Orton Gillingham Overview

There is no single “correct” sequence for teaching phonics within the Orton-Gillingham (OG) approach, as OG is not a rigid curriculum but rather a flexible, research-based method of instruction. All OG-based programs follow the same core principles: they are explicit, systematic, cumulative, and multisensory. However, the order in which letters, sounds, and concepts are introduced may vary depending on the program (such as IMSE, Wilson, Sonday, or Fundations), the learners’ needs, and specific instructional goals. For example, some sequences prioritize easier-to-pronounce sounds, high-frequency words, or handwriting-friendly letters early on. This flexibility enables educators to tailor instruction to support student success best while still adhering to the structured OG framework. The levels I have outlined below are rough guidelines since OG is not a rigid curriculum. Orton Gillingham Overview.

Check out Spelling Rules & Generalizations

Syllabication Types and Rules

Orton Gillingham Teaching Manual

National Right to Read – an excellent PDF of phonics teaching order

Orton Gillingham 13-book series! You can buy them as you need them. I can’t rave about these enough.  They gradually progress in phonics skills, starting with short-vowel CVC stories and progressing to compounds and multisyllabic words. These inexpensive readers are perfect for parents and teachers. (As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases, but I had to recommend these.)

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Teaching Order

Lesson Plan Template

Teaching Tips

Level One

Level Two

Level Three

Teaching Order

Consonants & Short Vowels

(These letters and sounds are the most common and easiest to distinguish.)

  1. m, s, a, t

  2. b, c, i, f

  3. n, o, h, d

  4. g, l, e, p

  5. r, u, j, k

  6. w, y, x, q, z, v

Focus on CVC words: cat, mop, fin, etc.

 Digraphs & Blends

  1. Digraphs:

    • sh, ch, th (hard), th (soft), wh, ck, ng, nk

  2. Blends (Initial & Final):

    • bl, cl, fl, gl, pl, sl

    • br, cr, dr, fr, gr, pr, tr

    • sc, sk, sm, sn, sp, st, sw, tw

    • nd, nt, mp, ft, st, lt, lk, pt

Long Vowels & Silent E (VCe)

  • a_e, i_e, o_e, u_e, e_e
    (e.g., make, kite, rope, cube, these)

Vowel Teams & Diphthongs

  1. Vowel Teams (Long Vowel Sounds):

    • ai, ay, ee, ea, oa, oe, ie, igh, ui

  2. Diphthongs / Variant Vowel Teams:

    • oi, oy, ou, ow, au, aw, ew

R-Controlled Vowels

  • ar, or, er, ir, ur

 Other Advanced Patterns

  1. Consonant-le:

    • -ble, -cle, -dle, -gle, -kle, -tle, -zle

  2. Prefixes & Suffixes:

    • un-, re-, dis-, pre-, mis-, -ed, -ing, -s, -es

  3. Schwa

    • The unstressed vowel sound is often in unaccented syllables (e.g., about, pencil)

  4. Multisyllabic words & syllable division rules

OG Teaching Tips

  • Teach the letter’s name, sound, and formation together.

  • Practice daily with drills, dictation, and reading.

  • Always review before adding new material.

  • Use multisensory tools, such as sand trays, skywriting, and tapping.

  • Create stories using Project Read story generator! Enter IMSE Orton-Gillingham Plus as your Scope and Sequence.

Orton-Gillingham Lesson Plan Template

1. Review (5–10 minutes)

Purpose: Reinforce previously taught material

  • Sound drill: Use flashcards of letters—the student says the sound

  • Blending drill: Use consonant/vowel/consonant tiles to build and blend words

  • Sight word review: Read and spell previously learned sight words

  • Syllable types or rules (if applicable): Quick review

2. New Concept Introduction (10–15 minutes)

Purpose: Explicitly teach one new concept

  • Name of concept (e.g., short “u”, digraph “ch”, silent-e)

  • Use multisensory input:

    • Visual: Show letter/pattern

    • Auditory: Say sound(s)

    • Kinesthetic: Skywriting, sand tray, tapping out sounds

    • Tactile: Write in sand, use magnetic letters

3. Guided Practice with Reading (10–15 minutes)

Purpose: Build decoding and fluency with the new concept

  • Word reading: Read a list of words with the target pattern

  • Sentence reading: Use sentences that include several practice words

  • Controlled text reading: Short passage or story that matches the skill. TIP:  This website generates stories based on the letters and words you input.

4. Spelling/Writing (10–15 minutes)

Purpose: Reinforce mapping and encoding

  • Dictation of words: Teacher says a word, student taps sounds, writes it

  • Dictation of sentence: Include one or more target words

  • Word sorting or syllable marking (if applicable)

5. Sight Word Instruction (if needed)

Purpose: Map irregular/high-frequency words

  • Teach through orthographic mapping:

    • Discuss the irregular part

    • Practice reading/writing it using multisensory methods

    • Use it in a sentence

6. Wrap-Up & Independent Practice (5 minutes)

  • Review what was learned

  • Assign a practice word list or sentence

  • Optionally provide a take-home activity or reader

Orton Gillingham Overview.

Level One

Alphabet

  • Say in sequence
  • Name vowels
  • Arrange letters in sequence
  • Name all lowercase letters presented visually

Phonograms

  • b-boy, c-cat, d-dog, f-fish, g-goat, h-hat, j-jam, k-kite
  • l-lamp, m-man, n-nut, p-pan, r-rat, s-snake, t-top
  • v-van, x-box, w-wind, y-yo-yo, z-zebra
  • a-apple, i-igloo/itchy, o-octopus, u-umbrella/up, e-Eddie (elephant)
  • sh-ship, th-this, ch-chin, wh-whale, qu-queen, ck – (reading only)

Long vowel phonograms:

  • a-e safe, i-e five, o-e home, u-e cube, e-e Pete

Reading

  • Closed syllable words with the above phonograms
  • Closed syllable words with initial and/or final consonant blends
  • Silent e syllable words
  • Two-syllable words with division between two consonants (ban/dit)
  • Learned words: the, a, said, was, are, were, to, do, of, I

Concepts

Understand and define:

  • syllable
  • vowel
  • consonant
  • consonant digraphs
  • consonant blends
  • learned words/sight words
  • closed syllable
  • silent e syllable

Spelling

  • Closed syllable words with the above phonograms
  • Closed syllable words with initial/final consonant blends
  • Silent e syllable words
  • Two-syllable words with division between unlike consonants (ban/dit)
  • FF, LL, SS spelling rule (FLOSS)
  • /k/ is spelled with c at the beginning of a word

Orton Gillingham Overview.

Level Two

Phonograms

  • tch-catch, ck-black (reading), ay-play, ee-feet, igh-night, oa-boat, ea-eat
  • y-my, y-candy, ow-snow, ow-plow, th-thumb, oe-toe, oo-food, oo-book, er-her

er/ir/ur make the exact same sound. Her turn first. Her bird burps.

  • ir-bird, ur-burn, ai-rain, ar-car, or-corn, ie-pie, ou-ouch, aw-saw

Reading

  • Words with Levels I & II phonograms
  • Two-syllable words divided between 2+ consonants (nap/kin, ath/lete)
  • Family patterns: all, old, ild, ost, ind, ing, ang, ong, ung, ink, ank, onk, unk
  • Common suffixes: s (plural), ing, er, est, ly, y, ed
  • Learned words: one, two, does, done, goes, gone, once, come, some, they, from

Concepts

  • Diphthong (vowel team) syllable
  • “R-controlled” syllable (Bossy R)
  • Open syllables in one-syllable words (he, go)
  • Plural & singular
  • Base word
  • Suffix
  • Past tense

Spelling

  • Words with Levels I & II phonograms
  • Words with no ambiguous spellings (one way to spell each sound)
  • Avoid vowel teams unless there’s a rule/generalization
  • Ck or K at end of one-syllable word (sock, take)
  • Tch or ch generalization (e.g., catch, rich)
  • Y = /i/ at end of one-syllable word (my)
  • Y = /e/ at end of polysyllabic word (candy)
  • Ay = long A at end of word (play)
  • Family patterns: all, old, ink, etc.
  • Plural S
  • Two-syllable words with division between unlike consonants
  • Suffixes: ing, ed, er, est, ly, y (no spelling change to base word)
  • Learned spelling words: the, do, to, are, of, said, was, were

Orton Gillingham Overview.

Level Three

Phonograms

  • ph-phone, ough-thought, ought-bought
  • wr-write, kn-knife, gn-gnat, mb-lamb, ed (3 sounds)
  • au- August, ew-new, ei-vein, ey-they, eigh-eight
  • dge-fudge, ti-nation, si-tension, ci-special
  • ie-chief, ei-seize, ey-key
  • ture-nature, sure-pressure
  • ear-early, our-journal, ould-could (I teach “o-u-lucky-duck” for ould.)

Reading

  • Words with Levels I–III phonograms
  • Compound words
  • Two-syllable words divided before a single consonant (o/pen)
  • Words with learned words from previous levels

Concepts

  • Open syllables
  • Consonant-le syllables
  • Vowel digraph syllables
  • Syllable division patterns: V/CV (ti/ger), VC/V (lem/on)
  • Homophones
  • Suffix spelling rules (e-drop, doubling)
  • Root words
  • Prefixes
  • Suffixes
  • Word parts
  • Word origin (Greek, Latin, Anglo-Saxon)

Spelling

  • Words with Levels I–III phonograms
  • Words with suffixes requiring e-drop or consonant doubling
  • Words with prefixes and suffixes attached to base words
  • Homophones (there/their/they’re, etc.)
  • Words with silent letters (kn, wr, etc.)
  • Multi-syllable words broken using correct division patterns
  • Greek/Latin roots (e.g., phon, spect, dict)

cards

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nonfiction text structures

10/26/25

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