We agree. It takes a lot of courage to share like this but these kids are brave and were interviewed with the hope that their contributions would help millions of children learn to read! We salute each one of them and are working to make that a reality!
As an adult dyslexic with over two decades in education and the mother of dyslexic children. This movie only confirms what I already have known to be true. I am currently finishing my doctorate and my study is on the social and emotional impact of dyslexia. Unfortunately our teachers have No IDEA of what some of our children go through. Thank you for this project and I am looking forward to the panel discussion.
You are so right. My son is in tears right now trying to write a story about an awesome day he had recently. He can't get the ideas out. He doesn't know where to start, how to start, and has no resources to draw from. The teacher thought this slideshow activity would be "fun". Barriers are in the curriculum....not in the children.
Darlene, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much. I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefited greatly from the programme. Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists: The brain that changes itself The brain's way of healing Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
Darlene, this is my son. The social/emotional "damage" from dyslexia, and in our case, a REALLY late diagnosis coupled with a public middle school and now a vo-tech high school not truly addressing our son's dyslexia have done a number on my son's self-esteem and self-confidence to the point that he just doesn't seem to care about improving his writing or reading. He refuses outside tutoring. He'd rather avoid assignments because it's easier than struggling through them or do the absolute least amount of reading and writing needed to get by. The vo-tech high school has set the bar quite low. The psychologist says my son is very bright, exceptional visual skills, has the skills to go to college; however, I feel he will fail out of college because he will probably avoid any assignments that require reading and writing. Do you have any research or resources you could share? My email is cc111393@yahoo.com. Unfortunately, my son wasn't diagnosed with dyslexia until this past September at the start of high school. At the end of 4th grade, he was diagnosed with a verbal learning disorder with deficits in reading and writing. If that psychologist had used the term "dyslexia" and done more extensive testing like we just had done, I don't think we'd be in the position we're in. We're willing to sacrifice to send him to a private school that caters to students with dyslexia but he says he'd rather stay at his vo-tech high school even though he knows they are doing practically nothing to help him. Sorry for my rant. I'm just so frustrated...
Yes, I think many of our kids suffer PTSD from the experience. We look forward to your dissertation. In fact if you have a copy would you send it to ourdyslexicchildren@gmail.com please. Would love to read it.
If anyone else with dyslexia is watching this that u have no limits. I went from barely able to read in 5th grade to being an honors English student by 8th. The road won’t be fun but it will be worth it.
What program helped you? Was it Orton Gillingham? My son is 10 and dyslexic and I hear good things about Barton Reading and Spelling and I’m in the process of getting him into private school.
@@justinwillis5661 Our school district chose OG as our Tier 3 intervention and we did have good experience with it. I don't have any experience with Barton so I can't advise for or against it. Great job on getting your son help ASAP. The earlier the better.
Dyslexia is not just about Reading but it’s about organisations, and processing information. Most debilitating is having different perception of space, time, days and dates: forgetting or mixing dates, days and time. Turning up a day or two prior to appointment or forgetting the appointment all together. Stress makes Dyslexia pronounce even more. Despite all these difficulties, Dyslexics people have the abilities to see bigger picture and they are very creative.
This film "nails it" and offers a roadmap for parents to advocate on behalf of ALL children. (Watch for these ingredients: “Letter to a Stranger”, parent organization, systemic complaints, testimony, evidence-based reading instruction, and infusing the Science of Reading into Colleges of Education.)
As a teacher, this breaks my heart- hearing these awful negative experiences in American public schools. Know that there are many, many of us in the field who seek to do what's best for each, individual student & have become trained in a variety of programs including OG as we have seen a need. But thank you for advocating for children. That is what we all need to do!
Thank you Benjamin! I don't think any teacher goes into teaching to harm kids but I do think it's harmful for colleges of education not to teach teachers how to teach reading!
I am an acute dyslexic and I have a doctorate in literacy of all things. It was the arts that saved my sense of dignity and gave me everlasting hope. I still discover ways that my brain sees the world in different ways - and it has given me a built in humility and compassion for others who struggle. It has been a cursed blessing and a true gift from God!
Dennis, I've severe dyslexia and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Barbara herself grew up with multiple learning difficulties which caused her to get lost in her own house and clumsy on her left side. She created exercises which helped her to overcome ALL her learning difficulties. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much. I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefited greatly from the programme. Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists: The brain that changes itself The brain's way of healing Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
@@johnli2338 Thanks so much for your response. I have been highly successful in my career as an educator and incorporated the arts and hands on learning in as many ways as I could to enable my able differently students to fully participate and thrive. I will check out the resources you suggested. I have recently retired from the educational field. I see my dyslexia as a wonderment in that my brain at times totally perceives things in reverse left to right. This has frightened me a few times when it has happened while I was driving and at times crossing a street. (I have checked out the street lights while walking but somehow saw them in reverse order and thought I had the green when in reality it was red for me.) Once I set a table for dinner in total reverse and when told what I had done, I experienced an almost knock me off my feet case of vertigo as it seemed the world flipped back into its proper alignment. I still read slowly and have difficulties with spelling and some small dexterity activities. (I must focus as I button as shirt.) But all is good. Thanks again!
As the mom of a dyslexic daughter I bawled several times throughout this short film. I'm so glad to see something like this has been made. So many people lack a true understanding of what exactly dyslexia is.
Laura, my tears flowed with yours and now my tears flow for your daughter. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties. In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share: 1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up. arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/ 2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism 3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain. www.brainhq.com Books that opened my eyes about the brain 'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story) 'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
@Kenzie Sapkota , I learned phonics and other means of intervention before I was able to read and write at 9 years old. The 'orton gillingham' method is one of the successful methods that have been proven to help children with learning difficulties. In my personal research for deeper interventions, I have learned that the imbalance of the inner is one factor for learning difficulties. Reuven Kohen Raz, an Israeli researcher was one of those who created physical exercises to rebalance of the inner ears. For myself, I've undergone neurofeedback and the amazing Arrowsmith programme that has helped address the causes of learning difficulties. 2 more programmes to explore, cross crawl exercises (lots of resources online such as pininterest.com and brainhq.com. As someone who's still suffering from learning difficulties, it's no longer a 'I'm drowning due to a lack of hope' but it's a 'yes, I'm struggling and each day that I push my brain by doing brainhq.com exercises and cross crawl exercises', I grow stronger holistically and enhance my gifts of learning difficulties. Drop me an email, johnlixy82@gmail.com, my heart is with you and your daughter. There is hope and we can all grow stronger together as a community.
I have been battling LWSD-Lake Washington School District since my son was in middle school and we suspected him to have dyslexia, but the school would do nothing and blamed his autism. I am also a para-educator in the district. I am literally David right now. Thank you for making this film. I will be shouting it out from the rooftops today!!!
By the way, if ANYONE knows of ANYONE that could help my son who is an 11th grader that the district has shown the past 5 years that they cannot teach my son to read. I AM IN WASHINGTON STATE!!! My son is not learning for many reasons, all around equity issues. We filed a complaint with OSPI, they only approved corrective data in having retraining for staff on data collection. My son is african-american-autistic an we are low income. My son spends his days in his room depressed-anxious and all this during COVID and I fear getting sick myself advocating so hard to no avail!!
@@Mymanyautisticways Start with the IDA (International Dyslexia Association) website and contact the branch in your area, then, look at the Wrightslaw website which will give a lot of local information. After you see that then call all the Professional Child Advocates in your state and tell them about your situation. See if someone will be willing to help your situation. There is still hope.
These parents were wonderful and they would not give up. They showed us how we should be as parents, advocating for our children until they have what they need.
I honestly believe there is little more important than children learning to read. How can you give up? You stand in the truth! You too can achieve this for your child and all those children to come.
I live in Wisconsin and have a son with dyslexia. In fourth grade he was reading at a first grade level and the school seemed OK with that. They said that’s just how he is and he will have to go into a trade. There is nothing wrong with trades, my husband is a carpenter. I didn’t like that he had a limit placed on him in elementary school. I was extremely upset when I found out his 4th grade teacher was keeping him in for recess to make him read alone. He told me he just sat there and pretended because he didn’t want to get in trouble. He was not progressing with his IEP so I decided to take him out of school. This passed year, we have been working with the Logic of English curriculum. He is now able to read at a 4th grade level in 5th grade!! Very slow but he can! He could read his own birthday cards this year. It has definitely been hard on our family since I had to reduce my working days and we also doing schooling on weekends. He is so much happier, less headaches, and his confidence has grown. He never wants to go back to public school again.
Amazing story!! It really makes you wonder how many dyslexic cases are really due to bad teaching method! I read "Why Johnny Can't Read" by Rudolf Flesch and I'm appalled by the abuse so many poor kids are put through with their "whole word" method! I'm teaching my child before he goes to school!
@@wnfrdwnstn Winifred, you are right the experience is bad all over. Our parent led advocacy group, www.tereads.com, tried impacting change in our # 1 district to little avail.
Excellent! I’ve been in the battle for over twenty years now. The James family has done so much for us for a long time. This does a great job telling the story of what we still face in this country.
Brett Tingley, thank you so much for being the motivator and the glue that kept the story moving forward from the very beginning to the completion of this video. You have persevered and overcome so many roadblocks to bring it to fruition. Next step is for all of the viewers to ensure that spec educators, administrators, school boards, parents, and the education professors in the schools of higher ed watch and learn from this. Again, many thanks to you and to Nancy and Cameron and to Dr. Kevin Gorman for turning the UA spec ed dept into being the best in the country. AWESOME !!!
Your "letter to a stranger" idea was brilliant! You have to plant the seed somewhere and it was found. If that hadn't been done, all of the work that the James' family did may have been lost. Shame on the school for dgnoring a landmark case, and treating future children with dyslexia without dignity!
This was a great documentary. I cried since I can so relate to the personal struggles in the film. Unfortunately, my son wasn't diagnosed with dyslexia until this past September at the start of high school. At the end of 4th grade, he was diagnosed with a verbal learning disorder with deficits in reading and writing. If that psychologist had used the term "dyslexia" and done more extensive testing like we just had done, I don't think we'd be in the position we're in. The services provided by our former public school district and the vo-tech high school my son now attends haven't done much to help him. My son refuses outside tutoring and we're willing to sacrifice to send him to a private school that caters to students with dyslexia but he says he'd rather stay at his vo-tech high school even though he knows they are doing practically nothing to help him. My husband and I are at our wits end because our son's self-esteem and self-confidence have been so affected between grades 7 to 9 (present) by both school districts not truly addressing our son's dyslexia that he just doesn't seem to care about improving his writing or reading. He'd rather avoid assignments because it's easier than struggling through them or do the absolute least amount of reading and writing needed to get by. The vo-tech high school has set the bar quite low. The psychologist says my son is very bright, exceptional visual skills, has the skills to go to college; however, I feel he will fail out of college because he will probably avoid any assignments that require reading and writing. Sorry for my rant. I'm just so frustrated...
I am ugly crying and cheering at the same time. Every parent of every child needs to see this. Thank you for presenting the struggle of families of children with learning differences and letting them know that this is a very hopeful situation and their kids' futures are bright and promising.
T.A., my tears flow with you, I cheer yet know there's still so much to be done. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties. In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share: 1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up. arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/ 2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism 3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain. www.brainhq.com Books that opened my eyes about the brain 'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story) 'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
This got me thinking about the learning process of ELLs in a non English speaking country. Imagine all the extra work they need to do: memorizing vocab, getting pronunciation right and spelling correctly plus a whole new grammar set totally different from your native language. Sometimes I think it is almost magical that someone can speak, read and write fluently in English through books and watching videos. The task sets are just tremendous and you need to invest years of intense studies just to get to the basic.
I am now 60, the way i learnt to read was me and God, i was 18 ,i got the Bible on tapes, i use to read a potion of the bible over and over again every night, till i could remember every word. Then i would pretend to read it to someone. I could not read but they thought i was great at it. I did that for years. At 30 years i could read to some extent. Now i can read well with confidence, what a journey.
I’m a dyslexia teacher and I appreciate your story. My brother could not read until he was in his thirties. He was brilliant at math but he thought he was dumb. I was so proud of him when he learned to read!
Thank you for your bravery and fortitude. I am the co-founder of DenCoKID (Denver County Kids Identified With Dyslexia). We have been following in your footsteps to implement change in our large urban school district, too. We've been at it for more than a year now and although we've made some strides in educating our school board about dyslexia and the science of reading, it often feels impossible to change the course of such a large ship. For me, your film has come at just the right time in order to fill my sails with hope once again. You've inspired me to keep up the fight!
Tayo - We are so glad to hear this. I know you know Michael Bucey and although the road is rocky and slow what you're doing is amazing! Thank you for all you do in Denver and Colorado!
I am so delighted to see that others are still fighting the good fight. I began teaching dyslexic students in 1967 and when I realized that the system had gone full circle in a negative way, I quit or rather took early retirement at 55. We Had to do things differently to get from A to B but many of the teachers and administrators were not interested. I was exhausted and tired and was labeled a trouble maker. I have many students of whom I am very proud and who are successful in many ways. We have lots of great stories to tell. The dyslexic population is loaded with talent and , unfortunately, much goes unnoticed or undeveloped. It is way past time for this to stop!!!
Jana, great to see that you are still out there. I remember when you were at MCV with George Bright and you were evaluating my kids when I was a juv probation officer at the Richmond City Juv Ct.
When I was in second grade my school wanted to hold me back, and my grandmother asked why- and they told her that it was due to my memory issues. She then asked what they would do differently in order to help me learn, and they said nothing. She took me to a shrink to find out what my memory issues were, and the shrink asked her to bring me back as my memory was fine- but the shrink thought there was something else going on. In 1999, she wasn’t really sure what. That summer my grandmother found an article about dyslexia, and I checked every box they talked about. She pulled me from school and found a place called DePaul School for Dyslexia, where they do a summer testing program. When I was tested in the summer after my second grade they labeled me as someone with the reading skills of someone just entering preK. By the end of my third grade school year, I was reading at second grade level. By the end of 4th grade, I was reading at a 5th grade level. That same year, my math skills were at a 7th grade. The proper help can change a child’s life, and the proper early intervention can free up intervention needs later in life. Spending extra early one saves triple that amount over that child’s lifetime.
This is why I pulled mine to homeschool, I dont regret it one bit. It was me against the school district and now its not. My girl has done so much better and we have gotten past the reading part of dyslexia. Still working on the confidence building from public school teachers destroying my girls self confidence in elementary. I loved this!
Anna, I've severe dyslexia and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Barbara herself grew up with multiple learning difficulties which caused her to get lost in her own house and clumsy on her left side. She created exercises which helped her to overcome ALL her learning difficulties. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much. I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefited greatly from the programme. Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists: The brain that changes itself The brain's way of healing Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
Same here, Anna. My son is thriving in the homeschooled environment. He is learning and is like a completely different kid, emotionally. I know the school tried and everyone cares, but what they were doing was not working.
@@mpollace I applaud you for being so courageous. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties. In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share: 1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up. arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/ 2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism 3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain. www.brainhq.com Books that opened my eyes about the brain 'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story) 'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
@@johnli2338 I'm so sorry you had to go through that, John. Unfortunately, as you can see, you are not alone. I hope you know that dyslexic brains have great strengths. I recommend the book "The Dyslexic Advantage" by Brock and Fernette Eide, particularly if you struggle with seeing your strengths. Dyslexic people are smart; I'm sure you have adapted and know your strengths. But you might enjoy this book and feel more deeply understood, at the very least.
@@mpollace , deepest thanks for your kind words and recommendations, I'll look see at the book. With my latest session of hypnotherapy, my gifts of storytelling, poetry writing and counselling have been enhanced. So yes, I'm going full on with my gifts of childlike imagination and embracing the world and being a strong advocate for learning difficulties intervention, 'what it means to be a balanced man and cry' in this #metoo and overwhelming feminist movement. How can we work with women and our partners to grow grounded young individuals. Deeply appreciate your words and kind thoughts.
When my daughter was in school, I was told by her first grade teacher that although she had Dyslexia there was nothing she could do for her. I felt helpless as a parent, because I didn't know what to do either. Luckily, she was able to develop techniques to help her understand the material. She would tell me that she had to read, re-read, and re-read the information over and over again until she understood the material.
Angela, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much. I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefited greatly from the programme. Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists: The brain that changes itself The brain's way of healing Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
I am a dyslexic and I remember this exact same problem happen to me at my school in Texas. It took my mother and two teachers for them to test me and give the right help I needed. Now I am senior in college. If it wasn’t for those who advocated for me I wouldn’t be where I am today❤️
Tiffany, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up home because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much. Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
This film is spot on. I've been teaching children on and off for over 30 years. I graduated from Florida State University in 1984 and started teaching in my first classroom in Hillsborough County Florida. My reading curriculum for my class was Orton Gillingham! I taught in what was then called a "self contained classroom". My classroom was made up of 12 students ranging from grade 2 to 6. At the time it seemed perfectly normal to put these students all in one classroom, now, it's beyond ridiculous. While I am grateful to have been trained way back then how to teach Orton Gillingham, I have to say, I am amazed that parents and students have to continue to fight to get the programs that they need now all these years later. We have a long way to go to bring our education system up to where it needs to be to meet the needs of ALL students.
I had a very supportive mother but I quit almost everything I did because everything was so hard for me but as an adult I learned that you need to keep at it regardless to become good at it . I'm glad this film is out
I watched in tears. My daughter suffered so much and the school just told me she "was smart" and it would all "click one day". She suffered. Her lovely teachers had no idea how to help her. I was demonized by her Principal for not just going away and pushing for more and more help. We were forced into the Private school system. Choice was either to watch our daughter suffer or pay for help.
They say that getting your dyslexic child help is a 'rich man's game' and that couldn't be more true. We are fighting to help all children learn to read regardless of resources so everything we do is free. I'm sorry you were forced into private school. Perhaps start a parent group and bring your daughter back. We can help. Email at ourdyslexicchildren@gmail.com.
My kid hates to read. Was diagnosed with adhd and dyslexia since 5 years old. He is 13 now. But he love sports. I really have to be extremely patience . I know he can do it. Been sending him to dyslexia association singapore for classes and his spelling improve tremendously. I realized he was dyslexic myself after doing research on the internet. Teacher thought he was stupid and slow at first....but i did not gave up on him.
You're a good mama! Continuing to believe in your child and help him find things in which he excels can save self esteem! You gave him a wonderful gift Yumi!
I was put into intensive training for my dyslexia in grade school and that was in the 70's. The writing and reading were turned around but math for me will never be anything but a severe burden.
Thank you for this. As a dyslexic myself, there is a need for more resources and awareness. I struggled academically even though I was in the gifted and talented program. I also had a teacher say some very hurtful things which I’ve carried my whole life. If someone would have recognized my dyslexia early on it would have made a world of difference for me.
Mousy, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much. I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefitted greatly from the programme. Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists: The brain that changes itself The brain's way of healing Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
@@MousyLeigh i'd love to share my personal experiences and research. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we spread the word, the stronger our 'learning difficulties' intervention community grows.
thank you for this. As the mother of dyslexic child also on the spectrum, and the wife of a dyslexic husband who still has wounds from his lack of services as a child I can say so much more needs to be done. The battles I have fought for my son no mom should face but sadly so many do.
Cathie, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much. I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefited greatly from the programme. Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists: The brain that changes itself The brain's way of healing Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
I just found out my daughter is dyslexic after years of her struggling at a previous school she got called a baby for crying when she was trying to learn so I home educated her for a year but I struggled to help her, finally her new school have realised she needs support and it is the first time I have heard of dyslexia but I feel I had the same trouble as a child and a lot with maths
I'm dyslexic, and I'm finally getting myself help. I wish I knew I was dyslexic years ago. I always heard my teachers say " why you so lazy and get your head out the clouds."
❤️ hearing the colleges of education and the college of science need to communicate. I discovered OG 2O years into my teaching career. Now an OG teacher! Best training I’ve ever received. Parents & kids, way to stand up for yourselves.
Carol, great to hear about your positive experiences. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties. In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share: 1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up. arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/ 2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism 3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain. www.brainhq.com Books that opened my eyes about the brain 'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story) 'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
Excellent documentary. As the parent of 2 dyslexic children (now young adults), this is SO accurate. If it were not for us paying for private Orton-Gillingham tutors (because the school taught using the very unsuccessful whole language approach) and advocating for our children, my oldest son would not be an aerospace engineer today, and my younger son would have never graduated from high school. If I had a dollar for every time my children or I were told by teachers, other kids, and even other parents that they were "lazy", "stupid", "unmotivated", or "not trying hard enough", I would be very rich. Those scars they carry still have not yet fully healed.
Marcy, i'm so glad to hear about your sons growing well and excelling. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties. In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share: 1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up. arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/ 2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism 3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain. www.brainhq.com Books that opened my eyes about the brain 'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story) 'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
Aaron, Thank you for making this film, you placed words to my feelings. This documentary truly tugged at my heartstrings as I watched other families and students share the same hopes and dreams I have for the academics in my state. The sheer scope of this film is impressive enough - being filmed over a 4 year period. Bring this story to life is a great resource for educators and parents, sharing this incredible journey of how a group of Ohio families broke down barriers for their children is a great reminder that support is possible.
Support and change are absolutely possible Michelle. Thank you for your kind words. Bringing this story to life truly was a team effort, with credit deserved by many. I’m glad this film has brought you a bit of hope today.
So glad to finally have this film available for everyone to view. This film was definitely a team effort with so many people to thank for helping bring the story to life and no one person deserving of all the credit. Enjoy, be inspired, and find hope that the fight is worth it.
Yes, because reading is the gateway to your education and then to your life. Not getting reading right has disastrous consequences. We are committed to continue our work until all children learn to read.
I'm diagnosed dyslexic and I think I have dyspraxia, dysgraphia, autism ADHD, ADD and sensory processing disorder, insomnia and schizophrenia ( and possibly anxiety and OCD)
My husband has dyslexia and had a similar situation as the father in the documentary. Our youngest son is also dyslexic as well as dysgraphic, ADHD and Tourette's. He now attends Marburn Academy. They specialize in teaching kids with ADHD, dyslexia and executive function deficits.
Terri, I feel for you and your family. I'm someone who was severely dyslexic but with intervention have grown a long way. The process is called neuroplasticity whereby the brain can grown and rewire. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much. Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
Thanks for this video, I cant believe this but I taught myself this technique by myself...especial that is it was my second language. I have lived with stress for all my life and now at 36, I'm trying to find a career that I can fit in. I just need to find the right place. I'm not low potential...I want a career.
At 33:06 I got confused because for a moment I read 'one' as 'o-ne' and not as 'wan'. I got more confused when I read 'once' as 'on-see' instead of 'wans'. I guess the major problem for them is English words are not written/spelled based on the pronounciation. Thus, makes it harder for dyslexic person to read.
Texas is making the move to training all teachers the Science of Reading with Dr. Moat and others' help. K-2 teachers hopefully (go away COVID) will begin the two-year professional development this year. I learned all of this in the late ’80s as a Reading Specialist but we have had to try different fades more than once first. I plan to be part of this movement, I have waited my whole career for this day! Great film, I have forwarded it to board members in our local area.
I’m in Texas and have a dyslexic child. It took 2 years to get her tested. I’m a SpEd teacher and still couldn’t get her help initially. She’s completed our districts intervention program and it was helpful but not enough. Now in 3rd grade her teacher requested SpEd testing which we started but didn’t finish due to COVID. I’m wish the schools were more proactive in training teachers what to watch for and getting back to a phonetic approach to reading instruction.
A beautiful documentary that is both heart wrenching and heart warming at the same time. It was like I was staring at my own child and her experiences and how desperately I want my child to get an education that is the right fit for her. I watch her light fade every day and it kills me. I may live on the other side of the planet but our experiences are shared. This gives me hope and a desire to keep fighting.
Jennifer, Dana, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much. I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefitted greatly from the programme. Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists: The brain that changes itself The brain's way of healing Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
@@jennifercarol3047 , drop me an email, ahzonah@gmail.com and I'd love to share with you my struggles, personal research and most importantly joys of being dyslexic.
We made the film to not only inspire parents to fight for their children but also for districts to serve our students when they see it's required by law and the best thing to do. We couldn't agree more!
This documentary is a great inspiration to students in the fields of neuroscience and cognitive psychology. It gives us the hope that we are going to do our bit in making lives easier for a lot of kids out there!
Yes, the work of neuroscientists and cognitive psychologists is leading the way in the understanding of how children learn to read! It is our hope that you will graduate and continue that legacy!
GREAT video. Know that if you are in Kansas, great strides are being taken this year to make Orton Gillingham based strategies a part of the reading curriculum for all schools. This would not have happened without the work of the parent groups in this video, and the parent groups here in Kansas inspired by their work.
It’s incredible how for so long our school curriculums doesn’t know how to properly teach children with dyslexia, I couldn’t help but to tear up watching the beginning of this doc cuz throughout my school years I suffered transferring schools & being forced in special education even in special education school
Well said. The school system is all wrong. It destroys confidence in children that cannot keep up with the kids who have sponge like memories. I'm glad I ended up Home Educating. The teacher told my daughter she could not read a big book like the other children. Our Melody proved her wrong. Now she collects books. Reads every day. She has been on Radio three times with her original lyrics. Academics just don't have the skills to teach a Dyslexic to read. Or the compassion and empathy.
Colleges of education are not keeping up with the science and are short changing ALL our children. I'm so sorry we couldn't help sooner and you had to endure this suffering.
Thank you so much for this wonderful film. We have lived this story ourselves, the battle is necessary indeed. We appreciate everything you have done to get your message to more and more people. It is clear, and cannot be ignored. Great job to all involved!
I ended up homeschooling my twin boys age 10 they are now 15 taking the pathway in TAFE collage and can read, still struggle with processing but manage to get extra time to finish works. Western Australia no teachers suggested to test for dyslexia it was me that arranged all that.
Thank you for making this film. It is heartbreaking that this research has been around for so long and yet so many children do not have access to learning the way they need to be taught.
As a mom of a dyslexic 9 year old and teacher I was moved by this so much. I have on my own learned about OG and wish through this movie that more teachers and parents will understand our dyslexic students/children and are able to support them more.
Melanie, i'm so glad to hear about your son learning through you. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties. In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share: 1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up. arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/ 2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism 3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain. www.brainhq.com Books that opened my eyes about the brain 'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story) 'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
This was an excellent informational video. If I could inflect one tidbit more. I would love to see the qualifications for teachers leaving college to be just a bit tougher. College courses need to include special education on several levels . Dyslexia as well as other learning disabilities need to be ingrained into our future teachers.
Wow! Thank you so much for your work, I wish it wasn't a familiar story. I've been trying to get my daughter tested for dyslexia by the school district since kindergarten(they told me she would grow out of it), Then tried again in 8th grade when things got harder(told by school psychologist that I should pay an outside evaluator to test her for $3-5K, that my daughter would probably test in the "shady 80's-80th percentile and wouldn't qualify for IEP services). Despite being below average on reading and math for state tests, huh?Pandemic hit and when she got back to school, now in high school, academically crashed and burned(finally forced them to test her and they interpreted the results to say she had a "slow processing speed" but didn't qualify as special ed for an IEP). They delayed until she was a senior in HS to avoid any liabilty for all the services she might have been qualified for. Did squeeze a 504 with accommodations for college.... Keep on fighting and educating about dyslexia! This should be screened for in kindergarten and OG phonics can work for everyone!
We couldn't agree more. In our district they now screen for dyslexia in Kindergarten and all our IS's are OG trained. We are working to make that a reality for all children. Thanks for sharing. We're sending love to you and your daughter!
I remember when Open Court started. It was when my son was starting to read. He is dyslexic. The poor kid had such a hard time and I fought tooth and nail to get him help, finally getting him reading help in third grade. He was already getting in trouble. It was awful.I wasn’t successful until he was in 11th grade that he was finally diagnosed. It was great that he got help, but already too late for him. He’d fallen through the cracks no matter how hard I’d fought. And I fought hard for him. The schools saw a nice but troubled kid and a pain in the a$$ mother, so they literally didn’t listen to me. I only got help for him in 11th grade because a teacher on the Child Crisis Team (that I’d demanded meet for him) hung back (after yet another denial) to tell me under her breath to speak certain words that would get immediate attention. I can’t recall what they were, but I think it had something to do with the law in the state I lived in at the time. If it wasn’t for her, he wouldn’t have gotten the evaluation he did. Afterwards, my son said to me that he finally realized, with complete shock, that he’s just as smart as the other kids in his class -for the very first time. In 11th grade. The things that happened in between made him believe he’s a bad person. So that is the person he’s decided to be. It breaks my heart every time I think about it. The schools in the state I now live in have this new, revolutionary reading technology they are introducing. Its phonics based. (Thrilled as I am for the kids who will learn to read now) I want to §#$&% scream.
For my son they only give him access to audio books to learn and he is in 10th grade. He doesn’t comprehend what he is supposed to be learning. He has an IEP and is labeled as other disabilities and has a behavior plan also. Frustration in learning causes behaviors or shut down on the part of the students.
This is my son. He sometimes shuts down or does the minimal amount of reading and writing to get by. Unfortunately, my son wasn't diagnosed with dyslexia until this past September at the start of high school. At the end of 4th grade, he was diagnosed with a verbal learning disorder with deficits in reading and writing. If that psychologist had used the term "dyslexia" and done more extensive testing like we just had done, I don't think we'd be in the position we're in. The services provided by our former public school district and the vo-tech high school my son now attends haven't done much to help him. My son refuses outside tutoring and we'd like to try to somehow to send him to a private school that caters to students with dyslexia but he says he'd rather stay at his vo-tech high school even though he knows they are doing practically nothing to help him. My husband and I are at our wits end because our son's self-esteem and self-confidence have been so affected between grades 7 to 9 (present) by both school districts not truly addressing our son's dyslexia that he just doesn't seem to care about improving his writing or reading. He'd rather avoid assignments because it's easier than struggling through them or do the absolute least amount of reading and writing needed to get by. The vo-tech high school has set the bar quite low. The psychologist says my son is very bright, exceptional visual skills, has the skills to go to college; however, I feel he will fail out of college because he will probably avoid any assignments that require reading and writing. Sorry for my rant. I'm just so frustrated...
Yes, there is a lot of research linked to behavior issues and learning disabilities. It makes sense that teachers not being able to teach you to read, through no fault of your own, would be incredibly frustrating. It is never too late to work with a child to help them learn to read. Fight the district for remediation or we have the Children's Dyslexia Center her in central Ohio and they tutor for free. Perhaps there is a similar site close to you. Then you can start a parent group and fight for all children in your district and those to come.
I did not realize that I too had Dyslexia until my daughter was finally diagnosed through testing at Marburn Academy when she was in 10th grade at Worthington Kilbourn (1992) HS. I knew that I learned differently and just assumed she learned like I did. The movie is wonderful. We had our daughter in and out of hospitals and doctors offices trying to figure out why she was passing out and having panic attacks as it got harder for her to maintain her good grades. It makes me wonder how many kids are in special ed classes that don't need to be there but just need the correct diagnosis. Now I am dealing with different aspects of it as I age. Thank you for this movie and I am going to make pass it on to others who as parents I believe will benefit.
Janet, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much. I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefitted greatly from the programme. Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
Powerful and emotional film. Thank you for this documentary and I hope every teacher and school district watches this. My child was in reading recovery in first grade before I questioned our Marysville district and started my fight. Thank You UA KID/ OHIO KID!
This movie was so inspiring and uplifting to see how parents came together to get changed made in their school district for their own children as as others. I am a teacher in Massachusetts. I know children have dyslexia and I bring that to the team and there basic answer is the same well it can be developmental let’s try a different intervention always excuses. When parents do get an outside neuropsych evaluation the school really has a hard time with the instruction of teaching children with dyslexia. My district paid for me to become Wilson certified and I am also Orton Gillingham certified I did this on my own. My district doesn’t even utilize my Wilson. It’s really sad.
Dana, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much. I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefitted greatly from the programme. Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists: The brain that changes itself The brain's way of healing Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
I know many teachers and advocates who support parent groups as the start and work with them maybe even covertly as they fight for structured literacy in their districts. Perhaps you could be one of these critical allies 'on the inside' and help transform your district so all children can learn to read!
So great!!!!!!!! Thank you for all your hard work. It is because of the science of reading I was able to take up the call and teach my daughter how to read. What a blessing. How empowering. YES 🙌🏻 you can teach kids to read. YES 🙌🏻 there are great ways (sometimes very old ways!) and new science affirming the (current) best practices. Thank you thank you thank you 🙏🏻 💜
Truly outstanding film on the plight of our children, our families affected by dyslexia. Thank you IDA and all those children and parents who had courage to share their story.
Susan, as a fellow educator I know what you mean. We with Dyslexia NEVER outgrow our learning difficulties without intervention. In fact, it grows larger, evil like locust killing us from the inside out. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties. In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share: 1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up. arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/ 2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism 3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain. www.brainhq.com Books that opened my eyes about the brain 'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story) 'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcome. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
Thank you for sharing what we parents experience(d) with our kids and many of us realize WE were those same kids and UNDIAGNOSED. Such a Heartfelt video. It triggers so much emotional damage from the #EducationalMalpractice that happens daily. We are made to be called "Disabled" and with a profound disability because of the methods in which we need to be taught. Horrific that most educators and those in medical profession (pediatricians, therapists etc.) Do not know about this LD, but know more about Autism which affect less than Dyslexia. Thank you from Rhode Island USA for putting this powerful video ❤
We call it dysteachia because it is the teachers who don't know the science of reading because they were never taught in their teacher prep programs - the real root of the problem! Colleges of Education should be doing this research and teach our children's teachers to teach reading instead of blaming our children and their parents. It is horrific!
Thanks so much for this. I thought it was me who failed my son at an early age, cause I was always working and had little time for him. Thanks to my sister who saw something was wrong with him and did and is still doing to get him the help that he needs. Thanks for this documentary. I personally never understood what dyslexia really meant.
Laurie, my tears flowed with you, I was and still with dyslexia. We with Dyslexia NEVER outgrow our learning difficulties without intervention. In fact, it grows larger, evil like locust killing us from the inside out. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties. In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share: 1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up. arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/ 2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism 3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain. www.brainhq.com Books that opened my eyes about the brain 'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story) 'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcome. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
Thank you for sharing your stories and advocating for dyslexic children. The struggle was/is real for my daughter and many of my students. Every child deserves an appropriate education.
Michqua, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much. I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefitted greatly from the programme. Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
There are some people who really lucky they got to know that they had dyslexic in early age I was not lucky in that case I am 35 still struggling for my career I have not graduated yet because I didn't got to know that have dyslexia Till the age of 30 my father always thought that I am dumb I am idiot person I am lazy person who don't want to study because of my mom somehow I really passed 10th class here in India because I have not yet graduated I will not get any nice job any of you people who are dyslexic can feel that pain if you guys really can help me to get a job in India for dyslexic person I can speak very good in English I am sure like me they might be many people in India struggling for dyslexia at 30guys please help them for the god sake GOD bless you
It was very hard in my childhood and teens. I thanks my parents and teachers I had but was planing my death at 13n, too much pressure and studies in the wrong way. Teachers were very kind and attentive but some others too strict and cruel when I was doing my notes with colours to be able to keep memory and learn. I had to listen without moving. A teacher told me I would be very smart when I was adult but growing up the way my mind learn was difficult but that with effort it will all pass, so I did and thank those good teachers and my family. But was hard.
This video is what the world needed, to understand more and rise the awareness about dyslexia. Excellent video, very inspiring. Thank you. #WeEncourageReading
Thank you for this. I am one of these children but long dyslexia was identifiable.. I learned to read going into 9th grade Kent State had some sort of reading program back in 1968 . I don't know what they helped me break the code but I did and okay in high school. I raised 5 children with dyslexia teaching at home. They have done well. I do know the feelings these children have expressed. I still struggle with being Just different and bad or lazy. I am 67 now.
Fran, I feel your pain and applaud your success at raising your 5 children with dyslexia. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties. In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share: 1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up. arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/ 2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism 3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain. www.brainhq.com Books that opened my eyes about the brain 'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story) 'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
Reaffirming to educators in the trenches trying to make change from within! "We're trying to get professional development in for the teachers so that, that knowledge base is there and so they understand and so that the kids who are getting amazing Orton-Gillingham and their intervention don't go back into the classroom and are told to guess." -Brett Tingley
Yes! This resonated so much with me. My son has struggles with exactly that and we regularly have to remind him not to guess. It's been 6 months since his diagnosis, he has so many work-arounds to overcome but his progress has been astounding. OG works!
And we truly appreciate those educators in the trenches making those changes from within. If colleges of education were keeping up with the science none of this would be necessary. Thank you for your work!
As someone who has all of then major simtoms of dislexia and is known going to get tested I would like to say this: not all teachers will do something to help you to succeed. For me I’m going into year 9 (grade 8 for North America) all of my teachers just said that it was hard for me to read, spell, ect because I had a hard time pronounceing R’s. My parents never even though i have dislexia despite all of the signs. It wasn’t until I was fighting (verbally) with my mom that I brought up the topic that I might have dislexia. She said that I don’t because I’m a “smart” kid. She was talking with my consalore and they said when I start going to consaling they can start getting tested. Anyway I got off track. I had to learn on my own that not everyone had to decode words when they read. I’ve been bullied for not being able to spell or pronounce words correctly. I’ve had to get glasses mailtiple times and when I get them and said I still can’t read words or letters my parents said I just don’t want to read. Know I’m going to a different school not one for dislexia but they are going to get me an iep (I think that’s what it’s called) so I can use a laptop and will get more time on tests. If your going through a hard time don’t let your crown fall king, queen or person
Yes, keep that crown and push to get the help you need! Many people just don't know about dyslexia and continue to shame our children. We're so happy you've found a school that 'gets it'.
Many dyslexic people are very smart. Usually smarter then others it is just that you have a different way of learning how to read then others. You are still very smart. If you get the proper help with a phonics based methodology like Orton Gillingham based program that will help you tremendously. Dyslexia will not be cured by glasses or different colored paper overlays. It is all about the way you need to be taught. It is never too late. The sooner the better though.
Thank you so much for this well-done video. It is so needed. You covered all of the main points about dyslexia and about the typical school responses and how parents can make a difference. From the So CA Tri-Counties Branch of the International Dyslexia Association.
Being Dyslexic myself I totally understand what it's like to struggle with normal things and the need to be "normal", the only issue I have is how Dyslexia is described - "having", "diagnosed", are common when someone describes either being Dyslexic or in a clinical environment by non-dyslexic people. You are either born Dyslexic or not, there is no "have", using the word "diagnosed" puts Dyslexia in a clinical medical context which is wrong. Being born Dyslexic makes life hard right from that start. Even when you develop ways to cope with the non-dyslexic world those struggles don't just vanish. I'm in my mid 40's and despite having a masters degree (which is a big achievement for me) I still struggle and wonder what it would be like to be "normal" and not have to constantly deal with the daily challenges of being Dyslexic in a non-dyslexic world, it's exhausting.
Outstanding! Thank you for creating this documentary to show how parents must come together and file a systematic group complaint when their children are not learning how to read so the case becomes public, and it will not only help their children but many. Otherwise, the Ferpa laws will keep your lawsuit confidential. It bothers me so much the way schools blame the parents when the schools have had previous lawsuits dealing with the exact same issue, dyslexia, and they act like your child is the first one. Schools should be convicted criminally for this crime. I loved the letter to a stranger! Thank you to the James family for your hard work and persistence!!!
Phyllis, I love your positive words of encouragement. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties. In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share: 1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up. arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/ 2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism 3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain. www.brainhq.com Books that opened my eyes about the brain 'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story) 'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
Why would anyone give this a thumbs down. These kids are so brave to explain their situation and their feelings.
We agree. It takes a lot of courage to share like this but these kids are brave and were interviewed with the hope that their contributions would help millions of children learn to read! We salute each one of them and are working to make that a reality!
@Xluca Pubg You ARE dyslexic. It doesn't go away.
@Xluca Pubg Dyslexia, dyscalculia, ADD and autism. My life has not been a fun one. It couldn't be in a world that puts so much value on an education.
@Xluca Pubg New Orleans. You?
As an adult dyslexic with over two decades in education and the mother of dyslexic children. This movie only confirms what I already have known to be true. I am currently finishing my doctorate and my study is on the social and emotional impact of dyslexia. Unfortunately our teachers have No IDEA of what some of our children go through. Thank you for this project and I am looking forward to the panel discussion.
You are so right. My son is in tears right now trying to write a story about an awesome day he had recently. He can't get the ideas out. He doesn't know where to start, how to start, and has no resources to draw from. The teacher thought this slideshow activity would be "fun". Barriers are in the curriculum....not in the children.
Darlene, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much.
I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefited greatly from the programme.
Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists:
The brain that changes itself
The brain's way of healing
Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
Darlene, this is my son. The social/emotional "damage" from dyslexia, and in our case, a REALLY late diagnosis coupled with a public middle school and now a vo-tech high school not truly addressing our son's dyslexia have done a number on my son's self-esteem and self-confidence to the point that he just doesn't seem to care about improving his writing or reading. He refuses outside tutoring. He'd rather avoid assignments because it's easier than struggling through them or do the absolute least amount of reading and writing needed to get by. The vo-tech high school has set the bar quite low. The psychologist says my son is very bright, exceptional visual skills, has the skills to go to college; however, I feel he will fail out of college because he will probably avoid any assignments that require reading and writing. Do you have any research or resources you could share? My email is cc111393@yahoo.com.
Unfortunately, my son wasn't diagnosed with dyslexia until this past September at the start of high school. At the end of 4th grade, he was diagnosed with a verbal learning disorder with deficits in reading and writing. If that psychologist had used the term "dyslexia" and done more extensive testing like we just had done, I don't think we'd be in the position we're in. We're willing to sacrifice to send him to a private school that caters to students with dyslexia but he says he'd rather stay at his vo-tech high school even though he knows they are doing practically nothing to help him. Sorry for my rant. I'm just so frustrated...
Yes, I think many of our kids suffer PTSD from the experience. We look forward to your dissertation. In fact if you have a copy would you send it to ourdyslexicchildren@gmail.com please. Would love to read it.
Thank you for your work. If anything I wish more teachers understood the emotional impact on these children.
If anyone else with dyslexia is watching this that u have no limits. I went from barely able to read in 5th grade to being an honors English student by 8th. The road won’t be fun but it will be worth it.
Amen!
What program helped you? Was it Orton Gillingham? My son is 10 and dyslexic and I hear good things about Barton Reading and Spelling and I’m in the process of getting him into private school.
@@justinwillis5661 Our school district chose OG as our Tier 3 intervention and we did have good experience with it. I don't have any experience with Barton so I can't advise for or against it. Great job on getting your son help ASAP. The earlier the better.
Dyslexia is not just about Reading but it’s about organisations, and processing information. Most debilitating is having different perception of space, time, days and dates: forgetting or mixing dates, days and time. Turning up a day or two prior to appointment or forgetting the appointment all together. Stress makes Dyslexia pronounce even more.
Despite all these difficulties, Dyslexics people have the abilities to see bigger picture and they are very creative.
This film "nails it" and offers a roadmap for parents to advocate on behalf of ALL children. (Watch for these ingredients: “Letter to a Stranger”, parent organization, systemic complaints, testimony, evidence-based reading instruction, and infusing the Science of Reading into Colleges of Education.)
We certainly hope so and please check out our roadmap and look for our new website coming early summer.
I am bawling!!!! I couldn’t even make it past the opening scene without crying!!!
No one could.
That makes two of us. I've seen it many many times and I still get choked up. Thank you for caring.
'If students can't learn the way we teach, we must teach student the way they learn' Ignacio Prada
As a teacher, this breaks my heart- hearing these awful negative experiences in American public schools. Know that there are many, many of us in the field who seek to do what's best for each, individual student & have become trained in a variety of programs including OG as we have seen a need. But thank you for advocating for children. That is what we all need to do!
Thank you Benjamin! I don't think any teacher goes into teaching to harm kids but I do think it's harmful for colleges of education not to teach teachers how to teach reading!
It should be mandatory before you even come a teacher that is one of the courses you have to take. We need to stand up. Tell anyone and everyone.
We're working to make your suggestion a reality
I am an acute dyslexic and I have a doctorate in literacy of all things. It was the arts that saved my sense of dignity and gave me everlasting hope. I still discover ways that my brain sees the world in different ways - and it has given me a built in humility and compassion for others who struggle. It has been a cursed blessing and a true gift from God!
Dennis, I've severe dyslexia and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Barbara herself grew up with multiple learning difficulties which caused her to get lost in her own house and clumsy on her left side. She created exercises which helped her to overcome ALL her learning difficulties. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much.
I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefited greatly from the programme.
Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists:
The brain that changes itself
The brain's way of healing
Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
@@johnli2338 Thanks so much for your response. I have been highly successful in my career as an educator and incorporated the arts and hands on learning in as many ways as I could to enable my able differently students to fully participate and thrive. I will check out the resources you suggested. I have recently retired from the educational field. I see my dyslexia as a wonderment in that my brain at times totally perceives things in reverse left to right. This has frightened me a few times when it has happened while I was driving and at times crossing a street. (I have checked out the street lights while walking but somehow saw them in reverse order and thought I had the green when in reality it was red for me.) Once I set a table for dinner in total reverse and when told what I had done, I experienced an almost knock me off my feet case of vertigo as it seemed the world flipped back into its proper alignment. I still read slowly and have difficulties with spelling and some small dexterity activities. (I must focus as I button as shirt.) But all is good. Thanks again!
@@denniscreedon6562 Thank you so much for your reply, i'd love to hear about your experiences. My email is ahzonah@gmail.com
As the mom of a dyslexic daughter I bawled several times throughout this short film. I'm so glad to see something like this has been made. So many people lack a true understanding of what exactly dyslexia is.
Laura, my tears flowed with yours and now my tears flow for your daughter. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties.
In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share:
1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up.
arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/
2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism
3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain.
www.brainhq.com
Books that opened my eyes about the brain
'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story)
'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge
My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
@Kenzie Sapkota , I learned phonics and other means of intervention before I was able to read and write at 9 years old. The 'orton gillingham' method is one of the successful methods that have been proven to help children with learning difficulties. In my personal research for deeper interventions, I have learned that the imbalance of the inner is one factor for learning difficulties. Reuven Kohen Raz, an Israeli researcher was one of those who created physical exercises to rebalance of the inner ears. For myself, I've undergone neurofeedback and the amazing Arrowsmith programme that has helped address the causes of learning difficulties. 2 more programmes to explore, cross crawl exercises (lots of resources online such as pininterest.com and brainhq.com. As someone who's still suffering from learning difficulties, it's no longer a 'I'm drowning due to a lack of hope' but it's a 'yes, I'm struggling and each day that I push my brain by doing brainhq.com exercises and cross crawl exercises', I grow stronger holistically and enhance my gifts of learning difficulties. Drop me an email, johnlixy82@gmail.com, my heart is with you and your daughter. There is hope and we can all grow stronger together as a community.
I have been battling LWSD-Lake Washington School District since my son was in middle school and we suspected him to have dyslexia, but the school would do nothing and blamed his autism. I am also a para-educator in the district. I am literally David right now. Thank you for making this film. I will be shouting it out from the rooftops today!!!
By the way, if ANYONE knows of ANYONE that could help my son who is an 11th grader that the district has shown the past 5 years that they cannot teach my son to read. I AM IN WASHINGTON STATE!!! My son is not learning for many reasons, all around equity issues. We filed a complaint with OSPI, they only approved corrective data in having retraining for staff on data collection. My son is african-american-autistic an we are low income. My son spends his days in his room depressed-anxious and all this during COVID and I fear getting sick myself advocating so hard to no avail!!
@@Mymanyautisticways Start with the IDA (International Dyslexia Association) website and contact the branch in your area, then, look at the Wrightslaw website which will give a lot of local information. After you see that then call all the Professional Child Advocates in your state and tell them about your situation. See if someone will be willing to help your situation. There is still hope.
These parents were wonderful and they would not give up. They showed us how we should be as parents, advocating for our children until they have what they need.
I honestly believe there is little more important than children learning to read. How can you give up? You stand in the truth! You too can achieve this for your child and all those children to come.
“You have to go to war for your child” THAT PART RIGHT THERE!!!! I now feel validated in the war I’ve been waging for five years now.
I am in war right now. Thank you for highlighting this. Fighting for his rights to learn!
Bless you, this is a lot of hard work for parents but it;s worth it.
It is well worth the battle! You won't regret it and it will help not only your child but many others in your district and surrounding districts.
I live in Wisconsin and have a son with dyslexia. In fourth grade he was reading at a first grade level and the school seemed OK with that. They said that’s just how he is and he will have to go into a trade. There is nothing wrong with trades, my husband is a carpenter. I didn’t like that he had a limit placed on him in elementary school. I was extremely upset when I found out his 4th grade teacher was keeping him in for recess to make him read alone. He told me he just sat there and pretended because he didn’t want to get in trouble. He was not progressing with his IEP so I decided to take him out of school. This passed year, we have been working with the Logic of English curriculum. He is now able to read at a 4th grade level in 5th grade!! Very slow but he can! He could read his own birthday cards this year. It has definitely been hard on our family since I had to reduce my working days and we also doing schooling on weekends. He is so much happier, less headaches, and his confidence has grown. He never wants to go back to public school again.
Amazing story!! It really makes you wonder how many dyslexic cases are really due to bad teaching method!
I read "Why Johnny Can't Read" by Rudolf Flesch and I'm appalled by the abuse so many poor kids are put through with their "whole word" method! I'm teaching my child before he goes to school!
So much suffering could be alleviated if we taught educators about dyslexia and how children learn to read in Colleges of Education!
I have dyscalculia but this is very relatable. I just wish schools would care. It just hurts self-esteem and social skills in the end.
Thank you for sharing this story! So many families are experiencing the same thing in "top rated" school districts.
Kate, imagine all the other districts that aren't "top"... what are those families experiencing.
@@wnfrdwnstn Winifred, you are right the experience is bad all over. Our parent led advocacy group, www.tereads.com, tried impacting change in our # 1 district to little avail.
Excellent! I’ve been in the battle for over twenty years now. The James family has done so much for us for a long time. This does a great job telling the story of what we still face in this country.
Yes, the James family is incredible and we are forever indebted to them for leading the way.
Brett Tingley, thank you so much for being the motivator and the glue that kept the story moving forward from the very beginning to the completion of this video. You have persevered and overcome so many roadblocks to bring it to fruition.
Next step is for all of the viewers to ensure that spec educators, administrators, school boards, parents, and the education professors in the schools of higher ed watch and learn from this. Again, many thanks to you and to Nancy and Cameron and to Dr. Kevin Gorman for turning the UA spec ed dept into being the best in the country.
AWESOME !!!
Your "letter to a stranger" idea was brilliant! You have to plant the seed somewhere and it was found. If that hadn't been done, all of the work that the James' family did may have been lost. Shame on the school for dgnoring a landmark case, and treating future children with dyslexia without dignity!
This was a great documentary. I cried since I can so relate to the personal struggles in the film. Unfortunately, my son wasn't diagnosed with dyslexia until this past September at the start of high school. At the end of 4th grade, he was diagnosed with a verbal learning disorder with deficits in reading and writing. If that psychologist had used the term "dyslexia" and done more extensive testing like we just had done, I don't think we'd be in the position we're in. The services provided by our former public school district and the vo-tech high school my son now attends haven't done much to help him. My son refuses outside tutoring and we're willing to sacrifice to send him to a private school that caters to students with dyslexia but he says he'd rather stay at his vo-tech high school even though he knows they are doing practically nothing to help him. My husband and I are at our wits end because our son's self-esteem and self-confidence have been so affected between grades 7 to 9 (present) by both school districts not truly addressing our son's dyslexia that he just doesn't seem to care about improving his writing or reading. He'd rather avoid assignments because it's easier than struggling through them or do the absolute least amount of reading and writing needed to get by. The vo-tech high school has set the bar quite low. The psychologist says my son is very bright, exceptional visual skills, has the skills to go to college; however, I feel he will fail out of college because he will probably avoid any assignments that require reading and writing. Sorry for my rant. I'm just so frustrated...
Well your work with the James family lead the way.
Thank you Pete Wright for you tireless work on behalf of all our children!
I am ugly crying and cheering at the same time. Every parent of every child needs to see this. Thank you for presenting the struggle of families of children with learning differences and letting them know that this is a very hopeful situation and their kids' futures are bright and promising.
T.A., my tears flow with you, I cheer yet know there's still so much to be done. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties.
In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share:
1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up.
arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/
2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism
3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain.
www.brainhq.com
Books that opened my eyes about the brain
'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story)
'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge
My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
This got me thinking about the learning process of ELLs in a non English speaking country. Imagine all the extra work they need to do: memorizing vocab, getting pronunciation right and spelling correctly plus a whole new grammar set totally different from your native language. Sometimes I think it is almost magical that someone can speak, read and write fluently in English through books and watching videos. The task sets are just tremendous and you need to invest years of intense studies just to get to the basic.
So inspiring to watch dyslexia advocacy at work!
I am now 60, the way i learnt to read was me and God, i was 18 ,i got the Bible on tapes, i use to read a potion of the bible over and over again every night, till i could remember every word. Then i would pretend to read it to someone. I could not read but they thought i was great at it. I did that for years. At 30 years i could read to some extent. Now i can read well with confidence, what a journey.
I’m a dyslexia teacher and I appreciate your story. My brother could not read until he was in his thirties. He was brilliant at math but he thought he was dumb. I was so proud of him when he learned to read!
Thank you for your bravery and fortitude. I am the co-founder of DenCoKID (Denver County Kids Identified With Dyslexia). We have been following in your footsteps to implement change in our large urban school district, too. We've been at it for more than a year now and although we've made some strides in educating our school board about dyslexia and the science of reading, it often feels impossible to change the course of such a large ship. For me, your film has come at just the right time in order to fill my sails with hope once again. You've inspired me to keep up the fight!
Tayo - We are so glad to hear this. I know you know Michael Bucey and although the road is rocky and slow what you're doing is amazing! Thank you for all you do in Denver and Colorado!
I am so delighted to see that others are still fighting the good fight. I began teaching dyslexic students in 1967 and when I realized that the system had gone full circle in a negative way, I quit or rather took early retirement at 55. We Had to do things differently to get from A to B but many of the teachers and administrators were not interested. I was exhausted and tired and was labeled a trouble maker. I have many students of whom I am very proud and who are successful in many ways. We have lots of great stories to tell. The dyslexic population is loaded with talent and , unfortunately, much goes unnoticed or undeveloped. It is way past time for this to stop!!!
Jana, great to see that you are still out there. I remember when you were at MCV with George Bright and you were evaluating my kids when I was a juv probation officer at the Richmond City Juv Ct.
We couldn't agree more
When I was in second grade my school wanted to hold me back, and my grandmother asked why- and they told her that it was due to my memory issues. She then asked what they would do differently in order to help me learn, and they said nothing.
She took me to a shrink to find out what my memory issues were, and the shrink asked her to bring me back as my memory was fine- but the shrink thought there was something else going on. In 1999, she wasn’t really sure what.
That summer my grandmother found an article about dyslexia, and I checked every box they talked about. She pulled me from school and found a place called DePaul School for Dyslexia, where they do a summer testing program.
When I was tested in the summer after my second grade they labeled me as someone with the reading skills of someone just entering preK.
By the end of my third grade school year, I was reading at second grade level.
By the end of 4th grade, I was reading at a 5th grade level. That same year, my math skills were at a 7th grade.
The proper help can change a child’s life, and the proper early intervention can free up intervention needs later in life. Spending extra early one saves triple that amount over that child’s lifetime.
Thank you so much for sharing this. As a reading teacher, it’s helpful for me to know your wonderful story!
Your grandmother was an angel from God!!
That is so beautiful! Thank you and I agree. My son is struggling and I am trying to find the right help!
Thank you for sharing, my son seems to be following the same path.
Thank you! I am watching in tears. Thank you for this. I cannot tell you how important this is to our children.
Finally people are starting to understand...
This is why I pulled mine to homeschool, I dont regret it one bit. It was me against the school district and now its not. My girl has done so much better and we have gotten past the reading part of dyslexia. Still working on the confidence building from public school teachers destroying my girls self confidence in elementary. I loved this!
Anna, I've severe dyslexia and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Barbara herself grew up with multiple learning difficulties which caused her to get lost in her own house and clumsy on her left side. She created exercises which helped her to overcome ALL her learning difficulties. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much.
I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefited greatly from the programme.
Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists:
The brain that changes itself
The brain's way of healing
Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
Same here, Anna. My son is thriving in the homeschooled environment. He is learning and is like a completely different kid, emotionally. I know the school tried and everyone cares, but what they were doing was not working.
@@mpollace I applaud you for being so courageous. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties.
In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share:
1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up.
arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/
2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism
3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain.
www.brainhq.com
Books that opened my eyes about the brain
'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story)
'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge
My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
@@johnli2338 I'm so sorry you had to go through that, John. Unfortunately, as you can see, you are not alone. I hope you know that dyslexic brains have great strengths. I recommend the book "The Dyslexic Advantage" by Brock and Fernette Eide, particularly if you struggle with seeing your strengths. Dyslexic people are smart; I'm sure you have adapted and know your strengths. But you might enjoy this book and feel more deeply understood, at the very least.
@@mpollace , deepest thanks for your kind words and recommendations, I'll look see at the book. With my latest session of hypnotherapy, my gifts of storytelling, poetry writing and counselling have been enhanced. So yes, I'm going full on with my gifts of childlike imagination and embracing the world and being a strong advocate for learning difficulties intervention, 'what it means to be a balanced man and cry' in this #metoo and overwhelming feminist movement. How can we work with women and our partners to grow grounded young individuals. Deeply appreciate your words and kind thoughts.
When my daughter was in school, I was told by her first grade teacher that although she had Dyslexia there was nothing she could do for her. I felt helpless as a parent, because I didn't know what to do either. Luckily, she was able to develop techniques to help her understand the material. She would tell me that she had to read, re-read, and re-read the information over and over again until she understood the material.
Angela, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much.
I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefited greatly from the programme.
Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists:
The brain that changes itself
The brain's way of healing
Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
Thank you for the information.
@@angelaschneider7094 I'd love to share my experiences, challenges, personal research. My email is ahzonah@gmail.com. Thank you
I am a dyslexic and I remember this exact same problem happen to me at my school in Texas. It took my mother and two teachers for them to test me and give the right help I needed. Now I am senior in college. If it wasn’t for those who advocated for me I wouldn’t be where I am today❤️
Tiffany, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up home because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much.
Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
This film is spot on. I've been teaching children on and off for over 30 years. I graduated from Florida State University in 1984 and started teaching in my first classroom in Hillsborough County Florida. My reading curriculum for my class was Orton Gillingham! I taught in what was then called a "self contained classroom". My classroom was made up of 12 students ranging from grade 2 to 6. At the time it seemed perfectly normal to put these students all in one classroom, now, it's beyond ridiculous. While I am grateful to have been trained way back then how to teach Orton Gillingham, I have to say, I am amazed that parents and students have to continue to fight to get the programs that they need now all these years later. We have a long way to go to bring our education system up to where it needs to be to meet the needs of ALL students.
I had a very supportive mother but I quit almost everything I did because everything was so hard for me but as an adult I learned that you need to keep at it regardless to become good at it .
I'm glad this film is out
Resilience and tenacity are so important! Especially if our teachers don't know how to teach our kids how to read! Hang in there!
So excited to watch!
So happy to see my favorite advocates on here. Great job my friend in dyslexia!
I watched in tears. My daughter suffered so much and the school just told me she "was smart" and it would all "click one day". She suffered. Her lovely teachers had no idea how to help her. I was demonized by her Principal for not just going away and pushing for more and more help. We were forced into the Private school system. Choice was either to watch our daughter suffer or pay for help.
They say that getting your dyslexic child help is a 'rich man's game' and that couldn't be more true. We are fighting to help all children learn to read regardless of resources so everything we do is free. I'm sorry you were forced into private school. Perhaps start a parent group and bring your daughter back. We can help. Email at ourdyslexicchildren@gmail.com.
My kid hates to read. Was diagnosed with adhd and dyslexia since 5 years old. He is 13 now. But he love sports. I really have to be extremely patience . I know he can do it. Been sending him to dyslexia association singapore for classes and his spelling improve tremendously. I realized he was dyslexic myself after doing research on the internet. Teacher thought he was stupid and slow at first....but i did not gave up on him.
You're a good mama! Continuing to believe in your child and help him find things in which he excels can save self esteem! You gave him a wonderful gift Yumi!
Have u looked at dore programme it a way of healing through exercises very popular
I was put into intensive training for my dyslexia in grade school and that was in the 70's. The writing and reading were turned around but math for me will never be anything but a severe burden.
This film is AMAZING. Thank you for the effort and emotion of sharing the story we all feel. I hope to change things in NJ just as you did in Ohio.
Thank you for this. As a dyslexic myself, there is a need for more resources and awareness. I struggled academically even though I was in the gifted and talented program. I also had a teacher say some very hurtful things which I’ve carried my whole life. If someone would have recognized my dyslexia early on it would have made a world of difference for me.
Mousy, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much.
I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefitted greatly from the programme.
Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists:
The brain that changes itself
The brain's way of healing
Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
John li thank you. I will definitely check this out. It’s encouraging
@@MousyLeigh i'd love to share my personal experiences and research. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we spread the word, the stronger our 'learning difficulties' intervention community grows.
Thank you for this!!! Parents around here have to pay for help themselves and go through the Reading Center. But some can’t afford to do this.
Getting a dyslexic child reading help is often a rich man's game. That is why we are committed that all our resources free.
What do u mean all resources are free?? Looking for resources please let me know if you have any
thank you for this. As the mother of dyslexic child also on the spectrum, and the wife of a dyslexic husband who still has wounds from his lack of services as a child I can say so much more needs to be done. The battles I have fought for my son no mom should face but sadly so many do.
Cathie, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much.
I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefited greatly from the programme.
Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists:
The brain that changes itself
The brain's way of healing
Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
Excellent film document. Thank you for showing hw our dyslexic kids are feeling and parents
I just found out my daughter is dyslexic after years of her struggling at a previous school she got called a baby for crying when she was trying to learn so I home educated her for a year but I struggled to help her, finally her new school have realised she needs support and it is the first time I have heard of dyslexia but I feel I had the same trouble as a child and a lot with maths
Dyslexia can be hereditary. But it's never too late to get help. It's wonderful to hear your school is now supporting your daughter.
I'm dyslexic, and I'm finally getting myself help. I wish I knew I was dyslexic years ago. I always heard my teachers say " why you so lazy and get your head out the clouds."
The shaming is inexcusable. The ignorance around dyslexia is so damaging. So glad you're getting some help. Be strong - you got this!
@𓆏𓆙Ērřoŕ𓆏𓆙(エラー) person, every and different are the only ones wrong! (as a fellow dyslexic myself i feel the pain, no worries)
❤️ hearing the colleges of education and the college of science need to communicate. I discovered OG 2O years into my teaching career. Now an OG teacher! Best training I’ve ever received. Parents & kids, way to stand up for yourselves.
Carol, great to hear about your positive experiences. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties.
In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share:
1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up.
arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/
2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism
3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain.
www.brainhq.com
Books that opened my eyes about the brain
'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story)
'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge
My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
Excellent documentary. As the parent of 2 dyslexic children (now young adults), this is SO accurate. If it were not for us paying for private Orton-Gillingham tutors (because the school taught using the very unsuccessful whole language approach) and advocating for our children, my oldest son would not be an aerospace engineer today, and my younger son would have never graduated from high school. If I had a dollar for every time my children or I were told by teachers, other kids, and even other parents that they were "lazy", "stupid", "unmotivated", or "not trying hard enough", I would be very rich. Those scars they carry still have not yet fully healed.
Marcy, i'm so glad to hear about your sons growing well and excelling. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties.
In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share:
1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up.
arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/
2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism
3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain.
www.brainhq.com
Books that opened my eyes about the brain
'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story)
'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge
My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
Aaron, Thank you for making this film, you placed words to my feelings. This documentary truly tugged at my heartstrings as I watched other families and students share the same hopes and dreams I have for the academics in my state. The sheer scope of this film is impressive enough - being filmed over a 4 year period. Bring this story to life is a great resource for educators and parents, sharing this incredible journey of how a group of Ohio families broke down barriers for their children is a great reminder that support is possible.
Support and change are absolutely possible Michelle. Thank you for your kind words. Bringing this story to life truly was a team effort, with credit deserved by many. I’m glad this film has brought you a bit of hope today.
So glad to finally have this film available for everyone to view. This film was definitely a team effort with so many people to thank for helping bring the story to life and no one person deserving of all the credit. Enjoy, be inspired, and find hope that the fight is worth it.
This does not just effect reading. All areas of academics is affected by dyslexia.
Yes, because reading is the gateway to your education and then to your life. Not getting reading right has disastrous consequences. We are committed to continue our work until all children learn to read.
I'm a dyslexic 24 years old and i only realize what dyslexia is, recently, this videos took me a lot of tear.
Thank you for making and sharing this film! It's excellent.
I'm diagnosed dyslexic and I think I have dyspraxia, dysgraphia, autism ADHD, ADD and sensory processing disorder, insomnia and schizophrenia ( and possibly anxiety and OCD)
hope you doing better.. dont lose ur hope. find help and speak it out. tell ur parents and family.
My husband has dyslexia and had a similar situation as the father in the documentary. Our youngest son is also dyslexic as well as dysgraphic, ADHD and Tourette's. He now attends Marburn Academy. They specialize in teaching kids with ADHD, dyslexia and executive function deficits.
Terri, I feel for you and your family. I'm someone who was severely dyslexic but with intervention have grown a long way. The process is called neuroplasticity whereby the brain can grown and rewire. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much.
Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
Thanks for this video, I cant believe this but I taught myself this technique by myself...especial that is it was my second language. I have lived with stress for all my life and now at 36, I'm trying to find a career that I can fit in. I just need to find the right place. I'm not low potential...I want a career.
At 33:06 I got confused because for a moment I read 'one' as 'o-ne' and not as 'wan'. I got more confused when I read 'once' as 'on-see' instead of 'wans'. I guess the major problem for them is English words are not written/spelled based on the pronounciation. Thus, makes it harder for dyslexic person to read.
Texas is making the move to training all teachers the Science of Reading with Dr. Moat and others' help. K-2 teachers hopefully (go away COVID) will begin the two-year professional development this year. I learned all of this in the late ’80s as a Reading Specialist but we have had to try different fades more than once first. I plan to be part of this movement, I have waited my whole career for this day! Great film, I have forwarded it to board members in our local area.
I’m in Texas and have a dyslexic child. It took 2 years to get her tested. I’m a SpEd teacher and still couldn’t get her help initially. She’s completed our districts intervention program and it was helpful but not enough. Now in 3rd grade her teacher requested SpEd testing which we started but didn’t finish due to COVID. I’m wish the schools were more proactive in training teachers what to watch for and getting back to a phonetic approach to reading instruction.
Thank you so much and can't tell you how happy we are you are taking Dr Moats LETRS.
A beautiful documentary that is both heart wrenching and heart warming at the same time. It was like I was staring at my own child and her experiences and how desperately I want my child to get an education that is the right fit for her. I watch her light fade every day and it kills me. I may live on the other side of the planet but our experiences are shared. This gives me hope and a desire to keep fighting.
Jennifer, Dana, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much.
I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefitted greatly from the programme.
Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists:
The brain that changes itself
The brain's way of healing
Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
@@johnli2338 Thank you. Appreciated beyond words.
@@jennifercarol3047 , drop me an email, ahzonah@gmail.com and I'd love to share with you my struggles, personal research and most importantly joys of being dyslexic.
This fight is well worth it! We'll be there by your side.
Thank you for sharing this. Schools should be playing this for their staff and teachers to spread awareness.
We made the film to not only inspire parents to fight for their children but also for districts to serve our students when they see it's required by law and the best thing to do.
We couldn't agree more!
This documentary is a great inspiration to students in the fields of neuroscience and cognitive psychology. It gives us the hope that we are going to do our bit in making lives easier for a lot of kids out there!
Yes, the work of neuroscientists and cognitive psychologists is leading the way in the understanding of how children learn to read! It is our hope that you will graduate and continue that legacy!
I FEEL YOUR PAIN. I have dyslexia. MY SUPER POWER IS DYSLEXIA!
GREAT video. Know that if you are in Kansas, great strides are being taken this year to make Orton Gillingham based strategies a part of the reading curriculum for all schools. This would not have happened without the work of the parent groups in this video, and the parent groups here in Kansas inspired by their work.
So glad to hear the ripple effect is working . All children deserve to learn to read!
It’s incredible how for so long our school curriculums doesn’t know how to properly teach children with dyslexia, I couldn’t help but to tear up watching the beginning of this doc cuz throughout my school years I suffered transferring schools & being forced in special education even in special education school
Well said. The school system is all wrong. It destroys confidence in children that cannot keep up with the kids who have sponge like memories.
I'm glad I ended up Home Educating. The teacher told my daughter she could not read a big book like the other children. Our Melody proved her wrong.
Now she collects books. Reads every day. She has been on Radio three times with her original lyrics.
Academics just don't have the skills to teach a Dyslexic to read. Or the compassion and empathy.
I hate to say it but I thought the educational system would have gotten better.These people recognized the problem, and took action.
It makes you wonder why they wouldn't want to implement a proven method to get these students rather than blame them. No kid wants to get in trouble.
Colleges of education are not keeping up with the science and are short changing ALL our children. I'm so sorry we couldn't help sooner and you had to endure this suffering.
Great video! Anyone who is advocating for change in how students are being taught to read needs to view this.
Oh honey i remember feeling the same way and still kinda do i just wanna reach into the screen and give her a hug
Thank you so much for this wonderful film. We have lived this story ourselves, the battle is necessary indeed. We appreciate everything you have done to get your message to more and more people. It is clear, and cannot be ignored. Great job to all involved!
I ended up homeschooling my twin boys age 10 they are now 15 taking the pathway in TAFE collage and can read, still struggle with processing but manage to get extra time to finish works. Western Australia no teachers suggested to test for dyslexia it was me that arranged all that.
Thank you for making this film. It is heartbreaking that this research has been around for so long and yet so many children do not have access to learning the way they need to be taught.
As a mom of a dyslexic 9 year old and teacher I was moved by this so much. I have on my own learned about OG and wish through this movie that more teachers and parents will understand our dyslexic students/children and are able to support them more.
Melanie, i'm so glad to hear about your son learning through you. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties.
In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share:
1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up.
arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/
2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism
3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain.
www.brainhq.com
Books that opened my eyes about the brain
'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story)
'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge
My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
This was an excellent informational video. If I could inflect one tidbit more. I would love to see the qualifications for teachers leaving college to be just a bit tougher. College courses need to include special education on several levels . Dyslexia as well as other learning disabilities need to be ingrained into our future teachers.
Amen - we are also advocating for colleges of education to include the science of reading and dyslexia in their teacher prep programs.
why did my mother comment on my own account and why is my reccomended filled with politics
Wow! Thank you so much for your work, I wish it wasn't a familiar story. I've been trying to get my daughter tested for dyslexia by the school district since kindergarten(they told me she would grow out of it), Then tried again in 8th grade when things got harder(told by school psychologist that I should pay an outside evaluator to test her for $3-5K, that my daughter would probably test in the "shady 80's-80th percentile and wouldn't qualify for IEP services). Despite being below average on reading and math for state tests, huh?Pandemic hit and when she got back to school, now in high school, academically crashed and burned(finally forced them to test her and they interpreted the results to say she had a "slow processing speed" but didn't qualify as special ed for an IEP). They delayed until she was a senior in HS to avoid any liabilty for all the services she might have been qualified for. Did squeeze a 504 with accommodations for college.... Keep on fighting and educating about dyslexia! This should be screened for in kindergarten and OG phonics can work for everyone!
We couldn't agree more. In our district they now screen for dyslexia in Kindergarten and all our IS's are OG trained. We are working to make that a reality for all children. Thanks for sharing. We're sending love to you and your daughter!
I remember when Open Court started. It was when my son was starting to read. He is dyslexic. The poor kid had such a hard time and I fought tooth and nail to get him help, finally getting him reading help in third grade. He was already getting in trouble. It was awful.I wasn’t successful until he was in 11th grade that he was finally diagnosed. It was great that he got help, but already too late for him. He’d fallen through the cracks no matter how hard I’d fought. And I fought hard for him. The schools saw a nice but troubled kid and a pain in the a$$ mother, so they literally didn’t listen to me. I only got help for him in 11th grade because a teacher on the Child Crisis Team (that I’d demanded meet for him) hung back (after yet another denial) to tell me under her breath to speak certain words that would get immediate attention. I can’t recall what they were, but I think it had something to do with the law in the state I lived in at the time. If it wasn’t for her, he wouldn’t have gotten the evaluation he did. Afterwards, my son said to me that he finally realized, with complete shock, that he’s just as smart as the other kids in his class -for the very first time. In 11th grade. The things that happened in between made him believe he’s a bad person. So that is the person he’s decided to be. It breaks my heart every time I think about it.
The schools in the state I now live in have this new, revolutionary reading technology they are introducing. Its phonics based. (Thrilled as I am for the kids who will learn to read now) I want to §#$&% scream.
I’m so sorry you had to go through this. I hope he’s doing better now.
So sad but we know exactly how you feel. Wonderful he now knows he's smart too!!!
This was an exceptional and informative program. A program for students, parents as well as teachers.
For my son they only give him access to audio books to learn and he is in 10th grade. He doesn’t comprehend what he is supposed to be learning. He has an IEP and is labeled as other disabilities and has a behavior plan also. Frustration in learning causes behaviors or shut down on the part of the students.
This is my son. He sometimes shuts down or does the minimal amount of reading and writing to get by. Unfortunately, my son wasn't diagnosed with dyslexia until this past September at the start of high school. At the end of 4th grade, he was diagnosed with a verbal learning disorder with deficits in reading and writing. If that psychologist had used the term "dyslexia" and done more extensive testing like we just had done, I don't think we'd be in the position we're in. The services provided by our former public school district and the vo-tech high school my son now attends haven't done much to help him. My son refuses outside tutoring and we'd like to try to somehow to send him to a private school that caters to students with dyslexia but he says he'd rather stay at his vo-tech high school even though he knows they are doing practically nothing to help him. My husband and I are at our wits end because our son's self-esteem and self-confidence have been so affected between grades 7 to 9 (present) by both school districts not truly addressing our son's dyslexia that he just doesn't seem to care about improving his writing or reading. He'd rather avoid assignments because it's easier than struggling through them or do the absolute least amount of reading and writing needed to get by. The vo-tech high school has set the bar quite low. The psychologist says my son is very bright, exceptional visual skills, has the skills to go to college; however, I feel he will fail out of college because he will probably avoid any assignments that require reading and writing. Sorry for my rant. I'm just so frustrated...
Yes, there is a lot of research linked to behavior issues and learning disabilities. It makes sense that teachers not being able to teach you to read, through no fault of your own, would be incredibly frustrating. It is never too late to work with a child to help them learn to read. Fight the district for remediation or we have the Children's Dyslexia Center her in central Ohio and they tutor for free. Perhaps there is a similar site close to you. Then you can start a parent group and fight for all children in your district and those to come.
I did not realize that I too had Dyslexia until my daughter was finally diagnosed through testing at Marburn Academy when she was in 10th grade at Worthington Kilbourn (1992) HS. I knew that I learned differently and just assumed she learned like I did. The movie is wonderful. We had our daughter in and out of hospitals and doctors offices trying to figure out why she was passing out and having panic attacks as it got harder for her to maintain her good grades. It makes me wonder how many kids are in special ed classes that don't need to be there but just need the correct diagnosis. Now I am dealing with different aspects of it as I age. Thank you for this movie and I am going to make pass it on to others who as parents I believe will benefit.
Janet, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much.
I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefitted greatly from the programme.
Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
Powerful and emotional film. Thank you for this documentary and I hope every teacher and school district watches this. My child was in reading recovery in first grade before I questioned our Marysville district and started my fight. Thank You UA KID/ OHIO KID!
This movie was so inspiring and uplifting to see how parents came together to get changed made in their school district for their own children as as others. I am a teacher in Massachusetts. I know children have dyslexia and I bring that to the team and there basic answer is the same well it can be developmental let’s try a different intervention always excuses. When parents do get an outside neuropsych evaluation the school really has a hard time with the instruction of teaching children with dyslexia. My district paid for me to become Wilson certified and I am also Orton Gillingham certified I did this on my own. My district doesn’t even utilize my Wilson. It’s really sad.
Dana, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much.
I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefitted greatly from the programme.
Check out Norman Doidge, a leading neuroscientists:
The brain that changes itself
The brain's way of healing
Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
I know many teachers and advocates who support parent groups as the start and work with them maybe even covertly as they fight for structured literacy in their districts. Perhaps you could be one of these critical allies 'on the inside' and help transform your district so all children can learn to read!
So great!!!!!!!! Thank you for all your hard work. It is because of the science of reading I was able to take up the call and teach my daughter how to read. What a blessing. How empowering. YES 🙌🏻 you can teach kids to read. YES 🙌🏻 there are great ways (sometimes very old ways!) and new science affirming the (current) best practices. Thank you thank you thank you 🙏🏻 💜
It's great to hear that the Science of Reading helped you and your daughter! Thank you for sharing! We believe in the SoR!!!
Truly outstanding film on the plight of our children, our families affected by dyslexia. Thank you IDA and all those children and parents who had courage to share their story.
As a Title IA reading specialist and dyslexia tutor.....bravo!
Susan, as a fellow educator I know what you mean. We with Dyslexia NEVER outgrow our learning difficulties without intervention. In fact, it grows larger, evil like locust killing us from the inside out. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties.
In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share:
1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up.
arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/
2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism
3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain.
www.brainhq.com
Books that opened my eyes about the brain
'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story)
'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge
My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcome. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
The emotional toll is real so happy children are getting more intervention and services
And kids wouldn't suffer all this trauma if they were taught to read!
Inspirational...watch this regardless of where in the world you live
Thank you for sharing what we parents experience(d) with our kids and many of us realize WE were those same kids and UNDIAGNOSED. Such a Heartfelt video. It triggers so much emotional damage from the #EducationalMalpractice that happens daily. We are made to be called "Disabled" and with a profound disability because of the methods in which we need to be taught. Horrific that most educators and those in medical profession (pediatricians, therapists etc.) Do not know about this LD, but know more about Autism which affect less than Dyslexia. Thank you from Rhode Island USA for putting this powerful video ❤
We call it dysteachia because it is the teachers who don't know the science of reading because they were never taught in their teacher prep programs - the real root of the problem! Colleges of Education should be doing this research and teach our children's teachers to teach reading instead of blaming our children and their parents. It is horrific!
I know the pain and shame. It gets better.
Thanks so much for this. I thought it was me who failed my son at an early age, cause I was always working and had little time for him. Thanks to my sister who saw something was wrong with him and did and is still doing to get him the help that he needs. Thanks for this documentary. I personally never understood what dyslexia really meant.
Thank you so much for this documentary!!! Ugly crying here from this momma!!
Laurie, my tears flowed with you, I was and still with dyslexia. We with Dyslexia NEVER outgrow our learning difficulties without intervention. In fact, it grows larger, evil like locust killing us from the inside out. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties.
In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share:
1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up.
arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/
2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism
3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain.
www.brainhq.com
Books that opened my eyes about the brain
'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story)
'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge
My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcome. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
Thank you for sharing your stories and advocating for dyslexic children. The struggle was/is real for my daughter and many of my students. Every child deserves an appropriate education.
Michqua, I've dyslexia too and it's a challenge every day. Don't give up hope because our brains can grow and be rewired for the better. The process is called neuroplasticity. Check out Barbara Arrowsmith Young's book and TED Talk video, 'The woman who changed her brain'. Her programme, the Arrowsmith programme has strengthened my brain so much.
I attended the programme in 2018 to 2019 as a 36 year old adult and benefitted greatly from the programme.
Check out brainhq.com too for brain training exercises. We CAN strengthen our brains, and not settle for what we have now.
There are some people who really lucky they got to know that they had dyslexic in early age I was not lucky in that case I am 35 still struggling for my career I have not graduated yet because I didn't got to know that have dyslexia Till the age of 30 my father always thought that I am dumb I am idiot person I am lazy person who don't want to study because of my mom somehow I really passed 10th class here in India because I have not yet graduated I will not get any nice job any of you people who are dyslexic can feel that pain if you guys really can help me to get a job in India for dyslexic person I can speak very good in English I am sure like me they might be many people in India struggling for dyslexia at 30guys please help them for the god sake GOD bless you
Thank you! 🙏🎗💛
It was very hard in my childhood and teens. I thanks my parents and teachers I had but was planing my death at 13n, too much pressure and studies in the wrong way. Teachers were very kind and attentive but some others too strict and cruel when I was doing my notes with colours to be able to keep memory and learn. I had to listen without moving. A teacher told me I would be very smart when I was adult but growing up the way my mind learn was difficult but that with effort it will all pass, so I did and thank those good teachers and my family. But was hard.
Perseverance is one thing our dyslexic children have had to learn since most teachers have never been taught how to teach reading!
This video is what the world needed, to understand more and rise the awareness about dyslexia.
Excellent video, very inspiring. Thank you.
#WeEncourageReading
Thank you for this. I am one of these children but long dyslexia was identifiable.. I learned to read going into 9th grade Kent State had some sort of reading program back in 1968 . I don't know what they helped me break the code but I did and okay in high school. I raised 5 children with dyslexia teaching at home. They have done well. I do know the feelings these children have expressed. I still struggle with being Just different and bad or lazy. I am 67 now.
Fran, I feel your pain and applaud your success at raising your 5 children with dyslexia. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties.
In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share:
1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up.
arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/
2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism
3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain.
www.brainhq.com
Books that opened my eyes about the brain
'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story)
'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge
My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
Thank you so much for sharing your story. It looks like I have some work to do!
Thankyou for sharing.such brave kids. Be proud of yourselfs guys. Yer amazing😍😍😍😍
Reaffirming to educators in the trenches trying to make change from within! "We're trying to get professional development in for the teachers so that, that knowledge base is there and so they understand and so that the kids who are getting amazing Orton-Gillingham and their intervention don't go back into the classroom and are told to guess." -Brett Tingley
Yes! This resonated so much with me. My son has struggles with exactly that and we regularly have to remind him not to guess. It's been 6 months since his diagnosis, he has so many work-arounds to overcome but his progress has been astounding. OG works!
And we truly appreciate those educators in the trenches making those changes from within. If colleges of education were keeping up with the science none of this would be necessary. Thank you for your work!
As someone who has all of then major simtoms of dislexia and is known going to get tested I would like to say this: not all teachers will do something to help you to succeed. For me I’m going into year 9 (grade 8 for North America) all of my teachers just said that it was hard for me to read, spell, ect because I had a hard time pronounceing R’s. My parents never even though i have dislexia despite all of the signs. It wasn’t until I was fighting (verbally) with my mom that I brought up the topic that I might have dislexia. She said that I don’t because I’m a “smart” kid. She was talking with my consalore and they said when I start going to consaling they can start getting tested. Anyway I got off track. I had to learn on my own that not everyone had to decode words when they read. I’ve been bullied for not being able to spell or pronounce words correctly. I’ve had to get glasses mailtiple times and when I get them and said I still can’t read words or letters my parents said I just don’t want to read. Know I’m going to a different school not one for dislexia but they are going to get me an iep (I think that’s what it’s called) so I can use a laptop and will get more time on tests. If your going through a hard time don’t let your crown fall king, queen or person
Yes, keep that crown and push to get the help you need! Many people just don't know about dyslexia and continue to shame our children. We're so happy you've found a school that 'gets it'.
Many dyslexic people are very smart. Usually smarter then others it is just that you have a different way of learning how to read then others. You are still very smart. If you get the proper help with a phonics based methodology like Orton Gillingham based program that will help you tremendously.
Dyslexia will not be cured by glasses or different colored paper overlays. It is all about the way you need to be taught. It is never too late. The sooner the better though.
Thank you so much for this well-done video. It is so needed. You covered all of the main points about dyslexia and about the typical school responses and how parents can make a difference. From the So CA Tri-Counties Branch of the International Dyslexia Association.
Being Dyslexic myself I totally understand what it's like to struggle with normal things and the need to be "normal", the only issue I have is how Dyslexia is described - "having", "diagnosed", are common when someone describes either being Dyslexic or in a clinical environment by non-dyslexic people. You are either born Dyslexic or not, there is no "have", using the word "diagnosed" puts Dyslexia in a clinical medical context which is wrong. Being born Dyslexic makes life hard right from that start. Even when you develop ways to cope with the non-dyslexic world those struggles don't just vanish. I'm in my mid 40's and despite having a masters degree (which is a big achievement for me) I still struggle and wonder what it would be like to be "normal" and not have to constantly deal with the daily challenges of being Dyslexic in a non-dyslexic world, it's exhausting.
65 and exhausted also.
Outstanding! Thank you for creating this documentary to show how parents must come together and file a systematic group complaint when their children are not learning how to read so the case becomes public, and it will not only help their children but many. Otherwise, the Ferpa laws will keep your lawsuit confidential. It bothers me so much the way schools blame the parents when the schools have had previous lawsuits dealing with the exact same issue, dyslexia, and they act like your child is the first one. Schools should be convicted criminally for this crime. I loved the letter to a stranger! Thank you to the James family for your hard work and persistence!!!
Phyllis, I love your positive words of encouragement. For me, I went through a 'torture method' of Phonics, reading and writing in the 80s here in Singapore. Even though I fell in love with reading since the age of 9 due to the programme, I did not realise that I was severely dyslexic till 8 years ago at the age of 30. My whole life has been filled with so much pain, emotional scars and depression due to my numerous learning difficulties.
In these past 8 years, i've learned so much about the interventions out there and would like to share:
1. Arrowsmith programme, this programme has saved my life and given me a new hope of facing the world. Targeting the weak areas and strengthening them from the ground up.
arrowsmithschool.org/recognizethesigns/
2. Neurofeedback; the therapist hooks the client up to a machine and re-wires the brain waves with low voltages. It's been proven to improve children/adults with PTSD and Autism
3. Brainhq.com, it's an online brain training programme that targets the different parts of the brain.
www.brainhq.com
Books that opened my eyes about the brain
'The woman who changed her brain' by Barbara Arrowsmith Young (I cried while reading every page. Each word was my words, each story was my story)
'The brain's way of healing' and 'The brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge
My heart is to share my joys, pain, challenges and ways that i've overcomed. Please email me, li.xingyi.john@gmail.com. The more we share, the bigger our loving community grows
Fantastic job on all levels. I'm so glad this information is available. Thank you to all involved.