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Dyslexia Advice Line and Discussion Forum

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Subject: Support for dyslexic children


Author:
Tracey
[Edit]
Date Posted: 05:50:16 04/18/09 Sat
Does anyone know of a forum specifically for dyslexic children? I am a tutor for dyslexic children and I am searching for ways that my students can communicate with other kids so they don't feel like they are the only ones struggling. I am thinking about e-mail pen pals, or something along those lines. Any ideas? Thanks.

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Subject: Dyslexic friendly schools in South or Mid Wales area


Author:
Christina Locke
[Edit]
Date Posted: 11:12:34 06/18/09 Thu
Good evening,

Does anyone have any experience of a school that is supportive to Dyslexic children in the South or Mid Wales area please? We are specifically thinking about a Public school in the Cardiff area but from Barry to Monmouth to Brecon would be do-able. Many thanks.

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Subject: IEP and Foreign Language


Author:
Lori Linskey
[Edit]
Date Posted: 07:37:17 05/29/09 Fri
My dyslexic 10 year old has extraordinary difficulty with our school district's foreign language requirement (which is not at all surprising to us since learning to read and write and English has been such a struggle). Our Child Study Team has recommended that we meet with our school district to work out possible accommodations since they are unwilling to eliminate the foreign language requirement. Any suggestions about helpful accommodations that would make our daughter's life a bit easier and less stressful? Thanks in advance.

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Subject: Paying for special dyslexic school - AND tutoring?!!!


Author:
Karen Brody
[Edit]
Date Posted: 11:41:40 01/28/09 Wed
I think I'm suffering from dyslexia exhaustion! We finally took the financial plunge this year and put our son at a special school for dyslexics for $30,000/year which included one period every day of him working with a special tutor doing Orton Gillingham, then my husband had to change jobs at Christmas but we "got lucky" and my son got into a top school for dyslexics where we moved -- this time for $32,000 - and now his new school is telling us on top of this fee they want him to have a speech and language tutor during the day (which they'll take him out of his favorite classes to do) and now this school will cost us around $40,000/year. We are now virtually in financial ruin. On top of the stress that despite years of paying for tutoring (since 1st grade) our son still can't read and write clearly I am mentally losing it that we now have the financial stress. It's nuts.

I wish I was the homeschooling type, but my fuse is so short with my son I don't think I could do it.

Support is welcomed!

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Subject: want to know about public schools for dyslexics


Author:
uniball (sad)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 04:12:26 06/30/09 Tue
I waould like to know about public schools for dyslexics in Canada-Miisisauga area

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Subject: F.A.S.T.


Author:
Diane (happy)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 18:51:27 06/25/09 Thu
Has anyone tried the F.A.S.T program for dyslexic kids? It is popular in MIchigan but wondered if it works as well as regular Orton-Gillingham.

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Subject: Mediation for anger and depression for a 13 year old?


Author:
Janet
[Edit]
Date Posted: 02:54:43 06/24/09 Wed
My grandson is 13, he has Dyslexia. Because of all his learning problems in shcool, he has been made fun of. He starting to have anger problems he can't seem to control. Now his Doctors are suggesting medications. I'am woried about this. Is there any information on this? Thank you, worried Grandmother

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Subject: Should my child be tested for dyslexia


Author:
Michelle
[Edit]
Date Posted: 08:34:46 03/09/09 Mon
I have a nine year old son who has struggled with school since the first grade. I have noticed that he can spend an eternity on spelling and vocabulary words every week and know them to make a good grade on his test but when he takes the test he makes a 70 or lower. He can spell them out loud but he can't spell them correct on paper. When he reads he has a hard time keeping his place and sometimes skips words and whole sentences. He spells words like he hears them instead of understaning silent letter rules. He fails most of his test even when a lot of time was devoted in study and he knew the material before the test. Writing papers and book reports take a long time and he has to have help writing anything that has more than one sentence. When the teacher is doing an exercise on the board he has a hard time keeping up. I want to know should he be tested for dyslexia?

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Subject: getting the run around


Author:
sara
[Edit]
Date Posted: 22:01:12 01/08/09 Thu
I am desperate. my 8 year old daughter is dysexic. NOONE seems to care. the school, the teachers, the principal, none of them help me.i feel like i'm harassing them. they tell me what i want to hear and i'm sure dread every time i call or visit. i am in debt trying to pay private tutors and kumon learning center. she is fantastic kind and delicate. she has low selt esteem because i had to hold her back a year. isn't there any government funding for this. i feel sick knowing she is miserable every day at school. she cries and is tired of trying. please. any info. frustrated.we live in missouri. i will do anything.just tell me what to do.

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Subject: Teaching Reading to 7th grader who is dyslexic


Author:
Lisa
[Edit]
Date Posted: 15:31:33 01/27/09 Tue
I am wanting advice on how to help/encourage a 7th grade boy who knows how to read, but still finds reading very tedious. He can read his 7th grade material, but it is very slow & laborious for him. Can anyone recommend any activities for him to help him improve? Or is there anything you could suggest for me to do with him regularly help him improve. (I can't afford tutoring or programs outside of my home.) He gets very discouraged with his reading abilities! Any advice/help would be greatly appreciated!

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Subject: New printing style that may help those suffering from dyslexia


Author:
Sam Banerjee
[Edit]
Date Posted: 20:16:21 06/21/09 Sun
Hi all,

I am posting here to get some feedback about a new printing style that I have developed that may be beneficial to those suffering from dyslexia. In this style, the direction of alternate lines of text in a document are reversed ( though each individual word continues to be printed from left to right). I believe this makes it easier to read for everybody, dyslexic or not, since the eye does not have to jump from the right side of the page all the way to the left after each line. I have been told by some of my dyslexic friends that it is particularly helpful to them because in making this jump they often lose their place on the page.

I have included a sample of text printed in this style below (please make sure your email viewer is wide enough to display each line of text, as denoted by the < > symbols, in its entirety).

> The Schoolmistress, by Chekhov
> AT half-past eight they drove out of the town.
> The highroad was dry, a lovely April sun was shining warmly, but the
,dark ,Winter .woods the in and ditches the in lying still was snow <
> long, and spiteful, was hardly over; spring had come all of a sudden.
the by warmed ,woods transparent languid the nor warmth the neither But <
> breath of spring, nor the black flocks of birds flying over the huge
into ,sky fathomless marvelous the nor ,lakes like were that puddles <
> which it seemed one would have gone away so joyfully, presented
the in sitting was who Vassilyevna Marya to interesting or new anything <
> cart. For thirteen years she had been schoolmistress, and there was no
the to been had she years those all during times many how reckoning <
> town for her salary; and whether it were spring as now, or a rainy
- always she and ,her to same the all was it ,winter or ,evening autumn <
> - invariably -- longed for one thing only, to get to the end of her
.be could as quickly as journey <

I have a web site ( www.zigzatext.com ) dedicated to this idea, which includes a video of an interview I had with the local ABC affiliate here in Dallas about this printing style. I am not looking for any monetary gain with this - I would just like to see material published in this style online and in hard copy if people do indeed find it helpful. I am ready to provide technical assistance to any publisher who would like to try this.

Thanks a bunch, and I hope to hear from you soon,

-Sam Banerjee
sbanerjee01@gmail.com
972 542 3797
Mckinney,TX

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Subject: Testing center in Orlando area


Author:
Suzanne Lennox
[Edit]
Date Posted: 18:13:47 06/21/09 Sun
Does any one know of any testing centers in the Orlando Fl area. We have run into a dead end in the Central Florida area. Schools send us down a dead end road and doctors office has sent us down dead end also. Found a bunch of places in Michigan near his grand parents but need something down here. Please help.
Thanks

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Subject: Raising Motivation


Author:
Janet Nind
[Edit]
Date Posted: 12:06:04 06/17/09 Wed
I have been a Teaching Assistant for two & half year. I work with children on the Austic Spectrum. One of my pupils is dyslexic, which lead me to undertake this course. Hopefully my input can be of help with motivation.

I made up a tick chart with columns for each lesson, her task was to receive three ticks for each lesson. The ticks were for starting the lesson in the classroom, staying in the lesson for 15 minutes before asking to leave and returning to the room for the last 5 minutes. This exercise was so successful that she gain three ticks for all lessons and has since produced some fantastic work.

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Subject: Grandchild's writing


Author:
James Ballinger
[Edit]
Date Posted: 10:17:38 06/17/09 Wed
Hi,
My granddaughter who is 6 writes backwards and in perfect mirror, ie., you can hold it up to a mirror and it is with no error. She also writes from right to left. Is this a sign of dyslexia or dysgraphia or just a quirk.
She does have some trouble with dexterity and some confusion with instructions on games.
Thanks for input.
James

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Subject: anger and frustration


Author:
Tegan
[Edit]
Date Posted: 03:30:37 06/14/09 Sun
I am an adult with Dyslexia, Dsypraxia and ADHD. Im looking for advice and help on a particular difficulty in life. I am going out with the most wonderful man but im close to loosing him because of my difficulties dealing with anger and frustration. Its hard to explain and doesnt sound right but i dont know im shouting at him (or cant seem to control it and switch it off) when i "flip". Its like a switch goes off in my head and i jst end up shouting at him. Erm an example was the other day i was making a pizza and garlic bread. I wanted the garlic bread on a seperate plate, and he picked it up cut it in half and put on each of our plates. For some reason this was a big deal and i ended up having a major shouting match at him, using very hurtful things abotu him not understanding how i like things. I dont want to loose him but i have no idea how to stop these outbursts. I can find no literature on the subject and nothing in books. Any help?

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Subject: Dyslexia Certificate


Author:
Katherine Lentern
[Edit]
Date Posted: 14:02:24 04/21/09 Tue
I have just completed the certificate and found it really helpful in my new post as learning Support teacher. I am amazed at how little I really knew about the problems some children have learning. I have been a class teacher for nearly 10 years but I think the work I do with the kids now has brought a whole new meaning to teaching. I feel there should be more provision made in teacher training courses for this.

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Subject: Informed


Author:
Sherri Fitt (Happy)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 04:14:17 06/03/09 Wed
I have just submitted my last module for the course (fingers crossed its a pass) and would like to say how much i have enjoyed doing it. I know i am by no means an expert but I now feel confident in giving advice in my job as a special support assistant. Both work colleagues and friends ask for advice.I feel all teachers would benefit in some dyslexia awareness training, which would make their jobs easier and explain some of the behaviour of students who may or may not know they have dyslexia. Parents could then be made aware of the suspicion and testing put into place.

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Subject: Drama and dyslexia


Author:
Amy Willett
[Edit]
Date Posted: 09:42:35 04/29/09 Wed
I am a dyslexic drama student writing her dissertation on how useful drama is for special needs education in particular dyslexia. Does have any comments for or against or any suggestions for me?

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Subject: Enabling the dyslexic student to de-code information


Author:
Jacki
[Edit]
Date Posted: 03:49:15 06/09/09 Tue
Having just read Mike Juggins article, 3.1.15 in the course book, I would like to say that the concept of using a multi-sensory approach to teaching is not new. It is encouraged in the teaching of ALL pupils as we all have different learning styles. The information can be presented in these different multi-sensory formats, especially as we have the use of interactive white boards and other visual tools. As teachers we are encouraged to make the lessons stimulating and fun as well as informative.

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Subject: Maths


Author:
Sherri
[Edit]
Date Posted: 04:02:44 06/08/09 Mon
I have just finished and have passed my last assessment and would like to share some of the techniques i suggested. It can be helpful for the child to use a calendar to count down to a special event. Something such as a birthday, Easter, Christmas or even when they are due to break up or return to school from a holiday.This would be a personal and also a visual and kinetic memory for the child. Another useful aid is an abacus which is especially helpful with the problem a dyslexic child has with the tens,as the tens are usually in a different colour to the other beads.The abacus is again providig both a visual and kinetic memory.

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Subject: Teaching reading to a seventh grader who is dyslexic


Author:
Farah haq (hardworking)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 15:48:01 05/28/09 Thu
The most important thing for any child especially for a dyslexic child to read enthusiasticly is to be interested in books. In my opinion the child should be taken to a library or a bookstore of his choice, there he should be asked to choose books that interest him even if they have pictures or are below his grade level. It is the parents job to see that he gets books meant for children only. Once he start reading his favourite books he should be switched to more complicated books.He should be reading regularly to improve.

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Subject: Am I Right?


Author:
Fazi
[Edit]
Date Posted: 10:30:54 06/07/09 Sun
My son is nine almost ten.... he was orn with his umbilical cord around his neck.... he was almost blue in colour.... he had no problems growing up per say. As he started primary school at 5... i noticed he was unable to remember the alphabet, he could not count, spell his name, or do things that first year schoolers would ahve done. My son at age 8 had now began to recognize the alphabet letters and some numbers, he can now spell his name but keeps forgetting every now and then. i didnot take him to any specialist to find out but i told myself that he had learning disabilities.... sometimes if i gave him a multiple instruction he does not remember what to do and would ask me again what i had said. My son also has problems to read.. he is at the stage where he can sound out a word but cannot put it to form the word ( he knows dog as duh oh guh but cannot see dog). he has problems in doing math as well , he counts from 1 to 10 good at one time and if asked to count again he forgets some of the numbers.... am i right to say that my son is dsylexic?....what can i do to help him more or what can the teacher do at school to help him?.... thnx for reading.

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Subject: Dyslexia Counciling


Author:
Tim in Oregon
[Edit]
Date Posted: 12:56:30 06/07/09 Sun
We are the parent of a bright, 11 year old, son who has been diagnosed with an expressive disorder related to dyslexia several years ago. We are working through school issues (homeschooling and private school) but we are more concerned about certain emotional issues (severe separation anxiety). We are thinking about finding a councilor that specializes in working with children with dyslexia but wanted to inquire in this forum if anyone has similar experiences and have found a councilor to be useful in teaching coping skills. Thank you in advance.

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Subject: GED testing for dyslexics in Massachusetts


Author:
Ruth (frustrated)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 16:06:54 04/06/09 Mon
After being on an IEP since 6th grade for dyslexia and ADD with support and follow up by Mass General Hospital my son dropped out of school in 11th grade due to increasing frustration in the high school setting. Now 19 years old he has been in and out of night programs and GED study groups but none of them accomodate learing disabilities. Does anyone know of any programs in Mass. (preferably southern/cape area) that offer accomodations or tutoring for this young adult age?

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Subject: A teaching strategy


Author:
Penny
[Edit]
Date Posted: 02:11:11 06/04/09 Thu
I use visual aids and physical props to help the development of my pupil’s ability to hear and understand what is being read - to read for meaning. One activity which I use is highly structured and consists of a jumbled sentence with individual words printed on individual lily pads.(The words when assembled correctly make a sentence.)
Paper crocodiles are stuck to the floor (the river) and a puppet called Crazy Cow has to get across the river safely by using the lily pads.

My pupil then assembles the lily pad words in a line. When he is happy , he will read the sentence he has made out loud as he makes the puppet hop across. It is a very useful assessment activity also for me too. It gives valuable insights into the thought processes of the child and how he is processing visual and auditory information, as he tends to voice all his thoughts aloud during the process.

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Subject: Improving the way you hear a child read.


Author:
Sherri Fitt
[Edit]
Date Posted: 03:58:17 06/03/09 Wed
When reading with a child i like them to look at the book and tell me what they think the story is about. I ask them what makes them think what they say. Be careful not to criticise or disagree with what they say as it is a personal interpretation of what they see and they must feel confident to repeat this exercise. By becoming familiar with books and the way they feel and look children will be less intimidated when the time to actually read comes. This can be a great confidence builder for the child.

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Subject: attentional?


Author:
David
[Edit]
Date Posted: 23:32:09 03/04/09 Wed
My 8 year old recently had the full neuro battery of tests to see what is going on with his literacy. He was diagnosed with dyslexia by a specialist speech path however there seems to be a difference in approach to this issue between speech and psychologists. The Neuropsych was pretty dismissive of the idea of dyslexia and would almost never call anything dyslexia because it is a label. The upshot is that my son has normal cognitive function, is way behind on his literacy with specific features (reversals, poor phonological awareness etc) but because he was mildly wriggly and resistant during testing and clearly wasn't enjoying it, she has decided that his problem is attentional. She assumed that he must be up and down at the dinner table, cant sit still at the movies etc etc none of which is the case at all. But because he was not actively engaged in the testing process then the diagnosis is going to be ADD with medication the prescribed treatment. He is a lovely kid, good friendships, never violent or angry. He doesn't push the limits particularly he just resists things and his confidence has been spiraling downward in relation to doing schoolwork. She was so sure of herself but it was so clear to me that she has absolutely no skill with children and very little sensitivity as she said all of this and more in front of my son who was looking down at the ground feeling humiliated and embarrassed at everything she said. It was a sad day for him really and I certainly wont be giving such a child medication. Isn't ADD and Ritalin just as much a label? I know people make excuses for bad behaviour but he just isn't like that.

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Subject: school


Author:
Lynn
[Edit]
Date Posted: 06:36:58 05/28/09 Thu
Need help finding a private school for 7th grade and up that specializes in Dyslexia. Preferably in Pennsylvania or New Jersey. Looking for a strong academic school with not a lot of fluff! Thanks

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Subject: Barton Reading and Spelling System


Author:
Cheryl B.
[Edit]
Date Posted: 05:36:26 05/28/09 Thu
I'm looking for Level 1 of the Barton Reading & Spelling System. I'm sorry if this isn't a place to ask for this, but I need one soon, can't find one used, and can't afford to buy it new. my email: budikboys@hotmail.com

THANKS!!

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Subject: An Inexpensive Product that my 10 yr. old dyslexic daughter loves!


Author:
Jen Lammers
[Edit]
Date Posted: 07:50:12 05/21/09 Thu
One of the challenges that I find with my 10 year old dyslexic daughter is getting her interested in reading. I recently found a website called Fortunately For You Books. My daughter is 10, so we picked "Ella Enchanted". I was worried, as she has NEVER read a long chapter book before.
We picked the book from their "lines of time" product line. She reads a chaper, then goes to an activity sheet which has 6 events from the chapter in random order. She is instructed to draw a line with a different colored marker for each event (blue, red, orange, etc.) She doesn't choose. It's nice because there's not too much coloring - just draw a line around a box. Then she cuts them out and pastes them on a timeline in correct order. She loves this, and I can quickly glance at the colors (and supplied answer key) and see that she understood the events of the chapter. (I usually have her show me before she glues them on the timeline). It is fun, easy and allows me to check her comprehension in a fun way. She loved that at the end of the chapter she could take a break to color and put the events in order. She was so excited that she finished the book in only 10 days! For her, this is a miracle. They also have a product line called pockets of time - same concept - you put the events in order and place them in a pocket for each chapter. They are really cheap too! Here's a link to the freebies on their page - you can try one of their books. The normal download price is $1.99 for shorter books, although they have dollar sales. Lines of time for the longer book was $4.99, but I had a 25% off coupon. Several of the authors have kids with dyslexia and really have worked to come up with wonderful products. Here is the direct link to their freebies page. Be sure to look at their blog page as they have visuals to show you how the books work.

http://www.fortunatelyforyoubooks.co...-the-week.html

My daughter is begging for me to download the next book, which I will do today. Anything that has my daughter pestering to read is well worth it - I just can't believe how affordable it is. I just wanted to share this with all the parents of dyslexic children that I can. I hope it helps someone else the way it has helped my daughter.

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Subject: help me help my child accept dyslexia


Author:
clare prescott H
[Edit]
Date Posted: 18:34:02 03/10/09 Tue
hi like alot of parents on this site have an 8 y/o who is dyslexic. She has an IEP for "visual perceptual" issues but her teacher is one that doesn't take the extra step and do the common sense thing like verbally telling her the directions and making sure she has understood them. She is bright, loving and caring. She has a great memory and imagination and works so hard at what she does only to fail because of the spelling issue or fluency w/ reading. She comprehends at a 5th grade level. Every thing is so difficult for her and painful for us both. She knows she is dyslexic. i have talked about famous dyslexic people and how as hard as it is now it is a gift. it makes her creative, think outside the box and know how to work hard at something. She is very angry and frustrated because she can't keep up w/ her peers in speed of reading or writing so she rushes and makes even more mistakes. She even tells me she is not dyslexic,is not a baby and doesn't need all the extra help. I am going to try to get her on a 504 for 3rd grade but how can I help her to accept her for who she is w/ all her strengths and weaknesses? Any ideas or experiences

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Subject: Need advice on disorginaztion and Dyslexia


Author:
Cecelia
[Edit]
Date Posted: 07:16:51 04/22/09 Wed
My daughter was diagnosed with dyslexia a few years ago. Because her school would not have her tested, we paid to have it done privately and the private test showed moderate to severe dyslexia in multiple areas. I brought the private test to her school and pitched a fit til they started talking about an educational plan. Now it is two years later and she is in middle school and floundering. They acknowledge she has an EP but dont actually follow it. I recently asked for some guidance and help because she is not turning in her homework... she does it... just doesnt turn it in. From what i understand, this disorginaztion is part of her dyslexia and she needs specific structured guidance to work through it. The school told me it was just hormones and that she was 11 and probably wanted to spend time with her friends. Even though I blew a fit I got nowhere. I just dont know how to get the school to recognize this problem and do the right thing... they are talking about how she shouldnt have concessions or she will never be able to function on her own. Any advice would be appreciated!

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Subject: work for adult


Author:
Gammy (hopeful)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 09:47:11 05/16/09 Sat
An adult who suspects having dyslexia, never diagnosed in school since it was not known when went to school. Always had problems in school. Need to educate in higher learning for some type of work that pays for me and family's support. Any suggestions?

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Subject: Help i need help to help her!


Author:
sandra (tired)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 23:30:05 05/08/09 Fri
Two years ago my son had a girl on the school bus befriend him when he had broke up with his girlfriend of three years. He was in 12th grade and almost to graduation when this girl "c" consoled him. Well i informed him of the rebound thing but to no avail,he had fallen in love with her. A week later here she come with her suitcases and bags "homeless" she said she had been kicked out of her home! We thought things would cool down and she would go back home in a couple of days. We could not get any info about her family from her. She would not do anything we ask of her as far as chores go but she had a job that i had to take her to and pick her up. She never would pay me for the gas and i worked hard on keeping her things from spreading all over the house. It never dawned on me that she could not read for she would sit for hours pretending to! She worked part time and went to high school repeating the 12 grade. Then i noticed a big knot in her neck and took her to the doctor and it was thyroid cancer! I told her she needed to contact her mother and go for surgery. The time came to go to the hospital and have the surgery and 2 stepfathers showed up complaining about the time missed from work! They told me that she was trouble and did not want her and her mother had a bad stroke when she was young and could not care for her and she was of legal age! I brought her home and nursed her and the Dr. said she had to have the other thyroid taken out plus the radiation pill!This whole 6 months i thought she was a con artist and she even tried to break up me and my husband! She walked around half naked in front of him and just made up lies and stories! I went to the school and found out she was in special ed. and had dyslexia,ADD and they said the mind of a 10 year old! Well that explained a whole lot! I got her a small traylor and furnishings close to her work. Problem is i can't help her cause she lies and makes up things!I found her mother who says she is going to sue me and has dyslexia too! She is co-dependent on her druggie husband who beats on everyone when he gets high including "C", thats why she won't live with them! The other stepfather tries to makeout with her.So here i am with her in GA and she needs help! Medicaid turned her down and i don't know who or where to get her help as far as housing and someone to help her and get the monkey off my back for i have had it and so tired and hurt from car acc.! I have went to human services and she gets 88 dollars in food stamps she can hardly make it and still lies about paying bills and other things! It is so hard to help her because of it! We are scared of her because of anger issues and putting holes in our walls and now her traylor! If i don't help her she will be homeless on the street but she really needs alot of help! The BOE said they had been looking for her parents for 3 years so to help work with her at home on things. That was not done at all. She is out of school now and was disapointed that she only got a special ed certificate. She is seeing now how hard life is on her own and she can't manage money and her work is bad. I found out today they are going to fire her. She will not come back to my home!!!!!WHERE AND WHO IS THE HELP FOR "C"?? Can she get disibility after working that job? She needs medicaid because of the thyroid medicine that she forgets to take. Is there a secret to getting that? There are only one group home here and full. What does she qualify for and what do i do about her? My son broke up with her, he could not handle the crazy stuff she did, but in her mind there is a relationship and he can get her to do when i can't! Please help me to help her!I can't take any more drama that she dreams up!!!!!!

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Subject: workshops for parents


Author:
Amir Gross (dyslexia, learning difficulty workshop, spld)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 02:58:42 05/15/09 Fri
Springboard for Children, a London based charity will run a few workshops for parents in June. The workshops will teach parents how to support their children when they are struggling with literacy. www.springboard.org.uk

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Subject: School and Dyslexia


Author:
Irene
[Edit]
Date Posted: 18:19:40 05/01/09 Fri
On reading posts from parents with children who have some learning and behavioural issues with regard to dyslexia it is obvious that the schooling system lacks strategies in coping with these children. They are often pushed to one side and alternative causes are found for their behaviour problems. I would suggest that when having a child assessed for dyslexia or a learning delay or difficulty find someone who includes a program in their report not just recommendations. I have been including an extensive program for each child I assess and when issuing the report I provide a covering letter with a copy of the report for the school. Quite often teachers will not have learned the strategies needed to help children with dyslexia. It may be necessary to keep reminding the classroom teacher of the program and the special needs of the child.

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Subject: Multi-sensory teaching


Author:
Angela
[Edit]
Date Posted: 16:03:30 05/12/09 Tue
I am enjoying studying for the Certificate in Teaching of Children with Dyslexia and in particular learning about multi-sensory strategies. I feel that that using these strategies will not only help dyslexic children but any child having difficulties in a particular subject.

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Subject: Possible Retention


Author:
S Zapata (Concerned, Frustrated, Mom in Texas)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 08:32:27 04/15/09 Wed
My son is 8 years old and attending a Fabulous elementary school in the Dallas, TX area. I am feeling frustrated right now with the possibility that he may be retained iin the Second Grade. Our school requires the non-LD average second grade student to read on a Level 28 to advance to the 3rd grade. They have set the goal for my son at a Level 20, which is only 2 reading levels below the average 2nd grader. At his last assessment in March my child was reading at a Level 16, I was very excited and impressed that he had worked hard enough to get to that level.
Now, I fear that he has the lack of motivation required to get to that Level 20. He has already been told that if he does not reach that mark, he will be reatined in the second grade. Can the school do this? Do they have the power to hold my dyslexic child back becasue he can not conform to their goals? I was not given the opportunity to have any input in setting this goal, why not?
If anyone has any information on any laws or rules that will give me more information please HELP!!

My child was held back in kinder by my choice, and I feel that making him repeat 2nd grade is going to do nothing but SHUT HIM DOWN! He already feels that he is challenged to the point of fatigue everyday, and is never really caught up. I do not want him to feel that all of that effort this entire school year was for nothing!

Concerned Mom in Texas,
S Zapata

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Replies:
Subject: Supporting a dyslexic child at home.


Author:
Nicky
[Edit]
Date Posted: 21:56:46 05/05/09 Tue
Parents can help their dyslexic child at home by doing activities to support a good educational program at school but they should be fun and never a burden. They can support writing skills by asking the child to contribute to a shopping list kept on the fridge or make any other types of lists. Maths can be an every day part of life e.g.helping to solve a money calculation in the shop or at home as long as the child does not feel pressured. Number games and sequencing games such as multiplication tables or months of the year can be a fun activities on a long car journey. Finally listening to the child read can be a pleasure for both adult and child as long as parents stick to the Golden Rule: if a child cannot read a word within a second or two they must be told in order to keep the flow of the story.

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Subject: DISTAR and Dyslexia


Author:
ResignationSupergirl
[Edit]
Date Posted: 10:20:49 04/24/09 Fri
Forgive me if this subject has been broached before but I am hoping for some feedback on DISTAR, Direct Instruction and Dyslexia..

My son is 11 and has flailed for years in the Oregon School System despite his IEP accommodations and all of their "Direct Instruction". 4 months ago we found a tutor who doesn't use a phonics based approach and stresses more modeling and fluency. My Son has experienced fantastic results with her methods and is practically reading at grade level at this time.. First time in his Academic Career..

Unfortunately.. I am have a huge problem shifting my Son's Public School instructors from Direct Instruction to a more effective reading curriculum. I am extremely frustrated in the fact that I did the research on finding the Best Method for My Child and Pay a great deal of money for an extremely effective tutor who has achieved in 4 months what Direct Instruction has failed to provide for years... But my Son's Instructors continue to beat the dead horse daily and undermine our hard work outside of school. You would think I was asking for the Moon!! I understand Direct Instruction is the Holy Grail to some..(especially to some here in Oregon) and that very well may be true.. All I know about it is that it does not work for my Child.. and IMO.. that is all I really need to know.

Any suggestions for communicating my wishes about Direct Instruction when polite discussion has been ineffective?

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Replies:
Subject: dyslexia


Author:
Collin Corkum
[Edit]
Date Posted: 08:18:32 04/30/09 Thu
My book, not yet published, is titled "The Cause, Cure, and Prevention of Dyslexia." Since Peripheral Vision is essential throughout life, why should teachers neglect it during the teaching of beginning reading? If that neglect seems worthy of attention, the subject should be fully researched. A beginning point could be "Why do dyslexic persons lose peripheral vision while reading, and get it back instantly when they stop?

Thank you

P.S.: I am open to regular mail only. Collin Corkum,
1641 Garland Ave., Tustin CA 92780

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Subject: Successful help for dyslelxics


Author:
Angela Odom (Creative)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 19:41:11 04/29/09 Wed
I am a facilitator for the Davis Dyslexia Method for helping those with reading difficulties. At www.dyslexia.com or dyslexiavirginia.com you may find more. As a past teacher and now a Davis Facilitator, this is a one to one program addressing the individual in a creative and visual style for success. Also, read Ron Davis' book THE GIFT OF DYSLEXIA.

This is a drug free program that does not focus on phonics. The gifts of the client are addressed, and ways to focus and control energy level in a simple way are key to improvement. Clay is used to make pictures for the small words that many struggling readers find difficult like: THE, IS, WHO, THAT, etc.

This works for adults and children!

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Subject: Accommodations List


Author:
Tammy
[Edit]
Date Posted: 07:20:32 04/29/09 Wed
I wanted to pass on this great resource I just found online that might help in your child next IEP meeting. It has tons and tons of accommodations. Check it out!
http://www.integratingstandards.org/se/Appdx03.pdf

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Subject: Teaching strategies


Author:
Melanie Webb
[Edit]
Date Posted: 00:41:52 04/29/09 Wed
I always make sure my dyslexic teenager is sitting at the front of the class with a good view of the board and me. When using a smart board I tend to use pastel background shades such as cream, green or blue. This is easier on the eye, especially where my dyslexic pupil has visual difficulties with reading. Reading black on white can sometimes result in the words jumping around the page. I also use pastel shades on worksheets and activities where possible.

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Subject: Teenagers learning styles


Author:
Melanie Webb
[Edit]
Date Posted: 00:29:45 04/29/09 Wed
I work with teenagers in a secondary school and find that when I am preparing multi-sensory lessons I use an activity leaning towards my pupil's preferred learning style as some are clearly auditory, visual or kinaesthetic. I then back this up with the activities from the other styles of learing. Does anyone have any feedback concerning this ?

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Subject: private school for dyslexic


Author:
sherri getta (sherri getta)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 16:14:35 04/23/09 Thu
Looking for guidance on private schools specializing in helping children with dyslexia, learning differences, etc.

Willing to re-locate - just looking for a facility/school who is focused on the child. They are truly gifted children although not often respected.

Thanks !!! Looking forward to hearing from you !!

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Subject: The magic of laughter


Author:
Angela
[Edit]
Date Posted: 03:11:38 04/23/09 Thu
It is amazing how laughter can help. Recently I was reading with a child whose fluency was poor. He chose a story that we both found very funny. We were both laughing out loud and when he was able to read his fluency was much improved!

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Subject: Summer Courses


Author:
Jude Kidd
[Edit]
Date Posted: 12:06:13 04/22/09 Wed
I am currently putting together a series of affordable summer courses and workshops for teachers during the holidays. The idea is to get a group of people together for a day or two and experience a whole range of activities. I'm trained as a dramatherapist and Creative Arts supervisor so can offer a range of concepts and skill development. Working with a variety of creative materials in a safe therapeutic space will enable you to replenish your energy stocks, and develop previously dormant talent in readiness for the term ahead. Groups will be limited to 12 and courses will be designed around your requirements. Please email me and open up discussion.

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Subject: Dyslexia and 5 year old child


Author:
Shawn (Confused)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 15:13:36 04/15/09 Wed
My child is 5 years old and will be turning 6 soon. Her teacher says she is not grasping the work in kindergarden and that she needs to know this work before she enters into 1st grade. She does not think she is dyslexic. She thinks she is still young and the work for kindergardens is so advanced now, and that she just needs more time in kindergarden learning this work. She wants me to think about holding her in kindergarden another year. My husband thinks if we hold her back and she continues to struggle because she is dyslexic then she will actually miss 2 grades before she is tested by the school. If the school test her and find out that she is dyslexic then she will be held back for something that is not her fault. She writes her 9's backward sometimes and her g's are backwards sometimes not all the time. She can know a word a few days then when she sees the word then she can not remember what the word is. She is learning to read and I think she memorizes what we read. She can see a phonenumber on a magazine and read the number correctly. She reads phonenumbers on commercials correctly. Am I overthinking this or is there need for concern right now? What suggestions can I get from anybody that has been in this situation?

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Replies:
Subject: Public Schools


Author:
Kelly
[Edit]
Date Posted: 10:24:19 04/07/09 Tue
My daughter is 8 she is in the thrid grade in mass. Iam looking for help and advice on how to deal with the school system in my town. They are useless they do nothing to help as a matter of fact at our first IEP meeting they told my husband (who is dyslexic) that there is "no such thing anymore". After taking my daughter into Boston to have outside testing done I found out that she is dyslexic but her IEP is so poorly put together that it is causing more problems with the way she learns then it is doing good. The neruo pshy that was done is nothing more then a joke,it is so bad the Dr we saw would like to report it. I like alot of parnets count on there public school systm not to totally screw there children out of an education. At this point the only thing they are doing is destoring my daughters self-esteem and making her feel stupid. If anyone is from mass or has any advice I could really use it. Iam lost!

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Replies:
Subject: Home work Club


Author:
Annette
[Edit]
Date Posted: 12:27:46 02/04/09 Wed
We set up a homework club at school and at first the dyslexic students thought they were being 'punished' for having to attend, we simply explained that the club was for all students and that it was optional but if they wanted extra help with their work it would be a good idea to attend as it was run by he same T/A's that helped them in the classroom.
It didn't take them long to start attending and now they are happy to do their homework, and get it right and avoid to confusion with the subjects.
We run for 1 1/2 hours each day and have about 10 students attending they are rewarded with hot chocolate and biscuits when they are finished.
Their confidence and understanding of the subjects has improved.

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Replies:
Subject: Daughter with Dyslexia


Author:
Concerned Mother
[Edit]
Date Posted: 09:10:03 03/11/09 Wed
My 10 year old daughter was diagnosed last year with Dyslexia in Texas. We have moved to Oklahoma and the school says they do not recognize "dyselxia" nor do they have a specific program for it. They have put her in tutoring before and after school all year and keep telling me that her test scores are to good for any other services. She must be at or below 10%. Can anyone give me some information about what I should do? I have had 4 meetings with the school physcologist and her teacher and they keep adding more tutoring. Please help!

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Replies:
Subject: any federal or state aid available


Author:
Misty Kowing (Misty Kowing discouraged)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 07:41:45 04/09/09 Thu
I JUST HAD MY 7 YEAR OLD SON ASSESSED FOR DYSLEXIA.IT APPEARS THAT HE IS SEVERELY DYSLEXIC.AFTER TRYING FOR 3 YEARS TO GET HELP WITHIN THE SCHOOL I FINALLY TOOK HIM FOR AN OUTSIDE ASSESSMENT.TO GET THE HELP HE NEEDS IS A LOT OF MONEY FOR A SINGLE PARENT. IS THERE ANY HELP OUT THERE FOR EXPENSES?

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Replies:
Subject: Learning Strategies and Learning style quiz


Author:
Terri Goodin, SLP (Speech Pathologist and Reading Teacher)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 11:06:59 03/10/09 Tue
I am a Speech Language Pathologist and Reading teacher working at a high school in Carbondale Illinois, USA. I work with several students in both my speech and language therapy and in my reading classes who either are diagnosed as dyslexic or are suspected to be dyslexic.
In my reading classes, I have students that struggle with reading, itself, or reading comprehension. Many of these students have difficulty with other 'study skills' as well. They are disorganized, listen poorly and are unable to access the curriculum completely. I work with them initially on understanding their own personal learning style. I review auditory, visual and tactile/kinesthetic learning styles. I then have the students take an online quiz that gives them a better idea of how they learn best. Once they have identified their learning style, I give them strategies to help use that style to its fullest benefit.
The following are several websites that have learning style quizzes available:

http://www.petersons.com/education_planner/discovering_article.asp?sponsor=2859&articleName=Learning_Styles_Quiz

http://www.usd.edu/trio/tut/ts/style.html

This one is more complicated:
http://www.learning-styles-online.com/inventory/
Terri Goodin

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Replies:
Subject: The importance of talking about it


Author:
Diana
[Edit]
Date Posted: 01:49:45 04/14/09 Tue
A really important part of the one-on-one tutoring that we have done with our second grader "F" is taking some time to talk with her about what it means to have dyslexia. Sometimes it's planned, somtimes is comes up spontaneously, but I think what's been effective about it, is that it wasn't just one conversation but it's been a series of conversations and she knows it's an open discussion, and it has been really interesting to watch her own understanding of dyslexia grow.

Two of the most effective discussions have been followed by clear evidence of the positive impact they had upon F. The first was a read-aloud of a children's book about dyslexia and in the conversation following the book F was able to point out which characters in the book she could relate with the most and which strategies she might find helpful. The following day, she drew a picture in her journal of herself smiling with a big sun in the sky, surrounded by flowers and birds, and she wrote the title of the picture at the top of the page: "Dyslexia".

During another conversation I was telling her about famous people who have dyslexia and all the incredible things they have achieved in their lives - about how people with dyslexia actually have a really unique way of thinking about the world that most other people don't have (seeing the "big picture") and it helps them accomplish great things. Mostly she was intrigued about Albert Einstein - she didn't know who he was but I told her about the amazing discoveries he has made and how he didn't do that well in school because teachers didn't really understand how his brain worked differently (and I told her that's why I'm taking this class about dyslexia now, to help me be a better teacher for her). Before this, F always talked about how she knows that it's harder for her because her brain is just wired "wrong" and so she has to work twice as hard, but after this conversation, she understood that her brain is just wired differently (not "wrong") and that this actually lets her do really cool things that others can't do, but in certain other areas, she does have to work a bit harder. But she really liked this idea that she'll be able to figure things out more easily than some other people (and I gave her examples of how she already does that - because she has an extraordinary memory for facts and making connections between bits of knowledge in subjects like science and social studies). Ever since then, F brings Albert Einstein into conversations quite frequently (sometimes totally unrelated to dyslexia/learning - like if people are talking about crazy hairstyles she mentions Einstein :)....), but it's clear that he is on her mind and somewhat like a role model now of what is possible for her in life. If he could overcome these challenges in learning, so can she! :)

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Subject: Children's worksheets to improve spellings or sentence writing.


Author:
Indira Unni
[Edit]
Date Posted: 11:56:29 04/13/09 Mon
At a school I visited I noticed an innovative method of doing worksheets to improve english, spelling or sentence writing.On the worksheet there are short sentences which has mistakes eg no capital where necessary, no full stop,letter reversals, etc. The number of mistakes in each sentence is told to the child. The child is now supposed to identify the mistakes. I noticed that the children take great pleasure in doing so and at the same time learn faster as well.This works well once they have reached a certain level of reading.The teacher could gradually progress to small paragraphs.

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Subject: Vision Therapy and Dyslexia


Author:
Rod Everson
[Edit]
Date Posted: 07:54:52 04/13/09 Mon
I have a private reading practice and work with a lot of children who would be considered dyslexic. About eight years ago I learned of a vision therapy department in our area and we started referring children to one another. If the child needed phonics, they would refer to me, and if I suspected a vision issue, I would refer to them.

Several years of experience with children returning from vision therapy have convinced me that every child who struggles with reading should be evaluated by a developmental optometrist to see if vision therapy is needed to correct a binocular vision problem. I am also convinced that most of the children discussed in this forum would fail the exam. I'm sure most of you have had your child's vision examined by your family optometrist and that your child's visual acuity is either fine, or has been corrected with glasses. But visual acuity isn't enough. Both eyes have to work together or your child will be confused by print and phonics instruction will be difficult to understand and absorb.

Rather than go on and on, I've written extensively on this topic on my website. If you go there you will find more information on the sort of vision issues that cause reading problems, what to expect from vision therapy and a link that will help you find a developmental optometrist in your area.

I now much prefer to have struggling readers go through vision therapy (if it's indicated) and then teach them the phonics they need. After a child's vision needs have been met, the phonics instruction usually makes sense to them and they finally begin to learn to read like other children. And, if they already understand phonics, but are unwilling to read, or read with poor fluency, or can't read for sustained periods of time, vision therapy alone is usually enough.

I'm not saying this is the entire answer, or that every dyslexic child has an undiagnosed, untreated vision problem, but at a minimum a dyslexic child's vision should be evaluated by a developmental optometrist. Unfortunately, vision therapy is just as expensive as other therapies, and is not usually covered by insurance.

Rod Everson
OnTrack Reading - The Vision Piece of the Dyslexia Puzzle

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Subject: recently discovered dyslexia in my 20 year old daughter


Author:
Mary Leyland (Help)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 07:02:23 04/10/09 Fri
Hi There
From the age of about 15-16 my (now) 20 year old daughter has become difficult. lazy and miserable and now it would appear quite depressed. She has always under achieved at school, and scraped theough her exams with minimum passes.
She eventually walked out of school and then flunked out of an Event management course in Sydney.She has is blind in one eye and has a condition called Duane's syndrome. this has led us to believe that she reads very slowly, however through her recent depression I now believe that all her symptons poriginate through an undiagnosed form of Dyslexia, which has never been addressed. She has a complete BLOCK on learning, which means she finds it difficult to find work.
PLEAE can someone advise me on how to encourage her to seek advice and help for the possible instance of dyslexia.
What can be done to help at the age of 20 ?
THANK YOU

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Subject: Phonemic Awareness Games


Author:
Emma Teixeira
[Edit]
Date Posted: 14:42:53 02/28/09 Sat
I have used games to practice reading with a dyslexic child. When I began working with her she was very reserved and scared to read. Now after playing games with her she is eager to read. She will even ask to play additional games because she enjoys them so much. She has no hesitation at all to read with me now.

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Replies:
Subject: Orton Gillingham Method for teaching


Author:
Lindsay
[Edit]
Date Posted: 09:15:29 04/04/09 Sat
My daughter is in grade two and was diagnosed with a visual perception disorder last year. We have been struggling for the past three years trying to get help with her reading/writting/spelling. I called our local Dyslexia Association and they said they offer a course in the Orton Gillingham method that is been proven to be quite sucessfull in children with Dyslexia. Just wondering if anyone has taken the course or knows the success of it? I am willing to do what it takes to help her. The school has been trying to do their best to help with little success, she is still really behind in her language arts and not progressing. Any feed back would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

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Subject: a successful multisensory activity


Author:
Diana
[Edit]
Date Posted: 01:25:23 04/03/09 Fri
During one-on-one tutoring sessions with F, we created a set of lower case alphabet letters using glue and sand on sturdy paper. We worked on this project together and then played a game. One person would be blindfolded and the other person would help the blindfolded person trace the letter with one finger. The blindfolded person would then have to determine which letter it is and tell the sound that letter makes. After a while the game evolved into tracing three letters in order to sound out a word (for example, r-u-n). The game was such great fun that I had F introduce it to her classmates (a second grade class). We call it F's game and the children choose to play it often in their freetime. There's always lots of smiling and laughter when the children are playing this game, and I an always see how proud F looks that the game we created together is such a success with all her peers. It has helped to build her confidence.

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Subject: I'm Thankful But.....


Author:
Beth
[Edit]
Date Posted: 19:55:04 04/02/09 Thu
I cant complain because I'm one of the lucky ones. My 11 yr old daughter gets the Wilson reading program everyday. I have fought tooth and nail for years. Begged, cried, and pleaded with the School to help me. I'm even trying to get Bill A880 passed in NJ so I can help other children. I read all these posts and feel each and every frustration and pain the parents have. I have been there. The hours of homework. The cries of my child wanting to know why she is the "different" one. But I have some questions "Why is it so hard to understand about dyslexia?
Why are school districts so mean? They dont even try to compromise they just want to fight? I have spent years trying to figure this out. Are there any explanations out there?

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Subject: The Costly Mistake Teachers Make


Author:
Melissa Williams
[Edit]
Date Posted: 12:35:22 03/30/09 Mon
I remember when my son was in kindergarten his teacher had a star reader award which she awarded each week. She included a praise report on what an excellent reader the student was and how well he/she was doing in class (we didn't know at the time that our son was dyslexic). The whole school year went by without the teacher ever giving our son an award (since this was the only type of award she gave out). My son finally asked me why he never got the award. I told him that she was going in alphabetical order which is what I thought at the time. I soon realized though, that many of the kids had gotten the award more than once. Needless to say this was the beginning of the development of low self esteem in our son. He finally got the award during the last week of school seemingly as a consolation prize. He wasn't all that excited about it by then. The teacher should have given out other awards besides ones for reading, because whether a child has dyslexia or not, there will be strong readers and weak ones. Even with only the star reader award she should have ensured that everyone had an opportunity to win it(for improvement in reading, effort or just doing the best that they could). She made it very evident that only the best readers could get the award. This was an unfortunate experience for all the children in that class who were not strong readers.

The importance of praise and using as many avenues as possible to bring out and reward the dyslexic child’s strengths can‘t be stressed enough. The dyslexic child will see many other children in school being rewarded for some area of academic excellence and will begin to notice that he himself doesn’t get many awards. This is why it is important to praise children for non academic strengths as well as academic strengths. A child can be praised for his participation during class, for being prepared properly for a specific class subject (including p.e.), for helping out during extracurricular activities or for being a positive influence. The list of opportunities in which to praise him is endless. Don’t however, make it a praise that only he can earn. This may seem like a good idea in the beginning and may even boost his self confidence for awhile but it has the potential of backfiring. The child (and his peers) will begin to think of it as a superficial reward/award given to him because he can’t earn it in other areas. If the award given is an award that everyone has an opportunity to earn, then once the dyslexic child wins it, he will truly feel as if it is earned and not given. This, in the end, is what will truly build his self confidence.

It is equally important to ensure that non academic and academic awards are evenly distributed over the school year, otherwise, the one award he earned for his non academic excellence will begin to pale in comparison to the seven to ten academic awards his peers got and again the award will begin to seem superficial.

It must committed to memory that a child with a low self esteem WILL NOT function well academically, no matter how smart he truly is. Work to build his self esteem first and then you can begin to focus on his academics(keeping the importance of self esteem at the forefront of each lesson).

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Subject: teaching children to read


Author:
Rayla D. Webb
[Edit]
Date Posted: 15:56:01 03/29/09 Sun
Are we teaching children to read before they are developmentally ready to learn?

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Subject: Compensating Strengths


Author:
Emma
[Edit]
Date Posted: 05:56:23 03/29/09 Sun
G. may be weak in reading and spelling, but she has quite a bit of talent in the area of creativity. She draws all the time, making comic books characters of students and teachers. Her art has been recognised by some teachers and they have even asked her to draw any pictures they would have put on the board for their lesson. She is also a well accomplished Steelpan player. She is on her school’s Steel Band and represents her school in competitions against other schools. In the area of physical co-ordination, G. used to play tennis but has recently taken up playing Basketball with her school. G. has told me that she often finds herself counselling and consoling her classmates.

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Subject: Where do I turn?


Author:
Lori (frustrated)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 07:22:46 03/14/09 Sat
I have a 10yr old son who is struggling in school. He is and awesome reader an spells very well. Comprehension and writing is another story. He has been having a very hard time in Math since 1st grade and still can't memorize simple math facts. I have reviewed signs of dyslexia and he falls into many of the categories. I am thinking of taking him to Nicholls State and having him evaluated because I don't know what else to do. They have been quick to diagnose him ADD, but he's been on 5 different meds and none have worked. (only spin off horrible side effects; even personality changes) His psychologist says he shouldn't be on any of the stimulants for ADD/ADHD because he's been diagnosed with high anxiety. (which may be most of his problems in school) His teachers are saying he needs something to make him focus.."He's in another world". The stress this child has been dealing with ...it's no wonder he can't concentrate. He's always afraid to fail. We're now in the 4th grade, held back a year, and he has to pass his LEAP test or he doesn't get promoted and he's scared of that too. I don't know where to turn when people just want to medicate and not listen. I have read that if we can get a handle on his anxiety, the symptoms of ADD may disappear altogether. I am also a teacher and not a fan of all the medicating that is going on these days. They say he is driven by a motor, yet we don't feel that way when he's at home. I am looking for answers and think his Math issues and some other writing issues may be a form of dyslexia. Does anyone have any advice? Should I continue to push the dyslexia testing?

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Replies:
Subject: Are speech problems in a 19 month old signs of future dyslexia?


Author:
wonderingmommy
[Edit]
Date Posted: 14:08:17 03/03/09 Tue
My 19-month-old daughter often flips new words around when I try to teach her to say something. For example, when I ask her to say "banana" she might say "nabana." Just now I asked her to say "buckle" and she said "kubble." She also has difficulty pronouncing her "R" and "W" (except that she thinks "yellow" is "welwow"). She's very smart and recognizes pretty much all her letters, and I know she is still very young, but I'm just curious if there is any link in how she hears a word and processes it to pronounce it, and if this is an early sign of dyslexia.

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Replies:
Subject: special education and dyslexic child


Author:
chrissy
[Edit]
Date Posted: 11:58:16 02/05/09 Thu
My 6 year old has been diagnosed with dyslexia, (finally) I have known since pre-k, but obviously to young to diagnose. I keep hearing that our son is highly intelligent (high iq), it took a special ed teacher taking him for resource room to discover what I have known all along. We were told by a neurologist it was an attention problem, a reading specialist said it was a short term memory problem. I knew as a mother that those were not my sons problems. I am sick and tired of hearing all of these kids with add, you know it really seems like an easy answer. The truth is my son does not have an attention problem but when he is put in a difficult learning position (reading, writing) things that are challenging for him, he may look for something else to talk about or do. Now that I know he has dylexia, it all makes sense, the problem is the school is saying he may be held back because he is below average in reading and writing (o.k. with everything else). Duh, he is dyslexic, am I wrong but won't that always be the case until he learns to compensate. From all my research, dyslexics usually do not read grade level or above. He has been with a tutor once a week in addition to resource room in school. I was told the public school really do not have the resources to adequetly help him and may put him in a special ed class. I am very concerned about this, how can they put a child that is above average intelligence and very capable in every way in such a class. Mind you he spoke at 7mos hit all his milestones early and spoke eloquently very early on, he never had early intervention services and showed no signs of having problems until he started to learn the alphabet, write his name etc. So he is not textbook in many cases. Does any one have an opinon? I am torn (my husband in denial) is being left back beneficial in any way, my thought is if it was immaturity maybe. and as far as special ed, if his deficit is purely reading and writing right now is that a good idea?

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Subject: where Can I test my daughter 8yrs old ??


Author:
Lily
[Edit]
Date Posted: 13:40:29 03/06/09 Fri
Where can I do legal dyslexia test to my daughter,I want to make sure if she's realy dyslixic...

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Subject: Case Study: 'P'


Author:
Johanne
[Edit]
Date Posted: 11:38:55 03/04/09 Wed
‘P’ is 17 years of age, has been excluded from mainstream education since he was 12 and has been involved with the criminal justice system since the age of 11.
‘P’ has not been diagnosed with dyslexia but displays the following symptoms: unable to follow 2 or 3 step instructions, unusual spelling, is late for appointments and confusion with left and right. ‘P’s’ positive features are, a good sense of humour, very artistic, has lots of energy, he’s keen to learn and he’s curious about how things work, especially cars and motorbikes.
When I work with 'P' we work for thirty minutes at a time if it’s Literacy or Numeracy so that he can have time to recover from what he’s just learnt. However, if he is doing work that he’s interested in then he can focus for a lot longer without the need to have regular breaks.
‘P’ is keen to learn to drive, but feels that due to him not being able to read as well as others as well as him confusing left from right he will be unable to. Recently we have been working on strategies for him to remember his left and right, ‘P’ has a home-made tattoo on his right forearm, it reminds him of bad times, so to remember right he thinks of ‘bad’ and to remember left he thinks of ‘good’ as he has no tattoo. Flash-cards are used to help him remember road signs as well as the braking-distance limit, which he has now memorised as a telephone number.
We still have a way to go but 'P' is improving and we encourage him to do so whilst he’s on our programme.

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Subject: Person First Language


Author:
Jennifer (Disappointed)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 20:00:24 03/04/09 Wed
Hello! I am a college student currently enrolled in a Special Education class. I found your site and wanted to use some of the ideas, which I feel are wonderful, but am sad to see so many people referring to students with dyslexia as a "dyslexic child" as if that is the most important aspect of their personhood. I know it sounds petty, but I feel that we need to remove stereotypes and not add to them by defining a child as their special need.

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Subject: Case Study: 'L'


Author:
Johanne
[Edit]
Date Posted: 11:33:36 03/04/09 Wed
Practical Exercise – Low self-confidence

Case Study: ‘L’is 17 and has been detached from mainstream education since he was 15.

‘Detachment from education, training and employment is a significant risk factor in relation to offending behaviour’
(Stephenson et al. 2007)

‘L’ was diagnosed with dyslexia and mild ADHD in 2001 and was given a Special Education Needs Statement to enable him to have extra support from a Learning Support Assistant. However, in 2006 he was expelled from mainstream education, aged 15.
In June 2006 ‘L’ was sent to a Secure Training Centre and sentenced to a two-year Detention and Training Order. His education statement was revoked due to his sentence. ‘L’ was released in 2007 on licence for the remainder of his sentence. He re-offended in spring 2008.

I first started working with ‘L’ in spring 2008. I noticed the following signs of low self-confidence:
• “I can’t do it”, before the task is explained to him;
• “This is rubbish” (or words to that effect);
• “Is it time to go yet?” or “I’m bored”;
• The experience of failure when in custody;
• Calling his self “Stupid” or “thick” and eventually giving up on education.
‘L's’ signs of low self-confidence were mostly defence mechanisms. We had to constantly break down barriers when it came to doing work. When asked to complete a piece of work he would reply by saying ‘You’re having a laugh if you think I’m doing all that!’ or ‘I’ve got to be home early today, I promised my mum I’d help her in the house’.
‘L’ told me that ‘I’d look at the work I was given and panic because it was too much for me to do in one session’. ‘L’ overcame his barriers slowly by completing his work in sections and at his own pace.
Having noticed the above signs I was then able to complete the next task with him to help improve his self-confidence.

Practical Exercise – Confidence-building exercise
I explained the practical exercise to ‘L’ and at first he was not too keen on participating. After he had a cigarette break and a cup of tea, he asked for A3 paper and highlighters to complete the work. ‘L’ worked hard on this task and spent twenty/thirty minutes to complete it in a ‘thought shower’ style rather than a list. He then copied it into a table on the computer. Below is ‘L’s’ actual pieces of work.
Things that I am good at: Walking the dog Playing board games Football (playing & watching) Drama Playing cards
Swimming and diving Saving money Dancing to rave/dance music
Working with others Art (drawing, painting, model making)
Keeping my room tidy Telling jokes and stories Making people laugh
DJing and mixing tunes Cooking
Playing on the X-Box
Talking in large groups Helping my mum with DIY at home IT (Media & Art packages)
Knowing the names of dance/rave clubs in Wales
Back-flips
Knowing all the players’ names for Cardiff FC

Things that I have had difficulty doing up till now:
Reading (especially paragraphs)
Spelling
Being patient with myself
Saying ‘No’ to drink (It gets me in trouble)
Belief in myself
Accepting praise and good comments from others

After completing both tasks, ‘L’ said that he was genuinely surprised on the number of things he is good at. Since leaving custody he has seen himself as a failure; it is only now at 17 that he is beginning to slowly believe in himself and accept positive comments from others.

Practical Exercise – Increasing motivation
Looking back through ‘L’s’ lists, I noticed that a lot of his strengths were sport or art related.
We focused on ‘L’s’ interests as a tool for increasing motivation, such as,
Art/Media: Changes: ‘L’ and five young people were invited to make a film based on Young Offenders. The film involved the group writing scenes, acting, choosing background music and staff to help them and then to help edit the film. The group chose to do a silent film.
‘L’ was rewarded with a copy of ‘Changes’, a certificate of achievement and vouchers to spend in his favourite sports shop. At home his reward was a small family party for doing so well within the first three months of ISSP.
Art/Sport: During ‘L’s’ art sessions, he completed a collage of Welsh football players using photo’s from magazines and newspapers.
‘L’s’ reward from ISSP was a tour of the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, where Wales play their international matches. His reward from home was a new Wales football shirt to wear on the day.

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Subject: Georgia Special Needs Scholarship??


Author:
Amanda Griffin
[Edit]
Date Posted: 09:43:48 03/04/09 Wed
Hi -
I'm at the end of my rope - please help!

My daughter is in the 3rd grade - we are in Georgia and I recently became aware of the Georgia Special Needs scholarship. I was wondering if anyone here has used this scholarship and any advice on what I can do to up our chances of getting enough money to send her to a private school? Or maybe the private school isn't the answer - I don't know - what are your experiences, pro and con. We are looking at dyslexic specific schools at this time.

Thanks in advance for all your help!

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Subject: Phonological awareness


Author:
Regina Moffett
[Edit]
Date Posted: 03:47:17 12/26/08 Fri
Phonological awareness is essential for a child’s ability to achieve reading and spelling success. The child must be able to hear and manipulate the sounds in spoken language. This ability includes manipulation of rhymes, words, and syllables. Spoken and written language differs in important ways. While words and letters have spaces between them, spoken language appears seamless. Its segmented nature is not obvious. For children who do not implicitly break words into segmented sounds for reading and spelling, this internal phonological structure is obscure. Therefore, research has found that children unable to do phonological tasks such as matching beginning sounds, rhyming, deleting sounds, categorizing words by sound, or segmenting sounds are highly likely to be poor readers.

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Subject: Using Phonics


Author:
Emma Teixeira
[Edit]
Date Posted: 14:32:15 02/28/09 Sat
I've been using the phonics method, first teaching the 26 initial sounds and then teaching combination of letters. I am so surprised at how easily the kids read the words which I give them. It appears almost effortless once they understand the sounds of the letters. Their smiles of satisfaction are more than I expected from kids who previously didn't like reading.

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Subject: We are concerned about our daughter


Author:
Richard
[Edit]
Date Posted: 17:28:29 02/09/09 Mon
We have a 17 year old daughter who, for as long as we can remember, believes that she may be slightly dyslexic. Aout 8 years ago we took her to a local dyslexic centre and paid for some testing. The results were inconclusive. Today the subject is still with us and in fact a couple of her teachers recently suggested the possibility of being dyslexic. Following this observation we went onto the BDA website and downloaded a test for her. This took about 25 minutes and concluded in a score of 4 which I understand to be "possibly dyslexic".
I must say that both myself and my wife feel a little helpless in our ability to help her due the unconclusive answers we keep getting. At the moment she is studying for her "A" levels and then wants to go to art college.
We would appreciate any advice that people on this forum may have as to how or do we progress this: or do we just ignore it.
Many thanks

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Subject: NJ Dyslexia Bill A880/A877


Author:
Beth
[Edit]
Date Posted: 07:47:30 01/12/09 Mon
My 11 yr old daughter was diagnossed almost 4 yrs ago with severe dyslexia. She could not read one word or number. she would go to school all day and just sit there. I use to drive to private tutoring at a very high cost to help her leran to read. Finally I found a school close to home so I moved to that district. I'm proud to say my daughter is currently reading at grade level....I was fortunate and wanted to help all children with dyslexia or a reading disability(How many can just move like I did?)with my daughters permission we went on TV, in newspaers and got NJ Bill A880 and Bill A877 introduced into Assembly. Please contact your Senators and call for this bill it is the only help dyslexic children have. Unfortunately like all the rest on this forum no one wants to hear about dyslexia, not the schools or the insurances and no one wants to help. So please spread the word and call to get these bills passed so our children have a chance.

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Subject: Need help with my daughter


Author:
Amanda
[Edit]
Date Posted: 19:29:34 02/13/09 Fri
Help! My daughter is 7 years old. I am convinced she is dyslexic. I have researched the subject and she shows many of the signs. Her school finally "screened" her today and I was told she "passed with flying colors". The test amounted to her writing 5 words she was comfortable with and 5 words she was not for the "screener". Thats it. I asked the screener what I should do about all the signs I see (which include reading words backwards, writing words backwards, printing letters backwards, writing numbers backwards, reversing letters and number and others). She told me to have her practice. We have. She even writes the letters in her first name backwards. I am concerned. The school says she doesn't warrent further testing because of the results of the "screening". I am a single mother of three who is going to college and working. I don't have a lot of extra money to pay for this stuff. I am so frustrated. Am I being paranoid? Should I trust the screener? I don't know what to do. This is my first experience with this. My gut feeling is that the screener was not thorough enough, and I have reason to believe she was also untrained. Any advice would be wonderful. Thanks!!!

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Subject: Write confidently with bad spelling


Author:
Ofer Chermesh
[Edit]
Date Posted: 13:44:16 02/21/09 Sat
(By Ofer Chermesh, Ghotit www.ghotit.com founder)

Every time I use a regular spell checker it hits me that the people who designed these spell checkers did not have in mind people like me, people who have really bad spelling.

When I use a regular spell checker I receive a word which is underlined in red and I am faced with one of the following problems:

1. My intended word is not in the suggestions list. This is because my spelling was too far away from the correct spelling (meaning I spelled REALLY badly), and the spellchecker simply could not pick up on my intended word.
2. My intended word is in the suggestions list, but since I am such a bad speller, I have no idea how to select the correct word from the list.

In addition, since regular spellcheckers don't pickup on misused words (words that are spelled correctly but are not the words I intended to write) I many times write really nonsensical sentences. I send these sentences out to the world without even knowing what nonsense I have just written. (For example, many times I have invited business colleagues for "Mating" instead of a "Meeting".)

The truth is that people with good spelling can not understand people with really bad spelling. They simply translate bad spelling to bad English in the good case, and "ignorance" in the worse case. I very soon lost my confidence in writing at all.

I tried all available spellchecking and writing assistance technologies, but none seemed to work for me. I started to fantasize and define the ideal spellchecker for me. Such a spellchecker included:

* A spellchecker that can pick up on really bad spelling, and offer the correct suggestions
* A context spellchecker, that can understand the context of what I am writing, so to avoid situations that I spell correctly but used a completely different word then the one I intended
* A spellchecker that offers for each suggested word its meaning so that I can easily select the intended word
* A spellchecker that can read out loud to me what I wrote, to make sure that what I wrote is really what I intended to write

Ghotit spellchecker was designed for people like me, people who have completely lost their confidence to write. With Ghotit, I now write confidently, continuing to misspell as I always have, but with the confidence that Ghotit is there with me to review my writing and offer the right corrections.

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Subject: checking work


Author:
Mary
[Edit]
Date Posted: 22:09:28 12/01/08 Mon
When children have finished their draft writing, I encourage them to read it out aloud to themselves and hear what they have written. In this way they can frequently pick up spelling errors along with punctuation errors.

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Subject: Looking for help


Author:
merri (hopeless)
[Edit]
Date Posted: 22:29:50 02/17/09 Tue
My 12 yr old son was diagnosed with dyslexia about a year ago,after many years of not knowing why he was struggling.He was also diagnosed with ADD about three years ago.He has a very high IQ and is super bright,but the only thing i can get the school to do is make some accomadations and stick him in resource and he didn't benefit from that for years so I don't feel like that is the place for him.They would not pay for the testing,are they supposed to?? I finally pulled him out of school and I am now home schooling, for lack of better options.I couldn't see his self esteem drop any lower.We are now going through the same thing with my 8 yr old,and i don't want his situation to get as bad as my older sons.The school will still not pay for the testing,and I am going to the school twice a week to tutor him ,because the school has no resources.does anyone have any suggestions,or thihgs that the school should be helping with that they are not?

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Subject: Motivating Article For Patients


Author:
Farhan
[Edit]
Date Posted: 05:41:45 02/19/09 Thu
hi, came accross this interesting article,
http://www.iibc.com/dyslexia-letter-reversal/, hope you find the article useful.

Farhan.

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