Getting started
First steps with CinderTutor.
How do I book a free trial lesson?
Create an account at
/signup. Tell us your child’s year level and subject. We’ll match a tutor and email you to confirm a 30-minute trial slot within 24–48 hours. No card required.
What happens during the trial lesson?
The tutor introduces themselves, gets a sense of where your child is, and works through a topic from their current curriculum. After the lesson, the tutor sends a short note about what they noticed; you decide whether to continue.
When can I start regular lessons?
Most families start the week after the trial. You pick a recurring time slot from the tutor’s availability.
Lessons
How sessions actually work.
How long are sessions?
50 minutes by default. We’ve found this is the sweet spot for adolescents — long enough to get into the work, short enough to maintain focus.
Are lessons recorded?
Yes — for educational continuity and parent supervision. The recording is visible only to you (the parent account) and the tutor. You can request it be disabled for specific sessions.
Can I sit in on a lesson?
For first-time families, yes — many parents want to see how the first session goes. After that, most parents review the recording later instead. Either is fine.
What happens if my child needs to cancel?
Cancel more than 24 hours before the lesson and the session goes back to your monthly allowance. Within 24 hours, the session is forfeit unless it’s due to illness or emergency — just email us and we’ll waive it.
Tutors
Who’s teaching your child.
How are tutors chosen?
Lisa personally interviews every tutor candidate. Tutors are current or former classroom teachers, with a smaller number of senior university students who excelled in the same exam stream. We list each tutor’s qualifications openly.
What if the tutor isn’t the right fit?
Tell us. We’ll rematch within two business days, no charge. The first 30 days are also fully refundable if you’d rather not continue.
Will my child have the same tutor every week?
Yes — that’s the whole point. Each child is matched to one specific tutor for their subject. If a tutor goes on holiday or stops working with us, we’ll match a new one and tell you in advance.
Billing
Money questions.
When am I charged?
Monthly, on the same day each month from when you started. First-month charges are full-month (we don’t pro-rate); if you start mid-month you also get those extra sessions that month.
Is GST included?
Yes, all prices include 10% GST for Australian customers. New Zealand customers see prices excluding NZ GST — we’re GST-registered in AU only.
Can I claim CinderTutor on tax?
Tutoring expenses for personal use aren’t typically tax-deductible. If you’re a school or NDIS provider, talk to us about institutional invoicing.
How do I cancel?
Three clicks in the parent dashboard. We don’t do retention calls. Cancellation takes effect at the end of your current billing month; banked unused sessions stay good for 6 months.
Account
Managing your CinderTutor account.
How do I add another child to my account?
From the parent dashboard: Family → Add child. Adding a second child upgrades you to the Family plan automatically; we pro-rate the change.
Can my child have their own login?
Yes — from age 14. The parent dashboard creates a student account that can join sessions and view their own progress notes, but billing, recordings, and parent reports stay on the parent account.
How do I export my child’s data?
From the dashboard: Account → Export data. You get a ZIP of all session recordings, lesson notes, and progress reports. Available at any time, free.
Technical
For the practical stuff.
What do we need for a session?
A laptop or desktop computer with a webcam, microphone, and a reliable internet connection (5 Mbps+). A second screen is helpful but not required. We’d strongly recommend a real keyboard over a touchscreen for maths.
Does CinderTutor work on a tablet?
It works, but a laptop is better. Tablets are fine for some subjects (English, Economics) but harder for working through maths and chemistry where you want to scribble on a shared whiteboard.
What browser should we use?
Chrome, Firefox, Edge, or Safari, all recent versions. We don’t need a download — the session runs in the browser.