You Need Us When

There's not a week that goes by that we don't hear, "I wish we found Langsford sooner!".   Why does it take so long?  Mostly, because emerging readers develop at their own pace and the challenge for any classroom teacher or parent is to determine: is the current reading difficulty a developmental delay or a developmental deficit? 

A delay occurs when a child falls behind for a few weeks or months, but then catches up.  A deficit may exist when mastering of grade level skills for reading or comprehension continues to be unattainable.

In fact, 74% of 3rd graders with unidentified learning deficits continue to experience them in 9th grade.

Most good readers don't think too much about the process involved in learning to read.  It just seems to develop naturally and with ease.  But for a certain percentage of people, this is not the case.    Approximately 17%-20% of our nation's children have substantial difficulties learning to read.   For these students, early identification and intervention is key. 

If you have concerns, after viewing this page, it's possible a more formal assessment may be warranted.   Our Learning Coordinators are experts in the reading process and can help guide you to an appropriate plan of action.

Warning Signs

You’re concerned about your child’s reading development.

Your child becomes frustrated during reading and spelling tasks.

Your child dislikes reading.

Your child has seen a tutor for more than a year.

Your child works harder and longer than his peers do on reading or spelling tasks.

Your child struggles to read or spell multi-syllable words.

Your child reads or spells below grade level.

Your child avoids reading aloud.

Your child has trouble learning the alphabet.

Your child struggles with the names of letters.

Your child struggles with the sounds of letters.

Your child guesses at words when reading or spelling.

Your child has difficulty reading words he has seen before.

Your child confuses small words, or makes word substitutions.

Your child has difficulty rhyming.

Your child has difficulty associating sounds with letters.

Your child has difficulty remembering or understanding what he has read.

 
Your child has difficulty with blending sounds into words or segmenting words into sounds.

Your child is not learning to read as fast or as well as his peers do.

Your child memorizes words for spelling tests, but later cannot recall how to spell them.