Tutoring

“Lauren tutored our son for the verbal section of the SAT. Working with him for just 10 sessions (discounted package deal), our son was able to improve over 100 points (730) from his PSAT (620). Lauren developed a customized summer plan based on an initial free consultation and assessment. She quickly figured out his strengths and weaknesses, and because of the shortened time frame, she was able to identify the “low-hanging fruit” and plan out ways to squeeze out the most SAT points in the shortest amount of time for him. Not only for SAT improvement, Lauren was ultimately able to establish solid groundwork for my son’s grammar, writing, and reading comprehension, which will be invaluable for the rest of high school, college, and life. She utilized an abundance of resources, including Quizlet digital flashcards, IXL.com, various books, etc. and communicated regularly to make sure she right-sized the tutoring sessions and managed to maintain an appropriate pace for our son. We will definitely work with her again next summer to help our son with college essays.”
11/9/23

“Lauren tutors both of our children, and we can't recommend her highly enough. She works with them on grammar and sentence structure but also on how to approach writing assignments that require organization and analysis. She recognized that one of our children has a learning disability that was preventing him from reaching his full potential as a writer. With her help, he is now a confident writer taking Advanced Placement classes in English and history.”
5/18/23

“Superb tutor and friend! Lauren has been working with our teenage son for just over 6 years encompassing middle school and high school. The primary focus has been on reading-comprehension and writing skills. Tutoring began as in-person teaching and transitioned to online sessions during and after COVID. Lauren is extremely resourceful with various teaching techniques that have really made a difference in supporting our son with schoolwork. Most importantly, she has opened the door to the world of vocabulary, communication, books, and literature. She easily spends 2 to 3 times the equivalent of actual tutoring sessions in preparation and/or researching teaching tools to aid our son at home, between sessions, and at school! Thankfully, several of her efforts have really worked for him, and as parents, we have enjoyed seeing him grow more confident about his graded school assignments. She readily provides feedback directly through video conferences, e-mail, texting, and phone calls. Lauren has truly become a part of our family. My wife and I are extremely grateful to have her teaching our son! There is nothing better than seeing your child's confidence build up in subjects that he used to loathe because it made him feel dumb when he didn't understand. Lauren has patiently found the keys that have unlocked the treasure of reading and writing for our son!”
4/20/23

“We were very impressed with Lauren's comprehensive and thoughtful approach to SAT tutoring. Through her one-on-one meetings, online tools, and weekly communication, our daughter was very prepared and raised her score 130 points from PSAT to SAT!”
4/19/23

“Lauren has been great at working with our daughter. We wanted to make sure that our daughter learned the grammar before she tried to write great essays. Even though grammar is a very dry and boring area, Lauren was able to motivate our daughter to do her assignments and implement what she was learning in her everyday activities. Lauren's patience and dedication have helped our daughter see her tutoring lesson and homework as useful advice and sources of new knowledge rather than a burden. We highly recommend Lauren.”
4/14/23

“Lauren was absolutely terrific for both general writing coaching and for college admissions essays. She taught our daughter so much about how to communicate ideas in writing, while slyly slipping in some grammar, but keeping it all pertinent to what our daughter needed to know. Lauren also functioned as a college admissions advisor and gave us all a lot of valuable insights into the process. When a very last-minute opportunity for a scholarship application came up, she made herself available on very short notice and got our daughter through it as painlessly as possible. That said, Lauren was very good about teaching our daughter to plan ahead and be respectful of others' time even when there were deadlines or high-stakes essays for her high school classes. This is the second child for whom we used Lauren. We will definitely be back for the third once he starts high school.”
2/11/2023

“Lauren was a tremendous tutor to two of our children, helping both become thoughtful, sophisticated writers as they made their way through high school and on to college. She worked with them on countless class assignments and college application essays as well as SAT prep. Over the course of their sessions with Lauren, their writing technique improved noticeably. Equally important, Lauren worked with them on finding their voice and expressing that in their writing. As parents, we appreciated the detailed summaries Lauren provided promptly after each session, which enabled us to track their progress and identify stylistic and other habits we should be monitoring. We have recommended Lauren to friends seeking to give their kids' writing a boost and will continue to do so enthusiastically.”
2/11/23

“Lauren has crafted a creative mix of grammar, writing, and verbal SAT-prep tutoring for our sophomore son over the past few months. She designed a tailored course of study for our son based on her evaluations of his areas that need strengthening. She is an excellent communicator who reminds our son of his lessons with Zoom prompts shortly before the meeting time and follows their sessions with detailed notes copied to us about what he learned, areas of growth and improvement, and assignments for the next session. Lauren also uses technology smartly, including IXL and Quizlets, to make learning engaging and fun. We have been disappointed in how MCPS teaches fundamental grammar rules, which we were taught as kids, and think Lauren's tutoring is filling gaps in our child's education that will position him to be a stronger writer in high school, college, and beyond. We are glad we found Lauren through a friend's recommendation—and have and will continue to recommend her highly to others.”
11/9/22

“Lauren is tutoring my daughters who are 6th- and 8th-grade students at a fabulous bilingual public school. Given that their school has a bilingual curriculum, we really wanted to complement their English grammar and writing skills. Lauren was highly recommended by a friend, and we are having a fantastic experience with her. She is really helping the girls improve their grammar and get a strong grasp of language structure. She is working with my 8th grader on essays and creative writing, and this has improved her writing skills and confidence as she prepares for high school. I highly recommend Lauren, especially if you have children in a bilingual school.”
10/9/22

“Lauren has been a most effective tutor and advisor to our twins (high school seniors), providing feedback and relevant advice as they worked on their college essays. She was always on top of things, encouraging our boys to stick to a schedule and offering relevant feedback and guidance. The outcome has been excellent. Our sons were accepted to all colleges to which they applied, and they now have the luxury of choosing the option that best fits their preferences. Throughout the process, Lauren kept us in the loop regarding progress while keeping a good pace towards the end goal. Aside from working on specific skills (grammar, essay structure, etc.), I think our twins have learned to follow a more systematic approach to writing, which no doubt will be useful in college. We highly recommend Lauren!”
3/9/2022

“Lauren has been a gift sent to us from heaven this summer! She helped my daughter write an outstanding college essay and has helped her prepare for the English SAT. Lauren is extremely detailed and very on top of things. After every meeting, she sends a follow-up email clearly outlining what they covered that session and what to work on for the next session. Along with that, she is a very quick responder, so any time you have a question about anything, you always get a very quick answer. It has been a pleasure working with her this summer, and I highly recommend Lauren!!”
8/14/2021

“I highly recommend Lauren as a tutor. Two years ago, my family went to the U.S. with my husband's research fellow program. My son was a junior in high school and an ESOL student who was immediately facing the SAT and college applications. Being a parent without any U.S. education experience, I was anxious about my son's English writing ability. Luckily, we found Lauren. Although he worked with her for only a few classes, Lauren helped my son a lot. She is very experienced and always gave us detailed class reports to follow up, which makes every class efficient. My son is grateful for the time he spent learning with her.”
6/15/2021

“We've worked with Lauren for the past 9 months trying to prepare my son, who is a junior in high school, for the English SAT. Lauren took great care trying to customize her teaching style to our son's needs. She uses a lot of engaging tools to make the subject matter interesting for students. She spends a lot of time preparing for each of her sessions, so she is intimately familiar with each student's progress, needs, and current profile. She also keeps in constant contact with parents. Our son experienced a very large increase in his first SAT English score after the PSAT he took in 10th grade. Despite most colleges announcing that SAT scores are optional for 2021 and 2022 admission years, most professors at college open houses I've attended said they still value SAT scores as a good indicator of success in college. We highly recommend Lauren to anyone looking to strengthen their student's English skills.”
4/6/2021

“I worked with Mrs. Kafka in my senior year of high school on college essays for seven schools. Going into this process, I had no idea what to expect or how to start. However, with Mrs. Kafka's guidance, I was able to write my essays to the fullest of my potential while pushing the limits of my creative-writing skills. I was accepted into my top choice school, which was a reach school for me, and am confident that the work I did with Mrs. Kafka certainly had a big impact on that outcome. Whether you aren't sure where to start, or if you'd just like to get some helpful feedback along the way, Mrs. Kafka will certainly exceed all expectations you have!”
1/9/2021

“I highly recommend Lauren as a tutor. Lauren worked with my daughter on prep for the reading and writing portion of the SAT, provided general reading and writing support, and gave feedback on my daughter's college essays. My daughter has dyslexia, and while Lauren candidly professes not to be an expert in this area, she has completed dyslexia-related training and went above and beyond with outreach and research to best support my daughter. Lauren is always highly prepared for their tutoring sessions and provides detailed feedback after the sessions, so I can keep track of my daughter's progress and challenges. My daughter has been accepted by all seven colleges to which she applied, many with merit scholarships, and I believe she'll be much, much better prepared for college-level reading and writing. My daughter has come a long way in the eight months she spent with Lauren and values her support so much that she's asked to continue through the end of the school year despite having "senioritis."
12/30/2020

“Lauren has been working with my 6th grader for the past year, and I can't recommend her highly enough. My son is a bright student but has struggled with getting his thoughts on paper. Lauren's been a lifesaver from the beginning. She is very thoughtful and proactive with how she works with my son. When they first started working together, she immediately identified weaknesses with his foundational skills in grammar and sentence structure. We were able to take advantage of the summer to focus on building those skills and saw great improvement, which has given him increased confidence in his writing. Lauren continues to work with him on those elements, but their focus has now shifted to overall effective writing strategies and reading comprehension. Lauren continues to amaze! Now that my son is distance learning, they are working over Zoom, and it's been very effective. The best part is that my son enjoys working with her. Highly recommend!!”
4/30/2020

“Lauren worked with our daughter and was simply amazing. Our daughter loved working with her and progressed rapidly with Lauren's guidance. Lauren goes above and beyond and tailored the lessons to our child's specific needs as she likely has dyslexia. It was wonderful that our daughter genuinely enjoyed the tutoring lessons while learning so much.”
4/11/2020

“Lauren is an excellent tutor. She has been able to connect very well with my high school son over the past couple of years. She has helped him with his AP Language & Composition class, SAT preparation (verbal), and college essays. My son had a top AP score and a very high SAT verbal score and was accepted to his early decision school (top 20) with a merit scholarship. She currently tutors him in AP Literature. She is always well prepared by reading novels and essays prior to meeting my son. As an ex-teacher at Walt Whitman HS, she is very familiar with the English department staff and knows the curriculum very well. She has given my son the confidence and extra tools to be a better writer and reader.”
2/18/2020

“My son has been working with Lauren for over a year now. She helped him with his AP Literature class and college essays. She is a great teacher—patient and inspiring. By looking at my son’s grades and his writing, I can tell the difference she made. My son got accepted by the school he loves. We are lucky to have her as our kid's tutor.”
2/12/2020

“Lauren is an amazing writing tutor. We asked her to help our daughter write her college essays. My daughter is a smart and determined kid but can be stubborn and difficult to help. Lauren somehow was able to work with her, and not only was she able to help my daughter craft and edit her essays, but my daughter actually LIKED going to her sessions with Lauren and looked forward to them! Lauren has inexhaustible patience and sometimes would work with my daughter for hours past the time they had agreed upon. However, the proof is in the pudding, as they say. My daughter was accepted to every one of the schools for which Lauren helped her craft the essays and was offered scholarships at 3 out of the 4! She was ultimately accepted (early decision) to a school that admits fewer than 18% of the applicants. This was her top choice and a reach school for her. Of course, many factors go into the application and acceptance process, but I am 100% positive that Lauren's guidance was a major contributing element in creating the ideal essay, which helped my daughter get accepted. I highly recommend Lauren to anyone who has a kid who is applying to college even if they insist they don't need help. Take yourself out of the equation and allow Lauren's expertise in writing and editing and an innate knowledge as to exactly what colleges are looking for to be a guiding light for your child.”
1/13/2019

“Lauren did a fabulous job assisting our daughter with her college essays. Her advice was practical and enabled our daughter to focus her thoughts and communicate them effectively. Lauren also provided the moral support and calming influence desperately needed during the process—all with great success, as our daughter was accepted to her first-choice college early admission. Can't thank Lauren enough!”
1/13/19

“Lauren has been tutoring my high schooler since the fall of 2017. Lauren has been instrumental in helping her manage her homework load, improve her grades in AP Lang and her SAT score, and generally reducing her school-related stress. Lauren provides excellent support for academic subjects like English and social studies as well as general strategies to help with studying for tests, etc. I highly recommend her.”
8/26/2018

“Lauren has worked with my 6th-grade son for a year on English fundamentals. She is patient but has appropriate expectations for her students and does a superb job of matching her style to the kid. I am impressed with how she calibrated his abilities and identified where he needed more work. She is great.”
6/9/2018

“Lauren Kafka is awesome! She is an editorial and educational consultant based in suburban Washington D.C. Lauren is a highly professional and effective private tutor and writing coach. She has been a tremendous help to our teenager. Lauren is results oriented, a clear communicator, and sends very detailed progress reports. Her rates are also very fair, and the value she provides is immediately apparent. I highly recommend Lauren and feel 100% confident that anyone who chooses to work with her will be glad they did.”
10/22/2017

“Lauren is a patient and knowledgeable tutor. She is flexible and willing to go the extra mile to ensure that you understand concepts and can incorporate them into your work. I'm an adult student who has relied on Lauren not only for her tutoring expertise but also for her impressive editorial skills. She is a superb editor, with 20 years of professional journalism experience, who provides valuable feedback on content, grammar, and overall organization of speeches, essays, websites, and multimedia presentations. I highly recommend her.”
4/1/2017

“While attending American University's graduate education program, I observed Lauren when she was teaching English for Speakers of Other Languages students at Walt Whitman High School in Bethesda, Maryland. She'd prepared several electronic activities to help her students study for an upcoming test, so she held class in the computer lab where students worked on educational games she created. She explained the instructions thoroughly. All her students seemed completely engaged in the interactive exercises. In fact, some of them competed with their peers to get the highest scores and didn't want to leave when class was over. When students had questions, Lauren patiently worked with them one-on-one and made sure they mastered the material. She spent extra time with students who were struggling with grammar, sentence-structure, and vocabulary activities. She is a creative, compassionate teacher who is sensitive to the needs of all her students and does her best to help them achieve their goals. I also had a chance to review some of the lesson plans she uses as a private tutor and writing coach and was impressed with her innovative approaches to teaching and assessment.”
2/13/2017

“Lauren has been extremely helpful to our 7th-grade daughter who had not been exposed to writing fundamentals, including mechanics, structure, and thesis development. Lauren was able to quickly assess where she needed help and worked to establish a framework so that our 7th grader could work on acquiring the skills necessary to become a proficient writer. Lauren also worked with our 10th grader, a good writer, who was struggling with a particular assignment. She helped her manage a lot of information and find a way to narrow her topic, so she could write a more persuasive, well-reasoned essay. The bottom line, above all, is that Lauren has the skills that kids need, the ability to de-stress a situation, great communication skills, and a deep interest in helping kids succeed. We are lucky we found her!”
1/30/2017