Melissa Levy, M.A.

Orton-Gillingham Tutor & Educational Tutor

Melissa Levy, M.A., A/OGA, is an Orton Gillingham Academy practitioner at the Associate level. She is a New York State licensed ENL teacher with certification in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages for grades K-12. She earned her MA in TESOL at CUNY Hunter College and an MA from UC Berkeley with a specialty in Slavic Languages and Literature. She completed her BA at Wesleyan University. Melissa has taught English to a wide variety of students ranging from Kindergarten through college age. She has supported learners with various goals and challenges at public, charter, and independent schools in New York City over the past 20 years.

Melissa currently teaches English as a New Language to students in grades K-5 at a New York City Public School. Her work is informed by a Montessori approach, having spent seven years teaching in a similar role at a Montessori charter elementary school. She has worked as a consultant for several private and independent schools, mostly on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, and privately as a tutor for students from these and other schools.

Instructional Approach: I offer personalized student-centered support to help learners attain their goals. I assess students’ needs as well as their strengths to create a tailored path of study. In addition to working with students, I find it beneficial to communicate with parents and classroom teachers to ensure that all team members are aligned in their current goals and strategies for the student; sharing information about progress observed and upcoming units of study can strengthen the support provided during school-day instruction and in tutoring. When desired, I can also provide families with book suggestions and additional practice activities.

I recognize the frustration and emotional challenges that can come with learning difficulties. Through a combination of explicit instruction in which challenging material is broken into small manageable pieces, a comfortable supportive atmosphere, integration of games and play when possible, and explanations of brain science and cool-down strategies, my students ultimately thrive. 

Types of Tutoring: Whether your child is struggling to learn to read and write, needs math or other academic support or is further along and needs help with test prep or applications for admissions, I am able to help. I have experience preparing students for the ERB, NYS ELA and Math tests, the SHSAT for specialized high school admissions, and assisting with private school and college applications. I can help your child overcome obstacles to achieve their personal best with less stress for you.

Reading & Writing Instruction: I am experienced in teaching reading and writing at all levels, from Kindergarten through college. Orton Gillingham instruction helps students with dyslexia make optimal gains by providing sequenced, systematic, and multisensory instruction. The approach is diagnostic and prescriptive, meaning that I constantly monitor and assess for areas of difficulty and immediately adapt instruction to help remediate the difficulties. Areas of difficulty are revisited consistently from lesson-to-lesson until mastery is achieved, while new topics are gradually introduced bit-by-bit, at a pace that is set according to your child's ability to integrate the new information.

At beginning levels, Orton Gillingham tutoring helps students develop phonemic awareness, phonics skills, more legible handwriting, automaticity with spelling rules, and fluency with reading. At more advanced levels, topics can include generative vocabulary and spelling (base words with prefixes and suffixes), decoding multisyllabic words, compound and complex sentence structures and paragraph writing.

Other Academic Topics: In addition to Orton Gillingham instruction, I can support with elementary math, science, and social studies. I am a former park ranger with enormous enthusiasm for and interest in the natural world and animals. I love New York City and am a licensed NYC tour guide. Building background knowledge in a wide range of areas is important for reading comprehension, and I can provide support directly in discussions and readings with students or indirectly through conversations with parents.

Linguistic Background & Ongoing Learning: A lifelong learner, I enjoy travelling and learning new languages. My study of Latin, fluency in Russian, and working knowledge of French and Spanish enhance my work with English language learners. I have worked with speakers of Hebrew, Arabic, and Chinese, among others. I am particularly skilled in supporting English Language Learners with learning difficulties.

Continuously engaging in professional learning opportunities, I stay on top of evolving research in pedagogical best practices and literacy instruction. I am self-reflective, analytical, creative, patient, and encouraging. I look forward to helping you and your child.