Nationally recognized Annie E. Casey Foundation reports that 68 percent of all U.S. fourth graders scored "below proficient," on the National Assessment of Educational Progress reading test in 2011. This means they are not reading at grade level.
How do these reading results relate to your child? Does your child struggle to read? Have you noticed or been told by a teacher that your child struggles to learn the alphabet, decode words, read passages fluently, spell, or understand what they have read? Is your child anxious and frustrated about reading?
For parents who have struggled to gain access to evaluations or effective assistance for a student with dyslexia in Connecticut public schools, a new parent driven advocacy group has come together, Decoding Dyslexia-CT. The group is concerned with the limited identification and access to educational interventions for students with dyslexia within our Connecticut public schools.
Decoding Dyslexia – CT invites you to attend a free event, “Dyslexia Revealed”, on April 9, 2013. Hosted by the Stonington Public Schools, the event will be held at Stonington High School Auditorium, 176 S. Broad Street, Pawcatuck, Conn. from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Drs. Sally and Bennett Shaywitz, co-founders and co-directors of the Yale Center of Dyslexia and Creativity will be speaking. The Shaywitzes are world experts on reading and dyslexia. Bennett Shaywitz is a pioneer in the application of functional brain imaging for the study of reading and dyslexia in children and adults. Sally Shaywitz has devoted her career to helping children and adults with dyslexia. Her research provides the basis for understanding the disorder.
Following the presentation and discussion with the Shaywitzes will be the screening of the movie The Big Picture: Rethinking Dyslexia. The movie’s synopsis describes the film providing personal and uplifting accounts of the dyslexic experience from children, experts and iconic leaders such as Sir Richard Branson and financier Charles Schwab. Directed by James Redford, the film not only clears up the misconceptions about the condition, but also paints a picture of hope for all who struggle with it. The film also shines a spotlight on the latest scientific and psychological research being conducted on dyslexia by the Shaywitzes.
For more information about Decoding Dyslexia-CT, visit their website, www.DecodingDyslexiaCT.org, find them on Facebook (type in “Decoding Dyslexia-CT” in the search box), or email: DDConnecticut@yahoo.com. To visit the Yale Center of Dyslexia and Creativity, log on to www.dyslexia.yale.edu.
