Orton Gillingham Approach and All About Reading- Why They Work!

Want to learn about the Orton Gillingham reading instruction approach? Maybe you’re worried about how to teach your child to read. You’re not alone.

We know that low literacy levels can have devastating long-term impacts. These include:

• lifestyle
• emotional well-being
• access to decent-paying jobs
• ability to advocate for oneself

Reading and writing are essential life skills. With this in mind, what should you do when your child struggles with reading? Let’s talk about the Orton Gillingham method. Then we’ll discuss All About Reading’s homeschool reading curriculum and determine why they work!

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What is Orton-Gillingham?

The Orton-Gillingham approach is a multisensory reading instruction method.

• letters
• combinations of letters
• letter sounds

It explicitly teaches the relationships between these components of reading.

How An Orton-Gillingham Lesson Works

Let’s look at an example of how the Orton Gillingham approach in action.  Letter sounds would be taught in the following way.

1. Mom holds a letter symbol card for the child to see (visual).
2. The child builds letters with clay (kinesthetic and visual).
3. Mom models the sounds aloud while the child hears sounds (auditory).
4. The student then repeats back the sound (oral output- auditory).

This teaching approach is highly effective because it targets multiple parts of the brain.

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Sensory Systems are the Best Learning Tools

Our sensory systems allow the brain to receive and process information from the outside world. This is how people learn.

Autistic or ADHD kids need specific sensory input to function in daily activities. This concept applies to learning in general.

Students retain information more efficiently when multiple areas of the brain are engaged in the learning process. Multi-sensory learning is one reason the Orton-Gillingham approach is effective.

All About Learning Press

All About Learning is a homeschool curriculum company that offers two programs to support literacy. Even better is that they both use the Orton-Gillingham approach.:

1. Reading
2. Spelling

While the programs complement one another, each one is effective on its own.

The best part is that both All About Spelling and All About Reading work well for learners with dyslexia, ADHD, and Autism.

Explicit Spelling Instruction

In general, English spelling rules are complex, and many believe the English language doesn’t make sense.

However, this is not true.

All About Learning explicitly teaches patterns within our language. Fortunately, this leaves no room for guesswork.

For example:

Ultimately, this approach improves spelling and reading outcomes for students.

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All About Reading

The All About Reading curriculum includes:

• Hands-on letter tiles or an interactive online app
• A systematic phonogram flashcard system,
• Vocabulary cards,
• Explicit and incremental instruction,
• Leveled readers that are engaging, fun, and well-illustrated,
• Easy-to-follow teacher guides for parent-teachers.

Additionally, they have a pre-reading program for preschoolers and kindergarteners.

It focuses on pre-reading skills such as phonemic awareness.

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All About Spelling

I started with All About Spelling about ten years ago. This homeschool spelling program includes:

• Hands-on letter tiles or the interactive online app,
• Systematic flashcard system,
• visual aids to help children visualize spelling patterns,
• Spelling review box,
• Easy to follow teacher guide.

Movement Increases Retention: Letter Tiles

For kinesthetic learners, the letter tiles are an effective learning tool.

When kids manipulate the tiles, they receive sensory input that helps make learning stick.

Additionally, the letter tiles are color-coded to identify vowels, consonants, and vowel teams.

Read Aloud to Your Child as a Reading Strategy

In addition to seeking out a reading curriculum, I highly recommend reading aloud to your struggling reader.

Reading aloud to your child will yield many benefits including:

• Language development
• Reading comprehension skills
• Exposure to rich vocabulary
• Deepened family connection and so much more…

For some specific book titles to get you and your family reading together, check out 11 Best Read Aloud Books for Kids of All Ages.

Recap: Orton-Gillingham and All About Reading

Here’s the reality. As of 2022, statistics show that 21% of US adults are illiterate. It gets worse. Approximately 54% of US adults have a literacy rate below a 6th-grade reading level.

At the end of the day, you want your child to read. We know that every child is unique which means you’ll want a reading curriculum that works for your unique child.

Neurodivergent students (ADHD, Autism, dyslexia, and other learning styles) are served well by the Orton Gillingham approach. Specifically, kids benefit when they use curricula like All About Reading.

So, Friend… Have you used All About Reading or All About Spelling?