I'm just about at the end of my rope with my dd (14)--she's been an A/B student and has done really well in school until this semester; now she's got three Cs and is having a miserable time. Part of the trouble is that she's in volleyball right now and no longer has a huge amount of time to do homework. But if she had any decent study or organizational skills, it wouldn't be that big a deal. She also has trouble taking tests, and I just wonder if Sylvan couldn't help her. I've looked on their website and there's no mention of cost, which says to me it's astronomical. So... any experience? Can anyone give me a ballpark figure on cost? Anyone happy or disgusted with it? TIA

By Vicki on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 03:51 pm:

I have no idea of the cost, but I do have a friend who has her son enrolled there. He is much younger though, he is only 8 and he is going for reading. She only has fantastic things to say about his progress though!

By Bea on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 03:55 pm:

My best friend had a grandson in Sylvan. They weren't satisfied. Sylvan guarantees that the child will raise their average two marks or something like that. They do their own test in the beginning, and then they test at the end. Of course the child tests two marks higher, when they administer and grade the tests. However, his progress at school didn't improve at all, and yes they do charge big bucks.

By Ladypeacek on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 03:55 pm:

I had a friend that worked there and he loves it. The kids progress very well there. I don't know about the cost though either. Never hurts to call and ask.

By Janet on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 03:56 pm:

School used to be a no-brainer for her... she's a good reader and writer, but she's such a gosh-darned perfectionist that she wastes time on the dumbest things... she can't seem to figure out what's important and prioritize. And she almost never gets done with tests in the alloted time at school. I'm thinking if we don't get things changed, high school will be a living ****.

By Melanie on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 04:02 pm:

I wonder if you could hook up with a high school or even a college student to tutor her. Since the work itself isn't the issue, perhaps she simply needs a mentor to guide her in the right direction to teach her how to prioritize.

By Mommmie on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 04:14 pm:

One mom told me it was $3500 to help her young daughter with reading and she was pleased.

Another mom said it was $7000, but she was in a more expensive part of the country and her child was doing reading and math. She said it was a waste of time and money.

It is not for kids with diagnosed learning problems, but that's not your issue.

What would be nice is if the schools would actually teach study and organizational skills. My son gets it in his private LD school, but there's no direct teaching in it in our public schools were my son used to go. My son's LD school teaches a summer class on this that is open to kids from other schools. Maybe there's something like that around you.

By Janet on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 04:35 pm:

Wow. That's a lot of money. *sigh*

By Texannie on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 05:12 pm:

I would suggest talking to the counselor or even another teacher to tutor her in organizational skills. Also, many times counselors who test for ADD/ADHD will also teach organizational skills. Does she manage to find the time to practice her volleyball skills and devote the time necessary to be on the team?

By Pamt on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 05:42 pm:

I work a lot with children with language-learning disabilities and I get kids AFTER they have been to SYlvan, paid tons of money, and make little, if any, progress. It's a "cookbook" approach and one method doesn't fit all kids. If it is organization and perfectionism you can probably address it together at home. Go through a study skills book together and work on the perfectionism by having her make some mistakes and leave them. You also need to get at the root of why she has trouble taking tests...is it prioritizing, a mental block, over-analyzing, etc. and work on those specific deficits. A think a tutor like Melanie suggested would be a great idea. If you can pinpoint her specific problems I might be able to help too. My email is speech-chick@cox.net.

By Feona on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 06:30 pm:

My sister in law said Sylvan helped both her boys improve their reading.

By Mommyathome on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 07:20 pm:

I would first start with the school counselor and ask for suggestions on organizational skills. If that's her "problem" I think there are cheaper ways to fix it rather than sending her to a special school.

By Happynerdmom on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 07:40 pm:

I agree...contact the school counselor to see what resources are available to you. It definitely sounds like an organization and/or time management issue. I've dealt a lot with this age group, and my daughter is there as well. Junior High is is so difficult! So much is going on. It is not at all uncommon for kids this age to take a dip in grades. I remember Jr. High all too well...I was a straight A student, then I dipped in Jr. High. I even got a D in math one quarter! By High School I was back up to A's and B's. It sounds as if she is feeling overwhelmed. Is she using a planner? If you could sit down with her each night and decide what she needs to do, that may help her. You mentioned that she is a perfectionist. It is not uncommon for them to become some of the worst procrastinators! By leaving it to the last minute, they give themselves an excuse for it not being "perfect." Then, this just adds to the cycle of being overwhelmed. I think a little help and a lot of sympathy will go a long way...I wouldn't be fourteen again for anything! :-)

By Janet on Wednesday, February 25, 2004 - 11:31 am:

Well, we don't have a "real" school counselor, just a teacher who also happens to be a pastor, and he's the one the kids talk to... (did I mention we are a small district? LOL) Anyway, I have already written off Sylvan, when I began to think that the cost will be more than dd's braces! Prioritizing is a big problem, and the planner idea makes sense. Trouble is, if I try to get her to only spend so much time on one subject and then move on, she won't get done. I have caught her sitting at the table, staring at the work like it's going to do itself. As someone who's BTDT, I've a pretty good idea she's overwhelmed, but I don't know how to help her. Last night I sat with her to keep her on track, and she still didn't get done until 11:30. (It was a "light" homework night, too) I feel like we are hostages to school work, since we get home from the game and go directly to the homework until bedtime. No family time or down time for her at all. Or me. In two weeks, v-ball will be over, and we can concentrate on getting enough sleep and the school work. I reassured her yesterday that this is just a glitch, and not necessarily the way things are going to go from now on. The test-taking does worry me, though.