Hi! My daughter has not been diagnosed with LD, but is a year younger than her peers. She struggles and has to work harder than the others in her class. She does not like to read, but can. She also struggles in math. We have had her tested and found that she does not to have ADD or CAPD. We also had her tested for Speech to see if there was a problem with her language development. She tested very high and they did not perceive that there was a problem. She began taking focus factor as a way to help her focus. We could not see any real difference and neither did her teachers. She went through reading at Sylvan and brought her reading level up a grade level in just 3 months. She does not appear to have a learning disability, but struggles to make A’s, B’s, and C’s. On standardized tests, she does well, but has a hard time with the daily school work. It sounds like we have tried everything, but we are just trying to figure out the puzzle of why she is not performing better. My main objective is to try to help her maintain the level she is at over the summer. Does anyone have any suggestions of programs or methods to use that are fun while still effective? I am a certified teacher and am eager to help her. I teach high school and need some ideas for a fourth grader going to fifth.
What is her LD? It’s difficult to make suggestions for maintaining her level without knowing what the LD is. And in what areas at school does she struggle?
As you say reading is one of them, the best prescription for a struggling or reluctant reader that I know is reading out loud. Reading outloud for 10-20 minutes every day can only help, never hurt. I also recommend books on tape for the times you’re driving around in the car. Some books have audio versions and a child can read and listen at the same time.
Your daughter should also read in books that are very comfortable for her 15-20 minutes every day.
Both of those suggestions are generic ones but if a program name is helpful, the Benchmark School, an indepedent school renowned for its work in reading, advocates reading out loud and daily reading.
As to why she is not performing better, what does her teacher say? What brings her grades down? Test scores? Or homework? Or both?