For Teachers
Orton-Gillingham Training
The Orton-Gillingham Institute
The Stern Center is committed to ensuring all children become confident and skilled readers. Our Orton-Gillingham Institute—accredited through the Orton-Gillingham Academy—is advancing that goal with a powerful, multisensory approach to literacy instruction rooted in decades of classroom success. Orton-Gillingham instruction begins at the simplest level, connecting sounds to letters, then progresses to more complex words and texts.
Since 2010, the Stern Center’s Orton-Gillingham Institute has been providing comprehensive coursework and practicum opportunities for classroom teachers, special educators, reading specialists, and adult educators.
Orton-Gillingham Training
We believe every child has the right to read, and every teacher deserves the knowledge and training to realize that promise. Through our Orton-Gillingham courses and workshops, you’ll learn the structure of the English language and how to teach it systematically and sequentially. You’ll receive a comprehensive Scope and Sequence for teaching foundational reading and spelling skills and access an extensive video library and valuable teaching resources. You’ll be prepared to build and expand every student’s reading skills, including the ones who struggle the most.
The Orton-Gillingham Approach
Research shows that while about 40% of students will learn to read no matter how they’re taught, more than half need direct, explicit, and systematic multisensory instruction. For students with dyslexia and reading disabilities, a structured approach like Orton-Gillingham is essential to reading success. The Orton-Gillingham Approach integrates reading, spelling, and writing instruction in intentionally crafted and skillfully implemented lessons, covering phonemic awareness (playing with sounds in words), phonics, handwriting, morphology (suffixes, prefixes, roots), vocabulary, and comprehension.
Orton-Gillingham Certification
We offer coursework and practicum opportunities toward three certifications:
Orton-Gillingham Associate Level
Learn to teach OG as a targeted intervention and provide one-on-one and small-group instruction under the mentorship of an Academy Fellow.
Orton-Gillingham Classroom Educator
Learn to teach OG as part of a general literacy curriculum and apply the principles of the OG Approach in the classroom.
Orton-Gillingham Certified Level
Learn how to teach OG as an advanced practitioner with an in-depth focus on morphology.
What is Orton-Gillingham
What Teachers Have to Say
Meet The Orton-Gillingham Team
Frequently Asked Questions
What terms and conditions are there for professional learning registrations?
Please read the terms and conditions for our courses and workshops and contact us if you have any questions.
How do I register?
- If the course or workshop you’re interested in is on our website, please visit the course or workshop’s page and follow the link to access our online registration form. Complete the form by doing the following:
- Indicate whether you will pay with a credit card or a Purchase Order (PO).
- Fill out the participant information and workshop information sections.
- Read the Terms and Conditions and check the box to confirm your agreement.
- Click “Next”
- If you are paying with a PO:
- Please verify that your PO is complete.
- Upload the signed PO when prompted through the registration process. If you have questions please email: proflearning@sterncenter.org.
- Click “Next.”
- Your information will be sent to us to review. In 1–2 business days, we will confirm your registration by sending you an email with “Registration Confirmation” in the subject line.
- If you are paying with a credit card:
- Click “Continue.”
- On the Payment Method screen Click “Pay with Credit Card” to continue to Authorize.net.
- Enter your credit card information and click “Pay now” to complete your credit card transaction.
- Your information will be sent to us to review. In 1–2 business days, we will confirm your registration by sending you an email with “Registration Confirmation” in the subject line.
- If the course or workshop you’re interested in is not listed on our website, please contact us to learn more.
Can OG be used in the classroom for general education purposes?
The Orton-Gillingham Classroom Educator is qualified to apply the principles of the Orton-Gillingham Approach to modify and provide literacy instruction in a classroom or small groups. To become an Orton-Gillingham Classroom Educator, you must have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution, do 30 hours of coursework by a Fellow or a Fellow-in-Training, and 50 hours of supervised practicum over eight consecutive months.
How can I become certified in Orton-Gillingham?
The prerequisites to become certified in OG include earning a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution and satisfactory completion of Associate-level requirements; 100 hours minimum of coursework by a Fellow, or by a Fellow in Training as designated by the Fellow; and 200 hours supervised practicum over two academic years minimum, which includes ten entire 4–60 minute lesson observations of the trainee by a Fellow on-site, unedited video or web-based applications.
Is Orton-Gillingham a program?
A program is a plan, schedule or procedure to be followed to a specified end. A program provides structure but doesn’t teach and educator how to respond to different student errors and tailor each lesson based on student performance and individual learning needs.
An approach is the means adapted to tackling an issue. Orton-Gillingham is an instructional approach. It is most properly understood and practiced as an approach, not a method, program, system, or technique. In the hands of a well-trained and experienced instructor, it is a powerful tool of exceptional breadth, depth, and flexibility.
What is the Orton-Gillingham Approach?
The Orton-Gillingham Approach is the underlying foundation of all multisensory, structured language instruction. Orton-Gillingham (OG) systematically teaches the structure of the English language by incorporating multisensory modalities in a structured yet flexible approach, ensuring student success. The Stern Center’s Orton-Gillingham Institute is the only organization in Vermont that provides OG training accredited by the Orton-Gillingham Academy. We offer coursework and practicum opportunities toward three certifications: OG Classroom Educator, OG Associate Level, and OG Certified Level.
Our Reach by the Numbers
1,400+
Teachers Served This Year
When a teacher takes one of our courses, the positive impact ripples beyond one life, spreading through an entire classroom, school, and community.
Our Reach by the Numbers
17,374+
Student Services Hours This Year
We offer one-on-one teaching that transforms lives, lifts up voices, and inspires learners to bring forth their unique gifts to a world that awaits them.
Our Reach by the Numbers
475+
Schools Served This Year
We celebrate the dedication of our school partners and share their commitment to a brighter future for all learners.
Our Reach by the Numbers
38
States and Counting
We’re a national leader in language and literacy. Our impact currently extends across 38 states and several countries through the thousands of educators we reach and students we serve.
Keep Learning
Resources for Teachers
Explore evidence-based resources for teaching structured literacy, Orton-Gillingham, SEL, and more.
Teachers Making Change
We celebrate the dedication of our fellow educators and share their commitment
to helping every learner grow and thrive.
Course & Registration FAQs
Do you have questions about course registration, credits, grants, or anything else? Find your answers here!
Get in Touch!
For questions about courses and workshops, email proflearning@sterncenter.org, call 802-878-2332, or fill out the form below.