WWYD??? Teaching a child who is WAY, WAY behind...

[ereks mom]

What reading/phonics program would you suggest to someone wanting rapid success in teaching a 15 year old to read?

 

Background: Up until 2 years ago, the girl's mom claimed she was "homeschooling," but they rarely did any school work.  The mom is no longer in the picture, and the child is currently attending public school.

Testing for special education services shows that the girl has no learning disabilities; instead, the test administrator reported that she simply "hasn't been exposed to the material"--meaning that the mom did not teach her--and she reads on 2nd grade level.  Her spelling and handwriting are AWFUL, and she also has problems in math, but reading is the primary issue.

 

In spite of the gaps in her learning, when she entered public school, the administration decided to place her in 7th grade.  (Age-wise, under normal circumstances, she would have been in 8th grade.) She failed 7th grade last school year and is repeating this year, but, not surprisingly, she is failing again, and the school plans to place her in 8th grade next year because their guidelines do not allow her to repeat a grade more than once. I have been asked to work with her 2 days per week over 3 months this summer.  What would suggest that I use that would give us rapid results?

 

    

 

[MotherGoose]

I have no experience in this, but Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading seems to me to be the easiest, cheapest, and least babyish way to get her reading.  If she's motivated and has no learning problems, I would think you could get through it quickly.  

[Zoo Keeper]

Phonics Pathways is made for any age; WRTR is also for any age, but requires more of a learning curve *for the teacher*.  Phonics Pathways is more open and go.

 

The Phonics Page may be an option as well. http://thephonicspage.org/

[EKS]

Agreeing with the others.  I'd go through phonics with her and also have her read aloud to an adult every single day, starting for 10-15 minutes per day and gradually increasing the time to 30 minutes at a stretch.  For this part it's important to have her read text that is easy for her and then gradually increase the difficult level of the text as she improves.

 

Also, once she's reading fluently on about a 4th grade level, I'd add in REWARDS to jump start the decoding of longer words.

[momof4babes]

I wanted to suggest you try explode the code.

My son who was older when we started liked the online version over the books.

It gives immediate feedback, and allows for them to pass assessments for skills they already know.

The homeschool buyers coop has it for $35, so it's not expensive to try.

[AimeeM]

Phonics Pathways would allow you to work at her pace, it isn't "young-ish," and it would take her ALL the way through phonics and spelling.

[Tanaqui]

You're working with her two days a week. Is somebody else working with her on other days, or is she going to be left to study (or not) on her own? And if the latter, is she motivated to learn so she won't be so far behind, or is she embarrassed to even try because she's so far behind? I don't know enough about curricula to make a strong suggestion there, but I would think that those questions might alter my approach.

[Ellie]

What reading/phonics program would you suggest to someone wanting rapid success in teaching a 15 year old to read?

 

Background: Up until 2 years ago, the girl's mom claimed she was "homeschooling," but they rarely did any school work.  The mom is no longer in the picture, and the child is currently attending public school.

Testing for special education services shows that the girl has no learning disabilities; instead, the test administrator reported that she simply "hasn't been exposed to the material"--meaning that the mom did not teach her--and she reads on 2nd grade level.  Her spelling and handwriting are AWFUL, and she also has problems in math, but reading is the primary issue.

 

In spite of the gaps in her learning, when she entered public school, the administration decided to place her in 7th grade.  (Age-wise, under normal circumstances, she would have been in 8th grade.) She failed 7th grade last school year and is repeating this year, but, not surprisingly, she is failing again, and the school plans to place her in 8th grade next year because their guidelines do not allow her to repeat a grade more than once. I have been asked to work with her 2 days per week over 3 months this summer.  What would suggest that I use that would give us rapid results?

 

Spalding would have her up to her age level in a year. Really. Two days a week for three months, if she is willing and you are able, would make an significant improvement. But there is some lead time in your learning how to teach the Spalding Method.

 

Victory Drill Book is inexpensive and might be what you need. She could also self-study on the days she isn't with you.

[beaners]

She has been in the public school system for two years, and is still only reading at a second grade level? I know kids fall through the cracks, but if she has been getting any kind of reading instruction (and with those scores she has to be eligible for an IEP) and she isn't reading well yet, I disagree with the school's "no LD" assessment. I think knowing what is going on there is going to be helpful for you to make forward progress with her.

[LibraryLover]

It might be valuable, if it wasn't done, to have her retested at a Children's Hospital w/ Neuro. If it's only been school testing, it might not have been thorough as it needs to be.  Processing issues can be difficult to diagnose.

[OneStepAtATime]

She needs an assessment through a Neuropsychologist. I agree 100% with previous posts, if she is still failing and only reading at about a 2nd grade level after two years in school, then the school may be dead wrong. Or they are incapable of teaching her. I seriously doubt they did a full work up. She needs one. There are many things that could be tripping her up that are hard to tweak out and diagnose. Although there ARE exceptions, most schools I have come across are not trained to deal with a situation this severe. They don't have enough training, experience or background knowledge to truly determine what is happening.

 

This child needs a full assessment and daily one on one tutoring. She needs consistent, systematic, targeted attention. 2 days a week will not be enough, especially if she is also struggling to keep up with school work that is beyond her current capacity. Is there any way possible they could pull her out of school and put her with you at least 3 days a week? Just moving her forward seems idiotic.

[swellmomma]

She needs an assessment through a Neuropsychologist.  I agree with 100% with previous posts, if she is still failing and only reading at about a 2nd grade level after two years in school, then the school may be dead wrong.  Or they are incapable of teaching her.  I seriously doubt they did a full work up.  She needs one.  There are many things that could be tripping her up that are hard to tweak out and diagnose.  Although there ARE exceptions, most schools I have come across are not trained to deal with a situation this severe.  They don't have enough training, experience or background knowledge to truly determine what is happening.

 

This child needs a full assessment and daily one on one tutoring.  She needs consistent, systematic, targeted attention.  2 days a week will not be enough, especially if she is also struggling to keep up with school work that is beyond her current capacity.  Is there any way possible they could pull her out of school and put her with you at least 3 days a week?  Just moving her forward seems idiotic.

 

I agree.  My ds16 has been through the school educational psych testing twice, both indicate some adhd and otherwise fine.  He is not fine.  He is now undergoing neuropsych testing, 8 hours of testing the first day, another 5 hours to go next testing day, plus 2 hours of interviewing me about my concerns and 2 hours of me filling out questionnaires (okay so I was doing for other boys at the same time so roughly 1 hour of each of those things just for ds16).  

 

I can see the first year floundering if she lacked instruction, but to be failing it the 2nd year in a row going through the same material something is up.  THere is things the edupsych testing can not pick up, like visual processing issues or auditory processing issues, or tracking and convergence issues, or stealth dyslexia etc.  It would show large gaps in learning and those gaps are open to interpretation.  Most schools are biased against homeschooling and will use that as the scape goat rather than looking further (btdt).

 

CHild should not be in a regular classroom if she is perpetually failing, that will just make things worse for her.  She should be in a spec ed classroom for all core subjects so she can get one on one help and remediation.  Based on how her education is going she is going to drop out at 16 and not even have a 7th grade education.  I know my dd15 or ds16 would not be willing to only be doing 7th or 8th grade at this point and continue to fail.  What a way to crush a kid's spirit.  She needs further testing to make sure they are not missing something.

 

 

[Nart]

Has she been getting any type of intervention at school? Is she in a program like Read180/System 44; Language!; Corrective Reading? If she has only been getting modified work in a 7th grade English class it isn't surprising her reading hasn't progressed. She was never taught how to read. Dancing Bears and Apples and Pears would be good to use because they don't look like they are for younger kids.

 

ETA: I would giver her Explore the Code pages to do on the days you aren't working with her.

[*Jessica*]

That is heartbreaking. Aside from all of the suggestions above I would suggest that she needs audiobooks or someone to read aloud to her for next school year. If she hasn't progressed significantly by the start of school she is only going to continue to fall farther and farther behind. Having someone reading her books to her (or audiobooks where available) will at least expose her to the content, help with completing assignments, and keep her from failing completely.

[OneStepAtATime]

Agree with the above, irregardless of whether whoever is in charge of her can get her privately tested, she needs exposure to content. It isn't just her reading skills, her probable lack of exposure to concepts, vocabulary, grammar, etc. is going to really, really hinder her. She needs audio books.

 

If there were any way for whoever is caring for her (Dad? Grandparents?) to get her a Kindle she could listen to books. They should get her a regular headset, not ear buds, so she can "read" privately.

 

Read alouds with discussion would be extremely important, too, but I don't know if there is anyone willing to do that on a daily basis for her.

[Renai]

That is heartbreaking. Aside from all of the suggestions above I would suggest that she needs audiobooks or someone to read aloud to her for next school year. If she hasn't progressed significantly by the start of school she is only going to continue to fall farther and farther behind. Having someone reading her books to her (or audiobooks where available) will at least expose her to the content, help with completing assignments, and keep her from failing completely.

 

 

Agree with the above, irregardless of whether whoever is in charge of her can get her privately tested, she needs exposure to content.  It isn't just her reading skills, her exposure to concepts, vocabulary, grammar, etc. is going to really, really hinder her.  She needs audio books.  If there were any way for whoever is caring for her (Dad? Grandparents?) can get her a Kindle she could listen to books.  They should get her a regular headset, not ear buds, so she can "read" privately.  Read alouds with discussion would be extremely important, too, but I don't know if there is anyone willing to do that on a daily basis for her.

 

Agreeing with being read to for content while building skills. My daughter's school has Learning Ally, and she has science, history, and sometimes books her English class is reading uploaded into her account. She can listen and follow along both at school (they use Chromebooks) and at home. 

[luuknam]

I like Toe by Toe for phonics. But is it possible for someone to work with her for a little while every day? It'd be really helpful if whomever is her guardian at the moment could work with her 20 minutes a day, the 5 days a week you won't be working with her.

 

If she's willing to do homework on her own, you can find leveled book lists online. Our school used Fountas & Pinnell until recently (when the district suddenly decided to force the American Reading Company on them), and 2nd grade is about levels J-M (depending on whether we're talking about the start of the year or the end). I like F&P (except for levels A-D, which seem a little random). The library should have plenty of books at a 2nd grade level. They're mostly going to be childish, but if it helps, I read a lot of children's books whenever I learned a foreign language. Not the same thing, of course, but once she gets to 3rd or 4th grade level it should get much easier to find interesting books to read, so hopefully that won't take long. That assumes that the school is correct that she doesn't have any LDs. I don't know what the school has done since she started attending school, so I don't know. If she was getting a bunch of remediation in school for 2 years, she should be past 2nd grade level, but maybe the school dropped the ball for a while too (or she had behavioral issues or w/e). I'd suggest she reads on her own for at least half an hour a day (doesn't have to be in one chunk).

 

There are also workbooks you can buy at Barnes & Noble or Amazon or so (2nd grade reading, 2nd grade non-fiction reading, etc) she could work on on her own a little every day.

 

Like others have said, audiobooks as well, and documentary DVDs.

 

Is her pencil grip good? If it isn't, something like a C.L.A.W. pencil grip might be helpful (they come in adult sizes too, iirc... should be able to find them on Amazon).

[shinyhappypeople]

Phonics Pathways is made for any age; WRTR is also for any age, but requires more of a learning curve *for the teacher*.  Phonics Pathways is more open and go.

 

The Phonics Page may be an option as well. http://thephonicspage.org/

 

:iagree:

 

Also, can you help create a language-rich environment for her?  Is she motivated to improve her reading skills?  

 

I would encourage her to use the captions option when watching tv, and listen to audiobooks.  Does she have a kindle?  She could read ebooks with whispersync (my DD calls it her "Leap Frog for grown-ups")

 

My heart aches for this young woman.   :sad:

[kbutton]

She has been in the public school system for two years, and is still only reading at a second grade level? I know kids fall through the cracks, but if she has been getting any kind of reading instruction (and with those scores she has to be eligible for an IEP) and she isn't reading well yet, I disagree with the school's "no LD" assessment. I think knowing what is going on there is going to be helpful for you to make forward progress with her.

 

She might not be eligible for an IEP. This is what our state documentation says about IEPs. I am sure they are not the only state. I have no idea what they do about educational neglect (esp. if it's for a public school student who hasn't been homeschooled), but they don't have to give an IEP...

 

"It is the determination of the team that:

The determining factor for the child's poor performance is not due to a lack of appropriate instruction in reading or math or the child's limited English proficiency. For the preschool-age child the determining factor for the child's poor performance is not due to a lack of preschool pre-academics.. YES NO

The child meets the state criteria for having a disability (or continuing to have a disability) based on the data provided in this document. YES NO

The child demonstrates an educational need that requires specially designed instruction YES NO

If the response is NO to any question, then the child is NOT eligible for special education. If the response to all three questions is YES, then the child IS eligible for special education."

 

She might still have a disability. I know someone who was in a public school setting and a 2e dyslexic. That person was almost this far behind. (This person caught up with outside intervention and a change of home settings.)

[Hunter]

I hate to just keep adding another similar title. i just know that HERE with MY adult students, Either How to Tutor or one of the versions of Alpha-Phonics by Samuel Blumenfeld had been what has been best received. I have used Writing Road to Reading 4th edition (see Ellie's post above) and do incorporate some phonograms into whichever Blumenfeld text I'm using, but it's the Blumenfeld text that starts to turn things around.

 

How to Tutor

http://www.amazon.com/How-To-Tutor-Samuel-Blumenfeld/dp/0941995011

 

WRTR 4th editon. Unlike Ellie I do recommend the 4th and ONLY the 4th!!

http://www.amazon.com/Writing-Road-Reading-Spalding-Teaching/dp/0688100074/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1430003820&sr=1-2&keywords=writing+road+to+reading

 

Sitting down with How to Tutor and WRTR 4th again and again and rereading and rereading, pencil in hand and scribbling, scribbling scribbling, and making my own WRTR student workbook have made me a better tutor of people with LDs who have given up.

 

I think just any title mentioned above or just any Blumenfeld text would be enough for any child that just didn't receive instruction and wouldn't require much study on the tutor's part. Some of my students HAVE just been neglected.

 

Good luck!

[Hunter]

I want to add a link to Ruth Beechick's The Three R's. Very helpful book.

http://www.amazon.com/Three-Rs-Ruth-Beechick/dp/0880620749/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1430004371&sr=1-1&keywords=the+three+r%27s

 

I find that Beechick and Blumenfeld make a nice team, that convinces the instructor they really CAN do this.

 

Beechick boils down which phonograms and spelling rules need to be taught if you don't want to use the full WRTR method.

 

I like that 3R's and How to Tutor are regular paperback size. It's makes them easier to make your own.

[hornblower]

I think I would do Phonics Pathways, Elizabeth's phonics lessons and Apples & Pears spelling.

I'd also stock up on audio books - pref ones the girl can take home & esp if she can actually have the text & the audio on at the same time. I'd go completely interest led on that, not any levelled readers but whatever YA novels might interest her.

or ideally, if someone can buy her the whispersync enabled device so she can read along as the narrator reads.

[EKS]

I think regardless of what approach to teaching reading you use, the most important thing is systematic, *daily* instruction and/or practice.  Two days per week will not cut it.  And it will not be fixed in a summer.  Is there someone on board at home who can help her with practice?

[Ausmumof3]

Also I would consider getting her an online learning programme. I'm thinking of reading eggs though it's a bit babyish. Is there a similar program for older kids. That way she's not limited to the two days you are with her but could work on her own to make up the gap if she's motivated. To be honest at that age and with two years at school I'd suspect an underlying learning difficulty that hasn't yet been identified.

[MomatHWTK]

Reading Rescue 1-2-3 is a book with lots of good tips. ESL materials might be helpful as they are often written for older students and/or adults. 

[TranquilMind]

What reading/phonics program would you suggest to someone wanting rapid success in teaching a 15 year old to read?

 

Background: Up until 2 years ago, the girl's mom claimed she was "homeschooling," but they rarely did any school work.  The mom is no longer in the picture, and the child is currently attending public school.

Testing for special education services shows that the girl has no learning disabilities; instead, the test administrator reported that she simply "hasn't been exposed to the material"--meaning that the mom did not teach her--and she reads on 2nd grade level.  Her spelling and handwriting are AWFUL, and she also has problems in math, but reading is the primary issue.

 

In spite of the gaps in her learning, when she entered public school, the administration decided to place her in 7th grade.  (Age-wise, under normal circumstances, she would have been in 8th grade.) She failed 7th grade last school year and is repeating this year, but, not surprisingly, she is failing again, and the school plans to place her in 8th grade next year because their guidelines do not allow her to repeat a grade more than once. I have been asked to work with her 2 days per week over 3 months this summer.  What would suggest that I use that would give us rapid results?

Alpha Phonics.  Best program out there, in my opinion.  Sure worked for my kids. 

[BlsdMama]

She has been in the public school system for two years, and is still only reading at a second grade level? I know kids fall through the cracks, but if she has been getting any kind of reading instruction (and with those scores she has to be eligible for an IEP) and she isn't reading well yet, I disagree with the school's "no LD" assessment. I think knowing what is going on there is going to be helpful for you to make forward progress with her.

Absolutely this.

 

What system can't teach a teen to decode in two years?

 

School systems are notoriously bad at diagnosing.

[BlsdMama]

BTW, the messy handwriting is a huge clue here. Girls LIKE pretty handwriting.

[Kiara.I]

Does she complain of headaches when trying to read?  I'd also assume that a teen could learn to decode in a couple of years, so I'd be inclined to check with an optometrist about things like convergence and tracking, and whether she can actually *see* the text.

[shinyhappypeople]

Is she ever around much younger children?  Would she enjoy reading very simple books to littles?  I'm thinking of books like Hop on Pop.  It might boost her self confidence.

 

I do hope she's able to get a NP eval.  It seems strange to me that any neurotypical child would not progress past 2nd grade reading level without some underlying issues.  I mean, I guess it's possible, but she's been in school two years now and still no real progress.  I agree with others that that is a big red flag.

[maize]

BTW, the messy handwriting is a huge clue here. Girls LIKE pretty handwriting.

I dunno, I think that's a pretty big generalization. I was never particularly motivated to make my handwriting pretty. I suppose that could have been a symptom of something or other, ADHD would likely have been an easy diagnosis for me and maybe that influenced my handwriting. But maybe not caring about making it pretty was just personality.

[FO4UR]

Dancing Bears Fast Track

 

 

Apples & Pears for spelling

[luuknam]

I do hope she's able to get a NP eval.  It seems strange to me that any neurotypical child would not progress past 2nd grade reading level without some underlying issues.  I mean, I guess it's possible, but she's been in school two years now and still no real progress.  I agree with others that that is a big red flag.

 

It's very unclear to me what has happened in the past couple of years at school, or wrt her home situation. Her mom is not in the picture anymore, but we don't know where she lives. We have no idea how she was treated by her mom, nor by the people she currently lives with. She's in middle school, which is tough socially, and being illiterate probably isn't really helping that much either. So, I see the potential for various issues other than LDs. She could easily have been struggling with things like depression etc, which could have been interfering with her learning over the past two years.

 

I second the suggestion to always have the subtitles on when the TV is on, btw.

[ElizabethB]

The things on my how to tutor page average 1 to 2 grade levels of improvement after 10 hours of work, and some students have gained 4+ grade levels after that much time. The nonsense words speed the process if there has been any sight word teaching or other whole language practices, it took 3 to 4 times as long to get my students to grade level before I started using nonsense words.

 

http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Reading/howtotutor.html

 

Also, a regular phonics program does not start working with multisyllable words until the end, older students are capable of decoding multisyllable words once they learn syllable division rules, it is helpful and motivational for them to start with multisyllable words early.

 

Once I added Webster's Speller to my process, the number of students I got above grade level increased dramatically.

 

I would assign my online phonics lessons as homework, the record is 6 grade levels of improvement after watching through the 10 hours of phonics lessons and 2 hours of spelling lessons. Most students gain a grade level or two after watching them.

[beaners]

She might not be eligible for an IEP. This is what our state documentation says about IEPs. I am sure they are not the only state. I have no idea what they do about educational neglect (esp. if it's for a public school student who hasn't been homeschooled), but they don't have to give an IEP...

 

"It is the determination of the team that:

The determining factor for the child's poor performance is not due to a lack of appropriate instruction in reading or math or the child's limited English proficiency. For the preschool-age child the determining factor for the child's poor performance is not due to a lack of preschool pre-academics.. YES NO

The child meets the state criteria for having a disability (or continuing to have a disability) based on the data provided in this document. YES NO

The child demonstrates an educational need that requires specially designed instruction YES NO

If the response is NO to any question, then the child is NOT eligible for special education. If the response to all three questions is YES, then the child IS eligible for special education."

 

She might still have a disability. I know someone who was in a public school setting and a 2e dyslexic. That person was almost this far behind. (This person caught up with outside intervention and a change of home settings.)

I could see a school saying it was lack of instruction upon initial enrollment, but after two years? The school has skin in the game now too. They are legally required to be providing a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE). I'm not saying some schools wouldn't try to avoid the extra work, but she is certainly eligible for services. I have teenagers with severe delays and other special needs who are reading a bit below that level. That is a wildly low percentile placement.

 

I would fight tooth and nail for an IEP now, before the summer hits, to have services lined up for next year. If you do it now those services cannot be changed by the school without agreement by the student's representative, even if her scores go up from the tutoring over the summer. To me it sounds like she is really going to need that extra help going back next year, and it would stink if you guys work so hard that she is just at the line where she still needs help but doesn't qualify. She certainly qualifies now though, and they can't change the IEP without permission after it is in place! Find an advocate and fight for it if the school is resistant.

[imagine.more]

Even if she was in school for 2 years they might not have actually tired to teach her to read. As in start at the beginning and move forward from that point.

 

When I went to school I moved from a system that started French late, into one that had it since kindergarten. I was then not in French for a couple of years due to speech theapy and other things at that time. The way they 'tired' to teach me French was just to throw me in a grade 6 class with people who had French for 7 years. When I had no clue what was going on they would speak French to me loudly and slowly. Ocassionally I would be offered tutoring for 30 minutes once a month to catch me up. Well guess what - it didn't work. :glare:

Absolutely, this was our experience with our foster daughter. And middle schools just aren't equipped to teach phonics, it's not part of teacher training for middle school teachers to learn how to teach phonics. They're focused on comprehension and vocabulary and motivation at that age. Nobody expects a child 5+ years behind honestly.

 

I agree with others that I would recommend a neuropsych test because schools often miss things on their shorter tests. And i'd focus on a good phonics program (opgtr, wrtr, anything that moves fast really) during the 2 days together. I'd try to have her listen to audiobooks on the days off and/or send her home with "homework" of simple worksheets to reinforce the skills. Teachers Pay Teachers has tons of cheap/free homework or morning work packs that review basic skills. Start with a 2nd grade one since that's where she's at.

[rutheart]

FWIW, I know a girl who was a victim of educational neglect. She entered public school at 7th grade, with only having about a kindergartner's level of education. The first year was hard, hard, hard, with countless meetings with the school staff to make them understand the situation. If all the teachers don't understand the underlying problems, progress is nearly impossible.

In this case, the girl spent ALL her free time studying and slowly caught up. She graduated from high school with only a year delay, and then graduated from college with a degree in computer science. She now has a job in the IT field and is living on her own. So if the girl is self-motivated and has help, it's still possible to catch up.

Also, FWIW, her older brother entered public school in 8th grade, but he has some disabilities, and he never did catch up, and was unable to get a high school diploma. He's currently living in a group home.

Ruth

[Renai]

The things on my how to tutor page average 1 to 2 grade levels of improvement after 10 hours of work, and some students have gained 4+ grade levels after that much time. The nonsense words speed the process if there has been any sight word teaching or other whole language practices, it took 3 to 4 times as long to get my students to grade level before I started using nonsense words.

 

http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Reading/howtotutor.html

 

Also, a regular phonics program does not start working with multisyllable words until the end, older students are capable of decoding multisyllable words once they learn syllable division rules, it is helpful and motivational for them to start with multisyllable words early.

 

Once I added Webster's Speller to my process, the number of students I got above grade level increased dramatically.

 

I would assign my online phonics lessons as homework, the record is 6 grade levels of improvement after watching through the 10 hours of phonics lessons and 2 hours of spelling lessons. Most students gain a grade level or two after watching them.

 

The bolded brings to mind a 6th grade student I tutored.  This student had already been held back in 3rd, and was in danger of being held back in 6th, although she was receiving special ed services. She was the first one I tried the syllable division rules with, and it did make a big difference.

 

Other pps have mentioned having motivation as well, and when I started in with multisyllable words and the division rules, something clicked with this student (she started taking notes!) and she asked me, "You mean, if I learn this, I'll be able to read?" To which I told her, she can read now, but this would help her figure out how to read the bigger words. Talk about motivation.

 

I met with her special ed teacher a few weeks after and he mentioned the big improvement. I mentioned "open syllable long, closed syllable short" and he said, "oh yeah, I remember that." Sometimes the teachers know these things, but don't explicitly teach them.

 

Most of the older students were missing phonics (their tutoring goals said "comprehension," I taught phonics), and once I saw the dramatic improvement in this student with the syllable division, I started using it more with all my older students. It really makes a difference once they know the sounds (some kids were still confused by long and short vowels) and can read lower-level materials.

 

(Yes, I made use of Elizabeth's page often.)

[ereks mom]

You're working with her two days a week. Is somebody else working with her on other days, or is she going to be left to study (or not) on her own? And if the latter, is she motivated to learn so she won't be so far behind, or is she embarrassed to even try because she's so far behind? I don't know enough about curricula to make a strong suggestion there, but I would think that those questions might alter my approach.

 

She is embarrassed that she is so far behind, and sometimes becomes frustrated, because she genuinely TRIES.  She really, REALLY wants to learn.  I get so angry sometimes, just thinking about what a disservice her mom did to her by not teaching her, yet claiming that she was homeschooling. 

[ereks mom]

Spalding would have her up to her age level in a year. Really. Two days a week for three months, if she is willing and you are able, would make an significant improvement. But there is some lead time in your learning how to teach the Spalding Method.

 

Victory Drill Book is inexpensive and might be what you need. She could also self-study on the days she isn't with you.

 

I have taught WRTR before, but it has been years!  I still have the teal-colored book (3rd edition???) on my shelf, so I need to pull that down and review.  Thanks.

[ereks mom]

I have no experience in this, but Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading seems to me to be the easiest, cheapest, and least babyish way to get her reading.  If she's motivated and has no learning problems, I would think you could get through it quickly.  

 

I actually have a copy of OPGTR that a friend gave me.  I'll get it off the shelf and see if it looks doable for her/us.

[ereks mom]

It might be valuable, if it wasn't done, to have her retested at a Children's Hospital w/ Neuro. If it's only been school testing, it might not have been thorough as it needs to be.  Processing issues can be difficult to diagnose.

 

Her dad told me yesterday that he has made an appointment with a psychologist, and she will be going in a couple of weeks.  I'm interested to see what the psychologist says.

[Mandylubug]

Well, knowing personally a teacher that's sole purpose is to catch kids up, I can understand why the child would still be behind 2 years later. My friend is supposed to have these types of kids. However, she has too many kids, by herself and no curriculum because she is supposed to be working with each individual child where they are at with their assignments. Almost like a classroom aid but in another room. She said its so overwhelming and half the time she is just trying to keep order in the classroom.

 

Eta: best wishes with helping. I think you have received some great recommendations!

[ereks mom]

She needs an assessment through a Neuropsychologist. I agree 100% with previous posts, if she is still failing and only reading at about a 2nd grade level after two years in school, then the school may be dead wrong. Or they are incapable of teaching her. I seriously doubt they did a full work up. She needs one. There are many things that could be tripping her up that are hard to tweak out and diagnose. Although there ARE exceptions, most schools I have come across are not trained to deal with a situation this severe. They don't have enough training, experience or background knowledge to truly determine what is happening.

 

This child needs a full assessment and daily one on one tutoring. She needs consistent, systematic, targeted attention. 2 days a week will not be enough, especially if she is also struggling to keep up with school work that is beyond her current capacity. Is there any way possible they could pull her out of school and put her with you at least 3 days a week? Just moving her forward seems idiotic.

 

Two days per week would be over the summer.  Her dad has asked me about teaching her next school year along with the group of girls I already have (we have school 4 days per week).  The trouble is, 1) she is way, way below the level of the three struggling learners I already have, and 2) in order for me to teach her, she would have to actually LIVE IN MY HOME 4 days per week because of her dad's (he's dh's brother, so my BIL) work schedule and the fact that they live an hour's drive from us.  It would be a HUGE disruption to our lives, since our own children are now adults (one married, one a college student only home on breaks and the occasional weekend).

[Lang Syne Boardie]

She is embarrassed that she is so far behind, and sometimes becomes frustrated, because she genuinely TRIES.  She really, REALLY wants to learn.  I get so angry sometimes, just thinking about what a disservice her mom did to her by not teaching her, yet claiming that she was homeschooling. 

 

I just want to join Margaret in thanking you for what you are doing. I've BTDT and the disappointment and frustration on the child's part is the most difficult aspect; so much more difficult than the teaching, even. The injustice is infuriating.

 

I'm concerned about the public schools' inability to remediate older kids who are 3+ years behind. It shouldn't be true that underpaid (or unpaid) homeschool moms in the community are these kids' last best hope when their so-called homeschooling parents fail them. Not sustainable. Not realistic.

 

I know tutoring centers and services exist but can most homeschooling families (single income, lots of kids) afford them? No.

 

[FO4UR]

She is embarrassed that she is so far behind, and sometimes becomes frustrated, because she genuinely TRIES.  She really, REALLY wants to learn.  I get so angry sometimes, just thinking about what a disservice her mom did to her by not teaching her, yet claiming that she was homeschooling. 

 

She has hope then.  She needs to be in a place where the frustration is minimized so that her progress can be maximized.

 

Dancing Bears and Apples & Pears are both programs that are 100% scripted and her dad can work with her on days when she can't work with you.  Honestly, I *highly* recommend teaching her dad to tutor her b/c he is with her daily. You are not.  These two programs are written for older, remedial, dyslexics.

 

 

I actually have a copy of OPGTR that a friend gave me.  I'll get it off the shelf and see if it looks doable for her/us.

 

imho, Dancing Bears will get her reading faster. This might be a good 2nd choice, but I will repeat the bit about teaching her dad how to use the book to tutor her when you are not available.

 

 

 

Bless you for doing this!  

 

 

Read, Write, Type by www.talkingfingers.com is a bit juvenile, but it's a program that she could do by herself and ime it really makes some progress in fluency with both reading & spelling.  

[OneStepAtATime]

Her dad told me yesterday that he has made an appointment with a psychologist, and she will be going in a couple of weeks.  I'm interested to see what the psychologist says.

Psychologist certainly may be extremely helpful but a psychologist and a neuropsychologist are not the same thing.  A neuropsych can do a full battery of cognitive tests to determine any underlying learning challenges/disabilities.  She really, really needs a full work up through a neuropsychologist.

[luuknam]

Honestly, I *highly* recommend teaching her dad to tutor her b/c he is with her daily. You are not. 

 

Agreed with this.

 

Toe by Toe is also meant to be used by anyone, but I don't know the other programs mentioned, so I don't know which is best. I do know TbT is really easy to implement (the authors assume the parents tutoring dyslexic kids may not be the best readers in the world themselves, since apples often don't fall far from trees) and pretty cheap. It also uses a lot of nonsense words.

[ElizabethB]

How many hours a day will you have her during those two days? My recommendations will be different for different lengths of time. Either way, I have remediated hundreds of children in similar situations and dozens of students that were as far behind, and a few that were even more behind.

 

If you use resources targeted for her situation and designed for an older student, you can get her to grade level or even above by the end of the summer if there are no underlying vision or speech/language processing problems. I started out using Alphaphonics, Phonics Pathways, and similiar things, they work eventually, but much slower than the things on my how to tutor page. Over my 21 years as a volunteer literacy tutor, I have refined my methods and figured out more efficient ways to get older students up to grade level while bolstering their confidence. I still supplement with conventional phonics programs and things like WRTR, but have found the things on my how to tutor page to be the most efficient mix for an older student. The timing of how you will use them will depend on how long you have her and if she was taught with sight words or not.

[mom2bee]

If you go with a phonics based curriculum, I also highly recommend trying out Ultimate Phonics Software--its not edutainment in the least.

It is essentially a digital reading tutor with all the lessons programmed in. Its scope and sequence is similar to that of OPGTR--she'd be able to practice at home and advance through similar lessons.