"I spent a lot of time researching and interviewing reading specialists before hiring Rosemarie. Within the first fifteen minutes of the interview, I knew she was an expert in the field. She brings over 25 years of experience working with students as a school psychologist and a tutor, an encyclopedic knowledge of reading interventions, and a genuine concern for her students.  Her flexible and fun methods can only be accomplished because of her bedrock knowledge of pedagogical principles. She communicates regularly with me through detailed reports that give insight into my child's strengths, challenges, and progress. What a find!"

                                              -- Parent of a seventh grader

"I honestly wish you knew the impact that you have had on Michael. He has changed from a shy child who was so insecure to one who is now surrounded by friends and very confident. He has improved almost 3 reading levels working with you. I have no way to thank you for getting our son back."

                                               -- Parent of 4th grade child

"The best decision I made in my quest to get my son the help he needed to overcome his reading problems was to call Rosemarie Hoffman. She was warm, patient, and very competent. I was so impressed with her. I asked that she tutor my son after he was diagnosed with severe dyslexia and dysgraphia. My son loved her, and so did I. He went from reading eleven correct words per minute, to almost reading at grade level in less than a year. I would recommend her to anyone whose child is struggling to read. " 

                                              -- Parent of a second grader

"You are by far the best teacher I have ever had, and I have had a lot of teachers! The patience you have with your students is amazing. I have made so much progress in reading and spelling with you. I thank you from the bottom of my heart."

                                              -- College sophomore from Delaware

"Matthew has progressed and developed beyond anything we imagined. We are so very encouraged by how much he has learned. Rosemarie is immensely talented but also patient and persistent - just what he needed. "

                                               -- Parent of eight grade student

• Have you tried almost everything you could think of – learning centers, after-school tutoring at school, private tutors, and so forth – and nothing has worked?
• Is the whole family exhausted from driving to and from tutoring and waiting for tutoring sessions to be over?

Learn how one-on-one instruction with multisensory Orton-Gillingham Techniques in the convenience of your home over the Internet without time-consuming driving and waiting can make all the difference for your child.

Click on the navigation bar on the left to see my expert qualifications, extensive experience, and stellar history of success in helping children with dyslexia and reading problems.

Almost 1 in 5 people have difficulty with reading, writing, and spelling due to dyslexia.

Dyslexia is a learning disability that is primarily manifest by a difficulty with the written language, especially reading, writing, and spelling. Dyslexia literally means “difficulty with words.” Those with dyslexia have trouble with reading, writing, and spelling, despite having at least average intelligence.

Often those with dyslexia have special talents in other areas, such as athletics, music, art, science, mechanical skills, and people skills. Many famous individuals have had dyslexia, including John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Benjamin Franklin, Woodrow Wilson, Tom Cruise, Whoopi Goldberg, Danny Glover, Steven Spielberg, Dustin Hoffman, Steve McQueen, Jack Nicholson, Sylvester Stallone, Robin Williams, Lindsay Wagner, George C. Scott, George Burns, Anthony Hopkins, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Pablo Picasso, Vincent Van Gogh, Cher, Beethoven, John Lennon, Mozart, Thomas Edison, Michael Faraday, James Clerk Maxwell, Nicolai Tesla, Albert Einstein, Alexander Graham Bell, The Wright Brothers, Henry Ford, Galileo, Steven Hawkings, Louis Pasteur, Jules Verne, John Grisham, Charles Schwab, Bill Hewlett, and others.

If a person has three or more of the following symptoms, that person may have dyslexia. A person can be reliably screened for dyslexia through formal dyslexia testing.

Delayed speech

• Mixing up the sounds and syllables in long words
• Chronic ear infections
• Severe reactions to childhood illnesses
• Constant confusion of left versus right
• Late establishing a dominant hand
• Difficulty learning to ties shoes
• Trouble memorizing their address, phone number, or the alphabet
• Can’t create words that rhyme
• A close relative with dyslexia

• Dysgraphia (slow, non-automatic handwriting that is difficult to read)
• Letter or number reversals continuing past the end of first grade
• Extreme difficulty learning cursive
• Slow, choppy, inaccurate reading
• Guesses based on shape or context
• Skips or misreads prepositions (at, to, of)
• Ignores suffixes
• Can’t sound out unknown words
• Terrible spelling
• Often can’t remember sight words (they, were, does) or homonyms (their, they’re, and there)
• Difficulty telling time with a clock with hands
• Trouble with math
• Memorizing multiplication tables
• Memorizing a sequence of steps
• Directionality
• When speaking, difficulty finding the correct word
• Lots of “whatchamacallits” and “thingies”
• Common sayings come out slightly twisted
• Extremely messy bedroom, backpack, and desk
• Dreads going to school
• Complains of stomach aches or headaches
• May have nightmares about school

All of the previously listed symptoms plus:

• Limited vocabulary
• Extremely poor written expression
• Large discrepancy between verbal skills and written compositions
• Unable to master a foreign language
• Difficulty reading printed music
• Poor grades in many classes
• May drop out of high school

Education history similar to the previous, plus:

• Slow reader
• May have to read a page two or three times to understand it
• Terrible speller
• Difficulty putting thoughts onto paper
• Dreads writing memos or letters
• Still has difficulty with right versus left
• Often gets lost, even in a familiar city
• Sometimes confuses "b" and "d", especially when tired or sick

Dyslexia can make it difficult for a person to reach their potential; however, dyslexia is a treatable condition. Most people with dyslexia can learn to read, write, spell, and succeed academically with the proper intensive instruction from a qualified dyslexia tutor.

Dyslexia tutoring should be done using an Orton-Gillingham based multisensory systematic program that has a proven track record. People with dyslexia need to be taught differently so that their strengths can be utilized and their weak areas improved.

If school accommodations are needed while the dyslexia is being remediated, a person can be tested for dyslexia and a written report prepared for the school.
Accommodations can help a person succeed in school and not be penalized for difficulties with reading and spelling. These accommodations could include reduced homework, extra time for testing, oral testing, not being required to copy from the board or from books, not being graded down for spelling errors, and modified spelling lists.

I can help you no matter where you live—New York City, Atlanta, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas, Seattle, Denver, Las Vegas, Houston, Chicago, Kansas City, Miami, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Orlando, Phoenix, Boston, Newark, Anchorage, Honolulu, or any other U.S. city as well as all 50 states: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, and anywhere else in the world.