Customer Reviews

The Gillingham Manual: Remedial Training for Students With Specific Disability in Reading, Spelling, and Penmanship

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Many reading programs for correcting dyslexia are based on the Orton-Gillingham method, which is presented in this book. While the method has been proven clinically and empirically (and I know of people who swear by it in my country), it is now surpassed by newer methods which stem from it. Arguably, learning letter names and memorizing rules are some of the main drawbacks in this program. What makes this book money's worth is the systematic presentation of spelling patterns and generalizations.

This is the gold standard for MSL language instruction, the classic, far from "surpassed," but it is not for amateurs. To be used in conjunction with a training course by a certified trainer, and followed by supervised practicum.

While Gillingham and Stillman were certainly early pioneers
in dyslexia, their work could be seen to be dated,
as they have been dead for almost fifty years. It is not their
fault that much more is known now about dyslexia than when
they were alive, but it does make them dated and in some cases
potentially damaging if their theories are not applied
together with more modern knowledge. This is not a question
of being an "amateur" or not, but simply having knowledge
that extends beyond Gillingham Stillman. Unfortunately, much
Orton Gillingham training in the US seems to regard external
interests and knowledge from trainees as a threat, and claims
to be the only effective program, despite many students making
little progress on unmodified Orton Gillingham. I would only
use this manual with together with the understanding
gained from modern research.