Ohio Dyslexia Support Law Professional Development
Are you looking to complete a professional development course that meets the Ohio Dyslexia Support Laws requirements for all K-3 teachers, and teachers providing special education instruction to children in K-12? The Keys to Beginning Reading course is accredited by the International Dyslexia Association and on Ohio’s approved list of approved professional development programs!
About the Keys to Beginning Reading Course 
This practical course provides the background knowledge needed to teach all the components of beginning reading instruction, as well as the identifying characteristics of dyslexia and pedagogy for dyslexia instruction. The instructional practices are designed to easily transfer to classroom lessons and can be integrated with any reading curriculum or published reading program. The course is tightly aligned with state literacy standards, and the content outline recommended by the Ohio Dyslexia Committee.
The course is organized into 11 modules covering topics that include: reading basics, oral language, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, sentence structure, text structure, comprehension, students with reading difficulties and dyslexia, and reading assessment. A 460-page training manual is included. Visit our Keys to Beginning Reading home page.
Three Options for Taking the Course
Option 1: Live Onsite or Virtual Course
Participants attend live training delivered by Keys to Literacy trainers onsite at a school district, OR live-virtual training using Zoom software. The full course takes 36 hours to complete. Contact us — we will develop a customized professional development plan for a school district to provide training following a flexible schedule that meets your needs.
Option 2: Facilitated Online Course
This option combines completion of the Keys to Beginning Reading online course with participation in live debrief sessions facilitated by a Keys to Literacy trainer. The online course is organized into 11 modules that cover the same content as live training. It is an asynchronous course, which means users can log on and off multiple times to complete the course assignments at their own pace. The live debrief sessions provide a collaborative opportunity to debrief activities completed during the online course, share ideas for connecting course content to classroom instruction, and have the facilitator answer questions and clarify online course content. The online course modules take approximately 36 hours to complete, and there are 12 hours of debrief meetings. Contact us — we will develop a customized professional development plan for a school district to provide training following a flexible schedule that meets your needs. If your school district, SST, or ESC is interested in providing the facilitated online course, consider our Train-the-Facilitator option, described at the bottom of this page.
Option 3: Asynchronous Online Course
This option is available to schools and individual educators. Educators complete the professional development on their own, using an asynchronous online course. The course is customized to meet the minimum 18 hours of professional development. Participants have the option of completing Modules 1-6 and receiving a Certificate of Completion for 22 hours, which meets the Dyslexia Support Law minimum 18-hour requirement. Participants have the option of completing Modules 7-11 to receive a second Certificate of Completion for 14 hours. Combined, the certificates show completion of the full, 36-hour course. Educators should check with their district to find out if the district is requiring completion of the full course, or just Modules 1-6. Individuals can click here to register and pay for the course. Individual registration price is $362 (includes book and shipping & handling). For group registrations, contact KTL.
Click here for guidelines about the three options for this professional development
What if our school district has already started or completed Keys to Beginning Reading training?
The Ohio Department of Education notes, “Any professional development previously completed by a teacher that is included on the list of approved courses counts toward the required 18 hours in approved professional development.” Over the last several years, Keys to Literacy has been working with Ohio school districts to provide professional development to educators using our various PreK-12 courses. If we have provided training for some or all of the Keys to Beginning Reading course modules, these should count towards meeting the requirements of the Dyslexia Support Laws. Please contact us to learn more about previously provided training or to develop a plan for completing training for all modules.
I am an individual educator. How can I access the Keys to Beginning Reading course?
The live or facilitated online options are only available via training provided by Keys to Literacy to school districts, OR from trainings sponsored by State Support Teams or Educational Service Centers using their trainers who have completed our Train-the-Facilitator training to become certified, licensed Keys to Beginning Reading facilitators. Check with your local SST or ESC to find out if our course will be offered through these organizations.
The asynchronous online course is the only option available to individual educators. Educators should check with their district to find out if the district is requiring completion of the full course, or just Modules 1-6. Individuals can click here to register and pay for the course.
Train-the-Facilitator Option
Keys to Literacy offers a Level I Train-the-Facilitator option for Ohio SST or ESC agencies and school districts that would like to develop in-house facilitators for the facilitated online Keys to Beginning Reading course. Click here for information about this option.