Years 1 to 9 · Dubai and Abu Dhabi
Primary and middle school tutors in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Years 1 to 9
Years 1 to 9
There is no exam in these years. There is still a lot to get right.
Years 1 to 9 come before any public exam, so there is no syllabus to teach to and no grade boundary to aim at. The work is whatever the class teacher has set this term, and progress is judged by that same teacher. A mentor teaches to the school's own plan, in any of the five curricula we cover, online anywhere in the UAE or in person in both cities.
See what a lesson costsWhy it works
What makes the difference
- 01
We teach to the school's plan, not to an exam board
In these years each school writes its own plan for the term, and two schools on the same curriculum can be on different topics in the same week. So the first lesson starts with the exercise book and the teacher's comments in it, and every lesson after that follows what the class is actually doing. There is no past paper to drill, because no paper has been set yet.
- 02
Progress is judged by the class teacher
There is no grade boundary in Year 5. What there is instead is a teacher's report, a parents' evening and a set of comments in a book, and those are the measure we work to. We ask what the teacher said, we work on that, and the note home after each lesson tells you whether it has moved.
- 03
The habits are the point
Years 10 to 13 are survived on habits built years earlier: number sense, so arithmetic stops eating the thinking time; reading stamina, so a long text is not a wall; writing that holds a shape; and knowing how to sit down and start without being asked. Those take a long run of ordinary weeks, which is why starting early costs less than a rescue later.
What lessons cover
What a lesson in these years actually does
Number sense and maths
Times tables, place value, fractions and the mental arithmetic everything later stands on. A child still counting on fingers in Year 6 is not slow, but they are spending on arithmetic the attention that algebra in Year 9 will need. We find the gap, name it, and close it with short work done often rather than long sessions.
Reading stamina and comprehension
Reading a page is not the same as staying with ten pages. We build the distance a child can read without stopping, then the harder half: saying what the text meant, what it implied, and where in the paragraph the evidence for that sits.
Writing that holds a shape
Sentences first, then paragraphs, then a piece with a beginning, a middle and an end a reader can follow. Most marks lost in the later years go on structure rather than on ideas, and structure is learned young, by planning before writing and by reading the piece back afterwards.
Primary and middle school science
Science in these years is mostly explaining: why something happened, in what order, in the child's own words. We work on that and on the words a science answer needs, because Year 10 assumes both are already there.
Homework, organisation and sitting down to work
Where the homework is written down, when it gets done, what to do when a question is not understood, and how to work for thirty minutes without a phone. This is the part parents mention last and it is often what changes the term.
Subjects follow the school, so tell us what your child is on. Arabic in these years is set by the school and has a page of its own, Arabic tutors in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. With 60+ subjects covered and 150+ mentors we can usually help, and where we cannot we say so plainly rather than take the booking.
The five curricula
The years look the same. The plan behind them does not.
British curriculum tutors in Dubai and Abu Dhabi
Years 1 to 9 sit below IGCSE. That page covers the whole British system, from the early years up to A-Level.
IBIB tutors in Dubai
In an IB school the upper half of this range is the Middle Years Programme, the years before the Diploma. That page sets out the IB work we do in Dubai.
AmericanAmerican curriculum tutors in Dubai and Abu Dhabi
The elementary and middle school grades, which come before the high school years the transcript is built from.
CanadianCanadian curriculum tutors in Dubai and Abu Dhabi
The Canadian support we publish starts at Grade 9, so for a younger grade tell us the subject and we will say plainly whether we cover it.
SABISSABIS tutors in Dubai
SABIS is the exception. The weekly AMS test starts early, so there is a measure of progress in these years, and lessons run to that weekly rhythm.
Mentors travel to homes across Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and teach online anywhere in the UAE. Every rate is the online rate, and a lesson at home adds AED 30.
In Abu Dhabi, start with IB tutors in Abu Dhabi or SABIS tutors in Abu Dhabi.
How it works
From your first message to the first lesson
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01
Tell us the year and the school
Send the year group, the school and what the last report said, on WhatsApp or through the contact form. If the worry is a subject, name it. If the worry is that nothing starts without a fight, say that instead, because it changes the match.
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02
Meet the mentor we match
We match by hand, usually within 48 hours, to a mentor who has taught that year on that curriculum. If the fit is wrong we rematch at no cost and at the same rate.
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03
A note home after every lesson
Lessons are scheduled around the school week, and a short note reaches you afterwards saying what was covered, what was hard and what to do before the next one. In these years that note is the report card.
FAQ
Tutoring for Years 1 to 9 in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, answered
- 01
How much does a mentor cost in these years?
The rate follows the school level, never the subject. Primary is AED 140 an hour on the Commitment plan and AED 160 on Flexible, and middle school is AED 160 or AED 180. VAT at 5% is already inside every figure, and a lesson at your home adds AED 30. The whole table is on our pricing page.
- 02
Is Year 5 too early for a mentor?
It is early enough to be cheap. There is no exam to rescue, so the work is small and steady: the gap in number, the reading that stops after a page, the homework that never starts. Fixing those in Year 5 takes a term. Fixing them in Year 10 takes the year, and that year is busy already.
- 03
What does a mentor teach if there is no syllabus?
The school's own plan. We ask for the exercise book, the homework and the last report, then teach what the class is on now plus whatever earlier thing is making it hard. If the school shares a topic list or a term plan, send it and the mentor works from that.
- 04
Which curricula do you cover in these years?
British, IB, American, Canadian and SABIS. The Canadian support we publish starts at Grade 9, so for a younger Canadian grade tell us the subject and we will say plainly whether we cover it rather than take the booking.
- 05
Do you help with homework and focus, not just the subject?
Yes. Where the homework is written down, when it is done, what to do when a question is not understood, and sitting down to work without a fight are all part of the lesson, not an extra.
- 06
Are lessons online or in person?
Both. Mentors travel to homes across Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and lessons run online anywhere in the UAE. Every published rate is the online rate, and an in-person lesson adds AED 30.
In numbers
The numbers behind the match
- 150+ university mentors
- 60+ subjects covered
- 97% improve within weeks
- 48h to a matched mentor
Related
Where these years lead next
School entrance exam preparation
Moving school in primary or middle school usually means a test first. That page covers what those tests ask for.
MathsMaths tutors in Dubai and Abu Dhabi
Maths across every curriculum we teach, set out curriculum by curriculum.
EnglishEnglish tutors in Dubai and Abu Dhabi
Reading and writing across every curriculum, from the early years upward.
At homeTutoring in your home
How a lesson at your own table works, and what the AED 30 covers.
PricingWhat a lesson costs
One rate per school level, VAT included, before you book anything.
No exam yet. That is the best time to start.
Lessons run in person across Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and online anywhere in the UAE.
Book your first lesson