Can 12 year olds become a tutor for young kids?

[khadra2001]

My dd asked me the other day and said if she could be come a tutor for young kids that need help with maths or English or history or science and so on. So I need your advice can she become a tutor or is she a bit too young?

Depends on what you mean by tutor I guess. She could certainly listen to younger ones read out loud but I'm not sure when that could happen, as they're all in school at the same time.

Do you have any small children you can coerce who would enjoy reading to her?

Surely by definition if a child "needs help with" (ie, is behind with) maths or English there will be booster sessions put in place by the school; or if the parents want a little more than that they'll pay for experienced tutors outside school hours?
What does she think she can do, exactly?

yes she has a younger sister and a younger brother that she reads to every night

she has taught her little sister before

12 is what? Year 7? Far, far too young. My DD is 15 and wouldn't feel comfortable with tutoring even very young children yet. If she uses the wrong methods then she could end up leaving the kids she tutors feeling very confused.

Does she expect to be paid , in which case no. There is nothing wrong with her being a reading buddy with a younger child but just because she is older and has passed those years doesn't mean she is qualified or mature enough to tutor them. She also has to realise she is committing to a specific period of time each week and can't simply change her mind.

I know of at least one school (The Dragon in Oxford) whose older pupils (up to 13) visit local schools to give tuition in Latin. Apparently it works very well. And other similar(ish) schools assign younger pupils to older mentor pupils who listen to them read once a week...

So perhaps you/she could interest her school in trying something like this?

(I entirely empathise with her youthful zeal for teaching. I was a ferocious reader aloud and "instructor" as a child.)

No she dosent want to be paid

Not officially, DD2(now 13) turned playing schools into basic literacy lessons for her DF.

My DF taught us all maths all the way through school.

DD1 has, only 1/2 jokingly, threatened to send her head of science a bill for TA services for five years.

Best a secondary aged child can do is hear DC read while babysitting, I guess.

DD2 wants to start babysitting as soon as she's 14 and she'll undoubtably help with reading and HW if asked. She wants to be a teacher and it just comes naturally.

Incidentally, my maths teaching DF went off to be an accountant. Hated it, retrained as a maths teacher and ended up teaching abroad and having great fun.

Must get DSIS to ask after her, her DM is still in the village.

I think she should because everyone deserves a chance to help others