FFW question for Angela

My background is as a special education (resource) teacher. I am not an SLP. I now provide FFW as part of an intensive one-to-one clinic type setting in a public school district. I will have nearly 25 kids, upper elementary and middle school this summer. All of the kids have been identified with auditory processing deficits. For most their ability to read (decode) has been seriously affected. They have not made progress in special ed classroom type instruction. They have been referred and screened by a team before I see them. So, we often start with FFW to improve the auditory processing and then they move into daily one-to-one decoding instruction using LiPS. Our students are making excellent progress, but I can’t attribute it to one program only. Even so, FFW is very intensive work on auditory processing skills. It sounds like your multisensory phonics program is working. My humble opinion is that when the child’s progress seems to slow or you see processing issues affecting her ability to discriminate or remember sounds then it is time for FFW.

As a parent who put two children through FFW and LIPS, I found that the LIPS was much more valuable than FFW. The LIPS instructor (this was not a Lindamood-Bell clinic, just a tutoring center that used LIPS) incouraged me to put my second child through FFW because he was making such slow progress in the LIPS program. I decided to put him through it without telling her to see if she would see the difference. 2 months after he completed the FFW program she was still telling me how poor his phonemic awareness was and how he really needed the FFW! I left the tutoring center and hired my own LIPS instructor and provided him with 6 hrs. week LIPS instead of the 3 per week. He is now making good progress.
My older child felt that the FFW helped her to follow class instrutions better, she was able to keep up with the class . Interestingly, Dr. Sally Shawitz in her new book “Over Coming Dyslexia” warns readers to beware of overly advertized software.

My own child did Fast Forward. The biggest change, and permanent, we saw was in receptive language (scores went from low 80s on standardized scores to 100+). My son understood the world around him. His teachers commented on how much more attentive he was. Reading was not directly impacted, because he had other issues which continued to affect his ability to learn to read.

Beth

We had the same experience—my ds had no problem with sound symbol association and decoding despite CAPD, but he did have large receptive and expressive language deficits. Scores on both went up tremendously after FFW1 (not much after FFW2). I would say the progress he made with FFW1 was at least equivalent to what could have been accomplished with two (possibly more) years of one on one language therapy twice a week (based on the progress we saw after just that much of language therapy right before he took FFW1).

Annie,

I even asked her (Sally S.) why did she not included FFW in her book.

She said that it is still controversial in terms of gain/effort (financially and time wise).

I think however that it might improve receptive language skills (as Beth noticed for her son).

Ewa

Marie,

How old was your child when she started FFW? I have a 6 yr old but feel that he may be too young. I’ve gotten mix messages and I’m trying to collect all the info I can on kids that have actually used FFW at this age.
Blessings,
Diane

My ds took it the summer he turned 8. He might have been able to do it a year earlier, but at 6 I think he would have been too young.

My son was 7. He could not have done it at 6.

Beth

The trainings are long and the skills are hard, so most of my students are a little older. It seems that 3rd grade and up do quite well with some exceptions of course. There is an earlier level now called FFW Basics (used to be Away We Go). It teaches early listening and computer skills, colors and shapes and does not have time requirements. You do not have to be connected to Scientific Learning to do this program, so you could do it at home and gradually build up your child’s readiness for FFW.

I’ll have to share a great deal I found with all of you. There is a discount online software dealer who is selling some products by Scientific Learning, the company that makes FFW. These are probably the last edition of these items, but it is truly one of the best bargains I have ever found! They have Reading Edge, Away We Go Bookself, and Away We Go (which appears to be exactly the same as FFW Basics) all for under $10 each brand new in original packaging!

www.purplus.com (look in the two children’s sections)

Janis

My dd was a prime candidate for FFW. But she was only 5.5(almost 6) and we had a very hard time getting her thru Earobics. Earobics was only 15min. per day - there was no way I would be able to get her to do 1.5-2hrs per day of FFW!

So we did Tomatis instead. It was a good decision for us. Immediately, she could do the Earobics exercises, where she had problems prior.

You know what, this site was great, but I’m going broke on my classroom. THanks for the tip. The prices look great, ($117 bucks later).

I plan to use these while I do PG with my other kids.
Michelle AZ

Lol, Michelle! Join the club…I’d be afraid to add up how much I have spent over the last year! But it’s just SO fun to have materials that are worthwhile, isn’t it?! Glad you were able to take advantage of the CD’s.

Janis

Hello,

I have been watching all the postings and really got interested in FFW. My son who is 10 years old who was diagnosed with LD 1/2 way thru the 3rd grade. This summer I am torn between sending him to summer school or doing a FFW program offsite. But I am not looking for a miracle but I really want something for my money. By doing offsite it would cost us the license fee of FFW and $90.00 a week with a Teaching Therapist. He has auditory processing, expressive language problems. Does anyone have some advice whether this would be a good program or try summer school along with another program?

I would definitely go for the FFW. I’m not sure what summer program you could do that would have the potential positive effect FFW could have on your son’s auditory processing and expressive languge. My son’s improvement in his auditory processing and expressive language was amazing after FFW—he certainly made more progress in the six weeks of the program than he did after two years of language therapy four hours a week. I hesitate to recommend this program to people whose children have reading problems because it may not get at the underlying problem—for example, if the child has visual processing issues. (Many parents just know their child is having problems reading but haven’t a clue about why.) However, if your goal is improvement in receptive and expressive language, I can unreservedly recommend FFW.