BARTON PROGRAM

A woman with brown hair and a blue shirt smiles in a circular frame, accompanied by a quote about her experience teaching the Barton Reading and Spelling System, attributed to Jenny Van Ort Meer, a certified Barton educator.

Did you know that 1 in 5 people struggle with dyslexia? That’s 20% of our population. According to Sally Shaywitz, author of Overcoming Dyslexia, “dyslexic students and adults struggle to read fluently, spell words correctly, and learn a second language, among other challenges.” These students and adults have the propensity to learn to read and have average to above average intelligence. They typically read slowly, yet they are “fast and creative thinkers with strong reasoning abilities.” Dyslexia cannot be “cured,” but with proper tools, a student can go on to lead a highly successful life. Early intervention is best. Our heart’s desire is to equip our students that are struggling or may struggle, as early as kindergarten to be successful.

What is the Barton Reading & Spelling System?

The Barton Reading and Spelling System is a one-on-one research-based, Orton-Gillingham influenced tutoring method that will help students who struggle with a learning difficulty in the areas of reading, spelling, and written expression. The Barton program helps students learn to read and spell by sounding out words instead of relying on memorizing a sequence of letters.  

The Barton Reading and Spelling System has research from 15 independent studies from public and private schools across the nation that prove the effectiveness of the program. It meets the recommendation from the National Reading Panel and the Knowledge of Practice Standards for Teachers of Reading by providing explicit, systematic instruction in the areas of phonemic awareness, phonics and vocabulary development, fluency including oral reading skills, and reading comprehension strategies.

How Do I Know if My Child Qualifies for Barton?

We perform the CTOPP 2 to determine whether or not the Barton program is recommended. There is a charge of $70 for that assessment. Private testing or diagnosis of dyslexia is acceptable. We do not diagnose or need a diagnosis to move forward with Barton.

To help identify students who need more than what a typical classroom offers in reading, spelling, and phonics instruction, we screen all of our kindergarteners in the spring with the Mississippi Screener. Our goal is to help our students as early as possible to give them the tools they will need before they fall behind and start to dislike the learning process. These students are very bright and capable of learning but are often overlooked due to their struggles.

A quote from Kelly Loyless, LS Principal, expressing how her son transitioned from disliking school to enjoying it, particularly writing, and how he appreciates indoor recess for more writing time.

Tutoring Sessions

Tutoring sessions are a minimum of 60 minutes twice a week, totaling 120 minutes per week, but there may be circumstances where we are able to schedule more time per week.  The cost is $45 an hour for a current LCA student and $55 an hour for a student not attending LCA. Sessions may range from 30 minutes to over 1 hour.  Tutor hours will be calculated to ensure the total contracted hours are met. In addition, this program is encouraged to continue over the summer especially for those students in Levels 1-3.

Helpful Videos From Susan Barton

Next Steps

To discuss the possibility of your child enrolling in the Barton Program, email Jenny Van Der Meer.