Structured Literacy
What is structured literacy?
Did you know that speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are trained to help children learn to read and spell? Reading is built on spoken language, and spoken language is our specialty.
Structured literacy is a way of teaching reading and writing that is explicit (nothing is left to guesswork), systematic (skills are taught in a planned order), and cumulative (each new skill builds on the last). It is backed by decades of research, and it’s especially helpful for children with dyslexia or other language-based learning differences. Many children benefit from it, not only those who struggle.
Why SLPs are poised to support literacy goals:
We work on the building blocks of reading. Here are the key terms, in plain language:
- Phonemic awareness: hearing and playing with the individual sounds in words, like knowing that “cat” has three sounds: /k/ /æ/ /t/.
- Phonics (sound-symbol correspondence): connecting those sounds to letters and letter patterns, so your child can sound out new words.
- Syllable types: the six common ways syllables are built in English, which helps with reading and spelling longer words.
- Morphology: understanding word parts, like prefixes, suffixes, and roots. Knowing that “un-” means “not” helps with unhappy, unfair, and unlock.
- Vocabulary and sentence structure (semantics and syntax): knowing what words mean and how sentences work, so your child can understand what they read, not just say the words.
Every one of these is part of SLP training. We study how sounds, words, and sentences work, so we know how to teach each building block and how they fit together to create confident readers and writers.
What this means for your child:
We can find where the breakdown is. For example, if a child has trouble with sounds or language when speaking, it can show up in reading and writing too. We can pinpoint which building block needs support.
We individualize. We break skills into small steps, adjust in the moment, and set clear goals.
We track progress. We measure growth with data, so you can see how your child is doing.
We work as a team. We’re happy to partner with your child’s teacher and share strategies for practicing at home.
Many families may be able to use private insurance to help cover speech-language pathology services, including assessment and treatment for literacy support. Coverage varies by insurance provider and plan, so we recommend checking with yours.