Orton-Gillingham Training

• History and Essential Characteristics of the OG Approach
• Purpose and Philosophy of the OG Academy
• An Approach Versus A Program
• OGA Guiding Principles

• Typical Language and Motor Developmental Milestones

• Contributions of Environment, Culture and Social Factors Related to Literacy Acquisition

• Chall’s Stages of Reading Development and Ehri’s Phases of Reading Development

• National Reading Panel (NRP) - Five Essential Components of Effective Reading

• English Language Systems

• Basic Understanding of the Anatomy, Physiology and the Development of the Reading Brain

• Current Brain Research and Effects of Intervention

• Dyslexia Defined 

• Phonological Processing as a Core Deficit of Dyslexia 

• What is meant by a Double Deficit?

• Factors Affecting Literacy Acquisition

• Warning Signs, Characteristics, and Challenges of the Dyslexic Learner 

• Dyslexia on a Continuum  

• Comorbid Learning Disorders: ADHD, Dysgraphia, Dyscalculia, Executive Functioning Difficulties

• Current Federal & State Legislation Regarding Dyslexia

• Differences between Warning Signs, Screening Results, and a Clinical Diagnosis of Dyslexia

• Definition of Terms: Phonological Awareness, Phoneme, Phonemic Awareness
• Phonological Awareness Skills as the Foundation for Reading Acquisition
• Phonemes: Brief lesson in speech anatomy and physiology
• Hierarchy of Skills Within the Phonological Awareness Continuum
• Assessment and Application

• Terms and Definitions: 
• Alphabetic Principle - Foundation of Both Reading & Spelling Instruction
• Phonics instruction includes practice and application of the following topics and/or techniques: 
  • sound/symbol correspondence
  • basic sound deck drill cards with keyword associations 
  • strategies to aid memory and retrieval for phonograms and spelling rules
    strategies to protect reading and spelling success
  • practice creating phonetically-controlled word lists and connected text 
    practice adapting a commercially produced connected text to align with a particular skill with the presented scope & sequence 
  • overlearning as a strategy
  • activities to support generalizations 
  • review and practice administering informal testing to guide instruction

• Evolution of the alphabet

• Logic of the alphabetic principle 

• Origins of English 

• Layers of English : Anglo-Saxon, Latin, and Greek

• Define: morpheme, prefix, base (root), inflectional suffix, derivational suffix

• Morphophonemic Nature of English

• Why teach morphology?

• The role of morphology in decoding, spelling, vocabulary development, and reading comprehension

• Teaching common suffixes

  • Inflectional suffixes: -s, -es, -ing, -ed, -er, -est

  • Derivational suffixes: -y, -er, -ful, -less, -ment, -ness, -able

• Use of morphemes for word attack and word analysis

• The Three Great Spelling Rules: 1-1-1 Doubling Rule, Drop e Rule, Change y to i Rule 

• Morphological Awareness

• Practical application across the curriculum

• Morphology in Action: Brief overview of reading and spelling instruction

• Importance of teaching handwriting

  • Current research in the field

  • Topics of Discussion: orthographic loop, print vs. cursive, typical handwriting development, important considerations (posture, paper position, pencil grip, etc.), letter formation guidance as well as tips and tricks.

• Understanding the Characteristics of Dysgraphia

• Reading fluency defined: A bridge between phonics and comprehension
• Reading Fluency Development
• Scarborough’s Reading Rope & The Simple View Of Reading
• Developing and Supporting Reading fluency, comprehension, and student motivation
  • Accuracy and Automaticity
  • Assessing reading rate in individuals with dyslexia
    • Oral Reading Rate Needed for Comprehension
• Techniques and methods for building and monitoring fluency
• Technology to support students accessing text when oral reading fluency is a challenge  

• Semantics Defined 
  • Basic knowledge of semantic building blocks: concept words or categories, content words, function words, synonyms, antonyms, multiple-meaning words
• Vocabulary Defined - Types of Vocabulary
  • Receptive vocabulary versus expressive vocabulary
  • Scarborough’s Reading Rope & The Simple View Of Reading- 
• The  role of vocabulary in skilled reading
• Factors Contributing to Vocabulary Knowledge
• Exposure - Impact of exposure on vocabulary growth and development
  • The Matthew Effect
• Language Processing Ability - Impact of dyslexia and other language disorders on vocabulary growth and development
• Cognitive Ability - Impact of intelligence on vocabulary growth and development
• Direct Vocabulary Instruction is defined as explicit and targeted vocabulary instruction
  • How do teachers identify what words to teach? 
• Three Tiers of vocabulary words
• Identifying and teaching Tier 2 vocabulary words
• Vocabulary Instruction Routine 
• Strategies to establish a vocabulary routine before, during, and after reading
• Indirect Vocabulary Instruction 
  • Context Clue Strategies
• Dictionary:  Build alphabet knowledge and dictionary skills

• Important Understanding: The goal of reading is comprehension.
• Scarborough’s Reading Rope and the Simple View of Reading
  • Reading comprehension is an outcome of multiple language comprehension and word recognition skills 
• Understanding the reciprocal relationships between listening comprehension, oral language, reading comprehension, and written expression
• Text Structure: Narrative versus Expository/Informational
• Instruction of comprehension strategies to include 1) Direct Explanation, 2) Modeling, 3) Guided Practice, and 4) Application
• The Teacher’s Role as a model and language mediator in text comprehension instruction

• Reading Comprehension and Written Expression are interdependent and reciprocal in nature

  • Sentence structure and sentence-level activities

• Syntax and Text Structure Instruction in an OG Lesson

  • Sentence Structure - Review simple grammar, punctuation, and syntax 

    • Diagramming Sentences

  • Writing Sentences

    • Kernel sentence 

    • Sentence expansion

  • Self-Editing Strategies for Students

  • Strategies for Teaching the Four Sentence Types

  • Review the elements of a basic paragraph: topic sentence, supporting sentences, and concluding sentence

  • Use of technology for students experiencing ongoing limitations in written expression

• Orton-Gillingham Academy Lesson Components: 

  • Identifying information: teacher name, student name

  • Lesson and student work numbered and dated in order of instruction 

  • Clear lesson objectives for new skill and targeted review

  • Notation of Errors (previous and in real-time)

  • Word Play - Phonological/phonemic/morphological awareness activity

  • Handwriting

  • Learned Word Instruction using Trace, Cover, Copy, Close 

  • PART ONE: SOUND DRILL 

  • PART TWO: REVIEW AND REINFORCEMENT

  • PART THREE: NEW INFORMATION/FOCUS OR TARGETED REVIEW

  • Syllable Division according to student needs

  • Connected Text

• Application: Build an Orton-Gillingham Lesson

Types of assessment measures and the purpose for each: 

• Screening, diagnostic, progress monitoring, outcome 

Formal Intellectual and Academic Achievement Tests 

• Components of a psychoeducational evaluation
• Commonly used intelligence tests and academic achievement tests
• What is a norm-referenced test?
• Reporting Scores: 
  • Bell curve
  • Basic statistical terms (norm-referenced assessments)
  • Considerations in interpreting standardized achievement scores
• Dyslexia: Formal and informal instruments frequently used to screen for and diagnose dyslexia
• Process of identifying, documenting, and interpreting formal assessment information for the student profile
  • Woodcock-Johnson (WJ-IV)
  • Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children - V (WISC-V) (3.5 hours)
    • Index and subtest explanations with examples
  • Woodcock-Johnson (WJ-IV)
    • Subtest explanations with examples

Informal Assessment - Explanation, Interpretation, and Application

• Phonological and Phonemic Awareness Skills - 
• Reading and Spelling Skills
• Learned Word Assessment
• Handwriting and Writing Skills
• Oral Reading of Connected Text and Comprehension Skills

Structure and format of an Orton-Gillingham Lesson

• Diagnostic and Prescriptive Teaching
• Neurons and Memory - The Power of 3!

Trainees will work in small groups to build, practice and deliver an individual Orton-Gillingham lesson based on a mock student’s formal and informal assessments. Trainees will create the lesson based on the student profile. Trainees will individualize instructional materials and utilize OGA Principles throughout the lesson. 

• Small group members will deliver their 1:1 Orton-Gillingham lesson to one another utilizing the OGA Principles. Group members will alternate being the teacher and the student in order to experience both roles.

• Professional Nature of a Practitioner
• Role of the Practitioner in Case Management
• OGA Associate Level Standards Established in the OGA Code of Ethics and Associate Warranty