Three years ago, we started using the Barton Reading & Spelling System in a small way in our district. We had 7 students who had not been able to pass the TAKS end-of-year statewide standards test. They flunked it all 3 times they were allowed to take it.

After only 9 months of one-on-one Barton tutoring for 45 minutes a day, all 7 students passed the TAKS test — 2 with commendations, and 2 with perfect scores.

Last year, we expanded our use of the Barton System to the 55 students identified with dyslexia in grades 3, 4, 5, and 6. At the end of those grades, 53 of the 55 passed the TAKS test the first time they took it. (The 2 students who did not pass did started Barton tutoring very late in the school year.)

That’s why this year, we will be using the Barton Reading & Spelling System with struggling students in every school in our district.

We have just completed the spring progress-monitoring of DIBELS and have realized some incredible success with the first grade students who have been receiving intervention using the Barton Reading & Spelling System.

I snuck the Barton System in the back door of my school. I used it, as did my ESE and Title One Instructional Assistants. But now that I have data to show such incredible improvement, my principal has opened the front door in grand fashion and will allow K-2 intervention to take place next year.

In at least 95% of the cases, the PSF scores increased dramatically, and the NWF scores really took off. The kids were blending sounds into words, not just spitting out the sounds. Some of the kids who had been behavior problems in their classroom stopped acting out.

They actually began to understand this whole “reading thing” and began attending during classroom instruction. It’s been exciting for all of us to watch.

Some parents have even stopped the teachers and asked, “What is going on with my child? He tries to read everything now. Before, he would not even try.”

Our school purchased the license and has funded our Special Education teachers to provide the tutoring daily to our IEP kids.

My son went from profoundly dyslexic, non reading in the 3rd grade to now (he’s starting book 7) he’s able to decode words and read significantly better.

He said he used to think people who could read knew magic. Now he sees that it’s all in the instruction.

I’d love to see our schools teach all our kids with Barton because the program works for all kids.