SERVICES
I provide specialized academic instruction, using research-based methods and materials, that is designed to remediate deficits in the basic skill areas of reading, writing, and mathematics. I also provide support to students who need assistance with executive functioning, including organization, planning and time management, study skills, and effective usage of learning strategies. Currently, services are delivered online. Due to their learning challenges, my students typically fail to benefit from large group instruction, and over time their academic achievement falls below their grade level. These same students are capable of making academic gains and achieving at grade level when academic, non-academic, and socio-emotional factors are properly addressed. My students range in age from those beginning their education in the early elementary grades through those starting college. Students are taught via programs that are individualized to meet their specific needs and maintain their interests. They learn specific strategies that are applied to carefully planned academic tasks. This process provides students with the skills needed to become active participants in the learning process by learning how to learn rather than simply what to learn.
Services for college students include addressing issues involving Executive Functions, typically related to planning, organization, and consistent strategy application. Interventions often involve developing the patterns and routines required for overall self-regulation and academic success. SMART (Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, Timebound) goals may be developed for each student and then tied to individually customized metrics that identify the specific behaviors needed to monitor progress. It is normal for there to be some periods where ground can be lost until a correction is successfully applied.
These metrics are completed on a weekly or biweekly basis by the student themself. This process gets the buy-in needed from the student to accept the results and be open to receiving the counseling required to make the necessary changes to reach their personal goals.
Content may involve effective technology usage, including online calendars, online document management, etc., as needed. Additionally, recognizing when the use of technology is detracting from successful functioning has been a past theme with some students. Aspects of coaching mixed with positive psychology characterize much of the approach.
Areas of Expertise:
- Mathematics
- Reading
- Written Expression
- Handwriting
- Executive Function Issues (including Organization, Planning and Time Management, Study Skills, and Effective Usage of Learning Strategies)
- Academic Assessment
- Test Preparation
Mathematics:
My goal is to assist students in learning and applying strategies that will allow them to remediate gaps in their math learning and develop a firm foundation on which to continue growing. Individualized programs for either remediation (working to catch up to grade level) or enrichment (working to stay ahead and excel to their highest potential) are available for students working at the following levels:
Elementary, Middle School, Pre-Algebra, Algebra I, Algebra II, and Geometry.
Skill deficits are remediated using direct, explicit, systematic instruction that is combined with best practices and research-based intervention strategies.
Reading:
The reading programs that I use all employ various forms of visual, auditory, and tactile/ kinesthetic methodologies that have been shown to be effective with learning-disabled and dyslexic students.
- Seeing Stars: Symbol Imagery for Phonemic Awareness, Sight Words, and Spelling
- Lindamood Phoneme Sequencing (LiPS) Program
- Visualizing and Verbalizing for Language Comprehension and Thinking (V/V)
- Read Naturally
- And others
Students learn to build up their missing foundational skills in:
Phonemic Awareness
Phonics
Fluency
Vocabulary
Comprehension
Scarborough Model of Reading
Written Expression:
Students are taught to grasp the basic skills for sentence, paragraph, and essay construction depending upon their individual needs and level of skill development. Strategies and methods also address how to improve spelling.
Handwriting:
Multi-sensory techniques and specialized materials customized to the individual student are used for teaching young writers how to construct letter formations correctly.
Executive Functions:
Success in school is highly dependent upon the ability to self-regulate behavior. Specific thinking skills must be used to select and achieve goals, as well as develop solutions to problems. Any breakdown in the areas of organization, planning and time management, study skills, and effective usage of learning strategies is identified and remediated.
Academic Assessment:
Discussed on an individual basis.
Test Preparation:
I have extensive experience helping students prepare for the following tests: ERB, ISEE, SSAT, PSAT, SAT, and more!
Dyslexia
Dysgraphia
Dyscalculia
Academic Support
Tutoring
Learning Disabilities
Motivation Issues
ADD/ADHD
Autism
Executive Functions
Reading Instruction
Written Language Instruction
Math Instruction
Academic Assessment