Blog
“Jargon & Phonemic Awareness”
There are many terms within education and dyslexia that don't translate well. My criteria for determining whether something translates well is the person-on-the-street standard. That is, if you stop the average person on the street and asked them what a term means and...
“Top Ten List (of irritations)”
Those of you following this blog for some time know there are some recurring themes. For others newer to these posts, I will help to bring you up to speed with my top ten list of things that pluck my nerves: The LD-Discrepancy Model: Easily the number one issue that...
“Pull the Curtain”
One of my favorite comedic bits is the one from Jerry Seinfeld’s standup where he talks about the difference between flying first and passenger class. As the stewardess brusquely pulls the curtain between the first class and the rest, she has a look of, “If you only...
“Relational Component of Tutoring – the ‘Secret Sauce’ of Success”
One of the “go to“ recommendations I often make following an assessment is for the child to see a tutor if it is at all possible. When done well, tutoring provides many benefits. One often overlooked is the intangible - that is, the relational benefit. Working on...
“‘FAPE’ Realities”
Let’s say you have a 7 year old child just finishing second grade who struggles greatly with reading, spelling and writing and has been diagnosed with a learning disability (i.e., dyslexia). The school has recently classified the child for special education and an IEP...
“Rolling the Dice”
“Oh, my, my, my, I’m the lone crap shooter, playin the field every night.” ‘Tumblin Dice,’ the Rolling Stones) In the last post we talked about kids who are “rudderless (see “Rudderless”). This week we focus on the older ones, high school and college kids, who are...
“Rudderless”
13-year-old Liam comes in trudging behind his mother, staring at his phone. While I think I have a decent relationship with Liam having evaluated him a while back with a follow-up session or two, I also think there's a pretty big part of him that is annoyed about...
“The Plight of Leora – A Play in Four Acts”
Leora a 10-year-old fourth grader has been struggling since kindergarten. Every year the parents have raised their concerns with the teachers. The answers are variations on a theme. Act I: In first grade it was, “She’s still young and it’s probably developmental.”...
“Tipping the Scales”
Some of you have been loyal followers of this blog for over 10 years, while others have joined more recently. If you've been one of the loyalists, you know there are some themes that cycle through the blog posts. While I do my best to keep these fresh, after...
“Shannon , Shannon, bo Bannon”
Anxiety over a child's development starts early. Recently a mom said to me, “My son is drowning in school. Do you think he has a learning disability?” What was particularly striking about this question was the fact that the child in question was only just five and in...
Two Minute+ Tidbit Tip: “Mythologies of Dyslexia”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNmOHYMCdyo