website outage

I just wanted to say “sorry” to those who have been trying to get stuff done on my website.  It was down for about one and a half days due to a glitch in DNS Naming Services.  I think it’s all back to normal now. It may take a day or two to get everyone’s …

unclaimed homework

Hi everyone.  It is September 1st, 2024, and a new school year thus begins.  Clearing house time! I have some unclaimed homework.  None of them have names on them.  If you see something that is yours, please let me know, and I’ll return it to you.

schedule full until Christmas

Hello, loyal students and parents!  Just letting everyone know that my schedule is now (pretty) full for the fall 2024 school season.  Most likely, students will be chosen from the waiting list after Christmas.  Sorry for the wait! I do have Sunday afternoons available, but that’s it.  For those of you who booked early, thanks!  …

summer 2024 has begun

Summer has come! For those students who continue tutoring sessions through the summer, I likely won’t be away much.  For my online students, nothing will change. Tutor Doctor Lethbridge has put out an article on the “summer slide”, a term coined more than 50 years ago to describe forgetting material learned due to lack of …

Tutor Comments format

Hi everybody! For my Tutor Doctor students, Tutor Doctor head office has changed the format of their Session Report to help tutors format what to say.  It now looks like this: Session Goals and Objectives   Topics Covered   Strengths and Achievements   Areas for Improvement   To-Do Before Next Session   As a tutor …

away May 2 ~ 8, 2024

I will be away from May 2 to 8, 2024. There will be no tutoring May 2 and 8, but I will be available for online tutoring the remaining days (May 3~7). Please let me know if you would like tutoring online by filling this out.

Allan absent March 26 – April 2 2024

I (Allan) will be absent from March 26 to April 2, 2024 due to a death in the family. The last day of tutoring before leaving will be March 25, 2024.  Tutoring will resume again April 3, 2024. Sorry for any inconvenience.

no sessions 2024-01-29

Please note that I will be away on Monday, January 29, 2024. There will be no tutoring sessions on that day. Sorry for any inconvenience! If you would like to schedule another session at a different time, please let me know.

Christmas & New Year 2023/24

There will be no tutoring sessions from Dec. 23, 2023 to Jan. 1, 2024. Last sessions: Dec. 22, 2023 Sessions continue: Jan. 2, 2024 Hope you all have a great holiday!

CommunityVotes Lethbridge 2023

CommunityVotes Lethbridge 2023 is running their polls on various topics.  Have your say! https://lethbridge.communityvotes.com/2023/06/education-lessons-and-courses 

preparing for tests

Want some tips on how to ace tests?  Or at least just take the edge off so you don’t get stressed?  Try this (from Nelson Education).

Thanksgiving 2023

Just a reminder to everyone that Monday, October 9, 2023 is Thanksgiving.  No tutoring.  Enjoy your turkey!

new (2023) version of Class Plan & Homework page

This is a quick survey about the new version of your Class Plan & Homework page. Why the change?  The old version, that uses FrontPage Server Extensions, cannot be updated when I’m away from home.  The new version can be updated from anywhere.

Labour Day 2023

Hi everyone. Just a reminder that Sept. 4, 2023 is a holiday (Labour Day), so no tutoring.  But, if you really think you need to have a session, I’ll make myself available.  Otherwise, enjoy the long weekend!

visual summary usefulness

Thanks for doing this survey.  It’s a quick one about the visual summary shown on your class plan & homework page. 

Test Anxiety, Test Taking Tips (Tutor Doctor)

Test season is upon us.  Here are some good ideas that we should all know about taking test – from Tutor Doctor. Test Taking Tips Signs of Test Anxiety and How to Tackle It

Easter 2023

There will be no tutoring sessions for one week, April 6 ~ 12, 2023.  Happy Easter, everybody! 

new server (finally)

I finally have a new server up and running.  About half of the webs are transferred over to the new one, and the other half will follow soon.  This means that:  Your class plan & homework page will hopefully be faster with less downtime.  If you use the new version, your homework completion and scores will …

Christmas 2021

I will be taking time off from Fri. Dec. 24, 2021 to Sun. Jan. 2, 2022.  If anyone wishes to have more time off from tutoring, please let me know. I hope everyone has a great holiday!

Remembrance Day 2021

There will be no tutoring on Remembrance Day, November 11, 2021.  If you normally have a session then and want to reschedule it, how about either the Sunday before (Nov. 7) or after (Nov. 14)?  Please let me know a few days ahead of time if you do.  Thanks!

Thanksgiving 2021

There will be no classes during Thanksgiving 2021, including Monday.  I’m roasting a turkey for family and friends!  For Sunday & Monday students, we will resume next week.

old server (again)

The old server is, once again, up and running. Why?  The new server is not working yet, and I am at a loss as to how to get it running.  Anyone know how to run PHP on IIS? If you have trouble logging in, please let me know.

no phone

Sorry, everyone, I forgot my phone at home today, and I am at work.  I tried logging in to my email accounts, but they won’t let me without my phone.  Go figure.  If you absolutely need me, you can call (403) 320-8588 ext. 244. 

tutoring resuming today

Thank you for everyone’s patience and understanding while I took some time off.  My mother passed away late at night on June 12. All tutoring will resume today as per your normal schedule.

personal time off

I’m sorry, I have to cancel the next few days’ sessions (Wed, Thurs, Fri).  My Mom has been in hospital a while now and will be passing away soon.  I would like to spend extra time with her.  Sorry for the short notice.  Maybe we can continue next week.  I’ll update everyone by SMS (text).

stinky printer gone, #4 back

The “stinky” printer is taken again. However, printer #4 is back and available for loan. Same thing – it’s a network printer, meaning it connects to your internet (wireless or cable), and I print homework directly to it.  Yes, I print from my house to your house.  I know – amazing, right?  But true. You …

stinky printer available

The “stinky printer” (printer 4) is available now if anyone wants to borrow it. Why is it stinky?  The fuser unit (the hot roller that bakes toner onto the page) is apparently a little smelly.  I admit, it does smell a little, but only on the first print. It’s an HP Color Laser Jet MFP …

upgrade, then downgrade

In an effort to mitigate disconnections from Bramble while tutoring, I purchased a new wireless router.  It did not work!  We experienced five disconnections during my first session Monday afternoon and three disconnections in the second session.  I attempted it one more time on Tuesday with similar results.  I’m back to using my old D-Link …

new wireless router

I’m hoping that my new router will make a difference. Recently I’ve had classes drop during session because of poor network stability.  Weird things on Bramble would take place, too.  If you’ve noticed a timer counting up, suggesting that you’ve been inactive for a while, you’ll see that this is usually due to a poor …

secure site

Just letting everyone know that I’m phasing out all non-secure student web pages.

Reading Week 2021

Reading Week is upon us!  It is Feb. 14 ~ 20, 2021.  Please tell me about your plans.

my ‘day job’

Hi everyone.  I’m taking on a new position in my day job and will be working Mon. ~ Fri.  I will no longer have mornings & afternoons free to tutor. If you want to discuss the schedule, please let me know.  I’ll be emailing everyone about it over the next few days. To all my …

Reading Week 2021

If you don’t mind, please fill out this quick questionnaire on this year’s Reading Week.  I’ll be taking a break as well unless you want to have session.  I’m okay either way!

monthly tutor logs

Just a reminder to all Tutor Doctor students – your monthly tutor logs showing all session dates and times are online for you to see.  It is posted the 20th of every month, the cut-off date for Tutor Doctor’s monthly session cycle.  If you don’t see it there, please let me know.

Christmas break 2020

I’ll be taking a break between Fri. Dec. 25, 2020 and Mon. Jan. 3, 2021. This is shorter than usual.  Because of COVID-19, many students (and / or parents) don’t want much time off. If you want to have more or less time off, please let me know.  I’d be happy to accommodate whatever schedule …

maintenance

This server may have interruptions for today (Sunday).  Updates are being installed.  Sorry for the inconvenience.  

Huion drawing pad (again)

For students without a touch-screen computer who are still struggling to “write” with a mouse or touchpad, I still recommend the Huion 1060 Plus drawing pad.  It’s at Amazon for about $90, or $80 if you have Prime, or less if Amazon gives you a discount, which they sometimes do. I had one student damage …

laptop booked

The spare laptop is once again booked for about two months.  If anyone with a Mac having trouble with Bramble needs it, let me know, and I’ll save it for you.

Windows laptop available

The spare Windows 10 laptop is available for loan again.  If anyone is having computer issues and is interested in borrowing it, please let me know.

stage 2 of reopening

As most of you have heard, our Premier, Mr Jason Kennie, has decided that we are now able to start ‘stage 2’ of reopening our economy and other services, including tutoring well ahead of schedule.  Tutor Doctor has given the ‘go-ahead’ for at-home tutoring, provided both parties are good with it and a questionnaire is …

next availability of Huion writing tablet

Hi everybody.  Just letting you know that the next available time to borrow the sketching / writing tablet is June 19, 2020.  Anyone who wants to use it should let me know by then.  So far, it has mostly been a hit.  The biggest dilemma has been setup, but I can help you with it.

Alberta’s Stage 2 of reopening

I’m sure many people have heard that the Alberta government is planning on their Stage 2 of reopening of businesses and other services.  Their goal date is June 22, 2020.  Tutor Doctor supports either in-home or online tutoring and states that in-home tutoring must be agreeable to both parties. I’m pleased with online tutoring so …

how to send your homework

I’ve been working on a new method of submitting your homework.  If you have a scanner or an all-in-one printer with a scanner, you can scan your homework then drag-and-drop it from your scan folder on your computer to my server.  If you have Windows, then it should work.  Have a look at some instructions …

COVID-19 / Coronavirus update

Do you want the good news or bad news?  The bad news is that in-person tutoring sessions are suspended indefinitely.  Once COVID-19 / Coronavirus is no longer a threat our health, I will be happy to resume in-person sessions.  The good news is that the online tutoring platform I’m using works well.  If you want …

COVID-19 / Coronavirus and Online Tutoring Sessions

Hi everybody. COVID-19 / Coronavirus has hit Alberta, and schools are now closed indefinitely.  Students and parents are concerned about studying for the next few months and have asked me if tutoring sessions will continue.  Yes, I will continue as long as I don’t get ill, but I will probably be switching to online sessions …

online tutoring by Tutor Doctor

Because of recent COVID-19 / Coronavirus outbreaks, Tutor Doctor has set up a few online platforms for students and tutors to communicate through the web.  If you want to use these rather than having in-person visits, please let me know.  I am hoping it won’t come to that, but, should things get substantially worse, I …

server update

I completed switching to a new server about 3PM today.  Sorry for being offline so much recently.  If you experience any issues moving forward, please let me know by text or email.