Alix Mayer
Alix is a new member of The Marshall School and LEC staff. She is a recent graduate of the University of Mary Washington with a Masters in Elementary Education. She looks forward to getting to know the students and guiding them as they become successful learners. Outside of work, she enjoys reading, learning to cook, going to the beach, and spending time with her family and friends. She also loves to take her dogs, Molly and Ginny, for long walks.

Mimi Newell
Mimi is a Learning Enhancement Center Clinician. She holds a degree in Art Education from Appalachian State University in Boone North Carolina. Mimi moved to Fredericksburg in August of 2011 and is looking forward to helping students in her new city! When she isn’t teaching, Mimi enjoys reading, exercising, cooking and exploring with her fiancé. She is also the art teacher at The Marshall School.

Kristen Colvin
Kristen began working at LEC in 2011. She graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Albright College. She is currently pursuing a Master’s degree and teaching license in Mathematics and Secondary Education. She lives with her husband and is passionate about rescuing animals. Kristen enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, camping, and creating.

No doubt you will make at least one trip this month to buy school supplies and clothes for your child. A new school year is always exciting and full of hopeful anticipation! But the most effective thing you can do as a parent may involve plenty of planning, but little to no shopping. Here are 3 tips to make this school year run more smoothly.

1. Set up to Support Homework

Organize a work space or portable tote with sufficient office supplies and resource books. Be sure there is a quiet, well lit area for studying that your child finds comfortable and appealing.

Put up a large white board (2′ x 3′) where students can MAP OUT and VISUALLY SEE homework, personal schedules, upcoming tests, critical due dates and special events.

Help your child create a routine or system for getting homework completed while participating in their extra-curricular activities and other personal commitments.

2. Prepare for Supportive Send Offs

Plan ways your child can readily have a good breakfast that includes protein.

Make a habit of getting backpacks, lunch money, permission slips, and extra gear ready the night before.

Tack up a simple checklist with visual cues as to routine steps that need to be followed before leaving for school.

3. Strategize and Organize Against Pitfalls

Determine a way to effectively control and monitor T.V., computer and video game time so that it does not eat away your child’s energy and time needed to complete homework.

Decide where to say “no” to good things in order to insure that the best things actually happen – both in your schedule as well as your child’s schedule.

Get yourself organized for the day the night before so that your personal stress level is down and your free to offer your child emotional encouragement and send them off with a loving hug!

Learning Enhancement Centers is pleased to offer a limited number of grade level assessments on August 19th. Your child/teen will receive a reading and math evaluation and a one page summary for only $50.00!

Evaluations will be filled on a first come basis so reserve your child’s assessment today by calling Krystal Holt at 540-368-1960 or email us at info@learningenhancementcenters.com.

Don’t forget to mention that you would like the Back to School Assessment to receive our special discounted rate!

Abby is a Learning Enhancement Center Clinician. She holds a Master’s degree in Special Education from Longwood University. Abby is a former special education teacher. She is active in her church and enjoys serving in the preschool environment every Sunday. Abby enjoys spending time with her husband and three children. We feel blessed to have Abby at LEC and we know that you and your child will enjoy working with her!

Research studies have concluded that summer learning loss equals at least one month of instruction. Is your child ready for the upcoming school year?

Learning Enhancement Centers is pleased to offer a limited number of grade level assessments on July 29th, August 1st, 5th, 8th or 12th. Your child/teen will receive a reading and math evaluation and a one page summary for only $50.00!

We have 40 available spots that will be filled on a first come basis so reserve your child’s assessment today by calling Krystal Holt at 540-368-1960 or email us at info@learningenhancementcenters.com.

Don’t forget to mention that you would like the Back to School Assessment to receive our special discounted rate!

Wendy M Tatum, MS, EdS, NCSP, Licensed School Psychologist and associate with Learning Enhancement Centers will be hosting a Back to School Study Skills Program throughout the month of August!

This program will teach your child how to study smarter, pack more into less time, approach tests with confidence and get the most out of class. Time management, organizing materials, ways to listen, reading for meaning, how to take notes, test taking skills and other study habit skills will be covered to help your child succeed in the classroom.

Session Fees:

• $50/hour for a total of $400.00 per student
• Starter School Supply Kit for Organizing Materials $40.00

Session Dates (Middle/Junior High 6th-8th):

• August 2, 9, 16, 23
• 5-7pm

Session Dates (High School 9th-12th):

• August 4, 11, 18, 25
• 5-7pm

Call 540-656-3114 today or email wendytatum@gmail.com for more information!
Classes will be held at 800 Westwood Office Park Fredericksburg, VA 22401 (next door to Learning Enhancement Centers)

Extensive research has been conducted showing that significant learning loss takes place during summer breaks and other away-from-school time periods. In research studies, analysis showed that summer learning loss equaled at least one month of instruction. Especially vulnerable are mathematical computation skills and skills related to reading and writing, such as spelling skills. In order to prevent and slow this learning loss, students must have access to grade appropriate activities and practice materials during their away-from-school time.

A synthesis and analysis of studies of learning suggests that there are nine factors that
influence learning. The top two factors are:

1. Amount of time students engage in learning
2. Quality of the instructional experience including method and content

LEC addresses both of those factors by extending the learning beyond the traditional school year, and by providing research- and standards-based activities that practice both basic skills, as well as higher level skills needed for success in school and beyond.

To hear more about our Summer Intensives and how they can benefit your child this Summer, check out our Summer Sessions link on our website: www.LearningEnhancementCenters.com.

We look forward to working with your child this summer and giving them a learning boost for their next school year!

In addition to our summer sessions, Learning Enhancement Centers has many exciting learning opportunities for students this summer. We are offering a full day camp sponsored by The Marshall School, 3 writing workshops, and a study skills program.

• Summer Explorations – Click here for Summer Day Camp information
• Summer Writing Workshops – Click here for more information on the workshops
• Study Skills program – Sessions will begin in August prior to the start of school and will continue into the school year. Middle and High School students will learn how to be successful in the classroom. Skills taught include organization, time management, taking notes, how to study for tests, etc. More information regarding start times and cost will be available in June.

Please register by visiting our website: www.learningenhancementcenters.com

Our Summer Intensive Program Will Make a BIG Difference For Your Family

If your son or daughter is bright and struggles in school, there is a reason…and it’s NOT because they are lazy!

It’s because they are missing some skills. And it isn’t the obvious skills. It’s the underlying skills. Things like auditory processing, memory, attention, or any of dozens more.

In fact, about 30% of ALL students have either weak or missing underlying skills. We call those the “learning skills” because they make learning easy.

The effect on students and families can be devastating! Kids try really hard but get accused of being lazy. Often schools say there is “nothing wrong.” Parents are baffled and “tear their hair out” trying to figure out the right things to do.

It can be miserable for the whole family.

The Bad News: Schools and tutoring DON’T actually fix those skills. They are focused on mastering curriculum. When you decide to hire a tutor, you are getting “more of the same.”

The GOOD News: Learning Skills can be FIXED…permanently, but only by using programs that are focused on training those skills. That means that, even though it is hard work, it’s not like school. Building underlying learning skills takes some very specific attention. But it can be done and it doesn’t have to be a “forever” process.

• It’s time to stop living with learning problems
• It’s time to stop taking hours to do short homework assignments
• It’s time to stop trying to find ways around learning problems and start solving them
• It’s time for parents to stop feeling guilty
• It’s time for families to live without the strain and stress of learning issues

Summer is the perfect time for an intensive program. Students don’t have to juggle homework in addition to working on skills.

Here is a quick summary of Summer Intensive Sessions:

• Choose between a 5 week or 10 week session
• Come 2-3 hours per day, 2-4 days per week.
• It doesn’t take all day – Plan fun summer activities after sessions are over
• Doesn’t take all summer –there’s still plenty of time for family vacations and down time
• Discount pricing…save $575 off of regular session costs
• Make up to 30 weeks of progress in just 5 weeks
• Make a tremendous difference in your life…yes next year can (and should) be better! Stop the pain and frustration.
• Summer is easier because you can focus on the learning skills when you aren’t trying to keep up with regular schoolwork…you’re not trying to do 2 things at once!

The goal of a Summer Intensive is to make a big impact on next year. It is a huge start in the right direction. And it is a difference that will make your life better when school starts again in the Fall.

Are you ready to get started? Call us and let us help you change the lives of your child and your family. Next year really CAN be better. Call now at (540) 368-1960.

In our last newsletter, we talked about the symptoms that can manifest in someone with attention challenges. While we are not opposed to medicine, we don’t feel that it should be the first line of action. To make sure that we are actually treating what is causing the attention difficulties, we generally evaluate five other areas that can cause attention difficulties separate from, or in addition to a biochemical reason.

One area we evaluate is Auditory Processing. Auditory processing is different from hearing. Basically, it is how you think about what you hear.

A central auditory processing disorder (CAPD) occurs when the auditory signal is received accurately by the ear, but becomes distorted, confused, or compromised in some way before it is received by the language area of the brain.

It’s Hard to Get the Message When You Have a Bad Connection

Perhaps the best way to understand a central auditory processing disorder in our “modern age” is to think about what it is like to be in an important conversation with a bad cell phone connection. You have to listen extremely hard, and any extra noise around (i.e. kids, traffic, etc.) becomes extremely irritating and hard to block out.

Because the signal is not clear, you miss part of what the speaker is saying and you find yourself saying, “What did you say?” and struggling to fill-in the gaps.

You’re not exactly sure what the speaker said, but you don’t want to sound stupid or uninterested, so you make what you think is an appropriate response. Oops! That backfired. Now you have to explain about the bad connection and why you misinterpreted what they said and made an “off-the-wall” response.

You don’t quite understand the speaker, yet when you have a clear connection you really don’t have a comprehension problem.

It takes so much energy to keep up with this conversation, that you find your attention drifting. You feel distracted and frustrated, and doggone it, important or not, you just want to get off the phone.

Luckily for cell phone users, the way to a better connection is to hang-up and dial again. But for students with CAPD, this is life.

Common Symptoms of Central Auditory Processing Deficit

In more clinical terms, here are some symptoms that most literature on CAPD include:

• About 75% are male
• Normal hearing acuity
• Difficulty following oral directions
• Inconsistent response to auditory stimuli (the signal isn’t always confused, just sometimes)
• Short attention span; fatigues easily during auditory tasks
• Poor long and short term memory
• Difficulty with phonics, reading, or spelling; mild speech-language problems
• Says “Huh?” or “What?” or often asks for things to be repeated
• History of ear infections

There is a strong relationship between language, language development, auditory skills, and attention. This can make it hard to identify individuals with auditory processing disorders because similar behaviors are exhibited among students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

It is widely accepted that both ADHD and CAPD may co-exist or occur independently. It can be like the chicken-egg scenario. Does someone have poor auditory skills because of ADHD, or does the auditory processing cause the ADHD? If the attention difficulties are due to an auditory processing, medicine might mask the symptoms, but it is not going to treat the root cause of the problem. This is why an evaluation is so important.

Only an audiologist can confirm the presence of a Central Auditory Processing Disorder. However, there is pattern that occurs in LEC’s evaluation that can indicate if there is an auditory processing deficit.

At LEC, if we determine that an individual has an auditory processing deficit, we will often recommend sessions and a home based sound therapy program. We call this Auditory Stimulation Training.

Auditory stimulation training has been effective in treating a variety of disorders, including auditory processing disorders, speech and language disorders, learning disabilities, autism and spectrum disorders, attention deficit disorders, and reading and spelling disorders.

Some of the changes that we see as a result of Auditory Stimulation Training are:

• Improved sleep
• Better ability to follow directions
• Improved auditory comprehension
• Improved vocal quality
• Better organization
• Improved social interaction
• Increased balance and coordination
• Improved language
• Increased attention
• Improved communication
• Reduced sound sensitivity
• Increased frustration tolerance

We have found Auditory Stimulation Training and sound therapy to be a tremendous tool in aiding in the development of attention, communication, and learning with individuals of all ages with a variety of learning challenges. We are seeing dramatic changes occur in the lives of children, teens, and adults.

As we understand more and more about CAPD and other attention difficulties, treating affected patients without medicine is now a reality. If you believe you or someone you know may be a candidate for the treatment of an attention challenge, please contact our offices to set up an appointment today – and enjoy a better tomorrow.