Orton Gillingham Dyslexia Therapy by Brenda Mackaness

Brenda is an Orton-Gillingham Fellow with 25 +
years of experience educating students of all ages. Services do not include homework support.

Orton Gillingham is an instructional approach intended primarily for use with persons who have difficulty with reading, spelling, and writing of the sort associated with dyslexia (i.e., "learning disabilities"). The Orton Gillingham approach "works" due to a number of unique aspects that differentiate the approach from other instructional methods that fall short. Brenda Mackaness has over 18 years

training and experience as an Orton Gillingham educator, working with students of all ages with learning disabilities. With her experience of applying OG principles to increase academic skills of students of all ages with strong cultural diversities and extreme academic deficits, Brenda's goal is to positively effect every student that she has the opportunity to work with. She has achieved significant success with her students challenged with dyslexia: college students have obtained their diplomas, high school students have passed the state high school proficiency exams for graduation, younger students who were struggling at one to three grade levels behind their peers have advanced their academic skills to a level commensurate with their peers. All therapeutic services offered by Brenda are available throughout the residential areas of the city of Charleston, West Ashley, Wadmalaw, Kiawah, Seabrook, James Island, Johns Island, and Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. However, assistance is offered to any parent/student in establishing a connection to an Orton Gillingham therapist anywhere in the US closest to the residency of the parent/student seeking services. Services Offered for Students

Multi-sensory, individualized, diagnostically driven, prescriptive, direct, and explicit instruction to students who have learning challenges in reading and writing. Instruction is set up in an emotionally supportive environment and structured so that the student is successful. Services are directed towards therapy for those who learn differently from many of their peers in the typical academic environment. It is a therapy in the sense that weaknesses are identified with basic sound to symbol, symbol to sound associations in the alphabet. Often students with dyslexia have challenges with those associations, which is often the basis of their struggles with reading and writing. Therefore, therapy begins with a strong introduction of phonics. No progress can be made in reading or writing until this strong basic structure of the language is learned to a level of mastery. Therefore, services do not include support for reading, writing, or spelling content that is presently required at their acedemic setting in the grade that the student is currently enrolled in. The basics of the alphabetic code must be established in a highly structured manner, and the student is exposed to specifically controlled reading and writing material in a sequential way designed to build on previous skills. Within time, which depends highly on the responses of the student, the time spent in therapy, and the support of the family, the student will begin to generalize their new reading and writing skills to the regular academic demands and requirements with renewed confidence and accuracy. Services Offered for Teachers or Trainees:

As a Fellow of the Academy, I can instruct teachers, parents or interested adults in the Orton-Gillingham approach. At the present time I am only training those who are interested in attaining the Subscriber and Associate levels. I can also provide assistance in creating connections between trainees and Fellows of the Academy who are offering instruction at the Certified and Fellow levels. This connection depends on the place of residency of the trainee and the nearest residency of the Fellow who is offering training at these two levels. There are four levels of Orton Gilllingham training; levels begin at the Subscriber and advance to Associate, Certified, and finally to the rigorous demands of the Fellow, with recently created positions of clinical supervisor and classroom educator. Details on this process and requirements necessary for each level is extensively described at the Academy of Orton Gillingham Practitioners and Eductors web site itself: www.ortonacademy.org, Telephone No.: 845-373-8919, Address: 4950 Route 22, Suite 8 PO Box 234, Amenia, NY 12501. Services Offered for Parents

Services include consistent communication of child's progress during therapy. A conference following each lesson between therapist and parent or legal guardian is available, as well as prompt phone calls and e-mail communication to ensure that all information concerning the lesson plan, goals, and progress levels are understood by parents. Services also include my attendance at special education meetings at public and private schools to inform the teachers/supervisors of detailed information as to the instructional content and progress of the student. I provide assistance with understanding terms and details of a student's IEP. I maintain records of assessments, communication, lesson plans, goals, and student's work, which is available for parents at all times.

How to Beat the Summer Slide (+ FREE Infographic)

06/21/2025

https://www.allaboutlearningpress.com/blog/summer-slide/?_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8UdGk7vqQt5d7qi-TjGAS8mDvn5aLkHYy-5088oi70XVbKtZMcnw5Id49iTrIbEfOe8OtqWdSUT0uxI8QCyqOpaRgZCw&_hsmi=367458149

How to Beat the Summer Slide (+ FREE Infographic) Don’t let your child’s reading ability decline over the summer months—beat the “summer slide” with these helpful resources.

06/16/2025

https://www.edweek.org/leadership/student-well-being-report-shows-how-kids-are-doing-in-education-and-beyond/2025/06?M=13876211&UUID=3c417d4e8a6cc051aa88a96990d1a07e&T=18134756

Student Well-Being Report Shows How Kids Are Doing in Education and Beyond Student well-being has seen some progress, but education continues to decline.

Writing by Hand Helps Children Learn Letters Better - Neuroscience News

05/04/2025

In the early 1900's, Dr. Samuel Orton and Bessie Gillingham knew this already; the Orton-Gillingham approach integrated this concept within the direct and explicit instruction of handwriting skills. Even better, handwriting is rigorously taught with lined paper to guide the student's correct formation of the letters of our alphabet. In my OG training, dots were not used to aid and assist the student's correct formation of the letters.
However, if the individual student needs that extra support, the Orton-Gillingham approach encourages adaptation and individualization of instruction, which warrants a try to determine if the dot strategy is beneficial to the student in their initial attempts.
Dr. Orton and B. Gillingham knew how beneficial correct handwriting skills are for improving reading and spelling skills, and new technology has found a way to confirm it.

Writing by Hand Helps Children Learn Letters Better - Neuroscience News A new study reveals that young children learn letters and word structures more effectively through handwriting than typing.

Connecticut high school graduate alleges she can’t read or write in lawsuit | CNN

03/07/2025

https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2025/02/27/us/connecticut-aleysha-ortiz-illiterate-lawsuit-cec?

Connecticut high school graduate alleges she can’t read or write in lawsuit | CNN Aleysha Ortiz is 19 years old and in her freshman year at the University of Connecticut. She graduated last year from a public high school in Hartford – even though she can’t read or write.

03/07/2025

https://www.theringer.com/podcasts/plain-english-with-derek-thompson/2025/02/28/the-end-of-reading?user_id=66c4bf4c5d78644b3aa3f01e

The End of Reading - The Ringer Something alarming is happening with reading in America. Leisure reading by some accounts has declined by about 50 percent this century. Literacy scores are declining for fourth and eighth graders at alarming rates. And even college students today are complaining to teachers that they can’t read e...

01/29/2025

The nation's report card is in
America's children are falling further behind in reading in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and have made little improvement in math, according to the latest results of an exam known as the nation's report card.

According to CNN. This is not good news if this news feed from CNN is accurate.

The Nation's Report Card
https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/
a group of elementary students with teacher in classroom setting
latest release
Results from the 2024 NAEP Reading and Mathematics Assessments at Grades 4 and 8
Compared to 2022:

Average score increased in mathematics at grade 4; no significant change at grade 8.
Average scores declined in reading at both grades.
No significant change for most states in both subjects and grades.
Lower percentages of students absent 5 or more days in both subjects and grades.
Explore the results of the mathematics and reading assessments.
Watch a video highlighting the results and read the press release.
REGISTER FOR THE LIVE EVENT ON JANUARY 29, 2025 at 1:00 p.m. EST
Related NAEP Data Sources

The Nation's Report Card provides national results about students' performance; access to state and district results, data explorer, questions tool, item maps, and other NAEP resources

01/26/2025

https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/researchers-created-a-phonics-program-with-dramatic-results-how-it-works/2025/01?M=12396998&UUID=3c417d4e8a6cc051aa88a96990d1a07e&T=16254830
Dr. Samuel Orton and Bessie Gillingham together created an approach to teaching phonics (but NOT just phonics) effectively and successfully for all students -in the early 1900's! This is not new, but it needs to be reiterated that with an experienced, trained, and certified practitioner/educator who uses the Orton-Gillingham Approach with fidelity, phonics instruction will provide the skills necessary for dramatic success for students learning to read and write. Keywords: experienced, trained, and certified practitioner/educator.

Researchers Created a Phonics Program With ‘Dramatic’ Results. How It Works Consistent implementation of the 30-minute-a-day program fueled the results.

Top scholar says evidence for special education inclusion is 'fundamentally flawed'

01/21/2025

https://hechingerreport.org/proof-points-special-education-inclusion-research-flawed/

Top scholar says evidence for special education inclusion is 'fundamentally flawed' Analysis of 50 years of research argues that there isn’t strong evidence for the academic advantages of placing children with disabilities in general education classrooms

01/02/2025

https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/what-teachers-are-saying-about-the-lawsuit-against-lucy-calkins-and-fountas-and-pinnell/2024/12?M=12178758&UUID=3c417d4e8a6cc051aa88a96990d1a07e&T=15983152

What Teachers Are Saying About the Lawsuit Against Lucy Calkins and Fountas and Pinnell Educators on social media had lots to say about the lawsuit filed against the creators of popular reading programs.

12/19/2024

https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/video-video-why-are-parents-suing-lucy-calkins-and-fountas-pinnell/2024/12?M=12071956&UUID=3c417d4e8a6cc051aa88a96990d1a07e&T=15850834
Students need phonics to establish the basic skills for efficient reading, but it is not the only skill they need for reading proficiency. The OG Approach, used by an experienced and certified therapist, can provide students who struggle with reading all the necessary components to become confident readers and writers.

Video: Why Are Parents Suing Lucy Calkins and Fountas & Pinnell? All you need to know about the lawsuit targeting popular literacy gurus Lucy Calkins, Irene Fountas, and Gay Su Pinnell.

12/14/2024

https://www.edweek.org/leadership/u-s-reading-and-math-gap-is-getting-worse-for-adults-too/2024/12?M=12017775&UUID=3c417d4e8a6cc051aa88a96990d1a07e&T=15786590

U.S. Reading and Math Gap Is Getting Worse for Adults, Too Results on an international test of adults' math and literacy skills show a growing chasm between the highest and lowest performers.

12/09/2024

Lots of resources for information re dyslexia:

Podcast We help students who are feeling overwhelmed by school discover their way of working. It transforms their relationship with learning – empowering them to take on any challenge school can throw at them.

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Charleston

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http://ogdyslexiatherapy.com/

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Charleston, SC

Orton Gillingham Dyslexia Therapy by Brenda Mackaness

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