General Information

Welcome to the Reading Ranch Tutorial Center

Founded, privately owned and operated by a Reading & Language Specialist who advocates quality literacy for Early Readers/Writers, At-Risk Readers & Dyslexia (PreK thru 6th Grade).

Tell me, and I’ll forget.
Show me, and I may not remember.
Involve me, and I’ll understand.

Why Is Phonemic Awareness So Important?

Educators are always looking for valid and reliable predictors of educational achievement. According to experts, research indicates that phonemic awareness is the best predictor of the ease of early reading acquisition – better even than IQ, vocabulary, and listening comprehension.

Phonological awareness is not only correlated with learning to read, but research indicates that it is the foundational ability underlying the learning of spelling-sound correspondences.  Although phonological awareness appears to be a necessary condition for learning to read (children who do not develop phonological awareness — do not go on to learn how to read).

Additionally, reviews from researchers suggest that it is critical for children to be able to link phoneme awareness to their knowledge of letters.  Once beginning readers have some awareness of phonemes and their corresponding graphic representations, further reading instruction heightens their awareness of language, assisting them in developing the later stages of phonemic awareness; thus the process of learning to read begins.

Some examples of preschool level phonemic awareness activities which direct their attention to the sounds in words are rhyming and alliteration games.  Most importantly, leading language experts state that phonemic awareness is both a prerequisite for and a consequence of learning to read.

Early Literacy Programs

Enrich your child with the gift of a strong foundation of early literacy. Learn oral language, print awareness, build on letter recognition, letter stroke, phonological awareness, alphabetic principle, rhyme time & word play. Advanced concepts will include blending sounds to form words, vowels and consonants, high-frequency word recognition. Daily guided reading and oral language with comprehension through shared reading.

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Faculty & Staff

Our Reading Ranch staff are trained by the founder, Dr. Southwell, an avid reading practitioner, and her training team.  The intense training program involves theory and hands-on practice with students in a lab setting.  The training provides RR center teachers a systematic approach, and the tools needed to become effective Reading Ranch instructors and implement the RR’s proprietary program for reading, phonetics, spelling, comprehension and writing skills.

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After School Tutoring Programs

Our afterschool tutorial program is available to the public servicing elementary school-aged children (Kinder to 6th). Open 7 days a week.  Our multiple programs consist of Early Reading, Multisensory Reading Enrichment (K, 1 & 2), Intervention Reading (3rd-4th), Intervention Spelling & Vocabulary Enhancement(3rd-4th), Reading Comprehension (3rd-4th), Early Writing & Writing Workshop (2nd-4th).

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Literacy Programs

  • Early Reading
  • Multi-Sensory Reading Enrichment
  • Intervention Reading/Fluency Program
  • Intervention Spelling & Vocabulary Enhancement
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Early Writing
  • Writing Workshop 

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Tutorial Programs & Summer Camps

June, July, August.  All programs, plus Summer Book Club.

Reading Intervention Program (Fluency Bldg, Writing, Spelling). Develop comprehension skills through researched-based visual-imagery program which teaches students how to use visually imagery and self-questioning strategies plus provide a verbal description of the on-going images. Students learn how to form questions, describe images about the content of the passage while reading to maintain interest and enhance recall.

Explore a variety of different genres through Children’s Literature. Reflective writings and book talks using fiction, non-fiction. Form boy or girls Book Clubs with your friends in small, quaint & fun setting – and explore the joys of reading! Campus location, times, groups, genre topics to be announced.

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