In this episode we sit down with Deon Butler, former NFL wide receiver, author of The Gift & Curse, and a powerful advocate for people with dyslexia. Deon shares his remarkable journey from growing up with undiagnosed dyslexia to navigating the high-pressure, text-heavy world of the NFL, and finally receiving answers as an adult through a formal diagnosis and Orton-Gillingham tutoring. He reflects on the school experiences that didn’t make sense at the time, the emotional mix of relief and grief that came with his diagnosis, and the unwavering belief of his grandmother that helped shape his resilience. Deon also unpacks the “gift” and the “curse” of dyslexia, offering insight into what students truly need and the importance of systematic change.

Deon's Bio:

Deon Butler is a national speaker, author, and advocate for students who learn differently. A former NFL wide receiver, Deon’s journey defies expectation. He reached the NFL while carrying a hidden struggle: undiagnosed dyslexia. At 27, he sat down with a tutor and began learning what the system never taught him. That turning point became the foundation for his life’s work.

In his book The Gift & Curse: One Man’s Journey with Dyslexia, Deon shares how poverty, trauma, and learning challenges shaped his early life and ultimately cost him a contract with the Detroit Lions. Today, he is a national voice for literacy, resilience, and educational equity. He has helped advance dyslexia legislation, speaks in schools and universities across the country, and inspires audiences to redefine success, build hope, and believe in greatness despite the odds.

Deon is the CEO of Stand Strong Services LLC and continues to mentor, advocate, and speak across the nation. His story resonates deeply with students, educators, and families, leaving a lasting impact long after the event ends.

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If you like this episode, please take a few minutes to rate, review, and subscribe. Your support and encouragement are so appreciated!

Have a question you’d like us to cover in a future episode of Together in Literacy? Email us at [email protected]!

If you’d like more from Together in Literacy, you can check out our website, Together in Literacy, or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

For more from Emily, check out The Literacy Nest.

For more from Casey, check out The Dyslexia Classroom. 

Let us know what you want to hear this season!

Thank you for listening and joining us in this exciting and educational journey into dyslexia as we come together in literacy!

In this episode, we’re speaking to Dr. Jacob Santhouse, a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, dyslexic learner, and passionate advocate who you may recognize from TikTok and Instagram. We talk about the importance of addressing both the academic and emotional aspects of dyslexia, including the need for self-acceptance and resilience, the necessity of understanding the whole learner, creating safe spaces, and providing emotional support alongside academic interventions. Dr. Santhouse also shares his journey from struggling with dyslexia to becoming a counselor and coach.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

We officially have merch! Show your love for the Together in Literacy podcast!

If you like this episode, please take a few minutes to rate, review, and subscribe. Your support and encouragement are so appreciated!

Have a question you’d like us to cover in a future episode of Together in Literacy? Email us at [email protected]!

If you’d like more from Together in Literacy, you can check out our website, Together in Literacy, or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

For more from Emily, check out The Literacy Nest.

For more from Casey, check out The Dyslexia Classroom. 

Let us know what you want to hear this season!

Thank you for listening and joining us in this exciting and educational journey into dyslexia as we come together in literacy!

In this episode, we’re continuing our wonderful conversation with Dr. Melissa Orkin and Sarah Gannon, authors of The Structured Literacy Playbook: Preplanned Lessons for Building Phonics and Fluency Skills. We discuss strategies for empowering teachers to support all learners, particularly older students and those with double deficit dyslexia. We touch on topics including backward design, using sophisticated texts, the POSSuM framework, corrective feedback, and adapting lessons for multilingual learners.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

We officially have merch! Show your love for the Together in Literacy podcast!

If you like this episode, please take a few minutes to rate, review, and subscribe. Your support and encouragement are so appreciated!

Have a question you’d like us to cover in a future episode of Together in Literacy? Email us at [email protected]!

If you’d like more from Together in Literacy, you can check out our website, Together in Literacy, or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

For more from Emily, check out The Literacy Nest.

For more from Casey, check out The Dyslexia Classroom. 

Let us know what you want to hear this season!

Thank you for listening and joining us in this exciting and educational journey into dyslexia as we come together in literacy!

We had such a great conversation with our guests Dr. Melissa Orkin, an expert in literacy development and dyslexia research, and Sarah Gannon, a seasoned educator and curriculum designer, that we’re breaking up our conversation into two episodes! For this episode, 5.6, we discuss their new book, The Structured Literacy Playbook: Preplanned Lessons for Building Phonics and Fluency Skills. The book features case studies and lesson scripts that help teachers effectively implement strategies such as decodable texts, backward design, and multi-component approaches to strengthen students’ reading fluency. Please enjoy our discussion, and join us for the second half in episode 5.7!

Resources mentioned in this episode:

We officially have merch! Show your love for the Together in Literacy podcast!

If you like this episode, please take a few minutes to rate, review, and subscribe. Your support and encouragement are so appreciated!

Have a question you’d like us to cover in a future episode of Together in Literacy? Email us at [email protected]!

If you’d like more from Together in Literacy, you can check out our website, Together in Literacy, or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

For more from Emily, check out The Literacy Nest.

For more from Casey, check out The Dyslexia Classroom. 

Let us know what you want to hear this season!

Thank you for listening and joining us in this exciting and educational journey into dyslexia as we come together in literacy!

For this episode we welcome an inspiring guest: Aliah Banchik, a marine naturalist, shark advocate, underwater photographer, Netflix breakout star of All the Sharks, and a powerful voice for neurodiversity. In our community she may be best known for her TEDx talk on reframing dyslexia as a “different ability.”

Aliah shares her journey from struggling elementary student to becoming one of the world’s leading young women in conservation. She opens up about growing up with dyslexia and ADHD, how shame and self-doubt shaped her early school years, and the pivotal moment she learned to harness her strengths instead of fighting against them. We talk about how Aliah uses her neurodivergent thinking to excel in research, field work, and global conservation projects. 

You’ll enjoy her practical insights and take away a powerful reminder that reading and spelling ability are not measures of intelligence.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

We officially have merch! Show your love for the Together in Literacy podcast!

If you like this episode, please take a few minutes to rate, review, and subscribe. Your support and encouragement are so appreciated!

Have a question you’d like us to cover in a future episode of Together in Literacy? Email us at [email protected]!

If you’d like more from Together in Literacy, you can check out our website, Together in Literacy, or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

For more from Emily, check out The Literacy Nest.

For more from Casey, check out The Dyslexia Classroom. 

Let us know what you want to hear this season!

Thank you for listening and joining us in this exciting and educational journey into dyslexia as we come together in literacy!

In this episode of Together In Literacy, we dig into spelling to get at the deeper concepts that interventionists need to know. Spelling is often where our students’ struggles show up the most. It’s where gaps in phonology, orthography, and morphology all converge. Today we’re sharing five deeper truths about spelling instruction that will strengthen your teaching and, more importantly, your students’ progress. Join us as we go beyond the basics.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

We officially have merch! Show your love for the Together in Literacy podcast!

If you like this episode, please take a few minutes to rate, review, and subscribe. Your support and encouragement are so appreciated!

Have a question you’d like us to cover in a future episode of Together in Literacy? Email us at [email protected]!

If you’d like more from Together in Literacy, you can check out our website, Together in Literacy, or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

For more from Emily, check out The Literacy Nest.

For more from Casey, check out The Dyslexia Classroom. 

Let us know what you want to hear this season!

Thank you for listening and joining us in this exciting and educational journey into dyslexia as we come together in literacy!

This week in Together in Literacy we continue our discussion on supporting older students with dyslexia. Last episode we talked about the why, and now we want to talk about the how. We explore practical, research-based strategies that help middle and high school students move from struggle to success, including explicit decoding routines, morphology instruction, and scaffolded writing supports. We talk about the importance of assessing students closely, breaking learning into manageable steps, and building conceptual understanding to foster confidence and independence.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

If you like this episode, please take a few minutes to rate, review, and subscribe. Your support and encouragement are so appreciated!

We officially have merch! Show your love for the Together in Literacy podcast!

Have a question you’d like us to cover in a future episode of Together in Literacy? Email us at [email protected]!

If you’d like more from Together in Literacy, you can check out our website, Together in Literacy, or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

For more from Emily, check out The Literacy Nest.

For more from Casey, check out The Dyslexia Classroom. 

Let us know what you want to hear this season!

Thank you for listening and joining us in this exciting and educational journey into dyslexia as we come together in literacy!

This week on Together in Literacy we’re starting off Dyslexia Awareness Month by discussing the needs of a demographic that can get left behind – older students with dyslexia in middle school, high school, and beyond. We talk about the social emotional side of working with older students who can struggle with internalized shame, frustration with services, or lack of trust in educators and the tools they use.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

We officially have merch! Show your love for the Together in Literacy podcast!

If you like this episode, please take a few minutes to rate, review, and subscribe. Your support and encouragement are so appreciated!

Have a question you’d like us to cover in a future episode of Together in Literacy? Email us at [email protected]!

If you’d like more from Together in Literacy, you can check out our website, Together in Literacy, or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

For more from Emily, check out The Literacy Nest.

For more from Casey, check out The Dyslexia Classroom. 

Let us know what you want to hear this season!

Thank you for listening and joining us in this exciting and educational journey into dyslexia as we come together in literacy!

Welcome to Season 5 of Together in Literacy! We’re thrilled to be back and thank you for joining us. 

In this episode we’re kicking off our new season by setting the scene for the overarching topic that will inform our conversations: What do students with dyslexia really need?

The answer may sound familiar: more than just phonics! Our students need a comprehensive approach that sees the whole learner. We’ll talk about this in-depth this season, with topics like going beyond explicit phonics, decoding, executive function, layered and responsive instruction, metacognition, and self-advocacy strategies.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

We officially have merch! Show your love for the Together in Literacy podcast!

If you like this episode, please take a few minutes to rate, review, and subscribe. Your support and encouragement are so appreciated!

Have a question you’d like us to cover in a future episode of Together in Literacy? Email us at [email protected]!

If you’d like more from Together in Literacy, you can check out our website, Together in Literacy, or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

For more from Emily, check out The Literacy Nest.

For more from Casey, check out The Dyslexia Classroom. 

We're looking for topic and guest suggestions for season 5 of the Together in Literacy Podcast! Let us know what you want to hear this season!

Thank you for listening and joining us in this exciting and educational journey into dyslexia as we come together in literacy!

Please enjoy our last re-release of favorite episodes before we launch season five! This one looks at the Science of Reading:

The recent movement to look deeply into the Science of Reading (SOR) has shifted the training we seek for teachers, the training and programs endorsed at the state level, and the curriculum school districts purchase. So, why are our students still not reading and writing proficiently?

Is it the instruction, curriculum, or teacher training and knowledge that is seriously impacting learning outcomes? Or, is it a combination of all three factors?

In this episode, we discuss the SOR movement and why some students, particularly those with dyslexia, seem to be getting lost in the debate.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

We officially have merch! Show your love for the Together in Literacy podcast!

If you like this episode, please take a few minutes to rate, review, and subscribe. Your support and encouragement are so appreciated!

Have a question you’d like us to cover in a future episode of Together in Literacy? Email us at [email protected]!

If you’d like more from Together in Literacy, you can check out our website, Together in Literacy, or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

For more from Emily, check out The Literacy Nest.

For more from Casey, check out The Dyslexia Classroom. 

We're looking for topic and guest suggestions for season 4 of the Together in Literacy Podcast! Let us know what you want to hear this season!

Thank you for listening and joining us in this exciting and educational journey into dyslexia as we come together in literacy!