multi-sensory Archives - EBL Coaching https://eblcoaching.com/tag/multi-sensory/ We Help Students with Learning Challenges Fri, 13 Mar 2026 11:04:35 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 https://eblcoaching.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/cropped-icon-32x32.png multi-sensory Archives - EBL Coaching https://eblcoaching.com/tag/multi-sensory/ 32 32 What is Orton Gillingham Tutoring? A Guide for Parents of Children with Dyslexia https://eblcoaching.com/dr-emily-levy-on-the-kelly-tag-podcast-reading-success-and-orton-gillingham-tutoring/ Tue, 17 Dec 2024 05:54:31 +0000 https://eblcoaching.com/?p=17126 Many students struggle with reading, especially those with dyslexia or other learning disabilities. For these students, the best evidence-based approach for helping them build their reading skills is Orton Gillingham tutoring, a systematic, multi-sensory approach that helps students build their decoding and spelling skills.
In this podcast, Dr. Emily Levy explains what Orton Gillingham tutoring is and how the Orton Gillingham method works. She delves into what an Orton Gillingham lesson looks like and how this type of reading intervention can help struggling readers tremendously.

The post What is Orton Gillingham Tutoring? A Guide for Parents of Children with Dyslexia appeared first on EBL Coaching.

]]> Many students struggle with reading, especially those with dyslexia or other learning disabilities. For these students, the best evidence-based approach for helping them build their reading skills is Orton Gillingham tutoring, a systematic, multi-sensory approach that helps students build their decoding and spelling skills.
In this podcast, Dr. Emily Levy explains what Orton Gillingham tutoring is and how the Orton Gillingham method works. She delves into what an Orton Gillingham lesson looks like and how this type of reading intervention can help struggling readers tremendously.

What is Orton Gillingham Tutoring?

Orton Gillingham is a structured, research-based, systematic approach to teaching. It integrates multi-sensory tools, such as audio-visual flash cards, whiteboards, and magnetic tiles, to help students develop stronger reading and spelling skills. All students can benefit from this type of instruction but students with dyslexia and other learning disabilities need this approach to effectively develop these skills.

What does an Orton Gillingham tutoring lesson look like?

When an Orton Gillingham tutor uses this methodology, they follow a systematic approach to teaching, integrating previously taught concepts as they introduce new concepts. If a student has grasped how to effectively read consonant-vowel-consonant words, words with blends, and words with consonant digraphs, for instance, they may be ready to move onto words with vowel teams. If they are learning the sound “oo”, the lesson might be structured as follows:

  1. Review previously taught Orton Gillingham sounds and concepts.
  2. Audio-visual card drill: Start the new lesson with an audio-visual card drill. The Orton Gillingham tutor would hold up a flashcard with the letters “oo” on the front and a key picture on the back, like “boots”.
  3. Audio-visual card drill student practice: The Orton Gillingham tutor would say aloud to the student, “These are the letters oo, like boot, it makes the sound /oo/“ while flipping the card around, showing the letters, then the picture, then the letters again. The student would repeat that sequence with the tutor and then try it on their own.
  4. Skywriting: The Orton Gillingham tutor would move onto skywriting; using large gross motor muscles, they would draw the two o’s in the sky, saying “around and around” as they form each letter. The student would then try it together with the tutor and then independently.
  5. Sand or shaving cream writing: The Orton Gillingham tutor might move onto writing using colored sand or shaving cream. They would start by modeling the formation of the two o’s, then ask the student to do it with them and then on their own.
  6. Orton Gillingham workbook practice: The tutor would then move onto Orton Gillingham workbooks that offer practice exercises using that vowel digraph.
  7. Student practice: The student would practice blending sounds together to form words using magnetic tiles or flash cards. Finally, the lesson would end with the student reading words, sentences, or a story containing the “oo” sound and any previously taught sounds.

How Orton Gillingham Tutors Help with Reading Comprehension

Students with learning disabilities often struggle with reading comprehension in addition to decoding and need dyslexia tutoring or reading intervention in this area as well. A multi-sensory approach, such as the tri-colored highlighting strategy, can help with this skill as well.

To use this strategy, the tutor would explain to the student that when we read, there are three elements we should look for: the topic is one, two, or three words describing the passage, like winter, outdoor sports, or airplanes. The student would highlight the topic in blue. Next, the student should look for the main idea, which is what the author is saying about the topic, such as “There are many activities you can do in winter” if the topic is winter. They should highlight the main idea in green. Finally, the student should look for the important details, which are important pieces of information found throughout the passage describing the main idea. They should highlight the important details in yellow, trying to only highlight salient details, and only words and phrases, not sentences, if possible. The tutor may then ask the student to write a 1-2 line summary in their own words describing the passage or even produce a written response to the passage, detailing whether they agree or disagree with the information found in the passage and why.

Students with learning challenges thrive with a multi-sensory approach to teaching. Orton Gillingham tutors can help students develop much stronger reading and spelling skills and ultimately help them excel in school.

If your child is struggling with reading, contact us at www.eblcoaching.com to learn more about our individualized Orton Gillingham tutoring programs.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who benefits from Orton Gillingham tutoring?
Orton Gillingham tutoring was originally designed for students with dyslexia but all students who are demonstrating reading challenges can benefit from Orton Gillingham tutoring. They tend to enjoy the multi-sensory approach, and Orton Gillingham is a highly effective method for building stronger reading and spelling skills.

Is Orton Gillingham only for students with learning disabilities?
Orton Gillingham tutoring is not only for students with learning disabilities! Students with learning disabilities, especially dyslexia, benefit from reading remediation using the Orton Gillingham method. However, all students who are having reading challenges can benefit from Orton Gillingham tutoring.

How is Orton Gillingham tutoring different from general tutoring?
Some tutors help students with homework or use generic lessons that may change from session-to-session. With Orton Gillingham tutoring, a structured approach is followed, starting with foundational reading skills and building upwards as students grasp concepts. Orton Gillingham tutoring sessions also integrate multi-sensory tools, such as colored sand, magnetic tiles, and white boards.

Dr. Emily Levy, the founder and director of EBL Coaching, has been helping students with dyslexia and learning disabilities for over 20 years using the Orton Gillingham approach.

You can listen to this full podcast HERE!

Learn more about Orton Gillingham tutoring at
https://eblcoaching.com/what-is-orton-gillingham-tutoring/.

The post What is Orton Gillingham Tutoring? A Guide for Parents of Children with Dyslexia appeared first on EBL Coaching.

]]> Dr. Emily Levy on the Dadyminds Podcast – Innovative Teaching Strategies for Special Education https://eblcoaching.com/dr-emily-levy-on-the-dadyminds-podcast-innovative-teaching-strategies-for-special-education/ Tue, 26 Nov 2024 06:36:21 +0000 https://eblcoaching.com/?p=16948 Dr. Levy discusses the importance of individualized learning strategies for students with learning disabilities, effective teaching methods, and the role of parents and educators in advocating for children’s needs.

The post Dr. Emily Levy on the Dadyminds Podcast – Innovative Teaching Strategies for Special Education appeared first on EBL Coaching.

]]>
You can listen to this full podcast HERE!
 
Students with learning disabilities often struggle with reading and writing. Learning effective research-based strategies to develop these skills can help students thrive in school. Try some of the ideas details below.
 
Reading comprehension
 
It is important that students with learning disabilities learn to be active and not passive readers. They need to engage with the text rather than just decoding words without processing the meaning of what they are reading. One strategy that can help them develop stronger reading comprehension and active reading skills is the tri-color highlighting strategy.
 
Start by teaching your child that when we read, there are three elements we should look for:
 
1. The topic, which is one, two, or three words describing the passage. Examples of topics might include: drinks, the beach, or the Civil War. Students should highlight the topic in blue.
 
2. The main idea, which is what the author is saying about the topic. For example, if the topic is “the beach,” the main idea might be, “There are many activities we can do at the beach.” Students should highlight the main idea in green.
 
3. The important details, which are salient details found throughout the passage. Students should try to highlight only words and phrases and not full sentences, and only information that is truly important. Students should highlight the important details in yellow.
 
When using this tri-colored highlighting strategy, students should select a passage and read it one time without highlighting, then go back and highlight the topic, main, idea, and important details. From there, you can even have them write a 1-2 line summary of the passage they read or create a written response describing their thoughts on the passage.
 
SQ3R Strategy
 
SQ3R is a reading comprehension strategy that stands for: survey, question, read, recite, and review.
 
S stands for survey; before reading a passage or chapter, students should try to gauge the main concepts that will be addressed. They should look at headers and subheaders, pictures and captions, graphs, and questions at the end of the chapter if relevant. This will help students preview the material they are about to read.
 
Q stands for question; before the student starts reading, they should turn each header into a question. For example, if a header is “Causes of World War I”, the student might ask, “What caused World War I?” then seek the answer to that question as they read.
 
3R stands for Read, Recite, Review. The student should read the passage, keeping the questions in mind that they created, and try to answer the questions as they read. They might create additional questions along the way and look for those answers as well. They can also jot down notes on the side of the page and highlight key information.
 
Next is recite; as the student reads, they should recite the answers to the questions they created. If they can’t come up with the answers, they may need to go back and reread the passage. Finally, the last step is review; the student should go back and review all of the questions they created and make sure they can answer all of them effectively. If they can’t, they may need to reread the information and continue this process until they have grasped the material. Using a strategy like SQ3R can help students become more active readers and can prevent them from trying to cram information the night before an exam.
 
Writing
 
Students with learning disabilities benefit from a structured, systematic approach to teaching writing, along with a great deal of repetition of new concepts. It is important that they first learn how to construct a basic sentence and then learn how to expand their sentences and write both compound and complex sentences.
 
Once the student has a solid understanding of how to construct a well-written sentence, they should learn how to write a simple paragraph, which is made of a topic sentence, three detail sentences, and a conclusion sentence. They should be given several examples of well-written simple paragraphs as models for what they should look like before being asked to write them on their own. There are four types of simple paragraphs they can learn: example, which gives examples, like “types of ice cream”; process, which describes a process, such as “how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich”; reason, like “why summer should be longer”, or compare/contrast, like “New York City verses Chicago.” They should also learn how to brainstorm, write, and self-check their writing in an organized manner.
 
Once students have developed proficiency with the simple paragraph, they can learn how to write an extended paragraph, which extends the simple paragraph by adding three supporting details sentences after each detail. Students can learn how to write example, process, reason, and compare/contrast extended paragraphs and should receive ample practice with each paragraph type. Finally, when students are ready, they can learn how to write a well-constructed five paragraph essay, which contains an introduction paragraph, three detail paragraphs, and a conclusion paragraph. They should learn how to write an opening, lead-in, and thesis statement, and should always brainstorm, write, and self-check their writing.
 
Learn more about a program for teaching a structured approach to writing at www.writingmasteryprogram.com.
 
As students progress through school, the reading and writing demands will increase quickly. Help your child excel by trying these strategies with them at home.
 
Learn more about how writing tutoring can help your child at https://eblcoaching.com/help-your-child-develop-stronger-writing-skills/

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]]> Dr. Emily Levy on the Jimbo Parris Podcast: Benefits of Orton Gillingham Tutoring https://eblcoaching.com/dr-emily-levy-on-the-jimbo-parris-podcast-the-orton-gillingham-method-and-other-approaches-for-helping-special-education-students/ Tue, 22 Oct 2024 05:15:57 +0000 https://eblcoaching.com/?p=16745 Dr. Emily Levy discusses the Orton Gillingham Method and other approaches for helping special education students on the Jimbo Parris Podcast.

The post Dr. Emily Levy on the Jimbo Parris Podcast: Benefits of Orton Gillingham Tutoring appeared first on EBL Coaching.

]]>
You can listen to this full podcast HERE!
 
The Orton Gillingham method is a highly effective, structured approach to helping students develop stronger reading and writing skills. In this podcast, I discuss the Orton Gillingham method and other multi-sensory approaches for helping children with special education needs.
What is the Orton Gillingham method?
The Orton Gillingham method is a systematic, sequential, multi-sensory approach to helping students develop stronger reading and writing skills. It is particularly helpful for students who have difficulty with reading, including those with dyslexia, but many students can benefit from this approach.
What do Orton Gillingham lessons entail?
Orton Gillingham tutoring lessons integrate the visual, auditory, and tactile senses when teaching reading and writing skills. The lessons are customized to the individual needs and levels of each student. Students are typically presented with an audio-visual flash card containing letters that form a sound; for example, for the digraph ch we would write the letters ch on the front of a card and present a key picture on the back of the card, such as chips. Then we might hold up the card to the student and say, “This is the digraph ch, like chips, it makes the sound /ch/.” From there, we might move onto skywriting and write the letters ch in the sky. Then we may move to sand writing, where the student traces the letters ch in the sand as they say the formation of each letter aloud. Next, we move onto learning to decode words, where we work on exercises blending sounds together to form words using magnetic tiles or flash cards with different letters on them. Later we move onto having students read more words, sentences, and stories containing the sounds learned. We always review previously taught concepts and sounds before moving onto new ones and we integrate these concepts into future lessons.
Other multi-sensory tutoring approaches
A multi-sensory approach can also help students develop stronger reading comprehension, writing, and math skills. For example, to help students develop stronger reading comprehension and active reading skills, we may teach them a tri-color highlighting approach. After selecting a passage, we have the student read it aloud, then identify the topic, which is one, two, or three words describing the passage, and highlight it in blue. They would then identify the main idea, which is what the author is saying about the topic, and highlight it in green. Finally, they would look for the important, salient details and highlight them in yellow. Students can also learn how to make inferences and write summaries describing what they read. In doing so, they are learning to become active, rather than passive readers.
 
With writing, it is important for students to learn how to express their thoughts on paper in an organized fashion. Students should learn how to brainstorm, write, and then self-check their writing using a systematic approach. After learning how to construct a well-written sentence, they may then move onto the simple paragraph, which consists of a topic sentence, three detail sentences, and a conclusion sentence.  They can then learn how to add supporting details to their writing in order to stretch out their writing and form an extended paragraph. Next, students can use that same structured approach and learn how to write a well-organized five paragraph essay and later longer, more extensive essays and research papers. They can also learn how to write different types of paragraphs and essays, including example, process, reason, and compare/contrast. Using this type of structured, systematic approach can help students develop much stronger writing skills, which becomes increasingly important as they progress through school. A structured, multi-sensory approach can also help students develop stronger math computation and word problem solving skills. 
 
Many students benefit from the Orton Gillingham method and a multi-sensory approach to teaching but for those who have difficulties with reading, writing, or math, this approach can be paramount to their success in school. Try these methods at home to help your child thrive academically. 

The post Dr. Emily Levy on the Jimbo Parris Podcast: Benefits of Orton Gillingham Tutoring appeared first on EBL Coaching.

]]> ADHD Strategies for Students: Dr. Emily Levy on Helping Neurodivergent Learners Succeed https://eblcoaching.com/empowering-neurodivergent-learners-dr-emily-levy-on-the-fully-mindful-podcast/ Thu, 19 Sep 2024 16:16:09 +0000 https://eblcoaching.com/?p=16465 Many students with ADHD and learning disabilities struggle with their executive functioning skills. These skills may include organization, homework management, working memory, time management, and prioritization. In this episode of the Fully Mindful Podcast, Dr. Emily Levy shares concrete strategies elementary, middle, and high school students can use to improve their study skills, homework management, and time management skills. These ADHD strategies can help students manage their schoolwork more effectively.

The post ADHD Strategies for Students: Dr. Emily Levy on Helping Neurodivergent Learners Succeed appeared first on EBL Coaching.

]]> Many students with ADHD and learning disabilities struggle with their executive functioning skills. These skills may include organization, homework management, working memory, time management, and prioritization. In this episode of the Fully Mindful Podcast, Dr. Emily Levy shares concrete strategies elementary, middle, and high school students can use to improve their study skills, homework management, and time management skills. These ADHD strategies can help students manage their schoolwork more effectively.

Use a Calendar to Improve Organizational Skills for ADHD Students

Calendars serve as great tools for helping ADHD students stay organized. The key is to use them consistently. Some students prefer to write in a physical calendar while others like using digital calendars, including one on a smart phone. Either option is a good executive functioning strategy but make sure you enter all assignments and obligations into your calendar as soon as you find out about them. You can even try color coding the items you enter based on category; for example, you or your ADHD child might highlight school assignments in blue, sports activities in green, and social engagements in yellow. If you are using a calendar on a smart phone, try setting reminders to alert you when a due date or social obligation is coming up.

Create a Homework Routine

For students with ADHD, setting up a consistent homework routine is key. They should pick a designated time of day when they will complete their homework. This could be right after school when they are still in “school mode” or after a snack or athletic break. Any of these options can work as long as your child stays consistent with completing their homework at this designated homework time. Also help your child set up a study space optimized for ADHD students. This space could be a desk in their room or a spot on the kitchen or dining room table. Make sure they have all necessary supplies in their study space, including pens, pencils, paper, highlighters – any tools they may need for completing their work. If the stock of supplies starts to run low, refill it right away to prevent your child from wandering around your home searching for supplies in the middle of homework session. Also, if your child works at your kitchen or dining room table, you may want to set up a portable homework bin containing all supplies they need for completing their homework that they can carry with them to and from their homework sessions.

Integrate Structured Breaks to Improve Focus

It can be hard for anyone to sit in one place for a long stretch of time working on what may feel like endless homework. For those with ADHD, this challenge is typically even greater. Encourage your ADHD child to use an executive functioning strategy by building structured breaks into their homework sessions. For instance, they might set a timer and work for 25 minutes straight, then take a 5-minute break – and do two more cycles of 25 minutes of work followed by a 5-minute break. After three of these cycles, they may take a longer break of perhaps 15-20 minutes. Feel free to tweak the length of the break times based on your child’s stamina and needs. The key to this executive functioning strategy is breaking down very large stretches of time into manageable increments. Study skills tutoring or executive functioning coaching may be helpful to further help your child develop these skills.

Teach Students with ADHD How to Prioritize Tasks

Being able to effectively prioritize tasks can be a challenge for both children and adults with ADHD. Help your ADHD child learn to prioritize with a color-coding strategy. If they have eight items to complete, for instance, have them write down each task on a list and then categorize them into “high,” “medium” or “low” priority level. Then they can choose a color to associate with each priority level. For instance, they may highlight items with a high level of priority in yellow, those with a medium level of priority in green, and those with a low level of priority in blue – then complete the tasks in order of high to low priority. If your child continues to struggle to prioritize tasks, you might consider executive functioning coaching.

Students with ADHD and learning disabilities can excel academically when they build stronger executive functioning skills. Strategies including using calendars, creating regular homework routines, building in structured breaks, and prioritizing tasks can help tremendously. Try implementing these strategies at home to help your child develop stronger organization, planning, focusing, and study skills.

Does your child have ADHD or struggle with their executive functioning skills? EBL Coaching can help them with individualized one-on-one tutoring and executive functioning coaching. Learn more about us at www.eblcoaching.com.

Read more about ADHD strategies at
https://eblcoaching.com/study-strategies-for-your-adhd-child/

Frequently Asked Questions About ADHD Strategies

Why are structured routines helpful for students with ADHD?
Structured routines can help students with ADHD minimize distractions, improve their time management skills, and build stronger study habits. Executive functioning coaching sessions can help your child develop structured study routines.

Can tutoring help students with ADHD?
Yes, absolutely! Tutoring can help students with ADHD develop academic and executive functioning skills. These skills might include planning, organization, time management, task initiation and study strategies.

What is executive functioning coaching?
Executive functioning coaching helps students with ADHD build important executive functioning skills, such as prioritizing, organizing, planning, managing time, and structuring their homework assignments.

Read more about how ADHD tutoring can help your child at https://eblcoaching.com/can-tutoring-help-your-child-with-adhd/.
You can listen to this full podcast here! How to Help Adults and Children with ADHD and Learning Differences

The post ADHD Strategies for Students: Dr. Emily Levy on Helping Neurodivergent Learners Succeed appeared first on EBL Coaching.

]]> Organizational Skills for Students: Strategies to Help Students Stay Organized in School https://eblcoaching.com/tutoring-why-use-it-dr-levy-on-the-real-talk-corner-podcast/ Wed, 28 Aug 2024 03:59:18 +0000 https://eblcoaching.com/?p=16297 Strong organizational skills are critical for academic success. Many students have difficulty with organization, time management, planning, and keeping track of assignments, especially as the demands of school increase. In this episode of the Real Talk Corner Podcast, Dr. Emily Levy discusses concrete and practical strategies parents can use at home to help their children build stronger executive functioning and study skills. These strategies can help students better manage their homework, school assignments, and materials, and feel more confident about their academic abilities.

The post Organizational Skills for Students: Strategies to Help Students Stay Organized in School appeared first on EBL Coaching.

]]> Strong organizational skills are critical for academic success. Many students have difficulty with organization, time management, planning, and keeping track of assignments, especially as the demands of school increase. In this episode of the Real Talk Corner Podcast, Dr. Emily Levy discusses concrete and practical strategies parents can use at home to help their children build stronger executive functioning and study skills. These strategies can help students better manage their homework, school assignments, and materials, and feel more confident about their academic abilities.

Set Up a Consistent Homework Routine

Help your child build stronger executive functioning skills by setting up a regular homework time. Some children prefer to do their homework right when they get home from school, while others like a snack break or a longer athletic break before starting their work. Any of these options can work but the key is consistency. Pick a daily homework time for your child and stick with it! Even if your child doesn’t have homework on a given night, encourage them to use that time to study for an upcoming test, review previously learned material, or even just read.

Use Checklists to Help Students Stay Organized



Checklists are a great tool for staying organized, both in and out of school. If your child is groggy and disorganized in the morning when they wake up, come up with a morning checklist that you can hang on the wall in their room. This checklist might include items such as brushing teeth, getting dressed, eating breakfast, and checking their backpack. You might create a similar checklist with your child for an evening routine, like finishing homework, putting away or turning in homework, showering, getting ready for bed. Likewise, you can use checklists for packing for a trip or getting ready for a sleep over.

Read more homework organization tips for students here:
https://eblcoaching.com/homework-organizational-tips-for-the-new-school-year/

https://eblcoaching.com/4-tips-to-help-your-child-become-more-organized-at-school/

Use Color Coding to Organize School Materials



As your child moves through the school year, their piles of papers will likely grow. Avoid a giant mess of papers by encouraging your child to color code their schoolwork by subject. For instance, all science-related material might go in a green folder, math work might go in a blue folder, English work in a purple folder, and so on. They can even use highlighters and pens in the colors that correspond to each subject. This will help them stay organized as the piles of papers for each subject increases. Executive functioning tutoring can also help build these skills!

Teach Students to Break Assignments into Smaller Steps



Your child may feel overwhelmed by the volume of work they need to complete for school. There may be multiple assignments, long-term projects, and tests to study for. Help your child feel more organized and on top of their work by teaching them to chunk the material. Encourage them to use an assignment book (even if their teacher posts assignments online!), break the tasks down into steps, and enter those steps into their assignment book. For instance, if they have a project to complete for science, they might break it down into five steps, decide when to complete each step, and put each step into their assignment book as a task they need to complete. This will help build stronger time management, organization, and executive functioning skills. Executive functioning coaching can help build these skills as well!

Help Students Prepare for the Next School Day

The night before school, your child should organize their belongings for the next day. Specifically, they should make sure all the homework they completed is put away in their backpack in the right place to be turned in. They should also make sure they put any necessary books or materials they need for school in their backpack to bring to school the next day. Additionally, you may want to encourage them to lay out their clothes for the next day and even decide what they plan to have for breakfast to help make the morning calmer and less stressful.

Strong organizational skills can help your child excel in school. Study skills tutoring or executive functioning coaching can also help your child build these skills, but you can try these strategies at home to help your child on their path to success!

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do some students struggle with organization in school?
Many students struggle with organization when they have weak executive functioning skills. As they move through school, the organization and executive functioning demands increase quickly. Learning effective strategies for building these skills can help improve their overall academic performance.

What are common signs a student is struggling with organization?
If you find that your child loses their materials, forgets to turn in their homework assignments or turns them in late, or becomes easily overwhelmed by schoolwork, they are likely struggling with organization and would benefit from learning executive functioning strategies.

How can parents help children stay organized with homework?
Parents can help their child stay organized by creating a consistent homework routine, setting up organized spaces designated for studying, and using an assignment book for managing homework.

Is your child struggling with time management, organization, planning, time management, or other executive functioning skills? Learn how EBL Coaching can help them with specialized tutoring and executive functioning coaching at www.eblcoaching.com.
Learn more about helping your child build stronger organizational skills for the new school year at
https://eblcoaching.com/homework-organizational-tips-for-the-new-school-year/
Read more about ADHD at ADDitude – ADD & ADHD Symptom Tests, Signs, Treatment, Support.

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]]> Executive Functioning Strategies For ADHD: Dr. Levy’s Podcast Tips https://eblcoaching.com/the-gift-of-adhd-dr-levy-on-the-infuse-your-future-podcast/ Fri, 09 Aug 2024 19:44:45 +0000 https://eblcoaching.com/?p=16218 Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) can affect students in all grades, and those with ADHD often struggle with skills such as organization, time management, task initiation, planning, and focus. Many students who have ADHD have difficulties with their executive functioning skills, making homework, multi-step tasks, and projects feel daunting.

The post Executive Functioning Strategies For ADHD: Dr. Levy’s Podcast Tips appeared first on EBL Coaching.

]]> Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) can affect students in all grades, and those with ADHD often struggle with skills such as organization, time management, task initiation, planning, and focus. Many students who have ADHD have difficulties with their executive functioning skills, making homework, multi-step tasks, and projects feel daunting.

In this podcast episode, Dr. Emily Levy, Founder and Director of EBL Coaching, shares research-based ADHD strategies, including organizational tools, time management strategies like the Pomodoro Technique, and prioritization ideas, to help students improve their executive functioning skills and academic performance at school. Let’s take a look at some of these tips:

The Pomodoro Technique for ADHD

The Pomodoro Technique is a great method for developing stronger time management and focusing skills. To use this method, perform the following steps:

  • Select a task you would like to complete, like a homework assignment, project, or research paper.
  • Set a timer for 25 minutes and spend this time working nonstop on that task.
  • When the timer goes off after the 25 minutes, take a 5 minute break and use a sheet of paper or computer document to check off that you successfully finished one Pomodoro cycle.
  • Then set your timer for another 25 minutes and do the same thing – work on your task for 25 minutes, take a 5 minute break, and indicate on your record sheet that you completed another Pomodoro cycle.
  • After finishing four 25 minute + 5 minute break cycles, give yourself a longer 20-30 minute break.

This strategy will help you break longer tasks into smaller, more easily achievable segments and will help you feel focused and successful as you complete each task. If you still struggle with time management, you may want to consider executive functioning coaching to help further develop this skill.

How to Prioritize Tasks with ADHD

Having a long list of tasks to compete can feel overwhelming, especially for those who have ADHD. Learning to prioritize tasks that are more important and completing those first can be very helpful in managing this load. For instance, if you have eight tasks to complete, make a list of eight lines on a sheet of paper. Ask yourself which one is most important to complete and then list that one first. Then list the second most important task to complete on the second line, and so on. You might even add a time management strategy to this exercise by asking yourself how much time you think each task will take to complete and write down that estimated time (ET) next to each task. Then compare the estimated time you thought each task would take to the actual time it took, and write the AT, or actual time, next to the estimated time. You will find that the more you practice this time management strategy, the more realistic you will become with your time. Time management and executive functioning coaching can help you develop this skill as well!

Why Using a Planner Improves ADHD Organization

Many teachers now post assignments via an online portal instead of dictating homework assignments in class and expecting students to write them down. As a result, many students don’t use a planner and instead rely on these online portals. However, physically seeing all assignments that are coming up for the day, week and month is very important in managing time and schedules. Even if your teacher posts assignments online, you should still use a hand-written or electronic calendar to write down each assignment and when it is due in your planner. Try breaking down long-term assignments into individual steps and putting each step into your planner. Take a look at what is coming up for the day, week, and month and try to figure out how much time you need to devote to homework and studying each day. Adults can benefit from using a planner as well to track their tasks, obligations, and meetings that they need to attend.

Learning strategies for managing executive functioning skills such as planning, time management, and organization is key to success in school and life. Try these techniques to enhance these skills and you will quickly notice a positive difference in your overall performance.

Is your child struggling with executive functioning skills? Learn how we can help with one-on-one ADHD tutoring and executive functioning coaching at www.eblcoaching.com.

Frequently asked questions

How can students with ADHD improve time management?
One way students with ADHD can improve their time management skills is by learning to estimate how long they think a task might take to complete (called the ET, or estimated time), then compare it to the actual time it takes (AT). When they first use this strategy, they might find a big discrepancy between these two times, but the more they practice the strategy, the more realistic they will likely become with how long tasks take to complete and the more their time management skills will improve.

What are some common executive functioning challenges in students with ADHD?
Some common executive functioning challenges with ADHD include difficulty with time management, organization, planning, time management, task initiation, and homework management.

Why do students with ADHD struggle with homework?
Homework often involves planning, organization, breaking down tasks, and other executive functioning skills that students with ADHD tend to struggle with. ADHD tutoring and executive functioning coaching can help students build these key executive functioning skills.
Students with ADHD can improve their time management skills by breaking assignments into smaller tasks, using the Pomodoro Technique, writing tasks in a planner, and estimating how long tasks will take.
Learn more about helping your child with ADHD at 
https://eblcoaching.com/wondering-if-your-child-has-adhd/

Learn more about ADHD at https://add.org/

Read more about understanding ADHD at

https://chadd.org/about-adhd/overview/

https://chadd.org/attention-article/study-skills-for-thriving-with-adhd/

The post Executive Functioning Strategies For ADHD: Dr. Levy’s Podcast Tips appeared first on EBL Coaching.

]]> Help Your Child Develop Stronger Reading Skills https://eblcoaching.com/help-your-child-develop-stronger-reading-skills/ Tue, 23 Jul 2024 17:45:23 +0000 https://eblcoaching.com/?p=16143 Developing strong reading skills at a young age is key for success in school and life. Some children have an easy time learning the names of the letters and their corresponding sounds, and how to blend those sounds together to form words. Others, however, have a hard time learning how to read and need more of a systematic approach to developing foundational reading skills. Help your child build stronger reading skills with the ideas detailed below.

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Developing strong reading skills at a young age is key for success in school and life. Some children have an easy time learning the names of the letters and their corresponding sounds, and how to blend those sounds together to form words. Others, however, have a hard time learning how to read and need more of a systematic approach to developing foundational reading skills. Help your child build stronger reading skills with the ideas detailed below.

Letter and Sound Recognition

Young children need to learn the names of each letter and its corresponding sound before they can work on blending sounds together to form words. Help your child develop this skill by creating flash cards with a letter on the front and a key picture on the back, and hang these cards around your house. For example, you might create a flash card with the letter “a” on the front and a picture of an apple on the back, one with the letter “c” on the front and a picture of a cat on the back, one with the letter “s” on the front and a picture of a snake on the back, and so on. You may want to add lots of color to the pictures to make them look fun and inviting. As you create these cards, tell your child the name of the letter, its key picture, and its corresponding sound. For example, you might say, “This is the letter a” then flip the card around and say, “It makes the sound /a/ like apple.” For the “c” card, you might hold up the front of the card and say, “This is the letter c” then flip the card around and say, “It makes the sound /c/ like cat,” and follow this same process for all of the letters. Then hang the cards in different places around your house and ask your child to tell you the name of the letter, key picture, and corresponding sound when they see each card. Maybe even build in a reward, like a point for each one they say correctly, and ten points adds up to a special treat. If your child struggles with learning the letters and sounds, you may want to look into reading tutoring.

Build phonemic awareness skills

Phonemic awareness is the foundation of reading. It is the ability to identify and manipulate sounds in words, including working with phonemes, rhymes, words, and syllables. There are many activities you can do at home to help your child build stronger phonetic awareness skills. For instance, ask your child to tell you the first sound they hear in the words cat, rug, and man. Then have them tell you the final sound they hear in the words dog, sit, and cup, and later ask what the middle sounds are. You can tell your child two words parts and ask them to put them together to form one word, like “cup” and “cake” (cupcake) or “door” and “knob” (doorknob). Ask them to tell you words that rhyme with pit, mat, and tug. Then give them individual two and three letter words and have them try to tell you each sound that they hear in the words. For instance, if you give them the word “at” they should tell you they hear the sounds /a/ and /t/. If you give them the word “pig” they should tell you they hear the sounds /p/, /i/, /g/. The more you practice these phonemic awareness skills, the stronger your child’s reading skills will become. However, if your child struggles with phonemic awareness, Orton Gillingham tutoring may be helpful.

Read more about the Orton Gillingham method at EBL Coaching – Orton-Gillingham Tutors – Dr Emily Levy

Reading comprehension

When you read to your child, it’s important to always emphasize reading comprehension. While reading a story aloud, stop every 2-3 pages and ask your child to explain to you what happened so far in the story. Also ask about specific characters that came up. What was their name? What did they look like? What qualities did they have? Encourage them to use their imaginations and visualize the characters and plot. Visualization helps build stronger reading comprehension skills! Also ask your child questions along the way, like “Why do you think that man was angry?”, “Why do you think those girls are friends?”, or “What do you think will happen next?” The more you can engage with the text and make your child an active reader, the better! Reading comprehension tutoring can also help your child develop these skills.

Read a lot!

Read as much as you can with your child. This reading can be in just about any form: books, comics, magazines, newspapers. Any reading counts! Try to gauge your child’s interests and encourage them to read books on topics they are interested in, like nature, sports, or volcanoes. If they are interested in the topic, they will likely be much more engaged in the book. Also try to pick a designated time for reading – this might be before bed, during breakfast time, or right after school. The key is picking a consistent reading time and sticking with it!

Reading is one of the most important skills for school success. Try these strategies at home with your child and they will be well on their way to becoming excellent readers.

Read more about helping your child build stronger reading skills at FOUR Ways to Help Your Struggling Reader – EBL Coaching

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]]> Helping Students Who Struggle in School Succeed – Dr. Levy on the Brandon Ramakko Podcast https://eblcoaching.com/helping-students-who-struggle-in-school-succeed-the-brandon-ramakko-podcast/ Wed, 10 Jul 2024 18:14:47 +0000 https://eblcoaching.com/?p=16109 Emily is an educational expert, author, and advocate for students with special education needs. She also owns EBL Coaching, a one-on-one, specialized tutoring program that offers individualized, research-based tutoring to children with specialized learning needs in grades pre-K to 12. She has done hundreds of interviews, as she is truly an expert in helping children with learning and attention challenges.

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In the Brandon Ramakko podcast I discuss how parents can help students who struggle in school succeed academically. Many children have difficulty with the rapid increase in academic requirements as they progress through school. Reading, writing, math, and subject area demands tend to increase quickly as students move through grade levels. By teaching your child effective study strategies and academic tools, you can help them succeed in school. Try some of the ideas detailed below:

Set up a regular time for homework

Some students are ready to begin their homework as soon as they get home from school and are still in “learning mode”. Others, however, prefer a small snack before starting their school work. Some need a longer break before beginning their homework, where they might play outside or engage in a non-academic activity. The key is setting up a consistent time for your child to complete their homework based on their individual needs and preferences. You might want to even set a timer that will go off when it’s time for them to begin their homework in order to keep their homework schedule consistent.

Set up a study space

Setting up a study space filled with all of the necessary supplies is key for academic success. This space may be a desk in your child’s bedroom or even a space on the kitchen or dining room table. If your child is working on a desk in their room, make sure it is filled with all of the supplies they need, like pens, pencils, paper, and scissors, so they don’t wander your home looking for supplies they need or run out of mid-way through completing their homework. If they work at a table outside of their room, create a homework bin filled with all of the supplies they need in order to complete their homework that they carry with them to the table when it’s homework time and then bring back to their room when they’re done. Students who continue to struggle with organizational skills may benefit from executive functioning coaching or study skills tutoring.

Remove distractions

When students sit down to begin their homework, they often find that there are many distractions. The phone might be ringing, email notifications may be buzzing, the television may be on, or a sibling may be speaking loudly in the background. It’s helpful for your child to make a list identifying all possible distractions that may come up and list a solution for each one. For example, if your child hears email notifications when trying to do their homework, they should turn off notifications on their phone or computer to avoid this distraction. The television should be turned off during homework time. If their sibling tends to chat loudly, they should make an announcement before starting their homework that they are about to begin and ask everyone to kindly be as quiet as possible during that time. The key is identifying possible distractions before your child starts their homework and coming up with a plan for avoiding them.

Time management

Some children can become overwhelmed by the volume of school work they need to get done along with their other obligations, like sports and after school activities. They may have many upcoming tests to study for and homework to complete, and they can’t fathom how they can get everything done in time. Building stronger time management skills can help your child excel throughout school and life! Encourage your child to chunk tasks into smaller bits. For example, if they have a science test coming up in one week that may involve six hours of studying, have them devote one hour per day to studying for the science test and write this study time into their planner. Then they can devote the night before the test just to reviewing the material they studied. Likewise, if your child has trouble staying focused for long stretches of time or feels stressed about how much work they need to do, have them try setting a timer and working for 45 minutes, then taking a 5 minute break. This strategy helps them set mini goals and breaks their studying and workload down into smaller steps, which may feel less overwhelming. If your child still struggles with time management, executive functioning tutoring may help.

Read more about time management strategies at
https://eblcoaching.com/strategies-for-study-success-time-management/

The demands of school increase at a fast pace, and for many students this rapid rise in demands can feel overwhelming. Teach your child the strategies detailed above and you will help them feel confident and successful in school.

Learn more about study and organizational skills at
https://chadd.org/attention-article/study-skills-for-thriving-with-adhd/

The post Helping Students Who Struggle in School Succeed – Dr. Levy on the Brandon Ramakko Podcast appeared first on EBL Coaching.

]]> Help Your Child Develop Stronger Writing Skills https://eblcoaching.com/help-your-child-develop-stronger-writing-skills/ Wed, 26 Jun 2024 15:15:14 +0000 https://eblcoaching.com/?p=15973 Originally published on the Macaroni KID website Many students struggle to express their thoughts on paper when writing. Writing involves many components – spelling, capitalization, punctuation, organization, and sentence structure, amongst other elements. Developing stronger writing skills can help your child thrive in school. Try some of the ideas detailed below. Brainstorm Before Writing  Before writing, students should always brainstorm ...

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Originally published on the Macaroni KID website

Many students struggle to express their thoughts on paper when writing. Writing involves many components – spelling, capitalization, punctuation, organization, and sentence structure, amongst other elements. Developing stronger writing skills can help your child thrive in school. Try some of the ideas detailed below.

Brainstorm Before Writing 

Before writing, students should always brainstorm their ideas. Brainstorming can be in the form of a web diagram, outline, or list – whatever works best for your child! Before writing a paragraph about how to throw a party, for instance, your child might start by drawing a circle in the center of a page and writing the words “how to throw a party” inside the circle. Then they might draw branches from that circle to three surrounding circles and write the following details inside each circle: “create an invite list,” “send out invitations,” and “plan the party details.” This brainstorm web sets the stage for writing a well-organized simple paragraph. Your child might also draw branches out of the detail bubbles with information supporting each detail, known as supporting details, setting the stage for an extended paragraph. Students can draw these types of web diagrams using a computer or tablet, and they can also write out their ideas in list or bullet form before writing. The key is to always brainstorm before writing. If they need continued help learning how to brainstorm their ideas before writing, virtual writing tutoring or in person writing tutoring may be helpful for them.

Write!

Once students have completed the brainstorm step, they should use that brainstorm structure to start writing. For example, a simple paragraph is comprised of a topic sentence, three detail sentences, and a conclusion sentence. Using the “how to throw a party” topic above, students can use their brainstorm web to write the following simple paragraph:

Throwing a party is an easy process. First, create a list of people you want to invite. Next, send out the party invitations. Finally, plan the details for the party. Throwing parties can be a lot of fun!

Students can express their opinion in the conclusion sentence. Additionally, if they want to expand their writing, they can add three supporting detail sentences after each detail in their simple paragraph, adding nine new sentences – expanding their writing while maintaining its structure. This type of paragraph is known as an extended paragraph. The key is maintaining organization within their writing while elaborating on their ideas. Writing tutoring can help your child improve their ability to organize their thoughts on paper when writing. Learn more about helping your child build stronger writing skills at https://eblcoaching.com/help-your-child-build-stellar-writing-skills/.

Self-Check

It’s important that your child always self-checks their writing piece once they are finished. They might use a checklist like COPS for self-checking, which stands for Capitalization, Organization, Punctuation, Spelling. They should check their writing for each of these elements individually, not all at once. For instance, once they are done writing, they should first look through their writing piece and make sure they properly capitalized all words that needed capitalization. Next, they should make sure they organized their writing in an effective manner. Then they should check for proper punctuation, and finally they should check for spelling. If they are unsure whether they spelled a word correctly, they might want to underline it and then look up the correct spelling later. They can even create a vertical checklist at the bottom of their writing page with a checkbox next to each letter in the acronym COPS, and check off each element after they check their writing. If your child still struggles with this process, writing tutoring can be helpful in teaching them how to effectively express their thoughts when writing. Learn more about helping your child have fun while strengthening their writing skills at https://eblcoaching.com/improve-your-childs-writing-skills-with-helpful-and-fun-activities/

Writing is one of the most important skills for school success. Teach your child these strategies for brainstorming, writing, and self-checking their ideas on paper, and you will help them to thrive academically.

Learn more about writing techniques at

https://eblcoaching.com/winning-writing-strategies/.

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]]> Disrupting the Classroom: New Hope for Learning Disabilities with Dr. Emily Levy https://eblcoaching.com/disrupting-the-classroom-new-hope-for-learning-disabilities-with-dr-emily-levy/ Fri, 31 May 2024 16:27:49 +0000 https://eblcoaching.com/?p=15865 Welcome to today’s episode, where we have the privilege of hosting Dr. Emily Levy, a specialist in special education. In this informative session, Dr. Levy shares her expert insights into the tools and strategies that enhance learning for individuals with autism, dyslexia, ADHD, and other learning disabilities. As we navigate through the educational challenges these conditions present, Dr. Levy offers practical advice for students, parents, and educators alike.

The post Disrupting the Classroom: New Hope for Learning Disabilities with Dr. Emily Levy appeared first on EBL Coaching.

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Many children and adults struggle with their reading, writing, and organizational skills. For those who have ADHD or dyslexia, the struggle is even greater. In this podcast, I discuss ways that children and adults can build stronger reading, writing, time management, and organizational skills. Try some of the ideas detailed below to strengthen these key skills, and be sure to watch the full podcast episode HERE.

Reading

Many individuals struggle with reading; they may have trouble sounding out words, reading with fluency, or comprehending material that they read. Children and adults can benefit from Orton Gillingham instruction to build stronger reading skills. With this method, students learn a structured, multi-sensory approach to develop stronger reading skills. Some students need help with foundational reading skills, including reading words with consonant-vowel-consonant patterns, blends, consonant digraphs, and vowel digraphs. Others may struggle to read more complex multi-syllabic words and words containing prefixes, suffixes, and roots. Both children and adults can strengthen their reading skills with Orton Gillingham tutoring, and consistent practice using the Orton Gillingham method. It can truly be life changing!

Learn more about the Orton Gillingham method at 

https://eblcoaching.com/orton-gillingham-approach/

Writing

Writing can affect all aspects of school and life. Students need to write in nearly all subjects at school and adults need to be able to create well-structured emails, write resumes, and communicate in writing in many aspects of their jobs and daily lives. Many individuals struggle to write effectively but those with ADHD and dyslexia tend to struggle even more. Learning a structured, organized approach to writing can help individuals build these skills. With writing tutoring, students can start by learning how to write a well-structured sentence, then move onto a simple paragraph, extended paragraph, five paragraph essay and more complex research papers. They can also work on daily writing skills, like writing lists, emails, and letters. Writing tutoring can help children and adults build this key skill.

Learn more about writing strategies for ADHD students at 

https://eblcoaching.com/writing-strategies-for-adhd-students/

Time Management & Organization

Many individuals with and without ADHD struggle with time management. They might run late for appointments, over or underestimate how long they think a task might take to complete, or schedule too many obligations in one day. To develop stronger time management skills, try using the five P’s: prioritize, plan, (avoid) procrastination, (be) productive, and (stay) positive. First, prioritize. If you have five tasks that need to get done, write them out and then create an order of priority. For instance, if you need to write an email, complete a reading assignment, prepare lunch, and make your bed, you might prioritize writing the email and completing the reading assignment above the other two tasks, and perhaps order them 2 1 4 3 based on level of priority. Next, come up with a plan and write out the plan. Indicate the steps under each task that you will need to do in order to complete the assignment and perhaps even put those steps into your agenda or phone calendar so you have a plan for what you need to do to accomplish each task and when you will do it. Don’t procrastinate! Try to avoid any distractions that might prevent you from starting your tasks and begin working on each task as early as you can. Step 4 is productivity: make sure you have all of the tools and supplies necessary to complete each task. These tools may include pens, paper, a computer, and so on. For adults in the workforce, perhaps delegate smaller tasks if you can that someone else might be able to complete. Finally, stay positive! Tell yourself that you are capable of improving your time management skills. With the right attitude and effort, you will get there! However, if you still struggle with your time management skills, executive functioning tutoring or ADHD tutoring may help you. 

Read more about ADHD strategies at 

https://eblcoaching.com/study-strategies-for-your-adhd-child/

Children and adults with ADHD and dyslexia often struggle with reading, writing, and organizational skills. Try these ideas - or if needed - look into ADHD tutoring or dyslexia tutoring, and you will be well on your way to success. 

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