Reading and children who are non-verbal

"How can I tell that my child is learning the words if they cannot speak?"

This is a very common question, coming from parents of children who are non-verbal, or simply too young to 'prove' they can read the words they are being shown. My response to this is that input and output are two different functions, and just because they cannot speak doesn't mean they cannot process what they are reading. In fact children are often overlooked and undertaught because of this very thing.

The video below is of a young boy, David, who is 5 years old. David was born with Down syndrome, and is also deaf. He has learned sign language, and is using his sign language to show his mom that he comprehends the words she is flashing to him. David and his mom are doing amazing work and we are very grateful to her for sharing this video with us!

Reading and Down Syndrome

While presenting a workshop in Utah this past weekend, a woman approached me telling me about her friend who had video-taped her son as he read words off of flashcards. She went on to tell me that the woman had been using our reading program! It was as a result of seeing her friend's video that she came to our workshop, as she wanted her child to be reading as well as her friend's child. She said that I should try really hard to get more people to see that video as they would be 'blown away'!

Upon returning home I emailed her friend. She was very happy for me to share her video and to encourage other parents by having them see it too! She said that her son " is now on day 313 of the program (yay!) and he is still going strong! He is very stubborn :), but we have tried to be very consistent and make it fun! We are now involving his little sister (21 months old) and he thinks that is great! So now our daughter is starting to pick up on it, too... we couldn't ask for anything better!"

Thank you so much Tiffany for sharing this video with me, and for allowing me to share it with everyone. I'm sure the work you have done with your children will be an inspiration to many!

Workshop Success!

We had a very successful workshop in Salt Lake City on Saturday, hosted by the Utah Down Syndrome Foundation! Over 90 participants attended, including both parents and educators. Many people raved about how informative and helpful they found the workshop!

Chris Russell is pictured here as he practices flashing cards to others in the group. Participants learned about reading and Down syndrome, had an opportunity to try writing flashcards, and then were able to practice moving the cards in their hands as they worked in small groups.

A special thank you goes to Suzie Smith of the Utah Down Syndrome Foundation for organizing such a successful workshop!

10th World Down Syndrome Congress

The 10th World Down Syndrome Congress will be held in Dublin, Ireland in August 2009. The main congress dates are the 20th to 22nd of August, with additional events taking place on the 19th of August. eReadingPro will be presenting a workshop (details will follow at a later date) at this conference!

Personally, I'm very excited about going to this conference. It is an incredible opportunity for individuals outside North America to see our reading program and understand the amazing results it produces - especially for children with Down syndrome!