Has anyone gone back to AAR2 with an older, struggling reader?

[alisoncooks]

Youngest DD just turned 9 a couple of weeks ago.

 

She does not enjoy reading, probably because it is very hard/tedious for her.  I strongly suspect an underlying issue, however her older sister also struggled but ended up making huge leaps around age 8.5.  I had hoped for a similar progression...but here we are.    No huge leaps made, no interest in reading.

 

I feel like we need a fresh start.  DD is making mistakes that she should not be making after the instruction she's had (Recipe with Reading and Dancing Bears -- but I wonder if DB is too much implied instruction and not explicit like AAR?).  We'd start at AAR2.

 

Has anyone done this with an "older" student?  I'm not worried about it being babyish -- this DD is very "young" in behavior.  Plus, our previous methods have been a bit dry, so she may enjoy the change.

 

(FWIW, I plan on pursuing testing via the school system in the fall, unless she leaps way forward in reading level this summer.)

[OneStepAtATime]

If you think AAR will help, then try.  If she is dyslexic it might help, it might not.  She might need things broken down even further and to take a step even further back to fill in gaps.  Something like Barton Reading and Spelling might work better but if you don't know what the underlying issue is, that may not be necessary.

 

What you might do is give the Barton pre-screening.  It is free.  It does not test for dyslexia but it does assess whether certain critical skills are there that would be necessary to move through a program like AAR or Barton without other interventions first.  The screening is free, it doesn't take very long, is pretty easy to administer and would give you another piece to the puzzle without having a current evaluation.  Just make sure that your child is well rested, the area you administer the test is quiet (she MUST be able to clearly hear the sounds), you won't be interrupted and there are no distractions.  You will need to pass the tutor screening first, but again it is free, easy for you to take, and just wants to confirm that you can hear and repeat the sounds clearly for your student.  You don't have to buy Barton to go through the screenings.  They are just there to help confirm that a student can go through ANY phonics OG based program successfully.  If they struggle with the screening they may need other help first.  Suggestions are provided on the site.

 

https://bartonreading.com/students/#ss

[lexi]

I would try it if you think she needs the help. My almost 10 year old finally finished Level 3 (for the 2nd time) and he's making steady progress. We will work inn level 4 and may do that level twice as well. I haven't focused on the fact that he might be "behind" in his reading or on the older end of using those particular levels. I focused on the fact that this program is helping him and he's finally making progress. I suspect some slight dyslexia with him. But he never complains about the reading time and he even enjoys some of the games. So I'm glad I'm using it at his pace and I'm super happy with the program.

[Jess4879]

We fast-tracked my oldest (now 13) through all 4 levels.  I think she was 11 at the time?  It went well and was totally worth it. 

[countrygal]

I don't think level 3 is babyish for a 9 year old. If AAR turns out to still be a constant struggle or she is just not retaining and progressing then she will probably need some more intensive program like Barton. I have used AAR through all 4 levels with my average child and Barton with my (assuming) moderately dyslexic child - AAR would not have been enough or the right approach to have him be successful. In your case it may fill in the gaps she needs. I would give it a try. It is a good program. Definitely do the prescreening at the Barton website like the PP mentioned.

[alisoncooks]

Thanks for the comments.  I'm hoping that it will be helpful for DD.  If nothing else, it's shiny and new and maybe she won't fight our reading time...

[melmichigan]

We backed my DS all the way into level 1, but just didn't do the first reader.  He is 9 and starting AAR3 now, going into 4th grade next year.  I'm hoping to see him through AAR3&4 by the end of next summer.  It made a big difference for DS, who we do believe has some dyslexia complicating matters.  I've been amazed that he still enjoys some of the games, I let him pick which we do.

 

I already own other reading programs from older children, but don't regret the extra cost because it's working.

Edited June 24, 2017 by melmichigan

[alisoncooks]

I paid for faster shipping (what's a few more bucks when you're already spending $$), so the package arrived today.

 

With several reading programs already on-hand, I had paused at spending the $$; for one, this is my youngest child, and two, she may fly through this level. But I've been looking trough everything today, and I'm feeling excited. I think she will really benefit from it.

[PeterPan]

You might add some RAN/RAS work. I've shared some pages on a dropbox link (google to find it), but also this book seems good Think, Talk, Laugh!: Increase Verbal Processing Speed and Language Organization Skills I got it based on the rec of someone around here and we're getting ready to start. It has significant RAN/RAS work but also work on verbal processing speed, word retrieval, etc.

 

I'm not sure whether you have feelings (not liking labels or evals or something) about it, but it's really not necessary to wait on evals. If you made the written request now, it would actually be really timely, because they're less busy. From your written request they have 30 days to hold the meeting and sit down with you and another 60 days to actually do the evals. So if you want anything to happen by Christmas, you might as well be starting now. If you wait into the school year, you get lost in their busy time shuffle. Also, the American Dyslexia Assoc. now recommends identification going into 1st. Waiting at this point is quite late, as they want earlier identification and intervention. 

 

If you begin the RAN/RAS work I'm suggesting, just know that it's on the CTOPP, a lagging marker of dyslexia. What you could do is see if you can get an OG tutor or SLP to run the CTOPP on the cheap. If there's a dyslexia school near you, they might run it. That way you'd have a baseline, have your data. Then do the therapy level interventions. like TTL or my RAN/RAS pages. 

 

Good RAN/RAS is strongly correlated with good readers. Strong rapid naming allows them to read comfortably. As you're finding, they need to have working memory (to decode and hold the pieces in their head), RAN/RAS (to get through the reading quickly and efficiently), language skills (to comprehend what they're reading), attention (to notice details and pull it together), etc. Reading is complex! Decoding is ONE piece, but there are lots of pieces.

 

The happy thing is that means that even if her decoding is still crunchy you can work on those OTHER pieces, get them stronger, and see improvement. What it also means is you want to make sure those other pieces aren't the cause for her continued discomfort in spite of instruction. Like if she *can* decode at a certain level but really balks, then you can back up and ask why. Might even be something simple, like needing glasses. 

 

The resale on Barton is high enough that your per level cost is usually pretty low in the end. Upfront cost high, but it comes with a lot of tools. 

 

Anyways, RAN/RAS is super simple to work on, like really you can't screw it up. The data is there that it helps, and in my ds it was pretty wow the effect. For him, language comprehension is also an issue. He just had a growth spurt, so I get what you're saying with the 8.5 gig. That doesn't invalidate standardized tools, because everybody is having that spurt. The tool shows you relative to her peers. So she could improve relative to herself but still have a disability relative to her peers.

 

My tip to the wise is to say EVERYTHING you're worried about when you sit down at the table with the ps for evals. Like if you were taking her to a neuropsych for a $2-3k eval, that neuropsych would run for ADHD, language, motor planning, etc. The ps will probably have some kind of planning form you sign, and that's where all that gets decided, at that first meeting. Some schools are awesome and some schools aren't, so the best way is to go in knowing you want to make those things happen. If you've had ANY questions about language, for instance, try to get that run. Just tell them what you're seeing, kwim? Same for motor planning, etc.

[MerryAtHope]

My friend started AAR 2 with her son at age 10, so no, I don't think 9 is too old for it at all. You can always drop any activity she feels is too young and focus more on the other fluency exercises. You may find their dyslexia resources page helpful too. I hope it goes well for you!