PACE

PACE is the best cognitive training program around. However, not all problems that children have are cognitive level problems. Ideally you want to correct any sensory/motor level deficits before doing PACE.There is a model that views development as a pyramid. The base is genetic inheritance, next layer is sensory/motor development, next layer is cognitive skills acquisition, and the very peak is academic learning. A big chunk out of the genetic level of sensory/motor level will hinder development of the higher layers.Probably the most dramatic gains are seen when a child has had a sensory/motor deficit that is finally corrected or significantly reduced. PACE corrects the corresponding cognitive skills deficit in a very short period of time.Our dd had severe congenital astigmatism that was not corrected with eyeglasses until age 3. At age 8 she was found to have severe developmental vision delays (probably related to the astigmatism). This was a sensory level deficit. Six months of vision therapy brought her up to age-appropriate levels in terms of sensory level vision skills, but we saw little improvement in academics. PACE was able to train multiple cognitive level vision skills in a short period of time (things like visual sequencing, speed of visual sequencing, directionality, short-term visual memory, etc.), as well as other cognitive skills. By the end of the 5th week of the program we could see significant improvements on the academic level, especially in reading fluency.Audiblox is another cognitive training program. Website is http://www.audiblox2000.com. This is a good alternative for people who can’t afford PACE. It’s not as comprehensive, but it costs a lot less and is home-based.Mary: Does anyone have an opinon on the PACE program? I have reviewed thier
: site and it sound promising, but alot of things appear that way. I
: am interested in hearing from anyone who has had a child go
: through the program, or to hear about similar programs. Thanks
: Kathy

: I’m doing PACE and Master the Code with my son right now. We’ve been working for 12 weeks and have seen terrific gains. He came into the program with fairly mild visual processing and auditory processing issues and has had 2 years of tutoring using an O-G program. He’s bright but has always lagged a year or so behind in reading and writing and has/had really poor spelling skills. Comprehension has never been a problem.He’s now reading above grade level with much improved fluency. His writing composition has improved dramatically and his handwriting is suddenly neat and readable where it has always been uneven and cramped.He has enjoyed the program and loves all the improvements. As MaryMN said, it’s not for everyone, but it has been great for us. I’m not a homeschooler, but this intense daily work with my son has strengthened our already strong relationship—a nice bonus.Good luck.Does anyone have an opinon on the PACE program? I have reviewed thier
: site and it sound promising, but alot of things appear that way. I
: am interested in hearing from anyone who has had a child go
: through the program, or to hear about similar programs. Thanks
: Kathy

Your mail suggests that you are using PACE at home. Is this the case and if so how did you become trained and how much is it costing you to do PACE with your son as an home provider? Although this bulletin board would suggest that PACE is superior to Audioblox, the cost of PACE using an outside provider is prohibitively expensive.Thanks in advanceLinda

Being trained with PACE is not that much less than doing it through an outside provider. It is 1750, assuming you do the program and get the $500 rebate for providing scores. Where I am at the program is about $2000 through outside provider. In any case, Audioblox is still much cheaper.: Your mail suggests that you are using PACE at home. Is this the case
: and if so how did you become trained and how much is it costing
: you to do PACE with your son as an home provider? Although this
: bulletin board would suggest that PACE is superior to Audioblox,
: the cost of PACE using an outside provider is prohibitively
: expensive.: Thanks in advance: Linda

I have 2 boys (almost 11 & 13) … they have done Fast ForWord and PACE and Audio Blox (just to name a few things that have completely drained our retirement account!). I really think AudioBlox answers alot of questions (for moms ore than professionals!). We have also done the Interactive Metronome … and vision therapy ….. let me know if I can answer any questions!
Susan

Wow! Which programs do you think helped and why?

We did vision therapy, PACE and Phono-Graphix, all of which helped greatly in different ways. We did FastForWord too, with little result, probably because dd never tested as having auditory processing problems. Her primary problems are/were with vision and phonological processing. She has some minor bilateral coordination lags, so I am interested in having her do IM also.

You don’t mention an actual reading program that teaches decoding skills. What did you do along those lines?

Mary

Susan wrote:
>
> I have 2 boys (almost 11 & 13) … they have done Fast
> ForWord and PACE and Audio Blox (just to name a few things
> that have completely drained our retirement account!). I
> really think AudioBlox answers alot of questions (for moms
> ore than professionals!). We have also done the Interactive
> Metronome … and vision therapy ….. let me know if I can
> answer any questions!
> Susan

Gosh,

I’d like to know anything you have to say about any of these programs. I’m homeschooling my 14 year old son now. I’ ve been using an Orton Gillingham program administered by Greenwood school. He did Fastforward when he was younger and showed great post test results, but now I notice he has trouble following conversations and movies. He talks all through the movie asking for clarification, so you can imagine how much fun it is for the adults watching. This suggests to me that he has trouble processing and integrating visual and auditory stimuli. What should we do? The FastForward program for adolescents? PACE? Audioblox? Earobics? And what were those other ones? Boy, I’d sure appreciate your comments.

I have used a combination of programs … I took a special class for Reading ASSIST (was called Project ASSIST for awhile). That program combines Lindamood-Bell, Orton Gillingham & Spalding. Spalding was overwhelming for us and the many rules seemed to cloud the issue. I too used Phono-Graphix and like the program. With everything we did, my oldest son always seemed to get to the edge and freeze. Within the past few weeks he has really taken off …. I wish I could explain what happened or how we did it, but I honestly can’t. In October he was testing at a primer level (he is 13), this week he was reading Robinson Crusoe. I do know that my son really wanted to learn to read and never lost hope … he also continued to love books (we own an enormous number of books on tape and I have read to my children since they were born). My methods worked for my son because they really are individualized … I use parts of many programs … My BIG challenge is my younger son, he’s almost 11 and learns very differently … much of what I did with my older son does not click with him. Needless to say I am glad I only have two children ……. I have a great deal of respect for the public school teacher who has 20 kids who all learn differently ….. I have 2 and I’m tettering on the edge here!
Susan

Believe it or not, we did Greenwood too … for about a month. I was very disappointed with the program (actually the way it was delivered, the program dittos Reading ASSIST). I was just reading about Master the Code, which is part of PACE (actually I think it is the next step up) but both programs require good visual processing skills. Fast ForWord also has a program out for older students … I don’t know alot about that one. Have you looked into the Interactive Metronome ? Last February we went to Florida and met with a group down there called 3D Learner … they were able to help us identify the issues and prioritize what to work on … they introduced us to IM … it is really cool, but expensive. I am going to look into it this week for my younger son.
One thing that helped me lately with my 13 year old (and helped him more than me in the long run) … He dictates a story to me, I write it for him … he re-reads it (aloud, with my help .. I immediately correct him if he is saying the wrong word) … then I dictate it back to him and he writes it ………. this is obviously a very long process to get something done, but the results have been really great and he is trying to write more on his own now and because he had the individual tasks broken down into one step processes he was able to complete something and feel good about himself AND learn alot more. I hope this helps …
Susan

Teddi,

My recommendation wouuld probably be PACE because it covers so many processing skills. You could do the next FFW program first, if you have the time and money to invest, but it probably wouldn’t be essential since your son has already been through FFW.

Audiblox is a good alternative if you can’t afford PACE, but PACE would be my first choice.

I wouldn’t bother with Earobics.

Have you looked at Phono-Graphix as an alternative to OG?

Mary (certified in PACE, FFW and Phono-Graphix)

Hi Teddi,

My 14yo child definitely benefited from both FastForWord 1&2. Gains she was unable to make with the first program were accomplished with the second one. Since you’ve noticed your son having problems following conversations and movies, I suspect he would benefit from FFW2 (goes by another name now). Like Mary MN, I am also trained in PACE and Master the Code. PACE has helped my child with sequential & simultaneous processing problems as well as processing speed. Her auditory memory hasn’t improved as much as I hoped but she is now remembering phone number for the first time. While PACE does address auditory processing, I don’t believe my child who have made the progress she has without first completing FFW 1&2. We also used Phono-Graphix (prior to PACE), which I really like, but my child got stuck on the multi-syllable management. MTC has helped her push past that barrier which directly relates to improved decoding and reading skills. My child also did IM. Her attention and focus improved some but her biggest gains were in rhythm and timing. I definitely recommend FFW, PACE, MTC, PG & IM!

Blessings, momo

You may also want to check into The Listening Program as if he is having trouble following conversations that would suggest auditory processing difficulties, does he have difficulty filtering out back ground noise?
Info can be found at www.advancedbrain.com. he also may benefit from Brainbuilder which works on visual and auditory successive processing and short term memory it is found at the same sight.

I have heard of the Listening Program, but I feel as if I have lost touch over hte last 5 years. My son (12) is in a special school that uses Orton-Gillingham, but he has had little progression in terms of auditory and visual progression. He reads well, but comprehension is not imporved. He has to reread 3 times with questions prompted by me. I have to read everything ahead of him to make sure he looks for the key points. I have no idea what PACE and Audio– is. Any sites for me to get caught up on the newest therapies. We considered Fastforward, but as someone else said- we have eaten up our retirement between this private school and therapies not covered by insurance.

My son has the typical dyslexic characteristic of difficulty with analogue time. Just recently he asked a really basic question about time. It was one of those ‘Oh no, are we still here,’ moments when you simultaneously want to beat your own head against the wall and snatch up the big 13-year-old in a protective embrace. But living in a dyslexic’s world one must quell these little emotional storms and look again for solutions. Some of you have discussed Neuronet on this bulletin board. From what I read although developed for auditary problems, this seems to be based on a student’s perception of time and space. Has anyone out there tried this program for non-auditory problems and if so in what areas and with what results?

I would like to pose other questions. Many of you seem to have been more proactive, than I, with your LD children. We have had internet in the home for less than a year and so although I had discovered Phono-graphix some years ago many of the other programs currently being discussed in the PACE thread are new to me this year. The fact that my son is now 13yo and those high school years are just around the corner makes me ever more anxious to see some major breakthroughs in reading, writing, and personal management skills.

We are currently one month into Vision Therapy and are using the Spalding Method (for spelling, decoding, encoding). We await a written report for our CAP evaluation but after testing the audiologist indicated that the results were in an acceptable range. We have also done the PACE home assessment but have not yet scheduled a phone consultation, for two reasons. One is the fear of price shock and the other is the need to be more informed before possibly committing to more big expense. This is where my questions arise.

The first question is, whether one should finish one program before starting another.
The PACE assessment indicated my ds to be very strong in logic and reasoning and visual processing, but very weak in Word Attack and Auditory Analysis in particular and also weak in Processing Speed. It would seem to me that if PACE were to target these weak areas, these are both different and bear no hierarchical relation to what the vision therapy is working on.

The second question for those that have experienced a multitude of programs, how might Audiblox compare to PACE for my son’s problems.

As always, I thank all of you, who are willing to share your hindsight to better my foresight in working with my dyslexic child.

Linda

I will try to answer your questions.

1. On Neuronet. My son is currently doing it and I am very impressed. My son, however, has CAPD. It also is addressing his small motor skills (very deficient) and sensory integration (vestibular system). We started the program because of difficulties with bilaterality (coordinating two sides of body) and auditory integration. It has been a very good choice for us because it was developed by an audiologist. I don’t know if it would be as good for you, given what you said.

2. On finishing one program before starting another. I think it depends. We started vision therapy last summer while my son was still doing Fast forward. We plan to start PACE this summer before he finishes NN (he will have done it for 6 months–). Neuronet is aimed at sensory motor level so it would not have been appropriate to do it much earlier—you get the best gains from PACE if you address those underlying sensory motor issues first. (PACE people have told me at different times that there are certain vision issues that should be addressed first and sensory integration problems. I would not have started another program focused on auditory system until finishing another (and was told that by an audiologist too). We’re looking at PACE primarily for the visual end of it.

3. My understanding is that audioblox doesn’t address processing speed. PACE has a new homebased program that is much cheaper called Brain Skills. It is $500 as opposed to 1750 for PACE (if you get trained—more if you use a provider). You might consider that if processing speed is an issue. Also, my understanding is PACE is faster which may especially be an issue with an older kid.

Beth

I understand Lindamood program visualizing and verbalizing works specifically on comprehension. I also understand that parents can do it themselves, if they purchase the manual, although I haven’t done it. I have the Seeing Stars manual and find it easy to follow. Lindamood also teaches it but for a hefty price. You might also ask about it at your son’s school.

From their video the underlying principle method for PACE, would seem to me to be the idea of ‘loading’. Load the student with progressively more simultaneous tasks to train them to stay focused and deal with multple processing. Am I right or have I missed some crucial detail? Intuitively the pace setting of the metronome seemed important but I don’t understand why. Could anyone explain.

What is the underlying principle method for Audiblox? I hear much talk about blocks, which keeps bringing to mind a flash card type approach. It can’t be this simple, can it?

Besides decoding and encoding problems my ds has had the hardest time learning sight words. We are still struggling with the first grade sight words(who, what, when. where, why, were, there, their). We are currently working with Great Leaps to help with this problem, but in the end if we slog all the way through the program, at best my son will have the sight vocabulary of a sixth grader which would make him functionally literate enough to read a newspaper. Is this as much as I should expect or would other programs offer greater scope?

As always thanks in advance for your responses.

Linda

Just seen your response above.

Thanks for the sharing your experiences. I will definitely be investigating Brain Skills.

Linda

Audioblox has colored blocks that you do different things with—all related to visual memory. I have a spin off of audioblox called Turbo tutor and have played some with the blocks. You have to remember patterns. I don’t think it works with loading in the same way. The idea behind loading is that it forces tasks to be automatic.

The metronome works on processing speed.

I suspect your child has severe visual memory problems. My son could not learn sight words either. His visual memory was 3 std. below the mean in testing last fall. You can experiment by giving him three buttons in different colors and letting him look at it for three seconds. See if he can tell you the order of the colors. He should be able to do 7 buttons. My nonld daughter could do six the first time and with just a bit of practice 7 easily. My son could do three. Consider that most words are more than three letters—well you see the problem.

Another thing you might try is Seeing Stars by Lindamood. It works at developing visual memory for letters. Lindamood uses it with their LIPS program but the manual is written such you can use it with any program. We are using it with phono-graphix. There is more emphasis on nonsense words which I find is important with my son. He now can decode “pot” just fine but give him “ot” and he struggles. Anyway, I bought the teacher’s manuals (about 50) and the workbooks (4 for $16). My son’s reading has improved recently although it is hard to sort out exactly why since we are doing both Neuronet and Seeing Stars. I like Seeing Stars for visual memory—as opposed to the block approach—because it is directly tied into decoding and thus integrates both visual and auditory processing, both which are weaknesses for my son.

Hope this helps.

I wouldn’t consider loading to be the principle method for PACE. It’s just a helpful technique to speed up automaticity, as Beth mentioned.

The metronome helps to build up processing speed. An exercise is first done to achieve accuracy. Once the child can, for example, read all the directions of the arrows on a page accurately, the metronome is introduced at a slow speed. Gradually, as the child can do the exercise accurately in time to the slow metronome beat, the metronome is set to a slightly higher speed. The idea is to make the exercise just slightly challenging to the child — not so challenging that it is frustrating. Gradually the child goes from a slow speed to a fast speed. At this point, another level of complexity is introduced and metronome speed is dropped. Once accuracy is achieved, speed is worked on. Etc.

PACE would likely help a lot with sight words. Before PACE, my daughter tested as “dyseidetic”. I was told she had absolutely no memory for the way words look. After PACE, this was not a problem.

Both PACE and Audiblox work on developing sequencing skills short-term memory — both auditory and visual. PACE also works on developing sequencing speed. PACE also does more work on logic and reasoning, and a few other cognitive skills areas.

Mary

hello..

Could someone post a link for the PACE and newer “at home” program from them??

thanks

ruthann

PACE website is http://www.learninginfo.com

Their new home program website is http://www.brainskills.com

Mary

Greetings Linda,

The first grade sight words you mentioned - who, what, when, where, why, were, there and their - are not sight words but are words that are truly decodable! The typical person can memorize or have a sight word capacity of about 2,000 to 3,000 words and as you know, some of us have even less capacity so eventually the visual memory load will bottom out. Allowing a child to memorize words actually creates a deficit for him.. According to the McGuinnesses in their book entitled “Reading Reflex” (which outlines their Phono-Graphix reading program), there are only about 55 words in the English language that do not decode properly (such as ‘yacht’). The other 19,950 words that we use and spell daily are predictable and decodable. Reading programs such as Phono-Graphix and Master the Code teach students how to simply decode those similar looking words that other programs call ‘sight’ words.

Blessings, momo

Thanks for the reminder Momo.

It is some years since I read the McGuinnesses book and I had forgotten that their set of phenomes did extend the decodable words considerably.
Interestingly I have had two other recent reminders - one from the Master The Code website and the other from Spalding.
We gave up on the Phono-Graphix because the number and choices of phenomes was overwhelming. Spalding rules do seem to aid in predicting the right phenome.
A follow up question has to be - Would you agree that Master The Code has the performance edge that they claim? How much of the cognitive exercises from PACE are actually in Master The Code?

As always thanks for your interest and support.

Linda

Re: Teddi and/Greenwood Program
Please tell me more about your experiences with the Greenwood program. What is it like? How does it work? Does it seem to work with your son? How long have you been using the program? What areas (if any) have shown improvement? I’m curious because I’m thinking of home schooling my 15 year old son after this school year ends and he needs a program like this. Thanks for your information!!
Debbie

I am homeschooling 2 boys, 11 & 13. We have used Reading Reflex, completed Fast ForWord 1 (&2 for the 13 year old), we have several years of vision therapy under our belts, I took a 36 hour Reading ASSIST course (Orton Gillingham/Lindamood Bell/Splading mixed together), we have AudioBlox and use parts of it … my 13 year old completed PACE last summer (our provider was the pits … I LOVE the program, but you really need to be careful about who is actually working with your child). We attempted Greenwood in September. Of all the programs I have used, Greenwood had to be the most disappointing … the quality of what they provided was really awful (the tesing results and materials sent have typos throughout) ….. so what I have to offer does not include using Greenwood. I do think PACE is wonderful and I’n sure Master the Code is a winner (providers are scarce around here) My 13 year old is finally really reading and my 11 year old is on his way. We are using The Calvert School curriculum w/o math … for math we are using Saxon. My boys would have alot of trouble if I expected them to use these programs without help …… so alot of what they are expected to read I must read to them first (ex. history … science …). I have also added Brain Builder software into our day (helps with digit span//memory) and we use Simon Spells (from Don Johnston) … I use Audio Blox with my 11 year old. I have a tutor that helps us 3-4 hours/3 days a week .. otherwise I would lose my mind. We try to find as many “normal” programs as possible so that the boys feel good about themselves and do what we can to even the playing field for them. It is really hard to explain what I do to anyone with expectations that they would be able to use “my program” with their child … it really is a matter of understanding the issues and then understanding what helps based on the individual needs of the child. My 11 year old really needs the interactive metronome program (which we tried when we went to FL to try 3D Learner) but we’re out of money !
My 2 favorite reads on the subject are:
Anything on this board written by Sue Jones (or her site) AND
a book titled Multisensory Teaching of Basic Language Skills by Judith Birsh.
This is our third year homeschooling …. I had an awful experience with my school district and when we left both my boys were pre-primer level (one of the teachers told me that “some children just never learn to read so they needed to be taught to compensate!”). We have made a great deal of progress so far. I wish I could offer a full description of what I did …. but the bottom line is that we began to really understand the stuff that was holding them back and then looked for the program or used a piece of a program. There’s gotta be a better way but if I waited for someone to figure it out they would be lost adults! I really think J. Birsh’s book is a must read for all families dealing with LDs.
Susan

Do you have a web address for Sue Jone’s site?

Thanks for your many contributions to this board.

Linda

Sue Jones has such a wonderful site:
http://www.resourceroom.net/index.asp
I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do!!
Susan

I’d like more information about the Master The Code and the Neuronet programs. What do these programs teach/improve? How much does each cost? How long do the programs last? Can they be done at home…if not, how can I find providers?
My son did the Fast ForWord program and is now working on Step 4Word. Each program works on different areas and goes up in learning levels.
Can someone explain…why do some parents like the Calvert home schooling program and other parents don’t?
Thanks for all the great information!!
Debbie

Re: Calvert School
What I like about the program: The Calvert School curriculum is very structured. The lesson plans are written out for you, day by day. There is a great deal of reading and writing. It is a complete program. The Advisory Teaching service is very helpful and provides the support that is needed. The program helps me because then I know what to teach for each grade level and I can build on that …. otherwise I was going crazy trying to plan it out myself. The biggest plus for me is that my boys LOVE it.
What I don’t like about the program: It does not include a reading program that is designed to help dyslexics (Orton-Gillingham// Lindamood Bell …) Calvert is not a special needs school and I knew that going in so I’m not upset about it. But because I am familar with those programs I just add to the Calvert stuff. Alot of people call the curriculum “classic” …. and I understand some people don’t like that … personally, I do.
One downside … Calvert does not allow you to re-sell the material. You must sign an agreement that you will not do that. That part is very upsetting to some people … personally, I don’t mind because I tend to scribble all over my stuff and wouldn’t want anyone else to see it!
Susan

Master the Code is an add-on program to PACE (Processing and Cognitive Enhancement, http://www.learninginfo.com). PACE is a 12-week program involving 3 hours per week of one-on-one with a trained tutor and a similar amount of homework practice. Costs run around $2400 where I am, in the Midwest. A child needs PACE in order to move into Master the Code, which is tutored in a similar manner, usually for 6-8 weeks. Both are cognitive training programs, with MTC focusing on reading (building visual recognition of reading patterns and auditory recognition of written patterns).

NeuroNet works on a much more fundamental level than MTC. If you were considering doing both, NeuroNet would definitely come before PACE. NN works on sensory/motor foundations of development — developing the vestibular system, coordination, rhythm, balance, etc. It is most commonly used for children who have auditory processing deficits. In fact, some of the testing to determine whether NN is likely to help is a subset of CAPD testing. NeuroNet website is http://www.neuroacoustics.com and has a lot of information about what the program tries to accomplish. It is more on the order of an occupational therapy type of program.

PACE work is sandwiched in-between sensory/motor level development (NeuroNet, OT, FFW, AIT, speech therapy) and academic instruction (Phono-Graphix, etc.).

Mary

Greetings Linda,

In my experience, MTC does have the performance edge because information is presented and reinforced through a variety of activities. Several exercises in PACE are also used in MTC: visualization of pictures to help remember the various letter combinations that represent a sound, discrimination by circling various letter combinations that represent a sound, teaching and drilling the code, visual spelling, plus a couple of new exercises. I believe the intensity of this program and the metronome drilling of nonsense words, in addition to real words, helped to make the difference for my child. MTC does not teach vocabulary though so I’m addressing that through the McGuinness’ Verbal Intelligence and am looking at MegaWords.

I’m not familar with Spalding, but I agree with the McGuinnesses that memorizing the 134 sound pictures that represent the various sounds used in English is easier than memorizing 2-3,000 sight words and easier than memorizing twenty-six letter sounds, plus all the rules which apply less than half the time, plus all the exceptions to all the rules that a phonics program teaches.

We are only halfway through MTC, but I will post gains unpon completion.

Blessings, momo

MaryMN: Thanks for the great info and websites!! NeuroNet sounds like something my son has needed
Debbie
.

Dear Debbie,

We used Greenwood for one semester. Actually it took us longer than one semester to do one semester’s work. One reason for this is that my son generally works very slowly, particularly with writing. To keep pace with the program you need to do it five days a week. It’s supposed to take about half an hour to do the language sequence; daily reading of a selected text is also expected. I found that we spent so much time doing the program, we sometimes had trouble keeping up with other home school studies.

In general I feel that the program is sound. It’s nice to have an email relationship with someone to whom you can ask questions. However, the printed materials we received had a lot of typographical errors and sometimes omissions. I expect better than that for the money. But I don’t regret having done it. Now I feel I can do it myself. Hope this helps.

Teddi