structured literacy for lifelong reading success
personalized Orton-Gillingham based tutoring for all learners
about me
Greetings! I’m Cailin Kiefhaber, a structured literacy specialist supporting children with and without learning differences such as dyslexia. After 15+ years as an elementary teacher and curriculum coordinator in international and progressive schools, I discovered the Orton-Gillingham approach and saw how transformative explicit, multisensory instruction can be. Today, I partner with families and school teams to design individualized, science-of-reading based plans that help students build real skills, confidence, and a love of learning.
services
private tutoring
1:1 Tutoring (45-minute sessions)
Ages preschool-grade 6
Utilizing the Orton-Gilllingham approach and an initial assessment, each student’s learning plan is tailor made for their needs. All lessons include multisensory techniques, structured routines, decodable texts, and productive feedback. Students are provided with activities to take home that reinforce lessons.
reading snapshot
1:1 skills assessment, written report, and home practice plan
Benchmark scores tell you where your child landed. They do not tell you why. The Reading Snapshot is a one on one assessment (about 60 minutes, in person or over Zoom) that looks closely at the skills underneath the score:
Phonological awareness: hearing and working with the sounds in words
Phonics: knowing letter and sound patterns
Word reading: reading words accurately and with ease
Spelling: encoding/internalizing spelling rules
Within one week you receive a detailed report in plain language that names your child’s strengths and specific goals, a home practice plan with simple and engaging activities matched to the results, and a 30 minute call to walk through it all together.
$425
The Reading Snapshot is an instructional skills assessment. It is not a psychoeducational evaluation and does not diagnose dyslexia or other learning differences. If the results suggest a fuller evaluation would help, I will tell you and point you toward next steps.
buddy tutoring
2:1 Tutoring (45-minute sessions)
This package is offered for students with similar needs. You may sign up with a friend or be recommended by your tutor. If signing up with a friend, both students will be approved after an initial assessment.
30% off of the 1:1 session price is offered for buddy tutoring.
decoding the data
30 minute phone or Zoom consult
Just left a parent teacher conference with an i-Ready, DIBELS, or MAP report and more questions than answers? Send me your child’s score reports ahead of time and I will review them before we talk. On our call I will explain what each score measures, what it does and does not tell us, and whether there is reason for concern. You will leave with clear next steps, questions to bring back to your child’s teacher, and a short written recap by email.
$95
why it works
→ what this means for your child:
Evidence-Based Instruction — Structured literacy rooted in the science of reading
Individualized Planning — Tailored to each learner’s needs, strengths, and goals
Explicit & Multisensory — Clear, step-by-step teaching with multisensory practice
Builds Real Skills — Stronger decoding, fluency, spelling, and writing
Confidence & Independence — Academic growth paired with belief in their abilities
My approach centers on structured literacy instruction grounded in the science of reading, supported by an individualized, strengths-based plan for each learner. We identify where skills break down and build them back up through explicit instruction, multisensory practice, and consistent application. Over time, students develop accurate decoding, improved fluency, and greater confidence — skills that carry into every area of their academic life.
