In your first lesson with a Cambly Pro student, you’ll have a brief conversation to get aligned about how you’ll work together. This helps set expectations and ensure you’re starting off on the same page.
This isn’t meant to be formal or scripted, you are welcome to lead this conversation in any way that works for your teaching style. Every student is different, and you can adapt or augment this list as needed. Just choose what feels most relevant for you and your student!
💡Pro Tip: When you have the kickoff conversation, it can be a great idea to tell the student what you will do with the information you learn! Telling them that you'll come back to their second lesson with a learning plan, customized to their goals and needs, is a great way to encourage them to rebook with you.
What might you discuss?
Here are some topics that you might cover:
- The student’s learning goal and timeline
- Why are they learning English right now? Are there specific skills they want to work on like pronunciation or listening?
- What a typical lesson might look like
- What types of activities do you like to use in your lessons? Does this match the learner’s expectations?
- Feedback frequency and corrections
- Some tutors like to give feedback or make corrections in real time, while others save it for the end of the lesson or use the Cambly feedback form. What is your usual approach, and does it work for the student?
- Do they want feedback on particular areas, such as grammar, pronunciation, or vocabulary?
- Approach to self-study materials outside of the Cambly classroom
- Does your student want self-study suggestions or recommendations for resources and practice outside of the Cambly classroom?
One Helpful Approach
Sometimes students aren’t sure what their preferences are, so it can be helpful to lead the conversation by sharing what you normally find to be successful with students and then checking to see if this aligns with the student’s learning preferences. For example, “I usually give feedback at the end of every lesson, though if I notice you repeating mistakes, I will usually point it out as it happens. Does that sound like it would work for you?”
Once you’ve had this conversation, you might want to make a note of what you and the student agreed on (on paper, in the notes section, and/or in a message to the student or using the feedback form) so you can refer back to it in future lessons.