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Dyslexia Testing in Jupiter- Palm Beach

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Are you searching for a certified dyslexia testing specialist to test your child?  You’ve found the right source as Dr. Jim Forgan is a certified dyslexia testing specialist and licensed school psychologist.  This means his testing is accepted by all Florida public and private schools, colleges, and universities.

Dyslexia is a language disorder that is neurological in origin and often hereditary.  According to the National Institute of Health, approximately 15-20% of school age children have dyslexia.  This means in a class of 25 children as many as 5 children could have dyslexia.  It is the number one type of learning disability served in public schools.  Children with dyslexia have difficulty with reading and spelling.  Unfortunately, most teachers and reading specialist have not been trained in the most effective methods that children with dyslexia need in order to be successful readers and spellers.  If you think your child is dyslexic, get him or her evaluated as soon as possible so you can begin the most effective remediation program.  According to dyslexia expert Susan Barton, programs that don’t work well for children with dyslexia include: Hooked on Phonics, the Phonics Game, Reading Recovery, Accelerated Reader, Reading Recovery, and most commercial learning chains.

What Works for Teaching Kids With Dyslexia?

Scientific, independent, replicated reading research supports the reading programs based on Orton-Gillingham sequence and methodology.  Dr. Sam Orton and Anna Gillingham developed a unique method and sequence to significantly improve the reading and spelling skills of children and adults with dyslexia during the 1930’s.  Orton-Gillingham programs are “best practices” when teaching reading to students with dyslexia.  An Orton Gillingham based reading system is simultaneously multisensory, systematic, and cumulative with direct and explicit instruction in phonics.  This type of program shows how reading and spelling are related and provide intense practice for a child with dyslexia.

One-on-one tutoring using Orton-Gillingham methodology is the gold standard for dyslexic reading instruction.  The benefits of this type of tutoring are supported by research.  Consider the evaluation and tutoring the best investment you can make for the future success of your child.  Their self-esteem will rise along with their academics.  For a list of local tutors using Orton-Gillingham methods, call me.

I am a certified dyslexia testing specialist located in Jupiter, Florida (West Palm Beach area for anyone reading this out of town) and I can test your child for dyslexia.  Dyslexia testing is a four hour process that is completed in two, two hour sessions. It can be done in one day. Use my contact form or call me so I can help you determine if your child has dyslexia and how to help him or her overcome it.  I can also help you find a dyslexia tutor or dyslexia school in the West Palm Beach area.

Palm Beach Dyslexia Testing

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Dyslexia is one type of a learning disability.  There are different types of dyslexia and most children have phonological dyslexia which means they rely upon their visual memory to take a visual picture of a word and have significant difficulty sounding out made up or new unfamiliar words. Their breakdown occurs because of a phonological processing disorder.  This causes reading, spelling, and writing difficulties.

I test children for dyslexia in the Palm Beach area (including Boca Raton, Jupiter, Palm Beach Gardens, Royal Palm, Wellington, and Delray Beach).  People from all over Florida and various parts of the USA work with me for dyslexia testing. Since I am a state licensed school psychologist my reports are accepted by most schools. Most public school do not test children for dyslexia. In fact, public schools seem to have cut back on the services they provide. Parents that want public testing usually wait at least four to six months. I find this unacceptable because then the child falls further behind. I test children using a customized battery of tests that tells me if there is dyslexia and the best reading program for you to use.

Some of the dyslexia tests I use include reading tests where the child reads aloud for accuracy, speed, and comprehension.  I also use silent reading tests, reading made up words, identifying letter and sound relationships, spelling real and made up words, auditory discrimination, auditory memory, visual memory, visual-spatial thinking.  An important test is one that assesses your child’s phonological processing.  This battery takes about four hours and is priced about the same as a reasonably priced leather couch.  After dyslexia testing you know if your child has dyslexia and the best reading program to use to help your child.

If your child has dyslexia and needs specialized dyslexia teaching, the Barton Reading and Spelling System ( Read a Reading Research summary )is one of the best to use and there are dyslexia tutors in the Jupiter, Palm Beach Gardens, and Stuart area using this, and other good reading programs. If you reside outside of Florida there are dyslexia tutors in every state using specialized reading instruction for kids with dyslexia.

Dyslexia testing helps you because then you don’t wonder about how to help your child and just do a hit and miss approach to help your child. Time is too valuable. Your child may already be turned off to reading or be feeling dumb. Don’t waste time. My process takes two to three weeks. Start now.

If you are in south Florida and the Palm Beaches, call me to discuss dyslexia testing for your child. The testing investment can help positively change the course of their life. Call today.

Reading: No Tricks, Only Treats

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Many people agree that giving a child the gift of reading is one of the best gifts available. Remember who taught you to read? About 20 percent of children start school reading, 60% learn with instruction from a good teacher, and 20% seriously struggles to learn to read. I advise you to get an evaluation if your child does not enjoy reading, constantly misreads words, reads choppy and slow, or doesn’t comprehend well. Kids in the bottom 20-25% that struggle to read need more specialized help than what the average teacher with 22 kids in her class can provide. These kids need special and intensive tutoring using a reading program matched to their specific needs.

Consider this. Is there only one way to learn to drive, cook, or learn how to manage your money? Of course not but in many schools teachers are given one way to teach kids how to read. It’s no wonder why some kids seriously struggle. If your child struggles to read an evaluation can help pinpoint the breakdown and identify his or her strengths. Then a specialist can use the best reading program to target this area and improve your child’s reading and build their confidence. I know most of the specialized reading programs available.

My evaluation is the starting point so that you don’t lose valuable time in your young child’s life. I often explain to parents that the evaluation uncovers strengths and weaknesses so we understand exactly how to proceed. You don’t want to waste your time and money doing things that don’t fix the problem. The bottom line is don’t let anyone trick you into believing that waiting will solve the problem. If your child’s reading concerns you then get it checked out and give your child the biggest treat ever: becoming a great reader.

When Jacob Can’t Read

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There is a major problem when ‘Jacob’ can’t read and is in the first grade or higher. If your son, daughter, or grandchild is 6 or older and can’t read get it checked out. This advice assumes your child has at least average intelligence, attends school, and receives adequate instruction. At this young age the timing is critical so don’t let anyone tell you to wait and see or just give ‘em more time. I can evaluate your child to determine the best reading program to teach him or her.

My son was fortunate that I knew the warning signs to look for because in kindergarten he struggled to learn to read. He attended preschool, had a good kindergarten reading teacher, and we worked together at home, but he just could not seem to unlock the reading code. The traditional way of learning to read did not work for him. I paid a certified Orton-Gillingham based multisensory reading tutor to begin teaching him twice a week using this specialized method. It did wonders and he learned to read and now as a middle school student reads like a pro. My family and I are forever grateful to Mrs. Johnson for her skill in helping teach him to read. The testing and tutoring were great investments for his future success.

These are some warning signs to look for in young children: speech problems, slow reading, knowing a word in one sentence but not the other, difficulty sounding out words, and poor everyday spelling. Warning signs in older students include: does not enjoy reading, difficulty remembering what was read, difficulty telling important from unimportant details, spells poorly, and when speaking, may have difficulty finding the correct word. These warning signs often get worse with age. I can evaluate children for reading problems as young as age five and a half.

Everything About Dyslexia

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All children with dyslexia can read some.  It’s surprising for some when they learn dyslexia is more of an auditory processing problem than visual processing problem.  Kids with dyslexia often don’t discriminate sounds well.  For example, say aloud the sounds /s/, /th/, and /f/ as in the words sing, thing, finger.  Those three sounds can sound similar.  This makes spelling difficult as well as reading.  The other area that kids with dyslexia have difficulty is in learning the sound to letter relationship.  For example, if I said sounds, can you write down the letters that go with the sounds?  Many kids with dyslexia can’t do this.  Furthermore, they may have difficulty with the letter to sound relationship.  So, the child with dyslexia sees the letter but does not know what sound goes with it.  He or she relies upon visual memorization of how a word looks.  That’s why some kids say the word truck or trunk when they read the word trumpet.  They over rely upon visual cues.  These kids usually “hit the wall” by fourth grade because they can’t memorize all the new vocabulary words being introduced. 

Warning signs of dyslexia in elementary students include: slow choppy reading, difficulty remembering the sounds of words, difficulty sounding out words, and poor spelling.  Warning signs of dyslexia in older students include: unable to learn a foreign language, difficulty remembering what was read, slow reading, difficulty telling important information from unimportant details, spells poorly, and when speaking, has difficulty finding the correct word.  These warning signs do not go away and get worse with age.  Children as young as age 5 ½ can be evaluated for dyslexia. 

Dyslexic children can learn to read well if they have the correct instruction.  Unfortunately, most public schools do not teach children using Orton Gillingham materials and instead use ‘whole language’ teaching.  I can evaluate your child and let you know if he or she has dyslexia and also which reading program will work best with your child.