Dear Curious Parent, 

That’s a great question! Structured literacy is a systematic, explicit approach to reading instruction that supports struggling readers, students with dyslexia, and all readers. There are several instructional approaches that use structured literacy, such as Orton-Gillingham, Barton, Lexia, and Wilson, to name a few.

Structured literacy teaches the following six components of reading using sequenced instruction, which builds on the strengths of each individual student and supports their challenges. 

• 
  Phonological Awareness (ability to process and manipulate oral language)
• Sound-Symbol Association (learning the sounds of symbols, blend, and decode)
• Morphology (smallest bit of information in a word - prefixes, suffixes, etc.)
• Syntax (understanding parts of speech and grammar)
• Semantics (comprehension)

Principles for teaching within a structured literacy framework are explicit, have a multi-sensory approach, involve diagnostic teaching, and are systematic and cumulative. In a Montessori classroom, we are able to support this framework by providing independent follow-up for students using our multi-sensory materials and through careful observation of each child to serve their individual needs.

Cascadia is fortunate to have a reading support team who works in partnership with our guides to assess, screen, provide targeted support, follow-up work, and progress monitoring to support struggling readers.

For more information on this topic we recommend this article titled, “Structured Literacy: Effective Instruction for Students with Dyslexia and Related Reading Difficulties.”