A Parent’s Roadmap to Dyslexia: Testing, Tutoring, and Getting the Help Your Child Needs

It can be frustrating, terrifying, and overwhelming to watch your child struggle to read or to find out that they have dyslexia.  Most parents who come to me report monumental difficulties.  Oftentimes the school wants to take a wait and see approach or doesn’t seem to know how to help, the amount of information (or lack of helpful information) is beyond exhausting.  Where do you turn?  What do you do?

I created this post to offer you a roadmap.  Whether or not you choose to get online dyslexia help with us, I want you to feel informed and empowered and know how to help your child.  In it, I will go over several major questions that many parents have, and end with some suggestions of how to help.  If you find this helpful, please share it and remember to check out Your Dyslexia Expert if you want to go right to the source with expert online dyslexia therapy and remote private tutoring and school advocacy tailored to your child’s needs.

Should I Get Testing?

The answer to this question depends on what you hope to gain from the testing and who you are seeking testing from.  

Private testing can give you excellent information; however, in general it can’t get you support.  The criteria that schools use to determine whether a child has a learning disability, and the criteria that diagnosticians use, are very different.  Many students who have dyslexia will never qualify for an IEP, the document that allows students to receive special education services.  That said, if you are working with a competent dyslexia tutor or dyslexia therapist, the information you gain from private testing can be incredibly helpful.

Testing that you get from your child’s public school almost certainly won’t give you a dyslexia diagnosis but can qualify you for special education services.  Many parents do not know that they have a legal right to request special education testing, and that when testing is requested in the right way the school must respond either with testing or an official document explaining why they are declining to test.  Most of the time they just test.  What is this magical strategy?  PUT EVERYTHING IN WRITING.  Put in writing that you want special education testing for a reading disability and any potential related services. Send your request as an email.  Make sure that the classroom teacher, special education teacher, and principal are all copied on the email.  That will ensure that at least one person who understands the legal responsibility to respond in writing will see the request.

Should I Get A Tutor?

As a dyslexia specialist and tutor, I am a little biased on this subject.  The answer is that everybody can benefit from one on one instruction from a specialist and in a perfect world everybody would have one.  It is just easier to learn that way.  That is why we offer online dyslexia help and expert online dyslexia tutoring.  However, we don’t live in a perfect world.  While a specialist would give you the best chance at the best possible outcome, there are many tools that you can use yourself to help your kid.  I recommend looking at the Barton curriculum.  It is written so that people who are not experts in reading instruction can use it.  I also recommend reading as much about Dyslexia as you can.  Overcoming Dyslexia by Dr. Shaywitz is a particularly good book focusing on dyslexia from a parent perspective.

How Do I Know If A Program Is Good?

This is one area where I strongly recommend trusting the experts.  The first place I send parents is their local branch of the International Dyslexia Association.  They will be able to direct you to excellent resources in your area.  You can also look up the programs of any tutors you find on the Center For Effective Reading Instruction (CERI) or on IMSLEC (The International Multi-sensory Structured Language Education Council).  Any resources referred to you by any of those organizations will be trustworthy and grounded in the science.

We are here to help

Last, I am here to help.  Reach out with any questions, comments, or concerns.  We built this company to make sure that our students get the best education based on the latest science and to help parents navigate the complex school system and the challenges of dyslexia. Get the very best for your child.  Reach out today for online dyslexia help and support that works.

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