Main Street Dyslexia Services
About Me
My name is Cindy Deubel.
As a young girl, my daughter was diagnosed with dyslexia, struggling to learn to read, specifically, matching sound to symbol (letter). I also knew that she had unusual visual strengths as a child. Back then, I simply wanted to understand the nature of her disability so I could help her learn to read at my own kitchen table. While doing so, I became very interested in “this child.”
Long story made shorter, I began to take classes in learning disabilities. I went on to become dually certified (New York and Connecticut) and received a Master's in Education. I taught full time for ten years as a specialized reading teacher. I then became an Orton Gillingham Practitioner, certified at the Orton Gillingham Academy in 2014. I hold an MFA from Pratt Institute as well, so I do believe that there are “artful” ways to present information.
About Dyslexia
I feel very strongly that the one-on-one tutoring approach in teaching dyslexics how to read, spell and write is the tried-and-true way. For many years, I have been working with students who need a specialized structural approach to learning to read. I have worked with students diagnosed with dyslexia ranging in age from first grade through high school. The highly individualized lessons aim for mastery. Often, there may be an underlying processing disorder or an attention disorder, along with a weak working memory disorder.
Dyslexic students’ learning profiles can vary greatly. I do believe that a dyslexic often needs the extra time to place the symbol/ sound relationship into long term memory. Many multisensory programs do not allow for the repetitive review and the time it takes for a certain dyslexic to be able to remember this connection. In other words, even small group instruction may not be appropriate until this student understands some of the underlying basic “concepts” of our English language.
About the Orton Gillingham Approach
The OG multisensory approach utilizes all the sensory channels that aid the dyslexic’s ability to “hold on to” spelling expectancies and rules that then will allow this student to turn around and apply what he/she has learned while spelling, reading and writing. Spelling, within the OG remedial process, is the cornerstone of each lesson, the premise being that if a student can spell a word, that same student can absolutely read the word or words within text.