Biology tutor & more · Havant
Karen F.
GCSE and A level science teacher, GCSE maths.
Biology tutor & more · Havant
GCSE and A level science teacher, GCSE maths.
About
I am a retired successful science and maths teacher having taught for 28 years in the classrooms of schools and colleges, both in the private and state sectors. I have been tutoring privately for the last 8 years. I have taught physics, chemistry, biology and maths to GCSE with great results. I have taught A level Biology and Chemistry for 8 years, also with great results. I also taught BTEC science courses for levels 2 and 3. This level of flexibility and experience means I am often booked to teach a combination of subjects thus avoiding the need to book and pay for more than one tutor. With my 8 years of experience in exam marking both for GCSE and A level Biology for two exam boards. I am therefore uniquely qualified to understand the differences between the exams and their syllabi.
My approach is one of application and enjoyment; if learning is fun and relaxed then the student is able to learn easier. If the work is applied to real life situations then that knowledge is better understood and retained. I worked in the medical and pharmaceutical industry for 10 years and often use this to my advantage and the students gain. I have always found pure learning difficult myself, preferring to understand the basis for the idea rather than just the information. Thus I use acronyms, fun sayings and even little songs to help them remember. This is something I have found many students find extremely helpful, and a little laugh is always beneficial. I teach the students to understand what they are doing so the information makes sense and thus is retained.
Many students have the information but have difficulty applying it to the exam questions. They often struggle to work out what the answer requires as the information given can be too large to digest easily. I have strategies to help the student break down the question, highlight important key words, work through the problems bit by bit to make the answers come to light. I stress the importance of certain phrases different exam boards like, key vocabulary needed to gain marks and how to lay our their working so that the examiner has an easier job to award the marks along the way. This also helps the student to not lose their way in the longer questions. I stress the importance of checking that they have answered the question properly with enough details and the correct units or decimal places are given.
I always work with real exam questions in my sessions in addition to general teaching. This checks the students have understood the information they have learned, helps to reinforce it and most importantly improves their ability to interpret and answer the exam questions. I always send a report to parents after each session so that they can see what has been done and achieved during the lesson. I send the material we worked on so that students can continue with any unanswered questions for homework or just review the material at their leisure to reinforce the information. I have a wealth of material for all exam boards so can supply additional material if wanted. I will stretch the students ability using this additional information which I continue to gather.
I have always been passionate about science and continue to be so. I have many science interests at home which I will use in lessons to bring the subjects alive. I love enthusing my students and get my biggest reward when they wish to continue learning science at further education.
£42–£55/hr · 4 subjects · 6 levels
Subjects & pricing
Languages
- English Native
Qualifications
Higher education
- BSc (Hons) Zoology Certificate checked · University of Manchester · 2:1 (Upper second) University of Manchester · 2:1 (Upper second) Certificate checked
Teaching qualification
- PGCE Science Certificate checked · Southampton · Pass · 1987 Southampton · Pass · 1987 Certificate checked
Reviews from Tutorperch
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Reviews from First Tutors
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- Oct 2025 ·imported from First Tutors
Martin
My Daughter’ Zoe’s GCSE Science grades were excellent and Karen was a big part of this and said: “Karen is an excellent tutor who significantly improved my GCSE results and my understanding of science. Her deep knowledge of all three sciences’ specifications meant that even the more challenging topics became clear. She has a skill for explaining concepts in a way that makes it approachable and relevant to exam questions. Through targeted practice with exam-style questions, she helped me refine my technique and avoid common mistakes. Thanks to her guidance, I am now confidently studying Biology and Chemistry at A-level. I am very grateful for her support and would highly recommend her”
Karen F. replied
Thank you for your amazing comments. You were a joy to teach and I wish you lots of success.
- Sept 2025 ·imported from First Tutors
Zoe
Karen was a very kind, positive and organised tutor. She tutored Zoe for her Alevels. My daughter found the lessons really helped to plug a lot of the gaps she had in Chemistry. We were so impressed that we asked Karen to tutor her in Biology too.Every week, Karen sent a summary of the lesson and gave feedback via email. My daughter got an A in Biology and a B in Chemistry with Karen's support. I would highly recommend Karen.
- Feb 2025 ·imported from First Tutors
Serena
Karen has been fantastic, very thorough and adapting.
Karen F. replied
Thank you. Euan is very receptive and takes advice onboard.
- Feb 2024 ·imported from First Tutors
Natasha
My daughters had 3 sessions now with Karen and she’s great. She’s got a great way of teaching and my daughter is already gaining confidence. I would strongly recommend her. Erin has now been tutored since April and she’s really improved. Karen is a great teacher and explains things in a way that’s easy to understand. She’s really fantastic and it’s only because of work commitments that we have to leave her. Whoever she tutors will be very fortunate.
Karen F. replied
Thank you for this feedback. Erin is great to teach. I love the fact that she is now enjoying science. I can't wait to start doing some biology and chemistry with her.
- Nov 2023 ·imported from First Tutors
Lisa
Making excellent progress with our daughter… from session one there was an improvement. Highly recommend … amazing follow up reports to the parents too
Karen F. replied
Thank you for the feedback. Your daughter is amazing too.
- Sept 2023 ·imported from First Tutors
Sarah
Karen helped my daughter to prepare for her GCSE biology exam. We found Karen to be excellent in her approach to exam technique and preparation. Karen spent time reviewing past paper questions and topics that my daughter struggled with and she gave very clear and helpful explanations. Karen worked well with us and was very organised in her approach, enabling my daughter to get through all the existing past papers. She also gave her additional topic questions on the topics that were challenging to my daughter. Karen is very easy to get on with. She is patient and personable and very flexible. We are grateful to Karen for helping my daughter to achieve a 9 especially when school predicted an 8. Thank you so much.
Karen F. replied
Thank you so much for your kind words. It was always a pleasure. I wish you all the success in your next chapter. Good luck
- Sept 2023 ·imported from First Tutors
Damla
Karen has been working with my daughter since the begining of summer holiday. She has been an absolute marvel in supporting my daughter. Karen is very professionaland very friendly. End of each lesson she assigns some exercises so that if there are any areas that my daughter is not good at, Karen focuses on them next lesson. She always provides a concise feedback form end of her session , which is great. If Karen was my teacher at school, I probably would have done much better in Maths :-) I would highly recommend her to parents!
Karen F. replied
Thank you for your kind words Erin is a pleasure to teach and responds well to feedback.
- May 2023 ·imported from First Tutors
Jane
Karen was brilliant with my son when he had some extra help prior to his maths GCSE.
- Mar 2023 ·imported from First Tutors
Rachel
I contacted Karen about some GCSE Physics tutoring for my daughter. We arranged an initial meeting so Karen and my daughter could meet and work through some questions. After the session Karen made sure that my daughter was happy with the way she taught and that she felt happy. We have now been seeing Karen weekly since the beginning of January and my daughters confidence and understanding in Physics has grown immensely. Karen has also been incredibly accommodating in now tutoring Chemistry instead of Physics to help build understanding in that. Karen is very passionate about teaching and this shows in the way she tutors. I would highly recommend her.
- Feb 2023 ·imported from First Tutors
Claire
Karen has provided an excellent tutoring service. My daughter immediately felt at ease and has highly benefited from Karen's support with her A Level Chemistry and Biology studies, which has been reflected in her grades. My daughter has found the lessons to be clear and focused whilst Karen is also patient and flexible. Thank you for your fantastic and continued support with her A Level journey!
Hourly rates
£42–£55/hr
Varies by subject. See breakdown above.