The Dyslexic Reader 2008

VOL. 48

Davis DyslexiaAssociation International

ISSUE 2 • 2008

Dys lex icRead er

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INTHISISSUE

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News&FeatureArticles

CharlotteFosterNamedOutstandingWomanoftheYearinEducation.....1OutstandingTeenFocusesonDyslexia...1ANewSenseofDirection............3LastestRecommendationsfromLazyReaders’BookClub...............6FamousDyslexicsRemember..........9DownwithFractions................10AMomRemembers................11SixYearsLater:AMomLooksBack....12Don’tWait........................13WhatDoTheyHaveinCommon?......14Mini-BookReview..................16TheSoulofGolfTeaching............19BacktoStudywithDavisinIceland....21ZameenWinsFilmAwardinIndia.....22

RegularFeatures

IntheMail........................2Q&A..........................17-18NewDavisLicensees.............24-25DavisWorkshops...............26-28

CharlotteFosterNamedOutstandingWomanoftheYearinEducation!

OutstandingPennyslvaniaTeenFocusesonDyslexia

ByMarciaMaust,FacilitatorinBerlin, Pennsylvania,andHayleeBaer,Miss FrostburgDanceOutstandingTeen

HayleeBaerwasselectedMissFrostburgDanceOutstandingTeenonApril5fromafieldofsixcontestants.Fifteen-year-oldHayleechose“TheGiftofDyslexia”asherplatform.Whenaskedwhyshechosethisissue,sherepliedthatshehasapersonalinterestindyslexiabecauseofthefrustrationshehaswitnessedinher youngerbrother,Hunter.Hayleetoldtheinterviewjudgesthateventhougheveryoneatschoolhadgivenuponherbrother,shenever stoppedbelievinginhim.HunterbeganusingtheDavistechniqueseightyearsagoundertheguidanceofDavisDyslexiaCorrectionFacilitator,MarciaMaust,ofLaurelHighlandsDyslexiaCorrectionCenterinBerlin,Pennsylvania.Hunterwassupportedinhispostprogramfollow-upworkbyhisparentsandHaylee.Hunterisnow

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education.”Congratulations,Charlotte!CharlottebecamealicensedDavisFacilitatorin1995andiscurrentlyaDavisSupervisor-SpecialistinBernardsville,NewJersey.ShefoundedMultivariantLearningSystems(MLS)in1987toofferDavisDyslexiaCorrectionservicesandtrainingworkshopsforthoseworkingwithlearning-disabledandlow-performingyouthandadults.IncollaborationwiththeReadingEdge,MLSwonthecontracttodesignanddeliveralearning-to-learnprogramfortheU.S.DepartmentofEducation.Charlotteholdsabachelor’sdegreefromWellsCollegeandhastrainedwithleadingexpertsinthefieldofaccelerated

nMarchofthisyear

NewJerseyGovernorCorzinenamedCharlotteFosterOutstandingWomanoftheYearinEducationforSomersetCounty.Inhisletter informingherofthehonorhestated,“NewJerseyneedswomenlikeyou,dedicatedtothecauseofeducation.Asyoublazethetrailtowardtrueequalityforourfuturegenerations,yourdiligenteffortshelptocreatedynamicprogramsandastrategyforgrowthwherestudentscananticipatesuccess.Becauseofyour faithfuldedicationtoyourdutiesandyourfair-mindedapproachtofindingsolutionstoconflict,Icommendyour effortsasyoucontinuetomoveforwardinyourongoingcommitmentto

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The Dyslexic Reader

ispublishedquarterlybyDavisDyslexiaAssociationInternational(DDAI),1601BayshoreHwy.,Suite260,Burlingame,CA94010USA.Tel.+1(650)692-7141.

OUR GOALS

aretoincreaseworldwideawarenessaboutthepositiveaspectsofdyslexiaandrelatedlearningstyles;andtopresentmethodsforimprovingliteracy,educationandacademicsuccess.Webelievethatallpeople’sabilitiesandtalentsshouldberecognizedandvalued,andthatlearningproblemscanbecorrected.

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LauraZinkdeDiaz,AliceDavis&AbigailMarshall.

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www.dyslexia.comTheopinionsandviewsexpressedinarticlesandlettersarenotnecessarilythoseofDDAI.Davis™,DyslexiaCorrection

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,DavisSymbolMastery

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,DavisOrientationCounseling

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,andDavisLearningStrategies

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ADreamComeTrue!

Dear

DyslexicReade

r,Tenyearsago,February1997,Melissawasa7-year-oldsecondgraderwholearnedtoreadwithSymbolMastery.Previoustothisshehadinformedusthatshewasgoingtogrowuptobea“richandfamous”musicianandthatshewasgoingtoattendBerkleeCollegeofMusicinBoston,Massachusetts.ThankstoRon,Charlotte,Lexi,BrianandeveryoneelseassociatedwiththeReadingResearchCouncil,MelissaisattendingBerklee,hasbeenpaidtosing,andhasthechancetobecome

IntheMail:

Collegeforthatsemester!Ilovereadingmy

DyslexicReader

andhearingaboutallthewonderfulsuccessstories.Youarethemostremarkablepeople,whogiveusallhopeofthefuture.Mydaughterhasherfuture,justthewayshewantedit.Ithankyoufrommyhusband,fromme,andfromMelissa.Sincerely,

JillDomosh,Derry,NewHampshire

TenYearsLater...

Dear

DyslexicReader

,Morethantenyearshavepassedsincemyson,Himanshu,didthebasic programfordyslexiacorrection.My brother,SanjayOdak,wholivesinIllinois,enrolledhimonmybehalf.ThebasiccoursetookplaceinRaleigh, NorthCarolinainJuneof1997.Youallwereveryhelpfulandconsiderate.Thefacilitatorwasveryhelpfultomyson.Fromthatpointonprogresswasslowbutsteady.Himanshucompleted10thgradewithanaverageof63%.Then,theexaminationboardgrantedhim30extraminutestocompletehiswrittenpapers.Buttoday,hehasreachedthe6thandfinalsemester andisabouttoreceiveaDiplomainComputerEngineering.Asparents,weareproudofwhathehasachievedat20yearsofage.Hehasevenlearnedtorideamotorbike.I’dliketothankyouallforallthatyouhavedonepersonally,and“richandfamous.”Thankyou!Amajorityof studentsandteachersatBerkleearedyslexicandhaveallergies.Melissafoundtheperfecthomeforherself,whereeveryonethinksamillionmilesaminute,whereeveryoneisdriventowardstheirgoals,andwheretryingtostayhealthyisapriority–“thegiftofdyslexia”atitsbest.MelissastartedatBerkleeinthefallof2007,finishingthesemester witha3.86GPA.Thishasearnedher aplaceontheDean’sListatBerklee

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William’sDavisFacilitator,CarolNelson, sentusapoemhewrotein2007afterhis DavisProgram.Williamis11yearsold.

While amidst the wandering menI hear the dogs a-howlin.'I stop, and sit, and wonder whyThe dogs are still a-growlin.'Waiting for the yawning cock To sing itself a tuneOf morning's glee to sing with thee,The singing abolished the moon.For the day you waste away– That is of your own demise.And, while the sun breaks down the day,You see yourself in the skies.

agroupofseniorswhohavethewonderfulcapacitytolookpastthestammersandstutteringandlisteninsteadtothefeelings.ThoughIsome-howhavenosenseofrhythmorbeatandmustmemorizethingsliketempoandflow,Iwritepoetryandloveit.Here,letmeclosewithone,andthank Ronagainforhisgreatbook.



WilliamEdwards,duringhisDavisProgram.

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While Amidst the Wander

ing Men . . .

By William Edwards

Fallow Times

By Roger Honzik

What unsung words still linger round What notes are left to play As morning breezes yawn and stir And shuffle leaves that stray Sweet words are few And fewer are my dreamsOf what laid begging at my doorNot long ago it seems Yet still I ponder this and that And sift for things of rhyme That they might help me understand This barren bit of timeI’ll not bow to emptinessNor cry as though in painFor life and words are given me And rhymes will come againFor now I’ll sort those scrubby words And gather some to use And fashion them as bits of joy Or at least some simple muse

A NewSense ofDirection

By Roger Honzik

was taunted! It might be possible toread. One day it might be possible for me to stand before a mirror, and readthis note with some even flow.I bought

The Gift of Dyslexia

andhave read it once. I will go back andread it again a few more times to besure I understand the words. Then I willsee about solving my deficiencies. Thisshould make for a very interesting year.I just need to thank Ron Davis for his book and let him know that evenfrom just a first reading he has givenme a better sense of direction than Iever thought I would have.Before closing, I’d like to saythat my personal approach to self improvement over the past seven or eight years has been to write. I joined

hen I asked

, at about eightyears of age, my mother saidto me (I hear her words asthough spoken just now) “Roger,remember to always do your very best.” I had always believed that Mom meantthat I should give everythingmy best effort; however, lately Ihave seen her words in a new way. I believe she was saying, “Do your bestin spite of your handicap.” Fortunatelyfor me, I misunderstood her words andthus I have given reading and writingmy very best effort, all with pitifullyfew positive results.Years and years of knowing I wasless than the rest, yet ever putting my best foot forward, here I stand. It has been a long and mostly painful struggleto read as well as a third or fourthgrader and as yet I have not clearedthat hurdle. My writing has come along way because of something thathappened early on. Dad would alwaysshush me because I was so slow to sortmy thoughts and put them into “verbalorder.” Because of his impatience Itaught myself a game that went likethis: “If I am ever allowed to speak Iwill answer (or add to the conversation)with these words and I will say themTHIS way.” With that I would recite,inwardly, my words. This preplanninghas allowed me to become perhaps anaverage writer and I dearly love to write.

Write?Um. . .yes, why am Iwriting?

About a month ago I flipped on theTV and listened to the last 10 minutesof a program dedicated to children andtheir capacity to learn in school as wellas hindrances to learning. Someonecontributed to the discussion bydescribing some of the problemsdyslexics face while trying to survivethe school experience. Within minutesmy eyes clouded with tears. All theseyears of trying to become smartenough to read! I’m not stupid, as I

“All these years of tryingto become smart enough toread! I’m not stupid, as I was taunted! It might be possible to read.”

W