Extra Credit

Extra Credit

From algebra to the ABCs of casual conversation, experts ease the way for kids with learning and social challenges.

As the mom of a son with a math learning disability, I immediately understood Rachel Longan’s story about math wars.

“Doing math made him resistant and angry,” Longan says of her son, Ian. “He learned almost no math during his first four years of school.” As Ian struggled to understand abstract concepts and symbols, he grew increasingly demoralized and anxious. His response to math homework was to yell, over and over, “I’m not doing it.”

Longan, who lives in Berkeley, hired educational therapist Michael Curry to work privately with Ian before he entered fourth grade. During the two years since, Longan has seen an impressive shift. “He’ll work with this teacher,” she says. “The resistance is gone.”

Few kids sail through their school years with absolutely no learning or social problems. Fidgeting, talking out of turn, not remembering the story just read, impulsively poking the next kid in line, and receiving less-than-stellar grades are all par for the course. Depending on how frequent and severe these issues are, they may or may not signal a significant problem. But when parents and teachers agree that a child really needs help negotiating the classroom, that help can be found through two basic services—educational therapy, and social learning groups.

A child whose brain processes information in a unique way may benefit from the expertise of an educational therapist who can tailor the teaching to that child’s abilities. And a kid who struggles with social expectations like compromising, following directions, and holding back-and-forth conversations can practice skills and build confidence in a social learning group. My own son’s elementary school years were marked not only by his learning disability, but also by impulsive, hyperactive behavior, so I’ve seen firsthand the benefits of both educational therapy and social learning groups.

Book buddies: Student and teacher share a focused moment at Raskob Learning Institute Clinic in Oakland. Photo courtesy of Raskob Learning Institute and Day School.

ABCs first

“Start with the classroom teacher,” Polly Mayer advises parents who suspect a learning challenge. Mayer directs the Raskob Learning Institute Clinic in Oakland, affiliated with the Raskob Day School and offering educational therapy for children throughout the Bay Area. Mayer notes that challenges observed at home may or may not occur in the classroom. That’s why, Mayer says, “You want a mind meld, a collaborative approach of parent and teacher together.”

Public schools offer Student Study Teams (SSTs), where parents, students, teachers, and administrators devise classroom strategies together. “For some children, solutions can be as simple as sitting up close in the class, working standing up, or listening to books on tape,” Mayer says. Parents concerned about a possible learning disability can request—in writing—an assessment for special education from their school district. Some students will qualify for district services (such as a classroom aide or resource room time) or for accommodations (like shortened assignments or open-book testing) through an IEP (Individualized Education Program) or 504 Plan. If your child qualifies, wading through the bureaucracy is worth the effort.

Lose the stigma

Star student: Preschoolers like Kennedy (in swing, above) receive special help at Communication Works and other social learning centers. Photo by Joop Ruben.

“Even young children internalize school failure,” says Mayer, whose daughter has learning challenges. She encourages parents to seek help early and to destigmatize learning differences or disabilities. (These terms are not identical—“learning disability” is a criterion established by public school districts that allows students to qualify for services. The broader terms “learning difference” and “learning challenge” encompass specific diagnoses like dyslexia as well as undiagnosed concerns like trouble staying organized.) Mayer, who sent her daughter to an educational therapist and was happy with the progress she made, urges parents not to let the fear of a label prevent them from getting help. “Instead of thinking of a diagnosis as a stopping place that blocks a child,” she says, “consider it a door that the child and family can walk through to receive services.”

How should parents decide whether a child struggling with studies would benefit most from an educational therapist, who would typically have a master’s degree in special education or a related field, or a tutor? According to longtime educator and psychologist Ann Gordon, who directs Educational Services Associates in Oakland, a tutor teaches a particular subject, like writing or chemistry. An educational therapist also helps with the subject, but focuses on the child’s way of learning and what has been problematic in the past. If, for example, a child is struggling with math and also has a history of speech and language difficulties, Gordon recommends an educational therapist who will first assess whether the problem is the math itself or the language used to explain math concepts. In a different scenario, if the child has missed a semester of school, a tutor would likely make more sense.

Getting to know you

Developing trust and connection with each student and family is part of the educational therapist’s job. Longan says that to reduce Ian’s anxiety, Curry would list their tasks for the 50-minute session and then erase each item from the blackboard once it was completed. “In school, he felt it was endless,” she says. Curry, who uses Making Math Real—a multisensory, hands-on approach—built Ian’s confidence by bringing him back to the most basic concepts so Ian could feel a sense of mastery. When Longan tried to help Ian with math, he would repeatedly ask, “When will this be over?” and focus on arranging and flattening the paper. To ease the family conflict, Curry suggested that Ian work on math homework only with him.

Sometimes it takes time to unravel whether a child has an emotional issue, an attention problem, or a learning difference. Betty Peterson, the learning program director at the Ann Martin Center in Oakland and Piedmont, explains that a student with an auditory processing problem (difficulty understanding spoken language) won’t be able to keep up with the lesson and then may shut down or get fidgety. While it may seem as though the child can’t pay attention, the source of the problem may be his inability to interpret what the teacher is saying.

Set in a cozy house in Piedmont and in another site just four blocks away in Oakland, the Ann Martin Clinic also includes a separate mental health center, providing a chance for clinicians to collaborate. And including parents is key, given that the neurological differences underlying learning issues are persistent. “We counsel parents to know and accept who the child is,” Peterson says. “We can’t offer a quick fix; it’s more about giving strategies for lifelong learning.”

For the student, these strategies include understanding how they learn. “Are they a visual learner or an auditory one?” Mayer says. “Do they need to be building something to understand it? Do they need to hear it three times?” Therapists also coach students to become self-advocates who can tell a teacher, “I need to sit right in front” or “I’m allowed to use my calculator during exams.”

Making the grade

Outside the strict educational therapy approach, the Lindamood-Bell Center in Berkeley and Paul the Tutor’s Education Center in Oakland offer specialized services in reading, math, and test preparation. At Lindamood-Bell, renowned for its success teaching kids to read, teachers use a carefully scripted approach at all its centers nationwide. After an initial assessment, a child typically comes to the center for intensive instruction five days a week for four to 12 weeks.

Paul Osborne (Paul the Tutor), who went to Harvard in spite of dyslexia, provides tutoring and test preparation at his center. Author of the LD SAT Study Guide for students with learning disabilities, he teaches test prep for high school and college entrance exams.

By the time your child is ready to take tests like the ACT or SAT, advises Mayer, it’s best to have a documented history of learning challenges in order to qualify for accommodations like extra time or having test questions read aloud.

Social smarts

Social communication skills don’t come naturally to everyone. “In a classroom,” says Communication Works co-director Elizabeth Sautter, “kids need to be able to compromise and negotiate, to follow the plan and be flexible with peers.” With the current emphasis on academics and testing, adds Sautter, there’s less time for 5-, 6-, and 7-year-olds to mature emotionally and socially. Social learning (or social skills) groups offer a safe venue where kids of similar abilities and ages (starting with preschoolers) can learn about conversation, self-regulation, and getting along with peers. Group leaders are typically speech and language pathologists, occupational therapists, or social cognitive specialists. Sautter and co-director Hillary Kissack use the trademarked Social Thinking curriculum and treatment approach developed by social skills expert and author Michelle Garcia Winner.

Ball control

One afternoon at Communication Works in Oakland, I get the chance to watch two social learning groups play balloon volleyball. In the first, three boys, ages 8 and 9, start by discussing the hidden rules of games, rules that most kids learn intuitively. (Groups of three or four kids are typical here, although other practices set up groups of six or more.) These boys have fairly subtle issues with ADHD and executive functioning (the ability to plan, organize, and carry out tasks). Occupational therapist Leah Keepers asks the boys to name some hidden rules. and one boy says, “No bragging.” “No quitting,” adds another. “No rule-policing other kids,” the third chimes in.

They’re soon having a grand time playing balloon volleyball, the three students versus Kuypers and her volunteer. The speed and intensity increases when they switch to a beach ball. In the excitement of the game, the boys repeatedly pile together and jostle one another. When one boy slams the ball across the net, Kuypers calls a time-out. “What have we been working on for the past six weeks?” she asks.

“Impulse control,” they answer.

Is anyone feeling annoyed because someone else is on top of him?

“Yes!” the group responds, emphatically. They consider two more hidden rules—giving people personal space, and taking turns. But when one of the boys suggests rotating positions between serves, the other two remain silent. “It’s expected that you’ll answer,” Kuypers explains. “Otherwise, he thinks it’s an awful idea.” In spite of some rambunctious moments, these boys are largely in control of themselves and working to change their behavior.

For another group meeting down the hall, however, balloon volleyball is a more ambitious goal. Speech-language pathologist Erica Bland is working with three boys and one girl, ages 8 to 10, all diagnosed with autism. These kids are distracted during their hello circle. “I have sugar-free gum,” one boy announces. “Can I write on the blackboard?” another asks repeatedly.

“Everybody’s words are bumping,” Bland tells them. One boy plops his head down on the table; another puts his feet up on the back of a chair. Bland’s assistant brings in some tools to help ground and settle the kids, a ball for the girl to roll under her foot and a green “fidget” pillow for one of the boys to hold on to.

Bland coaches the children to ask “wonder questions” like “What did you do on Sunday?” to develop their ability to imagine another person’s perspective. Kids with autism and nonverbal learning disability struggle with “theory of mind,” the ability to think about others.

For this group, Bland says, the balloon volleyball game is an exercise in mental flexibility, a chance to practice a “non-preferred activity.” One boy holds his hands over his ears. “It’s going to pop,” he insists. “It will hurt my ears.” Bland coaxes and reassures, and he eventually taps the balloon a few times. She praises him highly for trying something that feels so difficult. With many interruptions, this group still manages to play several rounds.

Peer power

For older kids, groups often venture into the subtle territory of friendships, cliques, and romance. Kathryn McCarthy of Berkeley, who has run social skills groups for 17 years, believes strongly in girls-only groups to offer pre-teens and adolescents a safe place to discuss body image, dealing with boys, school pressures, and friendships. Creating the right mix for any social skills group is critical; McCarthy generally pairs girls with issues like anxiety and depression in one group and those with ADHD in another. Sometimes she brings the girls out to a corner cafe. “We’re practicing how to walk and talk and socialize in the real world,” she says. “They debrief later and give each other feedback; positive reinforcement from peers is the most powerful reinforcement.”

Clayton mom Karen Villandre has seen social skills groups ease her son Josh’s anxiety, extreme shyness, and difficulty with social cues. Paired with another teen at the Speech Pathology Group in Walnut Creek, Josh, 16, gets a chance to practice the art of conversation—getting started, joining in, and knowing how and when to change topics. The therapist might say something like, “I had a great weekend,” and then prompt the boys to come up with appropriate responses. In one role-play, Josh practices being able to assert himself after a waiter spills a bowl of pasta onto his lap. To put their skills to a real-life test, the boys are given homework: Ask a girl from school about her weekend plans on Friday and then follow up with her on Monday.

“He’s slowly coming out of his shell,” Villandre says of her son. “The group has been a great tool for him.”

Faltz Associates and Think Social East Bay also offer social learning groups, and the Berkeley YMCA teaches social skills in its Swim and Gym Inclusion Program and Play Pals classes and camp. Strawberry Canyon Blue Camp on the U.C. Berkeley campus runs a social skills summer camp for kids who have completed grades three through 13. Trails to Success focuses on equine therapy as a path toward social communication, with summer and school-year programs at the Star Canyon Ranch in Martinez.

Fees for social skills groups generally range from $80 to $95 per hour, depending on the size of the group and the leader’s credentials. Cost for educational therapy sessions is typically between $80 and $100 per hour. The Ann Martin Center offers a sliding scale and some scholarships.

Seeing results makes the cost and time worthwhile. I recall my amazement years ago that my son Alex was not just willing but able to do multiplication with his educational therapist, Patricia Quick. She also got him to practice addition through a clever twist on the card game War—she dealt two cards at a time and had him add their values. And when I recently asked Alex, now 17, what he remembers about his social skills group with Berkeley psychologist Maria Antoniadis, he said that the group helped him deal with a mean kid during third grade.

The bottom line: If you suspect a problem, explore the options for your child. “The sooner the challenges can be identified,” says Mayer, “the sooner the scaffolding and support can be put into place.”

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Rachel Trachten is a frequent contributor to The Monthly. You can read her column on local resources for kids with special needs at examiner.com/special-needs-kids-in-oakland/rachel-trachten. She lives in Berkeley.

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