OT: Dyslexia and NOT using OG method

[Motherjoy]

I'm concerned that my almost 9yo might have dyslexia. We hit a wall with reading, and he's fairly "behind". I'm doing the research on dyslexia, but every website wants to sell me a product, so I'm getting pretty fed up with it all right now. There are so many different products, and a couple different methods to getting these struggling readers better. I can tell you upfront, that if I can teach my child without OG or Barton or the intensive, slow, slow, slow phonics, then I would really love to.

He's been through TRL, and I'm working on him getting through Phonics Pathways. Do I really need Barton? Its so expensive and takes forever. I just don't know that I can do that. Its hard enough meeting the physical, spiritual, emotional, and educational needs of 8 children to have to add an intensive method for just one child. I'm not sure I can handle it. We've been having the best school year in our history of homeschooling, and I'm feeling very overwhelmed with the idea that he might be dyslexic (whatever that means...) Sigh.

I just need some advice. Any words of wisdom?

[Tiffini]

I understand exactly where you are coming from. I sent you a PM.

[psreit]

My 11yo daughter has dyslexia. We did Barton for a while. While the early levels were a stepping stone for her, we ended up stopping in the middle of level three. Too many spelling rules. If you are using Phonics Pathways, I think you are on a good path. We did use it for a while, but my daughter's reading was improving, so I just had her start reading ER books again. I think Phonics Pathways is a good program, and sometimes wish we would have just stayed with that. It would have saved us some $$. We didn't do Barton until Angie was almost 10. Up until that time, her reading was very poor. I'm wondering what are the specific problems with your son's reading? I'm not sure if I could be of any help, but someone may be able to give you some guidance with a little more detail as to the problems.

[Nealewill]

My oldest dd has mild dyslexia and my ds has auditory processing disorder. At 7.5 for each of those kids I could tell there was something very wrong. So I did start products. It wasn't as horrible as it sounds. We only spent around 20-30 minutes a day on reading and 15 min on spelling each day. And it helped very much for the time period that we used them. Now my oldest doesn't need other products at all and she is completing CTC this year fairly well. She recently read something off of Wikipedia to me and I couldn't believe how smoothly she read it. She sounded out some very complex words and sounded them out well! He reading speed at the beginning of this year was fairly slow as well but she has significantly speed up. The same for my son - he can't sound words out without a plan because he doesn't process language and sounding things out like we do. He needed a lot more intense help than my dd because he literally can't guess to figure out words. He desperately needed a special program or he would not be reading right now at all. I feel very confident of that. But now he is doing great! He can read stuff at a 2nd - 3rd grade level. Before we started at 7.5 he couldn't read at a 1st grade level. He is even able to sounds out larger words now that he wouldn't have been able to read previously. He is now reading Bible on day of Bigger and reading a portion of his science book. He is scheduled to start DITHOR in April and I think he will be able to do it well. For me, while I didn't necessarily "want" to use something special, it helped a lot. I am glad we invested the time but do look forward to when we finish it.

[Nealewill]

I don't know if you have had time to search the threads or if someone else knows where it is but there was a posting a while back in a thread that talked all about this exact issue. It basically talked about how you can use the HOD resources and help your child to read. It was a good and solid thread. I think reading that may help you as well to decide if you wanted to pursue OG products or try the recommended activities listed by HOD.

[countrymom]

I have been pouring over resources because my son has a lot of dyslexia tendencies. I just started a method I read about in one of the library books and I am already seeing good results. I am using the HOD emerging readers, but will have to add some to "stall" in the level 2 category for awhile. You take a small passage, I just do each side of the page, and first you read it to your child while pointing with your pencil. The child should be following as you read. Then you read the passage together. Then the child reads alone. So far my son does not seem to mind, I think it has given him confidence. What I have gained from the resources I have read is repetition and getting the word picture in their mind is the number one thing that helps these children. This goes so nicely with HOD and how they are laid out. I am altering copywork right now. My son is not ready to copy something from a page onto a different piece of paper, so I have a nice copybook that has passages written out with the handwriting lines right beneath for copying. Another thing I did in the past as we went through "The Reading Lesson" was to take a word or words that he was struggling to get and write a bunch of funny sentences using those words. He would read those for 2 or 3 days at the beginning of our reading time and that seemed to really help too. Again, repetition and seeing that word picture over and over again.

[psreit]

countrymom - Your method for reading practice sounds interesting. What you said about repetition is absolutely right. Once I could tell my daughter's reading was improving, it wasn't an OG method that continued to help her. It was just the practice of reading. I have a little stick with a pointed finger on a hand at the end. I used that with Angie for a while. Now she tries to read without using anything and does fairly well. But if she starts losing her place, she will use her finger a little bit. The tracking is important. I'm amazed at some of the big words she knows when she reads, which I am aware she figures out from the context of the story. She also guesses by the shape of the word, or the first letter(s), which is typical of dyslexics. I have to stop her and say, "look at all the letters", then she will say the right word, when she takes time to look at it. But, I can tell when she is reading words well because she has seen them over and over again. But, she still struggles with the spelling. I know that will come with repetition as well, but she loves to write for fun and there are words that she still spells wrong that I think she should have memorized. So, that's another struggle with her. She will just jot things down the way they sound and doesn't give any thought to it. We are doing dictation in Bigger. I started her at the beginning to build confidence, although the passages are quite easy. When we get to the more difficult passages, I probably will put some focus on the word lists, just so she can see the patterns. Practice, practice, practice! That's where we are!

[Nealewill]

I "third" the conversation about seeing things over and over again (because I also believe that instrumental in helping to solidify reading. My son is doing Bigger and his my child with APD. He only recently reached a point where we don't need to focus on any special reading (program). With the reading program I was using, he would spend 2 days practicing words by reading them and playing games with them. This would help him read the same words over and over again. I read somewhere that it may take up to between 5 and 10 times of seeing a word for kids to remember the word. While "phonics" may help kids at reading a larger volume of words quickly, once they begin to memorize the words it will increase the flow and fluidity of what they read. My son is now to a point that he just needs to read and read a lot of different things. He needs more word diversity! He will start DITHOR in April when his younger sister starts it. She is finish the ER right now (I used to just let her read anything but after Christmas decided to implement more structure. The ER are easy for her but I want her to get used to a routine).

To increase my son's exposure to a larger vocabulary through reading (because he listens to books on tape and me reading out loud regularly too), he reads his Bible whenever we read passages from it (mainly day 1 and 5). I have him read about 10 minutes of the science book each day. We are currently reading the One Small Square books and he can now read the text from the 2 pages that are assigned fairly well but I read any of the additional notes found written within the picture area. Once we start the Pioneer Sampler book, I will need to figure out what he will read and what I will read. My goal is he reads for approximately 10 minutes so I am thinking he may read some of the notes on the pages. He is also reading books similar to the DITHOR level 2 books daily. I find that while he doesn't read every word perfectly, he read fairly well and likes what he is reading. He is currently reading Dolphin Tales 2, The Junior Novel. I will say, he has grown so much this year by practice, practice, practice. While it may sounds like his doing better than he actually is, he is improving and that is all I care about. He only recently has gotten to the point now that he can even figure some words because he is familiar enough with part of the word. So for example, he saw the word "paragraph" today and he didn't know what it said. He could read "graph" but not "para." I help him sounds out para - basically I just told him it says "para." He then put "para" and "graph" together and voilà, he can read the word paragraph. Finally, any time my son has copywork that is dictated to him via the manual, I am having him now read that part of the manual aloud to me. So for Science and History days when there is copywork, he reads what he is supposed to do. He can't complete the assignment alone or based off of written directions because he still has processing issues. But I want him to just to read it. My goal at this point in doing all of this is I want him to spend approximately 1 hour every day practicing reading. This gives him a break between things he reads. And it seems to be a good flow. I also will say, my son is 8.5 and really could only recently take on this volume and nature of reading. This is new ground for us. Before this, we were spending about 20 minutes a day practicing words and then 20 minutes a day reading. When we first started, he could not even read the ER. At the beginning of this year, he could because of all of the repetition. The repetition I feel like is what has paid off most.

[jenn in nc]

Motherjoy,

Two of my eight kids are dyslexic (my 15yo ds is moderate, and my 8yo dd is profoundly dyslexic)... just thought I'd pop in and share some of what we've learned along the way.

Barton is not the only way. Hope I'm not stepping on anyone's toes here, but I find it to be expensive, time consuming, overwhelming, and somewhat condescending in its approach.

For what it's worth, I am using All About Reading for my 8yo, with some minor modifications. Of course every child is different, so your mileage may vary. But for us, AAR is first program she has had any retention with and we are finally seeing some progress. We spend about a half hour a day on it, and I like to break that up into two sessions because she has higher retention that way. We can do a lot in a solid 15 or 20 minute reading session. Then, later, we spend another five or ten minutes going back over what we covered that day. I like AAR because it tailors itself specifically to the needs of the child.

We are also using the online Reading Eggs program for a fun way for her to practice (she likes it and she doesn't need me there to use it).

Dealing with reading issues is a lot of work. It is a lot of work for the teaching parent and for the struggling student. And... I totally get the difficulties you are dealing with day in and day out as you homeschool eight kids. You're tired already, before you add a child with dyslexia. The day is packed to bursting already, before you have to add one more lesson to your teaching schedule. There is too much to do already... I know.

BUT. You are the lifeline for your precious child. I'm praying for you right now, from the heart of one mama to another, that God will strengthen your heart and that you will be given everything you need to do this good work.

Because it is a good work. This ministering to the ones who most need our help, who most need our patience, this is the good work we are called to. I am confident that the faithful God we serve will gently lead you as you seek to help your son.

Warmly,
Jenn

[Motherjoy]

Everyone, thank you. I have read every word and stored them up as we move forward. I'm not as overwhelmed today as I was yesterday, so that's something.

Jenn, thanks for your words of encouragement. I sure do need them. You are one of several who have pointed me to AAR. That's a program that I can see working for our family. So, thanks again.

[mrsrandolph]

I'm sorry, but I've been in your shoes. Orton Gillingham is the way to go in my opinion. All About Reading and All About Spelling both use OG.

[crlacey]

I have 2 that are dyslexic. With my oldest, we worked through one of the HOD reading programs and then instead of using the spelling lists supplied in the guides, we used AAS for a few levels. It was just enough to get her over that hump and understand how to better read and spell. My DD is now 11 and doing great in both reading and spelling. Also, typing instead of physically writing helped her tremendously in both reading, spelling and writing abilities. The computer helped her to spell things that were difficult, so she was learning how to spell them the correct way. This also helped her reading abilities by learning how words were spelled. By typing instead of physically writing, she could concentrate on what she wanted to say instead of wasting energy on the physical act of remembering how each word and letter should be formed. (We still had handwriting practice as copy work.) After using a few levels of AAS, we were able to jump into the dictation in the guides. This is our plan for my son now that he has finished his reading lessons book.

[mom23]

Your situation sounds a bit similar to one I faced a year ago. My 9 yo seemed to hit a wall with reading; his spelling never took off enough to consider it hitting a wall . I began to research dyslexia, and some of it did explain things, but, as you said, it's overwhelming-there are conflicting messages to a certain extent, and then there's the product pitch. I struggled with what to do for quite a while-do I get him tested? What if they said he didn't have it, but he still struggled with this stuff? I finally realized that the label did not matter to me, I just wanted to find a way for my son to learn. We did AAS, levels 1 and 2. It was the most affordable OG approach I could find (especially when I found some used stuff to get me started.) I found a Math program that had been effective for some kids with dyslexia. Then, I kept running into references to Vision Therapy, and when I read the descriptions on my local optomitrist's page, much of that resonated with me. It was something I put off for over a year because of the price, the numerous places I would read of people "wasting" thousands of dollars, and how it wasn't effective for treating dyslexia. The thing was, I didn't know if he actually had dyslexia (I still don't!) but I kept feeling like God was bringing that idea across my path. My husband and I finally decided it was worth the investment to get an initial evaluation and see what they said. My son came home from that evaluation feeling so encouraged and understood that we knew we had to try it. A total leap of faith because we didn't have that kind of cash, but God has provided and it's helping on so many fronts. His reading ability has skyrocketed! His spelling is improving-his confidence in his spelling is taking off. If you have a relatively near location that offers Vision Therapy, that may be something you could have evaluated, or attend a free informational meeting (if they offer that.) I think all of it together has worked to move us in the right direction, with the VT making the most dynamic and noticible difference. He's now been able to move back to doing dictation for spelling, and having success with it.

In re-reading your post I noticed you said you've been having the best year in your history of homeschooling...with that in view, I'd say don't change it! Keep on with what's working and don't jump ship on any curriculum at this point. Just keep your child moving ahead with what's working and try not to get worried with "where he should be" or other what ifs. I still highly recommend you look into VT, and see if it resonates with you as it did with us. That's something that can be done with no curriculum changes (although I have dropped things to make time for it in our schedule.)

Hope I don't sound like a commercial. It's just what has helped us so much to finally break that Constant. Struggle. To. Learn. Anything.

[psreit]

There can be eye tracking issues and not dyslexia. It wouldn't hurt to have his eyes checked for that. My daughter had visual problems from strabismus. She had surgery to align her eyes, which helped a good deal with the tracking. But, she also has dyslexia, which still causes issues with her reading. Her reading has improved, although she is not independent.

I am battling with this issue right now. I contacted the education specialist who diagnosed my daughter with dyslexia. I hadn't talked to her in like a year and a half. I wanted to share with her the progress Angie has made. Well, she didn't seem excited about what I told her. Instead, she basically told me that, to help Angie, all the components of an OG program like Barton, or another expensive reading program she mentioned, would need to be taught. Now I feel like I am not doing enough to help her with her reading. We are almost finished with the ER books. What am I missing? I have decided to use Reading and Phonics Pathways (they're inexpensive), just to do some short exercises each day to help with fluency and spelling. They also have eye exercises. It isn't exactly what she recommended, but I believe it could have the same outcome, and we just cannot afford those expensive programs. Am I depriving my daughter by not using one of them? It is frustrating, because everyone thinks their program is best. Angie is showing interest in reading and I don't want to spoil it by laboring over some fancy reading program that is just pushing a bunch of spelling rules. I am going to move her on to DITHOR in the fall and let her enjoy reading good books. We all need God's wisdom in making decisions for our children with special needs, and not everyone will make the same decisions. But can someone give me peace of mind that I am not hurting my dyslexic child by not using the OG method?

[Motherjoy]

Becky, are you talking about therapy such as is offered by Lindamood-Bell? I went to a workshop last week, and couldn't believe the price. Or is there some other vision therapy? LMB does offer training for parents that is reasonable, so I know that I can do that if I think I need to. Where do I get him tested for vision issues? I'm a little confused by all of it.

When I say that we've had our best school year yet, I really mean as a whole group. We've kept a routine, we are on schedule, etc. For him specifically, he's doing well, but definitely hitting a wall. I know this is a crucial year for making progress, so I want to make sure we hit this hard and fast.