Dyslexia in Berkeley
Hi, my third grader has dyslexia and dysgraphia. I’d like to hear parents’ positive experiences with local schools. I find it hard to believe two 45 minute group pull outs in BUsD are sufficient, but perhaps I’m wrong. He already has a private tutor 2 hours a week and that’s not enough. Do any private schools handle dyslexia well? Would anyone tell me their experience with Raskob or Northbridge?
Oct 2, 2022
Parent Replies
Hi, I don't know about the specialty schools for dyslexia but i do know some private schools like Berkwood Hedge have a lot of kids with dyslexia. They have an education specialist who spends every day with my son, who hasn't been formally diagnosed but is clearly dyslexic and I know there are several kids in the higher grades with dyslexia and they are getting a literacy specialist in addition to the education specialist since this is a priority for them. The smaller school allows for much more individualized learning and its project based which is great for kids with dyslexia, and the overall education is very strong. I have heard amazing things about the third grade teachers especially. Its also much better priced than the specialty schools for kids with dyslexia. So may be worth looking into
I don't have experience with BUSD but my daughter went to Raskob last year. Raskob at one time was a great option for kids with learning differences but I can not recommend it in its current state. The school is controlled by Holy Names University and they are close to closing due to financial issues. Most of the quality staff have left the school and they are not replacing that staff due to financial issues. We spent all of last year waiting for the school to hire an Orton-Gillingham-trained specialist but they never did. We had other classmates leave for Hope Academy or Charles Armstrong.
This does not answer your question but two of my grown daughters friends who both were diagnosed with dyslexia ended up being very successful.One got into UCLA as a freshman and graduated and the other the same thing at UC San Diego.
We found neither public nor private schools we’ve tried had the right learning support for our kiddo with dyslexia. Barton reading tutoring 2-3x per week is helping enormously. Vision therapy at UC Berkeley for eye tracking issues also made a huge difference. Feel free to message me if you’d like more details. Wishing you and your kiddo the best!
Our child was recently diagnosed with dyslexia and is currently in public school. Is your child going to tutoring sessions or seeing an Educational Therapist? I think seeing an Ed Therapist makes a HUGE difference. I was lucky enough to know someone who recommended an Ed Therapist in the area to us for our child. Our kid now sees them 2x a week for a 55 min session. It really seems to be the only thing that is working (and working very well). It is not cheap, but we would rather be putting our money toward that than anything else. It's cheaper than private school tuition, that's for sure! I would really look into ed therapy.
In my experience, the services provided via the school district are not adequate. Our son sees an educational therapist for 2 hours per week 1-on-1 (and if cost weren't an issue, he'd probably go 3 times). This may be different from a tutor because she is using very specific and tailored techniques known to help dyslexic students and has extensive training and experience working with them. I think that at some independent schools, you're more likely to encounter more flexible school environments where they can tailor your child's education and meet them where they are at. That's been our experience at Crestmont School, at least.
North Bridge Academy has been amazing for our daughter! I can't tell you how grateful we are that we found this school. It literally saved both her academic future and her self esteem! The school is built around the dyslexic profile and so each day she gets exactly what she needs from some of the best experts on dyslexia. She is absolutely thriving and definitely did not have that opportunity during the 5 years she spent in BUSD. She had well intentioned teachers who had no idea how to teach a dyslexic student, so they didn't. They told her to guess at the words, listen to audiobooks and put books everywhere in the house. That was the best advice the literacy coach gave our family. This is a much longer story than I can write here, but I highly, highly recommend that you visit North Bridge Academy. When I heard Priya speak at their info session, I felt like she was talking about my daughter even though she hadn't met her yet.