Therapy vs. Tutoring

When East Valley Literacy, a satellite for Arizona Literacy & Learning Center, opened in 2008 in Gilbert, the hope was to have proven, research-based therapy available to children, adolescents and adults with dyslexia. Research makes it very clear that if given the correct type of instruction in the major areas of reading (phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension), individuals with dyslexia can and will learn to read. Brain wiring differences mean these individuals should be taught the way they learn, not the way instruction has always been provided. The therapy provided at East Valley Literacy uses models which actually change the way the brain functions with print.

With that in mind, we began with one student. Sam was a lively, energetic, smart and very angry 4th grader. His parents pulled him from public school because he was having so much trouble in the regular classroom. He explained, "When you can't read and the teacher makes you read in front of your friends, they make fun of you and you feel stupid. This always happens! Why can’t I get it? Why can’t I spell and write the way I think?"

Sam was a classic dyslexic child. His intelligence, creativity, visualization and people skills were top notch. He just was unable to break the reading code. At first he was angry and reluctant to try again. However, once he began to see success, once reading made sense to him, he couldn't get enough therapy. He practiced at home every day with his mother. Sam made incredible growth. In fact, due to the testing provided by ALLC EV, Sam returned to public school and was placed in a resource room where he could receive the appropriate instruction. Because this school system uses Orton-Gillingham based remediation materials, Sam has been able to learn and grow within the school setting. He needed to know why he had difficulty learning to read and write and to receive the correct program, with the correct intensity from a well-trained teacher.