I sat down casually to check in with a mom to see if she had been doing her homework. “Not every day, but nearly everyday,” was her response. This was good. Most of the time when I ask, I get that guilty look that tells me they have not been doing the same listening therapy that we are asking the kids to do. Modeling that behavior is one of the most powerful tools that parents have.
I decided to ask a little more. “So how are things going at home?” What she shared with me after that was the reason that I love coming to work everyday. She told me that things are going REALLY well. Her daughter had only started the program about four weeks ago. The big victory was a spelling test dated from when they started compared to a spelling test taken four weeks later.
The first test received a score of about 70%. This was a typical test. The same kind of mistakes she always makes. Leaving off an “e” from this word, and an “s” from that word. The handwriting was immature. The letters didn’t always sit on the line. Letter size varied within the same word.
Then she told me about the second test. This mom’s eyes lit up. “She got 100%! The handwriting was beautiful and uniform. Her confidence has skyrocketed! I don’t want to exaggerate. Is this normal?”
She went on to tell me that her 9-year-old daughter now has the confidence that has been missing. When we first met, this mom was worried, and rightfully so. Her little girl is very dyslexic. She is also very smart and self-aware. This fourth grader knew that she wasn’t measuring up with the other kids in class. Her self-confidence had eroded and mom feared that the future was bleak.
Both mom and daughter are feeling much more optimistic. There is more work to be done. We aren’t out of the woods yet. But in the other room, I can hear this young lady working, and I can hear the confidence in her voice. It wasn’t there just 4 weeks ago.
Lauren
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