Scientists now understand how students acquire reading skills. There is powerful evidence that intervention with an effective reading program such as the programs offered at Cullinan Education Center, can lead to accurate, skilled and fluent reading. Further evidence shows that through effective programs the brain can be rewired. This cutting edge science of reading (Overcoming Dyslexia, Sally Shaywitz, M.D.) has direct strategies for the treatment of reading difficulties.
Cullinan Education Center offers an adaptation of the Orton Gillingham method, based on over eighty years of research. THERE IS NO OTHER SYSTEM OF LEARNING TO READ THAT CAN ACHIEVE THE FOLLOWING!
The Orton Gillingham method is:
Individualized – the instruction is planned to meet the needs of each individual learner.
Multidisciplinary – using the combined knowledge and skill of experts in the fields of education, medicine, psychology, social work and language theory.
Multisensory – using all of the learning pathways: seeing, hearing, feeling and awareness of motion.
Alphabetic-Phonic – employing and stressing the sound/symbol relationships which are the basis of our spoken and written language.
Synthetic-Analytic – a process in which sounds can be blended and segmented leading to improvement in reading, spelling and writing.
Systematic & Sequential – material is organized and taught in a way that is logical and suited to the nature of our language so that learners move smoothly, step by step, from the simple to the complex.
Cumulative – building language from the ground up, each step builds on those already learned.
Competence – students learn language patterns, which determine word order and sentence structure. This leads to fluency and full literacy.
A Cognitive Approach – students are guided to understand the reasons for what they are learning rather than relying only on memory.
Emotionally Sound – instruction promotes successful experiences for students, which in turn promotes self-confidence and motivation.
* International Dyslexia Association
The following are the essentials that make up the Cullinan reading program, incorporating Orton Gillingham strategies and techniques.