You will now have the opportunity to follow the diary of a child who is on the Audiblox program. Kori Mitchell will start with Audiblox within the next few days. The diary will be kept up to date on her behalf by Michelle Potter, Kori's mom. Michelle will share their experiences with you, twice a week, on this message board.

Kori's program will be customized for her by Benetta Strydom, occupational therapist and Audiblox Master Trainer.

Hi! I'm Michelle Potter. Susan introduced me. I have a 9 1/2 year old daughter named Kori. I've been homeschooling her since Kindergarten. She has been through 6 or 7 reading and phonics programs, paid tutors, and vision therapy. She is in 4th grade and reads at a 1st grade level and that's being generous. Vision Therapy really helped her with endurance because before the therapy she got headaches and her eyes hurt while reading and writing. But she still could not read or spell after completing over 20 hours of Vision Therapy. An educational specialist tested her positive on the dyslexia test and we've been told that she will never read well and that academics will always be a huge struggle despite her normal to above average intelligence. So here we are with Audiblox and I'll be starting the program soon and will keep you all posted as to how it is going.

Hi! Susan also introduced me – my name is Benetta Strydom. I will be responsible for customizing Kori's program and giving Michelle the necessary advice.

I would like to invite you all to read Kori's diary and follow her progress with us. If you have any questions or queries about your own child, you are welcome to send me an e-mail, and I will gladly help.

Hi! I've just finished reading up to chapter 10 in the book The Right to Read. Tons of information in those chapters! It has helped me understand so much of the differences in ideas and attitudes regarding dyslexia/LD. I have also become more aware of what Audiblox is going to be about. We are still waiting for our equipment in the mail but I'm getting very excited about the program. When I first decided to use this program it was because it was affordable and sort of a last resort for us. I can honestly tell you that I was not convinced that it was the right program, just another attempt at something. But after reading the 10 chapters and talking with Susan I realize that they have much more knowledge and understanding than anyone I've counseled with in the past. I'm feeling that this is the light at the end of our tunnel. The foundational skills that lead up to reading ability makes so much sense and is logical and it is also a relief to hear someone say that Kori is not stupid, brain damaged or just slow she just needs to build a foundation.

Good news! Michelle's equipment has arrived and we are finally ready to start working. Kori's first customized program was sent to Michelle today - watch this space for Kori's progress!

Kori did great on the sequencing exercise she got up to 13 blocks correct and six blocks on the pattern exercise. She was having no problems with the tempo. She finished the sequences and patterns before her time was up. I was pretty shocked at how well she did. She had some trouble on the arrows. She was not so much making many mistakes, mostly just long pauses and lots of hesitations. She was having some trouble with the counting backwards from 30. She would skip a number now and then.

The reading exercise was okay. She managed 14 words in the time suggested to work on the exercise. I think that the speed thing is something I need to improve on!

Kori thought this whole thing was great fun! I was concerned when I watched the video but she wanted to do more even when we were done. She said it was like a game. I told her that it will get more challenging and to be prepared! She said she couldn't wait! I can't wait to see long term results of this program. I'm also going to get a book and record her reading now and then again every few months so I can compare her progress. I will also keep a notebook starting now of her writing in school.

Dear Michelle and Kori

Wow! If everything continues to go as well as on your first day, we shall progress in huge leaps and bounds! Thirteen blocks on the Sequencing exercise is a good achievement for the first try. Within the next week, I shall forward a more advanced work tempo to you, but I want to give her a few sessions more to adjust before changing it. As soon as she is able to do the arrows fluently, i.e. without any hesitations and pauses, we shall make a change to the Arrows exercise. Concerning the Reading exercise, note that the speed at which you throw down the words is more important than the number of words you use. Please do not add any new words to the current 14, until you have managed to improve the speed at which you throw them down.

Michelle, starting a notebook on Kori's progress is a great idea, and will serve as a motivator for both you and Kori. When one is so involved with teaching a child, one often tends to forget where one started initially, and this may cause one to overlook the amount of progress one has already made. Simultaneously, one may also lose sight of the goal one is working towards. All these can be very de-motivating, which you can avoid by keeping a careful record.

I am excited to watch Kori's progress. We have been using the program for about four months. For us it seems like the "light at the end of the tunnel" as well.

I like your idea of keeping a notebook. For one of my children I have made a chart so that he could keep track of his progress. Just thought I would mention that idea for anyone who would like an alternative to the notebook idea.

Hi! Well here is our update.

Kori likes the Audiblox program still except the reading activity. She loves the blocks and the exercises. It amazes me how well she does.

The Sequencing exercise 3 she has been getting up to 17 correct and within the tempo. The Pattern exercise 2 she normally gets 15 correct but today she did 19 correct! Now the Auditory pattern 3a is very hard she gets 5 correct.

I've gotten very quick with the reading exercise but Kori doesn't like it much. She gets a bit aggrivated over missing some words. She'll work up to 20 cards and then get tired at the end of the 15 minutes and start missing them again.

The arrows exercise is going better but I still feel that she is having trouble keeping it right for the whole time she is supposed to be doing them.

Counting is going okay I guess. It kind of shocked me that she had trouble with this. But she is now working on 11-40 with great pauses and hesitations. Bean bas are good to go and so is the paper exercise.

Well Benetta I hope that is enough of a description of how things are going. We are still enjoying it!

Thank you for the latest update! I am very happy with Kori's progress. I think she is doing very well, especially with the Sequencing and Pattern exercises. I am forwarding new practice targets on these exercises to you, as well as a new work tempo, that you must apply when doing these exercises with her. Please inform me how well she adjusts to the new work tempo.

I cannot make any changes to the Arrows exercise yet. Unfortunately, I need her to be able to do it 100% correctly before I can allow her to advance to the next step. Remember that learning has a stratified nature, meaning that one skill Kori has mastered, will enable her to master the next.

For the Reading exercise, I want to suggest that you do not add any new words for the next week. Remember that repetition is the backbone of ALL learning. It will have a better effect on her reading ability if you do not add any new words until she has managed them at the fastest possible speed.

Concerning the Counting exercise, most children battle, especially when asked to count backwards, as this is one skill that few schools attend to. The reason why we want them to be able to count backwards as well, is because this skill will aid her ability to do subtraction. It is important to remember to regularly revise some of the old steps.

Michelle, these are all for now. I will speak to you again shortly. Give my regards to Kori as well.

Hi! Sorry for the delayed update! We've all had the flu.

We've been keeping up with the program and the changes Benetta sent us last week.

Kori is handling the new tempo great. The sequencing exercise she can get 19 right with a few seconds left. Pattern exercise 2 she got 21 correct but 19 is her norm. These two exercises are so fun to her and the tempo seems to make it more fun for her.

Auditory Pattern 3a is difficult even with her eyes open but at least now she is doing something! She gets 5 correct. Once 7 correct but is much closer to being correct than with her eyes closed she couldn't even get the right colors a first.

The arrows are going much better but she still makes a few mistakes in the 2 min time frame. Counting is going good I guess, we are still working the 11-40 one.

I talked to her about motivation and perserverance with the reading exercise. She's a very good girl most the time so I just explained what kind of problems a bad attitude toward the reading exercise will cause. I think she is really trying to be positive with this. I'll let you know more as time goes on. We haven't added any more words. We are still at 20 and she still tires by the end of the 15 minutes and starts to miss more of them. She has a hard time with "must" and "make" and "before" and "broken". She continues to get these confused when working very quickly.

Thank you for the latest update! I hope you are all feeling better?

Michelle, I do not want to make any changes to Kori's Audiblox program today. Although she is doing well with the exercises, I think it will be too fast to increase the pressure even more.

I am also sending you a personal e-mail, as I would like to comment on some aspects of her work attitude.

Hi! Kori is doing a great job with the blocks. Yesterday she got 21 correct on the sequencing exercise and 19 on the Pattern 2 exercise. The Auditory Pattern exercise she's only getting 5 correct but I believe it is becoming easier for her. She still needs a little work mastering the arrows but is almost there. The reading exercise is going a bit better. I am reading the book Benetta suggested, The Myth, to help with her attitude toward reading.

I have already seen something happening in her "regular" school activities. When we do math speed drills it has always been difficult for Kori to finish in the recomended time even though she knows all the facts. Well for the last week she has been speeding up a great deal. She has been finishing with time to spare. Benetta is this because of Audiblox already?

I noticed from early on that my daughter had become much faster in many areas as a result of the Audiblox program. She always enjoyed the sequencing exercise, but I was hesitant to increase the speed. I was afraid she would feel too much pressure, but almost immediately after speeding up the tempo, she started doing her schoolwork and her chores much faster.

For my daughter it seems that it is not just the tempo/time constraints that have helped her to improve however, but also the exercises in general. She used to have a hard time doing the supper dishes. She would stand and look at the mess for a long time and usually I had to guide her about how to organize the work. (She is 15 and should be able to manage that chore without assistance.) After about three weeks on the program she was able to tackle the chore on her own and quite quickly, too.

She also likes the exercises even more as I increase the speed. She finds the challenge fun--I shouldn't have worried. Now she even likes to time her math drill and workbook pages!

Keep up the good work! You WILL see results! It is so exciting!

Hi there, Michelle and Kori! Sorry for not updating the diary from my side on Friday, but it was HECTIC at the office and my time just ran out…

Michelle, I hope you find the info given in "The Myth" valuable. Remember that the only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary! I am sure that, once you have read this book, you will have a better understanding of how to help her with her attitude towards the Reading exercise.

Kori is doing very well with the Sequencing and Pattern exercises! For both of them, I want you to start following the new practice targets, as explained in my e-mail to you. She is almost ready for the next step in the Arrows exercise and I will adjust it by the end of the week. In the mean time, please study Arrows exercise steps 2 and 3 from "The Right to Read" and from the Audiblox video, so that you will know what to do, once I incorporate them into her program. For the Spatial exercise, I am forwarding you a more advanced version of this exercise.

Michelle, the work tempo definitely plays a part in speeding them up, also in the general tasks that they have to perform. Remember that a human being can only do what he has learned. The whole idea behind the work tempo is to teach them to think and work faster, but also be able to do so accurately.

These are all for now. I will speak to you again shortly. Keep up the hard work!

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