All posts by Amy Kessler

NPR Series Unlocking Dyslexia features Lindamood-Bell

* News, Dyslexia,

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Millions Have Dyslexia, Few Understand It

 

In Millions Have Dyslexia, Few Understand It the reporter, who was a student at Lindamood-Bell as a child, visits our Washington, DC Learning Center to interview our staff and students.

CLICK HERE for the NPR story.

How Science Is Rewiring The Dyslexic Brain

 

The second part of  NPR’s Unlocking Dyslexia series features Guinevere Eden, director of Georgetown University’s Center for the Study of Learning. She explains what is happening in the brain of someone with dyslexia when they read and how the brain can be “rewired” with intensive intervention.

CLICK HERE  for the NPR story.

How Parents Can Help Kids With Dyslexia Succeed In School

 

Families who have had success at Lindamood-Bell describe the value of early intervention and more.

CLICK HERE for the NPR story.

Dyslexia: The Learning Disability That Must Not Be Named

 

Parents and advocates are concerned that schools aren’t acknowledging a diagnosis of dyslexia—and aren’t giving students the help they need.

CLICK HERE for the NPR story.

‘B’ And ‘D’ Learning Process Debunks Dyslexia Jumbled-Letters Myth

 

Many believe dyslexia is about jumbled letters, but experts say that’s not quite right. This story explores what’s happening in the brain that causes those backward letters.

CLICK HERE for the NPR story.

At Lindamood-Bell, we believe that all individuals can be taught to read to their potential—including those who have a diagnosis of dyslexia.

 

Over the course of nearly three decades, Lindamood-Bell has worked with thousands of individuals. Sitting with a child or an adult who struggles to read a word provides unique insight into the learning process. Our success with students is due to our unique approach, including our research-validated, sensory-cognitive instruction.

 

Learn more about our approach and results with students diagnosed with dyslexia here.

UW study examines how the brains of students with dyslexia respond to intensive reading intervention (Seeing Stars)

Research, ,

Lindamood-Bell has partnered with many universities to study the neurological and behavioral effects of our sensory-cognitive instruction.

 

Currently, The University of Washington’s Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences (I-LABS) is conducting a study that examines how the brains of students with dyslexia respond to intensive reading intervention (Seeing Stars instruction).

 

We look forward to the publication of their research.

 

The perspective of the mother of a study participant was recently featured in Columns (The University’s alumni magazine). Check out the story here.

 

The author’s daughter describes her Lindamood-Bell experience as “challenging and exhilarating” and she was able to make two years of progress in eight weeks time.

 

Download a description of the study, published by the Center on Human Development and Disability at the University of Washington, entitled, Discovering How Reading Intervention Changes the Brains of Children With Dyslexia.

 

 

Lead investigator Jason D. Yeatman, Ph.D notes, “One thing I can say definitively is that the intensive reading intervention program changes the underlying structure of the brain. That’s something that we’re clearly seeing.”

 

View our research to learn more about our commitment to ongoing efforts to examine the efficacy of our instruction. We include the results for students with dyslexia who received decoding instruction in our learning centers.

How is School Really Going? | Tips for Using Progress Reports to Ensure a Successful Marking Period

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“It was fine.”

 

“We didn’t really do anything.”

 

“It was okay, I guess.”

 

Students can be notoriously tight-lipped when it comes to sharing how their day at school was. It can be hard for parents to glean how things are really going: did your second grader eat their entire lunch? Is your middle schooler making new friends in a bigger, more intimidating school? Was signing up for two AP classes this year a mistake for your varsity soccer player? If your child is also hesitant to show you their homework or ask for help with assignments, mid-marking period progress reports can be jarring if he isn’t performing as well as you’d hoped or expected.

 

Interpreting the Progress Report

 

Before you can come up with a solution, you’ll need to figure out what the problem is. Read through the progress report and look for keywords such as “difficulty with” or “inadequate progress.” Note what subjects seem to be the hardest for your child and consider what factors may be at play. Is he struggling in all subjects due to trouble adjusting to a new school routine? Is her math grade outstanding while she received unsatisfactory marks in Social Studies? Are any comments or grades particularly surprising (i.e. your third grader is struggling to keep up in Language Arts when he previously was reading at or above grade level)?

 

Meet With Your Child’s Teacher

 

Make note of any questions or concerns you have, and request a meeting with your child’s teacher. She will be able to answer your questions and offer feedback on what’s happening in the classroom — and the best ways to help your child be successful. Ask if there’s anything you can be doing at home, or if there are any resources available to you. It can also be helpful to let your child know you’ll be talking to their teacher, acknowledge any successes they’ve had so far this year and reassure them that you want to help make things easier.

 

“Mrs. Jones mentioned how respectful you are to your classmates, and I’m so proud of you for that! She also shared that you’re having trouble completing your science lab reports. I’m going to meet with her to see if there’s anything we can do together to make those easier. Do you have any ideas?” Involving your child and asking her for ideas may make it easier for her to be more candid about how school is going or to tell you if there’s something she’s specifically struggling with. This may also help to lessen any anxiety or stress she’s feeling about her school performance or struggles.

 

Red Flags to Watch For

 

There are sometimes circumstantial events that can make the first marking period difficult for a student. Has she transitioned from elementary school to middle school? Are there major familial changes (i.e. divorce, death in the family, moving to a new home)? Is he having trouble maintaining friendships? While those things can all be contributing factors to poor grades, it’s also important to determine if there’s an underlying weakness that’s keeping your child from reaching her potential.

 

If her progress report shows poor performance in the areas of language arts and spelling, she may be suffering from an underlying weakness in her language processing skills. A cause of difficulty in establishing sight words and contextual fluency is difficulty in visualizing letters in words. This is called weak symbol imagery—the ability to create mental imagery for sounds and letters within words. A significant number of students have difficulty with rapidly perceiving sounds in words and are slow to self-correct their reading errors. This causes weakness in:

 

  • Memorizing sight words
  • Sounding out words
  • Orthographic awareness
  • Phonemic awareness
  • Contextual reading fluency
  • Orthographic spelling

 

If she’s having difficulty with science, history/social studies, math, writing, and homework, she may have weak concept imagery—the ability to create an imagined or imaged gestalt (whole) from language. This weakness causes individuals to get only “parts” of information they read or hear, but not the whole. It’s important to note, weak decoding skills can also affect her grades in subjects that require a lot of reading. Weak concept imagery causes weakness in:

 

  • Reading comprehension
  • Listening comprehension
  • Critical thinking and problem solving
  • Following directions
  • Memory
  • Oral language expression
  • Written language expression

 

These underlying sensory-cognitive functions must be intact in order for your child to achieve academic success. If not, there will be a breakdown in her reading and language comprehension skills, resulting in frustration, stress, and poor grades on her progress report.

 

Don’t Wait to Get Help

It can be tempting to hope that reading or comprehension issues will work themselves out, but for students with a weakness in symbol or concept imagery, waiting often means more time for them to struggle and fall further behind. Our learning ability evaluation can determine the specific areas of strength and weakness for your child. From there, we offer an individualized plan, based on our research-validated instruction, to best suit your child either to close the gap or just make learning easier. Contact your local Learning Center for more information about what might be causing poor grades on your child’s progress report and how we can help.

 

Maths: The Imagery-Language Foundation

Australia, Math, ,

Many students can grasp addition and subtraction problems using maths manipulatives. But take away the concrete objects and their understanding seems to disappear.

 

Manipulatives are a very helpful visual representation, but maths students of all ages need to learn to visualise what numbers mean as well.

 

Mathematics is cognitive processing, or thinking, that requires both imagery and language. Imagery is fundamental to the process of thinking with numbers.

 

The primary cause of maths difficulties is a weakness in two areas: numeral imagery—the ability to visualise numbers—and concept imagery—the ability to process the gestalt (whole) from language. Individuals who demonstrate weaknesses in these areas often attempt to memorise maths facts instead of being able to think, reason, and problem solve with numbers.

 

People who are great at maths can easily visualise maths functions. The language of numbers turns into imagery and they “see” mathematical relationships. However, many individuals may experience an inability to image the concepts underlying maths processes. This causes weakness in the following:

 

  • Learning maths facts
  • Grasping mathematical relationships
  • Following proper mathematical operations
  • Solving word problems
  • Estimating numerical values
  • Understanding higher level maths

 

The following excerpt from On Cloud Nine® Maths by Nanci Bell and Kimberly Tuley, explains the importance of both concept and numeral imagery:

 

“To bring concept and numeral imagery to a conscious level as the missing link in maths instruction, On Cloud Nine integrates and applies the principles of Bell’s programs: Visualizing and Verbalizing for Language Comprehension and Thinking™ (V/V®) and Seeing Stars®: Symbol Imagery for Phonological and Orthographic Processing in Reading and Spelling (SI). As individuals become familiar with the concrete manipulatives, they are questioned and directed to consciously transfer the experienced to the imaged. They image the concrete and attach language to their imagery. The integration of imagery and language is then applied to computation. They develop the sensory-cognitive processing to understand and use the logic of mathematics in mental and written computation.”

 

 

The On Cloud Nine® Maths program stimulates an individual’s ability to image and verbalise the concepts underlying maths processes. Concept and numerical imagery are integrated with language and applied to maths computation and problem solving. There is emphasis on both mathematical reasoning and mathematical computation.

 

Explore our maths instruction, including Learning Centre results, here.

 

Educators: Find out how you can learn the steps of the On Cloud Nine® Program in one of our acclaimed professional development workshops, and teach your students how to “see” maths, here.

Teacher PD that makes a difference | Spotlight on Cañon City School District

For Schools, Professional Development,

Cañon City School District is continuing into its second year of a three-year Colorado Department of Education literacy grant initiative. With the goal of changing outcomes for struggling readers, Cañon City partnered with Lindamood-Bell to provide teachers with workshops and ongoing coaching to develop their skills.

 

Participating teachers start out by learning the steps of Visualizing and Verbalizing for Language Comprehension and Thinking and Seeing Stars for Reading and Spelling.  These research-validated programs address the imagery-language foundation that underlies reading, spelling, language comprehension, memory and critical thinking.

 

Job-embedded professional development

 

After the workshop, teachers receive job-embedded professional development. Throughout the year Lindamood-Bell provides onsite support in the classroom through the use of state-of-the-art telepresence robot technology. Learn about our robot coaching in the following video:

 

 

Making news

 

This cost-effective solution was described by school administrators and teachers in articles appearing in the Cañon City Record. Get the hometown story:

 

Cañon City School District: More students measuring up in reading

Cañon City School District sees gains one year into implementing reading intervention.

 

Focus for the 2017-18 school year

 

The district is continuing to facilitate professional development for new and continuing staff. They will use what they learn with more students, prioritizing those who have an Individual Education Plan or otherwise qualify for services under the Colorado READ Act. Teachers will also be building on the growth students experienced in the first year of the initiative. For example, new readers may now be tackling reading fluency.

 

Lindamood-Bell is thrilled to continue supporting Cañon City Schools educators. We look forward to helping to achieve the big goals they have for students.

 

Below, check out results for decoding students.

 

Colorado Students Receiving Seeing Stars Instruction Make Significant Improvements in Reading

 

Background

Cañon City Schools in Cañon City, Colorado, serves a large percentage of students who are at-risk of reading failure. During the 2016-17 school year, Cañon City implemented Lindamood-Bell® instruction to address the specific needs of this student population. One hundred nineteen students received an average of 104 hours of Seeing Stars instruction to develop symbol imagery for reading. Instruction was delivered by Cañon City teachers who received professional development in the Lindamood-Bell programs. Student gains were measured with a battery of reading assessments.

 

 

Results

On average, Seeing Stars students achieved significant improvements in reading. They made large standard score changes on all measures. Additionally, the 18-point percentile increase in word recognition put these students within the normal range (25th-75th percentile). Their pre- to posttest results were statistically significant on all measures. The results of this study illustrate that Lindamood-Bell instruction in the Seeing Stars program leads to improved reading, which is essential to achieving success with school curricula.

 

Profile

Number of Students: 119

Grade Levels: 1st-5th

Lindamood-Bell Programs Implemented:

– Seeing Stars®

Focus of Professional Development:

– Teacher Workshops

– Job-embedded Coaching via Telepresence Robot

– Instructional Leadership Support

 

Lindamood-Bell instruction can change learning for students, regardless of their previous struggle with language and literacy. Contact us to learn how your school can get started: 800-233-1819.

 

“Will he ever learn to love reading?” | Frequently Asked Questions from Parents of Children with Dyslexia

Dyslexia

For Dyslexia Awareness Month we are sharing our belief that all individuals can be taught to read to their potential—including those who have a previous diagnosis of dyslexia.

 

Over the course of nearly three decades, Lindamood-Bell has worked with thousands of individuals. Sitting with a child or an adult who struggles to read a word provides unique insight into the learning process. Our success with students is due to our unique approach, including our research-validated, sensory-cognitive instruction. Below we’ve answered some questions parents of students with dyslexia often have.

 

Q: “He hates reading. How do I get him to do it?”

A: For struggling readers, books don’t yet bring joy. Rewarding him for the reading he’s done can help motivate him while also providing needed fluency practice. Track the number of pages or minutes read with stickers, points or something he enjoys (i.e. printed “Minecraft creepers”). Decide as a family what the reward will be — it could be a toy or game, extra screen time, one-on-one time with a favorite adult or getting to choose what’s for dinner on Friday night. Work with your child to find something that works for your family.

 

Q: “Can I just read to her?”

A: There are lots of benefits to reading to your child, but doing so won’t help develop her fluency skills. Set up a system where you both can read. Maybe she reads from something that’s at a comfortable level, and then you read a chapter of Lemony Snicket. You can also take turns reading: switch every paragraph, you read two pages, she reads one etc.

 

Q: “What if he makes a mistake? Do I interrupt?”

A: You can let some small errors go! Changing “the” to “a” is something that happens even to good readers. As long as it doesn’t change the meaning of the text, there’s no need to stop him. For errors that affect meaning (i.e. reading “protect” as “project”), you can ask a question to help him monitor his own accuracy. “Did that make sense?”

 

Q: “All of the books at her level are boring. Should I let her read Harry Potter? What if she gets frustrated?”

A: Children with dyslexia often are very bright with strong comprehension, which can make finding a “right fit” book challenging. Having her read a book that is far above her reading ability will most likely lead to frustration and dampen her desire to read. More challenging, higher level books can be the kind you read to her. Having her practice her fluency with more manageable books may allow her the confidence and skill to find out what’s happening at Hogwarts on her own soon enough. Once you find a book she likes, check out What Should I Read Next to find some suggestions of other books she might enjoy.

 

Q: “He keeps saying he’s stupid. Do I just ignore it?”

A: When a child continually works harder than his peers to read — and doesn’t feel successful — it’s easy to see why his self-esteem might plummet. Listening to and acknowledging his feelings is as important as reminding him of all his strengths and talents. For more tips on navigating this tricky scenario, click here.

 

Q: “Is it EVER going to get easier?”

A: Some dyslexic students may need more than extra time on tests or being able to hear the questions orally. A cause of difficulty in establishing sight words and contextual fluency is difficulty in visualizing letters in words. This is called weak symbol imagery. A significant number of students—even those who have well-developed phonemic awareness—have difficulty with rapidly perceiving sounds in words, and are slow to self-correct their reading errors. It can be helpful to get a picture of your child’s individual strengths and weaknesses through a Learning Ability Evaluation in order to know the best way to support him.

 

Though many individuals come to us just to make learning easier, we are thrilled to be making a difference in the lives of our students who have a diagnosis of dyslexia. Hear from a mom who found a solution and a school at our Academy:

 

 

Lindamood-Bell has partnered with many universities to examine the effects our sensory-cognitive instruction has on the brain. To read more about the studies involving dyslexia, click here.

Extended through 20 October – Early Bird Savings!

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Summer Sessions filling now.

In just a few weeks, we can change reading, comprehension, or maths. Summer is a great time to make this happen for your child.  Make your plans now and enjoy special savings.

 

Enrol for summer sessions by 20 October and receive Early Bird Savings:

 

5% discount off the first week of instruction.

 

Find the Learning Centre near you to get started.

Learning Centre Open Day – Watch Video Now

Australia, Learning Centers

Despite working harder than their peers or receiving support from a tutor, some students still struggle to read fluently and accurately. They may recognise words on one page only to have to sound them out on the next. This can be due to a weakness in symbol imagery — the ability to create mental imagery for the sounds and letters within words.

 

Conversely, some students are able to decode new words easily but struggle to understand what they’ve read and have a hard time interacting with the communicating world around them. A primary cause of language comprehension problems is difficulty creating an imagined gestalt. This is called weak concept imagery. This weakness causes individuals to get only “parts” of information they read or hear, but not the whole.

 

Some students come to us with previous diagnoses such as dyslexia, autism spectrum disorder, or general learning challenges—and we make a difference for each of them. Other students seek our help to enhance their skills or to just make learning easier—and we do.

 

Take a look at our Dream Big for Learning Virtual Open Day!

 

Find a learning centre near you, including many Seasonal Learning Clinics: locations or call us.

 

Double Bay (02) 9328 7119 | Chatswood (02) 9410 1006 | Melbourne (03) 9815 2949

“That’s not how I learned it!” | Making Sense of Common Core Math

Helpful Tips, Math, , ,

After growing up doing math problems on a chalkboard, being immersed in the world of iPads and Chromebooks can be daunting to parents. Add to that the Common Core Standards for math that involve “decomposing” and “anchoring,” and many adults are finding themselves overwhelmed and befuddled when it comes to trying to help tackle math homework or encourage their struggling elementary schooler.

 

What Is Common Core?

 

  • A framework rather than a curriculum: individual schools and teachers decide the day-to-day lesson plans

 

  • Focuses on developing critical thinking rather than memorization

 

  • Incorporates “traditional” math (i.e. 3 x 6 or 134-96) after exploring other methods for problem solving

 

  • Emphasizes number sense and mental math to help students prepare for college and the “real world”

 

Example: Rethinking Multiplication

 

The traditional algorithm for multiplication, often called the “longform” method, involves starting with the ones place and multiplying from right to left while using place holders and carrying. This method can be completed through rote memorization, which means you can complete the steps without picturing what you’re actually doing when you multiply.

 

Common Core Math utilizes the “box” or “grid” method. Here, students separate multi-digit factors into parts (63 becomes 60 and 3) and place them into boxes they have drawn. After multiplying each factor, you simply add all of the numbers together to arrive at the answer.

 

How Can You Help?

 

  • Start with what’s easiest for your child. Let them feel some success and momentum before diving into what’s challenging.

 

  • Ask, “Can you help me picture ________?” (i.e. how to decompose the number 12) Beginning with a question can help diffuse any frustration for both of you about methods that he’s learning and you aren’t yet familiar with. If your child is able to explain the concepts to you, he likely has a solid foundation.

 

  • Offer praise to your student for showing their work — whether or not the answer is correct! A Common Core assignment may only have five problems, but the expectation often is to be able to solve those problems in a variety of ways.

 

  • Build in breaks. If your child has trouble focusing for long periods of time, they may get frustrated with having to complete so many steps per problem. Set a time for 10-15 minutes and encourage them to get up and stretch, have a snack or chat about something that’s not math-related.

 

  • Have “real world” math conversations throughout your daily life. Talk about how much change you get after you’ve paid at the grocery store or ask what fraction of pizza is left. Developing real-world critical thinking and application to math is a large focus of the Common Core practices.

 

What if She’s Falling Behind?

 

If it seems like your child isn’t “getting it” the way her peers are, it can be helpful to reach out to her teacher. Feel free to ask what the goals of the unit are, if what you’re seeing during homework matches what your student is able to do in class and if there are any resources or tutors she recommends.

 

While the goal of Common Core math is to build critical thinking and math sense, a student may still struggle if she has a weakness in concept imagery, or the ability to image and verbalize the concepts underlying math processes. Click here to learn more about how to build and strengthen concept imagery for math skills with On Cloud Nine math.

 

Contact your local Lindamood-Bell Learning Center to find out more about math instruction.

 

Lindamood-Bell Seasonal Learning Clinics

Australia, Learning Centers

So far, Lindamood-Bell has taught over 40,000 students to read and comprehend to their potential. We are able to reach students, in part, by bringing our Seasonal Learning Clinics to new communities every year.

 

A Seasonal Learning Clinic is an extension of a Learning Centre that is open 4-12 weeks—enough time to change learning for many students. Just like our Learning Centres, Seasonal Learning Clinics provide the following:  

 

✓ One-to-one instruction that addresses the individual’s learning needs

 

✓ Daily instruction

 

✓ Regular progress updates

 

✓ Parent practice sessions

 

✓ Professional collaboration/school visits

 

Let’s Create the Magic of Learning in your community.

 

✓ Spread the word about upcoming events: share social media posts,

  email invitations, post fliers, and more

 

✓ Schedule your Learning Ability Evaluation or School Year Check-up

 

✓ Make sure we have your child’s spot reserved on our schedule

 

✓ Discuss Lindamood-Bell with your pediatrician, psychologist, or educator—as a  

  resource for their other clients

 

✓ Help us scout the right location

 

✓ Lindamood-Bell alumni. . .kindly share your learning success with others!

 

Frequently Asked Questions

 

When will there be a Seasonal Learning Clinic in our area?

When we have a commitment from a community, we are able to open our doors. Student reservations make this happen.  

 

How do you choose the location of the Seasonal Learning Clinic?

Safety is our first concern when securing a location. Our locations are varied and based on the local insights of our clients and contacts.

 

How can my child receive support during the school year?

Online instruction is available throughout the school year. We can help with the transition back to school with follow-up help or continued daily sensory-cognitive instruction.

 

Who are the instructors at the Seasonal Learning Clinic?

All Lindamood-Bell instructors must pass a rigorous screening and orientation process. Like our Learning Centres, Seasonal Learning Clinics provide genuine Lindamood-Bell instruction that is monitored by our corporate instructional quality team.

 

Contact us to learn more about our instruction or getting a Seasonal Learning Clinic to your community.

 

Double Bay (02) 9328 7119 | Chatswood (02) 9410 1006 | Melbourne (03) 9815 2949

 

Come to our Open Day!

All locations are hosting a DREAM BIG for Learning Open Day in Spring of 2017. You’re Invited!

We’d love to show you how we have been creating the Magic of Learning for over 30 years! Find your Open Day HERE.