Awards:
Alberta Literacy Award of Merit
Finalist for Canadian Postal Literacy Award
Member of:
Better Business Bureau of Southern Alberta
It is my pleasure to write this letter of recommendation in behalf of Larry and Stacey Smith of Rocky Point Academy® in Calgary, Alberta.
My name is Kristy H. and I would like to tell you about my 13-year-old daughter. Kirsha has dyslexia. Like many parents with a child that is not learning at school the "normal way" I have gone from worry and despair to she'll get it eventually. In the end the reality was that I had a child who was 12 and could not use a public restroom if there was not a symbol on the door to indicate "Ladies or Men's". I have tried everything, from bribing her, taking away privileges, reading tutors, videos, cassette tapes, and expensive phonics programs. We even moved from England to the United States where I thought just maybe the educational system would be a bit broader in it's approach to reading.
After 18 months in the USA still nothing was working. I was about at the end, wondering and hoping that somehow I could find an answer to help my daughter learn to read.
My answer came when I met Larry and Stacey Smith of Rocky Point Academy®. They told me of a program developed by Ron Davis who is the author of The Gift of Dyslexia. I was thrilled and hopeful that this could be the answer that we had been searching for.
In November I took Kirsha out of school to go through the one-week program offered by the Smiths. Kirsha's life was changed forever on that day! Using the methods developed by Ron Davis, Rocky Point Academy® taught Kirsha how to use her gift of dyslexia.
Kirsha started the week with a reading level of a kindergartener. She did not even know her alphabet. Kirsha learned more that first day in Rocky Point Academy® than she had in 7 years of school. For the first time in her life, Kirsha came to realize that she was not stupid like the education system and others had tried to tell her. She was not subnormal or mentally lacking. The reality was that she was gifted, but no one could help her access her gift. As the week progressed not only did Kirsha learn her alphabet but she also learned to read. In one week her reading level jumped several grades. (And continues to do so)
Stacey Smith has taught and equipped Kirsha with the skills and tools to learn successfully. She has helped her to realize her learning potential. I cannot begin to thank and praise Larry and Stacey Smith enough for their hard work and encouragement. With their outstanding approach to learning (not just reading) they have impacted Kirsha's life and forever changed it for the better.
I have not only found them to be outstanding educators and people of integrity, but also a couple who are deeply concerned about those they come in contact with. I would trust them with my children and have found them to be of the highest moral character. Larry and Stacey have not just been teachers to us, but they have become people that I respect and admire for their commitment and convictions in the education field.
I highly recommend the program that the Smiths have to offer. I would be more than happy to give a verbal reference for them at any time. In closing I would like to say, that like you, I thought this was too good to be true. For Kirsha it has been her miracle. As for me, I will never be able to repay the Smiths for the outstanding and life-changing impact they have had on my daughter's life. At one point I truly thought that she would never learn to read.
On Kirsha's first trip to Barnes and Noble she walked into the store and started to cry. I asked her why she was crying. She said, "I never wanted to come in here before, because I knew that everyone would know I couldn't read. Now I can read any book I want. I'm not stupid and I have a good brain." We spent 3 hours in Barnes and Noble® that day. She pulled book after book off the shelf and read many of them.
Larry and Stacey, from the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU!
K. Kristy H.
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