Does your child need help with reading and writing? You've come to the right place!
About
Our Learning Studio
OLS is a private tutoring practice in Winston-Salem. If your child struggles with reading and writing skills, help is available!
Learning Opportunities:
- Reading Intervention
- Writing Instruction
- Enrichment
- Parent Workshops
- Homeschooling Classes
- Summer Tutoring
- Kindergarten Readiness Camp
Dr. Killeen-Pittman
Dr. Cathleen Killeen-Pittman, founder of Our Learning Studio, is a literacy tutor for students needing extra support with reading and writing skills. She serves Pre-K through 8th grade students at her studio in Winston-Salem.
Dr. Pittman uses multi-sensory teaching methodologies to help her students grow as readers and writers. Only about 1/3 of students identify primarily as auditory learners, and this number decreases for students with learning differences. By adding visual, tactile, and kinesthetic components to each lesson, Dr. Pittman provides a targeted mulit-sensory approach to reading to help make things "click" for young readers. Instruction is provided in a one-on-one setting, and all lessons are individualized to meet the needs of each student.
Dr. Pittman's career as an educator spans over 25 years. She has served as a teacher or administrator at Forsyth Technical Community College, Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, Appalachian State University, and Davidson County Schools. She spent the past 15 years serving as the Beginning Teacher Evaluator for DCS where she mentored teachers during the first three years of their careers. Dr. Pittman holds an undergraduate degree in Elementary Education, a graduate degree in Educational Leadership, and a doctoral degree in Higher Education Administration.
How It Works
- Free Consultation: The initial consultation is the first step in enrolling in the program. Contact Dr. Pittman to schedule a no-obligation 30-minute consultation to discuss your child's needs and determine if the multi-sensory literacy instruction provided at this learning studio is the right match for your child.
- Enrollment: Choose an available time slot that will work for your family. Most students attend two sessions per week. There are no registration fees or long-term contracts. Since children progress at varying rates, enrollment is done on a monthly basis.
- Instruction: You've completed the consultation and enrolled your child. Now it's time for learning! Your child will receive individualized and hands-on literacy instruction in a one-on-one setting. Sessions are 55 minutes in length.
- Communication: Ongoing, open communication is a crucial component when building a partnership to help your child blossom as a reader and writer! While formal parent conferences are held each spring and fall, weekly communication via email, phone calls, and in-person conversations are highly valued at Our Learning Studio!
LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES
READING INTERVENTION
Does your child struggle with decoding? Is reading comprehension an ongoing challenge? Multi-sensory reading intervention may be the answer. There are five essential building blocks to reading: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. These intensive one-on-one sessions are designed to fill in the missing building blocks through hands-on and engaging activities. Each lesson is individualized and focused on increasing the student's confidence as a reader and scholar.
WRITING INSTRUCTION
Reading and writing go hand in hand. As children acquire additional reading skills, improvement in their writing is usually evident. While students may be able to tell detailed stories, they often have difficulty getting their words on paper. These one-on-one writing sessions are purposeful and intensive yet fun and out of the box!
PARENT WORKSHOPS
If you're interested in supporting your child at home using a multi-sensory approach, consider attending a one-on-one reading workshop for parents. Come learn about hands-on reading strategies for Pre-K and elementary-aged students! These 90-minute consultations are conducted on a one-on-one basis to cater to your child's specific needs.
Small group parent workshops (limited to 6 participants) are offered periodically. Stay tuned for upcoming dates or subscribe to the newsletter to have information delivered to your inbox!
PARENT WORKSHOP: Literacy Strategies to Help Your Child Blossom as a Reader
March 13, 2020 from 10:00-11:30 OR 6:00-7:30
Cost: $75
Come learn about hands-on reading strategies to help your child grow as a reader! This 90-minute workshop, presented by Dr. Pittman, has been created for those wanting to support emerging readers. This workshop is ideal for parents of Pre-K, Kindergarten, and first grade students. The hands-on strategies presented at this training could also benefit second graders who are struggling with decoding. We will cover 25 literacy strategies, and you will leave with the materials needed to practice these strategies at home with your child!
Registration closes on March 11th. This workshop is limited to six participants so you are encouraged to register early.
Click here to register:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScGFr7SLxLgB6P8UuacNWx588des_KhknuYNcf0THqa_BBgcQ/viewform
TUITION
FREE INITIAL CONSULTATION
Could your child benefit from one-on-one reading and writing intervention? The initial consultation is the first step in enrolling in the program. Contact Dr. Pittman to schedule a no-obligation 30-minute consultation to discuss your child's needs and determine if the multi-sensory literacy instruction provided at this learning studio is the right match for your child.
ONE-ON-ONE TUTORING
$70 per session
Tutoring sessions are 55 minutes in length. There are no registration or testing fees, and the cost of all materials is included in the tuition fee. A long-term contract is not required as enrollment is done on a month-to-month basis.
TESTIMONIALS
A few words from our learning community...
Every grandfather wants to see his grandchild have a great start to school. Each hopes to see him/her bringing home top grades, making lots of friends, and displaying an overall feeling of happiness regarding school. Realizing one or more of these things might not be in place could cause a grandfather to panic. Consequently, when my grandson displayed some difficulties with reading in first grade, grandmother and I sat down with his parents to determine what we should do. We knew we must find someone who knew how to identify specific areas of weakness and then address them.
Thankfully, I had worked with Dr. Cathleen Pittman in the Davidson County School System. After grandmother, mom, and dad heard me describe Dr. Pittman and her skills, we all agreed to contact her. We made the contact and introduced our grandson to Dr. Pittman. A positive connection was made and serious instruction started immediately.
Every instructional session was meticulously planned for him. Every action had a purpose. Every skill was introduced in a specific sequence. Each step was designed to prepare for the next. Appropriate materials were used to enhance learning. Skills were learned and retained for use in the present and for mastering future skills.
Our grandson responded very quickly and positively to Dr. Pittman. As a certified reading specialist, her instruction made all the difference. He had struggled in reading in first grade, but when he completed third grade and took his first End of Grade test in reading, he scored the highest mark given.
From a truly grateful grandfather,
Dr. Tony A. Peele
Deputy Superintendent for Human Resources and Administration
Davidson County Schools
Retired
Our admiration, appreciation, and love for Dr. Pittman and her work is much more than a 5 star rating. Yes, there are the objective performance outcomes that our son is now a top reader (fluency and comprehension) in his class because of her tutoring. But the true showcase of her abilities has been her genuine passion and holistic approach to build and strengthen our son's character through literacy - personal confidence and emotional intelligence being two star traits. Of equal importance is our son's reflection. Once anxious about reading and tutoring, our son now loves spending time with Dr. Pittman and how she makes it "fun". As parents, our hearts are so full hearing our son giggling when we pick him up from his tutoring session and how Dr. Pittman's work has transitioned to the classroom with our son's teacher now showcasing his abilities as a stronger reader to help out his peers. Having Dr. Pittman as a partner in our son's education has reduced our anxiety and brought reassurance to us continuously striving to be better parents. The partnership also reiterates we have a strong, positive, growing community of support for our son.
Parent of a first grader at Old Richmond Elementary School
Dr. Pittman is fantastic! She has worked with our son for over a year. He has gone from far behind in grade-level reading to one of the strongest readers in his class. His confidence in himself has dramatically improved, and he even enjoys teaching his little sister how to read. Dr. Pittman is very knowledgeable about teaching and has seemingly unlimited techniques at her disposal. They started out with basic phonics and sight words, but have since moved on to complex literary subjects like author's intent, metaphor, and narrative structure. She is the best!
Parent of a second grader at the Arts Based School
Dr. Pittman has been a blessing to our entire family! She has nurtured and encouraged our son in ways that have since developed his confidence as a learner, brother, son, and friend. We started with Dr. Pittman in the spring of Kindergarten. Our shy and anxious boy appreciated her kind and gentle approach and has blossomed under her teaching. The most growth was achieved in the summer months, when we met twice weekly. Our son’s reading foundation is secure, but more than that he feels confident to tackle his class work and considers himself a good reader now! Our time and investment with Dr. Pittman was extraordinary well spent. We are abundantly grateful for the expertise, experience, effort she pours into our darling boy.
Parent of a first grader at Jefferson Elementary School
