When Words Take Shape: Drawing as a Doorway to Reading

"I teach my students to read by teaching my students to write. I teach my students to write by teaching my students to draw." In this hands-on session, literacy intervention consultant Tamara Martin Spady shares how guided drawing, writing, and multi-sensory strategies can transform reading instruction for young and struggling readers. Grounded in the science of reading and Dual Coding Theory, her approach helps students build strong visual and verbal connections that support phonemic awareness, phonics, and spelling. Tamara will show how drawing supports orthographic mapping, reinforces grapheme-phoneme correspondences, and helps the alphabetic principle stick—especially for students who need more than traditional instruction. You’ll also explore how to weave multi-sensory routines into your structured literacy lessons to increase engagement, motivation, and fun. Her practical strategies have led to rapid, lasting gains across her school division. Best of all, you’ll get to try it yourself! Tamara will guide you step by step through simple, effective drawings that you can use immediately with your students. Walk away with new tools, fresh ideas, and a playful, powerful way to boost your intervention work.