Clinic helps dyslexics manage their disability

The clinic's five teachers create individualized plans for both children and adults.

By MARY COLLISTER
© St. Petersburg Times
published February 28, 2003

BRANDON -- Many of us see problems but never become part of the solution. Dr. Elaine Jett knew there must be a solution for the children who are often labeled lazy, unmotivated or slow learners.

"I owned an academic learning center and realized that even with excellent tutoring, a number of the students were not progressing," she says. Jett found that many children, particularly those with dyslexia, need to be taught using different methods.

So she did something.

Jett developed diagnostic tools and perfected teaching methods to help adults and children suffering from the disorder. She began developing the Dyslexia Institutes of America in 1997 and opened her first clinic in Illinois in 2000.

Now Jett's reach has extended to Brandon. A clinic opened at 1463 Oakfield Driveon Feb. 3.

"As a winter resident in this area, I was especially looking for someone qualified to open a clinic in Brandon," she says. That "someone" turned out to be Laurie Turner, director of the Brandon facility.

"I was looking for new teaching tools and luckily came across Elaine's site," Turner says. Turner discussed the concept with her parents, Lithia residents Bill and Carol Beers. "They were as excited as I was."

The trio decided Brandon was ready for such a clinic and, having taught in both public and private schools, Turner was ready to be the director. "I'd seen the frustration of both the students and the parents," Turner says. "I was looking for a way out of this frustration and discovered this opportunity."

Overcoming the frustration

The common signs of dyslexia include confusion of letters that sound the same or look similar; reversing words such as "tip" and "pit"; difficulty spelling phonetically; and inverting letters such as "m" for "w." Dyslexic people often have trouble with hand and eye coordination and difficulty reading single words.

"Dyslexia is a developmental disability in reading, writing and spelling, generally becoming evident in a child's early school years," Jett says.

Turner has seen the results.

"Children can quickly become unmotivated or behavior problems. They don't understand what's wrong. They just know that everything in school is a struggle," Turner says.

A lot of schools don't have the time or the money to assess or treat dyslexia and are pleased to see clinics like hers, Jett says.

"Many dyslexics never learn to read or write effectively, although they tend to show average or above average intelligence overall," she says.

The Brandon clinic, modeled after Jett's Illinois facility, offers screenings; assessments are made by the staff in Illinois.

Once the type and severity of dyslexia is determined, a type of therapy is formulated and certified teachers work with the clients.

Screenings are $50. That cost goes toward assessments which are $475. Therapy is $60 per hour, says Shawn Spiegel, operations manager.

Jett visited the Brandon clinic this month to train the five teachers working there.

Turner explained that the approach is individualized for each client, something that is often not possible in the schools, learning centers or with tutoring.

Clients meet with a clinic teacher for about two hours each week.

"A combination of computers and other learning tools are used," Jett says. "But, just as importantly, the parents are taught how to help their child. It is imperative that the skills learned at the clinic are practiced at home."

Clients' progress is assessed every six months, with the program lasting anywhere from 18 to 36 months. "By then each client is so comfortable with the skills they've learned that they become automatic," Jett says.

"Dyslexia is often compared to diabetes in that you can't cure it, but it is a medical condition you can manage. Those management skills are what each client learns here."

Pam Hampton knew nothing about dyslexia or its management but did realize her son's problems were not being addressed at school. In first grade Jake was placed in the gifted class, but the next year was removed as he struggled to keep up.

"Watching your son struggle and flounder in school is heartbreaking and unacceptable," she says.

As Jake fell further behind in school, Hampton's frustration and panic increased. "I knew he was trying as hard as he could," she says. She finally turned to an academic learning center. When that didn't work, teachers there referred her to the Dyslexia Institute.

At the clinic Jake was diagnosed with the learning disorder. After just a few weeks of therapy, Hampton noticed changes in Jake's eye-hand coordination. "Shortly thereafter his grades began to improve also," she says.

More information

The Dyslexia Institute of America clinic is at 1463 Oakfield Drive. Call 689-2087.