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The Orton-Gillingham approach is a powerful, research-based method for teaching phonics, particularly for students who struggle with traditional reading instruction. Known for its multisensory and individualized techniques, this approach is especially effective for students with dyslexia and other learning challenges. By engaging multiple senses and tailoring instruction to each student’s needs, Orton-Gillingham helps learners build a strong foundation in phonics, phonemic awareness, and reading fluency.
Other phonics programs often take a one-size-fits-all approach, but Orton-Gillingham provides a flexible, structured framework to meet students where they are in their reading development. In this article, the literacy experts at Booksource explore the top benefits of choosing the Orton-Gillingham method and how it can help students who have not found success with traditional methods.
What is the Orton-Gillingham Approach?
The Orton-Gillingham approach is a structured, multisensory method for teaching reading and phonics, particularly designed for students who struggle with traditional instruction. Originally developed in the 1930s by neuropsychiatrist Dr. Samuel Orton and educator Anna Gillingham, the approach is rooted in the science of how the brain processes language, making it highly effective for students with dyslexia and other learning challenges.
What sets Orton-Gillingham apart from other phonics programs is its personalized, flexible nature. It is not a scripted program but rather an approach that allows teachers to adapt their instruction to meet the needs of each individual student. Instruction is explicit, meaning that students are directly taught the rules of language—such as letter-sound relationships—without relying on discovery or guesswork. Each lesson is designed to build upon previously mastered skills, ensuring that students gain confidence and fluency as they progress.
While many phonics programs follow a one-size-fits-all model, Orton-Gillingham is highly individualized. The pace of instruction is adjusted based on the student’s progress, with teachers offering additional support where needed. This flexibility makes it particularly effective for students who have not found success with more rigid, traditional methods of phonics instruction.
The Advantages of Orton-Gillingham Phonics
The Orton-Gillingham approach offers several significant advantages over traditional phonics programs, particularly for students who struggle with reading. By focusing on multisensory learning, individualized instruction, and a structured sequence, Orton-Gillingham creates a more engaging and effective learning environment.
Benefit #1: Multisensory Learning
One of the standout features of the Orton-Gillingham approach is its use of multisensory instruction, which engages students through visual, auditory, kinesthetic, and tactile methods. Instead of relying solely on reading or listening, students are encouraged to use multiple senses to connect sounds to letters. For example, students might trace a letter in the sand while saying its sound aloud, combining physical movement with auditory and visual reinforcement.
This multisensory approach is particularly beneficial for students who have struggled with other phonics programs because it helps them build stronger neural connections, making it easier to retain and apply the information. This approach often leads to increased engagement, particularly for students who struggle with more traditional, single-sense methods.
Benefit #2: Individualized and Flexible Instruction
The individualized nature of Orton-Gillingham instruction allows teachers to tailor their lessons to meet the unique needs of each student. Unlike more rigid, scripted phonics programs, Orton-Gillingham is flexible, enabling teachers to adjust the pace and focus based on how well a student is mastering each concept. This flexibility is crucial for students who may need extra time and repetition to understand the material, especially those with dyslexia or other learning challenges. Yet, it is worth noting that Orton-Gillingham instruction does require the use of structured routines. For example, structured, sequential progression, direct and explicit instruction, systematic review, fidelity in the multisensory techniques, to name a few routines.
This personalized approach ensures that no student is left behind and provides a supportive learning environment where students can progress at their own pace. For struggling readers, this can make a world of difference as they receive the targeted attention they need to overcome their specific challenges.
Benefit #3: Sequential and Structured Learning
The Orton-Gillingham method is built around sequential and structured learning, ensuring that students master one skill before moving on to the next. This step-by-step progression gives students the opportunity to build a strong foundation in phonemic awareness and phonics before advancing to more complex reading skills. Each new concept builds on previously learned material, creating a logical path that students can follow with confidence.
This structure not only helps prevent confusion but also fosters a sense of accomplishment as students achieve mastery of each stage. By moving through the sequence, students develop the ability to apply learned skills automatically, which leads to better fluency and overall reading comprehension.
Benefit #4: Focuses on Numerous Aspects of Literacy
Orton-Gillingham places a strong emphasis on phonemic awareness and phonics, which are the building blocks of reading. Students are explicitly taught how to break down words into their individual sounds (phonemes) and then connect those sounds to the letters that represent them. This focus on the relationship between sounds and letters is critical for reading success, especially for struggling readers who may find these concepts difficult to grasp in other phonics programs.
By mastering phonemic awareness and phonics, students gain the tools they need to decode words independently, which boosts their reading fluency and comprehension. This strong foundation is essential for all students but is particularly transformative for those with dyslexia.
Moreover, the Orton-Gillingham method is used to address vocabulary, fluency, comprehension, and spelling. The approach is designed to support language learning broadly.
Benefit #5: Proven Success with Struggling Readers
The Orton-Gillingham approach has been proven to be highly effective for students with dyslexia and other learning differences. This method has helped struggling learners develop the skills they need to become confident readers. Because the program is designed to meet the needs of students who have not succeeded with traditional instruction, it offers a lifeline for those who have found other approaches too difficult or fast-paced. By using evidence-based techniques, Orton-Gillingham not only helps students catch up to their peers but also ensures they develop lasting literacy skills that will serve them throughout their education.
Booksource Offers Collections Aligned to Numerous Foundational Programs
The Orton-Gillingham approach offers invaluable benefits for struggling readers, providing a structured, multisensory, and individualized path to mastering foundational reading skills. To further support these skills in diverse classroom settings, Booksource has developed collections that align with the scope and sequence of leading reading foundations programs. These carefully curated collections offer educators a powerful resource for reinforcing essential skills, whether used alongside Orton-Gillingham-based instruction or as part of other structured literacy programs. With Booksource’s collections, teachers can seamlessly integrate high-quality, engaging texts that build on the same principles of sequential and cumulative learning.
The Booksource collections aligned to the scope and sequence of UFLI Foundations, Wilson Fundations, and SIPPS provide teachers with access to decodable texts that complement the lessons being taught. These books reinforce phonemic awareness and phonics skills, allowing students to apply what they’ve learned. Alongside our curated collections, Booksource also provides personalized support from our team of literacy experts. We can help you find decodables to accompany the foundational program that your classroom, school, or district utilizes, ensuring that you have the right resources in place.
Whether you're just starting with Orton-Gillingham or want to enhance your existing instruction, we can help you find the best materials for your classroom. Explore our collections and connect with our literacy experts to create the best learning environment for your students.
