Category Archives: Struggling Readers
Overcoming Dyslexia’s Challenges: Five Famous Examples
The International Dyslexia Association defines dyslexia as a learning disability that impairs a person’s ability to read, write and spell. Some dyslexics experience other symptoms such as trouble comprehending math, poor coordination or vision problems. Dyslexia is manageable and doesn’t …
Using an Orton Gillingham Approach in the Home
If you have a child who struggles with reading you will do everything you can to understand the reasons for your child’s difficulties. You have seen your child’s frustration and have suffered alongside them as you yourself struggle to understand …
YouTube Videos that Instruct & Inspire!
A good majority of us would say that we are visual people. It is a safe assumption to make when statistics say that on average you will spend 2 minutes longer on this post because it has viewable video on …
The Literacy Key
I was born in Canada in 1967 when dyslexia was almost unheard of and autism was yet to be classified as a disability. So although I was a child struggling with both of these, there were no neat sets of …
3 Ways Parents Can Help Their Kids Become Better Readers
Guest post by freelance blogger, Pepper Givens Remembering letters, sounds, and sight words may be difficult for your kindergartner. Reading long picture books may seem impossible to your second grader. Your fifth grader might struggle to finish his or her …
When to “Sound the Word Out” and When to Try a Different Approach to Reading with Your Child
Parents everywhere know that children are naturally-curious creatures. It could be an infant who discovers that pots and pans make noise when you bang them together, a toddler who learns (the hard way) that grown-up scissors will cut hair, or …
Why Should Parents Care About Phonics Instruction?
Experience teaches us to be skeptical when things seem too good to be true, and it seems like 98% of the time an opportunity appears too amazing, something surely is amiss. But sometimes you find a wonderful thing that doesn’t …
How to Help A Deaf Child Become a Successful Reader
New parents are always such an endearing and amusing sight. They cannot yet look at their babies without an Olympic-sized grin and a monumental show of pride as if their child just became the only infant in history to win …
10 Ways Parents Can Grow Their Child’s Reading Skills
One major and important skill that children need for a happy and healthy life is the ability to become a fluent reader. Reading isn’t a skill that develops naturally – it is a learned ability. Even though reading may not occur naturally, …
Take a Bite Out of Evertaster: A Brand New Book Series for Picky Eaters…I Mean Kids
Are you looking for something yummy…to read? A new novel by up-and-coming author Adam Glendon Sidwell will give you just that – a tasty treat for your imagination. Evertaster is set to be released on June 14, 2012, so kids …
Why Sitting Too Close To the Television Makes Your Eyes Go Square
One crucial tool for improving reading is good eye sight. Here is a guest post discussing how you can protect your own eye sight and your child’s. Guest Post by Sara Parker “Don’t sit too close to the computer…your eyes …
Summer Learning Ideas and Activities for Parents and Children
Summer has nearly arrived, and I can’t help but wonder…are parents excited to have their little cubs around the den more, or are they mourning the death of any free time / peace and quiet they enjoyed throughout the …
How to Help Your Teen Get the Most Out of Summer Break
Parents of 2012: If you have managed to survive parenthood up through the teenage years, congratulations! This is a major accomplishment and you should be proud. You have likely seen many sleepless nights, grocery store tantrums, doctor appointments, science fair …
What Teachers Want Parents to Know About Reading and School
As a parent, how do you remember your time spent as a student in school? Do you smile when you think of your carefree elementary days, cringe when you think of all your awkward junior high/middle school moments, or relish …
Motivating Children to Read More Books Through… T-Shirts?
For some reason there is an irresistible pull to read a shirt with writing on it. Yet, when it comes to books and other reading materials – kids (and adults) don’t always find that same irresistible pull. But what if …
How Stress Affects Your Child’s Reading and Academic Achievement
We’ve all experienced stress before. Whether it’s the feeling we have before we have to speak in front of a large group of people, feeling overwhelmed by a large “to-do” list, or concern for one we love, such as a …
Dyslexia Research: Can Dyslexia Be Diagnosed in Younger Children?
One major concern many parents have is that they can’t get their child a formal diagnosis for dyslexia until their child is in the third grade. Many parents start to see their child struggling with reading long before this, but …
Reading Removes Limits to Learning
It’s amazing how much information is available. In today’s day and age, if you want to learn something – you can. There is a book/article/video/class on almost every conceivable topic. And with reading skills in place, almost all limits to …
What Every Parent Should Know About RTI
Before 2004, children who were struggling in school or had any type of learning disability, were automatically relegated to a “wait to fail before we intercede” philosophy. But that all changed with IDEA 2004 which required schools to implement Response to Intervention (RTI). …
Reading is Not Optional – Even for Struggling Readers
Recently the upcoming ambassador for Young People’s Literature, Walter Dean Myers, spoke on NPR about the theme he has chosen for his ambassadorship: Reading is Not Optional. I can’t think of a stronger statement to convey the importance of literacy. This statement …
