Meet Mariya Zakir, the founder of Cedar Elm Tutoring

Mariya Zakir, founder of Cedar Elm Tutoring.

Before Cedar Elm existed, Mariya worked as a Registered Behavior Technician at an ABA clinic and as a tutor at a tutoring center. In both jobs, she met families who couldn't find the right help with schoolwork for their child.

Her experience and credentials

Former Registered Behavior Technician (RBT): 1 year, one-on-one with autistic children at an ABA clinic
3 years tutoring at a tutoring center
Bachelor's degree from the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD)
CPR certified
Background checked

How Cedar Elm started

At the clinic, she spent her days working directly with autistic children. When parents dropped their children off, she kept hearing the same thing: their children didn't have a strong foundation in school, and they hadn't been able to find the right help.

Three years tutoring at a center showed her part of why. A center is set up to teach many students at once, on the same schedule, and a full day of worksheets doesn't suit every child.

Some children do best with play and hands-on materials, at their own pace.

After talking it over with her supervising BCBA, Mariya started Cedar Elm Tutoring to offer that kind of teaching herself.

Reaching families who don't usually have easy access to individual tutoring is still part of why she does this work.

A child's hand pointing a pencil at a row of blue pom-poms beside an addition worksheet.

What she believes about teaching

There's nothing wrong with the child.

When a lesson isn't landing, Mariya starts from that idea. The teaching is what needs to change. In a session, that might mean swapping a worksheet for pom-poms to count and subtract with, or breaking a task into a two-minute piece when a child is close to done for the day.

Schools and tutoring centers do important work, at a different scale.

A classroom or a center schedules its day around a group. Cedar Elm schedules its day around one child at a time, in their home, with the lesson built entirely around them. If your child also has an IEP, a 504 plan, or other support in place, our page on tutoring kids with ADHD and autism covers how tutoring fits alongside it.

Progress looks different for every child.

For one student, it's a better grade on a class test.
For another, it's sitting at the table two minutes longer than last week.

We treat both as progress.

Parents know their child best.

The plan for each student starts with what a parent already knows: what motivates their child, what a good day looks like, and what's already been tried. Cedar Elm takes the lead once that plan is set, and every family gets a note after each session and a full progress report once a month.

Start with a free consultation

The first visit costs nothing. Your tutor will come to your home, meet your child, and talk through a plan that fits them.

Book a Free Consultation (214) 636-6588

Want to know what that first visit looks like? See our method