|
|
| Our son has been on Dr Craig Wright's Understanding Words program for about 12 months now. Dr Wright was highly recommended to us by our Pediatrician who briefly explained to us the amazing results he was having with children who had difficulty with reading and comprehension.
As a mother, of course I was apprehensive, we had tried every reading program, and here we were with an eight year old who could not even simply read the word ,"CAT".
Dr Wright's program really is amazing, after only our second visit, our son was putting together words, sounding them out correctly and better than ever, actually understanding what he was reading.
Blake is now nine years old, he has started to read books and even though he has a long way to go to catch up with all the other kids, I know as a mother that without the help and guidance of the Understanding Words programme he would not be at the level he has now reached.
The programme is simple and easy to follow and the results speak for themselves. To see our son so proud of himself is the greatest gift of all!
Kindest regards from a very grateful and happy Mum.
|
|
We have been using Understanding Words for 3 years here at St. Joseph's High School, Banora Point. We run the program on the computer and the students enjoy the interaction between computer, teacher, and self-application. They particularly enjoy the grammatical / comprehension exercises. Understanding Words allows students with literacy difficulties to practice decoding and certainly improves their fluency in reading. Well structured word lists and check lists also provide good revision for home work and revision within the class. Students with speech difficulties enjoy practising the exercises too. I highly recommend this program for any High School- based Literacy Program.
Anna Fin-Roja, Language and Literacy Teacher.
|
|
I love Understanding Words. I wouldn’t use anything else now.
Teacher Aide
|
|
| When I came to Understanding Minds I felt powerless to help my son. He was ten years old, could barely read, and I knew time was running out. How could I assist him to a level in which he had the confidence and skills to cope with high school? From the first, Craig was honest with me, and my son, about his weaknesses, his strong points, and what work was needed to help him. There were no magic promises, no quick fixes, just a simple and methodical program which built his reading skills over time. My son's reading has improved dramatically, as has his confidence and motivation. The program provides him with exercises which allow him to experience a feeling of success that he has been sorely lacking. At the same time the program fills gaps in the learning that he has so far encountered at school.
I very much appreciate the respect and understanding that we received at Understanding Minds. Craig managed to speak honestly with my son about his difficulties whilst still allowing him a great sense of dignity as a person. Although that seems a simple thing, in many ways it is not. The program has changed my son's view of himself and his capacities, as well as yielding much sought after progress in academic areas. I don't know which of these things has the most value, but I am very grateful that I found Understanding Minds when I did.
Jess, Parent
|
|
Thank you for your kind efforts in assisting us to come to terms with Moira’s condition. Your patience with Ivy and I whilst educating us in the handling of ADHD was very much valued.
I was most especially at ease with your scientific approach whereby time was spent in ensuring all elements were considered before arriving at a diagnosis. Such meticulous attention to detail differentiates you from those who jump to conclusions.
Thank you. Sandy Kelly, Parent.
|
|
| I am extremely relieved to have found Understanding Minds as I now have a set programme for my child that she has made instant progress with. I am a busy mother of four so I love "Understanding Words". This programme is easy to follow, fits into our weekly routine and really gets results!! After a lot of uncertainty, I now have peace of mind that my daughter is on the right track towards her educational development.
Jo Hargraves, Parent.
|
|
| “Understanding Words” takes the “guess work” or “prediction” out of learning to read, providing the student with all the essential tools and strategies needed to become an efficient and flexible reader. “Understanding Words” supports its reading passages with scripted comprehension questions and applies activities for development and application of spelling and grammatical conventions. This link ensures that there is a transfer of reading knowledge to the development of writing and spelling skills.
When comparing “Understanding Words” to other intervention programmes such as Reading Recovery, I believe “Understanding Words” is both more successful and much more cost effective. Essentially “Understanding Words”, from my 8 years of teaching Reading Recovery, places greater emphasis on key areas of reading instruction overlooked in the Reading Recovery Programme. “Understanding Words” develops the application of alphabetic knowledge, applies principles of synthetic phonics and develops ever increasing difficulty in text, with text passages practising the decoding skill developed. The programme also has regular teaching of high frequency (non-decodable) words. “Understanding Words” is best linked with sequenced decodable readers in the beginning stages of reading development instead of continuous text, where an over reliance on picture cues, semantic cues and syntactic cues are often encouraged and are indeed an emphasised part of Reading Recovery teaching practise.
Deborah Walker, Learning Support Coordinator, St. Joseph’s Primary School, Murwillumbah.
|
|
| Understanding Words targets exactly the area Henry has difficulty with. I only wish we had it a year ago.
Dimiti, Parent.
|
|
| The biggest change since Mark was assessed at Understanding Minds is his attitude. He (and we) knows that at his age he may not catch up to his peers, but he now recognises that with effort and the right types of tasks he can learn.
Parent
|
|
|
Thank you for a wonderful assessment report. There were many new suggestions and it was wonderful to have some of my current practices reaffirmed.
Karen, Teacher.
|
|
| Before seeing Dr. Wright we had been on a merry-go-round. We had seen audiologists, a psychologist, a speech pathologist, an optometrist, tutors, and even a psychiatrist. When our Paediatrician suggested Understanding Minds we were skeptical. However, no one has been able to explain our son’s difficulties like Dr. Wright. He was able to explain very clearly what the difficulties were, what might have caused them, and what we could do about it. We finally feel like we are on track. Thank you.
Parent
|
|
| My son has Asperger’s Syndrome. The people at Understanding Minds helped me see beyond the diagnosis and to understand him more deeply. Understanding how Matt might have difficulty with some parts of classroom and playground life despite having a high IQ will also be invaluable for the future.
Louise, Parent
|
|
| Before our Paediatrician suggested coming to Understanding Minds we just had the label ADHD and the medication. Now we understand the theory behind it and why Jarrod behaves the way he does. Our frustration levels have dropped and we feel like more effective parents.
Parent
|
|
| My son, aged 7 years old, has undertaken the Understanding Words Program for approximately 6 months now. The improvement in his work has been outstanding. My son’s confidence with sounding words out and his ability to read and spell has improved. This has resulted in a significant improvement in his end of Year 1 results as well as concentration in the classroom. Not only has this program assisted my son, but it has also helped me to understand how to coach my son with his homework. The time, effort and dedication my son’s tutor has taken is beyond words. I highly recommend this program.
Regards, Denise Klasen, Parent
|
|
| The approach you took to diagnosing my son with ADHD was not only thorough but sensitive to him and to us as parents. The time and care taken in gathering information from us and teachers and the explanation of the condition made us feel like we were in the right place. We look forward to working further with Craig to learn how to handle Finn better and how to improve his schoolwork.
Jeff and Suzanne, Parents.
|
|
| I would like to thank you for the great seminar on Dyslexia. The presentation was not only informative, but inspiring. I came away with a better understanding of what Dyslexia is, some practical suggestions, and a real motivation to get out there and learn more to be able to help the students in my care.
Your passion for helping people with learning difficulties was obvious, and infectious.
I loved the pace of the seminar, and the interspersed moments of humour, but most of all, I loved your down-to-earth manner.
Before you were even a quarter of the way through, I had decided that I want to do what you do. Thank you once again for your great seminar, and I look forward to attending many more.
Maureen Durney, Coordinator Special Education Class (SEC), Varsity College
|
|
| "I attended a seminar conducted by Dr Craig Wright on 'Reading & Learning Disorders' for Brisbane Catholic Education Guidance Counsellors on 12 October 2007. Dr Wright first provided a useful framework for understanding how children learn to read, then examined the development of reading disorders, followed by an analysis of case studies in which the issues of identification, assessment and remediation were explored. Dr Wright presented the latest research backed up by practical experience in his clinic. His extensive knowledge of the topic and ability to respond thoughtfully to questions from the audience was extremely helpful. The seminar was informative and interesting, with the use of practical examples making the information directly relevant to the work of those in schools who are trying to identify and intervene effectively to assist students. Dr Wright's information was relevant to assisting students with reading difficulties from early intervention to working with primary and secondary students. I was impressed that Dr Wright not only made a copy of his presentation available, but followed up by forwarding useful resources. I would definitely encourage personnel such as Guidance Counsellors, Learning Support teachers and classroom teachers to attend.
Kathy Shelton, Secondary Guidance Counsellor, Brisbane Catholic Education."
|
|
| The scripts in Understanding Words provide such clear direction that we have been able to use the program in small groups run by two Teacher Aides with very little training. The aides are now far more skilled and love the fact that most of the preparation is done for them. It also takes the ‘guess’ out their ‘work’. The results that we have seen so far speak for themselves and there is no doubt that we will run it again next year.
Special Education Teacher, Queensland.
|
|
| Understanding Minds were the first people who explained what all the test scores meant in a practical way that showed us why and how Jackson was having difficulties with some things in the classroom even though he is very bright.
Parent
|
|
| The progress that Monica has made since the assessment by Dr. Wright has been amazing. He helped Monica and I see that there was an explanation for her difficulties. That he described a simple, but thorough story that Monica could understand was a bonus. Her reading and maths have improved significantly, but more than anything, she is happier and feels more confident.
Parent
|
|
| Understanding Minds didn’t offer me any quick fixes. What they did give me was a clear framework to understand Reese’s learning. I now experience less frustration with his behaviour and I am able to help him far better after the training in reading and maths teaching that I received.
Parent
|
|
| My second grade daughter was having all sorts of troubles with reading and writing, it just seemed like she was never going to grasp it and she was getting further and further behind. I did a little bit of looking around to try and find some sort of help and came to Understanding Minds. After a visit we determined that she did not have the basics of letters and/or sounds which affected her decoding of words. After completing the first 20 lessons, myself and her class teacher have noted that she is coming along with leaps and bounds. She is now able to read easy books and is enjoying school more; her self esteem has also been lifted. I knew that there had to be away to help her grasp the basic concepts and move on. I feel that with her efforts and the help of this program we are making great progress.
Jessica Coonan
|
|
| I have been using Understanding Words to support a number of students for the last twelve months. I have worked with students individually and in pairs. The program provides the students, parents and teacher or tutor with a shared understanding of the needs of each student and the strategies required to increase reading, spelling and comprehension skills. The content is explicit and systematic; the method of delivery is clearly articulated and flexible enough to cater for student needs and learning styles. Students soon grow in confidence due to the supportive nature of the program which motivates them to take more responsibility for their own learning and transfer the skills to the classroom.
Teachers and schools value the program so much they are now allowing students to attend lessons during school time and are referring other students to me.
Lyn Wright (Understanding Words Consultant)
|
|
| After an arduous couple of years of trying to be an understanding parent of a less than academically minded and head strong daughter, a penny finally dropped that our problem may be more than one of laziness.
It was a defining moment during one of our heated attempts at homework that my frustration and my daughter’s exhaustion finally broke down to reveal that there was a real problem. As any parent does these days, I consulted the most relied upon expert in our circle of friends, Google, where I was overwhelmed at the abundance of all sorts of conditions with symptoms very compatible with whatever I thought I could see in my daughter. After numerous emails and phone calls to many posing as so called experts, I consulted with the school’s learning enhancement coordinator. This was a big step for me, as I felt some sort of guilt or shame in posing the possibility that MY daughter may have a learning disorder. The teacher was very understanding and gave me a short list of local professionals with whom to consult and have some basic testing carried out.
I was fortunate that Understanding Minds was only third on the list, so I only wasted a couple more phone calls in identifying a truly professional organisation.
My daughter attended with Dr Craig Wright who carried out some pretty in depth testing with her over several hours. He then spent a significant amount of time going through what he had found in simple terms with myself. It was a full on day for both of us, but time well spent in developing a solid basis on which to build a plan of attack to assist this new phase in my daughter’s learning.
Dr Wright subsequently provided his report, follow up working material and his recommendations for speech therapy. His personable manner and professional approach made this chapter in my daughter’s learning a positive experience. We are now well on the way to a happier and more productive school life and she is really trying hard at overcoming the academic challenges and behavioural outbursts both for herself, to please her parents and to impress “Dr Craig” at our next follow up visit.
|
