All - I was so happy to find this subreddit of parents who share some of my struggles. My 16 year old daughter was finally diagnosed with Orthographic Dyslexia in 6th grade after many years of tutors and tests etc. She takes advantage of supports offered by her high school and has a private tutor but is still basically white-knuckling it through the academic part of High School. Luckily, she is flourishing socially and in theater so that's a godsend!

I would like to find her a US college counsellor who can guide her to colleges and programs that might be a good fit for her scholastically. I'd also like to help her understand ahead of time how she can navigate her first year without burning out or falling behind.

Does anyone have a recommendation for a counselor or resources that have helped your kids navigate this complex and seemly high-stakes system?

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There was a lot of struggle in school for me. Traditional schools—when I was young—did not have the facilities or weren't aware of dyslexia. I'm currently helping a school for dyslexic children figure out what makes them different and excellent—kinda like a child with dyslexia.

Would it be ridiculous to ask you to sort some topics based on what is important to you in a school as a parent of a dyslexic child?

Your time is important and this should only take 3 minutes.

https://44by6wav.optimalworkshop.com/optimalsort/6ed075c9dfb7f0fce52b39c97501b77d

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I'm very thankful for you.

Hello everyone, my name is Linda and I’m a curriculum developer at Syngli. We are a startup working on an intelligent tutoring tool that combines techniques from neuroscience, natural language processing and AI to create an interactive knowledge database that adapts to learners’ study needs. This tool also has an online user community where learners can create their own content for others to study and learn from together. We offer the Syngli tool as a web platform and an Android app, but are also planning to release an iOS version in the near future. 

Currently, we want to explore whether our web and mobile apps work for users with learning disabilities. Would anyone here be interested in helping us test our web platform and mobile app?

We have created a short survey to find out what you think about technologies and learning disabilities. If you are a parent with children who have learning disabilities, we would like to learn more about your lived experience and use of software and other technological devices.

The link to the survey is here https://forms.gle/y2oUYCMhEtWt5vG69 and will take approximately 5 minutes to complete. IF you have any other questions you may reach me at linda@syngli.com

Thanks for considering our request!

How do most parents go about getting their child evaluated for/diagnosed with dyslexia? Can I simply ask my pediatrician for a referral? We live in the states, in CA and have Kaiser Permanente insurance, if that makes any difference.

My daughter had her initial IEP with the school but I was told they could not diagnose her, only make recommendations for special education. I have read about services like Summit Center in California costing $4000. Why would it cost so much? Shouldn’t this be something accessible to everyone?

Hi everyone, I am a parent, new to this dyslexia journey. I have a 10-year-old who will be entering 5th grade. She just completed her initial IEP at the end of the year which will be implemented in the fall. She will receive 60 minutes/day, 4 days a week of special education in reading, writing and math.

I just finished ‘Overcoming Dyslexia’ by Dr. Sally Shaywitz. It was very informative and I know so much more now. I am also aware that this book is almost 20 years old (it was published in 2003).

Are there any updated sources of good dyslexia information out there for parents to reference? In particular I want to know what reading programs are now being used in 2022.

Is the recommendation still under no circumstances should a tutor operate as a separate agent from the school? I ask because in this early journey the one resource I have found is an after school reading program that would focus on phonemes.

Hi everyone, I'm a parent to a 10-year-old and very new to the dyslexia world. It is all like learning another language. I also posted in r/dyslexia and in my search found this site so am posting here as well! My daughter recently had her initial IEP after we expressing concerns to her teacher about her spelling and writing. The school psychologist said they can't diagnosis dyslexia, only make recommendations. The report given to us said '___ scored in the elevated to low range for risk of dyslexia according to the WIAT-III.' I tried googling this but couldn't really figure out what it means.

My question for the community is, what is the benefit of pursuing a dyslexia diagnosis thru her pediatrician? She has been tested and asked so many questions that if it is not needed, I don't want to subject her to more. The IEP identifies areas of need, goals and program accommodations. She will receive 240 minutes weekly of specialized academic instructions.

My second question is, what is the benefit of a tutor specializing in dyslexia? In her most recent report card, she scored as 'standards not met' for writing and conventions of language; 'standard nearly met' for reading literature, reading informational texts, reading foundations and all areas of math; 'standard met' in speaking and listening. In my initial searches on dyslexia, I found local tutors specializing in dyslexia and the Orton-Gillingham Program who will come to our home. The cost is $95/session with 3 sessions minimum a week. From what I've read here, some kids keep tutors for years, with slow improvement. So this a long term commitment. Plus, the tutors only work on their program, no homework. Homework is already a struggle that can be 1+ hours, so adding additional work seems daunting and something our daughter might actively rebel against.

Of course, we want to do everything for her and would willing engage the tutor. My partner is thinking we should give the school and special education teacher a 2 month trial when school resumes again in the fall when the IEP plan will be enacted because 'she's not that far behind'. If no progress is made, then when engage the services of the tutor. Plus, we have an education referral already set up thru her pediatrician we will report her progress to as well. My concern is we are just now starting this whole process and I don't want to waste anymore time. I also feel like a clock is ticking and the older she gets the more rebellious she will get to any help offered. At this time I can get her to play games like Banagrams. I bought a cursive book and she completed a few pages then said she did this in school already and that was enough for her. I get it that she wants her summer off. Thanks in advance for any advise.

Are you interested in participating in research and earning up to $40? UC Berkeley’s Distance Learning Project is recruiting participants for a study on how COVID-19 impacted students’ learning this past year. We’d love to hear from you (or your child) and learn more about your experience with distance learning to better improve students’ learning experiences! Responses will remain confidential and anonymous.

Requirements:

- Student between the ages of 7 and 18 years old

- Student who identifies with a specific learning disability

- Open to students in the US

Link to parent permission form: https://forms.gle/yitFp4pw9Kz2cFFq6

We really appreciate your input and time! Feel free to reply to this post if you have any questions!

Are you interested in participating in research and earning up to $40? UC Berkeley’s Distance Learning Project is recruiting participants for a study on how COVID-19 impacted students’ learning this past year. We’d love to hear from you (or your child) and learn more about your experience with distance learning to better improve students’ learning experiences! Responses will remain confidential and anonymous.

Requirements:

- Student between the ages of 7 and 18 years old

- Student who identifies with a specific learning disability

- Open to students in the US

Link to parent permission form: https://forms.gle/yitFp4pw9Kz2cFFq6

We really appreciate your input and time! Feel free to reply to this post if you have any questions!

My son has always been challenged with spelling and reading, but has not been formally diagnosed with Dyslexia because he was performing at grade-level and so school did not support.

As parents we promoted ear-reading daily and encouraged him to use his strong vocabulary even if he doesn’t know how to spell the words. And his teachers never graded him down for incorrect spelling (even when he got 2/10 on spelling tests) and enabled the students to use tools like spell checker.

This has culminated in his 8th grade teacher recognizing him as an outstanding student and encouraging him to take honors English in high school.

My dad and brother had similar challenges but instead were considered poor students (which makes me so sad - since they had to try harder then their peers to achieve what they did).

I am so thankful for technology and teacher acceptance that has made my son’s experience so positive.

Has anyone’s child had to learn a string instrument? Our daughter has to take Cello (required) from 3-6 grades. It is really challenging for her - wondering if anyone has found a successful method of supporting their child in learning a string instrument?

My daughter is profoundly dyslexic. 11 and still learning the basics of reading, going to a school for dyslexia. Major issues with working memory, making retaining certain kinds of information extremely difficult. She is otherwise quite intelligent.

I have realized that she has learned some negative coping strategies to deal with this - namely bullying and or lying. She strong arms her way through situations and lies primarily because she literally can't remember something. It is easier for her emotionally to risk a lie or get someone to back down than admit she can't remember.

I need to help her figure out healthier coping strategies. She is at a tough age, pre-teen, and it is starting to impact her at school.

My high functioning autistic daughter has learned how to "read" enough to pass Virginia's subjective standardized testing, though still shows needs in learning basic phonemic awareness. She can memorize words and uses context clues to work through reading... and if she doesn't know a word, is great at passing it off and getting an adult to decode it for her.

School district is outright refusing to look at any data, or assist her in any way with decoding. She had services last year, though they where subpar at best for her specific type of dyslexia.

Has anyone been in a similar boat? Anyone find school districts that actually care about the long term success of their students?

Thanks in advance.

Just joined this group!

We are currently touring various schools for dyslexia and learning processing disorders (elementary to high school). If your child attends one, can you please share your school (publicly or privately) and let me know if you love your school or not. We are considering relocating to any state that has a good school that is well regarded. The schools in the area we live now are well regarded but unfortunately unaffordable without financial aid. I have also heard of charter schools for dyslexia but I am having trouble locating these schools. If you know of any and can share, that would be fantastic!

Hello Everyone! I am a student at Nova Southeastern University and I am inquiring whether any parents of children with dyslexia are willing to be interviewed. This interview will be twenty questions at most and will be conducted through zoom. Also, any personal information will be confidential and not included in the interview.

Thank you!

My daughter who is 9 has finally been tested and diagnosed as someone with dyslexia. We have thought this was the case for sometime. We are starting our journey in learning. Is there a place, books, videos that we can learn tools as parents to help her and allow her to show her amazing talents. She is often disorganized. She struggles when it is time to clean her room. I want to learn to help her and learn new approaches

Are you interested in participating in research and earning up to $40? UC Berkeley’s Distance Learning Project is recruiting participants for a study on how COVID-19 impacted students’ learning this past year. We’d love to hear from you (or your child) and learn more about your experience with distance learning to better improve students’ learning experiences! Responses will remain confidential and anonymous.

Requirements:
- Student between the ages of 9 and 18 years old
- Student who identifies with a specific learning disability
- Caregiver per eligible student must participate
- Open to students in the US

Link to parent permission form: https://forms.gle/yitFp4pw9Kz2cFFq6

If you have any questions or would like further details, feel free to message us or email distancelearninglabucb@gmail.com

We really appreciate your input!

My 10 y/o just started to complain about blurry vision. Took her doctors and found nothing wrong. I keep talking to her trying to figure out exactly what she is experiencing. She says she can read if she just does it without thinking. She also says numbers are fine. If she reads a long sentence, it can get blurry towards the end. Also gets blurry if she goes back and looks are the work with more intent. Is this a potential dyslexia thing?

Hi friends!

My son (8 year old 3rd grader) is in the beginning process of getting evaluated for Dyslexia. He has all the classic signs - late talker, difficulty learning to read, switching directions of letters, switching the order of numbers in math problems, labor intensive writing, poor spelling, avoiding reading aloud, etc... it is pretty clear that he is dyslexic.

He is extremely bright, but has suffered from a lack of confidence in his intelligence due to the trouble he has had learning to read. My biggest fear is that he will feel even more strongly that he is "stupid." OBVIOUSLY, the adults in his life are constantly on the lookout for ways to raise him up and help him understand that he is a smart, wonderful kid. We praise him for his creativity, problem solving, kindness, good attitude, hard work, good deeds... etc.

I am concerned about how receiving a diagnosis and being sent to the Resource Room might make him feel. How do I approach this with him? How do I explain what dyslexia is and that it doesn't have anything to do with your intellect? Should I prep him for the possibility of his peers judging him?

Thank you for your wisdom!

My son is being coached using the Orton-Gillingham approach at school. Any tips or things I can do at home to support him? Are coloured overlays useful?

I work full time and my wife stays at home with our 3 kids (10/8/5), all of whom are in public school currently. We’ve determined that my 8 y/o is not learning where she’s at, and something needs to change, but we aren’t totally sure what we need to prepare first. We’ve bought the PRIDE reading program, but she needs more than that and it’s going very slowly. If you know or have experience with this, your help is greatly appreciated!

Hello everyone! I have a part two survey for you all to take. I got such amazing responses from so many people that I created a part two! I will be using this new survey and the previous survey to create something to help parents advocate for their children! It will be a real resource to help all of you and your children’s voices to be heard! When I launch it, I will let you know! If you could take this part two survey, that would be incredibly helpful and it will help me better help all of you! Here is the link! If you would like the link to part one, I will give it to you as well!

PART ONE https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc34XlG9l1zyx6kh9B-Ar3nlZLKl8fB9WuiMakj-dAiaWnHIA/viewform?usp=sf_link

Part Two https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSewD1anHbnR6eyk9bNjxslCxXBUAVO2glkGIxltJJ1cQRPrVQ/viewform?usp=sf_link

Hi everyone! I am a future teacher and have come to Reddit for some help with a project I am working on if anyone is willing to fill out this survey for me! I am learning about dyslexia and differentiated instruction and must interview or survey parents of children with dyslexia. All information will remain anonymous (I do NOT collect any names or emails in this survey!!) and will greatly help my project and future students with Dyslexia. You can fill the form out here: https://forms.gle/DCTKQjnNv484MS5k7

Thank you!!!!