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Levi Soars To Success With Take Flight

Levi Soars To Success With Take Flight

by | Oct 4, 2024 | Dyslexia & Learning Disorders

“We thank God for connecting us with Scottish Rite,” says Levi’s dad, Josh. “Levi was unable to recognize his letters when we first arrived, and now he’s reading chapter books.”

Nine-year-old Levi, of Arlington, is a creative spirit with a passion for reading. Each book offers him a chance to immerse himself in new adventures. With support from his family and care team at Scottish Rite, Levi is confidently navigating life with dyslexia.

Levi is the second youngest out of eight children, all homeschooled by their mom, Kelly. When it was time for Levi to start kindergarten, Kelly recognized his struggle with reading from her past experiences.

“Our second oldest daughter, Grace, was in first grade when my wife noticed she was having difficulty reading,” Josh says. “We were still living in Austin at the time, and Grace was diagnosed with dyslexia. We worked closely with a local language therapist to provide Grace with the tools she needed. She just graduated college in 2023!”

At age 5, Levi was evaluated by experts at Scottish Rite for Children’s Luke Waites Center for Dyslexia and Learning Disorders. After his assessment, Levi was diagnosed with dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

“If parents suspect there might be an issue, we encourage getting your child evaluated as quickly as possible,” Josh says. “Once you know dyslexia is the diagnosis, don’t panic. There is nothing wrong with your child. Your child’s brain just processes things differently. In fact, Kelly and I view dyslexia as a gift.”

According to the American Psychiatric Association, 5 to 15% of children have a learning disability, and approximately 80% of all children diagnosed with a learning disorder have dyslexia. Dyslexia is a condition which causes difficulty with reading and spelling. This results in a child’s trouble to read aloud, express themselves and connect sounds to written words or letters. ADHD is characterized by an inability to focus on one task and excess movement during tasks. Programs, like Scottish Rite’s Take Flight: A Comprehensive Intervention for Students with Dyslexia , are designed as an early intervention to equip children with essential learning strategies and boost their overall school performance.

“We were looking into finding private language therapy for Levi, just like we had done for our daughter,” Josh says. “It turned out there was an opening for Levi to enroll in the Take Flight program at Scottish Rite. We jumped at this chance.”

With help from his instructors and language therapists, Levi discovered what learning looked like for him. His writing, reading and math skills improved over the 2-year curriculum, and he began taking medication for his ADHD to help him focus on different assignments. Now, he has discovered a new passion for learning!

“We have seen a great progress since Levi started this program,” Josh says. “Levi’s language therapists helped him in ways we could only dream of. His confidence has grown exponentially as a result.”

Now in second grade, Levi has officially graduated from Take Flight’s program. His motivation to learn and passion for reading has only grown since then, and it is a gift to us to continue to watch him flourish!

 “At times, it brings tears to our eyes to hear Levi read,” Josh says. “He has come so far in such a short amount of time. We are incredibly thankful for the impact Scottish Rite made in Levi’s life.”

Recognizing Early Signs of Dyslexia in Preschoolers

Recognizing Early Signs of Dyslexia in Preschoolers

by | Jan 11, 2024 | Dyslexia & Learning Disorders

Dyslexia is the most common learning disorder in the United States, making up approximately 80% of all diagnosed learning disorders, according to the American Psychiatric Association. When not addressed, dyslexia can lead from simple issues in reading, writing and spelling to behavioral problems and anxiety. Knowing the early signs of dyslexia allows you to look for potential difficulties as early as preschool and find treatments that will help your child succeed.

Hallmarks of dyslexia include:

·       Difficulty identifying speech sounds 

·       Difficulty reading aloud

·       Problems with expressing oneself clearly or comprehending what others are saying

·       Trouble connecting sounds to written letters and words 

A family history of trouble learning to read, including dyslexia, can be an indicator of dyslexia, as well.

Spotting Early Signs of Dyslexia

There are many recognizable signs in young children that they may be at risk for a reading disorder. Noticing these signs during preschool or even earlier allows you to work with a specialist and develop a plan that sets your child up for success when he or she starts kindergarten or elementary school.

Signs of dyslexia in preschoolers can include:

·       Being a late talker 

·       Calling things by an incorrect name

·       Difficulty recognizing letters in their name or other familiar words

·       Difficulty remembering instructions with multiple steps

·       Having the vocabulary or speech patterns of a younger child, for example, mispronouncing words, knowing fewer words than developmentally appropriate or continuing to speak in baby talk

·       Inability to recognize rhyming patterns in words or trouble making up new rhymes on their own

·       Trouble learning or difficulty remembering the letters in the alphabet, days of the week or nursery rhymes

School-age children with dyslexia will experience trouble writing and spelling. They may also have difficulty learning to read. Blending sounds in words and sounding out new words may be hard for them. 

If someone identifies early signs of dyslexia in your child, find a specialist who can screen for the condition before kindergarten. These screenings generally take a few hours and involve a review of your child’s family history and factors including vocabulary, listening comprehension and ability to recognize letters. 

Early Interventions for Dyslexia

Preschoolers who receive early interventions for dyslexia often have better success when learning to read. These support services can include therapy services and special educational tools designed to help your child overcome dyslexia. Early intervention can lead to higher self-esteem and confidence and better performance in school overall. 

Some early interventions may include:

·       Blending sounds in words

·       Learning strategies that use sight, sound and touch 

·       Making the connection between words

·       One-on-one tutoring outside of school

·       Work focused on vocabulary, expressing oneself and comprehension

An education specialist can help you decide which interventions that will most help your child. Just like treating an illness or injury, results are better when specialists tailor them to a child’s individual needs.

When children receive these interventions, they often do so in a sequential manner, starting with basic concepts and working their way up to more complex ones. This level of one-on-one attention also lets specialists use all a child’s senses. Children with dyslexia often see the most success when learning strategies incorporate multiple senses, allowing them to become fully engaged with their work.

If you have concerns about your child’s difficulty learning, speaking with your pediatrician is a great place to start. He or she can guide you through the screening process and point you to the best interventions available to help foster your child’s abilities, 

Request an evaluation for your child at Scottish Rite for Children’s Luke Waites Center for Dyslexia and Learning Disorders. 

Anxiety in Children with Dyslexia

Anxiety in Children with Dyslexia

by | Nov 10, 2023 | Dyslexia & Learning Disorders

Anxiety is one of the most common mental health challenges in children, and it affects one in eight children in the United States. While the condition is not unusual, it can present many challenges for those who experience it, especially in academics and education. Our team in the Luke Waites Center for Dyslexia and Learning Disorders shares what parents need to know about anxiety and how to help their child cope. Anxiety coupled with learning differences …
 
What is anxiety?
Anxiety has two important components: psychological symptoms, such as feelings of fear or worry, and physiological symptoms, such as feeling dizzy or shaky, having trouble breathing, headaches, stomachaches or trouble sleeping. For many children, anxiety is a typical emotion and is not a hinderance to their daily life. For others, persistent anxiety can cause problems at home, with friends and in school or in activities.
 
What is normal anxiety versus anxiety requiring a diagnosis?
Typical anxiety that is expected in children is manageable, doesn’t last very long and does not usually go along with significant physical symptoms. However, anxiety that is persistent or longer in duration, includes symptoms that interfere with functioning and causes physical symptoms may indicate that an anxiety disorder is present.
 
What is generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)?
According to the American Psychiatric Association, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) consists of excessive anxiety and worry occurring about several events or activities on more days than not for at least six months. The disorder can be associated with restlessness, mental fatigue, trouble concentrating, muscle tension and sleep disturbance. The condition is rarely identified prior to adolescence, and approximately one percent of adolescents experience GAD over the course of a year. GAD is often associated with academic difficulties.
 
How does anxiety affect education and learning habits?
Anxiety can significantly impact a child’s performance and confidence in the academic setting. Symptoms like difficulty concentrating or restlessness can prevent a student from taking in new information, while fear and worry can affect his or her retention of information, long-term memory and working memory. This can lead to anxiety around test-taking, which further impacts the child’s ability to successfully learn new information. For someone with dyslexia, ….
 
How can anxiety around school or test-taking be improved?
There are multiple factors that contribute to test-taking anxiety or anxiety about performance in academics. Tools that might help with this type of anxiety include changing either behavior or cognitions (thoughts), developing better study skills or developing better test-taking skills. Additionally, biofeedback paired with relaxation techniques has also been shown to be beneficial. If the anxiety around test-taking or school is more severe, consulting with an educational therapist might be needed. There are accommodations that could be requested for those children with learning disorders and/or dyslexia…
 
How to cope with anxiety
There are many ways to help your child learn to manage their anxiety or nervousness. Some techniques that can be implemented at home include:

  • Writing in a journal, coloring or drawing – sometimes it is easier to write or draw than talk.
  • Using a coping skills toolbox – fill a box with sensory items, things your child likes and calming/soothing items for your child to use.
  • Meditation – meditating can help reduce stress and improve sleep and emotional regulation.
  • Relaxing spot – create a place for your child to visit when they are feeling anxious or overwhelmed. This spot should not be used as a time-out spot.
  • Asking for help – it’s important that your child knows to ask for help when they need it.

 
Often anxiety interferes with activities outside of the home. Some different tools to cope with anxiety in public are:
 

  • Box breathing – slowly inhale through your nose to the count of four, and slowly exhale through your mouth while counting to four. (We have or are about to have a video for this. We also have a stress guide that psychology created.)
  • Grounding techniques – focus on five things you can see, four things you touch, three things you can hear, two things you can smell and one thing you can taste. This encourages children to focus on things around them rather than their anxiety.
  • Five finger breathing – spread your hand and stretch your fingers out like a star. Then, use your pointer finger of your other hand and trace around the outline of your hands and fingers. Breathe out as you slide down and breathe in as you slide up your finger.
  • Help from a teacher – work with your child’s teacher(s) to create a signal that your child is experiencing anxiety and needs a break, such as placing a highlighter on their desk. 

When to consider therapy
Anxiety can be a normal emotion for children, but children that are excessively anxious or struggling with activities may benefit from therapy. Therapy can provide a safe space for kids and teens to talk through their worries and identify thoughts that are unhelpful or untrue. There are many different types of therapy, such as:
 

  • Cognitive behavioral therapy
  • Play/pediatric talk therapy
  • Expressive therapy (art/music)
  • Group therapy
  • Family therapy

Anxiety can be a lifelong condition, but it can be managed and improved with the proper support. For children coping with a diagnosis of a medical condition or a learning disorder, there are many places to turn for assistance. If you are concerned about your child’s anxiety, please contact your pediatrician or primary health care provider for assistance.
 
Learn more about the Luke Waites Center for Dyslexia and Learning Disorders.

Get to Know our Staff: Judy Sneed, Center for Dyslexia

Get to Know our Staff: Judy Sneed, Center for Dyslexia

by | Oct 23, 2023 | Dyslexia & Learning Disorders

What is your job title/your role at Scottish Rite for Children? 
I am a department assistant within the Luke Waites Center for Dyslexia and Learning Disorders.

What do you do on a daily basis or what sort of duties do you have at work?
My duties include handling patient check-ins, managing the digital platform for center applications, monitoring the approved patient file process and phone coverage.

What was your first job? What path did you take to get here or what led you to Scottish Rite? How long have you worked here?
My first job was working for Cigna Healthcare filing medical records as a teenager. My dad helped me get the job.

The path that led me Scottish Rite was after I worked in Student Discipline at a local high school. This gave me a unique perspective on how unchecked academic learning disorders affected older children daily in an educational environment. A friend reached out that had been recently hired within the department regarding an opportunity to join the center, and the rest is history. I will have worked here for three years in January 2024.

What do you enjoy most about Scottish Rite?
I enjoy assisting parents, guardians and their children with navigating our evaluation process. I am here to listen to their stories regarding their fears and anxiety about their children’s educational future and see them realizing there is help and hope to help further their children’s academic success.

Tell us something about your job that others might not already know?
I am also certified to conduct vision and hearing screening.

Where is the most interesting place you’ve been?
In 2022, I was able to spend 12 amazing days in Australia visiting Sydney, Melbourne and Port Douglas (where the Great Barrier Reef is located). More destinations soon to come.

If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Some kind of potato meal. If anyone knows me personally, I have loved french fries or any kind of potatoes for as long as I can remember, except for yams or sweet potatoes. Not a fan!

If you could go back in time, what year would you travel to?

The late ‘80s, 1989 – 1990. I had just completed high school and was wide-eyed about my future and was just about to meet someone that would make a tremendous impact on my life then and now.

What three items would you take with you on a deserted island?
I hate making assumptions, however, assuming there would be no electricity, I guess my Bible, some seeds and some fabric. No one in their right mind would be anywhere without food or clothing, plus if I was alone, what an amazing book to let me know I really wasn’t and to provide me with hope of a change in my situation.

What’s one fun fact about yourself?
I worked to replace an engine fan assembly on a classic convertible truck I once owned. Go YouTube University!

Get to Know our Staff: Dachia Kearby, Center for Dyslexia

Get to Know our Staff: Dachia Kearby, Center for Dyslexia

by | Oct 18, 2023 | Dyslexia & Learning Disorders

What is your job title/your role at Scottish Rite for Children?
My job title is dyslexia therapist.

What do you do on a daily basis or what sort of duties do you have at work?
As a part of the Education Team at the Luke Waites Center for Dyslexia and Learning Disorders, there are several duties that I may be doing at any given time. I could be teaching patients in our lab school, training teachers in one of our four curricula, troubleshooting technology questions for our customers or working with Karen Avrit and our team with curriculum development.
 
What was your first job? What path did you take to get here or what led you to Scottish Rite? How long have you worked here?
My very first job was at a store named Perry Bros. For the younger staff, that was a nickel and dime type of store that sold everything from candy to fabric to small animals, such as birds and mice. And yes, part of my job was to clean the bird cages, which is why, to this day, I have never had a pet bird.
 
I worked in the public school system for 15 years as an English, Reading and Language Arts teacher. I was a part of the research study for using Rite Flight in public schools when it first came out and was trained here at Scottish Rite. Working closely with my campus dyslexia teacher and with students that struggled with reading and comprehension for most of my career led me to taking over the dyslexia position at my school when it became available. After a year of therapist training here at Scottish Rite, I was offered a job to teach in the dyslexia lab and finish the technology component of our curriculum, Take Flight. This summer, I celebrated eight years at Scottish Rite.

What do you enjoy most about Scottish Rite?
Being here at Scottish Rite is an amazing place to be. I really enjoy that on any day, I could be walking down the hall and witness a first for a child … taking a first step on a new prosthesis, learning to bounce on a halo and giggling with delight, or getting a diagnosis to explain how amazingly smart the child is but that he or she just learns differently. And no matter where you go within the hospital, there is always a smiling face to greet you.

Tell us something about your job that others might not already know?
I am not afraid of technology and have successfully integrated it into all our curricula. Our team helps teachers from all around Texas, and our curriculum (Take Flight) is being used in 42 states and eight countries.

Where is the most interesting place you’ve been?
Jamaica is the most interesting and beautiful place I’ve ever been. I went there for a friend’s wedding. Between the blue, clear ocean, the hiking trails, the friendly people, and the majestic waterfalls, it was a trip I will never forget.

If you could go back in time, what year would you travel to?
I would travel back to 1999, my first year of teaching. My career started in Fort Bend ISD in Sugarland, Texas. I taught sixth grade English at Dulles Middle School. It was such an amazing year with great mentors, incredible friendships and remarkable students.

If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?
If I could only eat one meal for the rest of my life, it would be a really good cheeseburger, sweet potato fries and a strawberry shake.

What is your favorite Halloween costume that you have worn?
My favorite Halloween costume was many years ago when I was a schoolteacher, and my team dressed up as the characters from The Wizard of Oz. We all worked for several weeks to create our costumes. I was the Wicked Witch, with the green skin and all.

What’s one fun fact about yourself?
I worked in a florist shop in college. Learning to create floral arrangements, corsages, wedding bouquets and homecoming mums was so much fun and a great creative outlet for me. I still enjoy creating them when the occasion calls for it.

Get to Know our Staff: Sheila Burton Adams, Center for Dyslexia

Get to Know our Staff: Sheila Burton Adams, Center for Dyslexia

by | Oct 11, 2023 | Dyslexia & Learning Disorders

What is your job title/your role at Scottish Rite for Children? 
I am an assessment specialist on the Diagnostic Team in the Luke Waites Center for Dyslexia and Learning Disorders. 

What do you do on a daily basis or what sort of duties do you have at work?
My primary duties are two-fold. One, I provide a comprehensive evaluation for the child whose family has concerns that a learning difference is interfering with their child’s academic progress and performance. Secondly, I share the results of the evaluation, describing the child’s strengths and challenges, and provide recommendations for the next steps the family can take to support their child. Evaluation results and recommendations are shared during a telemedicine consultation and in a final written report.

What was your first job? What path did you take to get here or what led you to Scottish Rite? How long have you worked here?
I worked as a school psychologist in Dallas ISD’s Psychological Services department for nine years prior to joining the Center for Dyslexia staff.
I first learned of Scottish Rite for Children as a parent. A few years later, a coworker of my former husband told him about the job posting for the assessment specialist position in the Center for Dyslexia, and I applied. I celebrated my 25th anniversary as part of the Center for Dyslexia Diagnostic Team in August this year.

What do you enjoy most about Scottish Rite?
I enjoy learning from the children I evaluate, having the opportunity to help them and their families understand what their strengths and challenges and providing recommendations and resources that will support these children as they continue their academic journey. 
I also enjoy working with my colleagues in the Center for Dyslexia. They are my work family and some of the most compassionate, generous, intelligent and creative people I’ve ever had the privilege to know.

Tell us something about your job that others might not already know?
A comprehensive evaluation encompasses parent and teacher observations as well as the “whole child,” including his/her cognitive functioning, receptive and expressive language skills, educational opportunities, academic skills and behavioral/emotional functioning and health. 

Where is the most interesting place you’ve been?
I have visited the beaches at the Pacific Ocean (California) and Atlantic Oceans (Florida).

If you could go back in time, what year would you travel to?
I would travel back to 2019, which was the last year my family and I were together for Thanksgiving prior to the pandemic.

If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?
My one and only meal would be pepper beef steak and broccoli, brown rice, egg rolls with sweet and sour sauce, iced tea (half-sweetened, half unsweetened), and frozen fruit bars for dessert.

What is your favorite Halloween costume that you have worn?
I once wore a toga.

What’s one fun fact about yourself?
I really enjoy oceanography and astronomy.