Questions 

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                                                           Answers

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1. Does my child need a dyslexia diagnosis to be tutored with Barton Reading and Spelling System?

No, your child does NOT need a dyslexia diagnosis in order to benefit from being tutored using The Barton Reading and Spelling System. If your child is struggling to read and spell, The Barton Reading and Spelling System would be beneficial to him or her. Additionally, students must be at least 5 years old, speak and understand English, have an IQ of 70 or higher, and pass a 10 minute screening in order to benefit from The Barton Reading and Spelling System.

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2. How do I know if my child is dyslexic or not? Are there warning signs?
The only true way to determine if your student is dyslexic or not is to have your child tested by a neuropsychologist or someone who is licensed to diagnosis dyslexia. However, there are indicators that may lead parents to suspect that their child has dyslexia.

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Children with dyslexia are very bright and have a tendency to be very creative and/or artistic. Therefore, it is very surprising that they struggle with reading and spelling. For many children, despite having been provided with remedial reading using various programs inside and outside of school, they still struggle. Often times, their math abilities will begin to suffer as well. Homework is a nightly battle and many tears are shed. A child's self-esteem may begin to suffer because the realization has set in that he/she cannot read like his/her peers. He/she may even begin to withdraw socially or start to become a behavior problem in school.

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​Teachers may say that your child struggles due to an inability to focus in class or they may say that your child is just being lazy or does not try hard enough. You may have been told that your child will eventually catch up if given enough time, yet he/she just keeps falling further and further behind. As a parent, you might have a gut feeling that something is not right, but you just can't seem to figure it out. You may have even gone so far as to have had your child tested by a school psychologist who informed you that your child has a "specific learning disability," but never told you that it might be possibly be dyslexia. These types of scenarios as well as other warning signs may be the first indications that your child may have dyslexia. Susan Barton, the founder of The Barton Reading and Spelling System has a wonderful video that explains the Signs and Symptoms of Dyslexia. If you have a child who is dyslexic, you may be able to relate to much of what Susan has to say. Click here to watch the video.

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3. What do people say about The Barton Reading and Spelling System?

Click here to read some wonderful testimonials from people whose lives have been positively impacted by The Barton Reading and Spelling System.

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4. What is taught in each level in The Barton Reading and Spelling System?

Level 1 Phonemic Awareness

Level 2 Consonants & Short Vowels

Level 3 Closed Syllables and Units

Level 4 Syllable Division & Vowel Teams

Level 5 Prefixes and Suffixes

Level 6 Six Reasons for Silent-E

Level 7 Vowel-R Syllables

Level 8 Advanced Vowel Teams

Level 9 Influences of Foreign Languages

Level 10 Greek Words & Latin Roots

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Please note: The level numbers are not equivalent to grade level. Rather, they indicate the sequence in which the material will be taught.

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5. How long does The Barton Reading and Spelling System take to complete?

There is not an easy answer to this question. The progress that each student makes depends upon how often tutoring takes place as well as how rapidly the student is able to navigate through the program. If a student has difficulties focusing, it is going to take that child longer to complete the material than a child without any issues. Additionally, some students may master material right away, while others may need more time to repeat a lesson and/or review.

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It is estimated that a child with moderate dyslexia with no distractibility issues who receives 1:1 tutoring twice a week could take roughly two and a half years to complete the entire program. For students with mild dyslexia, it may take them much less time.

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6. How often should my child receive tutoring?

Students MUST receive tutoring a minimum of twice a week for 1 hour per session in order to make progress in the program. The Barton Reading and Spelling System is not a quick fix and it requires serious commitment from parents and students in order to be successful.

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7. Does my child have to complete ALL ten levels of The Barton Reading and Spelling System?

 No, your child does not have to complete all ten levels but it is highly recommended. Please keep in mind that levels in The Barton Reading and Spelling System do NOT equate to grade levels. When considering how long to provide tutoring with The Barton Reading and Spelling System, please know that a student will be reading and spelling at the mid-ninth grade level by the end of level ten. Students by this point will have learned every reading and spelling rule in the English language. Therefore, students should be encouraged to complete all levels so that they are prepared for reading in high school and beyond. Elementary students can complete up to and including level eight, and levels nine and ten ideally should be taught at some point in middle school before a child enters high school. Many students do so well with The Barton Reading and Spelling System that they surpass their grade level and reach level ten prior to reaching ninth grade!  

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8. What if my child can read the words on the page but only has comprehension issues? Can The Barton Reading and Spelling System help him?

No, unfortunately if this is the case, The Barton Reading and Spelling System is not the right choice for your child. The Barton Reading and Spelling System is designed for students who have difficulties with figuring out the words in a book or story. It essentially teaches students to read by sounding out unknown words rather than guessing.

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9.What should I do if I suspect my child has dyslexia?

If you suspect that your child has dyslexia, please DO NOT WAIT and see if your child catches up in their reading ability. Reading difficulties are NOT outgrown. If you delay in identifying dyslexia, there is an erosion of self-esteem that can accumulate over the years as your child struggles to read. So, the first thing that you should do is learn as much as you can about dyslexia and determine if your child is exhibiting some of it's warning signs. Susan Barton has an amazing website called Bright Solutions for Dyslexia that has a wealth of information about dyslexia. Sally Shaywitz has written an excellent book called Overcoming Dyslexia that is very informative as well.

 

Once you have learned as much as you can about dyslexia and you strongly suspect that your child may have it, I would recommend that you have your child tested by a neuropsychologist in your area who specializes in dyslexia. (Even though your child's school psychologist may have already administered an evaluation, do not count on them to diagnose your child with dyslexia even if it is suspected. Many school psychologists do not use the word dyslexia nor will they suggest that your child may be dyslexic). 

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If a neuropsychologist has determined that your child does in fact have dyslexia, it is recommended that your child receives one-on-one, intensive, Orton-Gillingham based instruction such as The Barton Reading and Spelling System. You should also discuss with your school whether or not a 504 Plan or an IEP will be necessary and what types of accommodations will be implemented to ensure your child is well-supported in school. Additionally, it is imperative that you make sure that you are helping to boost your child's self-esteem by encouraging him/her to focus on his/her strengths whether in they are in art, music, athletics, etc. For more detailed information on ways that parents can support their dyslexic child, Susan Barton has created an extremely helpful webinar titled 9 Things Parents Can Do.

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10. My child has recently been diagnosed with ADHD. Can students have both ADHD as well as dyslexia?

Yes, between 15-40% of people with dyslexia also have ADHD. 

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11.What is dysgraphia and how is it related to dyslexia?

Dysgraphia refers a learning difficulty with handwriting. Many students who are dyslexic also have dysgraphia. However, a student can have dysgraphia without being dyslexic. Some indicators of dysgraphia include an odd pencil grip, incorrect letter formation, letters that do not sit on the line of a paper, inconsistent letter height, incorrect letter and word spacing, and words that slant in different directions. 

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12. I was told that my child is receiving Orton-Gillingham instruction in school. Shouldn't that be all of the instruction that my child needs?

Some well-meaning schools may use an Orton-Gillingham based reading intervention for their struggling readers. However, many times these interventions are still ineffective for a number of reasons:

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• Teachers do not receive adequate training in the Orton-Gillingham program. Usually they receive training for a week in the summer with no follow-up instruction.

• The size of the reading intervention groups are too large (and often times students with various reading abilities are wrongly grouped together). As a result, students do not receive the individualized attention they need.

• Interventions are not scheduled frequently enough because the reading interventionist only has so many hours in his/her day to see a large number of students.

• Scheduled interventions are interrupted constantly by field trips, assemblies, fire drills, lock down drills, illnesses, snow days, standardized testing, holidays, daily travel time to and from a resource room, etc.

• Teachers realistically cannot wait for every student in a group to master a concept before moving on. Therefore, the neediest students often will get left behind.

• Most Orton-Gillingham curriculums do not screen students to determine if they have the skills that are necessary to succeed in the program.

• Many schools do not use the Orton-Gillingham programs with fidelity. Even though Orton-Gillingham programs recommend that students use controlled (decodable) texts, schools may choose to incorporate uncontrolled, leveled texts in the name of "balanced literacy," which promotes guessing and confusion in dyslexic students.

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13. My child is in middle school and nobody has ever mentioned the possibility that my he could be dyslexic? How could this be?

Sadly, this is an extremely common occurrence. In many colleges and universities, teachers are not being taught about dyslexia. According to OhioHigherEd.org, less than 14% of teachers are confident that they can recognize dyslexia in a child. Additionally, less than 9% of teachers feel confident that they could teach a dyslexic student to read.Therefore, unless teachers have sought professional development on their own, they would not be able to recognize the warning signs of dyslexia nor would they know how to teach dyslexic students.  

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14. Where does tutoring take place?

Tutoring takes place in a beautiful, newly renovated office located at 10 Center Rd. West Seneca, N.Y. 14224. Online tutoring is also available.

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15. How much does tutoring cost?

The cost of tutoring is $40 per hour. This includes books and materials that students will need during their tutoring sessions. 

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16. Can I just have my student tutored for the summer?

Unfortunately, this is an unrealistic expectation. The Barton Reading and Spelling System is not a quick fix for students who only need minimal assistance with reading. It is a comprehensive program that sequentially addresses reading difficulties in students who are not reading at their current grade level. It requires serious commitment over an extended period of time until your child closes his or her reading gap. The length of time that it takes to close a reading gap depends upon how far behind your child is in his or her reading, how often they receive tutoring, as well as a variety of other factors.

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17. Do you tutor adults?

Absolutely! Adult students are always welcome at Buffalo Dyslexia Center as well. A person is never too old to learn to become a great reader and speller!

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