Parent Testimonials

"Sarah has been wonderful for Nicole and so patient.  She has come a long way and has had a good attitude and self-belief which is showing in her work."

Nicole’s mother Alison, October 2013
Year 11 English, Mathematics & Science

“Hi Melanie

Sam really enjoyed it and thought Sean was awesome.  His words were 'he's young and cool, and he stays on the subject, he doesn't get distracted and start talking about other things'.  So there's an honest answer from mine.  Sam is quite a social chatter so it sounds good that Sean will keep him on task. He was excited telling me about it which is what I thought as he likes one on one or in this case two to one.

I'll definitely keep you posted.  My husband dropped Sam and met Sean and he said he gets a good feeling and that we will see results.  All in all, a great first review.

Very happy indeed.  Thanks so much.”

Sam’s mother Rochelle, March 2016
Year 7, Mathematics

“We are extremely grateful to Melanie for all of the help she gave our daughter. We believe she would not have achieved her excellent results without Melanie's great tutoring.”

Skye’s mother Susanne, January 2014
Year 13, Biology & Calculus

"Overview an excellent relaxed approach which should boost any student's learning. Thankyou for coming to our house and discussing this material with her ... see you next year. "

Amuri’s mother Jenny, December 2009
Year 12, Level 2 Physics

“I would like to thank our tutor profusely as Anna has had a fantastic relationship with her .Both Melanie and I have observed a great step forward with regard to Anna's learning skills and overall progress. In the past Anna often floundered and did not know how to move forward as there was always something new coming up. Very frustrating for her which ate away at her confidence. Now Anna appears to enjoy her subjects and doesn't cry shy of them or skirt round them. Her tutor has helped her so much to devise a plan, system, strategy that has made a massive difference in how she approaches things and tackled the question. Hopefully this year ( 2016) we can build on this together.
I am so proud of Anna and I thank Melanie sincerely.”

Anna’s mother, January 2016
Year 12, Biology & Mathematics

"Hi Melanie – Just to let u know Caitlin passed NCEA Level 2 with merit endorsement. 2 merits in bio and merit endorsed in bio, chem merit and two achieved, 2 merits in English & 1 achieved. We r rapt! Thanks 2 u & Kelly. We will b back this year for more support."

Caitlin’s mother Karen, January 2013
Year 12, Biology & Chemistry

"Hey Melanie :) thanks for your text earlier! Kealan really enjoyed his tutorial with Ryan…I think they are a good match! I thought that Ryan had a nice approachable manner about him & Kealan was very relaxed & open with him :) So all in all…a great start! Kealan is very amped about the whole thing…so I’m stoked!! Thanks Melanie :)."

Kealan’s mother Donna, May 2013
Year 8, Mathematics

"Thanks heaps for all the great work you have done with Bryony over the last 3 years. She has really enjoyed working with you, and you can certainly take credit for her results so far. I think you have a great way of relating to her, and getting the best from her in a non-threatening way. I wish you well for the future."

Bryony’s mother Paula, December 2012
Year 13, Level 3 Chemistry, Physics & Statistics

"Wish Laura well for us. She has been a wonderful guide for the last two years with Joe. She’s extended him and backed his thinking; teaching him how to get his ideas down in a constructive, lucid way. All the best with AHeadStart it has certainly has been fantastic for our boys."

Joe’s mother Sally, December 2014
Year 13, English

"Henry seems to be enjoying meeting up with Cameron and think that the match is a pretty good fit. I like the looks of the spreadsheets they are doing, especially the "changing modifiers" one, as this is what Henry tends to do in his writing (and his speech when he is describing an event/experience). Cameron said "it's all there, he just needs to slow down" which is exactly what his teachers are saying, so Cameron is working on some techniques to help him slow down and produce better quality work."

Henry’s mother Maree, August 2015
Year 5, English

"The session went really well thanks. Molly said Cameron was great answering her questions and that he communicated really well the answers. She said it was very helpful"

Molly’s mother Pip, September 2014
Year 12, English

“I felt the help Anna received was invaluable and has made a positive contribution to her general development in both maturity , conscious application of concepts grasped and reflective appraisal of own work. Extremely rewarding to see and of immense worth to Anna and her self-esteem.”

Anna’s mother, January 2016
Year 12, Biology & Mathematics

“Thanks so much Melanie. Mae's tutorial with Emma was a huge success. She said she learnt heaps!”

Mae’s mother Truus, October 2015
Year 12, Chemistry

"Eva just texted with her physics result. One mark off excellence, and half the class failed. I am so relieved that we have Max on board. He is fabulous. [Eva] was one of the few pupils who had even seen some important model thing, and this was only because Max had gone through it with her. Thank goodness for Max!"

Eva’s mother Frances, June 2015
Year 12, Level 2 Chemistry & Physics

“Grace came out buzzing from her first session with Kyle, the 1-1 format really works for her and she was very happy. She walked in the door and went straight to her room to start some of her homework for the week!! So we are very happy thank you. I think this is going to be really beneficial for her so thanks again :-)”

Grace’s mother Pam, August 2015
Year 11, Mathematics

"Isaac checked his results today and was delighted to see he had English endorsed with excellence. Two excellences and one merit so please pass on our thanks to Paula."

Isaac’s mother Jenny, January 2014
Year 11, English

"Just by having 4 or 5 one to one sessions with Melanie, Jack's confidence and understanding of the subject was increased enormously. Jack has said he felt confident with his answers but would not have if he hadn't had the tuition. Thank you Melanie."

Jack’s mother Karen, December 2009
Year 11 Biology, Chemistry & Physics

“Emma said her tutorial with Jackson was fantastic yesterday. Being dyslexic and a very visual learner his style of teaching really suited her. She came home feeling really positive.”

Emma’s mother Catriona, September 2015
Year 12, Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics & Physics

“I would recommend AHeadStart to anyone - the one-on-one approach really works well and has benefited my teenage children. It is money well spent.”

Lauren’s & Sam’s mother Erin, January 2014
Year 9 & Year 12, Mathematics

"Mel is a very knowledgeable tutor and has a gentle approach to passing this knowledge on to the student. A lot of thought goes into the lesson plans taking into account the students individual ways of learning. I have always verbalised what I would like to see achieved and feel able to discuss Callum's needs as far as I see. Mel is always happy to tweak her lessons plans and try new ways to help achieve results. The tutoring has been very worthwhile."

Callum’s parents Sandra & Ian Young, December 2008
Year 11, Level 1 Science

"You have summed Georgia up well [in the progress report] and I am delighted with her progress with you - there is certainly a real difference between her school work and the work that you are doing with her and this has meant her ability to achieve good grades that she sets herself is now very achievable.

Thank you for your tutoring of her - she obviously benefits from her one on one sessions with you."

Georgia’s mother Louisa, April 2015
Year 11, Mathematics & Science

"Logan had some good reports from his Science teacher yesterday, saying that the tutoring has made a huge difference, which is fantastic."

Logan’s mother Vanessa, April 2015
Year 10, Level 1 Mathematics & Science