Speech Therapy

Kate was tested and approved for an IEP for Speech this week. She cannot say her /r's/. This affects how she spells, because she replaces /r/ with /w/. I still think it's cute, but, obviously, it's contributing to her problem, so it has to be 'fixed'. She loves speech therapy, thank goodness. She has a 'speech buddy' that she goes with every week, her friend Sarah. They have stickers and rewards, it works for her, at least it does there. At home, not so much. Same exact system, two different results. Sigh.

We're still plunking away at the cooperation issue. Every day, I never know who I'm getting. Kate Jekyll or Kate Hyde. I live for Fridays (when she goes to school all day).

I made her work with clay yesterday. She cannot seem to learn the word 'were'. No matter how many times she sees it, she always says 'where'. So, she made it out of clay, and then since the definition didn't make sense to her, we just came up with a sentence and she made this bat to remind her of it.

"We WERE bats, but then we changed into Vampires!" Honestly, you'd think she'd love this stuff, but it's like pulling teeth...

Status Quo

I decided to leave Ella in afternoon Kindergarten. When it came down to it, I just couldn't give up my only free time. My time to recharge. So, we're leaving things as they are. I work with Kate and try to get Ella to entertain Zeke. It's not a fool proof system, but it's the best I've got.

My SIL Kathy was here over the weekend, and she taught Kate some energy techniques(called cortices, it uses taping, and is supposed to help connect the the right and left hemispheres of the brain) that she can do to herself when she feels frustrated or angry. I asked her to do them today and she refused-- until Ella wanted to know how to do it, and I started showing her, THEN Kate jumped in to demonstrate. Sigh.

I met with the school psychologist today. He went over the IQ test with me. I had questions about why she tested at barely behind in reading (1.8 level), when clearly, she is still on a kindergarten level. He told me that she is so bright, she 'tricked' the test. He knows she can't read that well, but she is such a good visual learner, she can take contextual clues to figure out the words she doesn't know.

According to her test, she would not qualify for resource(don't care), or an IEP(definitely need). He is working with her to see if after 6 weeks there is any improvement, if there is not, she will qualify. So far, she is 'flat-lining'. Her progress charts are flat. Very little improvement after 4 individual tutoring sessions. He continues to be astounded by how smart she is, and how she can memorize so quickly. He is constantly having to change the order of words he tests her on, because she memorizes them so fast. She's tricky, that girl.

I asked him about phonics, and he thinks that she will be able to get phonics, based on what he's done with her. Ella's kindergarten teacher has an intensive phonics program that she says has worked well with other dyslexic children. She's going to let me borrow it this week. Hallelujah. A program. Something I can follow, and not have to make up as I go along. I'm sure she'll love it for 3 days, and then not want to do it anymore, as is her M.O. I'm not sure how I'll get her to do it, other than what I do now, "If you want to cry, go to your room until you're ready to work, then you can come out." Followed by her storming away, slamming the door behind her, and wailing into her pillow. She'll emerge 10-30 min. later, red-eyed but willing to give it another go. That is, until I introduce something ELSE she doesn't want to do, and then we repeat the tantrum... over and over again.

It's so FUN. I'm having so much FUN!

I'm actually surprised by my level of patience. I manage not to yell or get mean, but I don't give her control. I think that's what she's trying to do. Test my strength. See how much she can get away with before I snap. I snap alright, just not in front of her. In my head, it's pure pandemonium. Repressed frustration. That's good for your health right?

SIGH*

I had hoped that this blog would be all 'sunshine and roses' about how successful we were at overcoming dyslexia, but it turns out, it's just a place for me to vent my ever growing frustrations.
I'll try to keep the whining to a minimum.

Side note: She's loving gymnastics. Everyone told me, she has to have something that she is good at to boost her self esteem, so even though it's spendy, we put her back in. She's loving it. She always has been our little monkey.

Confused

I met with Emily, our friend/teacher to discuss Kate's IQ test results. She helped me see that her span was between 110, and 125. So even at her lowest point, she is still above average (100). Based on this, she would not qualify for resource, so that is why the psychologist is doing his intervention, trying to prove that she does indeed have reading difficulties.

For example, Emily's IQ span is from 130 to 79, a big difference. It means her IQ is 130, but because of her disability, she can only perform at a 79 level in some areas. This difference proves the disability. Since Kate's span is not severe, it doesn't prove she has a disability. Luckily, the psychologist believes she does indeed have dyslexia, and so is going another route to help her.

Emily and I talked about methods a lot. She suggested I try one thing at a time, for 4-6 weeks, and measure the outcome. I've been doing 4-5 different methods with her, hoping that something would help, not measuring anything.  This will make it hard to determine what is actually working, and what is not.

I'm so confused.

I have so many theories and methods rolling around in my brain from all my research, that I can hardly think straight. I can't get excited about doing only one thing for 4 weeks. She'll be bored, It'll be a fight...

I went to the temple, hoping to get a clear direction to move in, knowing that only the Lord knows Kate well enough to tell me what to do.

I didn't get the answer that I wanted.

I should have known.

The answer I got is that it doesn't matter what I do, but how I do it. My relationship with Kate is more important than her learning to read fluently.

BUT WHAT IF SHE NEVER LEARNS TO READ FLUENTLY?! HUH?? WHAT ABOUT THAT??

Obviously, the Lord is still trying to teach me to 'let go'.

Perhaps this is because my patience was waning this week. She spent time in her room crying 2 days out of 4. I get so frustrated with her non-compliance when I'm trying my hardest to help her, and save her the pain of this disability. Even as I write that though, I know I can't save her from it. It's her trial to pass through, and try as I might, I can't keep it from hurting her 100% of the time. I can lessen it's impact on her, and her self-esteem, but she is still going to have to learn to live with it.

She's dyslexic. I can't change that. No method can. She'll just have to figure out how to cope, and my job is just to give her a safe place to rest from that stress. I need to figure out how to do that.

Do you think there is a 'Mom's of dyslexics' support group I could join?

Results

Kate had another assessment with the schools psychologist today. The part where he determines her educational 'level'. No surprise, she is behind in reading, spelling, and reading comprehension. Also not a surprise to me, she has above average writing skills (not counting the spelling) and showed the same amount of hard work, and determination as last time. Her auditory comprehension is 100%.

Her IQ came in at 120. He told me this is in the 91%. So the problem is not her intelligence.

His full report will be done in a few days, and then I'll post more specifics, but basically, it proves that she does have a learning disability, because she's so smart, and yet so behind.

He's going to start working with her twice a week on some reading techniques he uses. If there is no improvement in 8-10 weeks, then we can conclude that she cannot learn the 'normal' way, and alternatives will have to be sought out. Again, on our own, since the school system has no experts in dyslexia. This will also count as another 'intervention'.

He told me he sees a lot of strengths in her that are seen in famous dyslexics, he was particularly impressed with her writing/creativity. Now I just have to figure out how to take this information and use it to find a good way to teach her to read.

She also needs the speech therapy, as it is affecting her spelling. She spells exactly as she speaks. Wylly for Really, and shis for this. He's going to make sure she gets that therapy going soon.

At home, we've started the spell-sweep method from the Gift of Dyslexia book. You say every letter in the word and then you say the word. If she does not know the word, I tell her it after she has spelled it out, and then she repeats it. ei: M-E-T-H-O-D, method. She is not to sound it out. She hates it, but I'm making her do it. We have to get her eyes tracking correctly, taking in the data in the correct order.

I also contacted an Optometrist in SLC that does Vision Therapy. Her eyes skip or jump as she tracks side to side. It's quite apparent when she is reading, and forces her to lose her place constantly. I think the VT would benefit her, but it's $280 for the initial exam/findings report, and then $120/session, with 12-16 sessions being average. That will be hard for us, so we're putting it off for a bit to see if all this other stuff will show some improvement.

She asked to go to school all day yesterday, but when I said no, she dropped it immediately. That's a relief, as that fight was getting old fast.

So... it's onward, ever onward. Press forward. The journey has just begun, and may go on indefinitely. It's nice to know she's so smart though, if only to my maternal pride, and even though I know she didn't get it from me.

*side note: When Chris was in 4th grade, they had him tested, because he was doing so poorly. He scored somewhere around 140 (from family reports, I don't have the actual results). The psychologist told his parents "Not to worry about him. He's a genius. He'll just need a good secretary." They took that information and nothing else was ever done, except he got yelled at every time he brought home a report card. I'm sure they thought that because he was so bright, he just wasn't trying hard enough. I wonder how Chris' education would have gone, had someone diagnosed him with dyslexia and got him the help he needed? How many children are repeating that same course even as I write this? *

Day 2

'School' went ok today. We did more of the same. Clay, reading, spelling words out of textured magnetic letters. Again, she didn't want to go back in time for computers, she opted to wait and go w/ Ella. Makes my life a little easier, not having to walk Ella to school. She says even though she's only there for 3 hours, it still feels like all day. LOL.

I'm not sure it's helping though. I know, I know, it's only day 2, but I'm gripped with a fear that a year from now, we'll be no better off. Chris says, at least she'll be no worse off, and then related a story that happened today. A kid in his class read out loud today, missed every fourth word. During a conversation in the hall w/ Chris, he told him he was dyslexic. He's in high school and can't read. He's been in special ed the whole time. That's what staying in the system has done for him.

I came across a blog yesterday, the same one I cut and pasted in yesterday's post. Anyway, she had a link to rocket phonics, a program that was designed with dyslexics in mind, supposedly a very kinesthetic approach, promises to increase reading level to 4th or 5th grade in just 2 years. And it's pretty cheap, $160. Cheaper if I get it used.

The controller/scheduler in me says, 'YES!' a program! Something I can follow and not have to worry about coming up with crap on my own! But then I remember, dyslexics suck at phonics, so maybe this isn't the way to go? ARGH! Will someone please just tell me what to do? I'm a product of the system! I need directions! I need to have someone think for me!

*sigh* I just want to see the end from the beginning... is it too much to ask?

Obviously, I'm not as confident as previous posts may have implied. I guess today is just a fear day. Tomorrow I'll aim for a faith day.

Day One

Today, we started off to the craft store for some sculpting clay. I got some for Ella too, since I figured I might as well do the same things with her. It certainly can't hurt her, and will keep her from being bored while I work w/ Kate.

Here's a summary of what we did from another home schooler's blog:

We began with the alphabet.  Yes, regardless of the age of the student/person, Mr. Davis recommends to start from the beginning.  I made some play dough and printed off the alphabet strips given in the book.  With a little encouragement, both of my children agreed to try the exercise.  They began building our 26 letters in their capital form.

Mr. Davis explains that most people with dyslexia do not know the alphabet.  They know the song, and the song knows the alphabet.  So, they sing the song anytime they have to look up a name in the phone book.

Some lower case letters in reverse order.

Building the letters out of play dough helps them remember the shape of the letter, the correct direction of the letter, etc.  The alphabet becomes their alphabet because they made it with their own hands.  Once they can create the letters correctly from a mound of clay.  We work on reciting the letters in order.  Without any hint of the alphabet song, they say the letters from A-Z and then from Z-A.  He wants them to know the alphabet backwards and forwards.

Next, you randomly call out a letter.  They have to tell you which letters are immediately before and after the letter.  For example, the letter I give you is B.  So, the answer is A and C.  It is not as easy as it sounds.  Being part of this process, I can honestly say that I have never known our alphabet so well.

You build both the capital and lowercase letters.  While looking at the letters you can discuss which letters are the most alike.  There are several letters that are almost the exact opposite of another.  For example, b’s and d’s can be confusing.  Talking about them, touching them, and building them seems to help in letter recognition.

The whole point of the exercise is to create mental pictures of each letter.  When you have to recall the letter, you can see in your head the letter you created as well as its position in the alphabet. 

She was pretty good at this task, it didn't seem to trip her up at all. She has a harder time with her lower case letters though, so tomorrow might be a bit harder for her.

The girls picked out clay that came in 4 different colors, and Kate made all her vowels red, because she likes red. Emily said color coding the vowels would help her remember them, and to do it on all her spelling words as well.

After clay time, we read. I picked out some Kindergarten-1st grade level books that she knew 90% of the words already, and she read 3 books to me. Happily! That in and of itself is reason to cheer. Reading with her has always been a fight.

After she finished reading -- about 15 min., I read to her from a 2nd grade level book, to keep her listening comprehension on the level it should be at. She choose Magic Treehouse, and I used a bookmark, and told her to follow along with her eyes. At first she balked, preferring just to listen, but she did it. I hope this will help her with her tracking. We discussed what we'd read after, to make sure she comprehended everything. She has very good auditory comprehension, so that's not something we'll have to work on at least.

I was going to do balance board exercises with her, but time was short and Ella still needed her reading lesson, so Kate was in charge of babysitting Zeke while I worked with Ella.

Then we all walked to school. Tomorrow, the two of them will just go up together, and I won't have to drive/walk Ella anymore. That-- is a definite bonus for me.

Pretty good day. Only one incident of her being uncooperative, but it was quickly handled with, "You can go to your room, until you're ready to work." After that, she was pleasant as punch!

We had fun today. All of us. It was a good start.

Good Reading

This book is amazing. Simply fascinating. AND, it's written for dyslexics, with large, easy font. It takes a couple of hours to read it, if you skip the end where he goes through his methods.


It describes the way dyslexics think, and while I could not totally understand the unique way their brains process information, it was enlightening nonetheless.  I guess it would be like trying to explain sight to someone who was born blind in a community of blind people who had no language for 'seeing'. If you know anyone who has dyslexia, I recommend you read this book.


The Author, Ron Davis, was thought to be retarded, until he figured out ways to cope with the way his brain processed information. Turns out he's a genius who could not only do complex algebraic equations in his head, but who is also a gifted sculptor.


While the other books I have read talk about how dyslexics read with the 'wrong' part of their brains, and how they need to be drilled into doing the 'right' way, this book explains why different is GOOD, and how to get around the reading problem, without forcing them to alter their brain pathways.


According to some of the scientists theories, dyslexics have underdevelopment phonologic modules. They  don't process the smallest parts of language in the 'normal' part of their brains. Phonemes are lost on them. These same scientists profess that if you can just force them to learn phonics, they will eventually rewire the neural pathways they need and learn to read.


It doesn't feel right to me.


They are gifted because of their ability to think differently. Why would I want to shove her square brain into their round hole? Why are squares always bad? If I forced her brain to 'do it the right way', what toll would that take on her other abilities? Maybe it wouldn't affect anything else-- I'm just guessing here, but as I was reading these other books, I was totally put off by them. I hope that was the Spirit telling me to take another path.


It sure would be easier to do it their way, I'd have curriculums galore, and several methods to choose from. The United States teaches phonics. If you struggle with phonemes, you're not going to get phonics. Not to mention that phonics only works 50% of the time, for everything else, you just have to memorize the exception to the rule.


My SIL from NZ was telling me how her Mum (a lifelong elementary teacher) was ranting about how stupid it is to teach phonics when it is so ineffective. They don't do it that way in NZ. They use a multi-sensory approach, and only use phonics a little. As she was explaining to me the method they use, it sounded exactly like what I've read about for dyslexics. I need to go to NZ and sit in on their 1st grade classes, or Kindy rather, as their 7 yos are already fluent readers.


Maybe I can Skype Melissa, and she can teach Kate their way! LOL. Oh that would be easy right?


"Here Kate, sit down here. Watch Melissa. Have fun!"


*sigh*

Dyslexia

My friend Emily, is a 3rd grade teacher, has also taught 1st grade, and been the reading specialist at her school. She did her Masters Thesis on teaching methods for dyslexic and learning disabled kids, and she also has dyslexia. She read with Kate on Saturday, and feels certain that she has dyslexia. She asked her if she sees letters moving around on the page, or coming up off the page, and I was shocked to hear Kate say 'yes'. She described seeing letters move like on Electric Company, when Annie Scrambler messes up words. I had never thought to ask her this, because I didn't know that can happen in a dyslexics brain.

Emily said that dyslexics see words in 3D, looking at them from the side, from behind and from below, not just straight on. This is why their letters flip sometimes. This is also the reason why dyslexics are so spatially oriented and why they are so creative. Fascinating, isn't it?

Emily has a pair of violet reading glasses, because her brain does not see that color, and since black is a combination of all colors, the missing violet can make the letters appear to move. We need to figure out if Kate has a color problem as well, and get her a filter to read through.

She also has a speech impediment, if you remember her "wylly wylly", she can't say her 'r's. This affects how she hears and processes the sounds, and makes phonics difficult for her, especially blended sounds. So we are having the speech therapist listen to her, and she will probably have some therapy for that soon. *Sigh* I really think the way she talks is cute, and I'll be sad to 'hear' that go... but, if that is one of the things that will help her read, we have to take care of it.

Emily gave me some methods to use to help Kate. She wants me to teach her sign language. She does this in her class, because a multi-sensory approach helps so many kids, especially dyslexics. I'll also have Kate make her letters out of play-doh, draw them on my hand, or in salt, and she'll have pictures and colors associated with every sound and letter. All this will hopefully help her to learn the sounds.

She's giving me a set of textured, colored sound tiles that Kate can manipulate. In my research, I've learned that Kinesthetic approaches are especially good for dyslexics. Kate will also draw pictures to go with her sight word flash cards, and use a bookmark when reading, because she 'scoops' letters from the next line down and inserts them into her words.

Emily will check up on us once a week, and readjust our approach as we see what works and what doesn't. She also said to have her tested by the school psychologist, because that will tell us what her strengths are, as well as her disabilities, and will help us build a method specific to her gifts.

We talked to Kate about this, told her what dyslexia was, and more importantly, what it wasn't-- It does not mean that she is dumb. In fact, most dyslexics have higher than average IQ's, and have remarkable gifts. We told her she'd have to do a few more tests, and that we'd be doing her homework differently from now on. She seems ok with it all, and the promise of a treat, after any kind of testing she had to go through, hit the mark.

I hope she'll be ok. I hope her self esteem won't suffer because of this. My biggest fear is that she'll wind up thinking she's 'just not smart'.

I had an interesting conversation with Chris' mother last night. I told her about Kate, and was surprised by her reaction. She shook her head and said, "She gets that from me. I had a very hard time learning to read. I just wasn't smart." I argued that she was in fact very smart, very creative, had a head for quilting and piecing and sewing like few others, and while she agreed, she still had a very dejected attitude about her intelligence. She even listed all the 'brown-eyed grandchildren' who'd inherited it from her and had struggled in school. (One is a very intelligent chemical engineering student, one a gifted artist, and one a talented machinist, btw. They did struggle in school, but they also have gifts and talents that help them to excel in their fields.)

It made me so sad, here she is, 79 yo, and still has the feeling that she is 'not smart'. It makes me sad, mad, and determined. Determined to make sure Kate does not grow up with this attitude.

Emily warned me it is going to be a long hard road, and that it would not ever 'go away'. We'll have to deal with it for her entire life. I don't feel weighed down though, I feel optimistic. I think I can help her, I will certainly die trying anyways. I've already gotten 4 books on dyslexia that I will be studying for the next little while. Understanding is the key right?

Her teacher has also been very supportive, and so we'll keep her in school for as long as that continues to work for her. I'm not ruling out home-schooling her for at least part of the day though, if that will make it easier on her. Going to school all day, only to come home to 2 hours of homework with Mom will not make her happy I'm sure. None of my kids would go for that. I wouldn't.

So we'll just take it one day at a time. Learn to learn Kate's way by trial and error. At least she has Chris to identify with. She knows he has it too, knows he's a good reader now, and I think she knows that it's not the end of the world. It's a challenge for her to rise above. I know she'll do it.

Wish us luck.