Please help with 9yo dyslexic dd/WMids dyslexia schools

[JimiHendrixCat]

Hello, new poster here :)

My 9yo dd has just started Y5 at her mainstream primary school.

Brief history is that dd has shown signs of dyslexia since toddlerhood. School picked up on it in Y1 (age 6) and we’re fantastic monitoring/managing her suspected dyslexia.

Dd was diagnosed by an educational psychologist employed by school last October. Since then, school haven’t been so great. I appreciate the disruption caused by Covid will have affected this. Her Y4 teacher had some health issues which caused absence and I’m sure had a further impact (access to a tablet was extremely slow. I had to nag for this and some other things, which caused a bad atmosphere).

Anyway, new term, new teachers. Dd can’t tell the time and isn’t where she should be with phonics. Teachers put her in groups with a few other children with other learning needs. This doesn’t help dd who is extremely bright. (One child misread spellings to dd, so this was very frustrating to her).

Anyway, I’m at my wits end. I’m tired of explaining things over and over again, of feeling like I have unreasonable expectations (I expect what is in her dyslexia report). I’m just tired. I feel like dd is already at the ‘bottom of the class’ just because she needs more time.

Do you have any suggestions as to how I can meaningfully and positively progress the situation with school?

Failing that, does anyone know of dyslexia friendly schools in the WMids? I know of Maple Hayes Hall but really don’t think we could afford the fees.

Thanks for reading; thanks in advance.

Does DD have an EHCP? I presume not, in which case you should apply - IPSEA have a model letter you can use.

This way you can get DD's needs assessed fully and the necessary provision written in to the EHCP, which can then be enforced. Also, if DD needs a specialist school one can be named and you wouldn't need to pay the fees, the LA will.

No, I don’t think my dd has an EHCP. She has a report from the educational psychologist, but nothing else to my knowledge.

Dd’s Y4 teacher told my dh I was ‘accusatory’ and that she was ‘bending over backwards’ to accommodate dd’s needs. All I was asking for was her needs to be met as outlined by the educational psychologist’s report. Something more concrete would therefore be ideal.

Thanks so much. I will look into IPSEA. Dd is at an age where I can’t waste any more time. Thank-you for your helpful reply x