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Speaker Series

Carroll School Community Speaker Series

Dynamic thought leaders and educators share their expertise with the Carroll community.

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Be the first to know about upcoming Speaker Series events and webinars featuring experts in dyslexia, literacy, and language-based learning differences.

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Past Community Speaker Events

Introduction to Orton-Gillingham

In this recorded webinar, Heather Lufkin, Director of the Garside Institute for Teacher Training (GIFTT) at Carroll School, provides an engaging introduction to the Orton-Gillingham (OG) approach and the principles that have made it the gold standard for teaching reading, spelling, and written language—particularly for students with dyslexia and other language-based learning differences.

Unlocking Potential: How Targeted Cognitive Intervention Accelerates Learning

Cognitive skills like processing speed and working memory form an essential infrastructure that supports all reading and learning. In this speaker series session, we reveal how Carroll’s Targeted Cognitive Intervention (TCI) program boosts cognitive networks to amplify the effectiveness of academic instruction. Join our experts to explore the research behind TCI, our data-driven approach, and discover how customized cognitive training builds capacity for long-term success.

The Long View in Middle School: Intentional Growth, Meaningful Outcomes

Middle school is a time of extraordinary growth — academically, socially, and emotionally. This Speaker Series installment is designed to offer families a deeper look into the intentional design of our complete middle school experience and how it responds to the unique needs of adolescents as they grow from 6th through 8th grade.

Language Instruction at the Lower School: What is an effective framework for optimal skill and knowledge development?

Hear from Irum Haque (Lower School ELA Department Head) and Lizzy Pond (LOwer School FOcus Area Department Head) about how Lower School language instruction is designed to nurture strong foundational skills while building essential knowledge. You'll learn about our framework for sequencing instruction, supporting diverse learners, and creating daily lessons that lead to meaningful, measurable growth.

Middle School Orton-Gillingham Focus Areas: A diagnostic and prescriptive approach to designing OG Focus Areas that optimize instruction for middle school learners

Hear from Jenn St. John (Middle School ELA Department Head) and Sue Palmer (Middle School Focus Area Department Head) to learn how Middle School students are placed into OG Focus Area classes using a diagnostic and prescriptive process. You'll also discover how our grouping process, walk through the OG levels within the Carroll curriculum, explore the strands of Advanced OG, and show how these pieces come together in a daily lesson.

Every Class Is a Language Class: How the Upper School Supports Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening Across the Curriculum

Hear from Kate Collins (Upper School Head) and Katie Wiseman (Upper School Academic Coordinator) about how the Upper School weaves language instruction into every part of the day—from ELA and history to math and science. This session highlights our cross-curricular approach to reading, writing, speaking, and listening, and how it prepares students for success in high school and beyond.

From 5th to 6th: Navigating the Middle School Journey Together

The transition to Middle School is an exciting milestone—for students and families alike. In this replay of a live webinar, we explore academics, student life, and how we intentionally support students as they grow in independence, confidence, and responsibility through the middle school experience. This session is designed to answer common questions and help 5th grade families feel informed and prepared for the 6th grade year ahead.

Mapping Success: How Carroll Monitors and Supports Individual Student Growth

Hear from Allison West (Middle School Head) about the individualized nature of student growth and learning at Carroll. We explore how growth is not always linear and can look different for every student. At Carroll, we utilize rigorous data tracking to monitor each student’s progress over time. The goal of this session is to help parents understand how we monitor growth, identify areas for development, and create plans to support every learner’s success.

Resilience in Relationships: Guiding Kids Through Ups and Downs with Friends and At Home

Social relationships are complex, and kids need support and concrete skills to navigate the highs and lows of friendships and family life. In this webinar, parents and caregivers will learn how to foster resilience without overprotecting, equip their kids to manage conflict, and help them cultivate stronger social connections.

Structural Racism and Dyslexia: Moving From Mistrust to Protective Partnership

Black students have historically experienced both overidentification in certain disability categories and underidentification for dyslexia, creating a complex and often mistrusted evaluation and intervention landscape. Structural barriers and special education practices continue to shape family trust, school hesitancy, and patterns of disproportionality. This session offers practical strategies for supporting Black and historically underserved students with dyslexia, responsibly addressing disproportionality, and building authentic, protective partnerships with families.

From Admissions to Graduation: The Data-Driven Carroll Journey

Watch this replay of a live Q&A with Carroll's data team and explore how Carroll implements an innovative, data-driven approach that spans the entire student lifecycle-from the moment a student enters the admissions process to their graduation. At Carroll, data is not just collected but actively used to understand each child's unique learning profile and improve student outcomes. In this webinar, you'll learn how this approach transforms the student experience, fosters a culture of continuous improvement, and drives measurable outcomes for both students and Carroll.

Focus Areas at Carroll

At Carroll, every student is scheduled for a Focus Area class that is designed to provide direct and explicit instruction centered around the greatest area of need. Sometimes referred to as a "double dose" of instruction, our Focus Areas allow additional time for targeted instruction. Watch this replay of a live webinar to learn from Allison West, Middle School Division Head, about the design of Focus Areas areas across all divisions at Carroll.

Language at Carroll

Get an insiders peek into the Language program at Carroll from Irum Haque (Lower School Language Dept Head) and Stephanie Crement (Middle School English Language Arts Dept Head). Learn how we group, our OG and writing approaches, how comprehension and spelling are addressed, and more!

Building Resilience in Children with Dyslexia: Guiding them through emotional challenges

Helping children develop strong academic skills takes grit and determination. For students with dyslexia, learning can also be accompanied by more intense emotional discomfort and reduced frustration tolerance. In this replay of a live webinar, Alex Hirshberg, Psy.D., explores strategies for parents to support their child's resilience by helping them navigate and tolerate these challenging emotions. You'll learn practical tools to encourage perseverance and build confidence in your child.

Building a Trans-Affirming School Community

Presented by Sean Lare, this webinar offers parents and caregivers an introduction to core concepts of gender identity & expression, an understanding of the importance of family & school support, and an opportunity to learn new action steps to engage in supportive & affirming ways and be an ally to transgender and non-binary young folks and families.

Dyslexia & Race: The Role of Implicit Bias

Resha Conroy, Founder and Executive Director of Dyslexia Alliance for Black Children, leads an an impactful conversation about dyslexia and race. The presentation explores the intersection of implicit bias, race, and dyslexia identification. While dyslexia affects individuals of all racial and ethnic backgrounds, research has shown that Black children — are often misdiagnosed or delayed in receiving appropriate support. Implicit bias, both within educational systems and among professionals, plays a significant role in these disparities, influencing how dyslexia is identified, diagnosed, and treated. This session aims to raise awareness about how bias can perpetuate inequities in education and examine some initial steps toward educational justice.

Targeted Cognitive Intervention: A Decade of Results

In this replay of a live webinar, you will learn how Targeted Cognitive Intervention (TCI) helps students make faster progress in reading. Jen Brock, Head of Product & Cognitive Research, Louisa French, Lead Educational Analyst, and Ben Shepard, TCI Curriculum Coordinator will present the results of our 10 year study showing how cognitive intervention helps students become more efficient learners.

How Improving Executive Function Skills Empowers Kids for Success at School and in Life

In this recording of our live webinar, Dr. Sharon Saline and Carroll School shares strategies and resources for parents to encourage and motivate children with dyslexia/ADHD/Executive Function Challenges to get things done at home.

Assessments at Carroll's Middle School

Watch this replay of a Lunch & Learn to learn more about the assessments we administer at Carroll's Middle School. Allison West and Department Heads demystify the data that are presented at March parent-teacher conferences.

Building Better Brain Networks for Learning

In this replay of a live seminar, former Carroll Head of School Steve Wilkins shares what parents need to know about the dyslexic brain and how neuroplasticity shows that the human brain has a huge capacity to grow and change, with the right interventions.

Understanding Reading Development through Socioeconomic & Educational Perspectives

In this replay of our live Community Speaker webinar, Dr. Joanna Christodoulou discusses reading and socioeconomic status (SES) from a developmental, educational, and neuroscientific perspective. She shares how socioeconomic factors and stress impact reading development at both home and school.

Executive Functions at Carroll

In this replay of a live webinar, Carroll Speech and Language Pathologists, Jen Amos and Gwendolyn Meredith, explore the relationship between attention, working memory, executive function, and language. Viewers will learn how goal setting is used to guide, motivate, and adjust behavior-at Carroll and how it can be used at home.

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