Make sure your child receives appropriate support. If your child is struggling in school, proactively ask the teacher for feedback, observations or an evaluation, if needed. Thereafter, make sure your child receives the appropriate support — whether it is specialized tutoring, speech therapy, occupational therapy, and so on.

School is really not easy these days. Many students have been out of school for a long time because of the pandemic, and the continued disruptions and anxieties are still breaking the flow of normal learning. What can parents do to help their children thrive and excel in school, particularly during these challenging and anxiety-provoking times?

To address this, we started a new series called “5 Things Parents Can Do To Help Their Children Thrive and Excel In School.” In this interview series, we are talking to teachers, principals, education experts, and successful parents to learn from their insights and experience.

As a part of this interview series, I had the pleasure to interview Dr. Emily Levy.

Dr. Emily Levy is the founder and director of EBL Coaching, a specialized tutoring program that offers individualized one-on-one home, virtual, and on-site instruction using research-based, multi-sensory techniques. She is also the author of Strategies for Study Success, a 17-part student workbook series that teaches students strategies for test taking, note taking, reading comprehension, writing, summarizing, and executive functioning, along with the Flags and Stars Orton Gillingham student workbook series, which helps students develop their fundamental decoding and spelling skills. Additionally, she is the author of Flags and Stars Multi-Sensory Math, a multi-sensory math program that helps students develop a stronger understanding of core math concepts, including addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and fractions. These workbooks are currently used at schools nationwide.

Dr. Levy graduated from Brown University and received her Master’s Degree in Special Education from Nova University in Florida. She also completed her Doctorate Degree in Education from Nova University. She performed a five-year research study developing an alternative strategy for teaching reading comprehension and won a fifth place Westinghouse Science and Talent Award for this research. She has spoken at national and international conferences on research-based teaching methods.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you share with us a bit about your “backstory”?

Sure! I actually grew up in the field of special education. My mother was the founder of a school for students with learning disabilities in Florida, so I like to think that being in the field of education is “in my blood.” Formally, though, I received my undergraduate degree from Brown University. I then obtained my Master’s Degree in Special Education, as well as my Doctorate Degree in Education. I started EBL Coaching nineteen years ago, which is a one-on-one tutoring program for special education students. We use research-based, multi-sensory techniques catered to the needs of each student. I am also the author of Strategies for Study Success, a seventeen-part student workbook series that teaches students strategies for reading comprehension, writing, test taking, note taking and executive functioning skills. Additionally, I am the author of the Flags and Stars Orton Gillingham and Multi-Sensory Math Student Workbook programs.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

One of my very first students was a first grade boy with ADHD and dyslexia who struggled tremendously with reading. I worked with him for many years, providing one-on-one Orton Gillingham instruction to build his reading skills. School was a real struggle for him, and he had to work much harder than most of his peers. His mother recently let me know that he is now thriving as an engineer! I could not have been more proud.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

“Success is not how high you have climbed, but how you make a positive difference in the world.”

I love this quote, as it really defines the work that I do and my life mission. While I love being a successful business woman and a great role model for my daughters, I truly feel that I have made an enormous difference in the lives of so many children with specialized learning needs. It brings me so much happiness to know that I am making a positive difference in the world.

You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?

1. Listening. I find that listening — and truly listening without distractions — is a key element of my success. Many parents pour their hearts out to me and are often crying, telling me about the struggles of their child. I listen to them with compassion and understanding. I realize how hard it can be to watch these struggles and not know how to help. I speak and share my thoughts and suggestions only after they are done, and feel they have shared enough with me to give a full picture of their child.

2. Perseverance. There have been many instances in my career when I did not succeed at my first try. When I started out as a special education tutor, I essentially went from school to school, telling them about my services and background — hoping they would refer clients to me. Some welcomed me with open arms, but others completely shut me out. Some families (in the beginning of my career) would choose to find another tutor or go in another direction for whatever reason. It was crushing at first, but with every failure, my motto was to analyze what happened, think about what went wrong, and decide what I could do differently going forward to have a better outcome. That has helped me succeed and overcome many obstacles in work and in life.

3. Decisiveness. In my work, I literally make decisions all day long. Some are small and insignificant, such as when to send a certain email or schedule a meeting. Others are deeper and involve more thought, like what instructional plan would be best for a student with Autism and ADHD who also struggles with reading comprehension and writing — or how to guide a tutor towards helping a child who exhibits newfound challenges.

Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?

Yes! I am now working on expanding my COINS student workbook series, which teaches students how to break down math word problems and move from language to arithmetic, and then back to language.

For the benefit of our readers, can you tell us a bit about why you are an authority on how to help children succeed in school?

Sure. I have been working as an expert in the field of special education for over twenty years. Through EBL Coaching, I have been able to help thousands of students build their reading, writing, math, and executive functioning skills, and improve their self-confidence along the way.

Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the main focus of our interview. Can you help articulate the main challenges that students face today that make it difficult to succeed in school?

Many children with learning challenges are not receiving the appropriate support they need in school. Some are not identified as having a challenge early enough and continue to struggle in school. Others never get evaluated, or do so far down the road once they have already missed most academic foundations. Others receive some support in school, but either it is not appropriate or not enough support. For instance, students with dyslexia really need instruction using the Orton Gillingham technique — but unfortunately, most schools are not able to provide this support.

Can you suggest a few reforms that you think schools should make to help students to thrive and excel?

Sure. More teachers should be trained in research-based techniques for reading, writing, and math. In particular, using a multi-sensory approach for students who have learning challenges is key. When students are pulled out for support, it should be specific and individualized to their needs, using the research-based, multi-sensory techniques that are most appropriate for their specific challenges.

Here is our primary question. Can you please share your “5 Things Parents Can Do To Help Their Children Thrive and Excel In School?” Please share a story or example for each.

1. Be your child’s best advocate. I hear time and again that parents noticed their child struggling with homework, but their teacher never said anything to them; it was not until the end of the school year that the teacher told them their child struggled and may be held back. It is always important to be proactive, check in with your child’s teacher to see how he or she is doing, and not sit back and wait for the teacher to reach out to you.

2. Make sure your child receives appropriate support. If your child is struggling in school, proactively ask the teacher for feedback, observations or an evaluation, if needed. Thereafter, make sure your child receives the appropriate support — whether it is specialized tutoring, speech therapy, occupational therapy, and so on.

3. Help your child build self-confidence and independence. There are some parents who like to sit next to their child when they work on their homework until every part of it is complete, and correct them along the way. Let your child take a stab at it first; then you can check it afterwards or wait to see if he or she comes to you with questions. Praise them for their effort of working independently and know that by doing so, they will not only improve their academic skills, but will also build their self-confidence and independence.

4. Seek outside support. If your child is struggling, even with the support he or she is receiving in school, seek outside support. That may mean counseling, speech therapy, occupational therapy, tutoring, and so on. Specifically with tutoring, receiving the right one-on-one research-based, multi-sensory tutoring can be life changing for a child.

5. Learn effective ways you can help your child at home. If your child has ADHD, for instance, and struggles with organizational skills, help your child set up systems for cleaning out and filing papers he or she does not need. Help create lists and daily schedules, and aid your child in gaining an accurate understanding for how long tasks can take to complete. If your child has dyslexia and receives Orton Gillingham tutoring, ask the tutor what you can do in between sessions to reinforce what is covered.

As you know, teachers play such a huge role in shaping young lives. What would you suggest needs to be done to attract top talent to the education field?

I think that if teachers were trained in cutting-edge, research-based multi-sensory techniques that truly make a difference in the lives of kids, they will be motivated to enter the field and feel like they are making a real difference in the world.

We are blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them

I have always admired Sheryl Sandburg for the incredible work she has done to motivate women, seize opportunities and to “lean in.” It would be amazing to share a meal with her :). She also grew up in North Miami Beach, Florida, which is where I am from!

How can our readers further follow your work online?

They can read more about EBL Coaching and myself at the links below.

www.eblcoaching.com

Https://www.facebook.com/EBLCoaching

Http://www.instagram.com/ebl_coaching

Thank you so much for these insights! This was so inspiring!

The post Dr. Emily Levy Of EBL Coaching On The 5 Things Parents Can Do To Help Their Children Thrive and Excel In School — An Interview With Jake Frankel appeared first on EBL Coaching.

Originally published on the PIX11 website
       

Tutoring services are seeing a sharp increase in demand as students try to bridge the achievement gap brought on by remote learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

While school is out, some families are using the summer months to help their children catch up.

EBL Coaching offers one-on-one sessions in New York and New Jersey.  

“We’ve absolutely seen a rise in the requests for tutoring, mainly because so many kids have these gaps in their learning from having missed so much school,” said Dr. Emily Levy, founder and director of EBL Coaching. “Many kids have missed those critical early foundations of their academic skills.”

EBL sessions, either in-person or virtual, are rooted in multi-sensory techniques.

“A multi-sensory approach means, rather than working out of a workbook, or listening to a teacher, we integrate the visual, the tactile and the auditory modalities simultaneously,” Levy said.

A recent study by Harvard found that in school districts that went remote, achievement growth was lower for all subgroups, but especially for students attending high-poverty schools. Falling behind can also have a devastating effect on a student’s mental health and well-being. 

“We found that so many kids, even before the pandemic, had low self-esteem then they had learning difficulties but now even more so,” Levy said. 

EBL offers tutoring in both reading and math. They specialize in the multi-sensory method, where all senses are engaged while learning. For instance, instead of writing letters out on paper, students can “sky-write” or write on colored sand.

“Kids enjoy the process because it’s so engaging and it really is highly effective; I would say the most effective way of building core academic skills,” Levy said.

While the multi-sensory approach was first developed for students with ADHD, dyslexia and other learning difficulties, Levy said all children can benefit from this form of instruction, particularly those who need an extra boost this summer before starting the next grade in September.

“I think many parents are now just realizing how much their child struggled, how much they missed, how much they’re struggling now,” Levy said.

The post Tutoring Services Help Kids in NY and NJ Catch up During Summer appeared first on EBL Coaching.

Originally published on the World website

Educators are trying to provide more help to students with dyslexia

Naomi Peña’s four children have dyslexia. In fall 2020, as her son Lucas learned virtually from home in New York City during the pandemic, she realized just how far behind he was at his public school.

“Mom, I have a small brain,” her son, now 12, would tell her.

After a pricey neuropsychological evaluation, school officials offered some extra support but ultimately couldn’t provide the structural literacy program Lucas needed, according to his mom. By March 2021, Peña began looking for a school more tailored to his needs. She found a private school for students with dyslexia or other learning disabilities and decided to enroll him. The city Department of Education will pay the school’s $75,000 annual tuition, but Peña had to hire an educational attorney to ensure that she followed proper procedures to receive that reimbursement.

Peña is the co-founder of the Literacy Academy Collective. For the past two years, she and six other moms have been advocating for a new public school for students with dyslexia in New York City. In late January, city Department of Education Chancellor David Banks announced plans for just that. A new school for dyslexia students will complement Bridge Preparatory Charter School, a dyslexia-focused school that opened on Staten Island in 2019. No location or opening date information for the new school has been announced. But while many education advocates agree that NYC students with dyslexia need more support, they disagree over whether a dedicated school is the right approach.

According to data from the city’s Department of Education, one-fifth of the school district’s roughly 1 million students have disabilities. Of those, more than 67,000 have been diagnosed with a learning disability. Students with dyslexia have difficulties learning to read and matching letters with sounds.

“The sheer scale of the problem is daunting,” said David Bloomfield, a professor of education leadership, law, and policy at the CUNY Graduate Center and Brooklyn College. He worries that a stand-alone dyslexia school will serve only a fraction of the students who need help. Instead, he said schools should use COVID-19 funding to staff every school with reading specialists and experts trained in phonics instruction.

While Bloomfield agrees that students at a dyslexia-specific school will benefit from extra intervention, he is concerned the results won’t last: “My worry with schools like this is they may start out with great fanfare and great attention, but because they’re segregated, and isolated, they tend to diminish in quality over time.”

Emily Levy, founder of the New York–based EBL Coaching tutoring service, estimates that more than a fifth of her company’s 200 students have dyslexia. She said that while some students with milder forms of dyslexia may be able to adapt well in mainstream classes, students with more severe needs would likely benefit from an all-school model. She also pointed out that a multisensory, structured literacy approach to reading instruction that includes phonics and decoding skills not only works best for students with dyslexia but also often transfers well to other students: “Kids first off seem to enjoy the multisensory approach—it helps the information stick in their long-term memory.”

Some private schools have found a niche serving students with special learning needs. Molly Arthur founded Educational Pathways Academy in Naples, Fla., in 2017, a Christian school that now serves 82 students from first to 10th grade. All of the school’s students have reading difficulties similar to dyslexia, though not all have a clear dyslexia diagnosis. Some students were adopted after being exposed to drugs prenatally, Arthur said, and one student has a chromosomal disorder. All have average or higher IQ: One sixth grader has an IQ of 135 but reads at a second grade level.

Students at Educational Pathways spend about half of each day in peer groups corresponding to their age and ability and the other half following an independent schedule. Students move to a new classroom and a new teacher every 40 minutes—a design Arthur said is also helpful for her students with ADHD.

Arthur knows the emotional toll dyslexia can take: Her dyslexic sister dropped out of school when she was 16. Many students come to the school with self-doubt, she said, and she wants to focus on the child as a whole person. “God didn’t forget to give you the ability to read well or write well or comprehend well—He doesn’t make mistakes,” she said. “We really try to instill in them that you are made by God for a plan, for a purpose.” She said parents have told her that their children are enjoying school for the first time since coming to Educational Pathways.

Back in New York, Peña said she and others at the Literacy Academy Collective are working toward launching a teacher training residency program. Teachers would receive training and experience by teaching in a dyslexia-specific school, then could take dyslexia-friendly education methods, such as structured literacy, into their district schools.

Meanwhile, Lucas has thrived in his new classroom. “He literally told me last week that his favorite class is reading and writing,” Peña said. “This is a kid that could not string together a couple of sentences to make a paragraph or read a couple of lines.”

The post Schools Made to Fit: Dyslexia Schools and Education appeared first on EBL Coaching.

Many children are fidgety at times, forget to turn in an occasional assignment, or misplace their favorite shirt.   However, if you find these scenarios frequently occurring with your child or you notice that he is constantly distracted, forgetful, disorganized, or unfocused, your child may have ADHD. ‎

Here are some signs of ADHD in your child to look out for:

• Your child constantly loses belongings. Papers from school seem to disappear regularly, and she consistently misplaces her notebooks, lunch box, folders, tablet – you name it. One minute she has her belongings, and the next minute you are helping her frantically search your home for them, regularly. 
  
  
• ‎Your child misses class instructions. You may have a brilliant child, but he constantly completes assignments incorrectly (and thus loses points) simply because he wasn’t listening to the instructions and didn’t follow the directions correctly.
  
  
• Your child is a daydreamer. His teacher notices that he frequently daydreams and loses focus at school, missing key information and notes from class.
  
  
• Your child has trouble waiting her turn. When playing a game or completing a group activity, your child tends to compulsively jump in and interrupt her peers rather than waiting her turn. This may frustrate her friends and others around her.
  
  
• Your child can’t sit still. When eating dinner, doing a homework assignment, or traveling on a plane, your child can’t sit still. He is constantly wiggling and squirming, unable to stay in one place for a long stretch of time.
  
  
• Your child has trouble completing tasks. She starts one task and then impulsively moves onto the next one before completing the first one. This leads to a multitude of unfinished tasks, assignments, and projects.
  
  
• Your child has trouble keeping his emotions in check. He has regular outbursts, both in private and public places, and can’t seem to contain his emotions.
  
  
• Your child makes careless mistakes. She might be a rock star at math and can correctly answer complex long division and multi-digit multiplication problems, but answers  4+1 incorrectly, possibly even subtracting instead of adding, and rarely self-checks her work.
  
  
• He is completely disorganized. His room is a mess, and the inside of his backpack looks like a load of garbage. Loose papers, notebooks, and old assignments are piled inside of it, and he rarely (if ever) cleans it out.
  
  
• She has poor time management skills.  She rarely turns in ‎assignments on time and underestimates how long it may take to get ready for a party, eat dinner, complete a homework assignment, or study for a test. This makes her, and possibly the rest of your household, constantly late or in a rush.
  
  
• He has trouble maintaining friendships. Your child may not always pick up on social cues, and you might find that his interruptions, lack of sharing and turn-taking, and impulsive behaviors negatively affect social situations. Thus, your child might have difficulty making and keeping close friendships.

So what should you do if your child exhibits some or all of these traits? First off, don’t panic! ADHD is more common than you may think, and it’s certainly not your fault. However, the sooner you can seek a diagnosis, the sooner you can identify a plan of action to help your child. Start by talking to your child’s teacher and see if he or she is noticing the traits above in class.  Ask the teacher whether he or she notices your child having trouble sitting still, remaining focused on activities, listening to instructions, waiting his turn, and staying organized.

If your child’s teacher notices these struggles, and if you are also noticing these challenges at home, you may want to consider having your child evaluated. An evaluation performed by your school district is free, or you can choose to have a neuropsychological evaluation done privately. The evaluation will help determine whether or not your child has ADHD (and/or other learning challenges). At that point, he or she may qualify for support services either through an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or a 504 plan. You can also help your child at home by creating routines, limiting distractions, breaking down tasks into individual steps, and encouraging movement. The more proactive you can be at identifying your child’s ADHD and seeking the right strategies and services to support him, the more successful and confident he will be as the demands of school progress.

Dr. Emily Levy is the founder of EBL Coaching, a tutoring program that specializes in one-on-one home and on-site instruction for students in grades preK-12 in NYC, NJ, and Westchester. She is also the author of Strategies for Study Success, a study skills workbooks series emphasizing test taking, note taking, reading comprehension, writing, and executive functioning strategies, and the Flags and Stars Orton Gillingham student workbook series. These books are currently used at schools nationwide. Dr. Levy studied at Brown University and later received her Masters Degree in Special Education and her Doctorate Degree in Education. She has spoken nationwide on research-based methods for teaching students with and without learning disabilities. Dr. Levy is currently the Director of EBL Coaching’s learning centers.

The post Does My Child Have ADHD? appeared first on EBL Coaching.

Your Child and Autism
Many parents have that ‘a-ha’ moment when they realize their child may have a more profound challenge than previously expectant. Unlike your friend’s kid at the same age- your child has trouble maintaining friendships, struggles to communicate, or demonstrates repetitive body movements. Perhaps they have difficulty relating to the world around them and seems inflexible with their thoughts and behaviors. If you notice these characteristics, don’t ignore them. While your child could be delayed, it may be wise to seek a professional opinion and check if your child may be on the autism spectrum.

Learn the Milestones
Many children with autism show developmental delays early on and don’t meet typical milestones. For instance, by 6-9 months, most babies can sit up without support, babble sounds, and respond to their name. By 9-12 months, babies typically grab objects and toys, crawl, and stand independently. Most children can walk independently between ages 1-3, climb stairs, jump, stack objects, speak in short sentences, and follow basic directions. Between ages 3-5, children can typically toss a ball overhand, get dressed independently, and draw a full person with all features. Children ages 6-12 generally have developed strong friendships with peers and are usually independent in completing their school work. If you notice delays or regression in any of these milestones and your instincts tell you something is off, your child may be at risk for autism.

Identifying Autism
If you think your child has autism, take action. The sooner you identify and address autism, the better it will be for your family. Speak to your child’s doctor; he or she may inquire as to whether all developmental milestones have been met and may recommend an autism screening. This screening typically consists of a series of yes or no questions regarding symptoms. If your doctor suspects that your child may have autism, your child may need to have a full diagnostic evaluation by an ASD specialist. Typically, the evaluator will observe your child, ask you as the parent a series of questions, fill out questionnaires, and administer a series of tests to your child. These factors will allow the evaluator to identify whether or not your child may have autism so you can take appropriate action for a concrete diagnosis.

Your Child Receives an ASD Diagnosis — Next Step
First off, don’t panic. There are many resources and a great deal of support available for children with autism, and your child is certainly not alone! However, the earlier you intervene and seek your child’s services, the more gains you will see. Once you receive the diagnosis, which typically includes a full report, read it thoroughly and review the evaluator or doctor’s recommendations. Reach out to your child’s school to let them know about the diagnosis and inquire about creating an IEP (Individualized Education Program) to map out the services your child will receive based on their needs. These services may include special education classroom placement, speech therapy, occupational therapy, behavioral therapy, physical therapy, social skills groups, etc. Also, learn what you can do at home to help your child, such as creating a set structure and routine and rewarding good behavior. The more you can work as a team with your child’s doctors, educators, and therapists, this will help provide consistent support to your child.

Many children with autism are kind, loving, high-achieving individuals who have countless gifts. With the right support, your child can succeed academically and thrive in life.

Dr. Emily Levy is the founder of EBL Coaching, a tutoring program that specializes in one-on-one home and on-site instruction for students in grades preK-12 in NYC, NJ, and Westchester. She is also the author of Strategies for Study Success, a study skills workbooks series emphasizing test taking, note taking, reading comprehension, writing, and executive functioning strategies, and the Flags and Stars Orton Gillingham student workbook series. These books are currently used at schools nationwide. Dr. Levy studied at Brown University and later received her Masters Degree in Special Education and her Doctorate Degree in Education. She has spoken nationwide on research-based methods for teaching students with and without learning disabilities. Dr. Levy is currently the Director of EBL Coaching’s learning centers.

The post Your Child and Autism: Steps to Take If You Think Your Child is Autistic appeared first on EBL Coaching.

Set Small Goals
Another way to boost your child’s reading while at home is to set small goals. Say, for instance, your child constantly skips over or changes small articles when reading, like the words “the”, “and”, & “an”. Have them select a page in a book and read it once as a cold read. Then he should go back through the passage and, using a light pencil, underline every article on the page to draw attention to them. Then he should read the passage once more, this time paying attention to the articles and making sure he doesn’t skip any of them. Other goals may include having your child stop and try to sound out words when reading rather than looking at the first letter and guessing at the word, or pausing when he sees a period.

Play Games!
Try making reading more fun with games. For younger children who are learning basic consonant-vowel-consonant words, like “cat,” “tug” and “pig”, create a game of Reading Tic Tac Toe.‎ To do so, draw a typical Tic-Tac-Toe board and write a word that follows the reading pattern they are learning in each square. Have your child go first. Before they can write their X or O over the word, they must read the word correctly. Then you go, they go, and so on. Like a typical Tic Tac Tow game, the first one to get a straight line wins. You can create Tic-Tac-Toe boards with more complex words, or even sight words, as your child’s skills progress. Moose Materials, located at moosematerials.com, offers some fantastic Orton Gillingham reading games for decoding practice at various levels.

Try Orton Gillingham Tutoring
If your child continues to struggle despite trying these ideas, you may want to consider Orton Gillingham tutoring. This method is research-based, multi-sensory, and designed to help students with dyslexia improve their reading and spelling skills. While this instruction typically takes place in an in-person setting, many tutors are now able to provide Orton Gillingham tutoring very successfully using a virtual modality. It may be worth trying since a reading slide during the COVID period could set your child back tremendously.

COVID has created challenges for so many kids and adults. Yet students with dyslexia can’t afford to have their academic skills slide during this time period. Try these strategies at home and you can help your child with dyslexia avoid this slide and continue to progress academically.

The post Help Your Child With Dyslexia Avoid the COVID Slide appeared first on EBL Coaching.

How can you decide if a specialized school is right for your child? Dr. Emily Levy shares the pros and cons of signing up.

Your fourth grade daughter was diagnosed with dyslexia and is struggling to read. Your son with ADHD constantly loses his belongings and has difficulty staying focused. Perhaps you have child with a writing disorder, math disorder, or language challenges who is having trouble mastering basic skills. If any of these scenarios describes your child and she is struggling to stay afloat academically, it may be time to explore a specialized school. Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of switching your child to this type of school.

Pros
There’s no doubt that switching your child to a specialized school will provide him with a great deal of support. He may be in a smaller classroom size with a teacher (or more than one teacher) who is highly trained and qualified as a special educator. If he needs accommodations, like preferential seating, untimed tests, or notes printed for him, he will naturally receive them in this type of setting. Additionally, many students with special education needs often spend a great deal of time outside of school receiving speech therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, or the like. In many specialized settings, this support is built into the student’s day, allowing for much more free time outside of school and the chance to be a kid!

Socially, some special education students may feel isolated in a maintream school. They might find that they are “different” and can’t relate to the other kids in their class. As a result, poor self esteem, anxiety, and other mental health issues may arise. In a specialized setting, however, students will be with others like themselves, forming a nice camaraderie and bond with one another.

For kids with severe special needs, being in a specialized school may help strengthen their academics, help them socially, and make them feel better about themselves overall.

Cons
While specialized schools are great environments for some students, for others they may not be the best fit. Socially, while some students enjoy being a controlled environment with students just like themselves, others find it a bit too cohesive, and may enjoy being around other kids with different strengths and weaknesses. Some students thrive on this type of diversity.

Being in a specialized school, especially for a long period of time, can often lead to challenges transitioning to a mainstream school down the road. Some specialized schools, for instance, may lower their standards to accommodate the academic levels of the student body. Students may get used to these standards and expectations, which can be vastly different from those ‎in a mainstream environment, and thus struggle academically when they switch to a non-specialized school.

Specialized schools can also be very expensive and cost-prohibitive to many families. While some government funding may be available, not all students may qualify for this type of funding and not all schools will accept it.

What to Do
The choice between keeping your child in a mainstream environment with special services or transitioning her into a specialized school can be a tough one. If you find that she is able to achieve success and feel self-confident in a mainstream school with services that are helpful but not overwhelming, that may be the best choice—especially for the time being. If, however, you find that the amount of tutoring, therapy, and other services outside of school begins to consume her life, leaving little room for “fun” and extracurricular activities, it may be time to explore a specialized school. Ultimately, you know your child best. Assessing the pros and cons of each option, and observing your child’s success or struggles, will help you come to this important decision.

The post Is A Specialized School Right For Your Child? appeared first on EBL Coaching.

Summer is a time for rest, relaxation, and fun in the sun. Yet it is also a long period of time without consistent academic instruction, and many students show significant skills regression during this time.‎ Some ‎children receive consistent tutoring during the school year, but what happens when summer comes? If your child is in camp all day or is exhausted from long days in the sun, do you continue with tutoring over the summer?‎ For struggling learners, the answer may be obvious, but even those who may not be struggling can benefit from the many advantages of summer tutoring.

Remediate Academic Weaknesses

For students who struggle in school, summer is an ideal time for tutoring – often at a more intensive level. In fact, numerous research studies support the importance of intensive tutoring, especially for struggling learners. ‎A study conducted at the University of Chicago Urban Education lab found that ninth and tenth graders who were struggling with math learned three years’ worth of skills from intensive tutoring over an eight month time period.

During the summer, students are relieved of the academic constraints of school, which can prevent them from receiving proper remediation of their academic weaknesses. Students with dyslexia, for instance, may need to learn how to sound out words starting at a very basic level and gradually progress upwards as they master each sound, syllable, and word type. Yet with a full plate of homework and tests, it can be hard to fit in proper reading remediation. During the summer, however, students can make significant progress with intensive remediation.

Build Stronger Study Skills

‎Many students, particularly those with ADHD or executive functioning weaknesses, have poor study skills. They often lose belongings, forget to turn in homework, neglect to bring home the proper books or notes, and are generally disorganized. Summer is a great time for students to receive tutoring in specific tools and strategies to help them develop stronger study and executive functioning skills. For instance, they may benefit from learning a 3-tier organizational system that their tutor can help them set up prior to the school year starting. Tier 1 is a working notebook, or a notebook your child takes to school with him on a regular basis. Tier 2 is an accordion file that he leaves at home, and that contains three sections for each class: tests, homework, and notes/quizzes (the tutor can help your child set up and label this accordion file prior to the school year starting). Tier 3 is a long-term filing drawer or cabinet, designed for projects or essays he may want to keep for the long-run. The key to this system is setting up a “clean out my working notebook” day prior to the start of the school year, where your child plans to clean out all papers he absolutely does not need to be carrying with him on a regular basis and files them into the appropriate section of his working notebook.

Review & Preview Material

Many students feel academically “checked out” by the end of the school year. Yet their teacher may continue teaching new concepts up until the very last day. As a result, your child may miss out on key concepts that she will likely need for the following school year. Thus, summer is an ideal time for your child to work with a tutor on reviewing previously taught material to make sure she fully understands it. Summer is also a great time to preview material to come, whether it’s new math concepts or content-specific subjects. You may even be able to ask your child’s school for the topics that will be taught in the upcoming year, so that you or your child’s tutor can give her a head-start.

Boost Your Child’s Self-Esteem

Some children end the school year feeling happy and successful. Yet others feel tired, burnt out, and frustrated with poor performance. Having your child work with a tutor over the summer can help her build stronger academic skills, which can ultimately help her feel better about herself and help her start the school year feeling proud and confident. ‎It’s hard to imagine a better way to begin the school year!

Summer can serve as a nice break from school. Yet all play and no school can have lasting consequences. Many students regress academically over the summer. Don’t let your child’s skills slide as the summer months progress; instead, provide him with the proper tools and instruction to strengthen his academic skills and help him jump-start the new school year on a positive note.

The post How Summer Tutoring Can Help Students with Learning Disabilities and ADHD appeared first on EBL Coaching.

Some students naturally thrive in school.  They enjoy the thrill of solving complex math word problems, ace timed writing exams, and find pleasure in creating mnemonics for new science terms. Yet for others, school is a stress-inducing struggle. They dread completing homework, have difficulty studying for exams, and develop poor self-esteem from their academic challenges. For these students, a tutor may be immensely valuable. How do you know when your child needs a tutor?

Slipping Grades

For many students, the beginning of elementary school is a cinch. They master basic reading and math skills and enjoy completing homework assignments and worksheets independently. Their grades typically remain consistently strong. Yet some students reach a pinnacle – often around 3rd or 4th grade – when the academic demads accelerate and their grades start to drop. If you notice that your child’s grades dip consistently for a period of three to four months, he may benefit from some additional support. Certain concepts may confuse him, such as fractions and decimals in math, or metamorphosis in science. He may have trouble understanding what he reads or making inferences from the more complex material. While writing may have previously been a stregth for him when it was limited to basic sentences,  composing full paragrpahs or essays may completely stymie him. In such cases, working with a one-on-one tutor can be very beneficial.

Her Confidence Dips

Parents always find pleasure in raising a confident child who has a strong self-esteem and belief in her own abilities. Yet when this confidence dips – or doesn’t exist from the ghetgo – a parent may develop concerns. Often times, when children feel they are not “good” at an academic skill – they see their peers reading chapter books, for instance, when they can only read 3-letter words in basic BOB books – their self-esteem may tumble. They might feel they can “never” be good at math or are terrible at writing when, in reality, with some one-on-one coaching, they have the ability to excel at each of these skills. By building a child’s academic skills through tutoring, her self-esteem often improves along with it.

Homework Meltdowns

Some children come home from school and complete their homework independently with no or little prompting. If they encounter a challenge,  they calmly ask a peer or parent to help them through it. Yet for other kids, the task of completing homework – or at least certain types of homework – can seem insurmountable. They may lose their patience, become easily frustrated, and often have complete meltdowns. When parents try to help, the turmoil sometimes rises – ultimately negatively affecting the parent-child relationship. Often times, a third party tutor – someone who is not mom or dad – can be just the solution for building skills, easing frustration, and preventing these dreaded meltdowns.

Poor Time Management Skills

As children move through school, the studying and time management demands increase rapidly. The number of exams and homework assignments quickly rise – often along with additional extra curricular activities and other time-intensive demands – and children must learn to effectively manage their time ‎in order to fit it all in. Many students, however, have poor executive functioning and time management skills. Those who once thrived in school often start to plummet academically as these demands rise. They may push off studying and assignments to the last minute, turn in projects late, or stay up until the early hours of morning to complete all of their work. A tutor can teach these students concrete strategies for more effectively planning and managing their time so their seemingly insurmountable work and activity load feels much more manageable.

Your Child Asks for a Tutor

When most of us were children, the idea of working with a tutor seemed almost like a punishment. Children felt subpar, or not “good enough” to succeed on their own if they needed a tutor. Yet in our current high-demand environment, with Common Core standards and new advances in our curricula, having a tutor – someone to help students navigate this challenging path – can seem like a gift. The negative connotation connected to tutoring has turned positive and many kids and parents now see the real positive value tutoring offers. In fact, while parents used to be the sole tutor-seekers, many students now self-advocate and ask their parents for a tutor, seeing how this support has helped their peers and friends and can help them too.

As children move from elementary to high school, the academic and studying demands increase exponentially. Some students can keep up with these increasing demands on their own but many benefit from additional instruction. If you notice your child struggling, you may want to consider a tutor. Having this added support can help your child feel calm, confident, and successful in school.

The post How Do I Know When My Child Needs a Tutor? appeared first on EBL Coaching.

In this day and age of preschools requiring interviews and extensive admissions testing, it feels like the pressure is on parents ridiculously early to give their children a jump start in their education. From getting into the right school to placing into a Gifted and Talented program, it can feel like you’re dooming your own child if you’re not helping them stay a step ahead of their peers. And then, of course, there are the plethora of learning or developmental disabilities we have to be on the look out for because we know that early intervention is key. It’s no wonder parents and children alike are completely stressed out over the whole ordeal!

To calm our nerves and get some professional insight, we consulted with Dr. Emily Levy, author of Study Success and the Flags and Stars five-part Orton Gillingham student workbook series, and Founder & Director of EBL Coaching, a specialized tutoring program offering individualized home and on-site one-on-one instruction in New York City, New Jersey and Westchester.

MN: How and when can we begin to introduce the idea of basic learning skills at home?

EL: Starting from as young as age two, parents can develop basic skills with their children in “fun” and engaging ways. For example, drawing letters with your fingers together in sugar or colored sand, or writing letters on the bottoms of rubber duckies and having your child flip them over in the bath and indicate the name or phonetic sound of the letter they found. You can also teach basic math skills through play. For example, have the child build two block towers and talk about which tower is taller or shorter and which has more or less blocks. The “Let’s Take a Trip” game is also great. The parent starts out with something like, “I took a trip to the store and bought two pieces of fruit. Show me what I bought.” The child pulls out two pieces of fruit from the fridge. Next, the parent says, for example, “I was still hungry so I went back to the store and bought three more pieces of fruit.” The child pulls out three more pieces of fruit. The parent then says, “How many pieces of fruit did I buy altogether?” The child counts the pieces of fruit and says five. The key is to keep the exercises playful, fun, and engaging.

MN: What are the most common learning disabilities and what signs should we be on the lookout for?

EL: Signs of learning disabilities can become evident at a very young age. If a child struggles with basic phonemic awareness skills such as rhyming or identifying sounds within words, or has trouble grasping sound/letter relationships or basic writing, he may be at risk for a learning disability. However, a full evaluation is needed to determine if in fact a learning disability is present. If a child does have a learning disability, using research-based, multi-sensory instruction often helps remediate any weaknesses.

MN: What are the biggest learning challenges you see in the various age groups?

EL: Preschool: Many toddlers have trouble grasping the names of letters and their corresponding sounds. They also may have trouble with rhyming, recognizing sounds in words, and identifying syllables.

Kindergarten/1st Grade: Many children have trouble decoding, or blending sounds together to form words when reading and spelling. They also may have trouble comprehending what they read, especially if reading is a slow, laborious process for them.

2nd/3rd Grade: Students often have trouble with reading fluency and understanding how to break down math word problems. They might have nice ideas but struggle to express them on paper when writing.

Upper Elementary: As students move from learning to read to reading to learn, the emphasis on reading for understanding becomes greater. Thus, many children struggle to identify salient information when reading and grasp the main idea. They also may struggle to express their ideas on paper in the form of well-written paragraphs and have trouble solving multi-step problems.

Middle/High School: At this age students often struggle with study and organizational skills. They may have trouble taking notes, managing their time, organizing their belongings, and studying for tests – along with core academic challenges, such as writing, reading comprehension, and math.

MN: We see you use the Orton Gillingham approach in the workbooks you’ve written and utilize in your tutoring program. Could you explain what this is?

EL: The Orton Gillingham approach is a research-based, multi-sensory technique for building reading and spelling skills. The approach begins with sound/letter relationships and later moves into blending simple and complex sounds to form words. It integrates the visual, auditory, and tactile/kinesthetic modalities simultaneously. I strongly believe that this is the most effective method for teaching children. In my Flags and Stars multi-sensory phonics program, students learn to understand how individual sounds blend together to form words, starting with simple two and three letter words and moving into words with blends, consonant and vowel digraphs, silent e patters, and multi-syllabic words. My Strategies for Study Success student workbook series teaches students in elementary through middle school research-based strategies for test taking, note taking, summarizing, highlighting, and writing.

MN: If you could pass along one piece of advice for parents regarding the education of their children, what would it be?

EL: It’s so important for students to build a real zest for reading and learning. They should enjoy the process of learning, rather than perceiving it as series of workbooks to complete or tests to take. When possible, parents should try to make learning fun, exciting, interesting, and playful, so that that the child ultimately develops a true love of learning.

The post Academic Success Strategies for Students with Learning Disabilities appeared first on EBL Coaching.