Meredith Alvaro is a full time national consultant and staff developer located in the NY/NJ metro area. Meredith previously served as the Director of Student Teaching in the Elementary Inclusive Preservice Program at Teachers College Columbia University as well as held a tenured NYC public school teacher position at PS 116 in Manhattan's former District 2. Meredith conferred her Masters Degree at Teachers College, where she studied literacy directly with Lucy Calkins. Meredith recently finished her Administration Certification program and is pursuing a Doctorate Degree from Teachers College where she holds her Masters Degree. Meredith's staff development work spans levels PreK-12 and encompasses a range of environments including Public, Private, Charter, Parochial, Yeshiva, and Early Childhood schools.

Meredith's in-classroom coaching and practical workshops focus on developing strategies alongside teachers to help them successfully assess, instruct, and differentiate/adapt curriculum to support the developmental and learning needs of all students in powerful, teacher-friendly ways. Meredith works with teachers of:

• General Education
• Basic Skills Instruction (BSI)
• Gifted Education
• Special Education (both replacement and inclusion models)
• Self-contained environments (Autism, MD, LLD, etc.)
• Collaborative Team Teaching models (CTT)
• English Language Learners (ELLs/ESL)

Meredith's work and classroom have been acknowledged in several publications including Writing about Reading: From Book Talk to Literary Essays, Grades 3-8 (Angelilo, 2003) and Voices of Diversity: Stories, Activities, and Resources for the Multicultural Classroom (Langer de Ramirez, 2006).

Description:

RTI

In recent years, Meredith’s workshops have been critical in helping teachers’ access practical strategies and effective methods for assessment and intervention in schools in which a Response to Intervention (RTI) framework is being established or implemented. Meredith provides teachers with resources and specific tools, teaching methods, and user-friendly materials to make RTI work in a wide range of settings. Her engaging workshops and easy smile help teachers feel comfortable and willing to take risks while working alongside her. Meredith uses in-classroom demonstration and coaching to help teachers deepen their understanding of how this work can look within a variety of settings.