The Orton-Gillingham Podcast

All About Dyslexia Awareness Month

Hello and welcome back! In today’s episode, our hosts are talking all about dyslexia, in honor of October being Dyslexia Awareness Month. Before getting into the topic, Katie and Esther announce the “Funniest Back to School Story” contest winner. Congrats to Shannon! Shannon won a Free Self-Paced Refresher course and a $50 gift card to the Brainspring store. Our hosts also shared an honorable mention from Kim. Thank you both for listening and submitting your stories! 

Next, Katie and Esther talk about Dyslexia Awareness Month, which is currently happening in the month of October. Dyslexia is a language-based learning disability that affects a person’s ability to read. As you can imagine, there are a lot of myths surrounding dyslexia, and our hosts take a crack at them to determine which ones are truthful, and which have been debunked! 

 

Myths: 

• Dyslexia is a vision problem. 
• Dyslexia only happens in the English language. 
• Dyslexia doesn’t show up until elementary school 

Truths: 

• People with dyslexia do not see backwards. 
• Dyslexia exists all over the world. 

• May be harder to detect in multilingual kids. 

• 1 in 5 people suffer from dyslexia. 

• Could be higher now, because we know so much more! 

• 35% of US entrepreneurs are dyslexic. 
• 60% of self-made millionaires are dyslexic. 

 

This may be surprising, but there are a lot of celebrities who have dyslexia! Some of those celebrities include: 

• Steven Spielberg  
• Whoopi Goldberg  
• Henry Winkler  
• Muhammad Ali  
• Richard Branson  
• Jay Leno  
• Danny Glover  
• Keira Knightley  
• Albert Einstein 
• Leonardo da Vinci 
• Pablo Picasso 

 
Fun fact: people with dyslexia tend to be more creative and have a higher level of intelligence. They only use the right side of their brain to process language, while non-dyslexics use three areas of the left side of the brain to process language. And when you’re right brained, you tend to be more creative! 

A long time ago, there was a stigma around dyslexia because we simply just didn’t know much about it. Now that we know more, it’s something we can talk more about and be proud of! 

Help spread awareness by: 

• Wear red on October 15th for World Dyslexia Day. 
• Talk on social media and share some facts (helps erase stigma when there is more info out there!). 
• Donate books on dyslexia to a local school or library. 
   

Dyslexia Awareness is extremely important, so make sure to share what you know, and know that there are resources available for you (especially on our website!). 

Have any questions or comments for us? Leave us a voicemail or send us an email at the links below. 

Make sure to tune in next time for our super spooky Halloween special! 

 

And don’t forget to follow us on all social media to stay up to date on all things Brainspring. See you next time! 

 

Subscribe to our newsletter! https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/sl/S9onxP7/brainspringnewsletter

Email: podcast@brainspring.com

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/OrtonGillinghamTraining

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BrainspringOrtonGillingham

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brainspringortongillingham/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrainspringOG

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brainspringog

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/brainspring/

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/brainspringortongillingham

Podbean: https://ortongillingham.podbean.com/

Website: https://brainspring.com

 

Hosts: Katie Hodgkins, Esther Moreau 

Production Manager: Michael Flees 

Soundboard: Brendan Kelly 

Podcast Production/Marketing: Morgan MacKew 

Homeschooling with Laura Seymore

Hello and welcome back! On this episode, our hosts are speaking with homeschooling expert, Laura Seymore, about her experience teaching her kids at home and how exactly she did it. But first, “Talk like a Pirate Day” is September 19th and Katie and Esther share their best pirate accents and jokes! 

Joke #1: Why does it take a pirate so long to learn the alphabet? They spend years at “C”! 
Joke #2: What does the pirate say when his leg gets stuck in the freezer? Shiver me timber! 

Background on Laura Seymore:  

• Works at Brainspring as an instructor 

• Has known Esther for 13 years 
• Worked at The Learning Center (school) 
• Amazing educator! 
• Certified through the National Institute of Learning Development 
• Worked with kids who were struggling in all areas 

• Has 7 kids and has homeschooled nearly all of them 
• Homeschooled her kids for 20 years 

How did Laura do it?? 

Laura says that she never homeschooled all 7 kids at once, and one of the things that helped her a lot was keeping a strict schedule. The kids woke up at the same time every morning, had a set time for breakfast, schoolwork, and breaks. There was even a set time for when they got to do extracurricular activities. Organization is KEY! 

What kind of student would homeschooling be best for? 

According to Laura, it’s not so much about the student as it is about how you modify teaching that student, not all kids learn the same! 

What are good traits a parent should have if they want to homeschool their children? 

As stated before, organization is a big help! And a lot of the traits needed to be a good candidate for homeschooling your children are traits that are needed to be a good parent; a solid home, no compelling outside requirements, making sure YOU are in a good place mentally to take on the responsibility, and the knowledge to know if you would like it or not. 

Last words of wisdom? 

Don’t homeschool out of obligation! Don’t push it! And find support if this is what you decide to do. And if it’s not, investigate other options. 

To wrap up this episode, Katie and Esther share that August 26th was “Women’s Equality Day.” Women’s equality is so important, and the passing of the 19th amendment allowing women to vote in the United States was a huge step towards reaching equality for women.  

To celebrate this day, we are doing a contest! The first person to correctly email us or send in a voicemail of the woman our hosts are sharing clues on, wins a $100 Visa Gift Card! 

A final inspirational quote to close out the episode: 

“Always be yourself, unless you can be a pirate... Then always be a pirate!” 

 

Don’t forget to follow us on all social media to stay up to date on all things Brainspring. See you next time! 

 

Homeschooling resources: 

Timberdoodle Co. - https://timberdoodle.com  

Oxford Learner’s Bookshelf – https://www.oxfordlearnersbookshelf.com 

K12 Learning Lift Off: - https://www.learningliftoff.com  

 

Subscribe to our newsletter! https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/sl/S9onxP7/brainspringnewsletter

Email: podcast@brainspring.com

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/OrtonGillinghamTraining

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BrainspringOrtonGillingham

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brainspringortongillingham/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrainspringOG

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brainspringog

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/brainspring/

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/brainspringortongillingham

Podbean: https://ortongillingham.podbean.com/

Website: https://brainspring.com

 

Hosts: Katie Hodgkins, Esther Moreau 

Special Guest: Laura Seymore 

Production Manager: Michael Flees 

Podcast Production/Marketing: Morgan MacKew 

Welcome Back!

Welcome Back! - Show Notes

The Orton-Gillingham Podcast is back after a hiatus just in time to start the new school year! Katie and Esther reintroduce themselves by sharing three fun facts about each other. 

Three things Esther shared about Katie: 

1. She is a compassionate educator of the deaf 
2. She is a great leader (and mom!) 
3. She is freakishly organized… And always uses a pencil when writing notes (for easy editing!) 

Three things Katie shared about Esther: 

1. Esther laughs at everything 
2. She has a huge Sicilian family and is about to be a grandma for the first time (twins!) 
3. Esther enjoys listening to True Crime podcasts (just like Katie!) 

Katie and Esther also shared three of their best tips for helping educators get ready for the upcoming school year. 

Katie’s three tips: 

1. Keep it simple 
2. Organization is key (caddies, white boards, sticky notes, etc.) 
3. Use the cards instead of blending boards 

Esther’s three tips: 

1. Give each student their own expandable folder containing all materials they will need 
2. If you’re a teacher that works with multiple groups, have a set of everything for each group 
3. Download fillable lesson plans and keep them on your computer 

In honor of National Tell a Joke Day on August 16th, our hosts told three jokes to help spread the laughter! 

Katie’s jokes: 

1. What kind of cheese isn’t your cheese? 
   • Nacho Cheese! 
2. A joke from her son, Jackson: 
   • What does Y-E-S spell? 
   • Yes. 
   • What does E-Y-E-S spell? 
   • Eyes! 
3. A joke from her son, Gray: 
   • What is an astronaut’s favorite part of the computer? 
   • The SPACE bar! 

Esther’s jokes: 

1. What do you call a dog that can do magic? 
   • A Labra-kadabra-dog! 
2. What do you call a fake noodle? 
   • An impasta! 
3. Knock knock 
   • Who’s there? 
   • Control freak 
   • Control freak who- (cut off) 
   • This is when you are supposed to say, “control freak who?”! 

Our hosts wrap up our episode with reminders to watch out for the updated website and Member’s Area that is coming in August. They also present the new voicemail option where our listeners can call in and leave questions and messages that will be addressed on future episodes.  

We are also rolling out a contest! Call in to the voicemail at the link below and leave your funniest back to school story, and the winner will win a free Self-Pace Refresher Course and a $50 gift card to our store! Don’t feel comfortable leaving a voice message? You can also email us at podcast@brainspring.com.  

Don’t forget to follow us on all social media to stay up to date on all things Brainspring. 

See you next time! 

 

Subscribe to our newsletter! https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/sl/S9onxP7/brainspringnewsletter

Email: podcast@brainspring.com

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/OrtonGillinghamTraining

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BrainspringOrtonGillingham

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brainspringortongillingham/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrainspringOG

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brainspringog

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/brainspring/

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/brainspringortongillingham

Podbean: https://ortongillingham.podbean.com/

Website: https://brainspring.com

 

Hosts: Katie Hodgkins, Esther Moreau
Production Manager: Michael Flees
Podcast Production/Marketing: Morgan MacKew

Esther & Katie - Literacy Play

In this episode, Esther and Katie discuss ways parents can turn practicing literacy skills into playing with their kids over holiday breaks!

-----

Head to our website (www.brainspring.com) to learn more about bringing the Orton-Gillingham approach to your school or district. 

 

Isabella Martin - Being a Student with a Learning Disability

Today we’re joined by Isabella Martin, a Broadcast Journalism student at Michigan State University and Brainspring’s Marketing and Editorial Intern. Isabella is passionate about multisensory education because she has Dyscalculia and ADHD. She joins us to share her perspective as a student with a learning difference.

-----

Head to our website (www.brainspring.com) to learn more about bringing the Orton-Gillingham approach to your school or district. 

Elizabeth Coller - The Kinderhearted Classroom

In this episode, Elizabeth Coller from the Kinderhearted Classroom joins us. Elizabeth has taught at the elementary and high school levels and is currently teaches kindergarten at a private Christian school in California. She is here to chat with us about social-emotional learning and student relationships.

---

Head to our website (www.brainspring.com) to learn more about bringing the Orton-Gillingham approach to your school or district!

Dr. Salli Lewis - Effective Educational Research

Our guest for today's episode is Dr. Salli Lewis, the Director of the Research Division for CReATE. Founded in 2007 by Dr. Lewis and her partner, Dr. Daniels, CReATE specializes in providing evidence-based evaluations and implementing applied clinical research. Dr. Lewis is a licensed clinical psychologist with expertise in evidence-based treatments and in assessing, identifying, and treating social-emotional, behavioral, developmental, and neurodevelopmental syndromes. She joins us today to discuss the research process as it pertains to multisensory education. 

---

Connect with us on:

Facebook

Twitter: @BrainspringOG

Instagram: @brainspringortongillingham

Our blog, Orton-Gillingham Weekly.

Head to our website (www.brainspring.com) to learn more about bringing the Orton-Gillingham approach to your school or district. 

 

Cheryl Garner - Getting Buy-In from Older Students

In this episode, we’re chatting with Cheryl Garner, an educator from Florida with 30 years of classroom experience. After graduating from the University of Central Florida, Cheryl initially taught high school English for two years. Due to budget cuts, she was moved to second grade and, like many of us, found herself looking for resources on how to teach reading. She found Brainspring and the rest is history. Cheryl is with us today to discuss getting buy-in from older students who need Orton-Gillingham intervention.

Click here for the TedEd video Cheryl shares with her students. 

Check out Structures®, Brainspring's Orton-Gillingham course for 6-12 grade educators or contact us for more information.

Calvin Mann - Founder of Encourage Me, I'm Young & Reading is Life

Today we’re chatting with Calvin Mann, the President and Founder of Encourage Me, I’m Young, a non-profit mentoring organization based in Detroit, Michigan. Encourage Me, I’m Young has served more than 20,000 children nationwide through its initiatives, including Good Fathers Only, Smash Suicide, Respect Day, and regular mentorship programs. Calvin and his team are currently working on their next program, “Reading is Life!” He is with us today to share the mission of Encourage Me, I’m Young, and ways parents, mentors, and teachers can work together to help the children in their communities gain literacy and become passionate readers!

 

Interested in improving literacy in your community? Head to our website (www.brainspring.com) to learn more about bringing the Orton-Gillingham approach to your school or district.

Welcoming our New Host, Sam Brooks, MSE, CDP

This episode introduces our new host, Sam Brooks! Listen in to get to know Sam, hear some relatable education stories, and understand why she loves Orton-Gillingham. 

 

Connect with us on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OrtonGillingham/

Twitter: @BrainspringOG

Instagram: @brainspringortongillingham

Our blog, Orton-Gillingham Weekly: https://brainspring.com/ortongillinghamweekly/index.php

 

Head to our website (www.brainspring.com) to learn more about bringing the Orton-Gillingham approach to your school or district.