WE BRING QUALITY EDUCATION TO YOUR SCHOOL
The founder of Support Learning seeks innovative pathways to strengthen children’s personal connection with books.
In 2022 she was invited to be part of the ILA Children’s and YA Book Awards Primary sub-committee, International Literacy Association.
In 2021 she had the honour of being selected Notable Books for a Global Society Committee member, as part of the Children’s Literature and Reading Special Interest Group (CLR/SIG) of the International Literacy Association.
In unusual 2020 she probed new ways into remote learning by joining Ila Next, Online Professional Interactive Learning, with 36+ hours of responsive literacy PD.
In 2019 Maria Teresa participated in the Summer Institute on Children’s Literature, University of Simmons, Boston, USA.
She is also happy to have been part of: The American Art Therapy Congress, Miami, 2018; Connecting Collections, 2017, at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Guggenheim & MOMA, New York; and in ILA Conference, Boston, in 2016. Additionally, she completed her two-year course in Jungian Cosmic Vision with emphasis on Interrelatedness and Self-Awareness at Fundación Vínculo, CABA, Argentina.
WE FOCUS ON THE ARTS
Our sessions are enriched with live illustration, music and drama games. By weaving literature through the arts, stories come alive in a unique learning experience. We believe art is a valuable platform that contributes to personal meaning-making, as it allows students to be in touch with their feelings and sense of identity.
WE PROMOTE AFFECTIVE METHODS
The role of emotion is instrumental in learning. Our holistic approach integrates the Arts, Literature, Neurolinguistic Programming strategies and Jungian philosophy, to provide educators with tools that expand their role as facilitators of change and growth. Likewise, in the selection of stories we seek themes that promote feelings of empathy and understanding.
OUR EXTENSION MATERIALS SUPPORT STUDENTS AND TEACHERS ALIKE
As well as addressing children, our sessions spark teachers’ creativity. Facilitators display engaging strategies to kindle a love of storytelling and learning. In addition, an Extension Literacy Kit leads teachers through a variety of resources, as well as unfinished artwork for students to imagine and express their own thoughts and feelings. The activities are springboard for self-expression in drawing, writing and acting, and provide short relevant text from the selected books. Our instructional approach thrives on Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligence Theory as well as David Perkin’s Project Zero developed at Harvard Graduate School of Education.
PERFORMERS ARE ACCOMPLISHED NATIVE ENGLISH-SPEAKING ARTISTS
Our group of professional artists are native speakers of English specialized in different art fields that span the visual arts, music, theatre and yoga. They are passionate about their work, they love what they do, love children, love books and are aligned with our holistic philosophy.