I provide a pedagogical assessment — a learning-focused evaluation that’s different from official educational testing. Rather than assigning a score or grade, it’s an observation of how your student thinks, learns, and applies their skills.

How long does it take and what does it cost? 90 minutes, $480.

What does it cover? Reading, math, and writing:

• Reading: the San Diego Quick Assessment (SDQA) — reading aloud for 5-10 minutes at their instructional level, followed by comprehension questions
• Math: two equations each in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division
• Writing: 2-3 sentences (both print and cursive, if your student writes in cursive)

I’ll also observe balance and coordination through activities like tossing bean bags and other movement exercises — these help me understand the whole student, not just their academic skills.

For children ages 5-7, I adjust the amount and level of these activities based on a conversation with parents beforehand.

What will I receive afterward? Within one business day, you’ll get a written report by email covering your student’s thinking style, SDQA results, motivation, and program recommendations (if a program is a good fit).

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• Tools to focus at will and correct perceptual confusion (disorientation)
• Mastery of the basic symbols for reading and writing, built with clay
• Resolution of specific words or concepts that have caused confusion in the past
• Skills and exercises to support ongoing academic success
• The ability to focus attention at will, regulate energy, recognize and resolve disorientation, and greater self-confidence in reading, writing, or math
• Noticeable improvement by the end of the program — the exact schedule depends on which program you’re doing (see each program’s page for specifics)
• A plan for continuing the work at home, developed together during Support Training

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Comparison of other dyslexia programs with Davis (data from 2014):

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• Davis® Mastery for Dyslexia: 30 hours, done as 3-hour sessions each morning over 10 days.
• Davis® Mastery for Attention: 30 hours, done as 3-hour sessions each day over 10 days.
• Davis® Mastery for Math: 45 hours, done as 3-hour sessions each day over 15 days.
• Davis® Foundations for Reading: 2-3 hours a day over 10-15 days, depending on your child’s age and pace.
• Davis® Concepts for Life and Autism programs: fully individualized — there’s no fixed schedule. These typically run several months, built entirely around your pace and goals.

Follow-up work — continuing Symbol Mastery on any remaining trigger words — is done at home at the student’s own pace after any program.

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Honestly, no — not the full program. The Gift of Dyslexia gives you real insight into the Davis approach and the thinking behind it, and some families do get real value from it on their own. But a book can’t replicate the personalized, one-on-one guidance a trained facilitator provides — adjusting to exactly where a student is stuck, in real time.

That said, a teen or adult usually can’t work through the methods entirely alone, but may have success with the help of a supportive friend or family member working through the book together. Results vary quite a bit depending on the person’s motivation and the support available to them.

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Yes — every program includes follow-up work, and how much depends on your student’s needs and which program they completed. You and I will build an individual follow-up plan together with your main support person.

This is included at no extra cost:

• A Symbol Mastery kit for continuing the work at home
• Support training for you (or whoever is helping your student)
• Phone support
• Up to three two-hour return visits, as needed

For the reading program, the goal is mastering the full list of trigger words (217 words). For math, it’s the 35 story-problem trigger words. For Attention, the ongoing clay work centers on whatever behaviors you’re working to build. All of this can continue over several months or longer, depending on your student’s motivation and the support available at home.

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No — quite the opposite. Davis programs build on a person’s existing strengths and teach them to use their natural abilities more effectively. If anything, those abilities tend to get stronger.

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No, you don’t. The first step is scheduling an assessment to see whether a Davis program is the right fit. That assessment looks at:

1. Your student’s ability to think and perceive multi-dimensionally
2. Their specific skills, abilities, challenges, and strengths
3. Their goals
4. Their level of motivation
5. Whether a Davis program is genuinely a good match

From there, we design a program specifically around what the assessment shows. The assessment takes 90 minutes and costs $480 — call 206.451.7102 to schedule.

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Davis integrates nicely into a homeschool setting. At the end of the program, we’ll have a Support Training session where I’ll walk you through exactly how to continue the work over the next 4-6 months, using the materials you’ll take home with you.

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