Testimonials | Arrowsmith School

Dare to Dream Student

Participant

Program: Full-time

Participant Age: Adult

I don’t want to be the same person anymore. I want to do remarkable things or be noticed for anything respectful or loving. That’s up to me to decide. My dreams have changed since then. In fact I’m not sure. Facing reality just seems more important now with what I know. Sometimes you can’t just ask for things to happen and little by little you must do things on your own. I will strive to honor what people have given me in this short time. I believe and feel what this place has done so many little things that are added up to a single great change.

Lara

Parent/Guardian

Program: Full-time

Participant Age: School-Age

My son, who is now 16 years old, sustained a traumatic brain injury at the age of two and a half. He was in a state of rapid decline for five years following that accident, and around the end of 2012 and beginning of 2013, he had lost virtually all cognitive functions. Where we ended up was in Level 3 Special Ed in the TDSB. While I was never keen to be part of that system, it did provide him with love and safety, which was critically important. My frustration was knowing that my kid was still inside this body and that the abilities were still there. It was just that he wasn't able to access them, and he didn't have the right environment and the right people working with him to help him learn how to access them. We enrolled in the full-time program in September of 2019 and the changes, the changes are - I mean, it's night and day. To see that amount of change in that short amount of time is just mind boggling; it's heartwarming. It's all of the things that you dream of. He has developed socially and emotionally. He's developed confidence. He can now follow a train of logic. He can now chat by text. He can read, he can write. There's the right amount of love from the staff, combined with the right amount of challenge.

And to see him rise to that challenge and be so proud of himself and begin to be able to trust in his own abilities again and and develop that confidence is I mean, it's a priceless gift. The staff and he will comment on this, how dedicated they are to their job, how clearly passionate they are about their job. They've made my kid love learning. A brain grows by use. Within the Arrowsmith Program, these kids' brains are given the opportunity to be used. What is effective when you're working to rewire those neural pathways is frequency, intensity, and duration, all of which are covered within this Arrowsmith Program. And the changes? I mean, it's out of this world for me personally, there has been a feeling of less isolation, not any more feeling as though people are looking at me like I'm crazy for knowing that there's an alternative. Even if I wasn't previously able to find it, I knew there was an answer. I just had to keep looking. Now that I'm within this community, I'm with other people who, who, who get that? You know, what we're presented in the general world isn't always enough. There's not. That's not always the answer.

Mindy

Parent/Guardian

Program: Full-time

Participant Age: School-Age

My daughter, Mindy, entered the program when she began the 4th grade. While Mindy is a bright girl and a B student I recognized that there were definite learning deficits. In order to obtain those Bs it was necessary for me to spend hours re-teaching her material the teachers had taught in class. Before an exam I would spend days reviewing.

Many parents are apt to except this situation, not everyone is an A student, however, as the work became more and more demanding I began to worry for the future. After all if Mindy was fighting for Bs in 3rd grade what would high school and college hold for her?

After 2 years in the Arrowsmith Program I no longer worry. Last year Mindy was in 5th grade. In my opinion, this is the hardest year of elementary school. Much more is expected of the students. The teachers put a great deal of emphasis on independence in order to ready the students for middle school. I decided to follow the teachers’ lead. I did not monitor Mindy’s homework as I had done in the past.

I am proud to say that Mindy’s homework was done independently and correctly. I also, did not re- teach Mindy material for her tests. I reviewed with her the night before, at her request. During these review sessions I was amazed at her retention and understanding. She knew the answers to all questions asked; she had absorbed and understood the information in class. In truth the review was a formality. Mindy received high marks last year (except in writing which is still being addressed by Arrowsmith).

Not one major test score fell below the 90% mark. In addition, she received a 93% and a 91% on the Tara Nova Tests in math and listening, respectively and average to above average marks in the other categories (except spelling). There is no doubt in my mind that the majority of Mindy’s success is attributable to the Arrowsmith Program. As a result of this program I have every confidence that not only will Mindy pass high school, but also that she will succeed in college and will not be limited by learning difficulties. It is for this reason that I wish to extend my praise to HALB for being innovative and the first Jewish Day School to implement the Arrowsmith Program.

Program: Full-time

Participant Age: Adult

E. is at a local university and is taking 4 courses: psychology, political science, French and English.

He said that college (now that he completed his program) is a lot different for him than high school. In high school he barely squeaked by with 50’s and it was a struggle. In high school he did not feel engaged. He says the memory thing is “huge for him.” There is a realization that he can actually follow what the professors are saying and remember what they say and he doesn’t need to write down everything. He can hold onto and follow information and get the main idea so he can just put down the main points. His note taking is still not quite fast enough, but he realizes he does not have to rely on it as much. As well, he is aware that the reason his note taking is not as fast as he would have liked is directly a result of not having put in as much time into the exercise which improves this. He also realized he could listen to the teacher and think about what the teacher was saying at the same time, which is something he struggled with in the past.

E. says he is really interested in his classes and is one of the few who actually engages in conversation with the teachers. One comment he made was that studying is actually enjoyable for him now because it is not so much of a struggle. He still has some leftover emotional memories of the struggle as he often still has a sense of dread before opening his texts, but then, if he focuses for a few minutes, he realizes it is not so much of a struggle and before he knows it he has read 10 pages. E. also noted that he was more organized and on time and is really quite good at planning. Additionally, he said that before the program he found it really hard to get up and get going to be here in the mornings or in previous years to go to school on time, but now he happily has all his classes in the morning and does not find it a struggle at all. (This increased initiative is partially due to an exercise we call L-Think.) He says he feels a sense of accomplishment that he is able to get all his classes done before noon.

E. made an interesting comment. He said that you almost have to go to college (or some further classes or education) to really notice that it is “way easier than it was before.” He said in the summer he was quite relaxed and didn’t really have a way of judging whether his planning or memory or things like that were better, but after actually being in classes that is when he really noticed the difference.

Parent/Guardian

Program: Full-time

Participant Age: School-Age

My son, Jarek, has just completed his first year at Arrowsmith School and I write to express my immense gratitude for offering not just hope for children with learning disabilities academically, but the opportunity to prove to themselves they are invaluable members of their families, schools and communities. Jarek was diagnosed with a non-verbal learning disability at the end of grade one. By the end of grade three in the public school system, one look at Jarek’s eyes told me he had been completely defeated. In class he sat quietly observing those around him, never participating, never smiling and falling further and further behind. We tried tutoring to no avail. At home, he went from being a sweet, talkative boy with a great sense of humour to a sullen, angry, aggressive boy withdrawing from everyone around him. Our concern for Jarek quickly grew to gut-wrenching worry for his future; academically, socially and psychologically. I first heard about Arrowsmith from a co-worker, and immediately called to see if Jarek could be assessed. Jarek was accepted to Division 1 in September 2009. Within a month, Jarek started to smile at home and by Christmas told me that he loved me (which I hadn’t heard him say for almost two years!). Though both the cognitive and academic work was clearly challenging for him, month by month, we noticed him become more engaging not only with us, but with family and friends. He was looking happier than he had been in years. By the second term, his teacher told me that in class Jarek was beginning to offer answers, take initiative and even help others. Now, at the end of his first year, Jarek has taken the unprecedented social leap of teaching our neighbour’s three year old son soccer and reading to him, as well as talking his friends into letting their younger siblings play with them. While most parents likely take this kind of play for granted in their child, Jarek’s fear of failure was so intense he preferred to just watch his friends play from the sidelines and had never shown any interest in playing with children younger than him. Not only has Jarek developed confidence, self-esteem and leadership skills at Arrowsmith; academically he has gone from printing at a kindergarten level to writing legibly in cursive! It is truly remarkable how one small leap of faith can reap such incredible rewards. And this is only the beginning! Words simply can not express how thrilled I am with Jarek’s progress at Arrowsmith. Thank you for offering such an innovative, progressive program which has brought Jarek from the brink of despair to confidently showing the world his charismatic, fun-loving, affectionate personality. He has found his childhood and it is a beautiful thing. I so look forward to celebrating with Jarek the cognitive and academic gains I know he will make in his second year at Arrowsmith. Thank you again. Jarek’s mother

Jacob

Program: Full-time

Participant Age: Young Adult

I am writing this 2 Years after Arrowsmith School. I am naturally inquisitive and have always been intrigued by the learning process and the pursuit of knowledge. As a student I loved to learn and yet I found aspects of my schooling very challenging. In the later part of my high school career I was diagnosed as being both Learning Disabled and having Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. One of the learning disabilities that was diagnosed was one which affects the expression of thought through speech, and more significantly in my case, in writing. At that time I felt frustrated because I knew that I understood the material, but because I had difficulty expressing my thoughts on paper I was unable to keep up with the required written assignments. I also had great difficulty completing tests and exams in the allotted time. The few accommodations made by the school and the suggestion of doing remedial work did not feel encouraging. I struggled but managed to complete high school. When I thought about what I wanted to do for the rest of my life, I was confronted with the importance of a university or college education. The thought of trying to get a university education was overwhelming. My love of knowledge led me to Arrowsmith School, where I was a student for a year in 1996 to 1997 in anticipation of pursuing a university education. One of the primary reasons for my decision to attend Arrowsmith was the knowledge that the work done there on remedying learning disabilities would enable me to get the most out of the university experience and assist me in reaching my full potential. I have been pleased that not only do I notice improvements and a greater ease in performing tasks that had previously been challenging, but also these improvements can be felt and seen in day to day activities. The test results were dramatically different from September to the re-testing in June. I find that I now am able to write in a more concise manner and am able to write much more quickly than in the past. My reasoning skills have also benefited and are a strength. I am more comfortable with and better skilled at performing mathematical problems mentally. After finishing at Arrowsmith School and beginning my first year at York University, I had some experiences which confirmed the benefits that I felt I had received from the program. My most exciting result from my first year was the midterm for the Introduction to Psychology course. In a class of 112 students my grade placed me within the top 10 students in the class. This year I passed Statistics on my first try, which amazed me because previously I always had to repeat math classes, even in grade nine. The benefits that I feel that I have received because of Barbara Arrowsmith-Young’s research and my own hard work are almost too numerous to mention. A few major areas that have been improved include writing, reading, mathematics, reasoning, and auditory memory. Before the program I was a very slow writer, and now I am able to take down notes during a lecture. I am able to retain the auditory information long enough to get it down on paper. When I am writing essays, I am able to remember what I want to say long enough that I am able to write it down. I am also able to complete tests and assignments within the allotted period of time. While at Arrowsmith I worked on exercises which improved my reasoning skills, helping me to better understand the main point when reading. My problem-solving skills have improved and I find that I am often able to find solutions more quickly than others are in my work place. My confidence in my academic abilities has grown. I learned a lot about myself, while at Arrowsmith and had some wonderful experiences with my fellow students who ranged in age and had varying levels of ability. It is an experience that I will always remember as having the greatest impact on me both educationally and socially. That experience also made me want to learn more about the functions of the brain and how we learn. I am currently working on a Specialized Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology at York University. I have applied to the York Concurrent Teacher Education Program with the hopes of completing my degree and Teacher’s Certificate. I feel that these are realistic goals because of the work done in the Arrowsmith Program. Barbara Arrowsmith-Young’s research and the work done at Arrowsmith School provides hope for students and adults with learning difficulties.

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