When I started tutoring with Karen, I was 9 years old, and I could barely spell.

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At school, the teacher would say, "Ok, everyone, you need to write five sentences," and it would be no big deal for the rest of the class. But for me, it was overwhelming. I had to try to figure out the spelling of every single word...and even then, I would spell them wrong!

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I tried to sound things out a bit, but it didn't really help. I still misspelled a lot of words, such as: busy, both, again, please, sure, answer, listen, shoe, laugh and because. I also got confused by homophones like your/you're, and there/their/they're. Really long words went completely off the rails! Sometimes I would text my friends and the spelling was so far off that they couldn't even understand what I was saying.

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I hated writing. It was a total pain.

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I didn't like reading either. Even though it wasn't as hard as spelling, it took a lot of time and effort to sound out words. And I definitely didn't like being asked to read out loud.

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On the positive side, I've always been interested in knowing how things work. I'm naturally curious, and I have a reputation in my family for taking things apart and (mostly!) putting them back together. I spend a lot of time in my workshop building and modifying different projects. I enjoy building engines, combat robots, remote control vehicles, model planes, RC boats, mountain bikes, dirt bikes, and swords. I am currently working on a gas-powered bike. The more I take things apart, the more those systems make sense.

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Unfortunately, reading and spelling never made sense.

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That changed when I started working with Karen. She taught me that there are logical spelling rules and predictable patterns, and her creative stories helped things to stick in my memory. Now that I understand how the system works, spelling makes sense. It's like the words are mechanical pieces, and they go together in a certain way. In Karen's program, my spelling improved exponentially.

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My reading got a lot better too. I can read accurately now, and long words don't bother me anymore. In fact, my friends are totally impressed with my ability to read and spell big words! I used to be the one who couldn't spell. Now they ask, "Where did you learn to do that??!"

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I also got the chance to teach stuff to Karen! Since she was always interested in what I was designing and building, I explained lots of mechanical systems and concepts to her. I educated her about things like torque, centrifugal force, brushless motors, suspension, throttles, fuel-to-air ratios, clutches, fluid dynamics, and the roles of lift/drag/weight/thrust in aeronautics.

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Since our lessons were educational for BOTH of us, we would open with this humorous introduction: "Welcome to another exciting episode of Scientists and Spellers!" We made a lot of good memories together while I was learning to read and spell better.

 

Here's what I'd like to say to other students in Karen's program:

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At first, I felt resistant to tutoring, because getting special help made me feel like I must be stupid.

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But I came to realize that I'm not stupid. I just needed to learn how English works! When I became more welcoming of the idea of tutoring, the lessons got easier and I started making real progress.

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If you're feeling resistant to working with Karen, try not to be. Her way of teaching is creative and unique, and it will make sense to you. Once you get on board and decide you want to learn, you will make great progress. Karen's program will help you, just like it helped me!