Important Information

Download Read On's Year-end Report to Supporters for a summary of the amazing strides Read On and our supporters have made toward changing the tide for struggling readers in Washington State.

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How can I help my child?
Learn what you must do to help your child become a proficient reader.

Read On Resource Guide
Recommended reading and other sources of information about dyslexia and effective interventions.


Who Is Read On?

Our journey to create Read On started on the school playground. While chatting after school we began to realize that our children were struggling with language-based learning, especially with reading, spelling and writing. None of us could understand why our seemingly bright children were having trouble learning things that other children just seemed to absorb naturally. Despite their best intentions, our school’s teachers and learning specialists could not explain the discrepancy between our children’s normal intellectual ability and their impaired ability to master reading, spelling and writing. We were told it was “developmental delay.” Suspecting it was more, we began to research and realized we were probably dealing with dyslexia and/or other processing disorders like dysgraphia. Discovering that the Seattle school district did not diagnose dyslexia and did not have a clear pathway for teaching kids with dyslexia we felt obligated to create awareness and be a voice for these children. That is why we created Read On.

Through our outreach efforts we realized that even our great teaching staff at Lawton Elementary had not received the professional training needed to identify kids with dyslexia. There is one teacher at Lawton who is a specalist in teaching kids with dyslexia and related language processing disorders like dysgraphia. Sue Palewicz teaches third grade at Lawton. She has two children of her own with dyslexia and, years ago, embarked on her own professional and personal journey to understand how kids with dyslexia learn. She has been an immense help to our kids and to Read On. She has helped to create awareness in our school’s teaching community. Our teachers and our Principal, Ed Noh, have been very supportive of Read On. This summer Lawton teachers participated in a professional development program that provided an introduction to the facts about dyslexia. Several Lawton educators will also attend the International Dyslexia Association’s 2008 annual conference with some financial support from Read On.

Read On parents have done thier homework. Extensive research has demonstrated that dyslexia has nothing to do with intelligence. Dyslexic children simply learn differently. It is a neurological disorder with an educational solution. Research has exploded in this area and the results are clear on what needs to be done to assist dyslexic children. Read On’s goal is to impact the school system so that children struggling to read receive the proper intervention, enabling them to reach their full potential in reading and language-based skills. Early intervention is critical for dyslexic children.

Read On will accomplish its goals by working with the state government, school districts, parents and educators. Our hope is to insure research-backed tools are provided to struggling readers, tools that are absolutely necessary for their academic success. Research findings are clear. Dyslexia can be overcome with early and appropriate intervention. Please join Read On in our journey to create awareness about dyslexia and improve the lives of dyslexic children!

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