Holiday break is here, and for most families, that means spending time with friends and family, enjoying seasonal traditions, and relaxing. But in some cases, it might be worthwhile to consider how you can make the new year happier for a child who is struggling in school.
When school was dismissed for the break, did your child — and maybe you — breathe an extra-large sigh of relief? Maybe the school year has been a struggle from Day 1. The school says, “Don’t worry, we’ll figure it out, they’ll be fine.” But this has been going on for two or three years, and you are getting the same results. You’re in a rut.
Something has to change. But what? You’re not an educational specialist. You know you need assistance but don’t know where to turn. A lot of people are in that situation, and it is a very lonely place to be.
We want to help. At Reading Success Plus, our consultations, screenings, coaching and tutoring can provide answers, give you direction, and start your child down the path to academic success. And we can start soon — maybe before the ball drops on New Year’s Eve.
“Christmas break is a great time to get started,” says Lawrence Kloth, co-founder of Reading Success Plus. “Even with all the Christmas activities, most people take a little time to slow down and, with the new year coming, re-evaluate things and maybe take the plunge.
“This is a chance to see if we’re the right fit for you.”
Start with a conversation
Families start with our free consultations. There is no obligation or hard sell, just an opportunity to meet with Lawrence or Anne Kloth, the other RSP co-founder. They will explain our offerings, listen to your needs, and together, you can decide whether it’s a good match.
“We understand that our programs are a big commitment of time and finances. So have a conversation with us, look over our free materials on dyslexia, ADHD, and other spelling, fluency, and comprehension obstacles. Let’s figure out if this will work for you.”
The next step is screening your child. A reading problem may be rooted in difficulties with phonemic awareness (the sounds of letters), decoding, spelling, fluency, and comprehension. Difficulties with writing, grammar and math may be associated with these reading struggles. Our comprehensive screening will pinpoint where and why your child struggles and direct us to the instruction they need.
For most families, the nest step is tutoring. Reading Success Plus offers in-person tutoring in our offices in Grand Rapids and Troy, while our popular online tutoring provides the same instruction anywhere the student has a computer and a decent internet connection. All tutoring is one-on-one.
For reading and spelling, we use the Barton Reading & Spelling System, an Orton-Gillingham, multisensory phonics program. Those who need to develop their phonemic awareness will start with the Lindamood LiPS Program or Foundations in Sounds. Our math program, also Orton-Gillingham based, uses highly visual and tactile instruction to teach math facts, word problems, fractions, percentages, and more. Our writing and grammar instruction for students from elementary school through college teaches the basics of writing a sentence and paragraph and the elements of informative, argumentative, and narrative writing.
The power of coaching
Our coaching program offers extra support for those in our tutoring program and valuable stand-alone support for others. Our family coaching recognizes that one child’s struggle affects everyone in the household. We help parents deal with homework challenges, establish productive routines, and help them understand what is going through their child’s mind. Not all parents understand how their child’s brain functions. We can explain that and defuse the tension between struggling children and parents who can’t see why their child won’t just sit down and read for 45 minutes. Coaching can replace confrontation with cooperation.
RSP also can be your advocate in dealing with the education system, particularly with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and 504 plans. These special education programs have language, procedures, and assumptions of their own, foreign to most parents. We will explain the laws, help you evaluate the school’s plans for your child, and even attend meetings as your advocate.
RSP also has coaching for students, where we explain the causes of their struggles and how their brains process information.
“We want the child to understand dyslexia and ADHD,” says Anne Kloth, Lawrence’s mother, “to understand how their brain works and, basically, why they are different, because kids know when they are different. But they’re different in a good way. They are exceedingly bright. They need to know their strengths, and they need to know their weaknesses.”
Coaching also helps students use school accommodations, improve study and homework habits, get organized, and make the most of their time. When students develop these skills and begin to understand why they are “different,” their confidence and self-esteem rises.
Reading Success Plus programs are not limited to students. Adults who feel they are falling behind because of reading or math difficulties can benefit from screening, tutoring, and coaching. Not only can tutoring give you the skills you need to be successful in the workplace, but coaching can help you understand what accommodations you may entitled to on the job, help you with assistive technology, and give you the self-awareness and confidence you need to live the life you want to live, personally or at work.
Look down a different path
The holiday break is a great time to take a look at your options.
“We’ve seen that this is a time when things slow down and people are ready to look at trying something new,” Lawrence says. “We do screenings in late December and students are ready to go in January. We’ve done screenings on New Year’s Eve. Or maybe you want to set up plans to talk to us in the new year. But a lot of our families have found this is a good time for changes, to find a new path.”
So come talk with us. Let’s see if the programs meet your needs, if the commitment of time and resources are right for your family. It’s a conversation you won’t regret.
“You can go into the new year, get a screening done, and get the services you need,” Lawrence concludes. “Potentially, that will make all the difference in the world. If you wait, the problems are only going to get worse. We want you to act so your child can start making progress. It won’t happen overnight, but over time you will see the difference, and you’ll be very glad you did it.”