Better Than a 5 Year Old

I Should Be Better Than a 5-Year Old, But Alas, I Fail Again!

It’s that time of year. Are you frantically wrapping presents? Some people really have the knack for it and others just don’t!

I caught a quick segment on the Today Show last week highlighting a social media comment about wrapping presents. In dismay, the person was wrapping a present and saying,

“I should be better at wrapping presents than a five-year-old, but alas, I fail again!”

Reading Struggles Have No Age Cap

I think that must be what so many of our students feel about their reading when they first start at the Stowell Learning Center.

“I’m 10. I should be able to read better than a five year old…”

“I’m 14. I should be able to read better than a five year old…”

“I’m 51. I should be able to read better than a five year old…”

“But alas, I fail again.”

There’s no age cap on reading problems.

Skills Reading Depends On

Learning to read easily, accurately, and fluently depends upon having a solid foundation of many underlying thinking/processing skills including:

• Auditory processing skills that allow you to think about the number, order, and identity of sounds inside of words (phonemic awareness)
• Visual processing skills that allow you to clearly see the letters and words on the page
• Auditory and visual working memory that allows you to remember all of the sounds and letters in the correct sequence
• Discrimination skills that allow you to tell the difference between letters and sounds that look or sound similar
• The ability to see patterns
• The ability to understand the words and sentences as you read

Weaknesses in any of these underlying skills can cause bright students of any age to struggle more than they should. Older students and adults may find ways to cope with their challenges, but compensations are not comfortable, efficient or necessary.

The Cycle of Frustration and Failure Can Be Broken

The underlying skills that support efficient reading can be developed. The cycle of frustration and failure can be broken.

If you or someone you know is struggling with reading, there is hope. I have recently run into the parents of two different former students, both of whom were dyslexic learners with severe reading challenges.

Both parents shared with me that their sons were now successful adults, both with two Masters degrees, and both of whom could not learn to read until they attended Stowell Learning Center. By developing the underlying skills that are needed for efficient reading, we were then able to help the boys completely and permanently remediate their reading challenges.

You or your child can do it too!

Have Questions? Need more information?

Happy Holidays and Happy Wrapping!

Quick Answers

Can adults have reading problems too?

Yes. There’s no age cap on reading problems. Weaknesses in underlying skills can cause bright students of any age to struggle more than they should.

What skills does reading depend on?

Reading depends on a solid foundation of underlying skills, including auditory processing, visual processing, auditory and visual working memory, discrimination skills, the ability to see patterns, and the ability to understand the words and sentences as you read.

Can reading challenges be fixed?

Yes. The underlying skills that support efficient reading can be developed, and the cycle of frustration and failure can be broken.