Savannah Smith

Our eleven-year-old son has dyslexia and possibly ADD. He struggled with reading, writing, math, focusing and staying on task at school. Because he could not keep up in school, his self-esteem was greatly reduced. We tried extra classes, tutoring during the summer, and constant practice with reading at home, but only to despair and frustration.
Then, we heard about Rocky Point Academy. He attended for only five days, but these five days are changing his life and ours. He has improved in all his school subjects. His reading level alone improved by three grade levels within that week. Imagine the excitement he could share with us when, for the first time ever, he achieved 100% on his math test last week. Thank you, Rocky Point Academy.
Karey

My daughter Hannah, 11, started to have learning difficulties as soon as grade 1. After several years of extra support, even though it looked like she could read, she still couldn’t understand the meaning of the texts. She had a lot of trouble expressing herself orally, continuously changing ideas. For the same reason, her writing was really poor; words were missing, and there was no punctuation. She had no short-term memory, and learning the multiplication tables was a nightmare.
She lacked coordination, and physically, it looked like she was preventing herself from growing. She was very skinny; she was always complaining that her belly ached, and she was a very anxious little girl who did not have any self-confidence.
Several “specialists” assured me that she was not dyslexic. However, when I read “The Gift of Dyslexia” by Ron Davis, I knew right away that was the cause of her problems.
In September, she spent a week at Rocky Point Academy. The following Monday, as soon as she went back to school, her teachers started to notice a difference in her. By November, when the time of the report cards came, they wanted to know what could have lead to such a dramatic change in her way of learning. Her grades were amazing.
She still has to work hard, but she is able to understand, learn and memorize.
Thanks to your tools and ‘tips’, there is no more ‘panic’. She knows how to manage her time and behaviour.
Her coordination has improved tremendously (she can play basketball, ping-pong…) and she even has started to gain some weight.
I am grateful to the facilitators at Rocky Point Academy for their kindness, patience, great support and professionalism. And for the fact that they are always ready to answer our questions, whenever we need help.
(Although Hannah’s first language is French, and she goes to a French school, the training in English did not confuse her. We only do the French exercises at home but both languages are improving at the same time).
Christine

We would like to advise you of Demaris’s progress and the benefit she received from taking your course at Rocky Point Academy.
We had realized very early that Demaris has a different learning and thought process. After a long struggle, Demaris had been diagnosed through the school system as dyslexic and dysgraphic. Prior to taking your course, we would work with Demaris daily, re-teaching whatever had been taught at school each day. This was often a couple of hours each night to put things into terms that made sense to Demaris. This involved many different approaches, with a trial and error process. Through this process and a great deal of hard work and long hours, Demaris was able to maintain an average in her school marks of about seventy-five percent.
Demaris was also somewhat shy and withdrawn at school, often afraid to speak to the teacher. She did not participate in class very much and was often frustrated and depressed.
After taking the Rocky Point Academy course, we began to notice a growing sense of self-assurance in Demaris. When she returned to school that September, we discovered that Demaris no longer needed daily help from us in order to assimilate the teaching she received at school. She began to participate not only in class but also in school leadership programs such as Peer Helpers. She has good relationships with all of her teachers, as well as the school Principal and Vice-Principal. Her marks in school rose to and remained in the eighties and nineties.
The difference in Demaris was drastic. She went from being an emotional child with little self-confidence to an independent, self-assured, outgoing individual, able to maintain Honour Roll marks.
We would recommend Rocky Point Academy to anyone experiencing the type of difficulties Demaris had. Please feel free to use us as a reference for your school. What your course gave Demaris is beyond price, and we will always be grateful for it.
Sincerely,
Barbara &

Rocky Point Academy has helped me tremendously! I used to take forever to do my homework; it took me a while to understand the lessons that had been taught that day. It took me the whole night just to do homework, and on weekends, I spent the majority of my time doing homework. I used to dread going to school. I hated it there! I always felt lost, and I felt like I was not even there. I was always confused and frustrated with the lessons. I have a strong sense of pride, so I don’t give up easily. I always tried as hard as I could and barely got my homework done the next day. To be honest, I was concerned about what Rocky Point Academy could offer me, but I was willing to try to see what it could offer me. We went to the information session, and I was told I had ADD. It was suggested that I go and see the people at Rocky Point Academy. When I went to Rocky Point Academy in November, I relearned about my abilities and my previous schooling. I learned how I learned and how to help myself to do better. The week at Rocky Point was amazing! I learned so much! I learned how to orient myself and how to learn so things make sense.
Later, when I returned to school, everything seemed different, and I did better. I went from just barely passing to an honourable mention. I understood what was being said and what was being taught, and I still don't like the homework, but it takes me less time to do it, and I have time for other things. I also enjoy the clay nights. A group of us got together and did words in clay. I enjoy meeting people who are like me and learn the same way. Sure, I still have a way to go to improve my skills, but now I know that I am not alone and that I can do even better!
Sincerely,
Ryan

(Autism program)
Sarah is continuing to develop her verbal skills and social understanding and is progressing. She wants to share more experiences with others (such as watching something funny on TV or a movie and participating in the dinner table conversation). Her verbal communication is improving, and she talks more often; her reading is also improving, and her retention of what she has read is improving. She is starting to get a better understanding of money. She also enjoys school and has two work experience afternoon jobs that she enjoys. One is at the Hospital delivering mail, and the other is helping in a Kindergarten class. Sarah is more aware of what's happening around her, and she doesn't seem to be tuning out as much.