A predictable routine
Each lesson follows a familiar structure so students can focus on the reading task instead of wondering what comes next.
About Hanna Erickson
Your child works directly with the teacher you meet.
Sisu Reading is Hanna's one-teacher literacy practice. She assesses each student, plans each lesson, teaches every session, and tracks what comes next.
01 Why Sisu exists
Some students need reading to be taught more explicitly.
Hanna has worked with capable, hardworking students who memorized familiar words, guessed from pictures, or avoided unfamiliar text because they did not have reliable decoding strategies.
Those students did not need more pressure or another reminder to “try harder.” They needed sounds, spelling patterns, and reading strategies to be explained clearly and practiced in a sequence.
Hanna created Sisu Reading to provide that kind of focused instruction in a calm, one-on-one setting.
02 Professional background
Teaching skills and the student in front of her.
Reading difficulty can affect both academic skills and confidence. Hanna's background informs how she teaches, responds, and helps students become more independent.
Education
A Master's degree in education and classroom teaching experience with young learners.
Structured Literacy
Training in structured literacy methodology — explicit, sequential, cumulative instruction.
Cognitive Coaching
Training in reflective questioning, student thinking, and building independence.
K–6 Focus
A focus on decoding, spelling, fluency, and using those skills in connected text.
03 Teaching principles
What students can expect from Hanna.
Direct explanations
Important skills and patterns are explained, modeled, practiced, and reviewed rather than left for a student to infer.
Specific feedback
Mistakes are treated as useful information. Hanna points out the strategy a student used and the progress that came from it.
Learning to read can be hard work. Children don't need pressure; they need a clear path, steady teaching, and someone who believes they can get there.
Hanna Erickson
04 What sisu means here
Perseverance, with a plan.
The Finnish word sisu describes quiet determination when something is difficult and progress takes time.
Hanna's job is not to promise overnight change. It is to provide patient, structured instruction, notice how a student responds, and keep the next step clear.
05 The first step
Let's talk about your reader.
Share what you are noticing and ask questions about Hanna's approach. The consultation is a chance to decide whether Sisu is an appropriate next step.
Request a consultation