Scott was clinically diagnosed as autistic and was under the care of several specialists including a neurologist. In spite of receiving services from the special education program at his school, he was in Grade four and struggling first-grade texts. His mother was desperate to get him help. Scott was severely depressed because every day he was asked to do things at school that he couldn’t do because he couldn’t read well enough to do them. At one point, his mother was concerned that he was suicidal, so she took him to the emergency room at the local hospital to get help.
Part way through Grade four, Scott became a student in the Read Right intervention program. In 1.5 years of participation, at the end of grade five, Scott had closed his achievement gap in reading. His mother emailed the following note to his Read Right tutor after his parent teacher conference:
“The teachers said he’s doing phenomenal. He’s reading at a 6th grade level (which you already knew). He’s reading for pleasure! He tells people that reading is his best trait. His teacher posts leaves on a window when a child reads a book. 7 of the 17 leaves belong to Scott. No other student has more than one book read! Scott also offers to help kids who are struggling with reading. Like I said [in the subject line], thank you can never be enough” – Scott’s Mother.
