Gifted Dyslexic intervention and training options:

We charge a daily rate of £460 in the UK for individual intervention.
In South Africa, Axel Gudmundsson charges R6,000 per day, and other GD facilitators charge R4,600 per day. Below is a rough guideline of how many days are needed for addressing various learning challenges. Each day tends to be 6 hours of work, plus half an hour lunch break.

Davis Dyslexia help for all ages
Handwriting correction might take an additional day.
The above results are from fellow Davis facilitator Larry Smith, who runs the Rocky Point Academy in Canada. He has tested the reading skills of almost all his clients immediately before and after the five-day Davis dyslexia programme, and his research shows an average reading improvement of just under four grade levels in five days.

2017-18 Training Schedule:

Can we get Jadon from "fail" to "pass" in four weeks

Back in September 2016, 18 year old Jason Joseph was expected to fail his Matric exams (National Senior Certificate Examination). We believed we could help him overcome his dyslexia and ADHD in only four weeks so he could study efficiently and pass his Matric. Based on our prior experience of using the Davis methods, we were full of confidence, blissfully unaware of some curve-balls we were about to encounter... Watch the video, and follow us on Facebook.

Second instalment:
Is 5 grade level improvement possible in only 7 hours

Jadon's reading speed has now been tested and the results are very encouraging. See video below:

Davis method explained

My looooong walk to success with dyslexia and autism:

My loooong walk to success with dyslexia and autism


A story of a loving mother helping James, her dyslexic and autistic son. Nicola did the four-day Gift of Dyslexia workshop in October 2014, but decided that despite her being an exceptional teacher of gifted children, her son needed a professional Davis facilitator, due to his autism and severe dyslexia (he knew only a handful of letters and words on a page). See more here.

Rocky Point Academy testimonials


This is a video from our colleagues in Rocky Point Academy, Canada, and while they are clearly amazing in their results, the Davis programme follows rigorous international standards, and results will be similar for anyone who diligently follows the structure.

Samuel Joseph goes from 14% to over 90%


A testimonial from Sam
Samuel Joseph is a bright young man, who was really struggling at school over a decade ago, when he came to Gifted Dyslexic in London. Sam's test scores in his favourite subject of history, went from 14% to scoring over 90% after only five days' work. He then was accepted into one of London's leading secondary schools, went on to get seven A-stars and four A's at his GCSEs, and then three A's at A-levels in history. He has just been accepted into Durham, one of UK's elite universities. Well Done Sam!!

  




Talks for schools
Gifted Dyslexic offers cutting edge one-to-one intervention for correcting learning difficulties. We also offer innovative training for teachers in order to accelerate literacy for all learners, while preventing learning difficulties from arising in the first place.
We address literacy and handwriting in five days (30 hours), but ADD, ADHD, and maths problems will add about three days to the time needed.

There are essentially three options available to you in terms of addressing your child's dyslexia (the same applies to an adult dyslexic):

1. Do-it-yourself programme (R 400):
If it is your child you are looking for help with, you can buy The Gift of Dyslexia and try to follow the instructions in the book yourself. This is obviously not as secure in terms of success as working with a professional, but it is a good first step anyway, as it would be a great preparation even if you do not succeed with the DIY work, and decide to move on to one of the other options anyway.

2. The Gift of Dyslexia workshop (R 7 200):
This is a four-day workshop, which is offered once in a while in the UK and SA. It is designed to give you more confidence in applying the procedures from the book. It obviously does not give you the same skill and confidence as a professional Davis facilitator, who goes through rigorous training over a year, but parents have reported good success from this option. Note, though that this option does not equip you with the procedures needed to address ADD, maths, or handwriting.

3. Professional one-to-one Davis programme (R 23-48 000):
Dyslexia correction takes 30 hours (5 days) - ADD and maths add about another three days - and there is about 50 hours worth of follow-up work you would need to do at home.

Before doing a professional Davis programme, the first step is a 2-3 hour Davis assessment. If need be, an assessment can be done over Skype, which generally is kept to about an hour.
                           

In addition to offering the above services, we also offer free lectures to schools and other organizations, who are interested in accelerated learning and effective ways of dealing with learning difficulties.


We had about 70 people (educators, therapists, parents and children) attending a free Gift of Dyslexia lecture in Woodridge College, Port Elizabeth, SA, 18 May, 2014.

A sample from the 90 minute Gift of Dyslexia Lecture

In the above clip Axel Gudmundsson discusses an advert from Apple which was called "Think Different." We have modified it slightly, by identifying which one of the innovators in the video have been, or would today be diagnosed with a "learning difficulty".
"Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. 
You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward.
While some see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do."

...And well over half of them are Gifted Dyslexics!

The Davis Dyslexia programme (2 minutes)

Ron D Davis, author of the Gift of Dyslexia

US Davis facilitator David Hirst shares his journey

The D-word documentary ‎- not made by us, but complements our understanding

Sir Ken Robinson: ‘Changing Education Paradigms'

In this beautiful video, the internationally acclaimed educationalist Sir Ken Robinson illustrates his vision for a new paradigm in education. This is exactly why Gifted Dyslexic exists; we share his vision and are convinced that the Davis methods provide a way to achieve Sir Ken's dream.

The Power of Dyslexia

Learning can be easy - and in fact it should
I hear and I forget.
I see and I remember.
I do and I understand.

Confucius wrote these words about 2500 years ago in China and various leading human development and educational thinkers have essentially said the same since - though often using different words. We at Gifted Dyslexic talk about facilitating mastery, rather than teaching. Mastery goes beyond what schools normally think of as learning. Whatever you master, stays with you for the rest of your life - much like learning to ride a bicycle. You may get a bit rusty if you do not use your mastered skill for years, but you will not lose that skill - and you can brush it up without much effort. This is exactly what all learners need to achieve when learning the letters of the Alphabet - and in fact also when learning the most common words in the language. Only about 200 words make up over 50% of all we read - no matter what we are reading. Once these basic building blocks of literacy are fully mastered, literacy becomes easy.


"We never understand a thing so well, 
and make it our own, 
as when we have discovered it for ourselves."
Rene Descartes (1596 – 1650)
French mathematician, philosopher, 
"father of modern philosophy"

“Tell me and I forget, 
teach me and I may remember, 
involve me and I learn.”
Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790)
Helped with the founding of the United States of America and 
changed the world with his discoveries about electricity
"Each time one prematurely teaches a child something 
he could have discovered for himself, 
that child is kept from inventing it 
and consequently from understanding it completely."
Jean Piaget (1896-1980)
Swiss psychologist, 
author of theory of cognitive development

„The only kind of learning 
which significantly influences behavior 
is self-discovered or self-appropriated learning
- truth that has been assimilated in experience“
Carl Rogers (1902–1987) 
One of the most influential psychologist in American history

„I never teach my pupils; 
I only attempt to provide the conditions 
in which they can learn“
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
German-born physicist, 
"one of the most prolific intellects in human history"

The dyslexic paradox

Some studies show that as much as 80% of inmates in correctional facilities have dyslexia, AD/HD or ADD. Other studies show that 30-40% of successful entrepreneurs (self made millionaires) have dyslexia, ADD or AD/HD. When you begin to understand the root of these conditions through the Davis approach, this is not surprising at all.

A real long-term solution

The aspect of the Davis approach which I personally find most exciting, is that we can now equip pre-primary and primary school teachers with the Davis tools to use in their general teaching practise with all children. We call this Davis Learning Strategies or Teaching made Easy. A study published in 2001 shows that special needs referrals were eliminated and the number of gifted learners were quadrupled in classes using our methods. We now have a simple strategy tool-kit for teachers which will reduce pressure on the teacher immensely, while improving literacy and motivation of learners, and at the same time putting a stop to the waste of talent in potentially dyslexic children.

The labelling conundrum

You may be looking for help in dealing with a specific condition, or you may not have a "label" for your condition. We do not really need a label for working with you, as we are dealing with the root cause of all the various labels. It is also important to remember that there is often an overlap between the various labels. Here is a short list of some symptoms/labels we deal with successfully.

  • Dyslexia (literacy issues - often labelled as phonological processing problems)
  • Dyspraxia (co-ordination problems - mainly physical, but recently often used for problems with organisation of thought - then called mental dyspraxia)
  • Dyscalculia (maths and numeracy problems)
  • ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder - problems with sustaining attention)
  • AD/HD (hyperactivity - often with a number of behavioural issues)
  • Asperger's syndrome (mild autism)

Here are some useful links to Davis sites:

A useful site for help with symbol mastery, including a PDF for trigger-word definitions:
http://www.symbolmastery.com

The international Davis Dyslexia site:
http://www.dyslexia.com/

Davis Learning foundation - the UK and Africa Davis site, run by Richard:
http://www.davislearningfoundation.org.uk/

The Davis Learning Strategies site (for early intervention in the classroom):
http://www.davislearn.com/

Why tyrannosaurus but not if - Richard Whitehead's free online course. Please forward this to people you think might benefit from getting a little insight into the Davis approach:
http://www.whytyrannosaurusbutnotif.com/

For an online assessment on Ron Davis' website in California:
Click here
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