Helping EVERY Kid
Become A Reader
The DOG ON A LOG Book series helps kids, including kids with dyslexia, learn to read. Our Sound Out Decodable Chapter Books and Readers start with just a few phonics rules. Each following Step of books adds a few more phonics rules and High Frequency Words. This gradual, evidence-based progression lets kids work towards mastering a few reading skills at a time without feeling so overwhelmed. All DOG ON A LOG Books follow a Systematic Phonics, Structured Literacy, Orton-Gillingham based phonics sequence.
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About DOG ON A LOG Books
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Free Books and Activities
Gameboards, flashcards, and other activities can be downloaded from our Printables Pages
Why Choose Us
Advantages of Dog On A Log Books
Built on a proven, systematic phonics approach
The series is both decodable and systematic, introducing new phonics rules in small, manageable steps (1–3 rules per level), so learners can practice and build confidence before advancing. This aligns with research showing that “systematic and explicit phonics instruction is more effective” than non-systematic methods.
Especially supportive for learners with dyslexia
The books can be used with the Orton–Gillingham approach, which is a systematic phonics, multisensory, structured literacy method that works particularly well for dyslexic learners. Unlike many decodable series with a few sentences for each phonics skill, DOG ON A LOG has multiple chapter books at each Step of phonics. This allows students to work towards mastery without memorizing the books from repeated readings. The series was originally written to help the author’s own child with dyslexia, making it a heartfelt, tested solutions.
Feels like “real” books, not kids books
Unlike typical decodables that feel simplistic, these are regular-sized books and full-fledged chapter books that require bookmarks. They have engaging stories and familiar characters—so younger readers feel “grown-up” and older, striving readers feel proud to carry about collection volumes with hundreds of pages, just like their peers. This helps boost motivation and self-esteem.
★★★★★
Best Orton Gillingham resource for building self-esteem in beginning readers!
I run a non-profit tutoring center for children with dyslexia. Our tutors are all training to be certified by the Academy of Orton- Gillingham Practitioners and Educators. I rarely encourage them to use pre-written materials (as per our training, it is best to make your own materials so that reading passages can be controlled), but the Dog on a Log series and Brookes’ other books have proved tremendously helpful in developing the self-esteem of our lowest level readers. They are not “baby books,” they look and feel like “big kid” books but the language is so carefully controlled that OG learners can succeed with them! I am so grateful to have found them. I use them with my own daughter as well, who proudly boasts to anyone who will listen that she is up to book 5! The books even include lists of sight words to review with students so that none of the language in each book will come as a surprise to the student.