Success stories

From Carol Sullivan, Tieri, QLD, mother of 7-yr-old Harrison:

Who would have thought that a set of headphones, the computer and a lady who lives thousands of miles from our home could be instrumental in helping my child to read? I had never heard of Skype before talking to Diane about her amazing Sounds of Reading program. Late in 2006 I was given Diane's contact details as a "lifeline" and we grabbed it and started to swim! My son Harrison was having a number of challenges with his Year One schooling. Harrison is a very "literal" child and is a visual learner so he does not really suit the traditional school classroom setting. He was unable to recognise many of his letters, was struggling to read and trying to help him learn sight words was not a pleasant experience!! His first spelling words were "one, two, three, etc" and I could not explain why "one" does NOT start with the letter "w". My husband Richard and I are not teachers so we were at a loss as to how to help him. Harrison was getting more and more discouraged and frustrated which made the learning situation more difficult. And then Diane came into our lives through a referral (I just love networking!!). The fact that Diane lives in New South Wales and we live in Central Queensland was not a problem. We just made a weekly commitment to a tutoring session with Diane using Skype on the internet.

Diane's Sounds of Reading program took Harrison right back to the basics - looking at the "sounds" of the letters. So, we then had a lot of "unlearning" to do as the methods that were being employed at his school were not working. Within the first couple of months Harrison could recognise all his letters and was making good progress. And now less than 12 months later my son is reading confidently and his writing is improving. In three terms of his Year Two year (2007) he jumped 7 reading levels. And the biggest improvement is in his confidence. Harrison has gone from not wanting to read and refusing to attempt simple words - from being extremely frustrated and angry - to happily attempting any book in the house and not worrying if he gets a word or two wrong! Harrison has always been a book lover and it is so rewarding to watch him now reading all his books when previously he would only look at the pictures. Having a child with a learning challenge is an emotional experience. My tears are now ones of pride not frustration - and so are his!!

We are so happy and grateful to have found Diane and her Sounds of Reading program. On behalf of my family we wish to acknowledge the work that she is doing to positively impact so many children that are "lost" and being "left behind" in the school system. Diane has made a significant difference to Harrison's school life which is now a positive one. We are truly blessed.

From Allison Kenny, Dysart, QLD, mother of 7-yr-old Marcus: I cannot thank Diane and her Sounds of Reading Australia program enough for the remarkable progress my son is now making. Living in a remote area, we have VERY limited resources for tutoring and assistance with literacy. Lessons with Diane via the internet have now ensured Marcus is developing reading and spelling fundamentals, that without doubt, will stand him in good stead for his future years of education.

From Maryanne Attard, Mandalong, NSW, mother of 8-yr-old Matthew: Learning through Skype for Matthew is fun and he looks forward to doing his lesson each week. It is especially handy for me because it saves me time from driving to and from Diane's place which is 90 minutes in total for me. I've found in the few lessons Matthew has had with Diane that his confidence, reading and spelling have improved.

From Lucy Cutcher, Newcastle, NSW, mother of 10-yr-old Julian: Julian struggled with reading through Kinder and most of Year 1 and in fact could not read a single word when the Kaleidoscope Learning Disorders Clinic suggested I take him to Diane Philipson. He started her Sounds of Reading AUSTRALIA program at the beginning of term 4 in Year 1, when he was 7 years 2 months old. For the first seven terms at school, Julian had made no progress in literacy at all – he did not even register on a reading scale, let alone spelling. At the end of four terms with Diane, attending for 2 hours once a week between 9 and 11am, Julian had completed the entire course and his reading age had caught up to his chronological age. He kept going to Diane for advanced work and, by the time he reached 9 years and 2 months, Julian’s reading age had rocketed to 10 years and his spelling age was 9 years and 2 months. Since then, Julian has not looked back. He loves reading and is in the top reading group of Year 4. This new ability with literacy has given him so much confidence – it really did change his life.

From Joanne Robson, Lake Macquarie, NSW, mother of 8-yr-old Jessica: Jessica, who is 8, was referred to Diane by her speech pathologist. Jessica was halfway through Year 1. She was struggling with her reading and in her last spelling test it was noted how poorly Jessica did. Jessica is a very quiet child at school but she absolutely loved Diane and her cat. I felt she bonded very well with her and was always happy to visit. Diane started teaching Jessica by getting her to listen to the sounds, by the way of visuals in her book and also with certain hand movements. We noted a change in her very soon. She started to take a real interest in reading more at home and her confidence had really taken off. She is now in Year 2, Term 2 and she has moved up reading groups quite considerably and is reading chapter books with absolute ease. She is now writing sentences without any of our help and this year every spelling test she has, her marks are 100%. She is about to go onto Part C of Diane's program. All this has been done is in such as short time. We thank god every day that we found Diane and enrolled Jessica into her sounds of reading program. It is truly remarkable the progress she has made in such a short time. She has just recently had a reading assessment and she now has a reading age of 9-10 years old.

From Catherine, Port Stephens, NSW , mother of 7-yr-old Jack: Jack began the Sounds of Reading program 6 months ago at age 6 years and 11 months. He has been progressing very well and he really looks forward to each lesson. I believe his good relationship with his teacher Catherine has contributed to his enthusiasm and his love of books and reading.