My beautiful daughter, 12, is entering the 6th grade and struggling to read/write at a 3rd grade level. Although she scores in the high averge area of intelligence, all of her scores in a recent ITBS (Iowa Test of Basic Skills) were in the below average range. She has been receiving “special” services through an IEP for the past 3 years but her progress has been minimal.
I have looked at the Lindamood Bell program, she is an exact match of the type student they say their program can help but their price tag is $1400/week of intensive 20 hour per week instruction. That is more than both my husband and I together even make and we have 3 other children to raise. The extremely high cost of this program makes me very ANGRY! I think it is very cold to offer a program that they say can truly help these precious children but use their exclusivity to hold these children’s futures ransom. How many families can truly afford such training? Does anyone have any info on Lindamood Bell or other less costly options? I realize my daughter’s future should be worth any price, but we’re already strapped and struggling as it is!
Same boat
Like so many others we have been in your situation. Since our son could not read and the special ed teacher(department) had no training in programs to teach him, we requested a LMB trained teacher. They found one in the district and we had him bused to that school. Still, I documented how much instruction he was NOT getting and next we asked that the district pay for a local LD clinic daily for LMB. Since you (the school) can’t provide him with appropriate instruction, you’ll have to pay someone who can. I did have to hire an advocate, but we did get about three or four months of daily instruction. The district did begin training teachers in LMB methods. I later took my son to a PG tutor. They are usually reasonably priced or you can try it yourself with the Reading Reflex book. I now work for a district that offers LMB methods. So, since your daughter has been in special ed and is not making progress, ask if they have teachers in the district trained to teach her the LMB LiPS program. Tell the district you are not satisfied with your daughter’s lack of progress and that if they can’t teach her LiPS themselves you would be happy to have them pay the $1400 a week.
Re: Frustrated with PS lack of knowledge-understanding
We were able to do a few weeks of Lindamood Bell this year and I just want to tell you that while it was very effective, there is nothing magical about it. What made it work for my son was the intensity of it. He did 4 hours a day for 4 weeks. . The actual LMB tutors were the least experienced tutors we’ve ever used in fact. They were just a bunch of nice college grads who had been taught how to do the LMB method and they rotate during the day so noone burns out . The methodology was consistent with any OrtonGillingham method I’ve looked at , and with Reading Reflex. The reason it works for kids is that they are set up to deliver intensive remediation in a relatively short amount of time and I think that is what some kids need.
( You should also know that when I spoke with an attorney about getting private LD school tuition paid for he told me that if my son had been classifed earlier he would have been able to get the Lindamood Bell paid for as well. I also learned that some LD schools in my area are “funded” by the state (NY). Our situation changed so we didn’t follow thru but my point is that there may be ways to get some financial assistance if you find the right advocate. I also know that tuition and tutoring can be tax deductible depending on your tax situation. )
You are right. The cost is outrageous. There is an at home method to help our kids with reading and the only cost is the cost of the book. It’s called Reading Reflex by Carmen and Geoffrey McGuinness. It walks you through how to tutor your own child. I think the book is about $13.
My 3rd grader will be attending a $15,000/year LD school in the Fall. It’s an amazing facility. Too bad it is out of reach for most people. Why does it have to be this way? I can afford only bec my mother is paying half. The public school couldn’t help my son although they claimed to be helping him. What a joke it was.