I believe

that every child deserves the opportunity to reach their fullest potential.

This means

• learning for mastery
• hands on learning for real life skills
• knowing where your strengths lie
• celebrating each small step in the journey towards success

I have

been homeschooling my own children for 13 years, one of whom has a specific learning disorder in reading (dyslexia) and writing (dysgraphia). I am a Montessori teacher educator and lecture for The Montessori Institute in Australia, and the Center for Guided Montessori Studies in the US. My education degree, with psychology as its focus, drives my work as an academic therapist, supporting children, adolescents and adults with learning disabilities to overcome their difficulties with achieving functional literacy and numeracy skills. I am a knowledgable, engaging and passionate speaker who strives to share applicable tools which Montessori educators, homeschooling parents and literacy tutors can put in their teaching toolboxes and use straight away.

My approach

is about helping children to experience success, and to grow their self-belief and autonomy.

In my work with children, I use

• a concrete, hands-on approach
• multi-sensory teaching and learning
• evidence based memory activation and retrieval practices
• explicit, direct instruction
• CRA methodology (concrete - representational - abstract)
• current brain-based research

To help children to learn

• self-management skills (how to organise, prioritise and plan for success)
• metacognitive skills (how to reflect upon their understanding, and know how to ask for help)
• personalised learning skills (how to find out which learning tools work FOR THEM, and how to use them)
• executive function skills (how to make the most of their brain chemistry, and how to train their brains)

My expertise

lies in a life-long personal learning quest - I am always trying to become a better educator.

Professional qualifications

• Bachelor of Arts in Education (Primary and Secondary) with a major in Psychology and Special Needs Education (2000)
• Post-Graduate certification in Montessori education (0-3 Infancy) (3-6 Early Childhood) (6-12 Childhood) and (12-18 Adolescence)
• Certified Montessori teacher trainer

Literacy qualifications

• Montessori Literacy (teacher trainer in the tertiary sector) - I have taught Montessori for over 20 years
• William Van Cleave - Writing Matters - Extensive Educator Training with William Van Cleave over a 7 year period prior to his passing.
• Structured Word Inquiry Practitioner - I have trained with Dr Pete Bowers, Rebecca Loveless, Mary Beth Steven, Fiona Hamilton, Ann Whiting, Lyn Anderson and others. I am the leader of the Australian SWI Study Group
• Learning For Life, Spelling for Life, and more with Lyn Stone of Lifelong Literacy
• The Writing Revolution - Advancing Thinking through Writing - Educator Training
• Orton Gillingham (Yoshimoto) - Basic and Advanced training with Ron Yoshimoto
• Cracking the ABC Code - Educator Training with Dr Lillian Fawcett
• Barton Reading and Spelling - I have taken many students through all ten levels of the program
• Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW)
• That Reading and Spelling Thing - Educator Training with Tricia Millar and Georgina Mavor
• The Writing Rope - Professional learning with Joan Sedita
• SRSD - Professional learning with Karen Harris
• Morpheme Magic - Educator Training with Dr Deb Glaser
• I am the published author of several teacher training textbooks, numerous professional articles, and educational resources

Numeracy qualifications

• Orton Gillingham Multi-Sensory Mathematics (Yoshimoto) - Educator Training with Ron Yoshimoto
• Montessori Mathematics (teacher trainer in the tertiary sector) - I have taught Montessori for over 20 years
• Marilyn Zecher Multi-Sensory Mathematics - Educator Training with Marilyn Zecher
• Woodin/Landmark approach for Dyscalculia - Educator Training with Chris Woodin
• Steve Chinn - Educator Training with Steve Chinn
• Crewton Ramone's Mortensen Math
• Math-U-See
• Right Start Math
• Making Math Real

Other qualifications

• Home Educator for 11+ years
• Whole Brain Learning (UNISA)
• Learning How to Learn (Deep Teaching Solutions)
• Positive Discipline (Chip DeLorenzo)
• Non Violent Communication (CNVC)

My other website

details my work as a literacy and numeracy academic therapist

To find out more please visit this link