About Me and the Reading Blocks Program

learn how to read

Hi Everyone,

Welcome to the Reading Blocks Program – The Best Reading Program to Teach Kids How to Read.

If you are looking for a reading program for kids that works, you have come to the right place.

The Reading Blocks website is based on the reading program for kids called: Reading Blocks: A Step By Step Method to Teach Reading. This easy to use program breaks up the learning to read process into smaller, manageable chunks of information.

The Reading Blocks Website is packed with effective and fun reading strategies to use with any type of learner and supports the Reading Blocks program for learning to read.  

I have been teaching reading for over twenty years and have researched and experimented with hundreds of different reading strategies. You will find everything you need to know about teaching reading within these pages.

Why I Became a Reading Specialist

Before I go any farther, I should share with you how I developed my philosophy on reading instruction. First I graduated with a BS Degree in Mathematics Education. Initially I wanted to teach Mathematics in High School. My interests took a radically different course when one of my daughters struggled with learning how to read. Before this occurred, I had no idea that learning to read could be so difficult.

No matter how hard we worked together, my daughter could not learn the letter names or sounds. One day she would know a couple of the letters or sounds but the next day they would be forgotten, or worse, confused with a different letter or sound.

She always had trouble singing the alphabet song. All of the letters just kind of blurred together and sounded the same. She could not learn the sight words she was supposed to know in kindergarten. One day she could read some of the words but the next day she couldn’t.

Dyslexia and CAPD Diagnosis

After a lot of pain and suffering (for all of us), and arguments about going to school, and crying about not being able to learn, enduring two unsuccessful years in Kindergarten, and heart breaking unsuccessful years in first, second and third grade, we uncovered the issue. She had dyslexia as well as a severe Central Auditory Processing Disability (CAPD).

Searching for a Reading Program for Kids

During this period I read every book on reading instruction that I could find. I was desperate to find the answers to how I could teach my daughter to read. I went on to acquire a Master’s Degree in Reading and became a Reading Specialist because I saw that not knowing how to do mathematics paled in comparison to not knowing how to read fluently. Since I could not find what I was looking for in a reading program for kids, I developed my own.

Over the past twenty-five years I taught reading in the public and private school systems and tutored privately one-on-one. I have worked with children that had many different physical disabilities as well as learning disabilities. The Reading Blocks reading program developed as I uncovered the best ways to teach these kids how to read.

A a parent, I have been over the road of reading difficulties (with two of my five daughters) and as a reading specialist (with hundreds of children). I know how you feel as a parent because I already felt all the emotions and fears that go along with a child struggling to learn. I know what to do as a teacher because I have studied and taught all aspects of reading for so many years. This all came about from my quest to find the solution to my daughter’s inability to learn how to read.

My Beliefs on Literacy Education

My philosophy on literacy education lies in the belief that every child has the right, and the ability, to learn how to read.

  • Successful reading instruction can be accomplished in the school setting with: highly trained teachers; informed instruction based on current research; tier leveled instruction and intervention where necessary; and instructional strategies based on the students’ culture, background and interests.
  • Kids can learn how to read in the home environment by using: a step by step multi-sensory reading program; an incentive program that is unique to the individual situation and person; and a lot of patience, calmness, and love.

I can help with both learning situations and I will share powerful reading strategies that I found to be extremely effective for teaching reading in both learning environments.

Ask Questions

Please feel free to Email Me Here if you have any questions or concerns about teaching reading or learning to read. I will answer all frequently asked questions, so ask away!

Check out my blog where I will be discussing frequently asked questions and sharing new products and ideas for teaching reading.

Ready to Get Started

Purchase Reading Blocks: A Step By Step Method to Teach Reading EBook

So let’s get started. Together, we can make our contribution to a literate society, one reader at a time.

Veronica McCarthy