We Offer a Low-Variance Model of Intervention
The specialist tutors in our expert team at Lifelong Literacy have deep and broad knowledge of literacy and the writing system. We all got into this for one reason alone though:- Our commitment to helping students become faster, stronger, better at reading and writing.
Our Tutoring Team
We are trained in numerous approaches so that we can accommodate a wide variety of learners. We have extensive experience with face to face and Zoom-based tutoring.Lyn Stone – Head of practice
I am a linguist, speaker, consultant and author who spends a lot of time thinking about reading and writing. My greatest joy is to work with children who struggle with literacy because I know that with high quality intervention, they can soar. For the time being, I have taken a complete break from tutoring to focus on training and managing my staff and focusing on teacher training so that schools are increasingly able to meet the needs of all students when it comes to reading and writing. I am incredibly proud of my tutoring staff. They are dedicated, intelligent and highly skilled and I have no problem placing all my trust in them to get a fantastic job done. I am independent of any company or education faculty, so I am at liberty to comment, without bias on many of the programs and interventions you may have encountered. I will not use or promote a program or method that isn’t very best practice, according to scientific consensus. There are many pitfalls for concerned parents, who want the best for their children, but find themselves navigating a maze of programs and practitioners. Part of my job is to apply the science of learning to the evaluation of best-practice, and to communicate frankly to parents and schools so that they make the best possible choices. Qualifications- BA (Hons) Linguistics, University College London
- The Lindamood LiPS Program
- Spelling for Life
- Spalding Writing Road to Reading Program
- Write to Read
- The Nanci Bell Seeing Stars Program
- Read Write Inc.
- Little Learners Love Literacy
- Sounds Write
Amanda Bugiera – Senior Specialist Practitioner
Amanda is a proud parent to three dyslexic children. Being the only neurotypical in her household of 5 comes with challenges, added responsibilities mayhem and hilarity. Also having a background in psychology and sociology affords Amanda a unique view of the struggles of dyslexia, and the strengths that can be developed as a response. Amanda has a keen interest in the roles and responsibilities of schools and governments. She is also very aware of the interaction and impact that anxiety, working memory, executive functioning and social skills have within the school environment for dyslexic students. As a parent and educator, Amanda’s passion is to advocate and to teach. Her work at Lifelong Literacy has increased her enthusiasm for and knowledge of best practice and she uses evidence to guide her every move. She puts it this way:Children with Dyslexia are often the canaries in the coal mine for low quality teaching practices. My role is to protect children from a school system that often naively uses experimental or outdated approaches. My training allows me to utilise and build skill in unaffected areas of development, whilst treating and minimising deficit as much as is possible. I am excited to share my knowledge and expertise to help build a collaborative team that promotes communication between parent/caregiver, child, literacy specialist and school educators to gain the best education for your child.
- Bachelor of Social Science (Psychology/Sociology)
- Spelling for Life
- Language for Life
- Reading for Life
- Tutoring for Life
- Language Arts with Lyn Stone
- OG with Ron Yoshimoto
- OG Maths with Ron Yoshimoto
Amanda’s Blog
Amanda is a talented writer and has blogged about her experience with school advocacy here.Christianne Schultz – Senior Specialist Practitioner
Christianne’s journey with her precious boy led her to Lifelong Literacy. Aside from her excellent training, her warmth and dedication are the qualities that made us welcome her into the practice. Christianne knows only too well how frustrating and demoralising it is to be a child in the school system who receives very little appropriate literacy support. In Christianne’s words:Hi, my name is Christianne and I have a beautiful little boy who has dysgraphia and severe anxiety. Over the past few years of watching and helping my son through his struggles it has lead me on my own journey of wanting to help other beautiful children who, like him, are struggling. Through research I have found some fabulous courses to help educate myself better so I could help my son improve his literacy goals. I have completed my MSL training and I am very excited to be helping others as well. I am very passionate and care greatly about helping children achieve their potential as no child deserves to be left behind for any reason, especially when there is help out there.
- Bachelor of Social Science (criminal justice)
- Sounds Write “Help Your Child to Read” online course
- Spelling for Life
- Language for Life
- Writing for Life
- Reading for Life
- Language Arts
- Institute for Multi Sensory Language Education trainee
Patrick Brown – Literacy Teacher
“Hello! I’m Patrick. After 10 years in the primary classroom, I never once changed my classroom motto: ‘Pursue your potential’. As a teacher, this meant seeking out best practices that are evidence backed and empowering to my students. I want to help them realise their capacity to become learners, putting in their 100%, knowing that I’ll be there to support them. As a tutor, the bureaucracies of school policy and poor practice have now been left behind, and I can focus on what I am passionate about: getting results by using what works. Too often teachers are required to ‘toe the line’; peddling the snake oil of expensive but ineffective programs and never questioning leaders and principals. That’s why I’m here. I have one boss who knows the literature, knows the evidence base, and isn’t afraid to shout it from the rooftops. I am an explicit instructor who is firm, fair, consistent, and I love what I do. My top priority is your child – my student, whose educational needs are addressed in a controlled environment with minimal distractions.”Patrick’s qualifications and training:
- BA (Hons) from RMIT
- BEd (Science) from Monash University
- MTeach from Melbourne University’s Graduate School of Education
- Spelling for Life
- Reading for Life
- Tutoring for Life
- The 4-Step Process
Jane Reiseger – Literacy practitioner
Hi, my name is Jane, and I am a parent, tutor and illustrator. I am passionate about helping kids reach their full potential with reading and writing. Since 2017 with my own experience with my son, I came across and have been learning, thinking, watching, teaching (with my son) and researching systematic synthetic phonics and Explicit Direct Instruction and have developed a keen interest in the science of reading. Recently I completed my Multisensory Instruction of Language Arts 1 training with the Spalding Education Foundation, and I am looking forward to putting this into practice. I am thrilled to be working with Lyn and look forward to helping your child with their writing and reading journey.Jane’s qualifications and training:
- BA Fine Arts Major Painting
- Writing for Life with Lyn Stone
- Spalding MILA 1: The Writing Road to Reading
- Spelling for Life
- Reading for Life
- The 4-Step Process
Rachel Massaro – Literacy Teacher
“I have almost 25 years teaching experience across Primary, Secondary and Tertiary sectors. While working as a secondary teacher, I became very alarmed at the number of students entering Year 7 with reading and writing difficulties. This precipitated my interest in literacy intervention and evidence-based instruction, and my pursuit of further study to build my expertise in this area.The moment when a child grasps a new concept or learns a new skill is truly magical, and it’s a privilege to be part of this learning journey. It’s made even more rewarding when the child starts to develop confidence in their literacy and learning abilities.”
Qualifications:
– Master of TESOL
– Master of Education (Literacy Specialist)
– Bachelor of Teaching (Primary & Secondary)
– Bachelor of Education
– Spelling for Life
– 4 Step Process
– Tutoring for Life
– IMSLE Trainee
– Sounds-Write