F.A.Q.

LearningWise Strategies, LLC provides a variety of services, including diagnostic evaluations, Educational Therapy services, short-term remediation/tutoring, cognitive learning enhancement programs, and organizational coaching and study skills services, home-schooling support, and consultation services to parents, adults, and professionals.  Consultation services to parents/adults might include, but are not limited to, homeschooling support, understanding evaluation results or diagnoses, organizational strategies, and work strategies.  Consultation services for professionals might include business practices start-up or support, workshops/programs, and AET professional level supervision. 

LearningWise Strategies supports neurodiverse learners.  

LearningWise Strategies, LLC provides intensive, individualized educational interventions to students with learning challenges related to reading, comprehension, mathematics, spelling, writing, following directions, organization, and study skills which might be caused by visual or verbal learning differences/disabilities, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (all types), ASD, and anxiety. 

Educational Therapy services address the entire learning process. Educational Therapy is a highly individualized intervention which incorporates the academic, organizational, and social/emotional aspects of the learning process. After identifying the client’s individual learning profile, a program focusing on underlying cognitive abilities, academic skills, executive functioning skills, learning and memory strategies is developed for each client. 

Specific areas of focus are determined individually for each client and typically focus on a combination of cognitive skill training, reading skills, writing skills, math skills, an organization and study skills. Methods and programs used are both commercially made and created by LearningWise Strategies, LLC and typically focus on:

Cognitive skills related to learning and thinking, including: 

• visual memory

• auditory memory

• visual processing skills

• auditory processing skills

• higher order thinking skills

Reading and writing skills, including: 

• phonological processing

• phonics

• decoding/word attack

• vocabulary development

• morphology 

• reading comprehension

• listening comprehension

• writing mechanics

• written expression

Mathematical skills, including: 

• number sense

• computation and calculation

• problem solving

• the language of math

 Executive Functioning, organization and study skills, including: 

• notebook and materials organization

• study strategies and test taking techniques

• note-taking techniques

• goal setting, planning/prioritizing, and time management

• task initiation/completion strategies

• problem solving and critical thinking skills

After your complementary 30-minute initial conference, if you feel comfortable and would like to proceed with support services, please contact us. You will be given an evaluation proposal, along with estimate of the number of testing sessions required for your child’s evaluation and the fee for that evaluation at the initial conference, after we have reviewed the information. Evaluations are designed to determine each client’s unique learning profile, including areas of strength and challenge, and how each client processes information and uses cognitive skills for academic learning.  All evaluations include a written report and a follow-up conference. All diagnostic assessments and evaluations are individualized for the client. The most typical assessments and evaluations conducted are:

· Diagnostic Reading, Writing, or Mathematics Evaluations

· Learning Style/Executive Function Evaluations

· Initial Screenings (Initial screenings are typically reserved for clients wishing to pursue subject-specific tutoring or test-prep services or only require a limited learning evaluation to prepare for homework and organization services, rather than on-going Educational Therapy services.)

Fees for screenings and evaluations are determined individually, based on the specifics of that evaluation.  Typical fee ranges for evaluation services are listed on the Fee Schedule Information document.

Approximately two weeks after the evaluation is complete, a video conference will be scheduled to discuss the results of the evaluation in detail and a written report will be provided for you.  At that time, recommendations will be proposed to you, including an Educational Therapy plan, if appropriate.  Most evaluation parent conferences last about 75-90 minutes, and are included as a part of the evaluation process (no additional fees are charged for post-evaluation conferences).  This evaluation conference is intended for adults only so that a thorough and frank conversation about the results can take place. If continued services are suggested, the first session with your child will include age appropriate information about the child’s learning style.

Educational Therapy and/or tutoring services are individualized for each client and will be determined based on the evaluation results and all of the information obtained from our conversations and any reports provided.   If you decide to pursue services through LearningWise Strategies, LLC, the exact fee per session will be determined based on the individual goals for your child and the therapy plan (type of services, number of sessions per week, etc.) that best fits the needs of your family. Sliding scale rates and limited financial aid considerations are available to families on a financial need basis. If your family seeks financial assistance or other special financial considerations, please request a special financial consideration form.

I strongly believe that to help every child achieve his or her best level of success, a partnership is needed between the family, the school and any outside professionals working with the child. For some students, activities or games for practice at home between sessions (usually on the last session of the week) will be helpful, if the family is on board. Session times are not designed to allow for lengthy communication after each session; detailed discussions about your child’s progress are not appropriate at that time.  However, to ensure that you know what we are focusing on during our sessions, you will receive regular e-mail communications (typically 2 times per month) about what has been covered in sessions, as well as any other relevant information. In addition, student-led “show-and-tell” sessions can be scheduled at any time so that you can see what we are working on.

I believe in open and frequent communication - if you have a question at any time, please do not hesitate to ask!

At your request, a progress report summarizing your child’s short term goals and his/her progress toward those goals will be provided once annually, free of charge.  If you would like this annual progress report at a specific time, please let me know and I will do my best to accommodate your wishes.  I encourage you to share the report with the entire team (family, school, other professionals, etc.), so that we can all work optimally to meet the needs of your child.  Virtual consultations can be arranged to discuss the findings and plan for future goals and objectives, if desired.  

If at any time you would like to have a more in-depth conversation about your child’s progress, or any other concerns that you have, please schedule an in-person or phone conference. If more formal progress assessments are needed (for example, prior to an annual review or IEP meeting), or if you desire additional written progress reports, please let me know. Fees for progress assessments and additional written progress reports are included in the Fee Schedule document included in your introductory packet. Those fees are subject to change, so please inquire if specific fee amounts are needed.

Working with students with learning challenges is more akin to a marathon than a sprint. 

Educational Therapy involves learning new skills and strategies and retraining the brain to work more efficiently.  Educational Therapy is not a “quick fix;” it is a systematic approach that requires time for the practice and consolidation of new skills and strategies. Progress depends on a great number of factors, including consistency of the sessions, follow-up work done at home between sessions, and your child’s individual learning profile. Often, once some skills are solidified, other areas of challenge emerge as expectations change for students. However, as clients begin to make stronger neural connections and incorporate new strategies in their routine, significant improvements can be seen. Rest assured that we will move as quickly as we can, but as slowly as we need to, in order to best serve the academic and social-emotional needs of your child.

The frequency of session is determined by the individual program for each student/client.  However, Educational Therapy sessions are typically scheduled at least twice a week based on your family’s schedule and the goals for your child. Follow-up and/or practice activities at home between sessions are often recommended for clients receiving intensive intervention services through LearningWise Strategies. A consistent schedule of appointments, at pre-arranged times and dates, is preferred. However, pre-scheduled times can certainly be altered when necessary. The exact number of sessions recommended per week depends on several factors, including the following considerations:

   o the exact areas being addressed

   o the specific program or combination of programs that are thought to work best for your child

   o the child’s motivation and engagement

   o the amount of time that can be spent at home on review between sessions

   o the child’s daily and weekly schedule

  o the child’s school work/homework load 

“Dyslexia” is one of the most commonly used terms relating to learning disabilities, yet it is also a very difficult term to fully understand.  Part of that difficulty stems from the definition itself:  the media, medical community, education community, and the law use the term “dyslexia” in many different ways with different descriptions and definitions of the term.

The following is the most widely accepted definition of the term “dyslexia:”

Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities. These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction. Secondary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and background knowledge. (Adopted by the IDA Board, November 2002 and by the National Institutes of Health, 2002)

However, the Learning Disabilities Association of America (LDA) defines “dyslexia” simply as a learning disability in the area of reading.

Many educators and educational diagnosticians do not use the term “dyslexia,” in part because of the variety of meanings of that one term.  Those professionals might feel that since “dyslexia” is a broadly used term which can have many different meanings and characteristics, it is much more beneficial to describe the specific difficulties that a person is having academically (i.e. word recognition, visual memory, phonological processing, decoding, etc.).  In addition, many diagnostic professionals do not use the term “dyslexia” as a diagnosis because the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-V), which is used to diagnose, does not have a specific code for dyslexia (instead it includes “Specific Learning Disorders" (SLD) in the areas of reading, written language, mathematics); nor do many public school systems, which are governed by federal law (IDEA) and include “dyslexia” as a specific learning disability.