Why Can't My Child Read?
My child is still below grade level. It seems like the IEP just accepts this. Can my child ever catch up? The answer is Yes!

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My child is still below grade level. It seems like the IEP just accepts this. Can my child ever catch up? The answer is Yes!
When I met her, Jamara was three to four grade levels behind grade level with her reading fluency and vocabulary. She, like many students who develop an issue early on with reading, had been given an IEP and began to be routinely pulled out of regular instruction to go to a separate classroom where her learning was set at a slower pace deemed more appropriate for her reading abilities.
The problem that developed over time was she was not challenged to progress at the same rate as her classmates. By the 8th grade, Jamara was years behind her classmates with her reading skills. Her father was afraid she would not graduate 8th grade, or, if she did, would not be ready for high school. His concern was valid.
Over the next few months, I began to work with Jamara to determine the exact reasons she had trouble sounding out words and help her build reading fluency through a technique called guided reading.
This involves the student reading aloud for extended periods of time, while I take notes on what exact mispronunciations or stumbling blocks are happening with their reading. It is only when students read aloud for longer stretches that they, too, can hear their own mistakes and start correcting them. Hearing while reading is called developing phonological awareness.
Jamara had not had the opportunity to actually practice her own reading out loud in the IEP classroom, which is typically kept as a quiet place for students to work individually without distraction. But that wasn't really what Jamara needed. Her issue was not that she couldn't learn in a regular classroom. She just needed very targeted instruction by a teacher who was really listening to her exact miscues and could teach to her specific needs, outside the regular curriculum. This type of reading intervention for an individual child's specific issues should have been done for Jamara as a support for her regular curriculum. Instead, she received a watered-down version of the curriculum the other children in the regular classroom were learning. Her IEP teacher was still setting her goals at a 5th grade reading level at the start of her 8th grade year. Her father felt she could do better. And he was right.
Over the course of her 8th grade school year, Jamara gained three grade levels in reading. She read The Giver aloud to me toward the end of the school year, which is about a 7th grade level book. We worked through the vocabulary. Her reading was becoming fluid and confident. Even if she did not know the meaning of a word, she could now read it. Her grades had risen and she was able to make her wishes heard that she be able to stay in her classroom, take her own notes, and not miss out on reviews for tests and all the class lectures she had been missing in the IEP room.
Jamara not only graduated, she was able to get into a high school of her preference, which did not let just everyone in who applied. Her first year of high school, she made honor roll!
Jamara is only one of my success stories. Book a free reading assessment for your child today, and let's see what they can really do!
First, you are not alone. Many older children, from middle school to high school and even college, and many adults were not taught to read properly.
The school system in the U.S. changed in the 1990's and the tried and true methods of teaching reading--syllabication, spelling rules, and phonics plus reading aloud for phonological awareness--were put aside.
In 2000, the federal government mandated the return of phonics (sounding out the parts of a word) to the classroom, but the damage was done.
Now, teachers are allowed to use "mixed methods" in the classroom. They can use more or less phonics instruction. It's up to the individual teacher. This leads to a lack of standards for evidence-based reading teaching.
This situation was further exacerbated by the loss of learning that occurred for students during the pandemIc. Tutoring is now a necessity for children who are not on grade level with their reading skills.
Most schools have tutoring programs, but they primarily use group tutoring formats. Recent research shows that, particularly for reading, group tutoring is much less effective than 1:1 tutoring. The new model the federal government supports for reading remediation is individualized and highly involved with building the relationship between tutor and child.
This kind of tutoring is what has come to be known as High Impact, or high dosage, tutoring. A student receives one-on-one tutoring 2 or 3 times per week with a tutor who explores deeply into the child's learning style and unique reading issues.
This is what I do!
Lessons are online and schedulable at flexible hours to fit into your busy life. This saves time compared to trying to connect with teachers or school-based tutoring during non-school hours. Tutor from the comfort of your own home: mornings, afternoons, evenings, and weekends!
I teach my reading students effective strategies, from decoding and fixing issues with basic reading skills to how to handle large quantities of reading required for school. I help students understand exactly what to do and when throughout the semester in order to prepare and write homework papers quickly.
As a reading interventionist and former Waldorf (teaching through the arts method) class teacher in grades 1-8, an art teacher, and now a high school and college-level master teacher, I have a deep understanding of where reading gaps start and how to close these gaps at any level. I understand how important it is to present lessons according to an individual's learning style, where students who are more visual (need to "see" it) or more kinesthetic (need to touch it) often do not interface well with school reading instruction.
I also "get" the high school or college student's need to accomplish homework while we tutor, so we use your current assignments for lessons. I offer expert organizational guidance that helps my students cut loads of time off their homework process. My goal is to help my students meet their deadlines while reigniting their passion for learning. As every artist knows: Passion = Motivation!
Help is the click of a button or a phone call away! Contact me at 859-878-4924 or click below to send an email directly to Miss Linda. We can go from there!
Cut time off the research and writing process! Get High Impact Tutoring!
Write better papers! Linda demonstrates academic writing skills right on your paper, so you can see how a sentence or paragraph should look. Then, you try. Back and forth like this, until you have mastered the skill.
Or, you may be a good writer but feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the "moving parts" of the thesis paper. You know a good thesis is more than the sum of its parts, but...how do you do that? Linda helps you organize sections, create transitions, and pull it all together so that there's a nice "flow."
Linda dives into the literature on your topic and feeds you articles you may have missed. She will teach you her tricks for refining and expanding your search, in turns, to cover a lot of ground while drilling down to the research community's specific and most recent dialogue on your topic. You may not be aware that other disciplines are talking about your topic, too. Interdisciplinary support strengthens research! If it's out there, Linda will find it! Take the pressure off...get excellent research assistance and learn how to start working smarter.
Are you a creative person...not a scientist?....feeling like this is not what you signed up for? Your brain is fried and you just don't want to do it anymore. You can't. Grad school itself is challenging enough, now this whole thesis thing is just over the top. It's causing your brain actual pain. That's when you call Linda. She's been there and knows how to help. She can get non-science majors out of the dead zone and LOVING the thesis process! Hint: It's all about finding your passion and your voice!
Every student has unique needs for support. Tell me more about what you are hoping an academic writing tutor online can do for you, and we will start on a plan to help you succeed.
Linda understands that a thesis writing coach needs to be available at all hours: mornings, afternoons, evenings, and on weekends.
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Miss Linda teaches reading, writing, and painting! Her high-impact tutoring offers a deep dive into your individualized learning needs. Her reading students gain whole grade levels in a matter of months, her writing students go from choppy writing to A-level work. Her painting and drawing students move from flattened elements to an understanding of how to depict forms in space. She's intellectually gifted and adds a touch of culture and class to every lesson. See the difference for yourself!