A while ago, I had the pleasure of working with a 7-year-old boy named Alan. He was the son of two University Professors. These highly academic people could not understand how their extremely bright son was unable to read. Somehow, the dad found himself in my office. He admitted to being there somewhat reluctantly, as the ‘alternative’, Davis Dyslexia Program was not very well known and didn’t use conventional methods.
Alan was a bright, chatty boy, but was lacking confidence because he could not read. In fact, during our consultation, he was unable to read one sentence, without extreme difficulty.
 Alan and I embarked on the Davis Dyslexia Program together. We had an enjoyable and successful 5-day program. Alan was open to the experience, curious and enthusiastic. Dad took 2 days off work to observe and participate in the training portion of the program. Alan certainly improved during the 5 days and gained in confidence.
 
One week after the program I received the following…
' My wife and I were both a little nervous going into the course as we did not know what to expect and what, if anything you would be able to do. I said today, however, we particularly liked that you were stripping everything back to the basics and rebuilding from there -- we both know from our own work that the foundations are crucial and once these are taken care of everything flows from there.

Since last week I think that Alan's reading has improved markedly - and he is certainly much happier and more confident. Alan's writing today blew me away as I have never seen him write to much and so quickly -- or with such enthusiasm. It was lovely to watch. Thank you.’

 Over the course of the subsequent months, Mum and Dad religiously completed the follow-up work (making the clay models for the spelling, pronunciation and meaning of the sight-words. They also did 10 minutes of reading, using the relaxed Davis Dyslexia Reading methods every day). Alan and his parents benefitted from their commitment to the program and the follow-up work.

This was confirmed when 2 years later I heard from Alan’s Dad. He sent the following note:
 
‘Alan’s reading improved dramatically after the Davis Dyslexia program and he is now a different boy. He is happily reading 600 page Harry Potter books in 2 days and his confidence has sky rocketed. Thank you so much for what you did for him.’

That was so fab to hear. I admire the tenacity and belief of Alan and his parents in bringing about this change. Apparently many years later he is absolutely flying! 

Ever felt like this? If you’re dyslexic there could be a very simple explanation for this.
 
Dyslexics have a lower than normal threshold for confusion. What does that mean? It means that for some people – ‘word thinkers’, - the threshold for confusion is quite high. When they were young they would often come across things that they were unsure about and couldn’t figure out.  They got used to that feeling. It is called confusion. Confusion is simply the opposite of certainty. 
 
For picture-thinking people – which simply means that their imagination works like a movie or a memory of real life. Ah, you thought everyone thought like that didn’t you! Well they don’t. Apparently some people think predominantly in words. Such as when they think about a tree, they don’t ‘see’ a real tree in their mind; some people see the word ‘t-r-e-e’ or simply think the word tree. Who knew! I’d love to get inside their mind for a minute, just so I can completely understand it. Then I’d want to get out again, as it must be quite boringJ
 
Picture thinkers have a lower than normal threshold for confusion, because when they were young and they came across real things, they could figure them out – what they were, what they could be used for etc. They simply looked at the thing, then sort of looked at it from different angles in their mind, until they recognised it, or figured it out. They were good at it! But when they went to school because they were not use to being confused, they would instantly try to understand, but sometimes we can’t. We need to wait to get more information – we need to listen for longer, or read on to get more information.
 
For the dyslexic, it is difficult to read on, or to listen for longer… Why is that? They get disorientated. They go over things in their mind, or lose track when reading, or lose interest, go blank, get distracted, frustrated etc. This is disorientation. What is needed is a way to recognise it and a way to overcome it. Focus on Learning uses Davis Dyslexia Correction methods for correcting disorientation. We then work on methods to remove the confusions that are triggering disorientation. “I’ve tried!” I hear you saying. But not like this. The Davis Dyslexia Correction methods are simple. They can work every time. They will give you certainty, or methods to create certainty! This is what dyslexics need to feel confident. If you’re interested, contact Bets for a chat or to arrange a consultation. 

Over the years I've worked with many dyslexic clients. Usually it is an intelligent person that feels frustrated because they are unable to make sense of what they're reading and their spelling is atrocious.
 
Recently, I worked with a particularly bright man in his 40s. He made his alphabet from Clay and he mastered it and de-triggered all confusions with it, so he had certainty.  He was intrigued when I said to him, that with this alphabet he could spell and write any words he liked. He was astounded by the power that if he felt from this. As we proceeded to master the punctuation symbols and to identify how these symbols would be used in writing, the sense of empowerment grew and his confidence grew with that.
 
As we mastered the trigger words, such as ‘it’ and ‘the’; my client was amazed that these words actually had a meaning and how they influenced the sentence. Prior to this, he hadn't really noticed most of these words, he might accidentally skip them or didn't think they served any function.
 
This client went on to do continued education in marketing and felt that he could write more accurately and could read and comprehend more easily. Using the tools that he learned and the simple techniques that he adopted, he managed to overcome years of frustration.  His confidence grew and he understood how to reach his true potential. Feedback from the Marketing course was that his unique perspective was particularly interesting in the online forums, to which he contributed. This is the true Gift of Dyslexia. Once you remove the problems the gifts can be exposed.
 
With the methods and techniques that are gained through Davis Dyslexia Programs at Focus on Learning in Sydney, you can improve your confidence and performance. If you’d like to overcome problems with reaching your potential, call me for a chat or email to make an appointment for a consultation. 

Bets