Hire
a Tutor Back
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Before you hire a tutor, click on the following link.
Watch free webcast called: Hire a Tutor
To receive a list of Certified Barton tutors in your area, just click
here and tell us your city and state.
Tutoring
Fees
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 Every
tutor is an independent business person, so each sets their own
hourly rate.
Tutors trained
in an Orton-Gillingham-based system, like the Barton System, are
rare. So their hours rates can be quite high.
The hourly
rate will be higher in metropolitan areas, and lower in more rural
areas.
The hourly
rate will be higher if the tutor is certified than if the tutor
is not.
To find out
the hourly rate in your area, call some tutors and ask. I recommend
you ask all of the following questions.
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Questions
to ask a tutor BEFORE you hire them
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If
you know or suspect your child has dyslexia, one of the most
important decisions you will make is hiring the right
tutor for your child. Having
spent years as a professional tutor of dyslexic children, Susan
Barton highly recommends holding a telephone interview with a
potential tutor and asking the following questions. No professional
tutor will be offended by them, and you'll learn quite a bit.
The following
checklist was inspired by the list in the book Straight Talk
About Reading by Susan Hall and Louisa Moats.
- Please
describe your background and training.
- Do you
specialize in children with dyslexia? (If not, think twice about
hiring them.)
- Do you
use an Orton-Gillingham system? (If they don't know what that
means, do NOT hire them.) Which one? Are you certified in that
system? How long have you used it?
- Do you
spend any of the session helping the student with homework,
or do you concentrate only on teaching reading and spelling?
- Will I
be expected to work with my child at home between sessions?
- Will you
interact with my child’s school?
- How often
will you provide feedback to me on my child's progress, and
in what format?
- What is
your hourly fee? What happens if my child has to miss a session?
- How many
sessions per weeks do you recommend? (Twice a week is MINIMUM
for a dyslexic child.)
- Would
you give me the name and telephone number of several parents
of students you are currently tutoring?
- If I like
what I hear from those parents, could we schedule a free consultation
so that my child and I can meet you and see your office?
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Parents
Who Hired Barton Tutors Say
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| Because
he sees how much the Barton Reading and Spelling System
has helped him, my second grade son asks, "Mommy, why
can't everybody have a tutor?"
This
system has saved our family years of searching and frustration,
and has given my son the confidence to continue trying.
I appreciate the step-by-step details of the lesson plans
and the integration of spelling along with reading.
Sue
Maass, Cupertino, CA
|
|
Jillian
has been tutored for three months. We have already seen much improvement
in her grammar, spelling and reading. She is very proud of her accomplishments.
She now reads on her own, without prompting, and often brags about
being able to figure out new words. Greg
Blandino, Pleasanton, CA
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Become
a Tutor
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If
you can’t find or afford a private tutor, or if you love
the idea of teaching students in a one-on-one setting, consider
becoming a tutor yourself.
Becoming
a Barton tutor does not require a college degree or even a high
school diploma. You do not have to have any teaching experience
– as long as you can pass our five-minute
Tutor Screening.
In fact,
we designed the Barton System to be clear and easy enough for
people with no experience. We designed it for:
Yet, it is
complete enough for professionals, such as:
- Learning
Specialists at private schools
- Reading
& Resource Specialists
- Educational
Therapists
- Speech-Language
Therapists
- Tutors
in private practice
Plus, we
offer free unlimited support to everyone using the Barton System.
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Not
everyone can be a Barton tutor
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 You
don’t have to be a great reader or speller. In fact, many
of our tutors are dyslexic themselves. They love tutoring with the
Barton System because their own spelling improves as
they teach this system. That's because the best way to learn something
is to teach it.
But
you DO have to be able to hear sounds extremely well.
Why? You’re
going to be teaching a system based on sounds to a student who
is not very sensitive to sounds. You
must hear sounds well enough to catch their mistakes – so
that you can correct them.
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Take
our Five-Minute Tutor Screening
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 How
do you know if you hear sounds well enough to be a tutor?
Just take
our Tutor Screening online. To do that, just click below.
Take Tutor Screening Now
If you do
NOT have a high-speed internet connection, we'll send the screening to you on videotape
or DVD — FREE. Just click
here and type in your name and address.
If you did
well on both parts of our tutor screening, congratulations.
You can become a Barton tutor.
If not, you
can improve your ability to hear sounds by hiring a Barton tutor
and going through the first three levels of the Barton System
as a student. Then watch the Tutor Screening again. At that point,
you should be able to pass it.
Or, find
someone else who is willing to tutor your child, such as a neighbor,
a friend, or a relative. Have that person go through our Tutor
Screening. If that person can pass it, buy the Barton System for
them, and let that person tutor your child.
Now
Test Your Student
Most
people with dyslexia are ready for an Orton-Gillingham-based system
like the Barton System. But a few are not – because they
are missing some additional skills.
If students
are not ready for the Barton System, they will
fail – even though the tutor passed the tutor screening,
and the Barton System is excellent. Don’t let that happen.
To prevent
failure, be sure to give each potential student the Barton Student
Screening BEFORE you begin tutoring them.
If they can
pass our Student Screening, they’re ready for the Barton
System.
To give the
Student Screening, click
here.
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Professional
Tutors Say
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I
cannot tell you how thankful I am for the Barton Reading and Spelling
System. I am seeing wonderful success with my students. Their
parents are pleased, and the students like coming to me for tutoring
because your system makes sense to them.
Carol
Ann Hood,
professional tutor
Scotts Valley, CA
As
a professional tutor already trained in the Lindamood-Bell LiPS
program, I have to tell you that I absolutely LOVE the Barton
System and have put it to immediate use.
Your
color coding system is wonderful. And I love the physical aspect
of your syllable division breaking process. The color coding of
prefixes and suffixes makes it easy to see the baseword and derivatives,
which is recommended by current research.
I
liked the looks of your system, and I'm even more impressed now
that I've worked with it for awhile. I'm trying to get the county
literacy program to acquire this great system.
Suzanne
Coutchie, Reading Coach
Davis, CA
I
went to school to become a teacher in a regular classroom setting.
I have had an opportunity to do that and enjoyed that job.
But
I find that tutoring children one-on-one is extremely rewarding.
It's so wonderful to share something with children that you (and
they) can see works!
Thank
you so much for developing the Barton System.
Christina
Aronen, professional tutor
Campbell, CA
Your
program is wonderful. I had read that your system and the Wilson
system are the two programs to use for dyslexics. Having used
both, yours is so much easier to follow! All in one book. Thanks
again!
Deb
Taylor, Tutor
Columbus, MS
One
of the first students I tutored using the Barton System was an
upper-elementary student in Special Education, and a virtual non-reader
when we began.
After
one year, he was removed from Special Education because there
was no longer a discrepancy.
Now
he is an honors student in middle school.
Stacy
J. Stewart, M.Ed., Educational Therapist
Los Gatos, CA
I
consider myself lucky to have discovered my passion. The Barton
System has allowed me to serve my clients well, and their progress
has been incredibly gratifying.
Carol
Aines, Learning Specialist
Livermore, CA
Currently
I am tutoring 3 boys, ages 8, 14 and 15. The Barton System is
working well. Before, I tutored for 2 years using the Slingerland
method. The Barton System is so much easier to use. The tiles
and your phonemic awareness level are fantastic. I recommend the
Barton System to many tutors and parents.
Karen
Vickers, Private Tutor
Fremont, CA
A
very useful, well-taught, and well-constructed program. I think
they would be a great asset to this community.
I
shared the materials with the Head of Special Education, who also
found them to be excellent.
Risa
Sokolsky, Professional Tutor
Newfield, NY
The
Barton Reading and Spelling System is an important contribution
to reaching the goal of universal literacy. Most adults with the
desire and determination to teach another person to read and spell
can now do so, even if the student has not been successful using
traditional methods.
Susan
Barton has distilled the best multisensory practices based on
the pioneering work of Samuel Orton and Anna Gillingham, organized
the material and provided extensive video training to ensure success.
She addresses fine points of tutoring which demonstrate the authenticity
of her methods and experience.
Her
fully scripted lessons along with detailed, well developed, practice
materials which include manipulatives, motivate tutors to get
started immediately. The well-paced, structured, multisensory
lessons are designed to build a strong foundation based on continuous
reinforcement and the introduction of new learning in manageable
increments.
Susan
is a terrific model, patient, kind and lively, who shares her
wealth of "tricks."
Peggy
Casey, Educational Therapist
and Barton System Facilitator
Saratoga, CA
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How
to Start Tutoring
Back
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 If
you can pass the Tutor Screening,
and your student can pass the Student
Screening, you’re ready to start tutoring.
Just order
Level 1.
Watch this short webcast: What is a Level?
We keep everything
in stock and ship the same day we receive your order. To order,
click here or call 408-559-3652.
When you
receive the Barton System, spend an afternoon watching the Tutor
Training videos that are included inside each level. Then start
tutoring the very next day.
When your
student gets toward the end of Level 1, then order Level 2.
What
if I Get Stuck?
We
offer free unlimited support to everyone using the Barton System.
If you need
help, just call (408) 559-3652 or click
here and send us an email.
Where
to Start a Student
Most
students need to start at Level 1 – no matter how old they
are. Level number refers to a sequence, not to
a grade. Nothing in level 1 will offend an older student. They
must master the material in Level 1 before moving on to Level
2.
That’s
because research proves that what’s stopping them from mastering
reading is their lack of phonemic awareness. Phonemic awareness
is the ability to hear and manipulate each sound in a word in
your head – without letters.
In fact,
research shows there are seven
essential phonemic awareness skills a student must have before
letters will start to make sense. We teach all seven of those
skills in Level 1.
So unless
a student has already had extensive Orton-Gillingham-based
tutoring, start the student in level 1. If it proves to be too
easy, we will exchange it – FREE – for Level 2.
If your student
has had prior Orton-Gillingham-based
tutoring, or for some other reason, you think the student has
already mastered the skills taught in our early levels, let
us know. We will then send you the post-test of our first
few levels so you can determine the best place for that student
to start.
Tutoring
Basics
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 The
Barton System was designed for one-on-one tutoring. That means one
tutor works with just one student at a time.
If you are
an experienced teacher, you can use the Barton System with up
to 3 students at a time. For tips on working with more than one
student at a time, click here.
A dyslexic student
must be tutored at least twice a week, for 45-minutes to an hour
each time. More frequent tutoring is better.
How long does it take?
For
more detailed information on the length or frequency of tutoring
sessions, read the Tutoring FAQs.
Finding
Students
Dyslexia
affects 20% of people in the United States. So one in five people
struggle with spelling, writing, or reading.
That means
it should not be hard to find students who need your services.
The best
way to find them is to tell everyone you know
or meet that you tutor children with dyslexia. Tell them that
the system you use can improve the skills of almost anyone who
struggles with spelling, writing, or reading – whether it’s
due to dyslexia or not.
Why say it
that way? Because most people who have dyslexia have never been
diagnosed. So they don’t know they have it.
But they
do know that spelling and writing are difficult, and reading is
slow, tedious, and not much fun.
Be sure to
give a business card with your name, phone number, email, and
a description of your services to everyone who is interested –
or who knows someone who struggles with spelling, writing, or
reading.
Remember,
tell everyone you know: your hair stylist, the checkout clerk
at the grocery store, your dentist, the principal at the nearby
private school, your postal carrier, your neighbors, your relatives
– everyone.
Also, since
many people only know the myths of dyslexia, be prepared to share
the facts by reading Myths
vs. Facts.
Setting
Up a Private Practice
Before
you go into private practice on a full-time basis, you may want
to know more about tutoring contracts, insurance, business licenses,
setting up accounting books, scheduling makeup sessions, and more.
If so, attend
our one-day course called The Nuts and Bolts of Private Practice.
For dates and details, click here.
You can tutors
students for years without becoming a Certified Barton tutor.
But if you want to be able to charge top rates for your services,
or you’d like to receive referrals from our office, you’ll
need to become a Certified Barton tutor.
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Certification
Back
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 Once
you’ve taken at least two students all the way through Levels
1, 2, and 3, you can sign up for our next Certification Testing
Day.
Watch: How To Become Certified
If you pass,
you will become a Certified Barton tutor. That means you can charge
top rates for your services.
We’ll
also add you to our Tutor Referral list that we distribute to parents
and teachers who are searching for tutors to hire.
We
only include Certified Barton tutors on our referral lists because
the certification testing process is our quality control checkpoint.
We offer
three types of certification:
- Certification
at the Beginning Level
You’ve completed the testing for Levels
1, 2, and 3
- Certification
at the Advanced Level
You’ve completed the testing for Levels
4, 5, and 6
- Certification
at the Masters Level
You’ve completed the testing for Levels
7, 8, 9 and 10
For dates,
locations, and details on our Certification Testing Days, click
here.
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Tutoring
FAQ's
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 Q:
Does a student have to have a formal diagnosis of dyslexia before
using the Barton System?
A: No. But you should suspect dyslexia. How? See
how many of the warning signs of dyslexia you (or the child’s
parents) can detect. For a list of
the warning signs of dyslexia, click
here.
Dyslexia is
the most common reason a child with at least average intelligence
will struggle with spelling, reading, or writing. Dyslexia affects
20% of people in the United States, some mildly, others severely.
Be sure every
student can pass our Barton
Student Screening before you start tutoring.
Q:
Will it hurt people who are struggling for some other reason to
go through the Barton System?
A: No, as long as:
- They can
speak and comprehend spoken English at the second-grade level
or better. To download a simple ESL screening, click
here.
- They are
struggling only with reading accuracy and/or speed. If a child
can already read accurately and rapidly, but only has trouble
with comprehension, the Barton System is NOT going to help.
Q:
Does a student always have to start at Level 1?
A: Most students need to start at Level 1 –
no matter how old they are. Level number refers to a sequence,
not to a grade. Nothing in level 1 will offend
an older student. They must master the material in Level 1 before
moving on to Level 2.
That’s
because research proves that what’s stopping them from mastering
reading is their lack of phonemic awareness. Phonemic awareness
is the ability to hear and manipulate each sound in a word –
in your head, without letters.
In fact,
research shows there are seven
essential phonemic awareness skills a student must have before
letters will start to make sense. We teach all seven of those
skills in Level 1.
If you should
buy Level 1 and discover that it’s too easy for your student,
we will exchange it for the next level.
Each level
of the Barton System comes with a post-test that you can give
as a pretest to determine exactly where each student needs to
start.
So if a student
has already been tutored in an Orton-Gillingham-based
system, or a Lindamood-Bell program, use those post-tests as a
pre-test to determine exactly where the student should start.
Start by
giving the student the post-test for Level 1. If the student can
pass all parts of it easily and accurately, then give the student
the post-test for Level 2. If the student can pass all parts of
it easily and accurately, then give them the post-test for Level
3, and so on.
If you will
only be tutoring one student, and that student has already have
extensive Orton-Gillingham-based tutoring, contact
us and tell us about the student. We may be able to provide
you with the post-tests ahead of time.
Q:
How often do I have to tutor a student?
A: Once a week is not enough. Do not even start
the Barton System if you can only tutor once a week. It will not
work because that is not frequent enough reinforcement.
Twice a week
will work.
Three times
a week is better than twice. Tutoring every day is ideal, which
is why the Barton System is so popular with homeschool parents.
They can tutor their own children every day.
Q:
How long does a lesson take?
A: A tutoring session should never last more than
an hour.
For younger
students, or those with significant focusing difficulty, a tutoring
session may only last for 40 minutes.
Some students
can complete an entire lesson in a one-hour session. Others can
only complete half the lesson in an hour.
A good tutor
will pace the lesson to match the student. A student must master
the new skill taught in that lesson, and be able to apply to both
reading and spelling, before moving on to the next lesson.
How long
that takes depends upon the student. You cannot rush a student
with dyslexia. If you move on before the student has mastered
a new skill, the student will eventually hit a wall.
Q:
Does tutoring have to be one-on-one?
A: One-on-one is the ideal setting. That’s
because no two students with dyslexia learn at exactly the same
pace. When tutoring one-on-one, a tutor can present the material
at exactly the right pace for each student.
Also, it
is much less embarrassing to make a mistake when only the tutor
sees it – not other students.
Only if you
are an experienced teacher, and have good group management skills,
should you attempt to tutor two-on-one or three-on one.
Three-on-one
tutoring is the maximum for the Barton System.
Please be
aware that the more students in a session, the longer it will
take to complete the Barton System. That’s because you have
to pace the lesson for the slowest student. And you cannot present
new material if any one of the students is absent.
Q:
What extra supplies would I need if I were going to tutor three-on-one?
A: You may wish to purchase extra tiles, so that
each student has their own set. To download our Tiles Only order
form, click here.
You may only purchase extra tiles for the Barton Levels you already
own.
Q:
Can I tutor someone before I am certified?
A: Yes. In fact, you must tutor
at least two students through Levels 1, 2, and 3 before you can
sign up for our Certification Testing
Day.
Q:
Can I charge a fee for tutoring before I am certified?
A: Yes. But you won’t be able to charge top
rates until you are certified.
Q:
How do I find my students? Do you help me find students?
A: You are responsible for finding your own students.
For tips on doing that, click
here.
Once you
become a Certified Barton tutor, we will add you to our referral
list, which we distribute to parents and teachers who are looking
for tutors they can hire.
Q:
What if I get stuck when using the Barton System?
A: We offer free unlimited support to everyone
using the Barton System.
If you need
help just call 408-559-3652 or click
here and send us an email.
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Barton
Certification Testing
Dates & Details
Back
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 Before
you can sign up for this testing day, you must have taken at least
two students all the way through Levels 1, 2, and 3 of the Barton
Reading & Spelling System.
This testing
day is limited to 10 people. To ensure that you’ve mastered
the procedures, you’ll spend the day tutoring Susan Barton
herself! Susan will start out as an "easy" student.
Then she’ll begin making mistakes — to see if you
notice and know how to correct them.
Your ability
to correctly teach Sight Words, and your knowledge of the spelling
rules, will also be checked.
If you pass,
you’ll become a Certified Barton tutor and become one of
the dedicated professionals who know how to dramatically improve
the reading and spelling skills of people with dyslexia.
If you’re
in private practice, you’ll be added to the list of Certified
Barton Tutors that Susan distributes at her presentations, and
which we provide to parents or teachers on request.
Dates for Beginning Certification:
Saturday, Apr. 12, 2008 in Pittsburg, PA
Friday, April 18, 2008 in San Francisco - FULL
Sunday, Apr. 20, 2008 in San Francisco - FULL
** Nuts & Bolts of Private Practice on Sat, April 19 - San Francisco
Saturday, May 10, 2008 in Lexington, KY
Sunday, June 29, 2008 in Santa Clara, CA - FULL
Sunday, July 13, 2008 in Santa Clara, CA - FULL
Saturday, July 19, 2008 in Santa Clara, CA
Dates for Advanced Certification:
Saturday, Apr. 26, 2008 in San Francisco -- FULL
To sign up, click here to download the registration form or call our office at (408) 559-3652.
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Nuts
& Bolts of Private Practice Workshop - Dates & Details
Back
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 If
changing the life of a child with dyslexia excites you, you should
consider becoming a private tutor. Private tutors can work one-on-one
with a child, to quickly improve the reading, spelling,
and writing skills.
Attend this
workshop to learn the ins and outs of becoming a self-employed private
tutor.
You’ll
learn:
- How to
find students without advertising
- Whether
working out of your home, an office, or sharing space is best
for you
- What to
charge for your services
- Which
items are deductible as business expenses — and which
are not
- What type
of business license(s) are required
- How to
keep accurate accounting records for tax purposes
- Which
parents to accept, and how to turn others away — in a
professional manner
- How to
set parent expectations
- What type
of contract a parent should sign
- And lots
more!
Date:
Sat, April 19, 2008 in San Francisco, CA
To sign up,
call our office at (408) 559-3652.
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