Our Team

Giulia Cuzzilla

Director
The Ranges Learning Centre

MSL Educational Specialist

Giulia is a qualified primary school teacher with over 10 years teaching experience. She has experience teaching in a range of settings, including as a TESOL educator in Italy where she taught English to primary and high school students, as well as to adults. She also spent three years teaching Indigenous children of all ages in remote communities in Western Australia where she also gained a post-graduate certificate in Early Childhood Education. Through these experiences Giulia came to a deeper understanding of the importance of a structured and systematic approach to the teaching of reading and writing.

Giulia has worked privately as an MSL Specialist for the past three years, teaching children with dyslexia and dysgraphia. She has also trained with Ron Yoshimoto in phonology and morphology. Giulia has a particular interest in developing older students’ writing skills. This includes supporting their understanding of basic sentence structure, to helping students to clearly articulate and express themselves in longer stretches of writing.

As Director of The Ranges LC, Giulia works with parents navigating the often-overwhelming world of supporting a child with learning differences and advocates for them within the school setting. She performs diagnostic assessments, writes reports to assist parents at home and within schools, and also takes small groups of students.

Cheryl Martin

MSL Educational Specialist

Cheryl is a qualified primary school teacher with over 40 years classroom experience. She has worked in a variety of schools and taught children from Foundation to Year 6. She is dedicated to working with children to support their needs and believes in providing an encouraging and supportive learning environment.

Cheryl is extremely passionate about the teaching of literacy. Over the years she has completed many literacy courses which have continually kept her up to date with current evidence based research. Her work as a Reading Recovery teacher in the 1990s led her to pursue a heartfelt commitment to helping students who have difficulty with Literacy. Cheryl completed a Bastow Literacy Coaching qualification where upon she led the implementation of this research into the schools where she taught. She also undertook numerous current professional learning courses in the teaching of writing. Her love and enthusiasm for teaching writing inspires her students and helps them to build their proficiency as writers.

Over the last few years Cheryl has worked in the Tutor Learning Initiative program where she has guided individuals and small groups of children to build their capacity to learn and develop self-confidence. Her commitment to helping individuals succeed has led her to become a qualified MSL practitioner, specialising in aiding children with Dyslexia. By bringing all of her wealth of previous teaching experiences together with this new training, she aims to provide students with the best chance of achieving positive outcomes and increased confidence in literacy.

Natalie Bates

MSL Educational Specialist

Natalie is a qualified primary school teacher with over 14 years of classroom experience. As an enthusiastic parent of two, Nat was driven to further her knowledge in Specialist Education and teaching literacy and numeracy when her daughter struggled to learn to read and write. Through this experience she recognized the individual rewards that can be achieved. This started her on the journey of exploring a structured systematic approach to literacy.

Natalie is particularly interested in working with early years education and as a Prep – Grade 2 classroom teacher she has facilitated a literacy and numeracy tutoring program, to ensure those children at risk were being catered for. She is extremely passionate about supporting students with learning difficulties so that they can reach their full potential.

Natalie has trained in many evidence-based literacy programs. She completed her Bastow Literacy Coaching qualification and is training to become an MSL Specialist teacher. She believes that every student can make progress with evidence-based intervention when the teaching is provided in a positive, supportive and encouraging environment.

Vanda Camm

MSL Educational Specialist

Vanda is a primary school teacher with over 30 years classroom experience. She works in the Government sector and holds leadership positions supporting staff and students. As a highly experience teacher, Vanda has contributed greatly to the literacy and numeracy teaching of primary school children.

Through intensive reading, webinars and professional development workshops, Vanda has the content knowledge and the knowledge of learning and teaching to ensure the delivery of high-quality programs that are sound and engaging. She is very passionate about the teaching of numeracy and literacy and is a strong advocate in delivering evidence-based programs such as IMSLE, MiniLit and MacqLit.

It is Vanda’s strong belief that, in a supportive and positive learning environment and with the use of evidence and research-based programs, every child will make progress and reach their potential. She is a particularly interested and has the knowledge and experience of teaching students with dyslexia and dyscalculia.

Elizabeth Pugsley

Numeracy Coordinator

Elizabeth Pugsley is a primary school teacher with over ten years of classroom experience. Within this time, Elizabeth has worked within all levels as a classroom teacher and in numerous leadership roles. She has worked with students from all walks of life, including deaf or hard of hearing students, blind students, ASD, ADHD and OCD students, students with chronic illness and life threatening illness as well as talented students to name a few.

During her career, Elizabeth has facilitated and implemented numerous programs within the areas of literacy and numeracy, however her passion continues to be the subject of Maths. With concrete materials, real life examples, a strong student and teacher rapport, and through working on developing student confidence and a willingness to make mistakes and learn from them, Elizabeth believes that all students can feel success and achieve.

When returning to the classroom after her first baby, Elizabeth understood that real and lasting change can be hard to achieve in a classroom situation due to many factors including class numbers, peers' behaviours, open classroom environments and timetabling issues that affect quality teaching and learning time; hence her decision to begin working at The Ranges Learning Centre.

Bec Thompson

Maths Specialist

Bec is a qualified school teacher with over 10 years of experience in primary schools. In addition to classroom teaching, she has also fulfilled roles in specialist teaching from Foundation to Grade 6. Bec has always been a keen Mathematician, but her passion for teaching Maths was propelled by one of her daughters' struggle in numeracy learning and by accepting an intervention role in a local primary school.

Working closely with a diverse range of students to overcome fears and obstacles in Maths is truly rewarding. The fast pace of learning in classrooms can leave gaps in children’s knowledge and Bec is determined to fill that need. She believes everyone can achieve success with the right environment, encouragement and ongoing support. Bec is thrilled to be working with students and their families at The Ranges Learning Centre to offer Maths sessions with flexible, hands on and authentic learning opportunities.

Smitha Boddupalli

Literacy Specialist & MSL Trainee

Smitha is a qualified early childhood and primary school teacher with over 7 years experience. Having been brought up in the USA and India, she feels privileged to be able to use her own experiences of being educated in two diverse schooling systems to take the positive elements of both to help build her own teaching identity. She enjoys using her global experiences to connect with students and families alike.

Prior to teaching, Smitha studied human Physiology and had an interest in pursuing a career in paediatrics. She had aspired to have a career that brought about a visible, positive impact on children’s lives. However, after spending some time volunteering at a hospital in Bolivia, her interactions with the children there helped her to realise that her real passion was to teach children.

Before working as a primary school teacher, Smitha gained experience at a sessional kindergarten and has experience with the early years curriculum. She understands the importance of a play-based curriculum and is passionate about helping young students feel emotionally, socially and academically ready for school. Smitha has taught all year levels from Foundation to year 6 in an International Baccalaureate accredited school. She has experience teaching students through an inquiry lens, whereby students are encouraged to be curious, ask questions and develop the skills to find answers and go further with their interests. Smitha believes that it is important to tap into students’ innate curiosity so that they can build meaningful connections to what they are learning about. More recently, whilst on family leave after having her daughter, she worked at a centre that supports students from prep to year 2 who require targeted support with reading.

Smitha enjoys teaching early literacy and establishing foundational skills in students from kinder age onwards. She strongly feels that supporting young students right from the very early years builds confidence and empowers students to be successful in their successive school years. She particularly enjoys teaching young students how to write and loves seeing the magic and joy that prevail when students are able to put their thoughts and ideas on to paper.

Lauren Whitehead

MSL Trainee

Lauren is a qualified primary school teacher who started her career as an early years educator over 15 years ago. She has taught students ranging from 3-12 years of age in a variety of educational settings. Early in her career, Lauren implemented a tutoring program at a local primary school for Indigenous students with complex learning needs. This experience, along with teaching and observing many children who didn’t fit the mainstream mould, has been the driving force in her mission to ensure that no child is left behind.

Over the years, Lauren has facilitated many literacy and numeracy programs and understands the importance of delivering evidence based programs such as IMSLE to ensure all children have the opportunity to reach their full potential. She has taught using the IMSLE model and is currently working towards her accreditation as an IMSLE educator.

Lauren shares her time between teaching at a local primary school, teaching here, at The Ranges LC and at her property in Kinglake with her husband and their four children. It is Lauren’s heartfelt belief that, in a caring, positive and supportive learning environment and with the implementation of evidence and research based programs, every child will succeed.

Lauren Craig

MSL Trainee

Lauren is a qualified primary school teacher with over 10 years classroom experience. She has taught children from Foundation to Year 6, although has a particular interest in the early years.

Lauren has worked in a variety of schools and settings, including remote communities in Vanuatu. Through these experiences Lauren came to a deeper understanding of the importance of a structured and systematic approach to the teaching of reading and writing, while providing an engaging and positive learning environment. This has led Lauren to begin her training as an MSL specialist teacher.

Lauren has held numerous leadership positions supporting students and staff. She has worked with neurodiverse students and believes that every child can progress and reach their full potential when engaged in an evidence-based program. Lauren is passiosnate about helping students build their self confidence and develop a life long love of reading and writing.