Structured literacy is the term used by researchers, reading specialists, and dyslexia advocates to describe instruction that is explicit, systematic, cumulative, and aligned with how the brain actually learns to read. It is the instructional approach backed by decades of reading science. And it is, in practice, very different from how most children are taught to read in school.
Central Park Tutors is a structured literacy tutoring agency. We have been teaching NYC students to read through structured methods for more than twenty years, under the direction of co-founder Susana Kraglievich, an accredited Associate Fellow of the Orton-Gillingham Academy.
Our tutoring has been recommended by The New York Times.
What Structured Literacy Means — In Plain English
The term “structured literacy” was coined by the International Dyslexia Association in 2016 to describe a family of approaches that share a common architecture. All structured literacy instruction is:
Explicit. Skills are taught directly, not discovered. The tutor names what is being taught and why.
Systematic and cumulative. Each skill builds on what came before, in a planned sequence. Nothing is skipped, nothing is out of order.
Diagnostic. The tutor assesses where the student currently is and adjusts instruction accordingly — not based on a scripted curriculum alone.
Multisensory. Sight, sound, touch, and movement are used together because dyslexic and struggling readers benefit from multiple neural pathways to the same information.
Structured literacy is not a specific program. It is a standard. Orton-Gillingham, Wilson Reading System, Fundations, Barton, Slingerland, and Lindamood-Bell’s LiPS all meet this standard. Most balanced literacy, whole language, and leveled reading approaches do not.
Why Structured Literacy Matters Now
A decade of reporting — most notably Emily Hanford’s work — has shifted how educators, parents, and policymakers understand reading instruction. New York State is among many that have revised their reading curriculum requirements to align with the science of reading. Schools are scrambling to retrain teachers. Parents are learning, often after years of struggle, that the approach their child was taught was not the approach the research supports.
But institutional change is slow. If your child is struggling now, in second grade or sixth grade or tenth, you do not have years to wait for the education system to catch up. Structured literacy tutoring outside of school is often the fastest path to fluency — and for many families, the only path that works.
How We Deliver Structured Literacy Tutoring
Every student we work with begins with a full diagnostic assessment. We assess phonological awareness, letter-sound knowledge, decoding by syllable type, sight word recognition, fluency, spelling, and writing. This gives us a precise map of what the student knows and where the gaps begin.
From the diagnostic, we build a structured, sequenced plan. For early readers, we may begin with phonemic awareness and basic phonograms. For older students, we may begin further along — perhaps with syllable division strategies or morphology. The sequence is different for every student, but the principle is the same: we teach the next thing they are ready to learn, never the thing that assumes skills they have not yet built.
Sessions are one-on-one, in your home or online, 60 minutes, typically twice a week. Every session includes direct instruction, guided practice, and independent application — across reading, spelling, and writing.
Timeline and Cost
Structured literacy is not a quick-fix approach. For students with significant reading difficulties or dyslexia, expect 12 to 24 months of consistent instruction. For students with milder gaps, meaningful progress typically emerges within three to six months. The work compounds: the first six months build the foundation, and the following months accelerate as the student’s capacity grows.
Our rate for structured literacy tutoring is $200 per hour, which reflects the specialized training our tutors hold. All materials are included. We do not require prepayment.
Structured literacy was developed for dyslexic students, and it remains the gold-standard intervention for dyslexia. But its benefit extends much further. Any student who is a late reader, who struggles with spelling, who avoids writing, who reads laboriously, or who seems to “guess” at words from context rather than decode them can benefit from structured literacy instruction.
Students without diagnoses benefit too. Many mainstream school curricula simply do not teach the phonics, morphology, and syllable structure that students need to read fluently at advanced levels. A structured literacy tutor fills those gaps with efficient, targeted instruction.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is structured literacy the same as Orton-Gillingham?
Not quite. Structured literacy is the broader category; Orton-Gillingham is the original — and still most widely used — approach within that category. Other structured literacy programs include Wilson, Fundations, Barton, and Slingerland. All are structured literacy; not all are OG.
Is this the “science of reading”?
Yes, in a practical sense. The “science of reading” refers to the body of research documenting how children learn to read. Structured literacy is the instructional approach aligned with that research. When educators and journalists talk about schools “moving to the science of reading,” they mean adopting structured literacy practices.
Why doesn’t my child’s school already teach this way?
Many schools still use approaches (balanced literacy, whole language, leveled reading) that developed independently of the reading research. Change is happening, but unevenly. New York State has recently revised teacher training requirements, but individual schools vary widely in how they have responded. A good way to tell: ask your child’s teacher how they assess phonemic awareness and teach syllable types. If the answer is vague, structured literacy may be missing.
Does my child need a dyslexia diagnosis to benefit?
No. While structured literacy is the gold standard for dyslexia, the approach benefits any struggling reader. We have worked with many students who were never formally diagnosed but who clearly needed structured, sequenced instruction that their schools weren’t providing.
Is structured literacy only for elementary students?
No. We work with students of every age — from kindergartners building phonological awareness to high schoolers still decoding unfamiliar words. Older students often show the most dramatic progress because they are motivated and can hold more complex patterns in memory. It is never too late.
Can structured literacy tutoring be done online?
Yes. We deliver effective structured literacy instruction online when families prefer or when scheduling requires it. The method translates well to video when the tutor is properly trained.
What should I look for when hiring a structured literacy tutor?
Ask specifically: What training have you completed? (Look for OG, Wilson Level I/II, Barton certification, or similar). How do you diagnose where a student is starting? How do you sequence instruction? Tutors who offer vague answers to these questions are unlikely to deliver true structured literacy — regardless of how they describe their work.
How is structured literacy different from general reading tutoring?
General reading tutoring often focuses on comprehension, fluency practice, or homework help — working on the content the student encounters in school. Structured literacy works at the level of the reading code itself: phonemes, morphemes, syllable types, spelling patterns. It rebuilds the foundation rather than compensating for weaknesses in it.
Every child’s reading profile is different. Call us at (917) 502-9108 and we will take the time to understand your child’s needs and match them with a tutor trained in the method.
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