Hayden Hated School
The right tutor, using the right program, can change everything — as this parent shared:
Hayden was not diagnosed with dyslexia until fifth grade.
Looking back, however, there were signs: family history, hours spent on homework that should have taken less than half the time to complete, trouble memorizing spelling words for the weekly test, not reading at grade level and the most obvious, but missed, was dysgraphia.
Hayden did not verbally communicate his struggles. He just said he hated school. His behavior at school was fine. In fact, the teachers loved him. Where we noticed problems were outbursts of anger and frustration at home and during sports.
So we decided to hit a reset button and pull him from all things not related to school.
We sent him to tutoring at Kumon, which only made things worse because he was sent home with lots more work to complete.
We also made him practice handwriting for a half an hour a day, which again, only made things worse.
I had a friend who was certified to test for dyslexia and after talking with her and having him tested, she confirmed Hayden was dyslexic. She had a list of recommendations.
On the top of her list was getting Hayden into tutoring with the Barton Reading & Spelling System, and Kelly Christian was the tutor she recommended.
When we met with Kelly, she was not only super sweet and personable, but she really knew what we were struggling with.
Hayden began tutoring with Kelly two times a week in June 2016. She made tutoring fun, and they developed a great relationship. He did not fight going, and we started to see positive changes right away. His grades started to improve and so did his attitude.
Using the new techniques Kelly showed him, Hayden started reading again and was even able to understand why words are spelled the way they are and how to break them down into the smaller root word.
He completed the 10 level program in just under 3 years, in March 2019.
Hayden is a different student now. He understands what he’s learning and doesn’t hate school.
By showing him the reasons why, and the different tricks we dyslexics can use to learn and remember, Hayden is back at grade level and ready for high school.
Kari Carlson, parent
San Clemente, California
Diagnosed at 14
It is never too late to close the gap, as this homeschool parent shared:
We homeschooled our five children with ease — until we got to our fourth child. We knew Daniel was not learning like his siblings. By the time he was 8, his 6-year-old sister was reading circles around him.
When Daniel was 10, we sought professional help. But he was mistakenly identified as having an eye tracking disorder. The tracking exercises did nothing to improve his reading.
At 14, we finally had him tested by an educational psychologist who said Daniel was severely dyslexic, something we suspected, but did not comprehend. His reading score was at the 3rd grade level.
We immediately hired a tutor using the Barton System. Daniel made significant progress in a short time and grew in both his reading skills and his self-confidence.
At 16, he started his first college class and has since been dual enrolled, completing 30 college credits. With accommodations, including audio books and extended test time, he’s been very successful — averaging an A in the past 5 semesters of coursework!
At 17, he passed his written driver’s test at 85% without accommodations — a huge milestone for him!
We are so thankful for the Barton System, and we look forward to seeing his future accomplishments as he graduates high school and continues on to college.
Christine Torre
Homeschool Parent
Dawsonville, GA
Time to celebrate
This was posted on a homeschool Facebook page. The parent gave me permission to share it here.
I am celebrating tonight.
I have a child who was diagnosed as profoundly dyslexic at 9 years old. We went through 7 levels of the Barton System while I homeschooled him.
He is now in a college-prep, private high school. At the recent parent-teacher conference, his teacher was shocked to find out he is dyslexic. I did not tell the teachers in advance because I wanted to get a true measure of his capabilities.
He has excellent grades. The teacher said he even volunteers to read Macbeth aloud in class.
I almost cried! This is the same kid who made me ask our youth pastor to not call on him to read out loud … ever.
So stick with it, homeschool parents. It is so worth the years of hard work.
Allison Gentala, homeschool parent
Gilbert, AZ
People do not understand
My son Kody completed all ten levels of the Barton Reading & Spelling System. He is now a Junior in high school. He recently wrote this paper for English class. I wanted to share it with you.
Being 17 years old and having dyslexia may not seem like a big deal. But what I’ve had to do to this point in my life may be hard for others to comprehend. For most people, when they hear of someone that has a disability, they feel bad and look down on them.
People do not understand how hardworking, motivated and determined we are.
From the beginning of elementary school to third grade, I was always behind in school and not progressing like other students in my class, no matter how hard I had worked. I was then tested for dyslexia.
Being told I have a disability by my mother was really hard to accept in the beginning; however, it may have actually been one of the best parts of my life.
I finally had an explanation as to why I wasn’t doing as well in school. Teachers finally would stop saying that I “wasn’t trying” or that I just needed to put more effort into school.
I knew that having a disability was not going to cause me to give up. I knew that I would have to work twice as hard as everyone else.
I pushed myself throughout the rest of elementary school and through middle school, trying to get on the same level as my peers. I tried many things — such as doing different reading programs (some that had helped amazingly, the Barton Reading & Spelling System, and others that did not), working with my teachers one-on-one outside of school, and spending every night doing four to five hours of homework when other kids would get their homework done in class.
The one goal I wanted to achieve by high school was to avoid standing out from everyone else. Going into high school, I was finally on the same level as the other kids in my grade.
Having known and experienced just how hard it can be to have a disability, I have insights as to what other kids are most likely dealing with. It may be peers making fun of them, being told they can’t do something just because of their disability, or teachers not understanding how they learn best.
For me, the most stressful part of class was being terrified I was going to be called on to read out loud and then being judged by my peers.
When given a writing assignment, I would sit by myself, away from everyone, so no one would be able to see my writing and laugh at me.
Being someone with a disability, I know that there are always going to be people who will never understand the journey that I, along with many others, have faced; nor what I have done to get to where I am now. I hope that sharing my story will help others understand not only the negatives of having a disability, but also to see the opportunities that are possible.
Through all the struggles I’ve faced and experienced, I have always pushed through and thrived. The biggest advice I can give to someone with a disability is not to be ashamed of it or let it label you as “abnormal” (compared to whatever “normal” may be).
In my case, I would never say, “I’m a dyslexic.” I would say, “I am a person that has dyslexia.”
A disability is one part of who you are; it’s up to you to show the world how you want to be seen.
Koby Koblitz, Barton Graduate
Onalaska, WI
Special Ed Teachers Can Also Be Heroes
I recently received this heartwarming email from a Special Ed teacher, who is also one of my heroes.
I am having amazing success using the Barton System in my resource room.
A young man transferred to my school at the beginning of 7th grade, barely able to read at a second grade level. He absolutely hated school and was often absent.
His parents had tried everything. They had spent thousands of dollars sending him to Sylvan and to private tutors.
They heard about the success I was having with the Barton Reading & Spelling System. After his school refused to get the Barton System, they fought for 2 years to get an inter-district transfer so he could attend my school and work with me.
He is about to graduate from 8th grade with excellent grades, perfect attendance, and is now reading at a 7th grade level. He was even elected by his peers to be their Student Body President.
Yet there is no one at the high school he will attend next year who teaches the Barton System. So a group of my students (who are now in the higher levels of the Barton System) are determined to start a Barton tutoring program there – and they have volunteered to be the tutors.
Geri Linari, Special Ed Teacher
Cuddleback Elementary
Fortuna, CA
Sports
I get emails like this all the time, and they always bring me to tears.
When I heard you speak on Thursday, I cried. I wish I had that information when we began our journey.
My 17 year old son, David, is dyslexic. He was diagnosed when he was 8, and he has had lots of tutoring at Sylvan and from retired Reading Specialists over the years, which has helped a little bit.
David is a really smart, handsome, and well-liked young man. He hides his dyslexia well. Yet it is still there. After your presentation, I asked him, “What letter comes after S?” He quickly responded, “R.” I shared that was “before,” not after. He then said, “I know what you’re doing. Don’t even ask me about the months of the year.”
When he played PeeWee football, he always wore a wristband so he could tell left from right.
David recently gave directions to our house to his new girlfriend. But he frequently told her to turn left instead of right. After 45 frustrating minutes, he finally handed me the phone and begged, “Please get her here.”
He is a gifted athlete and would like to play football in college. But his grade point average is only 2.65 due to his failing French (a D) and algebra (also a D). He must also pass the ACT (college entrance exam). We paid for an ACT prep course, but after the course, he only scored 13. He needs at least a 17.
He needs extra time on the reading portion, and he dreads math. He was so nervous because he knew he was not going to have enough time to finish the test. How do I go about getting him more time on the ACT?
He feels he is not smart enough to make it in college. The many days of sitting in the hall, being put in “the dumb class” (as he called it), and being teased by his peers does not go away.
But I want him to be able to follow his dream. I do not want him to join the military, which is his backup plan.
Which is worse?
If you struggled in school, going back to college as an adult is scary. But it is even worse to watch your child or grandchild struggle in school the same way you did – as this grandmother shares.
I am 57 years old with a BSN in nursing. After 30 years of being out of school, I am applying to graduate school for a MSN in nursing. I am terrified.
My early school years were just horrible. No one knew what to do with me, so they just passed me through each year.
I had to attend summer school EVERY summer. I hated it.
I grew up thinking I was just stupid and that I must be lazy because it took so much time to read, study and retain information.
In high school, I worked so hard to get good grades. I would read a chapter (of course, that took forever), then I would go back and outline the chapter and write it down in my notebook (that also took forever), and then I would reread it every night.
I did not know that everyone did not have to do that.
I am embarrassed to tell you how long it took me to learn the alphabet or the multiplication tables.
Spell check is my godsend, but you’re right. It often does not work for me.
You’re also right about having to write a hand-written letter. It makes me sweat!
I am pretty sure my seven year old granddaughter has dyslexia. I see myself in her. She is struggling with reading in school and is starting to say that she hates school.
I will do anything to prevent her from going through the torture that I went through as a child.
Susan replied with:
If your granddaughter gets the right type of tutoring now — every day during the summer, and at least twice a week next school year – her reading will greatly improve. And her spelling and writing will also get better.
I will send you some tricks for learning math facts.
Until her skills reach grade level, her parents should provide 3 accommodations during homework time, and her teacher should provide some in class, as well.
If that happens, your granddaughter will NOT go through the same “torture” in school that you did.
Bright Solutions for Dyslexia 