HIGH FIVE LITERACY AND ACADEMIC COACHING

In my private tutoring practice, just about every conversation I have with parents following a reading assessment of their child ends the same way – “If I Only Would Have Known…”  Teachers told them their child would be fine.  School administrators and educational support team members assured them the right instruction and interventions were being provided. Tutoring centers promised them the moon.  Yet, lo and behold, a few years pass, and their child still struggles with reading.  I’m constantly reminded of the movie Groundhog’s Day, where the same day keeps repeating over and over again.  I would always think to myself, “Boy, I could write the script…”  And, then I had a thought.  “Wait a minute. I SHOULD write the script!” 

This “Aha Moment” inspired me to write my “If I Only Would Have Known…” series, a set of accessible, graphic plays meant to be read by parents BEFORE they face the heartache of seeking help for their children in a school system that is not working for them.  Having been a teacher, reading specialist, regional literacy coach, and administrator, I have seen, firsthand, how schools continue to deliver ineffective reading instruction to the masses, while delaying or denying services to struggling children, many of whom would not be struggling if all children were taught correctly in the first place.  I have also heard innumerable accounts from parents who were made to feel as though they were to blame for not adequately preparing their children to learn to read. The truth is there is just too much misinformation coming out of the education community about literacy development in the early stages based upon misguided but entrenched theories of how kids learn to read.  Until schools and teaching colleges get on board with the science of reading and there is a paradigm shift in the way reading is taught, it is community members such as pediatricians, preschool teachers, and librarians who will have to be resources for parents concerning effective early literacy development.  

In these short, easy-to-understand books, I try to convey the importance of having members of the community support and educate parents early enough in the process to change the trajectory for their children.  I provide specific examples of things parents can and should look for to ensure their children get off to a good start when they begin school.  My hope is that my “If I Only Would Have Known…” series will be made available in pediatricians’ offices, daycare centers, preschools, and libraries, as well as in maternity wards, where they can be given as gifts for new parents. If it starts in the community, perhaps the schools and teaching universities will have no choice but to catch on.  At the very least, parents will be able to ask the right questions.  

Faith Borkowsky is the founder of High Five Literacy and Academic Coaching with over thirty years of experience as a classroom teacher, reading and learning specialist, regional literacy coach, administrator, and tutor. Ms. Borkowsky is Orton-Gillingham trained and is a Wilson Certified Dyslexia Practitioner listed on the International Dyslexia Association’s Provider Directory. She provides professional development for teachers and school districts, as well as parent workshops, presentations, and private consultations. Ms. Borkowsky is the author of the award-winning book, Failing Students or Failing Schools? A Parent’s Guide to Reading Instruction and Intervention.  She is also a board member of Teach My Kid to Read, a 501(c) non-profit organization with a mission to support and empower students, teachers, and parents through education so all kids, including those with dyslexia, learn to read.