Testimonials

The training was excellent. It's what educators need to know when working with kids struggling with reading difficulties. Some teachers said they really enjoyed it and will use it in their classroom. I mutually agreed upon their enthusiasm and feelings in teaching reading and spelling with phonics can be fun and exciting. I especially love and enjoy the jingle that goes with the instructions in the vowels and consonants. I really like the games and file folders you can make and use for classrooms. One teacher felt emotional knowing she knows now how to help her students with their reading difficulties. As for myself the course polished my special education knowledge and I recommended it already to educators. I look forward to apply my training with my grandkids especially my granddaughter whom I've recognized to have dyslexia. I will certainly help educators as well, as they need it with their students. Thank you Valdine for your great knowledge and showing us your expertise with educating the kids with reading difficulties. Ekosani!

Grace R. Special Education Specialist

Manitoba First Nations Education Resource Centre

Chief Sam Cook Mahmuwee Education Centre

It is rewarding that this initiative became a reality for the Chief Sam Cook Mahmuwee Education Centre staff due to the special needs of our students in the area of reading.

I noticed that the teachers and education assistants fully engaged in the presentation and showed keen interest on instructional methods. The PD sessions such as this for staff is additional support in their teaching and it enhances their teaching methods.

An educational assistant told me that she took a lot of notes to teach reading for children with dyslexia because she has two children with it. She informed me that she learned alot from the workshop and will apply what she learned.

Although the workshop had trying times with COVID 19 in our community and also at times the internet connectivity cut out, the presentation of content was still accomplished.

In closing, when we are able to see and meet in the near future, I extend an invitation to you Valdine to come visit the the Tataskweyak Education Authority and Chief Sam Cook Mahmuwee Education Centre staff.

Thank you and it is with hope that we can continue to work together for our children.

Alfred, Education Director

Tataskweyak Education Authority

I took the Associate level training through the RLCM and I loved it. Dr. Valdine Bjornson provided the highest level of knowledge and support. I’d highly recommend The Reading and Learning Clinic of Manitoba!

Santina, teacher, urban public school

I completed my Orton-Gillingham coursework and practicum for the Classroom Educator and Associate levels with Valdine’s guidance and support. What an enriching and life-changing experience! Valdine was always available to answer questions, and she provided excellent feedback regarding my Orton-Gillingham video lessons. I am a much more knowledgeable and effective teacher thanks to the Reading and Learning Clinic of Manitoba.

Karine, urban private school specialist

I took the Classroom Educator course instructed by Valdine Bjornson through the RLCM, which I highly recommend. The course is essential for every educator to take as every Canadian classroom has several students who have dyslexia. Although already trained with the Orton-Gillingham methods, I gained more information and ideas and made gained invaluable connection with Valdine as a mentor. I am forever grateful with the knowledge that I gained

Twila, private practitioner

Thank you to Valdine Bjornson and Dawn Nieman for giving us your time teaching all of us educators in Winnipeg this past week. I believe our school team is better equipped now to help all our students with acquiring English language skills, and learning all the rules to our language in order to facilitate reading and writing.

If anyone is questioning whether or not to take this training, DO! Knowing what I know now, as Dawn would say, “I want my money back” from my B. Ed. Degree.

Jane, School Principal, Urban Public School

I found the OG Classroom Educator course excellent. Our instructor was extremely knowledgeable. This is one of the only reading programs that links letter sounds to speech sounds. It also teaches reading and spelling in every lesson. Every student teacher should take this 30 hour course. Period.

Andrea, Speech-Language Pathologist, Rural Public School Division

During the OG Classroom Educator training, we received excellent information regarding how to explicitly teach children how to read. We had very knowledgeable trainers. The training was interesting and stimulating. Great opportunity to improve all aspects of reading instruction for all learners.

Karla, Speech-Language Pathologist , Urban Public School Division

As a product of whole language instruction, I have never had these rules explained in such a clear, concise way. I feel so much more confident in my ability to clearly and systematically teach my students to read and spell. I love all the mnemonics for the vowel teams as these are very confusing. I also appreciate the structure of lessons for the way they review, solidify and teach new skills. Finally, I love how the OG instruction is flexible, diagnostic and prescriptive. I can help all my students learn the next most helpful skill without slogging through known information.

Valdine is fabulously patient for answering questions!

M.M., Kindergarten teacher, Urban Public School Division

Attending the session was the Professional Development opportunity that I have been seeking for years. As a resource teacher who works to support students and staff in a school with twice the national average of students who are diagnosed with Dyslexia, we are always trying to find new tools for the toolbox. OG training is not a tool, it is how all students should be taught to read. I'd recommend this course for anyone, not just educators. The amount of learning that occurred in a single day was extraordinary and that we had four consecutive days of intense learning was out of this world. I'm looking forward to my OG journey and bringing as many people with me as possible. Thanks Valdine for this opportunity.

Nicole, Resource Teacher, Rural Public School

“I have been teaching for over 25 years, with an extensive background in assisting students with reading and spelling difficulties. In all my years of education and experience, nothing has ever come close to the powerful instruction that I received at the Orton-Gillingham training hosted by the Reading and Learning Clinic of Manitoba in December 2018.

We were given four packed days of instruction, including chances to practice what we had learned. So many pieces of the puzzle came together for me during this training, and I recognized how simple and effective implementing the ideas from the Orton-Gillingham method would be for all of our learners. What I loved best is that these principles can so easily be applied to an entire class in the early years, thus laying an excellent foundation for literacy. Early identification and quick intervention strategies for students who are struggling were clearly explained. This training provided so many wonderful tools that are very easy to implement right after the training was finished.

It is so important that we reach ALL of our students with the best methodology possible to develop their literacy skills, and the Orton-Gillingham approach lights the way. I would heartily endorse this training for any early years teachers, literacy specialists, reading support personnel, and Student Services teachers. It is definitely worth it!!

Thank you Valdine for an amazing time of learning!”

Gloria, Student Services Dept. Head

Urban Independent School

Orton-Gillingham provides training for comprehensive planning and strategies for instruction. Very well done. I feel like I've grown a new ring in my tree!

K.M, School Psychologist, Urban Public School Division

School Projects developed using RLCM OG training

Committed Staff Learning Together: A Focus on Reading and Writing Interventions

A Winnipeg public school team has been receiving specific and targeted Orton-Gillingham training. Please click on link for more details.

"There is some really exciting energy growing amongst the staff around the use of new reading and writing approaches and interventions with our learners. This learning of innovative approaches and interventions will be a major pillar of our School Plan and Priorities in the next few years.

Momentum continues to grow with this group and, as mentioned, several of them have now completed the training for the Orton-Gillingham approach, while many others are registered to complete the training in the near future.

We have only scratched the surface with the benefits of this training for our learners.

The new knowledge that our staff has gained from all of the above efforts is now being used in a variety of ways with students to support their learning. Some early assessments which have shown overall improvement in reading and writing, suggest that the work is paying off and our students are benefitting from this learning.

We are extremely proud of these efforts and are very excited about the potential benefits for our learners who face challenges when it comes to reading and writing. It is our hope that this new learning journey for our staff will have a long-lasting, positive, and powerful impact on the learning journey of our students who face challenges with reading and writing. "

The Reading and Learning Clinic is proud to have been part of this pilot project through our Orton-Gillingham Classroom Educator training.

Please click here for other French Immersion Projects.

Ecole Howden Early Years Project

Exploring Early Year's Practice in French Immersion

The project as a whole is broken down into key components:

1. Changing from a literacy teacher pull-out model in Grade 2 to a co-teaching model in Grade 1;

2. Implemented new screening tools in kindergarten and Grade 1 that help identify students who may be at risk for Specific Learning Disabilities in reading as well as other associated factors

"In English schools, they can take programs, such as Orton-Gillingham OG, and implement them directly into the classroom and/or interventions groups," says Nicole Neveux, a Student Services teacher, who is helping develop and implement the pilot program. "In French-Immersion, you can't just translate things into French as the sounds of each language are so different. We have had to find the appropriate information regarding sounds and their rules, which are extremely difficult to find and try it in the classroom."

"The level of student engagement, interest and also the connections that the students are starting to see with many aspects of literacy," said Michelle Follows, the Intervention Précoce en Lecture IPL teacher leading the implementation of the pilot project. "Also, the collaboration with the teachers has been very rich: daily discussions about pedagogy, student progress, strengths and challenges, and how they are interested and willing to adapt their teaching to incorporate these approaches."

Even though the pilot project is still in the early stages, Follows is also happy about what she's seeing.

"We are already starting to see students applying rules and thinking about literacy in very different and novel ways," said Follows. "Additionally, the ability to identify at-risk students earlier on has allowed for a more pro-active and planful clinical/student services approach to support our most at-risk students when it counts the most during kindergarten and Grade 1."

"Students are truly enjoying the multi-modality approaches as well as the explicit teaching that has been incorporated within the lessons," said George.

"They are starting to understand that there are many ways to learn (ie: multisensory)," said Follows. "Through daily dialogue, the students are tuning in to the fact that we all learn differently and that we need to be exposed to many different approaches to help our brain retain and learn information."

For more information, check out the recently published article written by Cadez and George in the Association Canadienne des professionels de l'immersion Fall edition, volume 41 on pages 22 to 25.

- See more at: https://www.lrsd.net/News/Pages/French-Immersion-and-Learning-Project-2019.aspx#sthash.rkXcmm8x.dpuf

https://www.lrsd.net/News/Pages/French-Immersion-and-Learning-Project-2019.aspx