English and Language Arts (ELA) Archives

Mayra Licera

September 20, 2025

With over 14 years of experience in both independent and public schools, Mayra Licera is a dedicated and passionate educator specializing in early childhood and elementary education as well as Spanish language instruction. She holds a Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education from Manhattanville College, with dual certification in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL). Her teaching journey is deeply rooted in a family tradition of early childhood educators, and her commitment to fostering a love of learning is evident in every aspect of her work.

Throughout her career, Mayra has specialized in kindergarten readiness and has extensive experience teaching Spanish to students from Pre-K through Grade 12. Her work in the kindergarten admissions process at independent schools has provided her with valuable insight into early learning benchmarks and developmental expectations. She is also a skilled tutor in all core academic subjects and brings a wealth of knowledge in both formative and summative assessments for Pre-K through Grade 3.

A seasoned literacy and math interventionist, Mayra has received training in Orton-Gillingham, Wilson Fundations, Sounds in Motion, and Heggerty—programs that enhance phonemic awareness and foundational literacy skills. In mathematics, she is well-versed in the TERC Investigations, Bridges, EngageNY, and Contexts for Learning curricula, allowing her to meet diverse learning needs with research-based strategies.

Currently serving in New York City’s District 3 on the Upper West Side, Mayra leads both small and large group instruction for English language learners. She collaborates with colleagues to develop developmentally appropriate, culturally responsive curricula that support newcomers in building both academic language and confidence.

Previously, she spent nearly a decade in independent schools on the Upper West Side, where she also taught Spanish to English-speaking students. Her approach is student-centered—she takes time to understand each child’s interests, using them to inspire curiosity and engagement in the classroom.

In her free time, Mayra enjoys traveling, learning new things, and spending quality time with her husband and their five-month-old baby. She brings the same sense of joy, curiosity, and care from her home life into the classroom every day.

Ida Munoz

October 29, 2024

Ida Munoz has been a NYC DOE public school teacher since 2005. Her career started at the PS 90 campus and she has happily remained on the same campus for the past 20 years. She has taught special class instruction, integrated co-teaching and special education teacher support services. She is currently the reading intervention teacher, special education coordinator and chairperson for the School Leadership Team at PS 443, The Family School, which is housed at the PS 90 campus in the Bronx. Aside from her direct work with special education students, she has also served in various capacities within the school building such as teaching mentor, teacher leader, testing coordinator, and building response team member. She received her B.A. at Hunter College with a major in writing. She continued her education at Pace University where she earned her Master’s degree in childhood special education along with her bilingual extension in Spanish.Ida has taught and privately tutored a wide range of students from preschool through 8^th grade in both English and Spanish. She has a firm belief that all children can learn, they just have to be given the appropriate tools to showcase their learning. She uses a variety of methodologies to support her instruction to ensure that every child is able to showcase what they know.

Ida is currently on her school’s instructional leadership team and she is helping design and make changes to the writing curriculum at The Family School. Her work is data driven and she has an understanding on how to interpret that data and make changes to best meet the needs of all students. She also believes that her tutoring work needs to be based on data. She will access her student’s entry points, progress monitor throughout her tutoring session and make changes based on a student’s current need. Every student’s tutoring experience is unique and different and their tutoring program should reflect that.

Ida believes that students learn best when they feel they are in a secure environment. She always reminds her students that it is okay to make mistakes and that they are there to learn from those mistakes. She also believes that learning should be fun and enjoyable for every student. When a student enjoys what that are doing that is when true learning takes place. She will often find tools to help keep students motivated and engaged.

Aside from teaching, Ida enjoys traveling with her family. Her favorite place to vacation is the Dominican Republic. She is a proud mom of an autistic 3-year-old son. She spends a lot of her time advocating for all children on the spectrum. She also enjoys learning how to make new recipes and likes to spend a lot of time in the kitchen cooking for her family.

Georgia Good

October 29, 2024

Georgia Good is a graduate student at NYU, earning an MA in Environmental Conservation Education. As an NYU Steinhardt Scholar and Sustainability Leaders Fellow, she’s building a career in climate communication and engagement, and she is excited to tutor alongside her studies.

Georgia grew up in Cambridge, UK. She has a BA in English from University College London (UCL), where she achieved the top first-class degree in her graduating class, from one of the world’s top-ranked English departments. As a private tutor, she can support students with their own college applications, for both the UCAS and North American systems. A creative writer in her free time, she understands what stands out in an essay, and how to write clearly, powerfully and imaginatively.

Growing up in the British education system, Georgia was awarded A*s in all of her IGCSEs and A-Levels (English, History, and a Pre-U in Philosophy and Theology). She can work with students also taking (I)GCSEs, A-Levels and Pre-U exams, as well as those in the American system. She understands the pressures that many students face, and can help them improve their organizational skills to reduce stress and develop more efficient, manageable, and enjoyable ways of working.

Professionally, Georgia has worked in communications and engagement in the arts, education and increasingly in the environmental sector. As an undergraduate, she was Co-Editor of UCL’s prestigious arts journal, and has worked in communications and climate policy in the London art world and at the University of Cambridge. Most recently, she’s worked as a climate writer, editor and digital communicator for the international nonprofits Mercy Corps and Climate Arc.

Having worked collaboratively and supported others in many of these roles, Georgia is eager to help students improve their writing and editing skills. As a tutor, her focus is on writing coaching, essay coaching and reading comprehension support, for middle schoolers and high schoolers. Her subject focuses are English, history, geography and the study of religion. Though new to tutoring, she’s excited to work with students, and to approach these partnerships with empathy, positivity and a commitment to each student’s individual needs and goals.

In her free time, Georgia loves reading, writing, and finding ways to get outside and be in nature, even in New York – from kayaking on the Hudson River to birding in Prospect Park!

Megan Foley

October 3, 2024

Megan Foley has worked in communications for 20 years as a published author, editor, teacher and creative strategist. For the past decade she has worked in news media, most recently at Axios, and she is excited to return to what she loves best: working with students. She believes that empathy and encouragement are the keys to successful teaching relationships, and she enjoys getting to know each of her students and finding ways to work with their innate strengths and interests to help them achieve their goals.

Megan specializes in essay writing, including admissions essays, research papers, English composition, reading reports, and even cover letters. She helps students organize their thoughts and learn to express themselves with clarity, concision and force. She is also skilled in test preparation for verbal sections on standardized tests; she earned a 99th percentile ranking on the Verbal section of the GRE and teaches test-taking strategies to maximize scores. Megan holds a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Nonfiction from Columbia University’s Graduate Writing Program. During her tenure at Columbia, she served as Managing Editor of Columbia: A Journal of Literature and Art and was named a 2012-2013 Teaching Fellow, which gave her the opportunity to teach undergraduates.

Before attending Columbia, Megan earned a B.A. with Honors in English Literature and Creative Writing from The George Washington University. She also completed certificate programs in Copy Editing and long-form journalism from NYU and the CUNY Graduate Center, respectively. Her writing has appeared in Business Insider, The Village Voice, The Rumpus, Time-Out New York, Women’s Entertainment, Metro New York, Poet Lore, and many others. Megan has taught a wide array of students: from elementary-aged children struggling with reading skills, to high-achieving high schoolers preparing for college, to English-as-a-Second – Language (ESL) PhD candidates. She has found that all students have promise and can succeed when their needs are understood and met with sensitivity and discipline. She is excited to continue her work as a private tutor with My Learning Springboard. In 2013 Megan moved from NYC back to the Washington, DC area, where she grew up. She now resides in Silver Spring, MD with her husband, 3-year-old daughter, twin 12-year-old stepdaughters and their enormous rescue dog.

Emer Rattigan

September 30, 2024

Born and raised in Ireland, Emer’s passion for education, and especially language-based learning differences, stemmed from seeing her mother and two brothers suffer academically from undiagnosed dyslexia. This spurred her onto a pathway of education-based qualifications including a Bachelor’s Degree in Education, a Post Graduate Diploma in Psychology and Special Educational Needs, a Master’s Degree in Special educational Needs, an Associate Practitioner of the Orton-Gillingham Academy, and a certification in The Hochman Method® (The Windward School, NYC).

Today, Emer’s unique educator profile is steeped in 19+ years international experience dedicated to in-classroom education. Together with the life experience of living, teaching, and teacher training on three continents – Europe, Africa, North America – in public and private, urban and rural schools, right across the spectrum of socio-economic backgrounds, Emer offers unrivaled depth and holistic support to her student and parent clients.

In 2016, Emer was recruited in New York City by Stephen Gaynor School where she was a Head Teacher for 8+ years for students with ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, and language based disorders. As a mother of two since 2023, she began privately tutoring students as a Reading, Writing and Auditory Specialist. After witnessing numerous instances of major disconnect between home tutors and schools, she now also provides education consultancy and liaison to support and mentor parents, engage in-school teachers to coordinate the child’s education framework, and ultimately unlock their maximum potential. Today, Emer works with clients in New York, Dublin, London, and Hong Kong.

Emer’s philosophy is focused on grounding education in real life, thought-provoking topics and utilising these subjects to develop her students’ vocabulary, research strategies, writing frameworks, and connect knowledge, delivering broad but integrated learning. Her most recent passion is exploring the linkages between food quality, diet and its overall impact on sleep, focus, learning, and development of neural pathways, essentially giving rise to many of the learning difficulties children face today.

In her spare time, Emer loves exploring new food recipes and healthy, alternative ingredients, as well as running, hiking, and going to the gym.

Mayra Licera

Ida Munoz

Georgia Good

Megan Foley

Emer Rattigan

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