Choosing an Online Academic Support Professional : Takeaways

Dr. Michael Hart Dr. Erica Warren

A big, big thank you!

Thank you so much for participating in Choosing an Online Academic Support Professional. We hope you find this companion document helpful! We are committed to guiding you throughout the process and helping you to locate the best learning professionals. 1

Cheers, Michael & Erica

Selecting your Educational Support Professional

Tutor A tutor is a private instructor who has an expertise in a specific school subject but may or may not have formal experience or training in education. Typically, tutors instruct or reteach classroom concepts, though some offer assistance with homework. A few may present strategies in time management and study skills. Some “Reading Specialists” self identify as tutors.

Reading Specialist

Reading specialists are professionals with advanced training and experience in reading remediation. They may specialize in early childhood, elementary, middle, secondary, and/or adult learners. Most utilize a multisensory, explicit, and systematic method such as the OrtonGillingham Approach.

Learning Specialist A learning specialist is a private instructor with expertise in metacognition and compensatory learning strategies. In addition, many have subject specific expertise in areas such as reading or math. They provide instruction to students, teachers and parents. A learning specialist should have advanced training and degrees in education and significant coursework, if not degrees in special education, psychology, school psychology, educational psychology, and/or neuropsychology. Specific understanding of learning disorders, psychoeducational evaluations, and intervention strategies is paramount. An expertise in multisensory learning, teaching strategies, self advocacy techniques, and schooling accommodations is also important. Finally, a learning specialist should be versed in assistive technology, software tools, educational websites and apps.

Educational Therapist

An educational therapist is a private instructor who combines educational and therapeutic approaches for remediation and advocacy with children, adolescents and adults with learning disabilities or learning problems. They teach metacognitive and compensatory learning strategies but can also provide cognitive remedial training in areas such as auditory discrimination and visual memory. Moreover, the educational therapist is typically versed in strategies that address the social and emotional aspects of learning. Many also have an expertise in working with students who struggle with executive functioning and attention. Those with postgraduate training in a combination of education and psychology are qualified to use this title. Alternatively you can use the educational therapist title if you acquire a professional membership in the U.S. with the Association of Educational Therapists.

Coach or Mentor

Coaches offer strategies for personal growth and development suited for each person’s individual circumstances. Typically, they address specific personal projects, conditions and transitions in the client's personal life, relationships, schooling or profession by examining present circumstances, discovering obstacles or challenges, and choosing a course of action.

Referral Sites

There are a number of sites that offer free referrals. Some of them require a membership to their organization, while others do not.

● Without working directly with you and your child, we can not recommend or endorse any individual, business, school, or program. However, the following list of providers are available to help guide you towards finding the needed professional services.

Online Tutoring Lists

Barton Reading and Spelling System

Dyslexia Connect

Dyslexia Training Institute

Kildonan School

Ladder Learning Services LLC

Literacy Lifeline

WNY Dyslexia Specialist

Wyzant Online Dyslexia Tutors

Parent Social Media Networks

Learning Ally Parent Chat on Facebook

Decoding Dyslexia State Chapter Listing

Referral Sites Online vs. In person

International Dyslexia Association (IDA) No differentiation LD Online Yellow Pages No differentiation

Wrightslaw Special Education Law and Advocacy No differentiation

Children and Adults with ADHD (CHADD) No differentiation Learning Ally No differentiation

Association of Educational Therapists No differentiation

Private Tutor Directory No differentiation

Online Reading Tutor Software and apps

Setting up the Home Environment Here is a checklist of recommended items that you can choose from to set up your home environment for online sessions. ❏ Zenergy ball chair ❏ Balance cushion/wiggle seat ❏ Dry erase pockets ❏ Dry erase board ❏ Assortment of dry erase markers ❏ Colored pencils/magic markers ❏ Paper ❏ Computer ❏ Headset ❏ iPad Pro and iPencil ❏ Pens and pencils ❏ Scissors ❏ Tape

The OrtonGillingham Approach Many reading programs, particularly those in the United States, are based on, what is known as, the OrtonGillingham (OG) approach.

The OG approach in brief:

● Named after Samuel Torrey Orton (18791948) and Anna Gillingham (18781963), early pioneers in reading and language mastery. ● Gillingham compiled and published detailed instructional materials in the 1930s. ● Primarily to help with reading, writing and spelling though the method can be used for mathematics. ● Described as languagebased, multisensory, structured, sequential, cumulative, cognitive, and flexible. ● Employs visual, auditory, tactile and kinesthetic teaching techniques. ● Involves the explicit and systematic teaching of language sounds (phonemes) / phonemic awareness. ● Many modern reading systems are based on it or incorporate key elements of the approach. ● Though commonly used in the US, few UK or Canadian schools formally employ the method.

Orton Gillingham: How it is taught

Below is a summary of the detailed description of the Orton Gillingham method, as provided at the Academy's website.

Personalized Recognizes the individual needs of learners. While dyslexic students share similarities, there are always differences between students. Dyslexics students often have additional problems that complicate learning such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or dysgraphia.

Multisensory Uses all the learning strands: seeing, hearing, feeling (tactile), and awareness of motion (kinesthetic). For example, letters can be written in the air while the sound is said aloud. Even math can be multisensory!

Diagnostic and Prescriptive It is diagnostic in the sense that the instructor continuously monitors the verbal, nonverbal, and written responses of the student in order to understand both the student’s challenges and progress. This information is used to plan the next lesson. That lesson is prescriptive in the sense that it is designed to help resolve the student’s difficulties and build upon the student’s progress noted in the previous lesson.

Direct Instruction Lesson content includes explaining to students what is to be learned, why it is to be learned, and how it is to be learned.

Phonics It uses systematic phonics, stressing the 'alphabetic principle' in the initial stages of reading development. The principle teaches that words are made up of individual speech sounds, and the letters of written words graphically represent those speech sounds.

Language Structure Formally teaches syllabic, morphemic, syntactic, semantic, and grammatical structures of language and writing. Involves the student in integrative practices that involve reading, spelling, and writing together.

Systematic and Structured Information is presented in an ordered way that indicates the relationship between the material currently being taught and material previously taught.

Sequential, Incremental, and Cumulative Learners move from the simple, welllearned material to the more complex, only after mastering each step along the way.

Continuous Feedback and Positive Reinforcement A close teacherstudent relationship that builds selfconfidence based on success and mastery.

About the Authors

Literacy Expert, Psychologist, Consultant, Learning Specialist, Educational Therapist, & Speaker Author

My work experience: My work experience: For the past 15 years, I have conducted teacher training Michael Hart, Ph.D. is a child psychologist with 25 in private and public schools as well as colleges. I have years of experience in the diagnostic assessment also directed two college programs for students with and treatment of a full range of learning differences, learning disabilities and opened my own private practice, including dyslexia and (AD/HD). He is the Learning to Learn. At present, I devote most of my time founder/owner of www.drmichaelhart.com and is to creating educational materials and working with currently providing webinars, online courses and students on an individualized basis as a “personal onsite presentations/training for parents, specialists trainer for the brain.” I don’t have a program, instead I and educators regarding the proper educational care create a unique, multisensory plan for each learner of our dyslexic students. designed to maximize potential and remediate areas of weakness. I love to find the best assistive technology Prior to his current role, Dr. Hart served as a clinical and online resources for my students so they can quickly psychologist, educational administrator and expert gain independence. Learning games that ignite joyful witness for learning disabled students in various learning, compensatory learning strategies, executive settings including pediatric inpatient psychiatry, functioning coaching, mindful and critical thinking, outpatient psychiatry, private practice and K12 strengthening of cognitive weaknesses as well as school settings. During his practice, he administered remedial reading, writing and math methods are the full spectrum of psychological tests, behavioral common aims. I founded Learning to Learn in 1999. assessment tools, affective inventories, projective tests, academic achievement tests and behavioral Why did I become a learning specialist and interviews. His experience spans from infants to educational therapist? adults and he has conducted approximately 1000 Aspiring to empower “out of the box” learners, I created evaluations. a degree program that united coursework and research

in School Psychology, Special Education, Psychology, Michael is intensely focused on supporting parents, and Adult Education. With a full assistantship at the

specialists and educators as they become better UGA Learning Disability Center in assessment, I informed and more experienced in the effective pursued a doctorate that focused on lifelong issues in treatment and care of our dyslexic students. learning, special education, the impact of learning difficulties across the lifespan, and comprehensive diagnostic evaluations. In addition, I earned a full All of Dr. Michael Hart’s sites and social media: assistantship with the National Science Foundation while ● Website: www.doctormichaelhart.com working towards a Masters degree in Educational ● Facebook: Psychology. Finally, I often refer to my bachelor’s https://www.facebook.com/doctormichaelhart degree in fine arts, as my secret weapon as it brings joy, ?ref=hl color and creativity into my sessions. ● Twitter: www.twitter.com/drmichaelhart ● LinkedIn: http://bit.ly/1Njh5dn Contact Information:

● Email: [email protected]

A little bit about my educational materials at Good Sensory Learning

I quickly learned that materials for learning specialists and educational therapists were scarce. What’s more, many of the resources were dull and boring. When I began to create my own multisensory, mindful and fun materials, my students experienced huge gains and teachers were continually asking about my methods and materials. As a result, I created

● Good Sensory Learning, my online store, offers over 80 digital products. ● My Amazon storefront offers a few of my key products as hard goods or on CD. ● My Teachers Pay Teachers store offers all my digital and many of my printed and CD materials.

All of Dr. Erica Warren’s sites:

● Monthly Newsletter: http://bit.ly/1CYVT79 ● Private practice: http://learningtolearn.biz ● Online store: http://www.goodsensorylearning.com/ ● Blog: http://learningspecialistmaterials.blogspot.com/

● Dyslexia resources: http://www.dyslexiamaterials.com ● Dyslexia video Podcasts, blogs, & resources: ● https://www.godyslexia.com ● Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/warrenerica1 ● Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/drericawarren/ ● Twitter: https://twitter.com/learningtolearn ● Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/goodsensorylearning / ● Linked in: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drericawarren

Contact Information

● [email protected]