Special literacy training for teachers will help NAES students learn to read

©©Thirteen teachers from New Albany Elementary School (NAES) recently participated in literacy training, the BrainspringPhonics First© course, in Ripley.   This is an Orton-Gillingham-based training offered to teachers in districts participating in the State Systemic Improvement Plan (SSIP) by the Mississippi Department of Education’s Office of Special Education (MDE OSE). Thirty-six school districts throughout Mississippi participate in the SSIP on a voluntary basis, with a focus on improving outcomes for ALL students through high quality professional development for teachers in effective, evidence-based literacy instructional strategies.

Participants have expressed their excitement about being able to incorporate these multi-sensory strategies into their classrooms.

“We are excited about the opportunity for our teachers to go through the Phonics First© training,” said Jamey Wright, prinicipal of NAES. “We feel that training in evidence-based instructional strategies, such as Orton-Gillingham, will enable our staff to better meet the needs of all learners.”

The 5-day Phonics First© course in Ripley was the first of many literacy training courses planned throughout the state during the 2017-2018 school year to teach multi-sensory, Orton-Gillingham-based strategies to teachers to help them meet the needs of struggling students. Orton-Gillingham is an approach often used with students diagnosed with dyslexia. Having classroom teachers trained in the Orton-Gillingham approach ensures that teachers know and can use instructional strategies that research has shown help students learn to read.

Several more teachers from NAES are registered to attend upcoming Phonics First© trainings as well. For more information about the BrainspringPhonics First© training being offered by the MDE OSE, please call the MS Department of Education at (601) 359-3498.