What has worked for your kids with dyslexia?

[MicheleB]

I am learning a bit more, though I'm still confused.

 

My sons have dyseidetic dyslexia, which is a difficulty with discerning letters and remember what they've seen, etc.

 

It seems a lot of what I read is geared towards dysphonetic dyslexia. My boys do seem to grasp phonics and sounds, though it's harder for them I think since they can't grasp the visual part of the letters.

 

How do you teach kids with this type of dyslexia? VT is hopefully in the works... but what else works? I have to admit, it does seem hopeless sometimes. I mean, I read a lot to them and don't mind doing that. They enjoy listening. So I know right now, most of their learning of coming auditorally.

 

But if you have good ideas or know of programs for dyseidetic dyslexia, I would like to look into them. :)

[LizzyBee]

I'm not sure whether I mentioned this in one of your other posts, so if I did, just ignore it here. At the GIFTSNC (Getting and Giving Information for Teaching Special Needs Children) conference in August, I went to a seminar by a woman whose son has the type of dyslexia caused by visual perception problems. She said the only thing that worked for him was the Davis method (The Gift of Dyslexia by Ron Davis).

 

Let me describe her son a little bit, because it might give you some insight into whether this method might work for your sons. BTW, she used a Davis facilitator who, within 5 minutes of meeting her and her son, said that her son is exactly like Ron Davis. For one thing, he was constantly in motion. One morning he was turning circles in the kitchen, and P. said to him, "Son, does your world ever stop moving?" He replied, "Only when I'm moving." He could see "around" objects such a table legs. When trying to read, the letters would appear to stack up on top of each other or march off the page. This boy started in ps, but they basically asked P. to remove him from school because they could not help him. P. felt hopeless about her son's future - I know you can relate to that. But after starting the Davis method, he learned to read, and within just a couple of months, he was reading Harry Potter. I think he was 11 then. He's now 14, and P. says she thinks he could accomplish anything he set his mind to except that he still has anxiety issues.

 

If you go to http://www.giftsnc.com and click on speaker handouts, the woman I spoke of above doesn't have one. But another dyslexia speaker does have a handout (Leslie Rosenberg Dyslexia Tips). The handout has a little bit about dyseidetic dyslexia, but without a lot of details, for ex she mentions therapies, but doesn't say what therapies are available, although she may have given more details in the seminar. However, she runs a learning center and has a good reputation in this area, so you might want to give her a call at the number on the handout. It might be that if you can't find anyone in your area to help you, you could come and have Leslie evaluate your kids and give you ideas for working with them at home. Or maybe she can even give you some ideas by phone.

 

I don't know where you live, but there is also a dyslexia center in Rockville, MD that has at least one fantastic tutor who travels all over the country to train teachers. All of the seminars are also open to parents. I went to 3 of her 1-hour seminars at the giftsnc conference and I'd love to go to some of her all-day courses. Her name is Marilyn Zecher. Here is their website. http://www.asdec.org/ You might call and see if there is anything they can do for you or if they know of any similar centers that are closer to you.

 

http://www.interdys.org/ The International Dyslexia Association has an annual conference. This year's conf will be in Seattle Oct 29-Nov 1. They also have on their website a list of branch events all over the US.

 

I think you already joined the Heart of Reading group. You might want to join the giftsnc yahoo group and ask about dyseidetic dyslexia there. You might get some btdt advice, and I think Leslie is on that group, so she might reply too.

 

Most important - breath. Take one day at a time. Gather information, talk to anyone you can find who has parented or tutored kids like yours. Soak it all in and ponder before you make any expensive decisions. I'm getting the results from my 7 yo's audiologist tomorrow (ADP evaluation - I think she has the dysphonetic type of dyslexia). So you see, when I tell you to breath, I'm reminding myself, too.

 

:grouphug:

[Stacy in NJ]

Look into the Lindamood-Bell program called Seeing Stars. It was written for those who don't really have issues with the phonemic aspect of dyslexia. Here's a link http://www.lindamoodbell.com/programs/symbol-imagery.html

 

The complete kit costs $350.00, but I suggest just buying the teachers manual for $45.00 first. After a read through, you'll have a better idea if you want to invest in the kit in full or part.

 

Just to forewarn you, the in center tutoring in really expensive.

 

Please don't feel discouraged. My ds11 had a really difficult time learing to read. He was tested at a Lindamood-Bell center and scored near perfect (90th percentile) on the phonics portion of the test. He scored in the 9th percentile on the "reading rate" or fluency portion.

 

We did Seeing Stars at one of their centers. You can buy a kit to do it at home. It was really helpful for him, but in the end the thing that really turned him into a reader was practice, practice, practice. He did a ton of repeated oral readings. After days, weeks, months and years he now reads on or just above grade level 6, exactly where he needs to be.

 

I would tell you not to invest in any "magic pill" treatments. I happen to think VT is not an effective treatment for reading difficulties. Of course, you can do your own research and make up your own mind on that. I would tell you to pick a quality (meaning it has data to document it's effectiveness) dyslexia remediation program (Anything Orton Gillingham based or Lindamood-Bell) and get going. It will be a long hard slog, but it is completely doable.

 

I like the old Chinese proverb: A journey of a thousand miles is taken one step at a time. Get stepping

 

HTH, Stacy