Online specialised tuition and coaching for children and teenagers in Malaysia.
One to one online coaching for ages 7 to 18 in international and expat families, with British curriculum tuition available where academic continuity matters too.
Experienced UK support, wherever you have landed.
- London Teacher of the Year Award 2021
- BSc Psychology (Hons) and Qualified Teacher Status
- 10+ years with children in the UK and internationally
- One to one online sessions, ages 7 to 18
Families in Kuala Lumpur and further afield often tell the same story in different ways: the move itself went smoothly, and then a few months later something is not quite right with one of the children. It might be reluctance to go into school, or a child who has stopped mentioning anyone by name.
Coaching gives that child a regular, unhurried hour with someone whose job is to understand what is going on rather than to assess them. Ruby and your child work on the specifics, and you hear afterwards what came up and what Ruby and your child are working on.
It is part of Ruby's online work with international and expat families, delivered from the UK.
At a glance
- Main service
- One-to-one online coaching for children and teenagers
- Ages
- Coaching for ages 7 to 18. Tuition for ages 7 to 13
- Areas of support
- Friendships, social confidence, emotional regulation, executive functioning, organisation, school transitions and independence
- SEN and neurodiversity
- Psychology-informed support adapted for autistic children, children with ADHD and children with other additional needs
- Tuition
- British curriculum tuition, academic confidence, 7+, 9+ and 11+ preparation can be incorporated where appropriate
- Format
- Individual online sessions tailored around the child’s strengths, needs and goals
- Availability
- Online sessions arranged around Malaysia after-school hours.
- Practitioner
- Ruby Cole, qualified teacher, BSc Psychology (Hons), former Assistant Psychologist and London Teacher of the Year 2021
- Scope
- Education-led, psychology-informed coaching. This is not therapy, counselling, psychological assessment or clinical treatment
What tends to come up for children here
Settling somewhere takes longer than a term. Children often manage the first weeks on novelty, then hit the point where everyone else has gone back to their existing friendships and they are still working out where they fit.
Distance from the UK also plays a part. Grandparents, cousins and old friends are a long flight away, and children can be quietly homesick long after the family has decided the move was a good one.
What Ruby and your child work towards
Each programme is built around one child and reviewed with you as things move.
Social confidence, friendships and communication
Ruby and your child practise the ordinary things that are hard when you are new: how to join a game, how to keep a conversation going past the first question, and how to recover when an attempt does not work.
For older children, Ruby and your child also look at how to hold onto friendships in other countries without letting them get in the way of new ones.
More on this in the social and friendships programme.
Executive functioning, organisation and independence
Independent learning is expected earlier in some international schools than in others, and a child who has just changed systems can look careless when they simply have not been taught how to manage the load.
Ruby and your child build the habits directly: planning a piece of work, breaking it into parts, keeping track of what is due and asking for help early rather than at the last minute.
This is the ground covered by organisation and independence coaching.
Emotional understanding, confidence and transitions
Sessions give children words for what they are feeling, which sounds small and changes a great deal. A child who can say they are nervous about Thursday is much easier to help than a child who can only refuse to get in the car.
Where school attendance has become difficult, Ruby works slowly and in step with you, and with school if that is helpful.
SEN and neurodivergent children
Suitable local specialist provision is not always easy to find, and families sometimes wait a long time for the right support. Online sessions with an experienced UK teacher can be a practical option, whether a child is autistic, has ADHD, or has differences in processing, working memory or executive functioning.
The approach is neurodiversity-affirming and strengths-first. Ruby will not work on making a child seem less autistic, and coaching is never presented as assessment or treatment.
There is more about SEN and neurodivergent coaching, and about specialist teaching in SEN tuition.
Tuition alongside coaching
For ages 7 to 13, tuition can run alongside coaching, aligned with the UK National Curriculum and supporting Cambridge Primary and Checkpoint as well as children in IB schools. It is most useful for keeping British curriculum continuity, or picking up ground lost during a move.
Where a UK school place is the goal, see 7+, 9+ and 11+ preparation.
Fitting sessions around the school day
Ruby works from the UK, generally 9am to 6pm UK time. Malaysia is seven hours ahead in British Summer Time and eight in winter, so a late afternoon or early evening slot here is a morning appointment for her and easy to hold each week.
Sessions are one to one over video call, with written notes to you afterwards.
Who this is for
- Families who have relocated and want a child properly settled
- Children still on the outside of a class months after arriving
- Children who are quietly homesick
- Children needing more independence with schoolwork
- Neurodivergent children without a suitable local specialist
- Families wanting to keep a British curriculum thread going
About Ruby
Ruby Cole is a qualified teacher with Qualified Teacher Status and a BSc Psychology (Hons), and winner of the London Teacher of the Year Award 2021. She has more than 10 years of experience supporting children and young people in the UK and internationally, including specialist one to one teaching across mainstream, SEN and neurodivergent profiles.
She previously worked as an Assistant Psychologist within a children and young people's clinical psychology service, and has contributed to research with UCL and the Anna Freud Centre. That background is why the work is psychology-informed: sessions start from how a child is developing, what they are carrying and how they learn, rather than from a fixed programme. Ruby works closely with parents throughout, and with a child's school where the family would like her to.
What this is, and what it is not
Ruby offers education-led, psychology-informed coaching and support. This is not therapy, counselling, psychological assessment or clinical treatment. If a child's needs fall outside the scope of coaching, Ruby will always be open with the family and recommend appropriate professional support.
Questions families in Malaysia ask
We cannot find the right specialist locally. Can online sessions really work?
For coaching and for tuition, yes. Both are delivered one to one over video call, and many children find the format easier than being in a room with a stranger. What online support cannot do is replace assessment or clinical treatment, and Ruby will always say when that is what is needed.
How involved will I be?
Closely. There is a conversation before sessions start, written notes afterwards, and reviews as sessions progress. You are never guessing what is being worked on.
Does coaching cover school refusal or anxiety about attending?
It can be part of the support, worked on gently and alongside you and school. It is not a clinical treatment for anxiety, and where a child needs clinical input Ruby will recommend it.
Can my child do coaching and tuition in the same week?
Yes, and plenty do. They are usually kept as separate sessions so the academic work does not swallow the coaching.
What ages do you work with?
Coaching runs from 7 to 18. Tuition is for ages 7 to 13.
Do you have a minimum commitment?
Coaching starts with a minimum of four sessions, which is enough to get somewhere useful. After that you continue for as long as it helps.
Where to start
If you are not sure whether coaching or tuition fits, that is what the first conversation is for. You can read more about coaching for children and teenagers, or go back to the international coaching page for the wider picture.
Talk it through with Ruby.
A free 15-minute discovery call, no pressure and no obligation.