33 Comments Add your own

• 1. Luqman Michel  |  March 4th, 2010 at 1:31 pm

  Hi, While waiting to find a school you may visit my blog for many tips on how to teach your child when he is at home.
  Please find me in facebook and then go to my blog and read from the first blog. I have just started lessons for parents to help their dyslexic child.It is free of charge as I just want to help as many parents as possible.

• 2. Antonia Canaris  |  April 1st, 2010 at 9:50 am

  Hi

  I am interested in your recommendation for Nessy. I keep being about to buy it for my students. Can you say who it would suit? I think it would be a great help for families.

  I have friend who is thinking of ways to help isolated and rural families with dyslexia. Do you think it would be a good buy for them?

  Does anyone in Sydney have it so that i can get look at it before buying?

• 3. mary mitchell  |  April 21st, 2010 at 6:02 am

  Hi
  I live in edinburgh and my family and we are planning to come out to Australia for a year in 2011. My daughter is dyslexic and has learning support in school and we pay for a weekly private tutor. We plan to go to Melbourne. Does anyone have any contacts for tutors or recommend good schools which support children with learning difficulties in and/or around Melbourne?

  re Nessy my daughter had heard of it but could not let me know whether it is any good . She uses Wordshark on PCs at school and with her tutor.

• 4. Loreen M  |  April 26th, 2010 at 2:57 pm

  hi just like the first enquiry, moving to brisbane again an 8 year old son who is dyslexic – is there any help anywhere???!!!! Schools, programmes, tutors?

• 5. sara  |  May 4th, 2010 at 8:38 pm

  same here. Any supportive schools in Brisbane. Of course can purchase packages and get extra help, but need to decide on best school

• 6. Julie Andreazza  |  May 13th, 2010 at 9:38 pm

  Dalwood Assessment Centre & Palm Avenue School
  21 Dalwood Avenue
  Seaforth NSW 2092

  Tel: 02 9951 0308
  Fax: 02 9948 8170
  e-mail DAC@nsccahs.health.nsw.gov.au

  This is a wonderful school for children with learning problems/dyslexia. My son is a current student and I will be forever grateful for everything he has learnt while he has been at Dalwood.

• 7. Kate Spragg  |  May 29th, 2010 at 6:54 pm

  Maybe the Brisbane parents need to get together for a chat at some point and let the children meet each other. We used to do this in NZ. I have recently arrived in Brisbane with two dyslexic boys 9 and 7. We have already shifted school once in attempt to find something more suitable for them. I would happy to organise something.

• 8. Antonia Canaris  |  July 14th, 2010 at 9:52 pm

  Parent networks are a great idea! We have started one in the Sutherland area of Sydney and more are following on. We meet on the 1st Tuesday of each month in school terms at 10.30 and would organise different meeting options for anyone who can’t come at this time. We also network by email and phone.

  My contact is 0414760663. We would love to link up with anyone else around Aus who is thinking of having a group going

• 9. Ranj  |  August 8th, 2010 at 7:34 pm

  I would be interested in meeting parents in Brisbane too and happy to co-ordinate. Ranj
  my details: metell @ gmail.com

• 10. Karen  |  September 23rd, 2010 at 7:56 pm

  Hi all, We will be moving into the Brisbane area early in 2011 and we have 2 dyslexic boys (12 & 7). As we dont know anyone in the area I am looking for parent networks for friendship and chats. If you have already got your kids into schools I would love to hear from you to see how it is going for them and what you think. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated as we havent decided on where we will be living yet and this will be dependant on the schools they will attend. cheers, Karen
  karen.whamond@gmail.com

• 11. Sera  |  November 1st, 2010 at 3:07 am

  Hi, We will be moving to Narre warren south in Jan 2011, And my son who is 8 seems to have symptoms of dyslexia.
  I would like to find out if there is any testing service available in Narre warren south.
  I am yet to test him for dyslexia, though he reads above grade level his writting & spelling skills much less.
  I am open for any information in this regard. Cheers Sera

• 12. Ann Foster  |  November 6th, 2010 at 11:27 pm

  Hi Sera,
  I am a learning Support Teacher who works with dyslexia students online and have great success.
  I have programs that are well structured and increase skill and confidence.
  Currently, I am devoting some time to making new products for reading and would like to hear your comments.
  If you go to
  http://www.success4reading.com
  you will receive a FREE downloadable product to help your child.
  Take care,
  Ann Foster

• 13. Katrina Spark  |  November 16th, 2010 at 4:01 pm

  Hi, we have been living in Brisbane for five years and we send our sons to the local school. My older son has learning difficulties (there is no such thing as dyslexia in Qld – its called ‘learning difficulties/disabilities’ and there is no govt. funding for this “non existant condition”. Fortunately most govt schools are made up of very caring teachers who try to do the best by all their students. All schools also have a school guidance officer who looks after the needs of students and if the school has a good one they will be able to get the most extra help for your child as they can. Anyway this is my advice to anyone moving to Brisbane with dyslexic children – 1. consider moving to NSW or Victoria instead because they recognise dyslexia and the govt. provides extra funding for these children. OR if you have to move to Brisbane find a school that has a special needs unit which caters for autistic spectrum disorder children because these children receive funding and yet not all of them will need aid time. These schools spead the funding over all the children who need help and you will get the most ‘one on one’ help for your children. Our children are in a school like this at the moment and although my child receives no funding he has at least 7 x 1/2 hour, one on one, help from special needs teachers, which is not possible in schools without the funding. And option 3 is to research the private schools – this is better at highschool level, but if you can afford it well you get what you pay for!
  I hope this helps all new Brisbane families with dyslexic children.
  good luck
  Katrina

• 14. Kathryn  |  November 21st, 2010 at 10:20 am

  Hi

  I am a Year 3 teacher in a private school in Queensland. I’m currently writing report cards for my students with ‘LEARNING DIFFICULTIES’ but it drives me crazy that I’ve had success with some, yet others have seemingly been unable to retain or apply things we’ve worked on together.

  It makes me sad to read what has been explained above about the Qld situation.

  Before I leave this school in 2 weeks, I want to be able to convince the parents of the students with learning difficulties to find out more about how their child learns best, and to research this themselves, to actually want to help their school lives be less painful in the more demanding years ahead. It is so sad to me that they are just so casual and don’t investigate it. It took 3 years at our school to convince one parent to allow us to refer the child for testing by a FREE govt funded O.T and Speech Therapist, so we could find out more specifically what made learning difficult for them, and how we could help.

  In my opinion, teachers need specific information to know how to help students and understand what makes things difficult, and parents can be the experts on their child who pass on that information.

  I’ve come on to this site to hopefully find some advice to give the families of children I teach, as I suspect one or two of them may be affected by dyslexic-type conditions.

  Please suggest websites I can recommend to those parents, please.

  Thanks
  Kathryn.

• 15. Antonia Canaris  |  December 27th, 2010 at 9:15 pm

  I have just been to an Orton-Gillingham intensive course in the Gold Coast. I would recommend any Qld people contact Jodi at http://www.dyslexiaassociation.org.au/

  have a look at their site. Jodi may know some qualified people in your area. The Orton-Gillingham approach is scientifically based and is not centred around any commercial programme. It is geared to a particular student’s needs.

• 16. Claire  |  January 6th, 2011 at 5:26 pm

  Ive just been through the process of getting my 8 year old son tested by a educational psycologist. $1000 later we have found he is dyslexic. I feel so lost at the moment about how to help him. It makes me so upset to find that it is not acknowledged by the queensland government for funding of this dissability but so many others are. Why is it my son has to stuggle? Any way I have to do something for him. Im going to be talking to his school to see what they can do for him. Ideally he needs one on one for at least half an hour each day, but my fear is he wont get that. Also looking into computer programes and possible extra tuition, more costs for me and my large family to support. Would love to meet up with other parents in my area (north Brisbane) going through simular situation.

• 17. martine  |  January 8th, 2011 at 1:11 pm

  I have just heard that clayfield college has a special unit to help children with dyslexia. give them a try!

• 18. gina  |  February 3rd, 2011 at 9:54 am

  I have an 8 year old who has just been diagnosed with phonological and perceptual dyslexia, as well an a relative mathematics disorder. We are at a catholic school in Brisbane and after two years of being behind in his reading and numerous meetings with teachers, I took him at the end of last year to an Educational and Developmental Psychologist to be assessed. I took the report to the school at the end of last year so that they could prepare for this year only to find the report had gone missing and his new teacher didn’t even know he had learning difficulties. I am a primary school teacher and can’t believe how bad the educational system is in Queensland. I get the feeling we will have to fight for all the help and support we can get through the school but at the end of the day we will be paying for tutors and extra help as what he will get at school won’t be enough. I have contacted SPELD as they do parent information seminars for children with dyslexia and offer tutors trained in helping kids with this specific disability. I would also be very keen to meet with other parents in a similar situation.

  ryconnz@gmail.com

• 19. Kate Spragg  |  February 3rd, 2011 at 12:29 pm

  There seems to be some interest from parents of Dyslexic Children in Brisbane to get together. I have compiled a list of contact details from the blog and will be in touch with those parents soon. Please email me brentandkate@bigpond.com if you wish to join.

• 20. Barry /JaneCarroll  |  February 4th, 2011 at 10:00 am

  We have found the surport from schools very disappointing , it is constant battle , we feel our child is the only one in brisbane with Dyslexic ,we get the feeling that schools would like us to move our child from there school, because it to out there normal flow . We have had many sleepless night worrying of our child wellbeing. We have spent many hours investigateing ways to assist her at school , but getting the schools onboard is extremely hard.

• 21. Karen  |  February 9th, 2011 at 12:55 pm

  Hi Claire (living north of Brisbane), I would be happy to meet up. We are in a similar situation to you and dont have the finances to provide private tutors or programs etc for the kids. We live north of brisbane too. My email is karen.whamond@gmail.com if you want to contact me.

• 22. Sheridan  |  February 16th, 2011 at 6:07 pm

  My child has been labelled with ADHD , very disruptive in class and difficult to manage yet he can sit at home and concentrate on some of the most amazing things. Reading comprehension and maths are difficult for him despite being bright. I would like to rule out dyslexia as he does his letters and numbers back to front as well as other issues. Where can I get him tested on the Northside.

• 23. Janice  |  March 7th, 2011 at 1:24 pm

  We live in Redcliffe, north Brisbane and my son is so far behind in school. I think he could be Dyslexic amoung other isssues. He had Irlen lenses and a filter he used in NZ but was not recommended over here. I need to find a tutor close by every thing looks like southside. Wonder if anyone has had luck finding ??

• 24. Debbie McDonald  |  March 31st, 2011 at 1:10 pm

  Nessy is great so is Earobics. My daughter is 11 years old and we are looking for a high school in Brisbane that will suit. so far we are hitting brick walls at every turn. I would appreciate some advice. Deb

• 25. Debbie McDonald  |  March 31st, 2011 at 1:29 pm

  Third time lucky! My email is debiscorky@gmail.com I would love some help/advice

• 26. Kathleen Thompson  |  May 16th, 2011 at 11:40 am

  My son is 8 years old – incredibly bright .and bubbly. He has just been referred to learning support for his difficulty in reading, comphrension and spelling. He was diagnosed with dyslexic at 6. I moved him from a state school to a private school in the hope that he will receive more help. He has just scored 1/2 hour per week with learning support. Incredibly frustrated. I don’t want my son to hate school – he is not receiving the help he needs. Looking at ways to support him at home. There are little options and support available in brisbane. I have been told that 10% of all children suffer from dsylexia – why then is there no funding or support??

• 27. rose  |  August 19th, 2011 at 7:45 pm

  my son is 8 yrs old he has dyslexia, ADHD and is deaf in his right ear. He has been in a private school from prep, he ended up doing two yrs of prep and is now in grade 2….in nearly 4yrs of education cant read or write and has no self esteem!!!!! these children can not be boxed into an education system that only caters for one style of learning. I am pulling my son out of his school and have enrolled him into a steiner school where they teach multi sensory learning. I have so much to say on this topic, but dont have the time tonight, but will be back!!!!!!

• 28. sophie Cockcroft  |  September 14th, 2011 at 2:02 pm

  Yes me too, I will be trying to chase up Brisbane parents who mentioned their emails in this blog for help. Interested to read about Clayfield college.

• 29. Sean Morrison  |  October 1st, 2011 at 4:03 am

  Good morning,
  I am a new Principal in a small caring College.
  My wife and I have just returned from Europe after
  teaching there for 8 years.
  During that time we worked in a great school
  that had success with these challenges and
  my wife Kath completed her Masters from Bangor
  University in Wales.
  I would be very interested to arrange a meeting
  at my College for parents to discuss ways of
  supporting their children and for us as a school
  to investigate how we could support the families
  children who have written these blogs.
  Please feel free to contact me direct.
  Sean Morrison
  College Principal
  Southside Christian College
  smorrison@southsidecc.com.au
  0424 143518

• 30. colleen kavanagh  |  November 12th, 2011 at 8:29 pm

  Finally i feel that I am not alone in the battle to find help or my son…he is 8 and finally been diagnosed with dyslexia. His Irlen lenses are due to arrive this week which will hopefully make a difference…he is attending a private school in Gympie Qld and they are very supportive but wanting him to repeat grade 2 which i have been advised is not recommended as it gives kids the stigma that they are not good enough and lowers their self esteem even further…i am open to all ideas on helping kids with dyslexia and would love to chat with other parents…Qld govt is letting our kids down and they are being put in the “too hard” basket….
  I have made enquiries into a program at hervey bay that i hope will help him…
  i just want help for my son….

• 31. Linda Cross  |  November 28th, 2011 at 7:40 am

  Hello I am Linda and I come from NZ I am a dyslexic woman who was not recognized in the school system I left private school at 15 yrs illiterate. Dyslexia was not known about or recognized back in my era. I came to Brisbane and have been tutoring the way I learn specifically to dyslexia using one on one…humor and building self esteem…spelling comes after this as one must feel valued and children often come to me very stressed. I have been in the local newspapers in Logan to get dyslexia recognized understood and funded by Centrelink as I have been told other states give a careers allowance for dyslexic child but not here in Brisbane why ?….I think something is happening right now as I type…crosslinda3@gmail.com

• 32. Mandy  |  December 13th, 2011 at 10:45 pm

  Hi. My very bright 10 (almost 11) year old son has recently been identified with mild dyslexia. I professionally work in education but didn’t make the connection until now as he’s very bright academically. However the struggles with spelling have not subsided. I read more on dyslexia (not my field) and began to have many “aha” moments. I knew it would only be mild dyslexia but still it’s enough to disadvantage him in literacy (even though he had a VERY high IQ across the board). He attends a catholic boys school. Very nice, but I had to push the LST to test him. She did and said there wasn’t much really to go to be concerned about. She actually missed extremely vital clues which kind of gobsmacked me. So I went to my GP, who LISTENED and then our pediatrician (haven’t seen for many years) who LOOKED and LISTENED and agreed it was probably dyslexia (albeit) mild. He is writing to the school and admitted even the better private schools (which we attend) don’t know how to support these kids very well re-teaching phonics during learning support is useless for example for my son. The pediatrician also referred me on to a brilliant lady (Margaret Hardy) who is linked in with Dyslexia Australia & England.

  She has excellent credentials, experience and knowledge on dyslexia. It was expensive but worth every cent. My son doesn’t need OT, or speech language assessments. He processes slowly and has mild dyslexia. I am glad I picked it up now because the schools just put it down to poor phonic awareness, being slow and being more oriented to maths/science. My son is quiet, not a behaviour problem – a classic slip between the cracks kind of kid. They all under estimated him until I insisted a WISC IV was done at school.

  This lady, Margaret, writes a comprehensive report with her findings, school & home recommendations. Our pediatrician wrote to the school and all of us will meet early next year.

  There is nothing wrong with many Brisbane schools but I agree lots of educators are unaware of the warning signs of dyslexia. I knew because I work in the field and felt some thing wasn’t quite right.

  The key to all this is pursue, pursue, pursue if you kmow your child and feel as I did – it ain’t just bad spelling – there’s a reason why he reads well (but in an odd way with unknown text), there’s a reason why he’s very very good at maths but only gets a C (timed tests = major struggles if you’re dyslexic), there’s a reason he gets 10/10 on learned spelling tests yet can’t spell ‘where’ when he has to write a piece of work. There’s a reason why his comprehension is good but his reading accuracy isn’t. You must exhaust all options and the medical model helps us rule out unnecessary and expensive assessments the school were hinting at.

  Margaret Hardy is at Birkdale. Dr David Wood is our pediatrician. I highly recommend both as being kind, professional, helpful and WILLING to listen. I am glad I pursued and pushed and didn’t get fibbed off by the school who conceded an but no clue it was dyslexia (even if very mild). The signs were ALL there but they didn’t make the connection
  . Now my son will get learning support that is tailored to dyslexia not just something remedial and repetitive that is often a waste of precious time for the very intelligent dyslexic child.

  I hope this helps some Brisbane parents. I best myself up I didn’t have the aha moment sooner given what I do. BUT with my son, he’s bright, has muddled through, and it’s only now this year I’ve thought it should not be this hard for such a bright kid to be struggling this much with writing. Already my son who is happy to do the testing and extra work feels relieved. He knows he’s not dumb! He’s the opposite and now he feels there is hope that things are not going to be so hard for him. His motivation is excellent and now he hopes to start seeing more As on his report card. He works harder than the average kid but the dyslexia sees him getting ordinary grades.

  Never give up if you think it’s dyslexia. It’s best to rule things out. Once you know it is dyslexia that’s half the battle won because there are many ways to compensate for it.

  Good luck:)

• 33. kelly  |  December 16th, 2011 at 8:21 pm

  i have 2 son 8 & 10 that have dyslexia, my husband and i are also, my ealdest son has been in the catholic & public system, with no help at all, in year 2 we move him to a private school and were told to repeat him, witch we did, with the hard work from his amazing learning support teacher, we have seen our son, that could not read even the easiest sight words, to now love to read, this amazing lady, mrs keylard, also has done so much work with our younges son, much more is needed, this amazing lady, and her team, were told on the 14th of dec that her servies are no longer needed at, they are going to be replaced with shared teachers aids. We can not get our heads around this and have had many phone calls over the past few days, our school fees have been increased, and the reason that we are at the school is going to be cut back, and replace with teachers aids that have no experancie with dyslexia and its many forms, the reason we were given was “we are having to cut back many areas, it is just one”
  We are now looking for another school, we are in the jimboomba area, so if anyone knows of a school please let me know.
  Not Happy

Leave a Comment

Name Required

Email Required, hidden

Comment

Some HTML allowed:
<a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

Trackback this post  |  Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed

This blog is protected by dr Dave's Spam Karma 2: 34234 Spams eaten and counting...