Orton-Gillingham at Home: What Parents Can Do and When to Get a Tutor

by

Orton-Gillingham at home is possible in a simple form. Parents can reinforce reading skills with short, multisensory activities, but a trained tutor is the one who assesses your child and plans what to teach next. This guide shows what you can do at home, how often to practice, and the signs that it's time to bring in a tutor.

Can you do Orton-Gillingham at home?

Yes, with a clear limit. You can practice simple multisensory activities and reinforce what your child is learning, and that practice helps. What you can't easily do at home is the part a trained tutor handles: assessing exactly where your child's gaps are, choosing the order of skills, and adjusting lessons as your child responds.

That difference matters because Orton-Gillingham is an approach, not a fixed program. The quality of the teaching depends on the tutor's judgment about what your child needs next. Think of home practice as the reinforcement and the tutor as the plan.

What makes an activity Orton-Gillingham-style?

Four things set these activities apart from ordinary reading practice:

  • Multisensory. Your child sees, hears and touches the sounds at the same time, for example tracing a letter while saying its sound.
  • Explicit. You teach one skill directly instead of hoping your child picks it up from context.
  • Step by step. You only practice sounds and patterns your child has already been taught, in a logical order.
  • Cumulative. Every session begins by reviewing earlier skills before anything new is added.

Our Orton-Gillingham approach page explains how these principles shape a full lesson.

Eight multisensory Orton-Gillingham activities to try at home

Use these only with sounds and patterns your child has already learned. Keep each activity to a few minutes.

  1. Sand or salt tray tracing. Your child traces a letter in a shallow tray while saying its sound out loud.
  2. Sky writing. Your child writes a large letter in the air with two fingers, saying the sound as they write.
  3. Arm tapping. For a word like "map," your child taps one finger to the thumb for each sound (/m/, /a/, /p/), then sweeps down the arm and blends the word.
  4. Letter tile word building. Build "cat" with tiles, then change one letter at a time: cat, cut, cup. Your child reads each new word.
  5. Sound card review. Flash a short stack of letter-sound cards at the start of each session. Add one new card only when the rest feel easy.
  6. Real or nonsense word game. Read a mix of real and made-up words, such as "dap" and "dog." Made-up words show whether your child is truly decoding or guessing.
  7. Decodable reading. Read short sentences or books that use only the sounds your child has learned.
  8. Dictation. Say a word, then have your child repeat it, tap the sounds and write it down.

How often and how long should you practice?

Short and regular beats long and occasional. For most children, 10 to 20 minutes a day, at the same time and place, works better than one long weekend session. Younger children or children who tire quickly may do better with even shorter sessions.

Stop on a success. If your child is frustrated, finish with an easy activity they can do well and try again tomorrow. The goal is steady, confident practice, not getting through a checklist.

A simple 15-minute Orton-Gillingham routine for home

A predictable order helps your child settle in. Try this pattern:

  1. Sound review (3 minutes). Flash the sound cards your child already knows.
  2. Tap and blend (3 minutes). Say a word, tap the sounds on the arm, then blend.
  3. Tile words (4 minutes). Build and change words with letter tiles.
  4. Read (3 minutes). Read one decodable sentence or a short passage.
  5. Dictation (2 minutes). Say a word and have your child tap it out and write it.

If you are also working with a tutor, ask which sounds and words to use so home practice matches the lessons.

Common mistakes to avoid when teaching at home

  • Guessing the starting point. Without an assessment, you may practice sounds that are too hard or too easy, which wastes time and can frustrate your child.
  • Skipping review. New skills fade quickly without daily review of earlier ones.
  • Moving on too soon. Wait until a skill feels easy before adding the next one.
  • Adding extra sounds. Try to say consonant sounds cleanly, such as /b/ rather than "buh," so blending stays clear.
  • Turning practice into a battle. If sessions end in tears most days, the activities may be too hard, or it may be time for expert help.

When is it time to get a trained Orton-Gillingham tutor?

Consider a tutor if:

  • your child has made little progress after several weeks of steady practice
  • your child reads well below grade level, or the gap is growing
  • you don't know where to start, or which skills are missing
  • practice has become stressful for both of you
  • you suspect dyslexia or another learning difference and want guidance
  • your child is older and falling further behind

A good first step is an assessment. Read about our Orton-Gillingham assessment, or our guide Orton-Gillingham Assessment: Does My Child Need One? Early support also makes a difference, as we explain in the importance of early intervention for dyslexia.

What does a trained Orton-Gillingham tutor add?

A tutor does the work that is hardest to do alone:

  • Assessment. They find exactly which sounds, patterns and rules your child has and which are missing.
  • A planned sequence. Lessons follow a logical order, so each new skill rests on one your child has already mastered.
  • Live adjustment. Every lesson is customized, and the activity changes every few minutes to hold your child's focus.
  • Tracking. They notice which skills have stuck and which need more review, so nothing is skipped.

At The Learnability, Orton-Gillingham lessons are live, one-on-one online sessions with interactive tools, so your child learns from home. Home practice between sessions works best when your tutor tells you which activities to repeat.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need training to do Orton-Gillingham at home?

You don't need formal training to practice simple multisensory activities with sounds your child has already learned. Teaching a full Orton-Gillingham sequence, and knowing where to start, is where a trained tutor makes the difference.

Can I use these activities if my child has dyslexia?

Yes, as reinforcement. These activities suit many children who struggle with reading. If you think your child may have dyslexia, a formal evaluation and a tutor's assessment will give you a clearer picture.

Is there a free Orton-Gillingham curriculum I can use?

Free resources exist, but quality varies, and no curriculum can tell you where your child should start. An assessment solves that first, and the activities in this guide can fill the gap while you decide.

How long until I see progress?

It depends on your child and how consistently you practice. Expect months of steady work rather than weeks, and look for smaller signs first, such as less guessing and more confidence.

Does my child need a diagnosis to start tutoring?

No. No formal diagnosis is required to begin Orton-Gillingham tutoring.

Ready for expert support?

If home practice isn't enough, or you just want to know where to start, book a free trial session to see how one-on-one online tutoring works, or contact our team with your questions.