Frequently Asked Questions
What primary services do you offer?
We offer small classes and individual instructional support in core subjects (reading, writing, math, social studies, and science) for students TK through high school. We also have a variety of small group classes. See our Products page for more details.
What do you specialize in?
Our tutors have various specialties and backgrounds covering core subjects from elementary through high school, Spanish, Special Education, and home economics. We strive to match the right tutor with the student’s needs. The majority of our tutors have a masters, a professional degree or experience, in addition to a teaching credential.
What type of warranty do you provide with private tutoring?
If you are for any reason unsatisfied, please reach out to us. We do not offer any service guarantees but we’re more than happy to work with you to alleviate your concerns, including a tutor re-match offer. If you do not believe we’re a good fit for you, we do not offer refunds, but you are free to leave at the end of your month!
Are you licensed and insured?
Absolutely. Almadayo is a registered LLC with all the proper licenses, permits and insurance required by the state of California and the city of San Diego.
Do you offer trial sessions?
We’re happy to have students try out our sessions before committing to the month. We do suggest booking two or three meetings before deciding, but we can work with one! Trial sessions are paid for at the time of booking. Trial sessions may NOT be rescheduled.
What are your tutoring sessions like?
Tutoring sessions are 1, 1.5, or 2 hours and typically take place in families’ homes. Tutoring sessions may also take place at a public space, such as a library or coffee shop. Students are expected to be prepared with all necessary study materials. Tutors will come to sessions with a whiteboard and marker or a pencil and paper, along with other supplies as needed. Tutors will help students work through course material, provide relevant instruction, and offer valuable tips on study skills and organizational habits during each session.
What is the next step?
We start with an initial email/text or phone consultation to discuss your student’s needs and how we may be able to help. Contact us at: info@almadayo.com or text/call 858-248-5335.
We want to hear all about your student, tutoring goals, and what made you reach out to us. We’ll discuss exactly what the student needs and we will work to create educational recommendations tailored to the student’s needs.
If Almadayo is a good fit, we will invite you to complete our Student Information survey, which takes no more than five minutes to fill out. This process includes agreeing to our terms of service. Once we receive the completed Student Information survey, we find the best tutor for your family based on student needs, scheduling availability and proximity. Once we have a match, we will introduce you to the tutor via text thread and arrange a regularly scheduled tutoring day and time.
Payments made by charter school funds (i.e. Enrichment Certificate or Purchase Order) will be due prior to the first session and, if paying directly, upon receipt of the invoice. Once received, the agreed upon time slot is reserved for the student on an ongoing basis. The tutor will then contact the parent to confirm logistics for the first session. After that, the tutor will be the primary point of contact for any schedule changes (adding extra sessions, rescheduling sessions, cancelling sessions, etc.).
Do you accept cancellations?
Almadayo does not permit last-minute cancellations. You may cancel or reschedule up to 24 hours prior to the scheduled tutoring session. If you cancel or reschedule with less than 24 hour notice, the session is forfeited with no refund. We ask that you respect our tutors’ time and do not cancel at the last minute. If, of course, there is a family emergency or sudden unforeseen illness, the cancellation may be excused. It is ultimately a parent’s responsibility to make sure students are prepared and on time. The sooner you cancel, the sooner we can try to fill that time slot and prevent losing a tutor’s income for the day.
Working with a private tutor is a commitment that should be prioritized in order to see the desired improvement in your child’s academic performance. To that end, if a parent cancels a session and neglects to reschedule a make-up session within 7 days of the missed lesson, that session fee is forfeited. If your child has missed two consecutive tutoring sessions, for any reason, we regret that this may lead to losing their prime time slot (9am-2pm). We understand that this can be a steep price to pay but this policy has proven necessary.
Do you offer make-up sessions?
Make-up sessions (for excused cancellations) must be scheduled within 7 days of the missed lesson or those missed hours are lost. All sessions are to be completed within the monthly billing cycle. For example, if a family reschedules in March, the session must be made up in March and does not roll forward to April/May.
Exceptions are granted at the tutor’s discretion.
If the tutor cancels, sessions are rescheduled at the student’s convenience.
Do you take charter school funds?
Yes. We accept charter school funds from Pacific Coast Academy, SoCal Scholars Academy, Julian Charter School, and Freedom Academy. If your charter school isn’t on this list, let us know. We are open to exploring new partnerships.
What are the rates of your services?
Private Tutoring Pricing
Almadayo fees are priced by month based on a 4-week month. We offer a reduced monthly rate to encourage families to provide more consistency and opportunity for academic growth through regular tutoring sessions.
# of Sessions Monthly Rate
1 hour/week 4 $240
2 hours/week 8 $480
If you prefer to pay on an hourly basis, the fee is $70/hour and a regular weekly time slot may not be available.
Art tutoring has a one-time materials fee of $40 for all NEW STUDENTS. This fee covers drawing media including paper, pencils, 6 different drawing materials and ink pens.
Group Class Pricing:
Spanish (12 weeks) $480
Spanish class – Sibling $250
Life Skills (8 weeks) $350
Strategies for Self-Efficacy (6 weeks) $250
Study Skills & Self-Learning (3 weeks) $150
Anti-Bullying Workshop (1.5 hours) $90
Executive Functioning for
Neurodivergent Students (6 weeks) $250
What are your terms and conditions?
Tutor Responsibilities
An Almadayo tutor’s primary role is to support the parents/family in the education of their student. We recognize (in the homeschooling environment) it is ultimately the parent’s responsibility to make sure their child is receiving the help they need to succeed. In order to do this, tutors can be expected to arrive on time with tools necessary to help students learn skills and build confidence in academic areas.
Family Responsibilities
To ensure that students get the most out of their tutoring sessions, students should have all their subject materials ready to go at the beginning of the session. Families are responsible to provide a quiet area with necessary books, supplies, and curriculum in order to promote student success during tutoring sessions as well as on those days between tutoring sessions.
Scheduling
Most families have tutoring sessions 1-3 times per week with the same tutor on the same days/times each week. This helps ensure a consistent, predictable schedule for the student, the parent, and the tutor. If families or tutors must change the day or time of the session due to other commitments (sports event, doctors’ appointment, etc.), tutors and families need to be in communication with their tutor at least 24 hours prior to the session start time to reschedule to avoid being charged for the session. We do our best to be flexible and accommodating to each family’s schedule and request the same respect from clients.
Running Late
Almadayo tutors make every effort to be on time, however, if a tutor is running late, the tutor will contact the parent or student by call, text, or email. No matter what time the tutor arrives to start the session, the tutor is obligated to stay for the session’s full time. If the tutor has another tutoring session immediately after the one he or she arrives late to, the family can request their tutor to stay late or come early on another day (as long as the tutor is informed in advance).
If a family is running late, the family should contact the tutor by call, text, or email. If the student is already on the way to the session, the tutor will wait and end the session at the regular scheduled time. If the tutor receives no response from the parent or student after waiting for 15 minutes, then the tutor is free to go and the family will be considered a ‘no-show’ and be charged in full.
Cancellation Policy
Almadayo does not permit last-minute cancellations. You may cancel or reschedule up to 24 hours prior to the scheduled tutoring session. If you cancel or reschedule with less than 24 hour notice, the session is forfeited with no refund. We ask that you respect our tutors’ time and do not cancel at the last minute. If, of course, there is a family emergency or sudden unforeseen illness, the cancellation may be excused. If a parent cancels a session and neglects to reschedule a make-up session within 7 days of the missed lesson, the session is forfeited. If your child has missed two consecutive tutoring sessions, for any reason, we regret that this may lead to losing their prime time slot (9am-2pm). We understand that this can be a steep price to pay but this policy has proven necessary.
Make-Up Sessions
Make-up sessions (for excused cancellations) must be scheduled within 7 days of the missed lesson or those missed hours are lost. All sessions are to be completed within the monthly billing cycle. For example, if a family reschedules in March, the session must be made up in March and does not roll forward to April/May.
Exceptions are granted at the tutor’s discretion.
If the tutor cancels, sessions are rescheduled at the student’s convenience. Tutoring hours may be used only for tutoring and academic services.
Billing
Families can pay for tutoring sessions by debit card, credit card, Venmo, check, cash, and by charter school funds (Enrichment Certificates or Purchase Orders -PO). Almadayo processes payment for tutoring sessions on a monthly basis at the beginning of each month prior to receipt of tutoring services.
Invoices are emailed to families for the upcoming month of services and are due upon receipt. Pre-payment ensures that both parents and students take tutoring seriously and are committed to academic growth. Furthermore, it allows Almadayo to secure a regular and ongoing time slot for families during premium hours.
Paying with Charter School Funds
When using charter school funds to pay, Almadayo must receive an Enrichment Certificate or PO at least 24 hours prior to the first tutoring session of each month. Although we recognize that families are busy and charter school processing times vary, please note that charter school policy prohibits vendor partners from providing service prior to authorization.
Please request charter school funds before the end of each month to allow adequate time for the school to process the certificate/PO before the next tutoring session. We recommend setting a repeat reminder alarm for the 15th of every month.
If authorization (Enrichment Certificate or PO) has not been received at least 24-hours before the first session of the month, the session will be cancelled and forfeited. We will make every attempt to prevent this from happening, but please understand that while we love tutoring students, we dislike being ‘collectors’ having to nag families for their charter school funds.
Refunds
We have a No Refund Policy for all services. Tutoring hours may be used only for tutoring and academic services.
**Mandatory Adult Chaperone**
A parent, guardian, or chaperone (18 years of age or older) must be present during the entire lesson for in-home tutoring sessions. Tutors may not enter the home of a student if a parent, guardian, or chaperone is not in the home. If a parent, guardian, or chaperone does not arrive within 15 minutes, the tutor is free to leave and the family will still be charged in full. If a chaperone does arrive within that time, the tutor may carry on with the session and end at the original scheduled time for that session. At the tutor’s discretion, arrangements can be made for a chaperone under the age of 18 (someone old enough and responsible enough to care for the kids in the case of an emergency) but both chaperone and parents must agree to release Almadayo and its tutors from any liability resulting from those circumstances.
**No Closed Doors**
A tutor may never tutor a student behind closed doors. This is for the students’ comfort and protection as well as the tutors’. Tutoring sessions should be held in an open, quiet, low traffic area in the student’s home.
Termination of Tutoring
If the tutor chooses to discontinue tutoring, we require the tutor to inform us 2 weeks prior to the last session. This provides Almadayo with the opportunity to find a replacement tutor for the family.