Rhonda Rocks

Our clients come to us with a wide variety of challenges and needs. Sometimes parents need help and assistance as they figure out how to be an advocate for their child and make sure they get the help they need as they move forward in their schooling. Below is a recent card Rhonda received from a past client who knows that Langsford will remain available to help her in any way we can:

Rhonda, How can I thank you for the countless hours of helping me through this challenging transitional year. Your guidance and listening ear has been so appreciated! Thanks because I know I can count on your in years to come. We so appreciate you!

Brent Has Style!

This is Brent, who just finished some work at Langsford refining her reading and spelling skills.

One of our instructors, Kara, had this to say about working with her:

I loved working with Brent! She's so very bright and interesting, and as soon as she learns something new she applies it to prior material and comes up with ideas beyond the sum of the parts. That sort of thinking is very impressive (also hard to teach)! Beyond that, Brent is down-to-earth and has a heart of solid gold. She's a very likable person and I would enjoy meeting her again in five or ten years to see what she's doing with herself.

And Maryanne, another instructor, wrote this:

Brent was wonderful to work with. She seemed wise beyond her years. She was willing to give her all to any task I set before her. She wore the cutest clothes and was easy to talk to about almost anything. Just a delight.

Oh, and I also just have to mention that Brent has the coolest purse. It's covered with colorful shiny sequins and I heard her get lots of compliments on it during her time here. That girl has style!

Evan's Tapering Plan

This is Evan and her little brother Tommy. Evan's mother has a special education background and when she first called to speak to us, she said she knew Evan was struggling, but not really at an extreme level. She thought Evan would benefit from a boost and wanted to do something to help her self-confidence when it came to reading. Mom reports that school says she is now reading above grade level.

Working In conjunction with her Learning Coordinator, Mary, Mom has decided to continue bringing Evan in sporadically over the summer to ensure that she has more time to apply what she's learned. At Langsford, we refer to this part of our customized plan as "tapering," which means that we want to gradually move a student out of sessions as they demonstrate the ability to apply their new skills. This tapering plan will differ with each individual client and his/her specific needs.

Our goal is to make sure that every client leaves Langsford with the skills needed to be a self-correcting, independent learner.

Alex's Favorite Toy

In the picture above, Alex is playing with one of his favorite toys. The orange star in front of Alex has proven to be a very popular item during student break times. The star consists of thin plastic colored pegs that are loose and will conform to whatever shape is pressed into the back side of the toy. For example, if you put your hand on the back, then look at the front, you will see the shape of your hand in the orange pegs.

A simple idea I know, but lots of fun. Wish I had thought of it!

It also works as a good stress reliever. I've been known to just pick one up and play with it a bit after I've had to battle some traffic. Or after a student absolutely obliterated me during a reading and spelling game we played in session!

You Want To See Energy?

Okay, so you can't really see it in this picture we took of Claire during her celebration, but trust me, this girl has energy!

Every day she came into Langsford ready to go and with a smile. Well, I'm pretty sure I saw a smile, but she usually moved so fast, I didn't always get much time to see. Claire liked to visit all of us in our offices and she checked everything out that was going on around here.

It was nice having someone like her around because energy like that can be quite contagious. Claire and her family have an upcoming trip planned to Spain and Claire is very excited about it, so I can only imagine the energy she is going to spread over there!

Maggie Makes A Splash

The photo at left is a picture of Maggie, one of our recent clients, during her Spring Break trip in April.

Leslie, Maggie's Learning Coordinator, received this note from mom:

Thank you soooo much for entertaining her - oh yes, that was teaching her wasn't it! She will really miss you ALL!! Thank you for helping her to this level. She has definitely improved. Although costly - you helped her self-confidence rise and gave her the tools she needed to feel good about reading and figuring out the words.
You made it easy coming to Walden.

Thanks. :)
Fondly,
Anne

Grandmothers are Great!

Sometimes the logistics of transporting students to Langsford can be a challenge for parents. And that's where supportive family and friends can help. The picture above is of Kaylee, her mother and her grandmother, who helped transport her to sessions here. Below is a recent email she wrote to us when I asked permission to put up the photo:

Dear Debbie,
It has been a pleasure having to pick up Kaylee and take her to her elementary school for the past weeks.
Everyone was gracious and greeted me with a smile when I came inside.
Every morning we talked about what she was learning.
I have seen her gain confidence in reading using word attack skills.
She even wanted to help me read a card when I couldn’t see the words well.
I think Langsford is doing great things

It would be fine to use the picture on the site.

LOVE AND LIGHT SALLIE