Orton-Gillingham based approaches, incl. Wilson and PAF Archives

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.

Nicole Ziccardi

September 29, 2024

Nicole Ziccardi, Ed.M. is a trusted partner in helping schools and families design and implement transformational instructional programs. With over 18 years of diverse experience in the education field, Nicole brings a deep commitment to building students’ confidence, independence, and a genuine love of learning.

After working as a classroom teacher in NYC public schools, Nicole went on to found a NYC public school as principal. She later served in key roles at prominent private schools, first as a Learning Specialist, and then as a Dean of Faculty and Director of Curriculum. This extensive background has given Nicole unparalleled insight into the complex work of supporting students in various educational settings.

As a certified literacy specialist and a graduate of Teachers College, Columbia University, Nicole draws on the latest research in child development, pedagogy, cognitive science, and educational technology to collaborate with schools and families. Together, they create and implement customized plans, instructional coaching, and curriculum resources that engage all learners, particularly students with neurodivergence, executive functioning challenges, and reading disorders.

Nicole’s work is rooted in a deep understanding that every child is unique, with their own strengths, interests, and learning needs. She partners with clients to design and implement strengths-based, skills-focused strategies that are not only standards-aligned, but also deeply engaging for diverse learners.

Nicole has a natural ability to understand and leverage the local school context, building trusting relationships and offering customized solutions to meet the unique needs of each child. Whether it’s reviewing neuropsychological reports, conducting diagnostic assessments, creating learning support plans, or providing direct school consultation, Nicole approaches each project with empathy, expertise, and a steadfast commitment to educational equity.

As a mother of two school-aged boys, Nicole also deeply empathizes with the challenges families face. She fosters strong parent-school partnerships, focused on integrating social-emotional supports and unlocking the learning resources students need to thrive. Nicole brings a common-sense, whole-hearted approach to decision-making, always keeping the best interests of children at the forefront.

Nicole is excited to join My Learning Springboard, where she can offer a wide range of services to pinpoint and respond to each family’s unique needs. Her specialties include:

Neuropsychological report review and interpretation
Diagnostic assessments and learning evaluations
Customized learning support plans
Direct school consultation and family advocacy
Personalized tutoring and family coaching

Through her work, Nicole empowers educators, students, and families to unlock the full potential of every learner. She is passionate about transforming teaching and learning, and she is dedicated to creating the engaging, equitable learning environments that all children deserve.

Nina Rich

February 12, 2024

Nina Rich brings over fifteen years of invaluable experience to her role as an early childhood educator, having taught at prestigious NYC independent schools such as Horace Mann and Packer Collegiate Institute. Her journey through diverse pedagogical approaches, spanning Montessori, Reggio-Emilia, and International Baccalaureate, reflects her dedication to exploring innovative teaching methodologies.

Over the past three years she has focused on structured multisensory literacy instruction. After training in PAF, a comprehensive program for teaching reading, handwriting, and spelling based on the Orton-Gillingham approach, she took a 60-hour training with the prestigious Orton-Gillingham Academy. She became an Associate member of the organization after completing a rigorous practicum. Nina has taught elementary and middle school aged struggling readers and those who have a dyslexia diagnosis.

Nina’s dedication to enhancing her teaching practice is evident in her commitment to ongoing professional development. She actively seeks out opportunities to expand her knowledge base following research in literacy, language-based learning disabilities, executive function, and ADHD.

With a wealth of experience working with children, Nina possesses a unique skill set that allows her to improvise, remain flexible, and explain new concepts in a manner that is both clear and engaging. Nina’s passion lies in crafting tailored lessons that cater to each child’s unique needs, leveraging their strengths, and integrating their interests. Her teaching philosophy seamlessly blends academic rigor with movement, joy, and laughter. She sees herself as a dynamic combination of detective, cheerleader, and coach. Her love for her work, and care for her students, shines through in every aspect of her teaching practice.

In addition to teaching students, Nina enjoys working with parents, sharing resources, her expertise in literacy instruction, and strategies for supporting their children’s literacy development.

Nina is certified as a Structured Literacy Dyslexia Interventionist from the Center for Effective Reading Instruction and is a member of the International Dyslexia Association.

Laurie Soherr

December 7, 2023

Laurie Soherr is a devoted educator, specializing in one-on-one instruction. She uses her teaching ability, and desire to encourage others, to motivate classes, small groups, and individuals alike. She is driven by her ability to create fun, customizable lessons which build confidence, skills, and knowledge for her students.

Laurie Soherr earned a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction with a focus on Early Childhood Education from George Mason University in Fairfax, VA. For the next ten years, she led her own public-school classrooms in first, second, and third grades in Loudoun County, VA.

After moving to Maryland, Laurie chose to teach small groups through a local tutoring center. She then received professional teacher status as an instructor for the Institute for Excellence in Writing. While continuing her skill development, Laurie was exposed to a variety of structured literacy curricula. She is trained in the Bowman’s Orton-Gillingham Plus program, using a multisensory approach for neurodiverse students. She has applied the principles of the teaching methodology to provide tutoring with a multisensory approach to teach foundational mathematics concepts. In Montgomery County, MD, Laurie has collaborated with teachers trained in different reading programs and has aligned the content to ensure that the tutoring is complementary to what is being taught in the classroom. Building her knowledge of the Science of Reading while working with public, private, and homeschool students, Laurie saw a theme in education: students, no matter what they are learning, will benefit from diving deep and having fun!

For the past four years, and while transitioning to remote learning, Laurie has been instructing students with dyslexia using the O-G approach. Additionally, Laurie has completed continuing education courses in executive functions, cognitive connections, and social thinking. As the scientific community reveals more about the learning process, Laurie leverages that knowledge to improve her own lessons and approach.

In her spare time, Laurie enjoys adventures with her husband from metal detecting or fishing to traveling and antiquing. At home, she has a variety of craft interests including soap making and felt art. Laurie and her husband live in Poolesville, Maryland with their Treeing Walker Coonhound.

Pamela Slifer

December 7, 2023

With a strong passion for educating all students according to their abilities, Pamela Slifer adapts her teaching style to the unique needs of each student.

Pam has had a lifelong affinity towards teaching and working with children and knew her calling upon entering college. Beginning as an undergrad, Pam worked towards a dual degree masters in both special and elementary education. As a central part of her training, she observed and assisted with cooperating teachers within several New Jersey public schools.

After initially working in some other educational institutions, in 2016, Pam began working in her current role at a school for students with language-based learning disabilities. Over the past 8 years, she has taught 2nd, 3rd and 4th grade children. Pam’s training is multi-faceted having trained in Heggerty, a phonemic awareness program that sets the foundation for a child’s ability to manipulate sounds. Additionally, she is trained in PAF, an Orton Gillingham-based program to teach reading. For math, she has learned with Marilyn Zecher, who created a multisensory math program to complement common core aligned math curricula. She was also trained in Judy Hochman’s The Writing Revolution, an evidence-based program that takes students from just writing sentences to composing paragraphs, helping them to write in a coherent and structured manner.

In addition to her classroom experience, Pam has done extensive private tutoring for students in 1st through 5th grades in reading, writing, and math.

Pam has broad experience with reading neuropsychological evaluations in order to come up with the best plan for her students. She is passionate about infusing executive function skills into her tutoring work and with the support of her school, has implemented a number of techniques developed by Sarah Ward.

While not teaching, Pam spends her time baking, playing board games, and exploring Prospect Park in Brooklyn.

Emer Rattigan

Nicole Ziccardi

Nina Rich

Laurie Soherr

Pamela Slifer

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