Courses / Grade 11 University
SPH3U — Physics
SPH3U tutoring in Glen Abbey, Oakville, Ontario — small groups of no more than 6, twice a week, taught by one instructor.
What it covers
Kinematics, forces and Newton's laws, work and energy, waves and sound, and electricity and magnetism.
Where students get stuck
Force diagrams, and keeping track of direction and sign. Once the mechanics click, the rest of the course follows; students who rush past that step tend to struggle all year.
How tutoring SPH3U works
We start from where the student actually is, not where the syllabus says they should be. I check what class is covering, teach the fundamental underneath the trouble, and work problems at the right level until it holds. Between sessions, students can message me when they're stuck on homework or prepping for a test, and I'll send back a hint — or the full solution, when that's what it takes to get past the block.
Ask about SPH3UCommon questions
- Is SPH3U worth tutoring if the mark is still acceptable?
- Often yes, because the mark lags the understanding. Force diagrams and keeping track of direction and sign are the foundation for everything after, and a student getting through on pattern-matching can look fine until SPH4U or first-year physics.
- How many students are in a group?
- No more than 6, mixed across grades and courses. Everyone works on their own material at their own pace — a Grade 10 student and a Grade 12 student can sit at the same table without either one waiting on the other.
- How long is a session, and how often do students come?
- An hour at a time, twice a week. That cadence is what makes the between-session work possible: there's rarely more than three days between a question coming up and someone working through it with you.
- Can a student join partway through a semester?
- Yes, any time. Most students start after a test has gone badly, which is usually the point at which the real gap becomes visible. A block starts on the student's own start date, not on a fixed intake.
- Is there a trial class?
- The first class is a no-obligation trial. There's no charge for it if the student doesn't continue. If the family goes ahead, that class counts as the first of the first block.
- How is tuition charged?
- By block: eight classes in a subject, paid in advance, by Interac e-Transfer or cash, and used within a month of purchase. There's no contract and no sign-up fee, and a block already paid for is never repriced. Email us the course and grade and we'll send the current rate.
- Do you tutor online?
- Sessions are in person in Glen Abbey, but attendance is hybrid — students who live further out join remotely, and anyone can on a day when the drive or the weather is a problem.