Silvia
"Silvia had a very clear and engaging approach, and helped him take his Spanish beyond accurate language and to include a variety of idiomatic expressions and complex vocabulary."
Parent of Spanish GCSE student
French
Spanish
Academic History
PGCE in Modern Languages, Institute of Education, London
MBA, London Business School, United Kingdom
BSc, Bachelor in Economics, Universite de Louvain, Belgium
About Me
My objective as a teacher is to give the student the skills to continue working at a high level independently, once the tutoring cycle is completed. My teaching is therefore aimed at ensuring the bases are solid and then challenging students with activities that stretch them.
My teaching focuses on accuracy, breadth of language, and analysis. The latter applies to literature and cultural knowledge, but also to language, where spotting patterns is key. In developing linguistic skills, I use target language to improve pronunciation, stretch the student and improve listening skills. Where appropriate, I also leverage the pupil’s mother tongue knowledge, to discern meaning, approach ambiguity, and make links between the languages. I develop lessons around cultural content, including art, literature, history, and society.
Recent tuition
GCSE Spanish (Edexcel)
I tutored this King’s College London student for six months as he prepared for GCSE Spanish independently. He wanted greater confidence and complexity in speaking and writing. I focused on advanced structures, exam style tasks and high level accuracy. He achieved the top grade and is now reading Modern Languages at Cambridge.
GCSE French (AQA)
I supported this Francis Holland student for five months after a disappointing Year 10 predicted grade (5). My assessment showed weaknesses in speaking, writing, verb conjugation and use of tenses. We strengthened these through targeted grammar work, translations, proofreading and structured speaking practice. We also developed exam focused essay skills and high value vocabulary. Her summer mock prediction rose to an 8.
Year 8 French
The student with dyslexia struggled with spelling and grammar despite strong listening and reading skills. I aligned lessons with her class vocabulary while extending it, and used colour coding to teach sentence structure and patterns. Regular dictation and alphabet work improved spelling. Her results quickly rose to “secure”.
A level Spanish (AQA)
I have been home schooling this former Ashbourne College student from the start of his second year of the A level course (eight months). He had scored a B in his Year 12 mocks. I delivered the full A level curriculum, filling content gaps, improving fluency, strengthening theme analysis, and developing exam ready translation, summary and essay skills. He is now on track for an A/A* based on his performance on past exam papers.
IB French A Literature (Year 11 / Grade 10)
This French speaking student wanted to take IB French A Literature, which her school didn’t offer. I built a full scheme of work following IB guidelines, strengthening her writing and grammar while teaching literary movements, context, and analysis. We practised essays, comparative commentary and oral presentations. She can now identify literary devices, analyse texts confidently, and write with accurate grammar and structure.
Hobbies
Reading novels in French, Spanish, and Italian: I have always been a reader. Reading in the four languages keeps my language skills up to date and exposes me to the culture, issues, and backdrop of the different countries.
Listening to podcasts about politics, history and health: thanks to podcasts I have developed my understanding of history and how civilisation has progressed since 3000+BC. This has become all the more tangible for me since I visited the Nile and the pyramids at Giza and Sakkara.
Rowing on the Thames: rowing is a new passion that I took up four years ago. I love the nature around the Thames and have a special affinity to rivers. The activity always comes with a healthy degree of discomfort and trepidation even if I do it everyday, and I like to be kept on my toes.
Hiking in the Lake District: I discovered that this was the most beautiful place in the world twenty years ago, despite all my travels. I go back several times per year.
Testimonials
“Silvia tutored my son when he was completing his Spanish GCSE independently. Silvia had a very clear and engaging approach, and helped him take his Spanish beyond accurate language and to include a variety of idiomatic expressions and complex vocabulary. He was very comfortable with this tutor and enjoyed their sessions. He is now reading languages at Cambridge.”
Spanish GCSE
“Silvia tutored my daughter in French when she was in year 8. As a native speaker, my daughter needed to take a step back in her own language and understand grammar rules and spelling. Silvia’s combination of dictation, writing, and proof-reading exercises ensured that my daughter grew in confidence when writing French. Silvia was patient and according to my daughter, her lessons were accessible but challenged her beyond her comfort zone. I would recommend Silvia to any language learner.”
Year 8 French
