Simon (Sinek) Says… Begin with WHY
The podcast series, Sold a Story with Emily Hanford hits close to home. She isn’t talking about me, but she tells my story. Emily investigates why so many children aren't learning to read. This podcast will surprise you!
My daughter struggled in school. She advanced from grade to grade with all the usual excuses- she will catch up next year, she needs to practice more at home, some kids are late bloomers...
When assessed for dyslexia in the middle of 4th grade (2011) she scored in the low 3% for spelling, her writing was illegible, and she was behind two grade levels for reading. She had participated in all the interventions in school- Title 1, Reading Recovery and Reading Corp. School administration denied the request for a 504 Plan multiple times as they had little concern- she had good attendance, was not failing and was a good girl.
I am- and was at the time, a licensed teacher- with a concentration in Reading and Language Arts. Graduating from college in the early 90’s, I was trained in Reader’s Workshop and Writer’s Workshop. We were not taught letter formation, letter sounds, phonics, phonemic awareness, or spelling.
Programs that are effective for people with dyslexia have been around for decades. I purchased one and got to work. My daughter responded immediately. She learned how to blend sounds into words! Amazing! And she could break words into sounds to spell them. Genius!
I approached several administrators in the district to let them know that I had discovered the secret! I ended up in what I thought was going to be a meeting with the curriculum director to discuss literacy curriculum. How naive I was! I was surprised to see that the heads of the Title One program, special education, and psychology were in attendance as well. They informed me that students were receiving all the services they needed in school, and I need to stop telling parents that they should get help outside of the school system.
Having already opened a learning center and successfully helped several children make dramatic gains in reading and spelling, I continued to encourage parents to get help outside the school district. What the school was doing was not working and they had no intention of changing.
Today I see progress has been made. Our new students have been exposed to phonemic awareness activities in school. I was so delighted when a first-grade girl said- “Oh, you want me to chop out the sounds?” She had learned to do this in school! Most early elementary staff have been trained in LETRS and Orton-Gillingham. Who knows- maybe the school will eventually put me out of business!
I regularly research training programs and learning materials. Most have significant flaws or require expensive training and materials. I have spent the past twelve years designing a simplified approach to teaching and learning. I work with bright and creative nonreaders who poke holes in everything I create. They force me to simplify- to make everything clear and concise. The most useful knowledge I have acquired flows from the children who cannot read. What is critical for these children is advantageous for all. My project is called, the Heart of Literacy.
Although I do not have a polished program, I have a great start and am excited to provide workshops and give teachers the opportunity to poke holes in my plans before I publish 😊.
Every child deserves the opportunity to experience reading success and every teacher deserves the proper training and resources to make this possible.
I am grateful for your support on this important mission.
Much love, Marianne
email: mjylha@gmlc.co