Literacy
I provide literacy evaluations and intervention for children ages 4-12. From early literacy development to
working with children with dyslexia, I get to the root of your child's challenges to deliver effective therapy and positive outcomes.
Literacy Diagnostics
When evaluating literacy skills, I believe in looking at the whole child. I will investigate all areas of concern to understand your child's strengths and weaknesses, as well as what functionally matters in their daily life. Experience and training have demonstrated that assessment based on both scientific research and your child’s everyday real world provides the most comprehensive picture of your child's needs.
What are the benefits of a literacy evaluation?
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Assessing reading fluency, comprehension, decoding, spelling, writing, and overall language skills will look at your child from all angles
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Distinguish between different root causes and disorders with differential diagnosis
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Catch red flags for younger readers
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Identify specific strengths and weaknesses to guide an individualized approach to intervention
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Speech-language pathologists are also instrumental in making differential diagnosis
Literacy Therapy
Literacy therapy is tailored to each child's unique learning profile to address their strengths and needs in the following areas:
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Phonemic awareness and decoding skills
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Reading comprehension
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Word recognition and vocabulary development
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Reading fluency
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Spelling skills
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Expressive language and writing skills
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I create a tailored therapy plan for your child using a combination of approaches, including Orton-Gillingham, SPELL-Links, and multi-sensory teaching methods. Our sessions include interactive activities that tie into your child's personal and academic interests.
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Why work with a speech-language pathologist on literacy?
Speech-language pathologists have advanced training in the foundational areas of literacy - listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills. As spoken language provides the foundation for the development of reading and writing, a speech therapist is uniquely qualified in building both the foundational skills as well as addressing a child's specific literacy challenges.
Early Literacy Instruction Program
Together we will build a strong foundation for your child's literacy skills through multi-sensory, systematic, and
explicit instruction. Improvements in phonological and phonemic awareness directly improve literacy abilities, leading to greater interest in reading and writing.
12-week programs taught one-on-one or in small groups
Pre- and post-testing to track progress
Home practice and parent coaching provided
Appropriate for children ages 4 to 8 years old.
What are the red flags for a literacy disorder?
Signs and symptoms of a literacy disorder include:
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Late talking
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Learning new words slowly
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Confusing words that sound alike
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Difficulty remembering and naming letters, numbers, and colors
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Difficulty learning nursery rhymes or playing rhyming games
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Difficulty with phonological awareness tasks
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Reading below age level
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Problems processing a spoken message
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Difficulty with sequencing
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Inability to sound out words
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Difficulty spelling and writing
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Avoiding activities that involve reading
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Taking extended time to complete tasks that involve reading
What are the signs of dyslexia?
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History of a speech and/or language delay or disorder
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Family history of dyslexia
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Difficulty learning the alphabet and the corresponding sounds
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Difficulty pronouncing new longer, more complicated words
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Leaving off or switching the sounds at the end of words
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Poor spelling
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Difficulty recognizing/hearing rhymes
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Contrary to popular belief, people with dyslexia do not read letters and words backward.
What is the Orton-Gillingham approach?
The Orton-Gillingham approach is a multisensory approach delivered through direct teaching for children, teens, and adults who have difficulty with reading, writing, and spelling. Orton-Gillingham is one of the preferred methods for treating dyslexia and requires a trained and experienced professional to deliver the approach.
Students with dyslexia must have a foundational understanding of how language and writing are related in order to benefit from the Orton-Gillingham approach. An OG-trained speech-language pathologist is an excellent person to address these skills.
What is the connection between speech sound disorders and literacy?
Spoken language provides the foundation for the development of reading and writing. A speech sound disorder can affect the way a child recognizes and analyzes the sounds in words. Phonological and phonemic awareness is the ability to recognize and work with sounds, notice, think about, and work with the individual sounds in spoken words. Examples include rhyming, counting the number of syllables in words, recognizing alliteration, segmenting sentences into words, blending, combining, deleting, and isolating sounds in words. They are a critical foundation when learning to read.
Why would a speech-language pathologist work with literacy?
Speech pathologists have a unique understanding of language systems in the areas of syntax, phonology, morphology, semantics, and pragmatics and dyslexia is a language disorder in nature. The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association’s (ASHA) position statement on literacy states that Speech-language pathologists play a critical role in the development of literacy for children and adolescents with communication disorders. Studies tell us children with speech and language deficits are 4 to 5 times more likely to have literacy issues than children without speech and language disorders.
What is the Early Literacy Therapy you provide?
Phonological and phonemic awareness skills are critical for literacy, and that improvements in these skills directly improve literacy abilities. I have also noticed significant differences in phonological skills amongst children entering kindergarten.
I am excited to offer a twelve-week program focused on improving phonological awareness to lay a strong foundation for literacy and academic success. With the use of books and fun activities, I integrate multi-sensory, systematic, and explicit instruction methods to engage children in learning.
There is a quick pre-test to enable me to know your child’s current level of understanding, and I use the same test at the conclusion of the program to show their progress. This program is full of great ideas for parents to incorporate at home and can include additional parent coaching if you desire.
