Building Lifelong Readers at Springer

Learning to read is a complex process. For students with dyslexia, ADHD, and executive functioning challenges, it can be especially demanding. Dyslexia can make it difficult to connect sounds with letters and to read words accurately and fluently. ADHD and executive functioning challenges can affect attention, working memory, organization, and the ability to begin or manage a task. Because these learning differences often overlap, some students are working through several challenges at once. Research shows that nearly 45% of individuals with ADHD also have a co-occurring learning disability, such as dyslexia, creating a dual burden in which students must work much harder to decode text while managing attention and self-regulation demands.

A student may spend so much mental energy decoding individual words that little capacity remains for understanding the larger meaning of a passage. Another student may read the words accurately but struggle to identify the main idea, follow a sequence of events, or organize information from the text. 

These challenges do not reflect a lack of intelligence or effort. They signal a need for instruction that is clear, intentional, and responsive to how the student learns.

What Is Structured Literacy?

At Springer, literacy instruction is grounded in Structured Literacy, an evidence-based approach aligned with the Science of Reading.

Structured Literacy is an explicit, systematic, and cumulative approach to reading instruction that teaches the structure of spoken and written language. It builds students' skills in phonology, sound-symbol relationships, spelling, vocabulary, syntax, and comprehension through direct, diagnostic instruction.

Springer teachers use the Wilson Reading System® to provide direct instruction in phonemic awareness, phonics and word recognition, spelling, fluency, vocabulary, and reading comprehension. Lessons are carefully sequenced so that students master foundational skills before moving to more complex concepts, reducing cognitive overload and supporting students with working memory and executive functioning challenges.

Instruction Designed Around the Student

Literacy instruction at Springer is delivered in small groups, allowing teachers to closely monitor each student’s progress and adjust lessons based on individual needs. Teachers provide immediate feedback, revisit concepts when necessary, and break larger reading and writing assignments into manageable steps. Students may use graphic organizers, guided notes, repeated practice, and teacher modeling to support comprehension and organization.

Multisensory and multimodal strategies are also an important part of instruction. Students may see, hear, say, and write sounds and words at the same time. Engaging multiple pathways helps reinforce reading and spelling skills while supporting students who have difficulty sustaining attention or holding information in working memory.

Over time, these supports do more than improve literacy. They help students strengthen task initiation, organization, self-monitoring, and other executive functioning skills needed for increasingly independent learning.

Building Confidence Alongside Skills

For many students, reading and writing have been sources of frustration for years. Repeated struggles can lead students to avoid challenging tasks or begin to doubt their abilities. That is why confidence is an essential part of literacy instruction at Springer.

Through individualized support, achievable goals, and consistent encouragement, students begin to recognize their progress. Each success helps them become more willing to take academic risks, persevere through difficulty, and see themselves as capable readers and writers.

Barbara Wilson, co-founder of Wilson Language Training, has emphasized that "Students with dyslexia can learn to read, but this requires teachers who have both the knowledge and the skills to successfully teach them." This belief is at the heart of Springer’s approach. By combining evidence-based instruction, individualized support, and a focus on student strengths, Springer helps students build the literacy skills and confidence they need to become successful, independent, lifelong readers.

Thank you to Cari Kelly, Reading/LD Specialist, Dyslexia Therapist, and Wilson Credentialed Trainer at Springer School and Center for sharing these insights.