Araea Perry
Meet Araea Perry - Expert Elementary Reading, Math & Special Education Tutor
Araea Perry is an exceptionally qualified educator holding dual Master's degrees—a Master of Science in Education from Johns Hopkins University and a Master of Science in Library and Information Science from the University at Buffalo, both achieved with Summa Cum Laude 3.9 GPAs. Based in Washington, D.C., Araea focuses her tutoring heavily on families in the Arlington and Alexandria areas. With a highly versatile background as a lead elementary teacher, middle school teacher, school librarian, and enrichment program instructor, Araea brings profound expertise in differentiated instruction, behavioral support, and multi-sensory learning to her one-on-one sessions.
Areas Of Expertise:
Elementary Reading & Literacy: Highly experienced in teaching foundational and advanced reading skills, explicitly bringing expertise as a school librarian and a reading intervention program leader. She is Orton-Gillingham certified and has specific experience teaching K-8 reading enrichment.
Elementary Mathematics: Confident and highly capable of tutoring elementary math. She utilizes real-world connections, drawing, and multi-sensory visual strategies to help students grasp complex concepts, and she has led K-8 math enrichment programs.
Special Education Support (IEP & 504) & Dyslexia: Extensive experience supporting students with diverse learning needs. She explicitly differentiates lessons for students with IEP and 504 plans and has specialized experience teaching at a school where 100% of the students had dyslexia.
World Cultures & Social Studies: Experienced in teaching middle school social studies, having developed cultural competence curriculums aligned with TEKS state standards.
Grade Levels: Holds a strong preference for tutoring Kindergarten through 6th grade, while also holding direct experience teaching enrichment math and reading for students up through 8th grade.
Availability: Araea is highly flexible, looking to work 30-40 hours per week. She is available for sessions every day of the week: Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
Teaching Philosophy:
"When a student is struggling, I usually use more multi-sensory strategies to show them. For example, if they are struggling with a math concept, we might draw pictures to help them visualize or make real world connections. I also explicitly showcase the steps while using metacognition, so they understand how I am approaching the problem. To keep students motivated, I always use encouraging words and celebrate their successes. I like to gamify activities if possible."
What Makes Araea Special:
Orton-Gillingham & Dyslexia Expert: She successfully ran a reading intervention program utilizing the Orton-Gillingham approach. Furthermore, she spent two years as a Middle School World Cultures Teacher at Rawson Saunders School, providing multi-sensory learning opportunities explicitly tailored for a 100% dyslexic student body while collaborating closely with language therapists.
Highly Rated Lead Classroom Teacher: Began her career as a 4th and 5th-grade lead teacher in DCPS at Anne Beers Elementary School, where she was rated "highly effective". She designed interactive, Common Core-aligned lessons for a classroom of 25 students where 100% were economically disadvantaged and 19% required special education services.
Curriculum Developer & Librarian: Served as a School Librarian for Merritt Academy in Fairfax, where she curated resources, managed the library budget and circulation, and developed a library curriculum aligned with AASL standards for Pre-K through 5th grade.
Differentiated Enrichment Instructor: Worked as an Enrichment Program Teacher at Best Brains Learning Center, providing highly individualized and differentiated lessons in group settings and utilizing formative and summative assessments to identify areas for student growth.
Education & Achievements:
Master of Science in Education, Educational Studies, Johns Hopkins University (Summa Cum Laude, 3.9 GPA).
Master of Science in Library and Information Science, University at Buffalo (Summa Cum Laude, 3.9 GPA).
Bachelor of Science in International Affairs, Florida State University (Cum Laude, 3.54 GPA).
Certifications: Orton-Gillingham Certified; OSSE DC Educator Credential (School Service Provider: School Librarian).