Riverside School
Orton-Gillingham Training
Who we are
Riverside School has offered Orton-Gillingham (O-G) training to teachers for over 40 years. Accredited by the Orton-Gillingham Academy (OGA), Riverside serves as both an in-person school for dyslexic students and as a teacher training facility for teachers world-wide.
Riverside’s teacher training is led by Academy Fellow Cynthia Davis, who brings over 25 years of experience working with dyslexic students. Additional training faculty include Fellows-in-Training Ann-Marie Lundmark, Leda Spencer, and Robin Hegner.
All of Riverside’s coursework and workshops are designed to increase understanding of dyslexia and to provide assistance to educators and parents who work with children who have dyslexia or other language-based learning differences.
Instructors
Cynthia Davis
Director of Orton-Gillingham Teachers and Training at Riverside School, F/OGA
Cynthia Davis has been an instructor of students with special needs since 1991. As a Fellow with the Orton Gillingham Academy (OGA), she has been providing OGA Associate and Certified Level training to teachers at Riverside School and beyond since 2014. Cynthia has a B.A. in Developmental Psychology from Duke University and a Masters of Special Education from UNC-Greensboro. She has presented at a variety of conferences: Virginia Branch IDA (2016, 2018, 2019), OGA (2015, 2016, 2018, 2019), and she was the keynote speaker at the 2019 William & Mary Structured Literacy Conference.
Robin Hegner
Fellow-in-Training/OGA
Robin received her undergraduate degree from James Madison University and a law degree from the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William and Mary. She has served as an adjunct professor for the University of Virginia and John Tyler Community College teaching school law and special education law.
Robin is a Fellow-in-Training with the Orton Gillingham Academy. She owns a tutoring and consulting business, Pathways to Reading Success, in Midlothian, Virginia where she specializes in working with children with dyslexia. Prior to opening her business, Robin was the Transition Coordinator and a Language Fundamentals Teacher at Riverside School where she taught language skills to students with dyslexia in a one-on-one setting, and assisted students and parents making the transition from Riverside to other schools. Robin has presented numerous workshops on dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, learning and the brain, and school law topics across the Commonwealth and the nation
O-G Foundations
These foundational sessions will provide knowledge of the underpinnings, principles, and practices of the O-G approach for educators seeking to meet the needs of their students who struggle with weaknesses in literacy. They represent content from the coursework we provide through our Orton-Gillingham Academy Accredited Training program. However, this training does not fall under the umbrella of the Academy; it is asynchronous and not supervised by a Fellow, so it does not meet Academy standards for coursework leading to practicum preparedness and certification. The certificates you will receive after each session are applicable for teacher licensure renewal or other similar professional development needs, but they do not certify you as an O-G practitioner. Questions? Please send them here: [email protected]
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$25.00Principles of the O-G Approach
Learn the principles of the O-G approach, how it differs from O-G programs, and why it is especially effective for dyslexic learners. You will explore the principles via videos and examples, and you will remember them by using a mnemonic device.
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$25.00Phonological Awareness
Phonological Awareness is an important predictor in a child's reading success. Learn the different skills that fall under the Phonological Umbrella, how and when to teach each skill, and how phonemic awareness can improve a child's reading skills.
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$25.00Phonology Part 1
What is phonology, and why is it vital to literacy success? Learn the basics of phonology including vowel and consonant knowledge needed for teaching correct pronunciation of phonograms - an essential component of O-G's alphabetic phonetic approach.
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$25.00Phonology Part 2
Further explore the role of phonology in reading acquisition. A demo will help you experience how struggles with phonology and sound symbol association affect reading. Learn causes and prescriptive practices for consonant and vowel confusions.
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$25.00Teaching Reading Part 1
Teaching a child to read is a science. This course will begin exploring the Stages of Reading. It will then move onto Fluency and its importance. Participants then learn why Structured Literature is the preferred method for O-G instruction.
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$25.00Teaching Reading Part 2
In this course, we take a deeper look at the science of reading and why phonics and sounding out words is a better approach for struggling readers. They will also explore various types of text and how to choose oral reading passages.
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$25.00Teaching Reading Part 3a
Participants in this course will complete their "Reading Rope", and they will explore the O-G approach to teaching reading. They will learn how to introduce early decoding to younger students, using methods such as blending and onset and rime.
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$25.00Syllable Division
Learn the five principles of syllabication and why knowledge and use of these principles are effective in helping students accurately decode multisyllable words. Explore and experience how to introduce and use these principles in an O-G lesson.
Beyond Associate Sessions
Beyond Associate Sessions are designed for individuals who have completed OGA Associate or Classroom Educator training and are seeking to refresh or increase their knowledge and ability to use the O-G Approach.
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$25.00Interpreting Psycho-Educational Evaluations To Individualize Instruction Part 2
Review reading Psycho-Educational evaluations and how to interpret the scores. Explore the five WISC-V indices and learn how to individualize O-G instruction based on students' particular strengths or weaknesses in each.
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$25.00Interpreting Psycho-Educational Evaluations To Individualize Instruction Part 1
Learn how to read and understand Psycho-Educational evaluations and how to interpret the scores. Begin to explore the WISC-V indices and learn how to individualize O-G instruction based on students' particular strengths or weaknesses in each.
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$25.00Phonology and Fluency: Research and Implications for Practice
Articles about phonology and fluency from the The Reading League Journal September/October 2020 are explored, including the instructional implications for O-G Practitioners
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$25.00Oral Reading in the O-G Lesson
Discover the science behind how the brain processes language and why the O-G approach works. Learn to be prescriptive and achieve long-term reading goals by addressing individual needs and providing instructional and emotionally sound passages.
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$25.00Role of Syntax in Reading Comprehension
Explore the role syntax plays in written language, and how understanding that role can bridge the gap between decoding and comprehending. In addition, this course will provide strategies to effectively teach syntax as part of the O-G lesson.
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$25.00Reading and the Brain
Specifically, how is the brain of a reader with dyslexia different? What does this mean for instruction?
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$25.00Consonant-le Concepts: Primary to Advanced
Using the O-G Approach to teach these Consonant-le concepts: syllabication, common student errors, grammar connections, "outlaws", and spelling generalizations for /kƏl/
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$25.00Pacing Orton-Gillingham Instruction
Pacing O-G instruction is an art and part of the learned "approach". In this session we will explore diagnostic and prescriptive practices to help us grow in our ability to pace instruction.
Subscriber Sessions
Subscriber Sessions are designed for those who are in the beginning stages of learning about dyslexia as well as any individuals who have just heard about the O-G Approach and want to know more.
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FreeTeaching Reading using the O-G Approach: Subscriber Session 3
This 2-hour session will provide a window into the background and practices of the O-G approach for teaching reading to children with dyslexia.
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FreeDyslexia Details: Subscriber Session 2
This 2-hour session covers dyslexia basics including how a dyslexic brain is different, diagnosis and social and emotional effects of dyslexia, and true signs of dyslexia versus myths. Enjoy the demonstration that will help you understand it all!