The Learning Skills Continuum
All of our interventions are based on the Learning Skills Continuum, which represents a progression of skills that follows the brain's natural learning development. We don’t just address academic or school-based challenges with more academic work. Success in school and with friends depends on a solid foundation in lower-level areas. Students who struggle often do so because of issues with attention, memory, processing, auditory, visual, or executive function skills. When underlying weaknesses in these areas exist, students and adults are often not able to learn or function as independently as they should.
At Lehman Learning Solutions, we use an in-depth assessment, along with parent and teacher input, to pinpoint where each student may be experiencing weakness. By identifying contributing factors to poor performance or anxiety, we can then address weak skills through our targeted programs.
All of the programs used in our intervention plans are designed to target continuum levels with the intensity, frequency, and duration needed for lasting change to take place. Each individualized plan integrates our programs to move students up the Learning Continuum toward academic success.
Academic Skills
Strong academic skills in reading, writing, and math are needed to meet the ever-increasing demands on performance in the classroom and to develop confidence as a life-long learner. Weaknesses in this area are often what parents first notice before seeking support from schools or traditional tutoring. All of our programs work toward the goal of reaching grade-level academic success. After addressing underlying skills, we often use evidence-based academic programs that build fluency and comprehension to get students back on track.
Our academic programs can help students with...
- poor reading comprehension
- poor phonemic awareness
- a tendency to struggle with letter or symbol reversals
- poor reading fluency
- a tendency to skip, ignore, or guess at words
- a tendency to confuse similar sounding or visually similar words
- difficulty reasoning through math problems
- difficulty learning, retaining, and applying math facts
- trouble recalling formulas and definitions
- difficulty remembering the sequences and structure of multi-step problem solving
- difficulty applying math concepts to homework, classwork, or tests
- difficulty getting ideas down on paper
- difficulty organizing thoughts in writing
- poor spelling
Executive Function Skills
Executive function skills strengthen our ability to self-manage and direct our attention, choices, and thinking. Without these skills in place, students will struggle to reason, plan, organize, problem-solve, manage time, and make decisions.
Our executive function programs can help students with...
- poor mental flexibility
- poor self-reflection
- trouble getting started independently
- difficulty planning for long-term assignments or projects
- poor follow-through
- a tendency to be impulsive
- poor emotional or behavioral regulation
- a tendency to procrastinate
- a tendency to be late for appointments, assignments, or scheduled activities
- difficulty keeping track of materials or belongings
- poor reasoning or problem-solving
- poor attention awareness and control
- difficulty coming up with creative solutions or overcoming obstacles to complete a task
Cognitive Processing Skills
Efficient cognitive processing skills through our visual, auditory, and kinesthetic motor senses are necessary for our brain to engage and support academic learning. Students with under-developed cognitive processing abilities can often be misunderstood to be less capable than their peers. With a more limited access to reliable memory, these students are often are unable to adequately express what they know. Developing this area is like taking the brain to the gym to ensure that students can focus and concentrate, comprehend material, remember details, visualize, and process visual and auditory information quickly.
Our cognitive processing programs can help students with...
- difficulty sounding out words
- a tendency to work "too slow" to keep up
- poor attention awareness and control
- difficulty following multi-step directions
- a tendency to tire when listening
- difficulty remembering information for a test
- difficulty memorizing spelling words or math facts
- trouble processing visual or auditory information
- trouble completing tasks without repeated reminders
- a tendency to lose place when reading
- trouble interpreting visual maps or charts
Core Learning Skills
These are the foundational movement, visual, and auditory skills needed for the cortex, or learning brain, to do its job. If these skills are not in place, the cortex will divert needed energy and attention to compensate for what the lower brain should automatically do.
Our Core Learning programs can help students with...
- high anxiety
- poor body or spatial awareness
- poor sense of direction
- poor attention awareness and control
- difficulty with ocular and fine motor skills
- poor balance or coordination
- poor timing or rhythm
- significant impulsivity or hyperactivity
- poor posture
- excessive fatigue
- difficulty sitting still
- unintegrated reflexes