About Amanda
Amanda Saeed carries her Master's in English from the University of Oregon with an expertise in rhetoric, composition, logic, critical reasoning, and literary criticism. She teaches a variety of students from grades 2-12 and beyond. Since starting her private practice in 2015, she has also taught in undergraduate college classrooms as well as at Sylvan Learning Center in San Francisco, CA. Amanda's curriculum includes grammar and composition lessons, argumentation essays, literary criticism essays, and poetics— all adjusted to the age, level, and specific learning needs of each student. Amanda has experience teaching a wide range of students: advanced, average, intermediate, remedial, and students who may experience difficulty learning and/or have neurodivergent needs. She also offers school application assistance, test prep for HSPT, SAT/ACT, & GRE, and Homework/Coursework help in any humanities school-subject (such as psychology, history, social studies, or any class that involves critical thinking and/or public speaking, science-writing).
Amanda's Teaching Philosophy
Parents and students alike have commented on the comfortability and success of Amanda's lessons and teaching style. Her ability to help any type of student hone their reading, writing, and critical thinking skills as well as boost their academic confidence is unique and unmatched. Amanda has a particular ability to understand every student's specific learning style, thus never "writing off" any student as an unskilled writer or thinker. With Amanda's help, even if a student seemingly "only excels in math and science," and feels they "have never been good at writing," that student will be able to learn and produce their own thoughts eloquently on paper. She firmly believes that every student needs to be prompted to use their minds to critically think, especially in the midst of the A.I. and technological rise.
Why Amanda Teaches
Amanda is genuinely passionate about making sure her students are building their writing, reading, and thinking skills. She teaches her students that critical thinking itself is both fun and quintessential to their lives not only as academics, but as working adults.
Amanda's Students
Amanda works with all types of students. She has helped younger students learn to read and has helped other students form complex essays above their grade level. Though her main English curriculum favors advanced students, her flexibility and ample teaching experience allows for all levels of learners to gain new knowledge, skills, and confidence from her class sessions.