Is this what you
see when it's
see when it's
time to read?
It doesn't have to be!
Is Reading
a Nightly Battle?
a Nightly Battle?
Does the mere prospect of reading makes your child mad or frustrated?
When it’s time to read, does he look at the pictures, your face, the band-aid on his thumb… anything except the actual words.
Does she seem anxious or sad when it's time for school? Does she get a lot of stomach aches that would keep her home?
book your free
Phonemic Awareness Assessment
Phonemic Awareness Assessment
to see how this foundational skill impacts your child
What is Phonemic Awareness?
This is known as
Scarborough’s
Reading Rope.
Scarborough’s
Reading Rope.
It’s the conceptual framework behind what’s commonly referred to as “the science of reading" — a body of research built over more than 30 years, and strengthened by increasingly sophisticated brain-imaging evidence.
onemic Awareness (or “PA”) is the ability to identify, separate and blend individual speech sounds (known as “phonemes”) within spoken (not written) words. If you can't hear and isolate the sounds in spoken words, how are you supposed to connect them to the letters that represent* those words?
PA is the skill most commonly overlooked in early literacy, because it doesn’t look like “reading." It’s not about books, spelling, sight words, or even letters... it's about sound.
While most reading programs emphasize recognizing the first sounds in letters, it's the ability to ability to separate all the sounds in a word that is the foundation to fluent, automatic reading. It's not necessarily hard, but it's definitely all "natural." And it is the foundational skill that is underdeveloped in the dyslexic brain.
Fortunately, it is totally learnable!
*if that connection was never made, you might think that written English is totally illogical and random, and think you have to memorize everything. Can you imagine how exhausting that would be?
If a child cannot reliably hear, isolate, and manipulate the sounds
in spoken words, written words will never fully make sense—no matter how
smart they are, how much they read, or how hard they try.
smart they are, how much they read, or how hard they try.
The Active Reader Difference
Structured
Literacy
(aka "Orton Gillingham")
A research-backed approach endorsed by the IDA, Center for Effective Reading Instruction, and ALTA builds reading from the ground up, step by step.
Gold standard for literacy instruction
Expert Instruction
+
Human Connection
Dyslexic kids need different help
I teach the exact skills the dyslexic brain struggles to develop on its own. To ensure the child doesn't "check out." Passive learning doesn't work.
Designed from the ground-up to be delivered online.
Hand-picked
Video Games
Customized for your child
Games that reinforce the
specific skills that need to
be developed in your child.
specific skills that need to
be developed in your child.
These are skills that are overlooked in almost all literacy programs.
a full grade level in 8 weeks — guaranteed.
Relationship + Deliberate Practice = Lasting Results
Relationship:
✅ Weekly one-on-one live sessions
✅ Opportunities to meet other students
✅ Parent office hours
✅ Weekly one-on-one live sessions
✅ Opportunities to meet other students
✅ Parent office hours
Deliberate Practice:
Customized video Games
(with leaderboards, daily practice drills designed specifically for your child)
Customized video Games
(with leaderboards, daily practice drills designed specifically for your child)
Lasting Results
Lasting results that shape
your child's confidence, learning,
and future opportunities.
Lasting results that shape
your child's confidence, learning,
and future opportunities.
"When you're reading fast and you're understanding, it's like you're flying."Sam, aged 10
Dyslexia Doesn't Fix Itself
Without the right support, difficulties can compound over time, undermining confidence and self-image
Insufficient
school support
school support
Reading difficulties
intensify over time
intensify over time
Emotional and psychological consequences
Delayed intervention
= Lost Opportunities
= Lost Opportunities
It's not too late!
Wherever your child is right now, there’s still time to help.
Three Paths Forward
Lexercise® Professional Therapy
Lexercise Professional Therapy is a structured, research-based intervention designed for students with dyslexia and related reading difficulties.
Sessions follow an IDA credentialed Structured Literacy Program, and each session is integrated with a customizable, gamefied suite of games that allows for independent daily practice, complete with points, streaks, and goals.
Morphophonemia
English isn’t purely phonetic, but it isn’t random either — it’s morphophonetic. Students learn to spot the Greek and Latin pieces inside words so they can understand meaning, pronunciation, and structure at a deeper level.
Vocabulary that used to feel out of reach becomes a secret strength.
With the right support,
real progress is possible.
real progress is possible.
Hear from parents like you:
Hi! I'm Kate.
I’m The Active Reader.
I like big words, small dogs (well, my small dog), and punctuation.
I’ve been teaching reading for over twenty-five years, to
students of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds. I’m a certified Structured Literacy Dyslexia Therapist, trained
through IDA-accredited programs including Lexercise, Lindamood-Bell, Words in Color, and F.A.S.T. Phonics.
After graduating from Smith College and spending some years writing screenplays, waiting tables, touring with a pop band, and generally being convinced I was going to “change the world,” I found myself teaching English in a failing middle school in Compton. To my surprise, I discovered that while I could talk about books, stories, and word origins 'til the cows came home, what I couldn’t do was teach a classroom full of kids how to actually read when they were already behind.
I get how hard it is to be a classroom teacher. I’m also a certified yoga instructor, and while I’m a terrible meditator, I’m an excellent breather. I've used that training to help my students manage their anxiety, settle down, and perk up. (I have yet to find anything more energizing than doing a headstand, and believe it or not, I often do them with my student, even over Zoom.)
Someday, I want to start a middle school where all academic content is taught through the science and business of food and cooking.
But for now, I just want to teach kids how to read.
As many as possible.
Book your
Free Phonemic Awareness Assessment
Free Phonemic Awareness Assessment
Meet one-on-one with a real live
Certified Structured Literacy Dyslexia Specialist
Takes about 20 minutes • Meet on Zoom • You, Your Child, and Kate
