Orton Gillingham: Explanation of Parts of the Lesson

Each lesson begins with a brief summary of what was learned in the previous lesson. Several words from the previous lesson are read and given for spelling.

In the Visual Drill, the teacher shows the student the cards one at a time on which are written the letter or letters known. The student says the sound of the letter or letters. If a student hesitates or gives an incorrect sound, the teacher works with the student to recall and reinforce the sound. Immediate attention is given to the error. The missed card is placed back in the deck so the student will have an opportunity to give the correct response.  

  In the Auditory Drill, the teacher says the sound of a letter. The student repeats the sound and writes the letter it represents on paper. If a student writes an incorrect letter or cannot think of the letter to write, the teacher works with that student. That student then writes and sounds the letter several times. Again the error is given immediate attention to help the correct response become embedded in the student’s mind. 

In the Blending Drill the cards are placed in three stacks in front of the student.  Sometimes a rack is used to hold the cards.  Each student, using his/her finger to follow from card to card, blends the letters to form the nonsense word. Blending nonsense words helps students blend real words.

 The teacher shows the new card and pronounces the sound of the letter or letters. The student sounds and writes the letter or letters several times. The corresponding page of the Student Book, presenting this letter or letter combination, is given to the student. The student reads the word, phrases, and sentences containing this new sound. 

 The teacher dictates words, phrases, and sentences pertaining to the new letter/sound being taught in the lesson. The student edits what is written. If an error is made, it is corrected immediately.