Dyslexia Program
The Literacy Council is excited to announce the launch of a new learning program for dyslexic students. Dyslexia is a language-based learning disability and is the most common cause of difficulties in reading, spelling and writing. Research suggests that the rate of dyslexia in the US is close to one in five [1] and that over 85% of illiterate adults fall into the dyslexia spectrum. In the last year, we have become aware that many, if not most, of our ABE students and at least some of our ESL students are likely to be dyslexic. Since standard methods of teaching reading are known not to work with dyslexia, it became important for us to acquire a system that does work for people suffering from this disorder. One of the methods proven to work is the Barton Reading and Spelling System, developed by Susan Barton in 1999 specifically for helping dyslexic people learn to read, write and spell. For a wealth of information about dyslexia and the Barton System, go to [2, 3].
The Literacy Council is very pleased to report that in Jan. 2013 we received a generous grant of $6,000 from the Carpenter Foundation in Medford, which we used toward purchase of a site-license to the first 6 levels of the Barton Reading and Spelling System, and in Apr. 2013, the Chaney Family Foundation awarded us a $3,650 grant for the remaining 4 levels. We are enormously grateful to the Carpenter Foundation and the Chaney Family Foundation for supporting this very worthwhile project and to Rogue Community College for providing funds for copying the Barton tutor and student manuals. One of our tutors spent time in 2012 evaluating some of the basic ideas of the Barton System on her two dyslexic students, with very encouraging results. Once we had the official Barton System in-hand, we were able to launch our Dyslexia program and expand it to include additional students. One of our tutors is certified in the Barton method and she serves as trainer and mentor to new Barton tutors. As of November 2017, we have 11 students with whom we are using Barton and have trained over 15 tutors in the system.
A number of our dyslexic learners have made substantial progress since we introduced the Barton method. It is testimony to the success of our Dyslexia Program that it has grown so substantially in its first two years! Two of our students have "graduated" from the Barton program, having completed all 10 levels. Read about one of those student's (Randy's) great achievement here.
If you are interested in becoming a Barton tutor or in learning more about our Dyslexia program, please contact us at 541-472-0355 or 541-659-2364 or [email protected]. Also, if you know of any adult (18 years of age or older) in our community who may be dyslexic or has trouble with reading, writing and spelling, please encourage them to contact us!
The Literacy Council is very pleased to report that in Jan. 2013 we received a generous grant of $6,000 from the Carpenter Foundation in Medford, which we used toward purchase of a site-license to the first 6 levels of the Barton Reading and Spelling System, and in Apr. 2013, the Chaney Family Foundation awarded us a $3,650 grant for the remaining 4 levels. We are enormously grateful to the Carpenter Foundation and the Chaney Family Foundation for supporting this very worthwhile project and to Rogue Community College for providing funds for copying the Barton tutor and student manuals. One of our tutors spent time in 2012 evaluating some of the basic ideas of the Barton System on her two dyslexic students, with very encouraging results. Once we had the official Barton System in-hand, we were able to launch our Dyslexia program and expand it to include additional students. One of our tutors is certified in the Barton method and she serves as trainer and mentor to new Barton tutors. As of November 2017, we have 11 students with whom we are using Barton and have trained over 15 tutors in the system.
A number of our dyslexic learners have made substantial progress since we introduced the Barton method. It is testimony to the success of our Dyslexia Program that it has grown so substantially in its first two years! Two of our students have "graduated" from the Barton program, having completed all 10 levels. Read about one of those student's (Randy's) great achievement here.
If you are interested in becoming a Barton tutor or in learning more about our Dyslexia program, please contact us at 541-472-0355 or 541-659-2364 or [email protected]. Also, if you know of any adult (18 years of age or older) in our community who may be dyslexic or has trouble with reading, writing and spelling, please encourage them to contact us!