The next wave of tutoring is executive function.
Tutoring isn’t going away. But it’s changing. Here’s what I learned adding EF coaching to my tutoring business, plus free tools to help you see if it fits yours.
▶As heard on Tutoring with SherylListen to the episode →
Why are tutors adding executive function coaching?
The short answer: more of the students tutors see know the content but can’t plan it, start it or turn it in. That’s an executive function gap, and parents pay well for help closing it. Most tutors aren’t offering it yet.
I’m Natalie Micheel. I’ve owned a tutoring business in Sioux Falls for four years, and after 20 years in education, tutoring was starting to feel like a commodity. I was already teaching planning and follow-through inside my sessions. I just wasn’t calling it anything, or charging for it.
So I went looking for a small add-on. What I found was a different kind of business: coaching sold as a program, with families referred by counselors and consultants instead of found one by one.
My income used to stop at the hours in my week. Now I’m pitching counseling practices and employers, doors that were never open to me as a tutor. And I didn’t stop tutoring to do it.
Where tutoring is going
About 7 million U.S. kids have a current ADHD diagnosis (CDC), and parents are looking hard for real help with planning, follow-through and independence. The tutors who add it now will be the ones families already know when everyone else catches on.
Are you ready for more?
Eight quick taps about the students in front of you. You’ll see what kind of ready you are, and you’ll get the free 7 Signs checklist at the end.
- 1Seven signs tutors see every week
- 2Your result, in your own words
- 3The free 7 Signs checklist
Wondering if this fits your business?Tell me about your students and your schedule. I answer every question myself.
Ask me a questionWhere do you want to start?
Go at your own pace. Every path is open.
Free
Start with the checklist
Seven signs you’re ready for more, and the one question that starts your roadmap.
Get the checklistOne-on-one · $197
Not sure what your future could look like? Book your roadmap
The Tutor-to-Coach Roadmap: one working session with me, one on one. You’ll leave knowing your specialty, what your next level looks like and what it takes to get there.
Book your roadmapCertification
Ready to go for it? Get certified
Read my honest review of the certification I took: what I almost said no to, what it cost and how it paid off in 87 days.
Full disclosure: I’m an affiliate for this program, but I’d recommend it either way.
Read my honest reviewOne of my specialties
Coaching students in the age of AI
Your students are already using AI. The question is whether it’s doing the work for them or helping them get better at it. I use AI every day, and I teach students to use it as a tool for planning and follow-through, not a shortcut around them.
AI gives answers. A coach builds the skills to use them.
AI Without Cheating
A coach’s guide to helping students learn with AI, not hand it the work. Includes 10 ready-to-use prompts that keep the student thinking.
Frequently asked questions
What is executive function coaching?
It teaches the skills around schoolwork: planning, getting started, managing time, keeping track of assignments and following through. Tutoring teaches the subject. Coaching teaches students how to manage the work, until the new way becomes their way.
How is EF coaching different from tutoring?
Tutoring closes a content gap in one subject. EF coaching builds the skills that cut across every subject, and it usually runs as a multi-week program rather than hourly sessions. Many tutors already do some of it informally; coaching gives it a structure and a price.
How do I know if my students need EF coaching?
If a student knows the material but still can’t get the work planned, started or turned in, that’s an executive function gap, not a subject gap. Any tutor can add it. The free 7-signs checklist helps you see whether you’re ready.
Do I need a certification to be an EF coach?
No. Executive function coaching isn’t a licensed profession. A good certification gives you a coaching structure and, ideally, a plan to find paying clients. Here’s my honest review of the one I took.
Can I add EF coaching to my tutoring part-time?
Yes. That’s how I did it. I kept tutoring and sold four coaching packages in my first 87 days, with no social media. Most tutors start with a few families who already know them.
What happens in a roadmap session?
The Tutor-to-Coach Roadmap is a one-time, one-on-one working session for tutors who are ready for more. We map where you are, your specialty, the students you’d serve and your next level, and you leave with your path, including what it takes to get certified. Book your roadmap.
From the blog · For tutors
More for tutors
How Much Do Tutors Make? The Honest Numbers, Mine Included
Read it →How to Run a Tutoring Business That Actually Pays (Not Just Busy)
Read it →Executive Function Tutoring vs. Coaching: Which Does Your Student Need?
Read it →What Is an Academic Coach? Tutor vs. Academic Coach vs. EF Coach
Read it →How Much Should I Charge for Tutoring? (Hint: It’s the Wrong Question)
Read it →Executive Function Coach Certification: Which One Is Right for You?
Read it →
Your next chapter starts here.
Natalie Micheel, Certified Executive Function Coach, MBA, Founder of BestEFC & 605Tutor, Tutor & Teacher. Natalie has spent more than 15 years teaching and tutoring kids in private schools, public schools and homeschools, and helping their parents figure out how to support them at home. She knows what works for real kids at real kitchen tables.
My commitment: to be as generous and helpful as I can, and to reach and equip as many students and parents as I can.
(605) 413-5678 · Natalie@BestEFC.com · BestEFC.com
What would you like to know?
About adding EF coaching, the Tutor-to-Coach Roadmap or the certification I took. I read every question myself and get back to you within 48 hours.