Please help! Don't know where to begin!

I would suggest taking him to a developmental optometrist for a developmental vision evaluation. Visual efficiency skills are not tested in regular eye exams, whether done by an opthalmologist or an optometrist. The poor visual memory suggests the possibility of developmental vision delay, so I would want to either rule it out or identify the specific areas of delay. (Most developmental vision delays are very responsive to vision therapy.)

For more information about common undiagnosed vision problems, see http://www.childrensvision.com. To find board-certified developmental optometrists in your area, do a search at http://www.covd.org. Where we are, a comprehensive developmental vision evaluation (takes at least two hours) is about $175. It’s advisable to obtain a written report if problems are found. Here that runs about $75 additional. (There is no need for a written report if no developmental vision delays are found.)

LMB may or may not be the best program for your son. I am partial to Phono-Graphix, myself, and usually recommend PG first because it is fast and relatively inexpensive. You know very quickly if PG is working or not, unlike most other reading programs. If PG doesn’t work, then I recommend looking at the slower, more expensive programs such as LMB and Orton-Gillingham. Where in Florida are you? The developers of Phono-Graphix have a clinic in the Orlando area. Website for PG is http://www.readamerica.net

For a 7yo with processing problems, you may want to start a cognitive skills training program at home. The best program for your son’s age is Audiblox. Website for that is http://www.audiblox2000.com. Although the program encourages one hour of one-on-one training five days a week, you can actually do just one-half hour per day (realizing that it will take longer to realize all of the gains from the program).

Most schools won’t even test children for a reading disability until 3rd grade. I would say your chances are nil for getting anything worthwhile for a 1st grader. By all means, get him classified for the ADD. However, your best bet is to pursue private remediation for the reading.

Nancy

I have used Phono-Graphix and now use a similar but better program that is being used in some areas of FL, but I am not sure where. It is called ABeCeDarian. The problem you may encounter with some Phono-graphix therapists is that they claim that 12-18 hours of tutoring will do the trick. I can assure you that it is not enough for most children with a processing disorder of any kind. I have some students get up to grade level in a year and I have one child who I’ve had for 3 years (severely dyslexic and has been evaluated for developmental vision). My students generally do not have access to vision therapy or assessment, and we seem to improve those skills as the child learns to read properly.

I am also trained in all the Lindamood-Bell programs, and I do feel that Seeing Stars is a great choice for children with your son’s profile.

Please don’t worry with the school. They wouldn’t be able to help him. Special ed. caseloads are very high there and he would never get the intensive individualized help he needs. There are FL parents on this board who will confirm this for you.

Janis,

Thanks for the info. Can you tell me the difference between Seeing Stars and ABeCeDarian. Also, do you think the Seeing Stars program could be effective if taught by a parent or tutor, with only 1 hour a day? Are there places to find a LMB or ABeCeDarian trained tutor? I live in the Ft. Lauderdale area.

Thanks!

You have a bright, articulate, quick-thinking, and above all *logical* boy, who needs someone to work on his strengths and not hand out the pablum used to coax along weaker learners.

There is nothing whatsoever wrong with sounding out every word. I learned that way, and I now can read over 800 words per minute, anything at all written in English or French and a bit of a few other languages. This is a *good* skill.

What he needs is what Phonographix calls the “advanced code” or what is Book 2 in my standard 4-book series. He needs to learn about digraphs (two letters making one sound), both onsonants such a sh, th, wh, ph=f, ng, and vowels ai, ay, a_e, ee, ea, ei, e_e, and so on.
Once he knows that there are *logical consistencies* in how over 90% of words are written, he can move ahead and develop advanced vocabulary.

From what you say, he is resisting the self-contradictory approach of learning some words phonetically and others by memorization, and Lord knows what magic skill you need to tell which is which when you meet a new one. Well, you can tell from what I write that I resist it too. Instead of beating him over the head with memorization, *use* that good verbal and logical skill that he has, and it is likely that he will move ahead of his class very fast.

You can use any good phonics program for this. I personally use a set of tried and true classic workbooks (Check and Double Check Phonics Books 1 to 4, from scholarschoice.ca, not the ca not com); I use these becasue they are complete and comprehensive, clear, full of backup and integrated review, and very inexpensive. Any other good complete phonics series will do as well.

As well as the workbooks, you read aloud with him. I use old basal readers to develop the standard vocabulary; again, anything well-designed and based on high-frequency words first will do well (NOT library books, which have too much vocabulary of all sorts without the necessary practice.) I personally use a Britich series, the old Ladybirds recently republished due to popular demand, by penguin.uk (note the uk, not com) As he reads aloud — and aloud is a must, what is called silent reading may be silent but it is rarely reading — you (a) help him sound out new words by giving him the vowel sounds as needed, telling him of silent letters, and repeating the first syllable(s) as a start while you pojint at the next part, and (b) insist on accuracy and self-correction as he goes. Given a sound phonics base and a developmental series where he can learn the vocabulary without jumping all around to other words, he should progress well.

While you are at it, check his handwriting/printing and see how bad a mess his directionality is in. Every single student I have had in the last two years has had a handwriting disaster. Straightening out the writing directionality often helps straighten out reading at the same time, as well as being a life skill in itself. I use rolling writers and whiteboard markers to encourage a relaxed grip and smooth motion, then insist on following classic writing patterns. It really helps.

Yes, an hour a day is *lots* of time. I get to work with my students only two hours a week and they generally make great progress. Fifteen to twenty minutes phonics, ten miniutes or so handwriting drill, tweny to thirty minutes oral reading (a story a day or even two at his level) plus some word study — your own ideas, or workbooks to go with your texts if you can possibly get them (photocopy as older texts are worth their weight in gold) this is a LOT, probably more than he does in school. If you can do this three or four times a week you should see improvements in as little as one or two weeks — but then you keep it up for several months until he has really mastered the skills for life.

I have to go teach math now, but please email me at [email protected] if you would like more suggestions.

Hi,

I am in the Ft. Lauderdale area as well. I have a 12 year old son who was in the Broward County special ed system for 4 years. He currently is in sixth grade in a parochial school in Davie.

First of all, the help you will get if you have your child classified is minimal at best and harmful at worst. The best thing you can hope for are accomodations for FCAT testing, in my view. The schools here are using a discrepancy model which makes it very difficult for a first grader to qualify. My son did but that is because he was classified as a preschooler in another state with a speech delay and came into the Florida schools in first grade already classified.

Exoect to do the work of remediating your child yourself. Frankly, I don’t think most special ed systems do a great job. So Florida is not special in that regard, although most don’t make it quite as painfully obvious as Florida that they aren’t up to the job.

Second, I think the world of the LMB clinic here. The director is just superb, which makes a huge difference, I think. My son did extremely well there with SS. That said, I wouldn’t start there. It is majorly expensive and in my view, best utlized when you have received as much milage as you can from other programs. The other thing is my son made much more than typical progress and I and the director agreed that was because of the other work we had done.

Third, I see a child with processing speed, memory, and rapid naming issues. There also may be some visual issues but I am less good at picking those out from testing (I am not a professional but an educated parent). The best place to start, in my view, would be with Neuronet. The developer is in Ft. Lauderdale and she is most responsible for my son being a B student in a demanding school when in first grade I was told he couldn’t learn. We have done almost all the programs around, and most have helped, but Neuronet has made the biggest single difference. Neuronetonline.com is the web site.

Fourth, I would also start with a different reading program than LMB. We used phonographix, although I understand that there are now some similar but better programs around. We also went to Orlando for two intensives, which made a big difference. He went at the beginning of second grade and in the middle of fourth. In between I taught him using their materials mostly. He did SS the summer after he did the second PG intensive.

Beth

KC~
Hi there! Im from FL too and agree 100% with Beth form FL (she has given me awesome advice in the past!)
When my son was in 1st grade we started going through all of this with the testing, and with him being so close-but not close enough to their discrepency guidelines, he was not eligable for services. Even though he was not reading, like your child, they tried pushing me to get an adhd diagnosis(which he does not have) so that if he were on med. he would automatically qualify for services then…..Illegal as heck!
Took him to an Audiologist that year and was diagnosed APD (audio processing dissorder)
Long story short, as Beth stated, don’t look to the school for the help he/she needs. Caseloads are crazy, and your child will not get the help needed.
My son’s audiologist suggested Earobics at that age. It’s a game based phonix and memory building program. We had some good results with that, but he needed more. We ended up moving out of state a few years later and he got an IEP in PA. We have since moved back here, and they are following the guidelines to the T (with a lot of persuasion on my part)
Good news is, is that your child is still so young and you seem to be on top of things. Keep on it, it may be frustrating and heartbreking at times, but remember, you are your childs best advocate (I think Beth said that to me once) There is a lot of help available out there, good luck to you and your child!

Thank you all for responding with encouraging words and ideas. I have come to the realization that the public schools are not really my friend in this situation, which is difficult for me to say, as I am a former Special Ed. teacher, and half of my family are teachers, and one asst. principal. Has anyone had any better luck in private or Montessori schools? The psychologist recommended Montessori to allow him to continue to excel in his math. I have also considered homeschooling for next year, just to try to catch him up. Any thoughts about any of these would be great!

I am comfortable with my assessment that this is not an APD, as I think auditory learning is one of his strengths. He remembers EVERYTHING, and just last week “schooled” me about penguins (what is class was learning about). But, when it comes to reading a book or writing a story, he is so far behind. I can work with him on sight words, he could get a 100% on his spelling test, and then not be able to read those same words in a paragraph. He tries to decode every letter, and sometimes will use the blends.

I hope you keep your ideas coming, and hopefully with all the research I am doing, I will find something to help him. I am lucky to have a strong family behind me, and we are all my son’s best advocates. It stinks that we have to work this hard, but it is all worth it.

Thanks again for all your help!

[quote]I can work with him on sight words, he could get a 100% on his spelling test, and then not be able to read those same words in a paragraph. He tries to decode every letter, and sometimes will use the blends. [/quote]

This reminds me of my son when he was in 3rd grade. He really struggled with reading even with extra support. During the summer between his 3rd and 4th grade years I took him to an Educational Optometrist. She found that his problem was with convergence (he was having double vision up to 3 feet from his eyes, making reading really difficult). He got glasses and vision therapy to help correct the problem. In 1 year he went from barely reading at grade level to 2 grades ahead. By 6th grade he was reading at a college level. (He’s also dyslexic.)

My dd hasn’t had such sucess but her issues are many and more complicated. She has visual issues that require glasses with a colored tint. (Dyslexia and Irlen Syndrome) She is making progress but it is much more slow. [/quote]

KC,

My son learns auditorially AND has an APD. He could tell you the names of all the palm trees here in first grade yet tested as having a significant auditory processing disorder. So the two are not mutually exclusive.

I pulled my son out part time in second grade when I couldn’t get the school to provide even a reasonable program and homeschooled him. We did Neuronet and PG. It was a good choice. When he returned to special ed the following year with a new teacher (old one was very problematic), he was the only one who could read and his math had improved enough to move out of special ed.

Beth

You say you are not succeeding teaching him sight words. Fine, I don’t teach sight words. Never. And I never learned any myself. What I did learn to do was to scan and sound out so fast it *looks* like reading sight words — but it is much much *better* because I can read new vocabulary and other languages just as well.

If you teach consistent left-to-right scanning, *all* the common vowel combinations, and the habit of noting irregularities and silent letters, you can help him learn to read very well, without once ever mentioning a “sight word”.

Not only that, but this is the route to efficient spelling, too.

Do be sure to read a lot with him - you want to make sure he’s not losing verbal ground with the reading he’s not doing, and you can still imbue in him a love for words and a firm knowledge of what a good sentence *sounds* like. In the long run that will be every bit as important as the actual reading skill, especially with the possibility of accommodations. (I’m NOT saying don’t worry about the reading, of course!)