What is the difference between tutoring and educational therapy?
Tutoring focuses on re-teaching academic subjects. Educational therapy uses a clinical teaching model based on scientific brain research and proven methods, which address underlying learning skills such as visual and auditory processing, attention and focus, and memory skills. Academic areas such as reading, writing, spelling, vocabulary development, reading and writing fluency and math are remediated after weak processing skills are identified and addressed through direct instruction and practice, ultimately leading toward successful independent functional use.

How does therapy work?
After an initial consultation, an academic screening is scheduled. Learning strengths and weaknesses are defined and a therapy plan is developed. Skills are taught and practiced in hourly sessions at the therapist's office. Students are helped to gain the self- understanding needed to manage their learning, attention and social challenges. Self-advocacy is nurtured and encouraged.

What is a Multi-Sensory Structured Language Educator?
Multi-sensory teaching is simultaneously visual, auditory, and kinesthetic/tactile and is designed to enhance memory and learning. Links are consistently made between the visual (what we see), auditory (what we hear), and kinesthetic-tactile (what we feel) pathways in learning to read, spell and write.The students are taught the structure of language sytematically and explicitly.

Who are the students you work with?
Children are referred to me who have been identified as dyslexic, gifted dyslexic, or being at risk for dyslexia. I work with children diagnosed with non-verbal learning disabiliies (NLD), those diagnosed with a high variant of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), or ADD and ADHD. I also provide special education support to children who are home-schooled.

What approaches do you use?
Instruction is tailored to individual students and is based on a combination of Slingerland, Lindamood-Bell Learning Processes, LANGUAGE!, Wilson, and Making Math Real multisensory programs. Read Naturally is used as a reading fluency training program. For children with NLD or Asperger's, I use strategies, which have been shown to be successful by Autism Training and Support, Inc.