FAQ

At first glance, Literacy Instruction may be perceived as something for young children learning to read or having trouble learning to read. This is, most certainly, a large portion of the clientele for Growing Connections, but Literacy Instruction is not limited to young children. Pre-Covid* it was generally true that about 30% of children would readily learn to read through the methods of instruction used in Alberta schools, about 30% would have significant difficulties, and about 40% would have some difficulties that weren’t likely to be deemed significant enough at that time to seek any additional help. Sometimes the students in that middle 40% are actually at the greatest risk of developing long-term negative outcomes because the strategies they develop to compensate for reading issues are not always ones that actually improve reading itself (such as figuring out meaning through pictures or from context that skips over unfamiliar words). These strategies can effectively mask reading problems. As reading requirements become more complex with advancing education, these strategies may start to fail them. In a student in the grade 4-7 range we might start to see their math grades drop as reading becomes a part of understanding instructions and completing word problems. This is often misinterpreted as a math problem rather than a reading problem and can result, very quickly, in a decrease in confidence and enjoyment of the subject of math. In a high school student we may see difficulty in being able to keep up with the amount of reading required or increased signs of difficulty with comprehension.

*The effect that Covid has had on education in the last two years has resulted in an increase in the number of children falling into the category of those having significant difficulties.

Signs that reading may not be as strong as though in an older child may include avoiding reading if it is not required, evidence of poor comprehension, trouble keeping up with reading demands, and fatigue when required to read. 

Most students who are having trouble with writing actually have weaknesses in reading fundamentals. I have tools that I can use to determine if this is the case. Trying to strengthen writing without addressing existing reading issues will not provide satisfactory results. You can compare it to trying to learn division and multiplication without having a solid understanding of addition and subtraction. 

There are cases in which a student may be a strong reader and still have difficulty with writing. Some of the reasons for this can include learning disorders such as dysgraphia (difficulty in the physical production of written material) or expressive language disorders. Sometimes writing difficulty may be caused by executive function issues (for example, organization – both within and outside of the task, time management, not being able to get started). ADHD comes with executive function issues.

My lessons are always tailored to the individual, certain assessments can be made early on regarding where weaknesses exists and this provides a starting place for instruction. As time goes on and I get to know a student, I start to understand other specifics about them, such as their learning style and some of the more subtle areas that will benefit from specific instruction or approaches. 

• This is a difficult question to answer. As instruction is tailored to the student and progresses at a speed appropriate to that student, it can be difficult to estimate. However, even the students I have worked with that needed minimal intervention required at least 10 hours of instruction to have a noticeable and lasting difference in literacy success. And it is worth noting that many students who have had only 10 hours of instruction have not had lasting improvement.
• It is very easy to underestimate how much help your child will need due to masking behaviours. When we, as human beings,  aren’t doing well with something we develop strategies to help us. These strategies are often a little like bandages. They do well enough to help us get by but they don’t really fix the problem. And these bandages often cover up the problem so that other people don’t see them.
• One of the most common such strategies that kids who are struggling to read develop is an extensive facility with sight words. Sight words are great, but we don’t have an unlimited memory for them and eventually a child who relies on sight words alone will start to have problems. I have also seen students who could imitate the words of a reading parent so closely behind them that the parent, mistakenly, thought they were reading together. And I have seen students who could read out loud to perfection, pronouncing words correctly, inserting appropriate punctuation pauses and emphasis who could not tell you, when they were through, anything about what the passage was about.
• A student having a great deal of difficulty with reading can be expected to require 75 hours or more of instruction.
• Be very wary of tutors who imply that they be able to fix the problems in a few lessons. Even if you see initial changes, the results are unlikely to be lasting in these cases. 

I do not require an up front payment from my clients. Payments are made weekly for the lessons that took place that week. If a payment isn’t made for a given week then the scheduled lessons for the following week will be postponed until a payment has been made. The only exception that I would make to this rule is if you want to start with a week that includes more than three lessons, in which case the payment for that week will be split into two with the first half due before lessons begin. 

I recently heard of a case where a family was locked in to a 18 month contract with a tutor. It has been bothering me ever since. I recognize that for lessons to be productive there needs to be a good fit, not just between instructor and student, but also between instructor and the family. Life is unpredictable and we don’t always know where we will be in a year. Given these considerations, making my clients sign a contract does not make sense to me. I count on my style, methods, commitment, and quality as an instructor to create loyalty. I also provide incentives for families that commit to, and follow through with, a minimum number of lessons.

If a family commits to a series of 20 lessons and subsequently follows through with this commitment (remember that lessons can be booked week to week to accommodate variable schedules), then they will receive an extra lesson free. Likewise, if the commitment is for 30 lessons, the benefit will be two free lessons, and for 40 lessons there will be three free lessons added on at the end. 

Life is busy. Not everything happens at the same time every week and sometimes families need to be able to fit literacy lessons into their schedules with this in mind. I employ an appointment booking application that allows the client to select days and times for a given week based on my availability. This means you might have two lessons one week and only one the next. Or you might have two lessons one week on Tuesday and Thursday and two lessons the following week at different times on Wednesday and Friday. The appointment booking application is a great way for you to organize your time and make changes as needed without me having to try to fit everyone into my schedule. It also means that I can actually take on more students as I don’t have to try to anticipate changes and variations in individual schedules.

• Please be aware that most tutors cannot offer formal testing of this nature. DO NOT BE MISLED!
• A formal assessment requires specialized training. Psycho-educational assessments need to be overseen and interpreted by a registered psychologist (this requires a minimum of a Masters degree in psychology as well as a certification process in the province of Alberta). A formal psycho-educational assessment can test for the presence of Learning Disabilities, potential anxiety or mood disorders, pervasive developmental disorders, and can include testing for ADHD as well. (When requesting a psycho-educational assessment it is important to be clear on what you want answers about so that the right tests will be included). Most formal Literacy testing requires a Masters Degree in Education as well as specialized training for administration and interpretation.
• I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and have administered psycho-educational tests under the supervision of a neuropsychologist. If you have had a psycho-educational assessment completed, I am able to understand the implications of the results for literacy instruction and can help you understand the results if you would like. I can also understand the results of a Literacy assessment to guide instruction. I do not provide formal assessments of either type myself. 
• The good news is, not everyone needs to have a formal assessment of either type completed. There are a number of reasons that you may want to pursue that course, but be aware that there is a significant cost involved in formal assessments due to the level of education required to interpret them and will typically require about six hours spread over two to three days to complete the assessment. Many private psychologists in the city offer psycho-educational assessments. The wait time to have the assessment completed is typically one to two months and can take a number of weeks after the assessment for a report to be completed. The cost is typically in the range of $3000.00. Foothills Academy Society offers psycho-educational testing at a reduced rate of $1900.00 (as of January 2022) by employing provisional psychologists (always overseen by a registered psychologist) to conduct the testing and interpretation. Their wait time to complete the assessment tends to be longer (three to four months) as they are in high demand. Formal testing is not a requirement for literacy instruction with Growing Connections.
• If you want to have your child tested only for ADHD, there are family doctors and pediatricians in the city who will conduct this assessment for you. Please talk to your family doctor about your options.

• Sometimes your goal will be to just pinpoint and understand where your child is having difficulties with their functional literacy without competing a formal assessment. I am able to provide this kind of informal assessment. I may look at a number of different things when assessing the kind of help

1. 1. Phonemes: The first thing I will look at is how well your child identifies the sounds associated with the letters of the alphabet and common combinations of those letters. The assessment tool that I use is able to identify weaknesses in these basic fundamentals.
   2. Sight-Word Recognition: Most schools in Calgary employ the Dolch sight-word list in their instruction. I will use this tool to determine the student’s familiarity with the sight words that are typically expected of them by each grade level (up to grade three). During this assessment I get a pretty good idea about their ability to sound out words and I am also able to infer about their ability to recognize repeating patterns in sight words.
   3. Pattern Recognition: I have been developing a program of my own that looks more specifically at repeating patterns in words (whether they are very reliable patterns or ones that only happen in a few words). I have found that there are some students who do not do well with sight words no matter how hard they practice and have found this approach to be very effective at improving their word recognition and in restoring self-confidence. I can identify if this is an area of reading that your child is struggling with within their grade expectations for word recognition.
   4. Phonemic Awareness: I can specifically look at how well your child breaks down the different parts of words (or nonsense words). Many children who are having trouble with reading and spelling (decoding and encoding) have specific troubles in this area.
   5. Reading Fluency: Using a method called Precision Reading I can assess an approximate grade level at which they are reading fluently.
   6. Reading Comprehension: I can get an idea of how the student processes and organizes the information they are reading as well as the depth of their vocabulary.

• When working with a new student I do not typically assess all these areas right from the beginning. Usually, if a student is having problems with Phonemes, Sight Word Recognition and Pattern Recognition, the first lessons (how many depends entirely on the child and their specific needs, but not usually less than five hours) will be spent focusing solely on these areas. Phonemic Awareness will be assessed and addressed next. For a student who shows any difficulties in the first areas it will take time before there is any point in looking at fluency and reading comprehension in a focused way. Reading is often included in early lessons to support Phonemes, Sight Word Recognition, and Pattern Recognition, so both Reading Fluency and Reading Comprehension, as are inherently included in a less specific way.

When you have a student receiving literacy instruction from me you can expect to have conversations (usually over Zoom at the end of a student’s lesson) about how the student is doing from both your perspective and mine. These conversations don’t happen after every lesson, only when one of us has something to say or questions to ask. I am happy to talk about anything related to the student or how the family is doing. I have a wealth of knowledge relating to families and children that I am happy to share, am great at brainstorming creative approaches to problems, and can point you to further resources if necessary. Sometimes, when you are in the middle of being a parent it is important to be able to talk to someone to get perspective, especially when you have a child who might be struggling that can lead to behavioural issues or challenges in trying to figure out what your child needs and how to get them help. I am a parent too. I’ve been through a lot and I’ve learned a lot. You will receive no judgement from me.