Wilson Reading System

Wilson Reading System Tutoring

The Wilson Reading System (WRS) is an instructional program used to help struggling readers. It’s one of several programs that uses the highly structured Orton–Gillingham approach. WRS is designed for students from second grade up to adulthood. It’s most widely used with upper elementary students, middle-schoolers and high-schoolers.

Like other programs based on Orton–Gillingham, WRS is “multisensory.” It uses visual, auditory, kinesthetic and tactile senses to help kids make connections between sounds and words, but the materials may be simpler and more direct than the ones used in other programs.

WRS uses far fewer pictures than other programs. This can help students focus on decoding words without the help of visual cues. The pictures it does use are very simple and are only included in certain activities. WRS starts with very basic skills, like matching sounds with letters. Instructors then help students recognize different syllables and teach students how to use syllables to read and spell.

At Servidio Education Solutions, we make sure that reading comprehension and fluency are addressed as part of the program. We have found that many Orton Gillingham based programs tend to ignore comprehension and fluency and that becomes a bigger issue down the road for students as they are finally able to catch up on their decoding skills but are then behind on other reading skills. It is our mission to break that cycle and help your child to become a well rounded reader.

Wilson Reading System works because:

Older students are able to use materials that are more age appropriate.
Students are able to understand the relationship between words and sounds.
Students explicitly learn spelling rules and when to apply them.
Students are able to decode words for reading.
Students learn to encode words for writing.
Students move on when they have mastered a skill instead of progressing on an arbitrary deadline.