Customer story · Independent tutor

How Cathleen Sagisi teaches one-to-one onlineand sends parents a summary of every lesson

Cathleen Sagisi, the tutor behind ThatTutor in London, has taught her online lessons on Pencil Spaces since 2024. She won Professional Tutor of the Year and Best Online Tutor at the 2023 National Tutoring Awards. Each child has a Space of their own, every text goes on the board, and each recorded lesson becomes a summary for parents.

Illustration: a one-to-one English lesson on Pencil Spaces, with two texts side by side on the board.
Tutor
Cathleen Sagisi, ThatTutor
thattutor.uk ↗
본사는
Upminster, London, teaching online across the UK and abroad
Teaches
Math, English and science from KS1 to GCSE, 7+, 11+ and 13+ preparation, and SEN support
모델
One-to-one lessons, online and in person
‘연필 공간’에 대하여
Since 2023; her online lessons since 2024

ThatTutor at a glance

One child, one tutor.

How Cathleen runs her practice, from her own site and her profession’s awards.

1:1

Every ThatTutor lesson is one-to-one, planned around a single child.

2

National Tutoring Awards in 2023: Professional Tutor of the Year and Best Online Tutor.

KS1–GCSE

Math, English and science, plus 7+, 11+ and 13+ entrance preparation and SEN support.

Her online lessons have run on Pencil Spaces since September 2024.

Sources: thattutor.uk, read October 28, 2026, and The Tutors’ Association’s 2023 award results.

요약

A practice built on trust, taught online.

The tutor

One child at a time

Cathleen teaches every child one-to-one and puts safeguarding first. She is Enhanced DBS checked, and her terms tell families that online lessons are recorded to protect their child.

In Pencil Spaces

A Space for every child

Each child’s lessons happen in a Space of their own. Cathleen joins from her laptop and her iPad, puts texts and past papers on the board and records the lesson in the cloud.

함께 만들어졌습니다

First to try what’s new

Cathleen tries new tools before most customers see them, from recording without screen sharing to Quick Search. Writing over a locked PDF began as one of her requests.

The tutor

Every lesson one-to-one, built around the child.

Cathleen Sagisi has tutored for nearly a decade. Through ThatTutor, she teaches math, English and science from Key Stage 1 to GCSE, prepares children for 7+, 11+ and 13+ entrance exams, and supports children with special educational needs.

Every engagement is one-to-one. Families start with a consultation and a short trial lesson to check the fit, then agree a plan together. She teaches in person around Upminster, in east London, and online for families across the UK and abroad.

Her lessons mix classroom teaching with coaching, mentoring and neuro-linguistic programming. She puts a child’s wellbeing first and sees good grades as what follows from a confident, settled learner.

In 2026, ThatTutor moved into its own office. Cathleen has also created and trademarked her own approach, the T.U.T.O.R. Framework, which she plans to share through workshops, coaching and training.

Recognized by her profession

In 2023, The Tutors’ Association named Cathleen Professional Tutor of the Year and Best Online Tutor at the National Tutoring Awards. She now serves on the association’s board of directors.

Safeguarding comes first

Cathleen is ThatTutor’s Designated Safeguarding Lead. Her terms tell families that online lessons are recorded to protect their child, that they can opt out in writing, and that a parent or trusted adult should be nearby during lessons for under-18s.

Online, she also thinks about what a child can reach. When a lesson needs the web, she opens a shared browser in the Space and searches alongside her student. She can guide the research and step in if a result isn’t right for a child.

On Pencil Spaces since 2023

Shaped by a tutor who tries things first.

Cathleen tells us what works in her lessons and what doesn’t, often the same day. Several tools she uses now were tested in her lessons first.

  1. June 2023

    Two National Tutoring Awards

    The Tutors’ Association names Cathleen Professional Tutor of the Year and Best Online Tutor. At the awards in London, she meets the Pencil Spaces team.

  2. July 2023

    ThatTutor opens its account

    ThatTutor gets its own branded Pencil Spaces account. Cathleen starts with Spaces for homework and tells us where the board’s controls should sit.

  3. September 2024

    Her online lessons move over

    Cathleen completes our training, then moves her online teaching to Pencil Spaces. By December, she’s fully settled in.

  4. July 2025

    Writing over locked PDFs

    A request from Cathleen ships. She can now select and move her writing on top of a locked PDF or image, and the page underneath stays put.

  5. February 2026

    Recording without screen sharing

    Cathleen is among the first tutors to record the board straight to the cloud, with no screen to share. Her full-hour lessons record cleanly.

  6. June 2026

    Several files at once

    Multiple-file upload lets her put nonfiction texts side by side on one board. Past papers with their mark schemes are next.

수업 현장

Every text the lesson needs, on one board.

In an English lesson on nonfiction, Cathleen uploads a newspaper report, a magazine feature and a blog post in one go. They land side by side on the board, so her student compares them without switching tabs.

Several files at once

She picks the PDFs, chooses the pages she needs from each, and they go onto the board together, ready to mark up.

Lead the board

With Lead on, her student sees exactly what Cathleen sees. With Lead off, the student works on the board alone.

Laptop for video, iPad for the pen

Cathleen joins each lesson from both devices. Her laptop carries the video and materials, and on her iPad she writes and highlights straight onto the text.

A Space for each child

Each child’s boards stay in their own Space, so last week’s work is there when the next lesson starts.

Families and safeguarding

After every lesson, a summary for parents.

Cathleen records every online lesson in the cloud, as her terms tell families. Shortly after the lesson ends, a summary arrives in her inbox. She reads it, sends it to the child’s parents and keeps a copy for her records.

Recorded in the cloud

Pencil Spaces records the lesson in the cloud with the board included, so Cathleen doesn’t need to share her screen.

A summary with action items

Each recorded lesson produces an AI summary with action items. Cathleen checks it, then forwards it to the child’s parents.

Reminders before each lesson

Lessons are scheduled in Pencil Spaces, and reminder emails go out before each one.

Open between lessons

Each child’s Space stays open between lessons, so students can come back to finish homework or look over what they covered.

Feedback on her own teaching

After a recorded lesson, Session Insights reviews it against a teaching rubric and suggests what to try next. Cathleen turned it on early in 2026.

ThatTutor’s name on the account

Her branded account carries ThatTutor’s name, so families know whose lesson they’re joining.

For other independent tutors

Teaching one-to-one online? Six ideas from ThatTutor.

Start with a conversation and a trial lesson

Cathleen begins with a consultation, then a short trial lesson to check the fit before a family commits.

Send families a summary after every lesson

Record each lesson and forward its summary to parents. Say in your terms that lessons are recorded, why, and how families can opt out.

Put every text on the board before you start

Upload the passages, past paper and mark scheme together, and close the other tabs. The lesson goes to the child, not to hunting for files.

Compare side by side, not tab by tab

Two texts next to each other make differences easy to point at, and easy to annotate.

Give every child a Space of their own

One Space per child keeps their boards and notes together, week after week. Students come back to it for homework, and for Cathleen, opening it marks the switch into teaching.

Give younger students a pen tablet

Writing on a board with a trackpad is hard for young children. Cathleen has sent pen tablets to families of KS2 students who learn on Chromebooks.

질문

About ThatTutor and Pencil Spaces.

Who is Cathleen Sagisi?

Cathleen Sagisi is an independent tutor in Upminster, London, who runs ThatTutor. She teaches math, English and science from Key Stage 1 to GCSE, entrance exam preparation and SEN support, one-to-one online and in person. She won Professional Tutor of the Year and Best Online Tutor at the 2023 National Tutoring Awards.

How does ThatTutor use Pencil Spaces?

Cathleen teaches her online lessons in Pencil Spaces, joining from her laptop and her iPad. Each child has a Space with a shared board, video and chat. She uploads texts and past papers, uses Lead to guide her student’s view and writes straight on the page. Lessons are recorded in the cloud, and each summary goes to parents.

Did Pencil Spaces help Cathleen win her awards?

No. Cathleen won Professional Tutor of the Year and Best Online Tutor in June 2023, before ThatTutor opened its Pencil Spaces account that July. The Tutors’ Association runs the National Tutoring Awards, and Pencil Spaces was one of its sponsors in 2023 and 2024.

Can I send parents a summary of each online lesson?

Yes. Record the lesson in the cloud, with no screen to share, and an AI summary with action items arrives by email shortly after it ends. Read it, then forward it to the child’s parents, as Cathleen does. Tell families in your terms that lessons are recorded and how to opt out.

Can I upload several worksheets or texts at once?

Yes. Pick several PDFs at once, choose the pages you want from each, and they go onto the board together, ready to annotate. Cathleen uses this to put nonfiction texts side by side. Past papers and their mark schemes work the same way.

How do I start teaching one-to-one on Pencil Spaces?

Sign up, open a Space and invite your student with its link. Pencil Spaces runs in the browser on laptops, Chromebooks and tablets, with nothing to install. Every paid plan is free for 2 weeks, with no credit card required.

Teach one-to-one online

Bring your next lesson into one Space.

Try Pencil Spaces with your own students, or get a demo and see a lesson run from start to finish.

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