Certified General and Special Education Teacher (CA&TX)

Alisa T.

ADHD

As a credentialed Special Education Teacher with 18+ years of experience, I support students with ADHD by helping them build academic skills, confidence, organization, task persistence, and independence. I understand that students with ADHD often benefit from structured routines, clear expectations, movement breaks, positive reinforcement, and instruction tailored to their unique learning style. My approach focuses on meeting students where they are, reducing frustration, and helping them develop strategies that support success both in school and beyond. I have extensive experience working with students who have ADHD, executive functioning challenges, learning disabilities, and IEPs. I create engaging, supportive learning environments where students feel successful while building the skills they need to thrive academically.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

I am a credentialed Special Education Teacher with 18+ years of experience supporting students with Autism Spectrum Disorder and an Autism Authorization earned following my General Education and Special Education credentials. I specialize in creating individualized learning plans that address academic, behavioral, communication, and executive functioning needs. My experience includes working with students in both classroom and one-on-one settings, helping them build confidence, independence, self-regulation, and academic success. I partner closely with families to provide practical strategies, consistent support, and meaningful progress toward each student’s goals.

Common Core

Throughout my career, I have worked extensively with Common Core State Standards as well as state-specific standards in both general and special education settings. My expertise includes unpacking standards, identifying prerequisite skills, developing measurable learning targets, and using backward design to create instruction that leads students toward grade-level proficiency. I regularly align individualized learning goals and progress-monitoring systems with academic standards while ensuring instruction remains accessible and meaningful for diverse learners. Because I understand the structure and intent behind academic standards, I am able to help students master grade-level expectations regardless of the specific state framework being used.

Elementary (K-6th)

As a credentialed teacher with extensive experience in elementary education, I provide support across multiple academic areas while helping students build confidence and independence. I specialize in reading intervention, foundational literacy skills, language development, and individualized instruction. My lessons are engaging, encouraging, and designed to meet each student’s unique learning needs.

ESL/ESOL

Is your child struggling to keep up with the academic English required in the classroom? Learning a new language is a journey, but navigating school in that language requires specialized support. As a certified ESL specialist with a Master’s degree in Reading Education and over 20 years of experience, I know exactly how to bridge the gap between conversational English and top-tier academic success. ### Proven District-Leading Results My background isn't just about speaking English—it is about measurable academic growth. During my classroom tenure, my explicit, scaffolded instruction methods helped my English Language Development (ELD) students achieve the highest English learner reclassification rate in my entire school district. I know the exact benchmarks your child needs to hit, and I know how to help them get there faster and with absolute confidence. ### My Method: Explicit, Scaffolded, & Literacy-Rich I do not use generic worksheets. I design high-energy, interactive online lessons tailored specifically for kindergarten and elementary learners. By fusing the Science of Reading with advanced language acquisition strategies, I target all core pillars of fluency: * Oral Language & Vocabulary: Building the speaking and listening foundation needed for daily school life. * Phonemic Awareness & Phonics: Using explicit routines (including the OG-aligned UFLI framework) to connect sounds to English print. * Reading Comprehension: Teaching active strategies so your child truly understands textbooks and stories. * Confidence-Based Writing: Scaffolding sentence structures so your child can express complex thoughts in writing. ### Why Choose a Master ESL Educator? Young learners don't just need a conversational partner; they need an expert who understands linguistics, reading barriers, and child development. With 20 years of experience, I read your child’s subtle frustration cues instantly and adapt my scaffolding in real-time. My virtual classroom is an encouraging, high-success environment where mistakes are cele

Executive Functioning

I am a credentialed General Education and Special Education teacher with experience supporting students who struggle with organization, planning, time management, task initiation, self-monitoring, and goal setting. I help students develop practical executive functioning strategies that improve academic performance, independence, and confidence. My approach is individualized and focuses on building systems and routines that students can apply across school, home, and daily life. I have experience working with diverse learners, including students with ADHD, autism, learning disabilities, and other executive functioning challenges.

Grammar

I am a certified elementary and special education teacher with extensive experience teaching grammar and written language to students with a wide range of learning needs. My instruction includes sentence structure, parts of speech, capitalization, punctuation, word usage, paragraph development, and editing skills. I use explicit, scaffolded instruction and visual supports to help students understand how grammar works within authentic writing rather than relying solely on worksheets or memorization. I also hold a master’s degree in Reading Education and have extensive experience providing individualized literacy intervention.

Handwriting

I am trained in the Handwriting Without Tears® program and spent much of my special education career teaching students ages 5–7 with fine motor delays and handwriting challenges. I have extensive experience helping young learners develop proper pencil grasp, letter and number formation, spacing, sizing, and overall handwriting fluency through explicit, multisensory instruction. I am also familiar with a variety of adaptive writing tools and strategies, including specialized pencil grips and accommodations that help students build strength, improve control, and gain confidence. One of my favorite parts of teaching is watching hesitant writers become more independent as their letter formation becomes more automatic and their confidence grows.

Homeschool

As a certified Special Education Teacher and Reading Intervention Specialist with over 20 years of experience, I provide individualized instruction tailored to each student’s unique learning needs and goals. In addition to my classroom and virtual teaching experience, I currently work with homeschool families, providing academic support, reading intervention, progress monitoring, and customized learning plans. I collaborate with parents to supplement existing homeschool curricula, address learning gaps, and build confidence in reading, writing, spelling, and foundational academic skills. My flexible online schedule allows me to support homeschool learners during traditional school hours as well as after-school times.

Phonics

Throughout my career, I've taught and provided intervention in: Letter-sound correspondence Phonemic awareness Phonics and decoding Blending and segmenting High-frequency and heart words Reading fluency Vocabulary and comprehension My instruction is grounded in the Science of Reading, using explicit, systematic, and multisensory phonics instruction that helps children understand how reading works rather than simply memorizing words.

Reading

Certified elementary, special education, and ESL teacher with 20+ years of experience and a Master’s in Reading Education. I specialize in Science of Reading-based instruction, including phonics, decoding, fluency, comprehension, vocabulary, and writing. My individualized lessons help struggling and all types of learners build strong literacy skills and confidence. Hello! I am a veteran reading specialist with over 20 years of classroom and online experience helping students overcome reading blocks, catch up to grade level, and thrive. If your child is struggling with dyslexia, word decoding, or reading confidence, they do not need generic tutoring—they need an explicit, systematic approach that works with how the brain learns to read. My Method: Science of Reading & UFLI I use the highly acclaimed UFLI (University of Florida Literacy Initiative) foundations curriculum. This program is rooted deeply in the Science of Reading and directly incorporates the same structured, multi-sensory blending and decoding routines found in the Orton-Gillingham (OG) approach. What Your Child's Online Lesson Looks Like: * Phonics & Phonemic Awareness: Interactive digital tile manipulation to map sounds to letters. * Automated Decoding Drill: Fast-paced visual routines to build automatic word recognition. * Connected Text Reading: Applying new skills immediately to real stories, not just isolated flashcards. * Interactive & Virtual-Friendly: High-energy, engaging lessons specifically optimized for online learning. Why Choose a 20-Year Veteran? Many tutors take a 5-day course and call themselves reading coaches. Two decades in the classroom mean I can read your child's frustration cues instantly, pivot the lesson in real-time when they get stuck, and build the genuine confidence they need to love reading. Let’s work together to unlock your child’s reading potential! Feel free to reach out with any questions about my scheduling or approach.

Special Needs

I am a certified Special Education teacher with over 20 years of experience supporting students with diverse learning needs and collaborating with families through the IEP process. My experience includes developing and implementing IEPs, interpreting assessment data, writing measurable goals, monitoring progress, and helping families understand accommodations, modifications, and educational supports. I work with students and families to build academic skills, executive functioning strategies, self-advocacy, organization, and confidence. I can also help parents better understand their child’s educational program, progress reports, assessment results, and IEP goals. My approach is strengths-based, individualized, and neurodiversity-affirming, focusing on practical strategies that help students succeed both in school and at home.

Spelling

I have 20 years of experience in education, including 15 years in special education, with extensive experience supporting students with receptive and expressive language, listening, processing, reading, writing, and spelling needs. My approach to spelling is grounded in the Science of Reading and structured literacy, and I am Signs of Reading certified. I understand that strong decoding skills do not always translate into equally strong encoding skills. I use spelling and writing error analysis to identify gaps in phonemic awareness, sound-symbol correspondence, orthographic patterns, syllable patterns, and morphology, then provide explicit, systematic instruction targeted to the student’s individual needs. I have also used Orton-Gillingham-based strategies in the classroom, although I am not formally OG certified.