New eReadingPro Kits Are Now Available!

The new eReadingPro kits are finally ready!

It took a while to find a new printer.
Then it took a while for him to get price quotes.
Then it took a while to edit the Instructional Guide.
Then it took a while for the parts to all come in.
BUT now that we have all of the components, we are ready to roll them out!

The first NEW eReadingPro kit was shipped out last Friday - but we made sure we snapped a few pics first :-). We really hope that you enjoy the new look!

eReadingPro goes to Knoxville, TN

eReadingPro is going to Knoxville, TN on Sunday, November 9th
from 1 - 4 pm at:
Tennessee School for the Deaf - Middle School Bldg.
2725 Island Home Blvd, Knoxville, 37920
(Directions at www.tsdeaf.org)

To REGISTER, click here.

You will learn to teach your child to read using the whole word approach, to teach your child to progress from reading single words to reading
sentences and books, and to implement a fun reading program that works for you and your child. Admission is free.

Each DSAG family (families that have an individual with Ds and are on DSAG’s mailing list) that registers and attends will receive a $40 voucher to use on take-home materials available at the workshop. (Be sure to check out www.ereadingpro.com for more information on the workshop and products for sale. Materials are for sale in complete kits or downloadable do-it-yourself programs.)

Childcare will be available – but must be reserved. Registration forms for workshop and childcare MUST be received by Wednesday, November 5.

Call or e-mail with any questions: 865.905.2968 or events@dsagtn.org.

eReadingPro donates eBooks in Nigeria!

eReadingPro has donated a set of eBooks to The mission of Our Lady of Guadalupe (OLG) Health Foundation & Autism Centre in Nigeria.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Health Foundation/Autism Center was founded in June, 2006 by Dr (Mrs.) Doris Izuwah and is currently the first foundation that offers biomedical intervention for children in the Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) in Nigeria. OLG Foundation also runs the Defeat Autism In Nigeria project on whose platform they also organized the 1st World Autism Awareness Day celebration in Abuja Nigeria.

As some of you may know, I have a great love for Africa, and a deep desire to assist the children there who are in such unfortunate situations. eReadingPro will be working together with the founders of OLG to improve the lives of children in Nigeria with Autism by providing our easy to follow reading program in the form of eBooks.

A workshop in Nigeria is being planned for 2009!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Well it is indeed my birthday AGAIN today, lol! It feels like I JUST had a birthday! What amazes me about birthdays is how many people tend to know it's your birthday. I actually had birthday wishes from people I went to high school with 30 years ago - thanks to Facebook!

When I decided to write a post today, I noticed that there was a comment on my post regarding Autism and the "On the Brain" blog by Dr. Merzenich. The gentleman who posted the comment suggested that we look at the Brain Fitness Program created by Dr. Merzenich's company, Posit Science. So I went to their site and eagerly tried the Brain Fitness Demo - in order to see just how far along I have actually aged, lol. I was happy to discover that my brain is still very functional, and that in fact I am able to visually track 5 moving objects on a screen at one time!!

I think that what Dr. Merzenich has created is wonderful, amazing, fun to use, and very necessary - especially with the size of our aging population. While their program is at the opposite end of the spectrum from eReadingPro (our program is for beginning readers, whereas Posit Science - Brain Fitness is for the aging reader), I think both program are equally important. After all, knowledge is power! Try it out for yourself at Posit Science!

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving all you Canadians!

The temperature in Ontario, Canada this weekend has been extraordinarily beautiful - and perfect for a Sunday afternoon stroll to wear off all of that extra gravy! So, I took the dog and the camera out for a walk, and made my best effort at catching the beauty of the day. The colours of the leaves are so vibrant, and a multitude of flowers are hanging on to that last essence of sunshine before the snow begins to fly. I really hope that you enjoy these pictures as much as I enjoyed my walk!

Autism on the Rise

One of my favourite blogs to read is one by Dr. Michael Merzenich called "On the Brain". Dr. Merzinich is a professor at the University of California in San Francisco and is a leading pioneer in brain plasticity research. When I read about him in a book by Dr. Norman Doidge called "The Brain That Changes Itself" I emailed him to tell him about our program. He promptly emailed me back and urged me to continue creating new programs and challenging my brain, lol. I was extremely impressed that he took the time out of his obviously busy schedule to reply to my email.

Dr. Merzinich's blog address all sorts of things to do with the Brain. One that I read recently called "Autism on the Rise; additional factors?" addressed the concerns that we are all facing with autism on the rise, and no near-term solutions to be found. You can read it here at On the Brain. Other recent posts include a discussion about drugs for children with bipolar disorder and the concerns about keeping troops on alert by use of various drugs. Interesting reading indeed!

Tips for Teaching Reading - for ALL ages!

Teaching reading can be a daunting task - especially for parents with no teaching background! I remember when my children were young I really wished that I had the knowledge and the tools to teach them to read. So I wanted to provide some tips for teaching reading to the visual learner/struggling reader! These tips are appropriate for ALL ages of readers.

Tips When Teaching Reading:

• Understand your child’s preferred style of learning (visual, auditory or tactile).
• Focus on using the whole-word approach first for visual learners.
• Only after mastery of the whole single word should you then show how the word is broken down into letters and sounds.
• Begin introducing words to which your child can associate a visual representation (i.e. food they are familiar with, names of people they know, etc.)

Keys to Success:

• When using flashcards, flash them quickly! (Approximately one second per word is all that is needed).
• Ensure the flashcards are large enough and colourful enough to have a visual impact.
• Begin with a well-organized plan that will be included in a day-to-day routine.
• Do not test the child or ask them to repeat the words as you present them! This can cause anxiety and then your child may not want to participate anymore.
• Keep your program moving along – do not be too repetitive just because you think they are not processing the information quickly enough.
• Avoid presenting similar looking words together, as this can be confusing (i.e. Grandma, Grandpa).

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions!