THE BILGRAV SCHOOL DIFFERENCE
An Orton-Gillingham Based Curriculum
”There was an automatic sense of belonging that I didn’t have in the normal classroom- that I wasn’t a burden to the rest of the class or the teacher. Just knowing that everyone else around me was struggling in different ways with the same problem, I didn’t feel like I had to hide anymore. There was acceptance, not judgement, of how I learned, how I needed to see the information and give it back.”
~Co-Director, Hunter Patterson, on his experience starting at an OG-based school for dyslexic students in 3rd grade
- Orton-Gillingham-based schools, like The Bilgrav School, can be transformative places for intelligent students who don’t fit in a traditional curriculum.
- Students feel safe to try, fail, and try again among teachers who can understand their thinking style and drive their learning as far and fast as it can go.
- Bilgrav’s school community aims to build confident, resilient kids, who love to learn.
For information on Drs. Orton and Gillingham and the teaching approach they designed for dyslexic learners, please visit the Orton Academy's website for comprehensive information.
How do we do that?
- A deep knowledge of and experience with dyslexia, and the diagnoses, such as ADHD and/or giftedness...
- A curriculum based on the strengths of the dyslexic mind, like 3-dimensional problem solving, heightened pattern recognition, “whole picture” thinking, and multi-sensory learning
So, our curriculum is:
Inter-Disciplinary - Project-Based - Hands-On
Each trimester, students learn subject-matter through inter-disciplinary themes
that take advantage of a local resource and incorporate fine arts and community service.
that take advantage of a local resource and incorporate fine arts and community service.
Daily Classes:
•. 1:1 Orton-Gillingham Tutoring
•. Literature & Writing for Dyslexic Learners
• Inter-disciplinary Math, Science, History, & Literature with Arts Integration
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•. Energy-Absorbing & Mind-Centering Exercise Breaks throughout the day
•. Optional After-School Sports & Enrichment
•. Fine & Performing Arts
•. 1:1 Orton-Gillingham Tutoring
•. Literature & Writing for Dyslexic Learners
• Inter-disciplinary Math, Science, History, & Literature with Arts Integration
~
•. Energy-Absorbing & Mind-Centering Exercise Breaks throughout the day
•. Optional After-School Sports & Enrichment
•. Fine & Performing Arts
MARINE SCIENCE
This Fall, the inter-disciplinary theme was Marine Science, for obvious reasons! In the classroom, students learned about marine habitats, life, and environmental issues using multi-media, hands-on activities, and individually-leveled literacy requirements. (Our tutors and teachers are in regular contact in order to create classroom literacy requirements that match students’ true challenge levels. Now, that is both liberating and motivating!)
Students also teamed up with a nonprofit organization called the Friends of Palm Beach and help clean up a portion of beautiful beachfront. While learning about the global nature of the problem, the students were in powered to act locally.
This Fall, the inter-disciplinary theme was Marine Science, for obvious reasons! In the classroom, students learned about marine habitats, life, and environmental issues using multi-media, hands-on activities, and individually-leveled literacy requirements. (Our tutors and teachers are in regular contact in order to create classroom literacy requirements that match students’ true challenge levels. Now, that is both liberating and motivating!)
Students also teamed up with a nonprofit organization called the Friends of Palm Beach and help clean up a portion of beautiful beachfront. While learning about the global nature of the problem, the students were in powered to act locally.
ASTRONOMY
For our current interdisciplinary theme, we are taking advantage of our proximity to the world-renown Kennedy Space Center. Students are not only studying the solar system, but also NASA and American space flight history, the development of satellites and space vehicles, physical forces, the powerful sun, energy production in space, methods of data-gathering (from telescopes to rovers), and future missions to Mars.
This unit will culminate with our older students experiencing a day of astronaut training at Kennedy Space Center with real NASA scientists! Our younger students will spend the day exploring the rich environment of Kennedy Space Center.
For our current interdisciplinary theme, we are taking advantage of our proximity to the world-renown Kennedy Space Center. Students are not only studying the solar system, but also NASA and American space flight history, the development of satellites and space vehicles, physical forces, the powerful sun, energy production in space, methods of data-gathering (from telescopes to rovers), and future missions to Mars.
This unit will culminate with our older students experiencing a day of astronaut training at Kennedy Space Center with real NASA scientists! Our younger students will spend the day exploring the rich environment of Kennedy Space Center.
| curriculum-_astronomy.pptx |
In the right educational environment, dyslexia is NOT a disability.
Its strengths of mind are
learning assets.
Additional Information about Dyslexia |
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Science has moved forward at a rapid pace so that we now possess the data to reliably define dyslexia … For the student, the knowledge that he is dyslexic is empowering … [It provides him] with self-understanding and self-awareness of what he has and what he needs to do in order to succeed.”
Sally Shaywitz, M.D., co-director of Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity
— Testimony to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, US House of Representatives
— Testimony to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, US House of Representatives
Dyslexia
“Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurobiological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities. These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction. Secondary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and background knowledge.”
This well-accepted definition, provided by the International Dyslexia Association, enables neuropsychologists and educators to recognize and diagnose dyslexia, but how does that knowledge translate into educational practice?...
It’s made up of science projects, feats of engineering, acting in History, movie-making in Literature, dancing the Salsa in Spanish, calculating erosion on a field trip to the beach, doing community service... but more than that, it’s about the people, the super-fun teachers who “get” how you think and who are always there to help you succeed, the friends you trust to let you be yourself in class and who are on this journey with you. Then, there’s the tutoring. Everyday, it’s a class that actually works to help you read and write. You make so much progress. You learn to be proud of yourself and to get what you need to succeed. It’s an education that creates confident self-advocates, ready to succeed in whatever academic setting they choose next. It is a challenging and supportive second home where dyslexic and twice-exceptional students can unlock their potential!
Gifted & Dyslexic-
Both Ends of the Bell Curve
One of the things that makes The Bilgrav School unique is its focus on giftedness and twice-exceptionalities. Gifted children, just like dyslexic or ADHD students, have a specific set of learning needs that are not often met in a traditional classroom. They require specialized teachers equipped with a curriculum designed for how they think. In addition, there is significant overlap between giftedness and “learning differences,” like dyslexia or ADHD.
GIFTED + DYSLEXIC = TWICE-EXCEPTIONAL
When in class with like-minded peers, gifted children can bloom. Their learning and motivation can sky-rocket. For twice-exceptional students, being in an environment where they can engage their cognitive strengths while having their difficulties remediated is a rare and liberating opportunity to unlock their true potential.
GIFTED + DYSLEXIC = TWICE-EXCEPTIONAL
When in class with like-minded peers, gifted children can bloom. Their learning and motivation can sky-rocket. For twice-exceptional students, being in an environment where they can engage their cognitive strengths while having their difficulties remediated is a rare and liberating opportunity to unlock their true potential.
Dyslexia & ADHD
Bright students with dyslexia and ADHD have a home at the Bilgrav School. Our classroom set-up, multi-sensory curriculum, and daily schedule are designed for the high-energy student. We start the day with focusing, physical activity, and students never go more than two hours without a chance to “recess & recenter.” Within the classroom, there are flexible seating options and teachers who know how to provide the opportunity for movement within a structured setting.
Bright students with dyslexia and ADHD have a home at the Bilgrav School. Our classroom set-up, multi-sensory curriculum, and daily schedule are designed for the high-energy student. We start the day with focusing, physical activity, and students never go more than two hours without a chance to “recess & recenter.” Within the classroom, there are flexible seating options and teachers who know how to provide the opportunity for movement within a structured setting.
At Bilgrav School, we provide that rare environment where students are taught at their conceptual level in subject-matter classes that challenge but allow for their difficulties with language mechanics.
Bonus Resources
Below is a wonderful talk on the challenges of gifted and 2E kids.
The talk (below) is really entertaining. This Carnegie-Mellon student speaks a mile a minute and gives a great description of how intelligent, ADHD children think, why they struggle, and what we can do about it!
