My child's first report card was not good, should I be concerned?

A feature article by 3dlearner, Jan 06, 2008         

The first couple of months of school tend to be a review of last year plus the easier new material-- if there is a performance issue at this time of year there is a compelling reason to act. A new trend is for schools to then add, "and your child might be at risk for retention".

We would like to offer the following 5 Tips to work more effectively with the school, to understand the risks and to make the difference for your child - and 4 More Tips to help your child to be Outrageously Successful:

1- Meet with your child's teachers ASAP --there may be issues that are easy to address or there may be more pressing issues.

If there are new actions that are agreed to, we recommend putting them in writing, staying in touch with the teacher to make sure the agreed upon changes are implemented and you both are checking to see if improvement is being made.

2- If your child is at a public or charter school and they do not have an IEP (Individualized Education Plan), consider making a formal request in writing. If you suspect a learning disability and/or attention issues, request they evaluate for both. The letter might include: "We request a Child Study Team be formed to evaluate our child for both a learning disability and ADHD". Date the letter and make a copy for yourself. If the teacher says let's wait another quarter to see how it goes, we recommend against it, unless there is a compelling reason to do so -- if the first quarter is bad the second quarter is often worse.

3- When you meet, don't go alone - if possible, both parents should be at EVERY meeting of the Child Study Team. If mom or dad cannot make the meeting -- a postponement should be considered. If there is only one parent in the picture, bring a friend or even better an advocate.

4- Assume nothing -- if your child is struggling, either spend more time with them or get the required help -- too often we have heard parents say, "No news is good news".

We recommend staying close and then removing the support gradually.

5- Get outside help if needed. Excellent tutors are far better than a tutor.

FOLLOW 4 STEPS TO OUTRAGEOUS SUCCESS

1- Set Big Goals. We recommend looking at past trends, present performance and where you want your child to be. For example:

Mary, a mom of a 3rd grader looked at his reading level from first to 3rd grade and saw this distressing trend:

Her Son His Peers His performance Vs. His Peers

First Grade - her son: 0.8 years; his peers: 1.8 years; his performance vs. his peers: 1 Year Below Grade Level

Second Grade - her son: 1.4 years; his peers: 2.8 years; his performance vs. his peers: 1.6 Years Below Grade Level

ADVERTISEMENT:

Third Grade - her son: 1.8 years; his peers: 3.8 years; his performance vs. his peers: 2 Years Below Grade Level

4th Grade GOAL - 4.8 years; his peers: 4.8; his performance vs. his peers: On Grade Level

Then set BOLD Goals - Mary set her goal for her son to be at grade level the following year -- which would require him to improve his reading 3 grade levels in a year. Then we recommend being committed to the Goals and ...

2- Open on how you achieve them. Mary had done a full battery of tests on her son -- but realized she did not know how he learned best, if he had a vision problem, or that there were options to medication to address his ADHD.

We now realize that:

• 1/3 of the students and a majority of the smart students with learning challenges learn differently -- that is they learn...
• best when they see and experience information and often have problems recognizing word patterns and dealing
• with sight word vocabulary -- those little words that do not have a picture.
• Over 70% of the students who learn differently have visual perception issues -- that is they often:
  • Skip words and lines when reading
  • Have difficulty copying off the board
  • Reverse numbers and letters
• Over 65% of our student have significant attention issues -- but their parents are not aware of effective techniques that can reduce or eliminate the need for medication. Phonics-based solutions, medication and getting glasses are traditional solutions that can help -- but there are newer ways to help that include:
• More hands-on approaches that capitalize on your child's ability to learn best when they see and experience information.
• Tools like the Interactive Metronome ®, Biofeedback, Brain Gym exercises ®, the Dore Method ® and other that improve attention, self-control and mind and body integration naturally and effectively.
• Vision therapy -- for the student who learns differently Vision Therapy can complement multisensory learning and attention programs -- one must overcome both the skeptics, who claim vision is not a real issue, and the zealots who claim that Vision Therapy alone is what your child needs.

In Mary's case, she realized he needed the multisensory and the attention help.

3- Align with the right professionals. You want:

• To work with professionals who have had successes with students like your child -- we have noticed that it really helps when the professional has had children with challenges and been successful, has had successes with others and there is an emotional connection between the professional and you.
• Professionals who can connect with your child and both teach new skills and boost the self-esteem and self-efficacy -- belief they can succeed.
• Professionals who work well with your child's school and other professionals.

Mary worked very closely with us and with both his child's teacher and advisor.

4- Lead by example -- Mary did both the follow-up and more than her share with the teachers and schools -- when parents go the extra mile, teachers almost always do the same.

Mary's son did gain 3 years in his reading comprehension in a year and his teacher said: "He made more progress in a year than any student I have had in 27 years of teaching"

This was a classic team effort and the initial effort, selecting the right program and doing the follow-up all started with a parent doing the right research and then following through

Check out this website for more information: http://www.3dlearner.com

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