your student to find something in your background and say "I spy something <insert color>." You should then look around the room you are in and try to figure out what the student is guessing. This might mean showing different things to your student and telling them more about your tutoring space. If your student feels comfortable, you can switch. *Make sure you know what is in your background and that it's all appropriate to discuss with your student. Random Conversation Questions: This site has all sorts of question wheels or simple get-to-know-you activities. You can use this as a one-time ice breaker or open each tutoring session with a few spins of the conversation wheel! Ask me about poems (better for high school students): Allow 5-10 mins for you and your student to write 5-10 lines of a "poem" where every line begins with “Ask me about…” This doesn’t have to rhyme, but it can if you want. Here is an example: Ask me about art days with my cousins Ask me about casseroles on Christmas morning Ask me about my happy place, etc, etc, One person shares their poem and the other person asks them about 2 or 3 of the lines. Then switch! *Optional- Each line can also begin with “My People Are…” and make references to your family, community, country, planet, etc. My fuel is (better for high school students): Give yourselves 5-10 minutes (or longer if you need) to answer these 2 questions: What motivates you? Think about different aspects of your life and really try to understand what drives you to make decisions. Where does your motivation come from? Are you influenced by your family? By the environment? By a teacher? By a specific experience? etc. Spend the next 10-15 minutes sharing your responses with each other. Feel free to ask questions to each other to make it more of a discussion. Remember to keep the tone open and accepting. This activity can get deep and personal, but please only share what you feel comfortable sharing.

An important part of the tutoring process is getting to know your student. A quick conversation with their parent/guardian will help you learn about the student, establish trust, and understand the parent/guardian’s involvement in the student's education. You don't need to ask all of these, just the ones you find the most important: What are your student's greatest strengths and skills? What is your student passionate about- both academic & just general interests/hobbies? Why do you think your student needs help in <insert subject>? What do they have a hard time with? What would make tutoring an inviting and comfortable place for your student? What are your fears or concerns about your child this school year? What goals do you have for your student? Where would you like them to be by the end of tutoring? Aside from better grades, is there anything else you hope your student gains from this experience? What strategies would you recommend I use to work best with your student? Frequent breaks? Incorporating videos? Using incentives? Playing music? etc. Is there anything else you can tell me about your child that you think would help me support his/her learning? How would you like to stay in communication this year?

You won't have time to ask all of these in your first session, but you should continue learning about your student by asking a few of these questions at the beginning of each lesson! General: What are your hobbies and interests? What do you do for fun? Do you have any siblings? Pets? Share a favorite memory you made with a family member! What’s the best book you’ve ever read? Why did you like it? What’s your biggest dream in life? What’s one thing that makes you feel happy? Describe one of your favorite holiday traditions. Who is someone you consider a hero in your life? Why? School & Tutoring: Why do you want tutoring? What do you hope to accomplish? Can you tell me about your favorite teacher? Why are they your favorite? What's your least favorite part of school? Why? If you could change something about school, what would you change? Describe one thing that makes you feel a sense of accomplishment. Why? How do you prefer to learn? (powerpoints, music, activities, vidoes, etc.) Do you need help with homework, preparing for a test, or general support? Is your teacher willing to be involved in your tutoring?

The first step is to send your request to our community support team via email at volunteers.ytp@gmail.com. They will handle the verification and signing-off process. Please allow our community support team at least 3 business days to respond to your request. In your email be sure to include the date you need your hours by (if there is a due date) and please ensure any documents you need to be signed off, are filled out to the best of your abilities. Some people wonder how often they need to submit hours to be signed. We don't require you to submit your hours to us. That is up to you and your school. But we have a small staff so if you can submit them once every quarter/semester, that is best.

We are happy to write generic letters of recommendation if you have been volunteering with us consistently for at least 6 months. If you qualify, please email amery.ytp@gmail.com. Please request the letter at least 14 days before you need it as we need time to write it.

Yes! Many tutors create a YTP Chapter for their local community or school. You will be responsible for recruiting tutors and we will provide you with the systems, branding, and mentorship to empower your chapter's success. Please contact Andrew Mery at amery.ytp@gmail.com if you would like to learn more about creating a chapter.