Dyslexia/Reading & Learning Disabilities

All Aboard the Curriculum Ship

by | Aug 3, 2023 | ,

Is your child falling off the Curriculum Ship?

The Curriculum Ship  leaves dock in early September and starts steering its course until mid to late June, when it arrives at port somewhere on the other side of the ocean.

Not slowing down even when some passengers are falling off the side of the boat, the ship must go full steam ahead.

Marianne, age 9, is barely treading water while she watches the ship leave her behind, having fallen off the ship in early October.

Upset by what is happening in school, Marianna’s mom said, “This week they are reading science stories about photosynthesis. Photosynthesis,” she exclaims, “she can’t read or pronounce the word!!!! She has no idea what’s going on.  Yesterday she got a worksheet packet all  marked wrong. Marianne was beside herself, feeling horrible. How  does a 9-year-old deal with all this failure?”

Looking at the worksheet packet, I could feel my blood pressure rising. Beside “photosynthesis,” there were many other words on the page that Marianne could not read on her own.  Yet, that was what she was being asked to do.

Clearly she was in over her head and quite frustrated.

I tell the mom the work is simply too hard and that it was analogous to asking someone to lift 50 pound weights when they could only lift ten.

“I know,” she responded.  “It took her two hours to complete the worksheets last night and she still got an F along with those frown faces at the top of the sheet.”

I tell her, “It’s the Curriculum Ship. The message is swim harder if you want to keep up with the ship.”

Children face rough waters when they are not in the green zone (See last week’s post:  Green-Yellow-Red Zone)

The Curriculum Ship doesn’t bother to consider which passengers have fallen over board and need to be rescued.

The ship must reach the other side.

That is its mission.

Takeaway Point

The Curriculum Ship is tough to deal with.  Advocate where you can by having an open relationship with the teacher.  Point out where your child is in over their head.  Ask to cut back on the “frowny faces,”  especially when good effort is shown, as in the case with Marianne.

(There’s a lot more that can be said about this, but it’s a start.)

(***Please note:  All blogs represent the opinion and perspective of Dr. Richard Selznick.  Comments and questions are welcomed, but are blocked by the hosting site.  Please email questions or comments: rselznick615@gmail.com)  

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2023, www.shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email rselznick615@gmail.com.

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Green-Yellow-Red Zone

by | Jul 28, 2023 | ,

Liana’s mom has seen a great deal of struggling in her 4th grade daughter.

After I evaluated Liana, the mom asked me, “Was this a problem that could have been averted?”

As I explained to her there are valid and reliable screening measures that can be given early on in kindergarten or first grade that take about 15 minutes. From such a screening, there are three general groups that can be identified.

These are:

  • Green Zone Kids: That is, those who are good to go. They represent about 60% of the population within that age range.
  • Yellow Zone Kids:  Those who show some signs of red flags, representing about 25% of the population.
  • Red Zone Kids:  Those who show significant to severe signs of difficulty, roughly 10 to 15% of the population.

For the children in the lower yellow into the red zone, just giving them the regular curriculum, such as reading stories, literature and other whole language type of activities Is not sufficient.

These children require much more “bottom- up” activities using sensible, structured methods to try and build their base of skills.

My experience is that  often this is not a model that is typically followed.

If that is the case, if you  have concerns early, then I encourage you to go out on your own and have someone within your community (e.g., a reading specialist or a psychologist) to do such a screening to determine what zone your child is in within the early grades.

For the yellow and red zone children, don’t wait. Get good tutoring.

That is the only way to try and avert a child from being in a situation like Liana’s.

(***Please note:  All blogs represent the opinion and perspective of Dr. Richard Selznick.  Comments and questions are welcomed, but are blocked by the hosting site.  Please email questions or comments: rselznick615@gmail.com)  

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2022, www.shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email rselznick615@gmail.com.

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“wuns a pon a time their was a boy…”

by | Jun 23, 2023 | ,

 wuns a pon a time their was a boy wgo had no frends so he was always alon But than on day evry thing change His mom gave him a voilinto play it sounded horabel so he said I am never playing this again so one Day he went to in the stor and heard the guy play the vialin it sounded awsome so he said to his mom thats how I want to play well then you need to pratis his mom said and then he did and he was so good at it.

 Completed  by James, a 10-year-old boy, this writing sample was written after he was asked to write  a story to a picture of a boy looking at a violin.  (The story is is written as he wrote it minus the chaotic handwriting.)

Writing can be a window or an x-ray revealing a person’s feelings, as well as showing their basic understanding of written language.

The more I got to know James, who was diagnosed with a severe reading disability, the more this story became a true window on two levels.

Metaphorically speaking, James looks around his classroom and sees others playing the violin fine, while he cannot.  Acutely aware of the fact that he is not measuring up, in spite of hearing his parents tell him repeatedly that he is “so smart and so amazing,”  James feels pretty discouraged, as expressed in his story (although there is a spark of optimism at the end).

Besides being academically discouraged, James also feels outside relative to the social dynamics in his classroom. James thinks the other kids snicker at him behind his back (sometimes not behind) and James tries too hard to make friends, which often backfires, making things worse.

So, what does James need?

James needs two things that he is not getting.

First, he needs a sense of personal connection  Perhaps James can form a good working relationship with a therapist who can be encouraging, while helping him recharge his battery.

As part of the counseling, James’ parents can be guided to find a way to talk with him more effectively, as they are becoming overly testy with him, which only leads to sparks flying around the household during the nightly homework battles.

James also needs good tutoring  using structured, systematic direct instruction, focusing on his writing, starting with writing a simple sentence.

Tutoring can have magical effects, as noted in an earlier blog, “Relationship  the Secret Sauce of Success.” (“Relationship – The Secret Sauce of Success”

(***Please note:  All blogs represent the opinion and perspective of Dr. Richard Selznick.  Comments and questions are welcomed, but are blocked by the hosting site.  Please email questions or comments: rselznick615@gmail.com)  

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2022, www.shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email rselznick615@gmail.com.

To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

 

Blog #1 from 2009

by | Jun 1, 2023 | ,

Started in 2009 upon the release of my first book, The Shut-Down Learner, there have been nearly 600 blog posts completed on a weekly basis over those years..

I thought it would be fun to look back on some of the earliest ones (slightly edited), to see what I was saying and to see if they still hold up.

So, in that spirit, here is Blog #1 from April, 2009.

———————————————————————-

“Anxiety over your child’s school-based problems can start very early. A mom recently contacted me after reading “The Shut-Down Learner.”

“My son is drowning in school. Do you think he could be a shut-down learner,” she asked.

After asking a few more questions, I was struck by the fact that the child in question was only in kindergarten.

When I wrote The Shut-Down Learner I was envisioning a disconnected, shut-down teenager. However, as I gave more talks to parents, so many of the concerns being raised concerned young children. This led me to understand that so much of the concept of a shutting down adolescent begins very early and made me think about how this can be prevented from happening as early as possible.

A formula I used frequently in talks to parents helps to explain the shutting down process  over time.

Here’s the formula:

Cracks in the Foundation + Time + Lack of Understanding + Widening cracks + Increased  Family Tensions (around the school issues)  = Shut-Down Learner

So, if you are the mom of a kindergarten or first grade child who is starting to  shut-down, there likely are cracks in the foundation. The next step is to know what those cracks are and how to identify and address them.

As we progress with future blogs, I will break down this formula for you in depth so that you will understand each of the parts and what you may be able to do as the child’s parent.”

Takeaway Point

OK, some 14 years later, I still agree!!!

More to come.

(***Please note:  All blogs represent the opinion and perspective of Dr. Richard Selznick.  Comments and questions are welcomed, but are blocked by the hosting site.  Please email questions or comments: rselznick615@gmail.com)  

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2022, www.shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email rselznick615@gmail.com.

To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

“Hemming & Hawing”

by | May 19, 2023 | , ,

OK… Among other disorders that I seem to have, readers of this blog know I have confessed to my  “PBD” or “Pushback Disorder.”

PBD usually manifests whenever parents tell me something that has a hypothesis (i.e., an opinion) as to why their child is doing or not doing something.

Usually, there is some type of disorder attached to the hypothesis.

Some examples include:

  • “My child is sensory seeking.”
  • “My mother’s uncle has clear ADHD and it runs in the family, so I see it coming out with our 7-year old when she refuses to do her homework.
  • “Emotional self-regulation is challenging for William – he always demands to be first in everything.”
  • “Her dyscalculia is running rampant – she just can’t do math word problems.”
  • “George hates reading so much – all he can focus on are video games. I think his dyslexia trips him up and he escapes to video games for safety.”

While all of these hypotheses may be true to a greater or lesser degree, ultimately they are opinions, guesses as to what’s going on.

Even with decent testing, there’s still guesswork involved with “the diagnosis,” which leads to another of my numerous disorders.

I haven’t seen it in the research literature, so I may be the first person to discover it – I am calling it “Hemming and Hawing Disorder” or “HHD.”

“HHD” manifests in my corner of the universe around questions of ADHD, Dyslexia, Anxiety and Asperger’s, among others, for example.

Recognizing that  there is no definitive test for any of these commonly raised concerns, I often find myself “hemming and hawing” after I’ve done a hefty dose of pushing back.

HBD is correlated highly with “Squeamish Disorder” (SD), which I freely own.

Not being a neurologist (who must have steelier nerve than I have with much more science behind them), I am uncomfortable saying that I child has a neurological disorder.

What I am not squeamish about, however, are stating facts that emerge in an assessment: .

For example:

“The fact is your child rushes through tasks.”

“Your child has a significant reading, spelling and writing problem and is well below the norm on these skills.

“Your child has superior visual intelligence, but is much weaker with verbal skills which are likely to impact things like reading comprehension or understanding lectures.”

“Following directions is very difficult for your child which came out in many of the portions of the testing.”

“Clear deficits with reading rate, accuracy and fluency were seen on all of the tests.

Takeaway Point

I clearly need help with all of my numerous disorders, such as PBD, HHD and SD, among others, however, stating the facts clearly keeps these disorders at bay.

For statements like these, I don’t show any HBD or SD.

***Please note:  All blogs represent the opinion and perspective of Dr. Richard Selznick.  Comments and questions are welcomed, but are blocked by the hosting site.  Please email questions or comments: rselznick615@gmail.com)  

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2022, www.shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email rselznick615@gmail.com.

To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

“Common Sense & ‘Passing the Smell Test'”

by | Apr 21, 2023 | ,

Last Sunday there was a feature article in the New York Times on the science of reading emphasizing that “science” has confirmed the need to teach children phonics. (Science of Reading – New York Times)

While this comes after decades of debate, the article notes that the “science of reading” has determined (finally), that there is a correct way to teach reading and it looks like phonics instruction has been declared the winner.

(Not to mention that this was already determined by researchers under the Bush Administration with Reading First and Leave No Child Behind.)

Once again, though, the determination that phonics is the winner, on some level, does not make common sense and does not “pass the smell test.”

The question is not whether phonics instruction is the best way to teach reading, but whether or not the child needs it.

Let’s put it this way.

About 70% or so  of six- and seven-year-olds get on the “reading bike” in kindergarten and first grade without much trouble and before you know it they are reading pretty fluently.

Fortunately for this group their  “reading brain” kicks in, mostly through a type of reading osmosis, such as interacting with books in early childhood and being read to regularly by their parents and other adults.

There was little to no formal phonics instruction, yet they became adequate readers.

For the wobbly remainder, the 20 – 30%, many of whom have a learning disability like dyslexia, the natural interactions did not take hold. There was no reading by osmosis.

Guess what they need?

That’s right –  phonics-based instruction.

Unfortunately, by and large over the last 30-40 years that’s not how it’s gone in the schools.

Common sense did not govern instruction and most kids received a model of reading (often referred to as “top-down”) emphasizing reading comprehension.  Phonics instruction was deemed as “so yesterday” and virtually eliminated.

Top-down approaches became the rule of he land.  For the 70%, for those who already know how to read, that is fine.

For the remainder, they wobble along making little progress with such approaches.

Makes common sense, right?

And it even passes the smell test!

(***Please note:  All blogs represent the opinion and perspective of Dr. Richard Selznick.  Comments and questions are welcomed, but are blocked by the hosting site.  Please email questions or comments: rselznick615@gmail.com)  

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2022, www.shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email rselznick615@gmail.com.

To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

 

“Scattershot”

by | Mar 30, 2023 | ,

IIn last week’s post, I made the following statement as part of the primer on reading:

  • “Whether in the classroom or in tutoring for struggling children scattershot remediation will not be effective for either Type I or Type II categories.”

A parent contacted me who read the blog (nice to know that someone is reading them) asked what was meant by “scattershot.”

Here’s my take.

When tutoring children who show mild, moderate or severe Type I issues ( Type I or Type II ),  remediation should be laser focused.  There  would be little teaching of comprehension or engaging children with activities such as open-ended writing (e.g., “Write about your weekend.”).

When a teacher was asked by a mom  what approach was being used with her child showing significant deficits with word identification, decoding and reading fluency, the response was, “I do a little of this and a little of that – we do some comprehension with stories, some practice with reading out loud and writing imaginative stories.”

Sports analogies are helpful in countering a scattershot approach..  Let’s take tennis (although any sport would apply).

While playing a game  of  tennis is certainly more fun than working on basic skills, in the hands of a good instructor skill targeting would predominate.

If the tutor is not clear on the approach and is scattershotting, you may want to reconsider and find someone else.

Takeaway Point

Good testing data should help you get clear on what needs to be emphasized in remediation.  Be laser focused in your approach so you can hit the right target,

(***Please note:  Blog posts represent the opinion and perspective of Dr. Richard Selznick.  Comments and questions are welcomed, but are blocked by the hosting site.  Please email questions or comments: rselznick615@gmail.com)  

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2022, www.shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email rselznick615@gmail.com.

To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

 

 

“Part I: A Reading Primer”

by | Mar 24, 2023 |

As we discussed last week (https://shutdownlearner.com/a-primer/) the next few weeks will be primers in major categories of parental concern.

This week, in 400 words or less, we offer a primer on reading.

Here we go.

When you boil it all down, there are essentially two types of reading problems.

  • Type I: These children have trouble with reading rate, decoding, accuracy and fluency.  The vast majority of children referred for special education have Type I issues in mild, moderate or severe forms.  The more moderate and severe Type I children are likely to be diagnosed as having dyslexia, as they match the clinical definition of dyslexia (see interdys.org).
  • Type II: These children are entirely different from the above category.  They have no problems with decoding of words or reading fluency, but their capacity to understand what they read and to apply higher order reasoning is weak and spotty.

In my opinion, more important than a clinical diagnosis it is essential to know whether your child falls into one of these two categories.

Why is this  essential?

By knowing what category your child is in and how mild, moderate or severe the problem, then this drives what needs to be done (usually in the form of tutoring).

Good testing should help you get clear on the fundamental questions:

  • Does my child have a problem (“yes” or “no”).
  • If they have a problem is it a Type I or a Type II?
  • Is the problem mild, moderate or more severe?
  • What is the method proposed for remediation? (For struggling children, scattershot remediation will not be effective for either category.)

Takeaway Point

There you have it – a primer on what you need to know about reading in less than 400 words.

It really doesn’t need to get much more complicated than this.

(***Please note:  Comments are blocked by the hosting site.  Please email questions or comments.)  (See below.)

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2022, www.shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email rselznick615@gmail.com.

To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

 

“No One to Play With: The Social Side of Learning Disabilities”

by | Mar 2, 2023 |

A book that always stayed with me reminding me of my early days as a psychologist at the Hill Top Preparatory School, a private school in the Philadelphia Suburbs for high schoolers with learning disabilities,  is Betty Osman’s, “No One to Play With:  The Social Side of Learning Disabilities.”  Even though the book  came out in the mid 1980’s, it’s as relevant today as it was then.

With dyslexia and other learning problems, we often don’t consider the social/emotional side of things.  Too many of these kids feel a lot of embarrassment and often find themselves with “no one to play with.”

Along with learning disabilities, these kids often show ADHD type of behaviors and they frequently have trouble navigating the social waters around them.

Back in the Hill Top days, the students and staff often had lunch together and casually socialized.  The boundaries between student and staff often blurred as the topics whirred around, but it was great fun and I think that all of us (staff and students) learned a lot from each other.

For some of the kids with social issues, having a staff member they could “hang with” seemed to make a big difference in their self-esteem.

In this era of outcome measurements and evidenced-based education, I don’t hear that much focus on such intangibles.

How do you measure the impact that having lunch with a kid has on their social/emotional development?

You don’t, really.

The impact is immeasurable.  It can’t be quantified.

***Please note:  Comments are blocked by the hosting site.  Please email questions or comments.  (See below.)

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2022, www.shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email rselznick615@gmail.com.

To receive future blog posts, register your email: https://shutdownlearner.com.

 

 

“Relational Component of Tutoring – the ‘Secret Sauce’ of Success”

by | Jan 19, 2023 |

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 skills with instructional methods that are sensible and supported by research is certainly essential, but so is the relationship established between  the tutor and the student.

When it is formed well, this relationship provides a type of energy, a motivation to overcome ever-present hurdles, such as feelings of discouragement,  low-motivation and insecurity, among other emotions.

How do we define or explain this  “energy?”  I don’t think we can, but I can see it when I observe  kids of all ages who have formed a bond with their tutor.

That’s why it’s not simply a matter of whether the tutor is Wilson or Orton-Gillingham certified, but is someone the child admires and looks forward to seeing.

As an analogy, if you’ve ever played on any kind of a team, you know how important the “energy” is between you and the coach or trainer.

It’s the “secret  sauce” of success.

Copyright, Richard Selznick, Ph.D.  2022, www.shutdownlearner.com.

To Contact Dr. Richard Selznick for advice, consultation or other information, email rselznick615@gmail.com.

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