In-Home Tutoring in Portola Valley
One-on-one tutoring for Portola Valley students, from Ormondale and Corte Madera to Woodside High and Woodside Priory: subject tutoring, SAT and ACT prep, and executive function coaching, at home or online.
Schools and math in Portola Valley
Portola Valley School District is small: just over 500 children on two campuses, Ormondale School for TK through third grade and Corte Madera School for fourth through eighth. Corte Madera was named a California Distinguished School in 2026. Its math department describes the sixth-to-eighth-grade program as pathway-based, with students grouped by ability.
For high school, Portola Valley sits in the attendance area of Woodside High School in the Sequoia Union High School District. Many families choose an independent school instead, and two are in town: Woodside Priory School on Portola Road, a Benedictine Catholic day and boarding school for grades 6 to 12, and Woodland School, which runs from preschool through eighth grade.
Sources: Portola Valley School District, Corte Madera School, Corte Madera mathematics, Woodside High School (Wikipedia), Portola Valley Elementary School District (Wikipedia), Woodside Priory School (Wikipedia), Woodside Priory, Woodland School.
The math ladder after eighth grade
Woodside High places ninth graders in core classes using the Sequoia Union placement chart, and district policy requires every student to pass Algebra I to graduate. The college-prep sequence runs Algebra I, then Geometry, then either Algebra II or Algebra II/Trigonometry, a faster course that folds in precalculus topics and suggests a B or better in Algebra I and Geometry. Next come Pre-Calculus, AP Calculus AB (a B or better in Pre-Calculus or Algebra II/Trigonometry is suggested), AP Calculus BC, and Statistics or AP Statistics, with Multivariable Calculus and Linear Algebra offered through Cañada College. The A-G pattern for UC and CSU asks for three years of math and recommends four.
At the Priory, the upper school requires three years of math, at a minimum through Algebra II.
Sources: Woodside High course catalog 2026-2027, Woodside Priory upper school course catalog.
What we help with in Portola Valley
Math tutoring in Portola Valley
Corte Madera math in fourth through eighth grade, then Woodside High's ladder. Because the faster track and AP Calculus both suggest a B or better, we watch those grades closely from Algebra I onward. Priory and other independent school courses are taught from the student's own syllabus. For the subject across the Peninsula, see math tutoring.
Science tutoring in Portola Valley
Middle school science at Corte Madera, then biology, chemistry and physics at the honors and AP level, including lab reports and the algebra the problem sets lean on. More on science tutoring.
English and writing tutoring in Portola Valley
Close reading, analytical essays and AP English Language or Literature, worked through on the paper due this week so the method sticks for the next one. More on English tutoring.
SAT and ACT prep in Portola Valley
We start with a practice test, pick the exam that suits your student, and spend the weeks before test day on the sections where points are easiest to win back. More on SAT and ACT prep.
College admissions counseling in Portola Valley
A four-year course plan that keeps the A-G pattern and the AP Calculus timeline in view, plus activities and essays when senior year arrives. More on college counseling.
Executive function coaching in Portola Valley
Moving from Corte Madera, where one campus has carried a student since fourth grade, to a high school where ninth graders take six classes and may add a seventh, means more teachers, more portals and more due dates at once. For students with ADHD, autism, dyslexia or a twice-exceptional profile, that is often where grades slip, not because the material is too hard but because the planning is. Coaching happens at your student's desk on this week's assignments and can run alongside tutoring under one plan. See executive function coaching.
How it works in Portola Valley
- Free 30-minute assessment. A conversation about your student, their school and what is getting in the way. Text, call or book a time.
- Matched, usually within a week. We propose the educator, a written plan and a weekly time, and you meet them before the first session. If a match will take longer, we tell you on the call.
- Weekly sessions. 60 minutes at your kitchen table in Portola Valley, or online.
Membership from $275 a session in your home, $215 online. Save more with a semester commitment. See pricing.
What families say
From our reviews page.
You were a great tutor when it came to helping me in my work. You were very good at breaking down my problems and going over them with me step by step making sure I got the hang of it. You helped me out so much during the whole year when it came to catching up on my work and assignments that needed to be turned in. Honestly if it wasn't for you, I would have been stuck in summer school.
Awesome Teacher to be honest.
Questions from Portola Valley families
Do you come to Portola Valley?
Yes. Portola Valley is in our in-home service area, so the educator comes to your house at a set weekly time. If a week gets busy, a session can move online, and each session is billed at its own rate.
Do you know the Woodside High math sequence?
Yes. We plan around Woodside High's published ladder, from Algebra I and Geometry to Algebra II or the faster Algebra II/Trigonometry, then Pre-Calculus and AP Calculus, and we teach from your student's own syllabus, homework and tests.
Do you work with Corte Madera and Woodside Priory students?
Yes. We start from the class your student is actually in, whether that is a Corte Madera math pathway, a Priory upper school course or a Woodside High class, and plan around the tests and deadlines on their calendar.
What does tutoring in Portola Valley cost?
Sessions are 60 minutes. A Membership is $275 a session in your home or $215 online. Commit through the end of the term and it is $260 or $200; pay-as-you-go Flex is $300 or $240. Every price and term is on the pricing page.
Ready to talk?
No commitment, no pressure. Just an honest conversation about what would help your student in Portola Valley.