Five signs your High School Student Is Struggling with a Hidden Reading Disability. We Can Help!

Here are five signs that indicate your high school student may be struggling with an undiscovered reading disability:

1. They hate to read and won’t read a chapter book for pleasure
2. They have very poor handwriting and very poor spelling
3. They struggle greatly to write a paper for school
4. They can’t take notes during a class or fill out their test study guides during lectures
5. They avoid or refuse to do homework no matter what the consequences

These behaviors are warning signs of dyslexia in an older student, and it isn’t too late to get help.

At Aspire, we can screen your child for dyslexia by testing their ability to decode unknown words, spell grade level words, and how well they can use phonics to decode unknown words. We can also test their phonological processing abilities – the biological sign of dyslexia. If your child scores below the 30th percentile in these tests, they can be brought to grade-level reading in 18-36 months using the Wilson Reading System – an Orton-Gillingham method.

At Aspire Academy, we work with our students one-on-one, which ensures a comfortable, judgment-free environment. Students work with the same tutor each time and are able to build rapport and have a relationship built on respect and trust over time. Once students have achieved grade-level reading and spelling skills, they can begin honing their writing skills. At Aspire, we use materials from the Institute for Excellence in Writing to teach students how to write reports, informative essays, and persuasive papers. 

If you suspect your students’ struggles may be due to dyslexia, take our free dyslexia screen here. If they are displaying ten or more symptoms of dyslexia, they should be screened for dyslexia. Call today to learn more about our tutoring program and screening services today!

Since being put in this program I can tell my reading, pronunciation, and confidence in reading compound words has improved. It’s helped me prepare for reading at the college level, especially for business classes. This program will take time, but if individuals are willing to stick with it, I promise it will pay off in the future.  – Charles, College Sophomore

I am so glad we contacted you even though my son was a junior in high school.  Because of this program, he went from never reading a book in high school to getting a 3.9 in college. 
– Sally G., Des Moines Mother