From Reading & Other Learning Disabilities
A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis
Sometimes, we need a vacation. We need relief from painful stressors. We need a breather. To recuperate our energy and optimism, we need to change locations, activities, and mindsets.
If your child struggles with reading, should you and his school give him a vacation from reading? The answer is found in answers to questions like those below.
The Questions Read more...
- Does reading usually frustrate your child?
- Does reading emotionally drain or anger him?
- Is his distaste for reading and school surging?
Dyslexia, dyslexic, dyslexics, intervention, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, Parenting, Reading Disabilities, reading disability, reading intervention, reading problem, reading problems, Reading vacation, resilience, Resiliency, self-efficacy, self-esteem, strengthening resiliency, stress of reading struggles, struggling reader, Struggling Readers
From Reading & Other Learning Disabilities
A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis
If struggling readers do not have strong knowledge of the vocabulary they hear in class and see when reading, they cannot become good readers. Below are three easy principles for helping struggling readers develop strong listening and reading vocabularies. Of course, you need to adapt these principles to the developmental level of your child or student. One more “of course”: Make the activities fun and interesting. Read more...
Dyslexia, dyslexic, dyslexics, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, listening vocabulary, Parenting, Reading Disabilities, reading disability, reading problem, reading problems, reading remediation, reading vocabulary, remedial reading, remediation, struggling reader, Struggling Readers, vocabulary
From Reading & Other Learning Disabilities
A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis
Last week I visited a great school for children with reading disabilities: the Benchmark School in Media Pennsylvania. Benchmark’s founder, Dr. Irene Gaskins, and the Head of School, Dr. Robb Gaskins, asked me a question that I’ve been asked by dozens of parents of children with reading disabilities, one that I’ve given much thought to, especially in these stressful economic times when school budgets and family incomes are under continual attack. The question is simple, but the answer not: Read more...
Dyslexia, dyslexic, dyslexics, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, Parenting, Reading Disabilities, reading disability, reading problem, reading problems, struggling reader, Struggling Readers, tutor, tutoring
From Reading & Other Learning Disabilities
A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis
Perhaps my last post was wrong. Perhaps I should trust charter schools. Perhaps they do perform miracles. Clearly, charters run by one of the nation’s largest charter companies performed miracles in St Louis, MO. Here are descriptions of their miracles from the October 30th St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Read more...
- “When students first entered Imagine Academy [charter school] … four years ago, their school was already entangled in a complex series of real estate deals — ones that would divert dollars from their education.”
Charter, Charter school, charter school scandal, charter schools, Dyslexia, dyslexic, dyslexics, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, Parenting, Reading Disabilities, reading disability, reading problem, reading problems, struggling reader, Struggling Readers
From Reading & Other Learning Disabilities
A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis
Many parents of children with reading disabilities and other learning disabilities get discouraged, disgusted, and angry at public schools that fail to provide their children with critical reading and related services. Their feelings are understandable. They see their children falling further and further behind their peers. They see their children’s frustration, anger, and tears. They see their children struggle and suffer endlessly, as the public schools’ indifference seems impenetrable. And so, many seek the salvation of publicly-funded charter schools. After all, they perform miracles. Read more...
Charter, Charter school, charter schools, Dyslexia, dyslexic, dyslexics, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, Parenting, Reading Disabilities, reading disability, reading problem, reading problems, struggling reader, Struggling Readers
Whether a child should receive Sensory Integration Therapy from an occupational therapist is often controversial, especially when requested at an IEP meeting as a related service. To address this issue, Susan N. Schriber Orloff, OTR/L provides perspective to understand what Sensory Integration Therapy can and cannot do.
Origins of Sensory Integration in Occupational Therapy Practice
By Susan N. Schriber Orloff, OTR/L
I get a lot of phone calls with parents asking, “Can you give my child sensory integration therapy, the teacher thinks he/she needs it?” The question never fails to take me off guard. Can I “provide it” yes, but when I say I need to evaluate the child first, parents hesitate: cost, time, “stress” on the child, and the like. Read more...
Autism, Developmental Disabilities, IEP, Learning Disabilities, learning problems, motor problems, occupational therapist, occupational therapy, Parenting, related services, Sensory integration therapy
From Reading & Other Learning Disabilities
A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis
For your children to succeed in and out of school, they need strong listening and speaking vocabularies. If they have difficulty understanding the meaning of words, they’ll have difficulty understanding what they hear. When reading, they’ll have difficulty recognizing and understanding words they see. Schools alone cannot adequately strengthen children’s vocabularies. As a parent, you need to help. The good news is that you can often do a great deal to help your children develop strong vocabularies. Three keys are to make vocabulary learning fun, relevant, and ongoing. Read more...
Dyslexia, dyslexic, dyslexics, intervention, language, language development, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, Parenting, Reading Disabilities, reading disability, reading intervention, reading problem, reading problems, remediation, struggling reader, Struggling Readers, vocabulary, vocabulary development
From Reading & Other Learning Disabilities
A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis
On October 11, 2011, Change.org noted;
According to numbers recently released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in 2010, 16.2 million children lived in households that struggled to afford food, skipped meals or ate inadequate diets due to a lack of money and resources. That is one in every five children in America who are faced with hunger.
According to Dr. Marcus D. Pohlmann of Rhodes College: Read more...
Dyslexia, dyslexic, dyslexics, educational policy, hunger, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, Parenting, poverty, Reading Disabilities, reading disability, reading problem, reading problems, Resiliency, struggling reader, Struggling Readers
From Reading & Other Learning Disabilities
A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis
Parents often ask us for the names of experts to evaluate their children or help them develop Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). Often, these requests come from parts of the country with which we’re unfamiliar. In such situations, we generally make these suggestions: Read more...
Dyslexia, dyslexic, dyslexics, experts, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, Parenting, Reading Disabilities, reading disability, reading problem, reading problems, referrals, Special Education, struggling reader, Struggling Readers, tutoring
From Reading & Other Learning Disabilities
A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis
To listen to Dr. Selznick’s podcast on helping the Shut-Down Learner, go to
http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/special-needs-talk-radio-blog/id463238657#
Or go to
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/specialneedstalkradio/2011/09/27/maximizing-your-childs-potential
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The Special Needs Talk Radio Network: It’s On The Air
The new Special Needs Talk Radio network (http://specialneedstalkradio.com/) is on the air. Each of its six shows is dedicated to improving the lives of children and youth with special needs and their families.
Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and I host Maximizing Your Child’s Potential (Mondays, 9 PM – 9:30 PM EST, http://specialneedstalkradio.com/maximizing-your-childs-potential). Read more...
Confidence, Dyslexia, dyslexic, dyslexics, homework, intervention, Learning Disabilities, learning disability, Parenting, Reading Disabilities, reading disability, reading intervention, reading problem, reading problems, reading remediation, remedial reading, remediation, resilience, Resiliency, self-efficacy, self-esteem, shut-down learner, strengthening resiliency, struggling reader, Struggling Readers, study skills
