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100 Powerful Learning Specialist and Educational Therapy Materials

This week I wanted to tell you about my online store, Good Sensory Learning. I’m Dr. Erica Warren, and I established this site so I could share all the materials that I have created over the last 20+ years as a learning specialist and educational therapist. When I first began my private practice, Learning to Learn, I had great difficulty finding fun and multisensory materials for my students that were effective and engaging. So back in 2005, I made it my mission to design and distribute high-end, remedial products as well as memorable, motivating lessons that bring delight to learning. If you would like to try a free sampling of my activities , CLICK HERE . How Are the Products Organized at Good Sensory Learning? You can download my Free Printable Catalog or you can browse the site using the grey “search all products” bar in the top right of any page with keywords such as dyslexia, working memory, and executive functioning. What’s more, drop down menus in the red banner allow you t...

How to Get Money Back for Tutoring Costs

Many parents despair when they learn that tutoring, educational therapy, or other types of learning assistance is not covered by insurance. Even when there is a diagnosis, getting the needed academic support and cognitive remediation can be an expensive prospect. To make matters worse, more and more families are acquiring support outside of the schools, so the “academic bar” of classroom expectations is continually elevated. As a result, with growing competition for desirable college acceptances, for those who cannot afford this outside support, their children are often placed at a profound disadvantage. You Often Get What You Pay For: Like many things, the more finances you can allocate for professional help, the better the services. Large tutoring franchises do not have the funds to hire highly trained professionals, and if they do have some talented employees, they rarely offer one to one assistance. What’s more, they tend to place kids onto boring workbooks, and they offer som...

How Can I Improve My Reading Speed and Comprehension?

There are all sorts of companies that are trying to sell “speed reading” programs and a “quick comprehension fix.” I often evaluate these products, and I continually find them, too good to be true. What I do know, as a seasoned reading specialist, and educational therapist, is there is not a single solution that serves every struggling reader. So why is this and what can you do? Why Does the Solution to Improved Reading Differ Across Individuals? The secret to improving both reading speed and comprehension depends on each individual’s learning profile and preferences. What are the cognitive weaknesses that are causing the reading difficulties? These deficits need to be remediated through individualized support and accommodated with assistive technology tools. In addition, what are the cognitive strengths of the learner? Tapping into these abilities can help struggling readers develop compensatory strategies or workarounds. Finally, looking at individual preferences can also help. Thi...

Free Dyslexia Screener - Should Testing Be Pursued?

From dyslexic jokes to the many documented strengths recently touted in research and the media, having the learning disability, dyslexia has become a “cool” badge that many now proudly display. Because of this recent change of heart, people are continually disclosing to me that they are a self-diagnosed dyslexic that slipped through the system. Additionally, parents are now openly embracing this label, and with a formal diagnosis in hand, students can receive “reasonable accommodations” that can help them to actualize their true potential. If you've wondered if you or your child may have dyslexia, you may also wonder what you should do first. The Steps to Determine a Diagnosis of Dyslexia and Acquiring Accommodations The first step: Use my dyslexia screener . This quick, free, 20-question evaluation can be administered and scored by a parent/guardian, teacher, or taken by the individual who may have dyslexia. This will help to determine whether there is enough symptomology t...

Dysphonetic and Dyseidetic Dyslexia - What is the Difference?

Meeting the needs of a student with dyslexia can be a complicated process because most require an individualized approach. Although two students might struggle with common symptoms such as word reversals or spelling problems, the underlying causes can be remarkably different. This is true because there are a variety of cognitive-based deficits that can cause a diagnosis of dyslexia. The two most common, core difficulties lie within the processing of either auditory or visual information. Dysphonetic Dyslexia: Those with dysphonetic dyslexia experience difficulties connecting sounds to letter symbols, sounding out words, and spelling words phonetically. Although hearing is not impaired, the problem lies in the way the brain processes this auditory information. For example, a student with dysphonetic dyslexia may struggle to discriminate the difference between the short vowel sounds. Dyseidetic Dyslexia: In contrast, those with dyseidetic dyslexia do not have difficulties with proc...

11 Strategies to Make Homework Fun and Manageable

Doing homework after a long day of school can be a real backbreaker for many young learners! Downtime is both limited and cherished, so making assignments enticing is key. So, what can we do to make the process less burdensome and possibly pleasing? Homework Don'ts: Never pair homework with a punishment. When this is done, students associate homework with unpleasantries, and it can have a negative impact on future assignments. Don't call home assignments, "homework." Who wants to take their work home? Besides, when it is called work, it becomes work. Personally, I like to call it, "home fun!" Homework Dos: Create enticing names for home assignments. For example, I never teach script or cursive. I teach roller-coaster letters!  Generate excitement about upcoming assignments by sharing your own excitement and enthusiasm for the content.  Bring creative options such as drawing, sculpting, and music into assignments. Introduce the fun fac...

Boost Reading Comprehension By Exercising Visualization Skills

One of the most common questions I get asked is how to help students improve reading comprehension. There are many books on this topic, and the vast majority of strategies involve a structured and mindful approach to teaching this skill. While this can serve many students, I have found that the best possible tool to nurture voracious readers is to teach students how to apply visualization skills while reading. Although this is not a strategy that is taught often, the  research behind this approach is robust and has been used for centuries . Why is Visualization Important in the Reading Process? Can you imagine what it would be like to go to the movies with your eyes closed?  Who would want to do that?  It would be hard to maintain attention.  In addition, it would be difficult to comprehend and remember the plot, because images help to support the storyline and develop the characters. Similarly, reading without visualizing can cause comparable difficu...