Dyslexia & Dysgraphia Support: A Practical Orton-Gillingham Guide

Every child's mind is wired to learn differently — and for children with dyslexia or dysgraphia, traditional teaching methods often don't tell the full story of what they're capable of. At IMPACT, we believe in empowering every mind to shine, and one of the most effective ways we do that is through the multi-sensory Orton-Gillingham (OG) approach.

What Is Dyslexia & Dysgraphia?

Dyslexia affects how a child processes written and spoken language, making reading, decoding, and spelling more challenging — even when the child is bright, capable, and hardworking.

Dysgraphia affects handwriting and written expression, often making it difficult for a child to translate their thoughts onto paper, even though they may express themselves fluently out loud.

Both conditions are often misunderstood as a lack of effort or intelligence — when in reality, they simply require a different way in.

What Is the Orton-Gillingham Approach?

Orton-Gillingham is a structured, multi-sensory teaching method designed specifically for children with dyslexia, dysgraphia, and other language-based learning differences. Instead of relying on rote memorization, OG engages sight, sound, touch, and movement together, helping children build lasting connections between letters, sounds, and words.

At IMPACT, our OG-based sessions include hands-on tools such as:

• Letter tiles and sound cards — building words like "his," "rail," and "man" piece by piece to reinforce phonics and blending
• Sound and blend cards (like "sh") paired with visual cues to strengthen letter-sound association
• Tactile writing tools — sand trays, playdoh, and dry-erase boards that let children feel letters as they form them, reinforcing muscle memory for handwriting
• Multisensory drills using bells, tiles, and movement to keep learning active and engaging, not passive

Why Multi-Sensory Learning Works

Children with dyslexia and dysgraphia often struggle when information is presented in just one format — like reading silently from a page. By combining multiple senses at once (seeing a letter, saying its sound, tracing its shape, and hearing it blended into a word), the brain builds stronger, more reliable pathways for literacy. This is what makes Orton-Gillingham so effective — it doesn't ask a struggling reader to "try harder" in the same way; it teaches in the way their brain actually learns best.

A Practical, Step-by-Step Guide

A typical OG-based session at IMPACT follows a structured sequence:

1. Review — quickly revisiting previously learned sounds/words to build automaticity
2. Introduction of new concept — introducing a new letter, blend, or sound pattern using multi-sensory cards and tiles
3. Practice through multiple senses — students see, say, write, and build the word or sound using tactile tools
4. Reading & spelling application — applying the new skill to real words and simple sentences
5. Handwriting reinforcement — using sand, playdoh, or dry-erase practice to reinforce the physical formation of letters, directly supporting children with dysgraphia

This structured repetition — paired with a warm, encouraging environment — helps children build confidence, not just skills.

Every Mind Deserves to Shine

Dyslexia and dysgraphia are not barriers to a child's potential — they simply call for the right kind of support. At IMPACT, our trained therapists use the Orton-Gillingham approach to help children build real, lasting literacy skills at their own pace, in a way that respects how they learn best.

If your child struggles with reading, spelling, or writing, we'd love to talk with you about how our OG-based sessions can help.