Who We Can Help

Because Gemm targets core skills, our programs can help individuals of all ages at all academic levels.   A few minutes on the phone with a Gemm consultant is all that is needed in most cases, to determine if you or your child is "one of ours" -- someone we can help.

If we cannot help, we may suggest be able to suggest alternatives. Here are some typical profiles.

Slow start to reading
Most struggling early readers either do not hear phonemes -- the tiny fragments of sound inside words -- or they hear them only with out-sized effort. And so their reading is labored. Fast ForWord works directly on phonemic awareness by building auditory processing skills to improve listening accuracy. These gains make the connections between word memory and text clearer and more automatic and intuitive, leading to a more comfortable reading style.
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Weak reading comprehension
Three primary sources of reading comprehension issues are: (1) a labored decoding style that is taking up brain capacity that should be available for comprehension, (2) weak working memory where the students finds it hard to take in and retain the information, and/or (3) poor attention stamina, an inability to stay engaged while reading.

Our program targets each of these issues, separately and in combination. Once mastered, a child is able to practice the higher level reading comprehension skills required in later grades.
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Drifts off in class
Listening is exhausting, and often the third of fourth sentence in a sequence is just lost. Children with auditory processing issues will often drift off in class (from exhaustion) or they will tune in and out, missing great chunks of instruction. For these children, we are all talking at 50 miles per hour, while the child may be listening at 40 miles per hour.

Our program speeds up language processing. This leads directly to being able to follow the teacher more comfortably in class and more success with multi-step directions. These gains almost always also lead to a boost in confidence as faster processing effectively slows the world down, making it more manageable.
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Homework battles, reluctant to start homework
There are many reasons for a reluctance to do homework, ranging from elementary-age-itis through avoidance issues due to learning issues. Isolating the problem requires a parent interview.

Some of the causes are beyond the scope of Gemm Learning, but the ones we can help with revolve around two big issues:  (1) avoidance behavior relating to a reading problem, and/or (2) inattention in class leading to missed instruction on the homework topic and perhaps even uncertainty about the actual homework assignment. In these types of cases, covered above, we have had great success in changing homework habits and attitudes.
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Diagnosed with Dyslexia

There are a number of symptoms of dyslexia and causes of dyslexia . Some are related to sensory integration, others due to an inability to focus well enough to learn to read. Our focus is dyslexia due to central auditory processing disorders, a language based learning issue.

We target dyslexia by improving the individual's ability to process language, to break words in their separate sound parts. Dyslexic children switch b's and d's not because they see them the same, but because they hear them the same. We directly address this fundamental issue, and then develop reading technique, age appropriately, step by step.
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Struggling to Learn Math Facts

Dyscalculia is dyslexia for math, an inability to gain automaticity in math.For many children, math is the first real test of their learning and cognitive skills, the first opportunity for parents and teachers to see that there are possible weaknesses.

Gemm provides math help by building the cognitive skills required for math -- processing speed, sequencing, working memory and language skills -- as well as by introducing math fact drills in an engaging, adaptive format. Learn more

Lacks Confidence

For many children school is overwhelming. Instruction is coming at the them too fast and reading is an overwhelmingly difficult skill to master. Children are born with a huge reservoir of confidence, but constant failure and frustration will take its toll. Tutors can be help sometimes, but to truly change this dynamic there needs to be a change in the learning abilities causing this erosion in confidence.

By speeding up processing we are able to slow the world down for children and make comfortable reading a realistic possibility. Most of our children experience solid gains in confidence after a only a few weeks as the unmanageable becomes manageable and impossible becomes possible.
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Not Happy At School, Not Living Up To Full Potential
For bright students of which so much is expected, even the slightest learning glitch can be a source of frustration for the student and parents. 

Our learning enrichment program for above grade level children takes only a few weeks.   Because the program is adaptive it very quickly isolates and strengthens any weak points in a learning makeup.
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Does Not Enjoy Reading
Many children are very smart and do very well at school and with their reading and appear to be meeting their potential. But if they do not enjoy reading this may be a clue that there is indeed an issue, that the student is capable of even more. Reading is not enjoyable if it is exhausting -- possibly indicating an inefficient reading style -- or if comprehension is incomplete.

By automating an inefficient reading style we have been able to create a love of reading over and over again.
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