I work with small groups of children to assist in strengthening reading skills. My instruction is systematic and taken from research-based programs. It is designed to follow students from one grade to the next as needed."
Kindergarten instruction is phonemic awareness, sound/symbol awareness, and reading simple words. The phonemic awareness curriculum covers rhyming, counting syllables, matching initial sounds, comparing word lengths, and representing phonemes with letters. Students are also taught the letters of the alphabet, the sounds for the letters, and printing the correct letter.
First through Third grade students learn the Orton-Gillingham method, which is a Multi-sensory curriculum. We work on reading, spelling and writing. The sub-skills are:
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Reading
Phonics, decoding skills, sight word recognition, vocabulary development, fluency, accuracy and comprehension
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Spelling
Rules for phonics and rote words
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Writing
Complete sentences with proper punctuation and penmanship
Fourth through Fifth grade students are taught the Wilson System, which is also multi-sensory, however this program was developed for older students and gives the student more opportunities to read multi-syllable words. The student learns basic reading/spelling rules and expands to include more work on prefixes, suffixes and syllable division rules so that they can decode unknown words with ease. The reading/writing sub-skills taught are the same as the ones taught using the Orton- Gillingham method. The goal is to sequentially balance each sub-skill and develop fluent readers with strong comprehension skills.
I assess individual students literacy skills to determine weaknesses and strengths. Students are re-evaluated several times a year to check for progress. I discuss test results with parents and teachers and make recommendations. I also find resource materials for parents and teachers, recommend tutoring and/or summer school, attend conferences, and participate on a child study team.