Newsletter December 2021

December News

Dear Everyone

Thank you!  Thank you for being you, for supporting us mentally, energetically and sometimes financially!  Every one of our fabulous team values you enormously.

Speaking of the team, this year we welcomed two new Board members, Nadine Schumont and Sharon Roberts, both in Ontario – Sharon has since qualified as a Davis Autism Coach.

FUNDRAISING:  This being the second year of Covid we followed the 2020 example and launched our Walk and Talk the DYS out of Dyslexia in August.  Nadine and Sharon really helped it take off in eastern Canada.  We added an Auction with amazing items, in the most part due to Julie Brewer.

Following on from the Auction we forged a new fundraising link with Tru Earth Eco Products – such a great company reducing plastic in landfills.  Please order via the link on our website, and then we get 20% donated to us by Tru Earth!  There is a banner to this link right at the top of each WDS website page. Think of them for Christmas presents? Visit our fundraising page here.

We published another Podcast series interviewing Sue’s fellow TEDxers. We now have 28 subscribers and 990 listens… www.thewds.org/podcasts.  We have been approached re advertising which is a good sign!

We raised $12,000 – which was fantastic and sounds a lot – however 8 bursaries ($12,000) to 6 Facilitators – and it’s gone already.  2 West Coast, 4 East Coast Facilitators making 9 bursaries in total this year. 

Grants:  We are hopeful the Loyal Protestants will be able to help our bursary fund.  We just heard that the Davis Canadian Facilitators Association have awarded us a bursary for 2021 - thank you!  We’ve applied to RBC for Admin funding because Laura, our Administrator, is paid part-time and often works for us full time. There is no way we could achieve what we do without her, so we need to rectify this!

DLS:  We were able to help 2 attendees with DLS fees (July Workshop) and 1 school in Saskatoon, with their workshop. In return they will be giving us some informal data, so we can encourage others. DLS is an amazing product that would make the lives of teachers so much easier with the best result that the learning challenges won’t have a chance to develop.  Nadine requested a video for teachers who are interested in DLS and need a segue into booking a program – Julie, Sharon and I had fun creating one – www.thewds.org/prevention .

Julie and Sue are working on the next step, an online Pro D presentation covering both what dyslexia is, how it can be corrected and prevented. Julie is focussing on getting DLS into the Montessori School system, Sharon is working on the Mennonite system and Sue is ever hopeful for the Waldorf system and Paddy is an ever present force in Alberta. Stacey Smith in Calgary is our Canadian DLS presenter and online presentations mean we can reach teachers more easily!

OUTREACH:  Sue likes to think of her TEDx as significant Outreach 2,667 views – please do circulate -something to do with algorithms and TED will boost us.  View HERE. WDS has a YouTube Channel too. Visit our channel HERE.

We publish a Newsletter pretty much every month and our postings on Social Media have increased this year. www.thewds.org/newsletters

COMMUNITY:  Sadly, no Summer Camps this year, we live in hope for next year; we ran 2 disability tax credit information sessions for parents with TJ Firenze who is kind enough to donate her services.  Hopefully there will be one in 2022.

CURRENTLY: Nadine is working on ADD and ADHD; Sharon is working on Executive Function; Sue is creating Homeschooling support products – taking Davis further.  Tristan is taking a course on podcasting. 

OUR GOALS FOR 2022:  Gisa, Nadine and I want to focus on getting a major sponsor for 2022.  If you have clients with connections, please let us know, its always who you know, not what you know. We need a major corporation/philanthropist to take us under their wing financially.  Sue will continue  working on materials to support Homeschoolers.  All of us want DLS in at least 3 schools next year.  We will plan another Walk and Talk Fundraiser in 2022.  

and last by definitely not least…

Gifted with Dyslexia PINS

We launched the concept of a universal symbol for dyslexia – from idea to design to production to marketing and distribution.  We had a glitch with the first batch, but they are now better than ever.  

First it was just a fundraiser… then we thought we would like the symbol more than that… it could be an emblem that pulls the Davis family together.  Facilitators have so many products, books, films, apps etc. and yet the general public will not know that we are all part of the same Davis fold. 

Then we thought why not go further with this idea... even if it were added to non Davis materials it would bring a tiny bit of energy closer to the idea of dyslexia being a gift… shifting perception from Learning Disability to us being Learning Able is key.  It is not a trademark, or logo, it is simply a symbol, an emblem – hopefully one day just as well known as the pink ribbon. It says “We support the idea of dyslexia being a gift”.  Corporations could be seen as dyslexic friendly employers !

So firstly, please help us with the actual pins – think stocking stuffers ! www.thewds.org/pins

Secondly, in January we will get good quality digital images out to you all and explore the idea of physical stickers for existing products/companies… images along these lines, you can they can choose. 

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Thirdly, this is what we all wish you, and a very much happier 2022 ! 

With love and gratitude, Sue, Laura, Nadine, Sharon, Paddy, Julie, Gisa and Tristan.

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Our Giving Guide: 

Purchase our Gifted with Dyslexia Pins.  Purchase our Pins Here

TruEarth Eco-Friendly Laundry Soap and Products.  20% of all sales go to our Society.  Please follow the link to our Tru-Earth product page to purchase.  Tru-Earth Eco-Friendly Products Here

See how donations can result in tax credits by reading the article below. Read More…Tax Benefits of Charitable Donations

We have Note Cards for sale at The Card Project. Visit The Card Project Here

Partial proceeds go to The WDS from sales and rentals of Ed Roman’s highly acclaimed “Red Omen” video. For more information on renting or buying Red Omen click here 

We gratefully accept donations through our Canada helps charity page. We have a variety of donor options. Thank you !

Canada Helps - General Fund 

Canada Helps Tribute - Donate in honour of or in memory of a loved one.  

Canada Helps Securities - A donation of securities or mutual funds is the most efficient way to give charitably. Since capital gains taxes don't apply, our charity receives the full fair market value when the security is sold, and you get a tax receipt which reflects your larger contribution. This allows you to give more and get more.

We are a registered charity with the PayPal Giving Fund. You can donate to our organization using your PayPal account with no fees. Thank you ! PayPal Giving Fund 

Newsletter November 2021

November News

Dear Everyone

Hoping you are managing to enjoy the sunny dry days in between the deluges .  Only 6 weeks to the shortest day and we are looking forward to next year, reflecting on the best way we go forward.  

I (Sue) am going to start with a huge request.  Is there anyone out there who could donate 30 hrs of their time to us… whether one week, or over one month… to search for foundations likely to fund us.  If you are able to help with grant writing that is even more wonderful.  This person might not be dyslexic… as it involves reading through all sorts of eligibility rules etc. I glaze over after visiting 2 or 3 sites.  We always need bursary funds, and we always need operating funds for administration, which is harder to come by.  We have a short list to offer as a started.  If you are indeed that Christmas fairy, please let us know asap… we are on a wonderful roll at the moment and only want to keep the momentum going ! Contact me HERE.

We remain true to our 4 Objectives:

www.thewds.org/bursaries has a great video from Julie Brewer and an amazing testimonial from a bursary recipient in Ontario.

Not only did our award help him to change his life, but his Facilitator found his program a profound experience. 

We have been able to award 4 bursaries already, thanks to your generosity in our Walk and Talk fundraiser in the summer.

 www.thewds.org/prevention has a new video from Julie, Sharon and myself which aims to welcome teachers who have just heard about Davis Learning Strategies and wonder what to do next.  We were able to financially help a school in Saskatoon send teachers to a DLS Workshop, and look forward to hearing their success stories. 

www.thewds.org/pins is part of our Outreach program… one of my students who was ‘iffy’ about disclosing her dyslexia after her program, was very excited to wear it to school the day after her review session. That’s a win in our view ! We are getting orders from around the world… please send us links to any organisations you feel we should contact.

We have started to record our next series of Podcasts, and we are building a collection of relevant videos on our YouTube Channel, please do share !

Thanks to Tru Earth Fundraising we have a fabulous new connection with Tru Earth Eco Products.  As long as you use this link to order the products, Tru Earth donates 20% to the WDS.  Don’t just go to their website, it has to be this link.  Not only are they an award winning company that has wonderful products that help reduce landfill, they like to give back too!  SO… if you are thinking of early Christmas shopping, please go to this link for a win/win/win solution! 

Don’t forget we have some cards on our website too, particularly the whale, the rabbit and the snowman. Visit our website or order our page at The Card Project.

We still hope that our Community objective will be able to re-start in 2022 with a long awaited family summer camp weekend !

We are always open to your suggestions – what you need us to tackle.  We thank you so much for being part of our purpose.

Take care and stay well, your Board.

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Our Giving Guide: 

Purchase our Gifted with Dyslexia Pins.  Purchase our Pins Here

TruEarth Eco-Friendly Laundry Soap and Products.  20% of all sales go to our Society.  Please follow the link to our Tru-Earth product page to purchase.  Tru-Earth Eco-Friendly Products Here

See how donations can result in tax credits by reading the article below. Read More…Tax Benefits of Charitable Donations

We have Note Cards for sale at The Card Project. Visit The Card Project Here

Partial proceeds go to The WDS from sales and rentals of Ed Roman’s highly acclaimed “Red Omen” video. For more information on renting or buying Red Omen click here 

We gratefully accept donations through our Canada helps charity page. We have a variety of donor options. Thank you !

Canada Helps - General Fund 

Canada Helps Tribute - Donate in honour of or in memory of a loved one.  

Canada Helps Securities - A donation of securities or mutual funds is the most efficient way to give charitably. Since capital gains taxes don't apply, our charity receives the full fair market value when the security is sold, and you get a tax receipt which reflects your larger contribution. This allows you to give more and get more.

We are a registered charity with the PayPal Giving Fund. You can donate to our organization using your PayPal account with no fees. Thank you ! PayPal Giving Fund 

Newsletter October 2021

October News

Happy Thanksgiving Weekend !… and what better time of year to say thank you, thank you for our Gift of Dyslexia ! Some of you may feel your way of thinking hasn’t always been a gift, but for those of you who have been through a program and discovered how to work with your gift… wahooo ! Look at all the talents that come with it !

When I was training to be a Facilitator I sat through session after session with Ron Davis and my soon-to-be peers, so envious of all the perceptual talents I was hearing about… then one day, I guess because I was in a safe place, my 3D thinking returned. I must have switched it off to survive at school... I know I used to take 2D photos of the pages of the text book to hold onto the information for the exams. I didn’t know I’d switched off the way I was born to think and process… it was very exciting when it returned… yay, I have this gift too! However, so many of you have this gift to a far greater extent than I do; you use it in the world of sport, art, design, photography, strategy, research, business, theatre, music, the trades, healing, you can find anything anywhere, notice every detail, problem solve, you are so empathetic… who wouldn’t want to be you ?

October 2021 is Dyslexia Awareness month

and we have launched a magnetic Gifted with Dyslexia pin, to show the world we have a gift… we are NOT learning disabled, we may not learn the way we are taught, but we are LEARNING ABLE.  We have to get this message across to everyone, because everyone knows someone who has a so-called learning challenge. So let’s do it !  Let’s get these pins out to friends, family, teachers, other dyslexic organisations. Let’s wear it with pride ! 

If someone asks “What is that ?”  

You can say with a smile “I’m dyslexic”. 

They might look puzzled and you can continue “It’s a gift” . 

They might still look puzzled and want to say; but I thought it was a learning disability. 

The door is now open and you can send them to the book, The Gift of Dyslexia, or the main website, www.dyslexia.com, or any Facilitator’s website, and most of all www.thewds.org/pins to order their pin!  Davis Facilitators all over the world are ordering them and we would like it to be as recognisable as the pink ribbon which shows the pride of a breast cancer survivor. 

We wanted the symbol to be positive, not focussing on ‘b’s and ‘d’s getting muddled… we want to bring people to the understanding of our perceptual ability.  SO many organisations figuratively pat us on the head, oh dear you can’t read but we’ll find something you’re good at and give us band-aid solutions.  It has to stop.  We have to inform, present the cause and the solutions for correction and best of all prevention.  It takes a teacher just 2 days to learn to present our methods to their whole class (preferably K/1) so every child has a Cognitive Equal Opportunity.

SO THANK YOU to everyone who reads this, supports us financially and energetically, thank you to our incredible Administrator, Laura, who puts all our ideas into being, thank you to our amazing volunteer Board, Nadine, Sharon, Paddy, Julie, Gisa and Tristan, who all have lives and jobs, and manage to carve some time for us.  Thank you to all the amazingly wonderful students, young and old, and their families who advocate for us.  Thank you to all the brave teachers who are daring to introduce Davis Learning Strategies into their classrooms … and of course, thank you to Ron Davis, without whom none of this would be happening !

Lots of love and gratitude to you all… Happy Canadian Thanksgiving !

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NEW FUNDRAISER !!

We are so excited to be partnering with TruEarth in our latest fundraising campaign. The Whole Dyslexic Society will be receiving 20% of every order placed with TruEarth. Please follow the link below to order on our dedicated product page. Thank you !

Our Giving Guide: 

Purchase our Gifted with Dyslexia Pins.  Purchase our Pins Here

TruEarth Eco-Friendly Laundry Soap and Products.  20% of all sales go to our Society.  Please follow the link to our Tru-Earth product page to purchase.  Tru-Earth Eco-Friendly Products Here

See how donations can result in tax credits by reading the article below. Read More…Tax Benefits of Charitable Donations

We have Note Cards for sale at The Card Project. Visit The Card Project Here

Partial proceeds go to The WDS from sales and rentals of Ed Roman’s highly acclaimed “Red Omen” video. For more information on renting or buying Red Omen click here 

We gratefully accept donations through our Canada helps charity page. We have a variety of donor options. Thank you !

Canada Helps - General Fund 

Canada Helps Tribute - Donate in honour of or in memory of a loved one.  

Canada Helps Securities - A donation of securities or mutual funds is the most efficient way to give charitably. Since capital gains taxes don't apply, our charity receives the full fair market value when the security is sold, and you get a tax receipt which reflects your larger contribution. This allows you to give more and get more.

We are a registered charity with the PayPal Giving Fund. You can donate to our organization using your PayPal account with no fees. Thank you ! PayPal Giving Fund 

Newsletter September 2021

September News

SO PROUD OF US ALL !

We did it ! we raised $13,000.00 in one month and we know of more donations on their way !  So many wonderful people supported our Walk and Talk the ‘DYS’ Out of Dyslexia with likes, shares, posts, donations, bids on our Auction items, listening to our 4th series of podcasts, People of Passion and ordering our Gift of Dyslexia Pins!  Even the list is exhausting ! The entire Board could not be more grateful. We look forward to spending your donations wisely, improving the outreach, getting DLS into schools, providing bursaries and keeping our community together.

YOUR BOARD:

Its time to congratulate the whole Board.  This fundraiser would never have happened without the technical skills of Laura O’Neill. She is the most overworked and underpaid Administrator anyone could wish for.  Our Ontario Facilitators gave us a geographic/historical introduction to their area which you can see on the WDS Facebook.  Lovely to be able to travel vicariously!

Here is a Facebook post from Sharon Roberts, and I resonate with every point:

“I did it .. 301,000 as of 7 this morn. This is what the walk taught me:

1: Accountability is important. Thanks to all who supported me financially and Facebook.

2: Even though I feel I am slow, I can still do it.

3: Giving to a cause over rides any feeling of discomfort.

4: Being around nature is refreshing even if humidity is at 80 percent.

5: I have the beginnings of a good habit ...that is rewarding.”

It appears Sharon managed Boston, Paris and Scotland in one day... Copenhagen and Vienna had to wait till the next day !

Nadine encouraged donations, hiked and paddled and swam and not even a knee injury deterred her, that’s dedication ! 

Julie almost single-handed filled the Auction site with fantastic items!  Tristan published our podcasts which created a 3,000% increase interest, while Paddy, Gisa and Sue added donations they were delighted to report lost inches.

Just to illustrate what we are made of:  at the time of our Sept 9 Board Meeting, Laura got delayed in traffic and ended up on the Bowen Ferry.  She simply ran the Zoom meeting from her truck on the ferry!  We are all relentless, only 9 days after our fundraiser we are planning what’s next ... so if any of you have a request… if there is anything at all that we can help you with, please just let us know!

PREVENTION

Davis Learning Strategies Workshops:  One workshop took place in July – Nadine and Sharon attended it and one took place August 30/31 for an entire school in Saskatchewan which is VERY exciting.  Tiffany Klassen is a Davis Facilitator in Hepburn and hopes to be able to support the teachers.  We are delighted to have been able to support them financially and hope this is the first of many schools to use the DLS. Julie’s Montessori Pre-School has been using DLS for over a year now.  As soon as one little boy was through the gates, first full day of school, he asked “can we do clay today?”   Learning really can be fun!

OUTREACH

September 1, Surrey Schools Summer Pro D – Sue was lucky enough to be invited to present at this Pro D and thanks to the organiser we managed everything online without too many technical difficulties!  They seem very interested in the DLS, so fingers crossed !

COMMUNITY: RESOURCES

Homeschooling/Homelearning/Online Learning

So many of you are contemplating the new school year and deciding what is best for your children.  Sue would like to let you know that she is restructuring the rest of this calendar year to be available to work with those of you who decide to homeschool/homelearning or are taking Online schooling courses, adults too. 

August 30 – Sept 3 – Back to School Refresher week

These weeks will be Homeschool/Homelearning/Online Learning Support weeks:

Sept 13-17,  27 to Oct 1;  Oct 11-15,  25-29;  Nov 8-12,  22-26;  Dec 6-10

She is happy to look at the curriculum/courses you are following and together decide on words to master, concepts that need to be understood through mastery.  She can cover spelling, time, Math, grammar, sentence structure, master any foundational concept such as geography, terms in science, French, technical terms … basically just have fun with learning so the information stays. 

She’s excited – she loves taking Davis programs a little further, and looks forward to hearing from you.  She hopes this lightens the load and wants to remind you there is a Resources page on the WDS website which we will constantly be adding to. Contact Sue HERE.

Reading:

FYI: One of our adults just pointed out that he enjoyed reading screenplays because all the white space allowed his imagination to create the film… who knew !?!

Films:  We are adding films to the Resource page . We always recommend that you either watch the film first, or watch it with your child as there are many various degrees of sensitivity.

Netflix:

• Agriculture - Kiss the Ground, The Biggest Little Farm

• Sea Life - My Octopus Teacher

• Forests - Fantastic Fungi and Judy Dench – Trees (YouTube)

YouTube:

Travel and History -

• Secret Scotland – Susan Calman – (YouTube) this is the first episode.

• Around the UK – Susan Calman – (YouTube).

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The Ideal Education:  I just found my favourite person, the late Sir Ken Robinson, talking to Sadhguru about education. It’s long, 1 ¾ hrs, but there’s something about listening to wise men that makes the time fly.  I hope you enjoy it. Watch HERE.

So here’s to a new school year that turns out to be even better than you could imagine – please let us know what you need – take care and stay well.  We are all in this together, please send us your comments and items for the Newsletters… take care,

Sue, Laura, Julie, Nadine, Sharon, Paddy, Gisa and Tristan.

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Our Giving Guide: 

• Purchase our Gifted with Dyslexia Pins.

  Visit our Pins Page Here

• See how donations can result in tax credits by reading the article below.

  Read MOre…Tax Benefits of Charitable Donations

• We have Note Cards for sale at The Card Project.

  Visit The Card Project Here

• Partial proceeds go to The WDS from sales and rentals of Ed Roman’s highly acclaimed “Red Omen” video.

  For more information on renting or buying Red Omen click here 

• We gratefully accept donations through our Canada helps charity page. Thank you !

  Canada Helps

• We are a registered charity with the PayPal Giving Fund. You can donate to our organization using your PayPal account with no fees. Thank you !

  PayPal Giving Fund

Newsletter July 2021

July News

Hi there ! So school is over and the weather is just lovely – what could be better !

I hope the last school year was kind to you, and that using your Davis tools led you towards the success you aimed for.

Davis Films !

Thanks to a fabulous team of New Zealand Facilitators we have two WONDERFUL new films ! The first one is purely explaining dyslexia - watch below or watch HERE.

The second one has the Davis component. Watch HERE.

Please share far and wide, subscribe, comment… it’s a truly amazing resource.

Picture Grammar App  !

Tessa Halliwell, a UK Facilitator, created this incredible App.  She has created drawings for the meanings of all the trigger words, sometimes more than one meaning for them.   She is thorough!  This doesn’t mean we just look at the image and think we’ve mastered the words, we still need to clay them, but it offers a fabulous understanding of what we need to make.

Pioneers!

Did you know you were ‘lighthouse customers’? As we continue to bring new words and phrases into our language (?) I have discovered this term – early adopters are the first customers to adopt a new product or technology before the majority of the population does. They're often called ‘lighthouse customers’ because they serve as a beacon of light for the rest of the population to follow, which will take the technology or product mainstream. So a huge thank you to everyone who is reading this for being that beacon of light. We rarely know how many people we reach and touch or know that their lives are better for that contact, so hopefully these two films mentioned above will add to our voltage!

Expectations!

The more children I work with, the more I am convinced that our public education system is moving away from a child-development perspective.  It just seems insane to me the expectations tied to formal reading and writing instruction that now begin in kindergarten.  Here's a comment that was posted to www.dyslexia.com on the main website that seems to reflect these unrealistic expectations: READ HERE. Why do they set up small children for failure so early on?

Family Summer Camp weekend:

The YMCA at Gibsons is not able to run summer camps this year – they hope to open in the fall, and have offered us October 1-3, not Sept 17-19 as planned.  A few families have expressed interest but not enough to run camp this year. We will give it another go next summer when we can have more freedom and during the warm summer months.

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Lastly, and definitely not least !  We have just launched our second annual fundraiser…

Walk and Talk the DYS out of Dyslexia: STEP UP  - and Gifted with Dyslexia Pins  - and an Online Auction!

We have been SO busy creating this major event, the sponsored walk/activities, the universal symbol for dyslexia, and collecting fabulous items for our Online Auction, another series of Podcasts – all happening in August ! www.thewds.org has all the details.

Please do join in – have fun with it all – challenge yourselves, your friends etc., spread the word about the pins, share the podcasts and decide what you are going to bid on (August 21-28)! Make it part of your fabulous summer – yours gratefully on behalf of those we can assist… Sue, Laura, Paddy, Nadine, Sharon, Julie, Gisa and Tristan.

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Our Giving Guide: 

• Participate in our August Campaign, Walk & Talk the ‘DYS’ out of Dyslexia - Step Up & Virtual Auction. Registration opens July 1st.

  Walk & Talk the ‘DYS’ out of Dyslexia Page

• See how donations can result in tax credits by reading the article below.

  Read MOre…Tax Benefits of Charitable Donations

• We have Note Cards for sale at The Card Project.

  Visit The Card Project Here

• Partial proceeds go to The WDS from sales and rentals of Ed Roman’s highly acclaimed “Red Omen” video.

  For more information on renting or buying Red Omen click here 

• We gratefully accept donations through our Canada helps charity page. Thank you !

  Canada Helps

• We are a registered charity with the PayPal Giving Fund. You can donate to our organization using your PayPal account with no fees. Thank you !

  PayPal Giving Fund

The Quiet Warrior Show Podcast with Tom Dutta & Sue Hall

The Quiet Warrior Show Podcast with Tom Dutta interviews Sue Blyth Hall, Chair and Found of The Whole Dyslexic Society. They talk about her book Fish Don’t Climb Trees, her experience raising her dyslexic son, training as a Davis Facilitator and discovering she is dyslexic, plus the 3 components of dyslexia. Her message that everyone is learning-able, some children just don’t learn the way they are taught.

Watch on YouTube

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Listen Here

Newsletter May 2021

May News

Save the month of AUGUST – get into training now  for our second, and even more successful Walk and Talk the DYS out of Dyslexia  - STEP UP !

Last year we set a goal of raising $8,000 by walking the equivalent of 8,000 kms – the distance from the west coast to the east coast of Canada.

This year we thought the only way is up !   So we’ve raised our goal to $10,000 and included a virtual auction. Registration opens July 1st.

Those of you in the Vancouver area will know about the Grouse Grind, the ultimate keep-fit challenge. It is known as “Mother Nature’s Stairmaster” and there are 2,830 steps.

If Sue did the Grouse Grind steps all in one go, she’d probably need airlifting off the mountain, but… she has decided to climb 2,830 steps on local trails from August 1-31, plus 5,000 steps (4kms) per day.

Photos will be taken along the way ! Some of the Board are attempting the actual Grouse Grind – even more photos! 

So the challenge is out there – how many sponsored steps or kms are you going to walk, bike, swim each day in August ? Registration details will be on the website shortly.

We need to fill the bursary fund, as we find ourselves in the second year of challenging financial times for so many people. The learning challenges are still there when the $s are scarce. 

• Our first Online Auction – the week of August 22-28 – we have some incredible items already: Axe-Throwing, a website design….

• Our fourth series of Podcasts – People of Passion – is in the making already and will be launched ready for August. Sue is lucky to be able to interview fellow TEDx speakers, some of the coaches and curation team, all of whom are so passionate about the work that they do. Its been a wonderful opportunity to learn a little more about them and their connections with dyslexia.

• AND …. we are also launching a Universal Symbol for Dyslexia – did you know currently there is no universal symbol for dyslexia ? Well there isn’t, so we decided to create a positive one.

We are so grateful to Amanda Jane Green who donated her design to the Society www.jewellerajgreen.com. We have these goals:

• To create a positive symbol before anyone else does – we avoided the usual mixing up of ‘b’s and ‘d’s to stay positive.

• To be a physical symbol of pride in our way of thinking and learning, hopefully around the world.

• To fundraise for our charity – full transparency - we will make about $1.00 CAN on each pin.

• For Facilitators to give a pin to their newly ‘corrected’ dyslexic on completion of a program to add to their pride.

• To add to the Davis profile – people may ask the wearer what is that pin for?

• They could be seen by the student as a reminder to use their tools, and no-one else would know.

• To have them available to anyone with dyslexia, in the broadest sense of the word, in an attempt to reverse the thinking that we are disabled in any way

• They have a magnetic fixing, so can be a fridge magnet too !

They will be available to the public on our website shortly. Here’s a preview ! 

• Sue’s TEDx – Dyslexia: Enable the Different Learner -  1,500 views on YouTube – May 12 !   Please keep sharing and commenting !

  Watch HERE

• 3 Facilitators; Nadine Schumont in Canada, Jacalyn Stewart in the USA and Rachel Barwell in New Zealand formed Think Tank Marketing, to help Davis Facilitators get their message out, particularly on social media.

They sent out a challenge to Davis Facilitators around the world for 500 shares of Sue’s TEDx in the month of April – how’s that for Davis-family support ? And Sue was also privileged to be invited to speak at one of their Zoom meetings on April 10th! So grateful !

• Sue appeared on The Quiet Warrior Podcast May 6 - Watch HERE

• She will be interviewed on ‘Have the Conversation’ podcast - July 21 – will send out the link asap.

• She is delighted to be speaking to Surrey Schools on September 2.

• There is interest in our methods from a small school in North Vancouver as a result of the talk, which is VERY exciting !

WORRY:

Here are some encouraging statistics for those trying to give up worrying:

40% of what we worry about...will NEVER happen… it’s like putting a 40% deposit on a house you’ll never own.

30% of what we worry about...has ALREADY happened… so we can’t change it.

12% of what we worry about...are needless worries about our health… the 3 day headache is rarely a tumour.

10% of what we worry about...are petty, miscellaneous worries… what shall we have for dinner.

That leaves 8% for legitimate worries. 

Which means that 92% of what we worry about is TOTAL NONSENSE…and that nonsense not only keeps us from being at our best…it keeps us from actually living!

So don’t …

RESOURCES:

• Seth’s YouTube video, What is 2e Twice Exceptional? is an interesting take on qualities that you probably see in your children. www.sethperler.com. Watch Video HERE.

• Julie Brewer discovered that her local public library will lend out audio books if she was able to provide a letter (from Sue) to establish a learning challenge. Maybe see if your library has that same resource ?

COMMUNITY:

Family Summer Camp weekend September 17-19, 2021.

• Sue is in touch with the YMCA at Gibsons, to find out the projected requirements and will be sending out an email to all students shortly.

Minecraft Club !  A huge thank you to Nadine Schumont for creating this opportunity !

• Welcome New Minecraft Members - You are invited to take part in the Picture Perfect Learning Solutions [PPLS] Minecraft Club.

• Who are we? We are picture thinkers ages 6 to 18 who have completed a Davis program and love to create things, especially Minecraft things!

• Why we do it? We play Minecraft to give ourselves a healthy outlet for our natural ability to see in 3D and to allow this gift to grow, learn, and explore in a safe and fun environment.

• When do we play? As a group we like to meet most Saturday Mornings, 9:30 EST, other than the 3rd week of each month. The server is open at all times, many of the members play at different times. For those living in a different time zone, you are welcome to suggest a time for your groups to meet that best suit your local time.

• What is required? To play in the PPLS Realm you must have completed a Davis program, have your Davis facilitator and parent permission, and own the Minecraft Bedrock version.

• Next steps: If you would like to check out our PPLS Minecraft Club, contact Nadine Schumont with the requirements above at pictureperfectlearning@gmail.com to receive your Minecraft link.

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Hoping you are all having a fabulous month – getting out into the beauty that May offers us. Take care, stay well, and think about your August endeavours .

Sue, Laura, Paddy, Nadine, Sharon, Julie, Gisa, Tristan

Our Giving Guide: 

• Participate in our August Campaign, Walk & Talk the ‘DYS’ out of Dyslexia - Step Up & Virtual Auction. Registration opens July 1st.

• See how donations can result in tax credits by reading the article below.

  Read MOre…Tax Benefits of Charitable Donations

• We have Note Cards for sale at The Card Project.

  Visit The Card Project Here

• Partial proceeds go to The WDS from sales and rentals of Ed Roman’s highly acclaimed “Red Omen” video.

  For more information on renting or buying Red Omen click here 

• we gratefully accept donations through our Canada helps charity page. Thank you !

  Canada Helps

Newsletter April 2021

April News

Welcome:

We are excited to welcome Sharon Roberts to our Board, she is a Davis Facilitator in Waterloo, ON and is dedicated to getting Davis Learning Strategies into schools. She adds to Nadine’s WDS Ontario presence!

Please can we slow down this time of year ? The snowdrops are over, and some of the crocus, daffodils and camelias are hanging on… and my favourite magnolias are just coming out. I want it to be this time of year for a long time... maybe a little warmer... but it needs to last longer! At the WDS we are not been slowing down at all ! Our Administrator, Laura, is tireless. She has to know every detail for every project we get involved with, every improve-ment to the website, or the social media, she’s amazing. Our website now has a text to speech option ! Whatever next ?

Time Sensitive:

T J Firenze is offering a second free information session on applying for the Disability Tax Credit – Tuesday April 13 at 7pm (Pacific). Please let me (Sue) know that you’d like to get a Zoom invitation. info@thewds.org

Outreach:

• Sue is over the worst …her Tedx Talk, Dyslexia: Enable the Different Learner, went out on March 27 as part of www.tedxbearcreekpark.com ‘s livestream virtual event. She was SO relieved to see what an amazing job the film editor did to seamlessly delete her 4 bloopers during filming ! All the talks are now being sent to the big Ted in New York for approval, and fingers crossed, the talks will go on their YouTube Channel in about 4 weeks time. She is very grateful for all the positive chat comments, texts and emails she’s received. It’s a message that so many people need to hear, and can relate to. She was privileged to be able to deliver it!

• SketchNotes – Following the talk, Sue received an incredible keepsake thanks to Deborah Le Frank of www.visuallifestories.com. Deborah listened to the talk and sketched the main points – you can see everything ins there ! Check out her Visual Life Stories and Verbal to Visual. I think learning to Sketchnote would be a huge asset for anyone studying, we are adding her website to our Resource page.

• Interviews: Sue has been invited to appear on The Quiet Warrior Podcast – April 26; Have the Conversation podcast July 21; and a Vlog - Picture It Marketing on April 10.

• Pro D: Sue will be talking to Surrey Schools Pro D on Sept 1, 2021.

• Networking: Gisa, Laura and Sue had a Zoom call with a representative from www.jack.org an amazing organisation which trains young people to be there for peers who are struggling. We hope to be a resource for those with learning challenges.

• Podcasts: We are up to 657 listens! Tristan and Sue will be recording a new series of podcasts featuring her fellow Tedx Speakers and some of the coaches ! Will be lots of fun!

• Ontario: Nadine rarely stops and is busy creating her local Stratford Dyslexia resource site.

Fundraising:

• It will soon be time to launch our second, and even more successful Walk and Talk the DYS out of Dyslexia for August, combined with an online Auction. Julie has amassed some fabulous prizes already! I’m bidding for the Axe Throwing ! there’s a website design too !   We are incredibly grateful for a $3,000 donation to start us off this year!

• PINS; there is no universal symbol for dyslexia – so we thought we would create a positive one, with dyslexia being a gift. They will be available from a client’s facilitator, or on our website shortly. Here’s a preview – we chose a magnetic fixing ! Thank you to Amanda Jane Green for donating her design - www.jewellerajgreen.com.

• Laura is investigating a Bottle Drive initiative – more news soon.

• Most importantly, we need a grant to actually pay Laura for all the hours that she currently donates to us. We wouldn’t be existing as we are now without her, she’s literally vital to us.

If anyone is good at understanding grant applications or even better writing them… please let us know!

Prevention:

Sadly we were 4 short of the minimum number for the April DLS Workshop to run, but we have two more dates booked:  July 19/20 and 22/23, 20210.

Community:

• Sue divided her students up into 6 local groups of clients and offered a Zoom call to each group. We ended up with 8 families in one Zoom call and it was fun to listen to all the ideas – never in short supply with our creative demographic! Nadine is in the process of developing a Minecraft platform so ‘corrected’ dyslexics can game together – more news soon!

• Fingers crossed the Family Summer Camp weekend will take place September 17-19. 2021 – more news soon!

We aim to serve you, so please let us know of any issue you’d like us to tackle… enjoy this wonderful Spring season…take care and stay well.

Sue, Laura, Paddy, Julie, Nadine, Sharon, Gisa, Tristan. 

Our Giving Guide: 

• See how donations can result in tax credits by reading the article below.

  Read MOre…Tax Benefits of Charitable Donations

• We have Note Cards for sale at The Card Project.

  Visit The Card Project Here

• Partial proceeds go to The WDS from sales and rentals of Ed Roman’s highly acclaimed “Red Omen” video.

  For more information on renting or buying Red Omen click here 

• we gratefully accept donations through our Canada helps charity page. Thank you !

  Canada Helps

Newsletter March 2021

March News

Photo by Yoksel 🌿 Zok on Unsplash

Dear Everyone its March already! Touch wood we’ve had our annual snowfall; the snowdrops and crocus are telling us spring is doing its best to arrive! This is always a time of looking back and envisioning our future as its AGM time. As the WDS’ AGM had to be virtual, we decided to split it into two parts – the first part Feb 25 was looking back at 2020 and the business part – not the most exciting, but the necessary part. The second part on March 4 is where we look forward and plan our 2021 efforts. So let’s look back first (Click below).

And Now Let’s Look Forward to 2021

Photo: TEDxBearCreekPark March 27, 2021

March 27 – Sue’s TEDx Talk www.tedxbearcreekpark.ca – go to their Facebook page also, interviews are being posted regularly. Please REGISTER, even if you are not able to watch, the total number of registrations makes such a difference to the event’s outreach for every speaker. Please post to all your social media, email all your friends. We get one chance to get a message out that affects 1/3rd of the population.

April 13, 2021 7PM (Pacific) – Disability Tax Credit information session - the second one kindly donated by T J Firenze of Firenze Financial. She can provide assistance to apply for any disability, across Canada. Email us if you would like to attend: info@thewds.org.

Event Flyer * About DLS * Register Here

April 15/16 – Davis Learning Strategies Workshop Online – again please post to social media, email elementary school teachers, and homeschoolers, especially those parents who are also acting teachers during these very unusual times. Event Flyer Here.

Sue has just updated her client database –  long overdue - she always organised her students into Adults, Teenagers and Children.

It was staggering to see most of the 9 and 10 years olds are now in the young adult category!

Way to feel old !  It has also been exciting to catch up with some of them, and hear their news. 

They are living proof that there is no learning disability, just a learning difference.

September 17-19 – Family Summer Camp weekend, YMCA Gibsons – fingers crossed – SAVE THE DATE and let Sue know you’d like to come. info@thewds.org

Photo by Scott Goodwill on Unsplash

Your Contributions:  

Sue’s TEDx talk has brought home to her that although she might be the person delivering it, it is made up of every single student, every parent and every enquiry she’s ever met. She hopes it does you all justice. There were boundaries she would gladly have gone over, but the opportunity was way too valuable to miss.  Thank you all !   And please tell us what you would like us to tackle, your contributions are truly valued.

Look for us Here:

Podbean & Spotify (Fish Don’t Climb Trees),YouTube (The Whole Dyslexic Society)

Talented Students:

Post client database update, Sue has been contacting some students she lost touch with and hearing their news has been a huge treat.  SO, we are starting a Talented Dyslexics page on the WDS website and would love your success stories, academic or not, and a photo if you are OK with that going on the website.  Sue often used to say to her students ‘you’ll be just fine once you’ve left school’ and she is hearing that they are way better than fine, SO talented, and SO excited to be able to pursue their dreams! 

2021 WALK AND TALK THE ‘DYS’ OUT OF DYSLEXIA - GOAL $10,000

Kilometers

10,000.00

3,000.00

Powered by Easy Fundraising Ideas

Our Giving Guide: 

• See how donations can result in tax credits by reading the article below.

  Read MOre…Tax Benefits of Charitable Donations

• We have Note Cards for sale at The Card Project.

  Visit The Card Project Here

• Partial proceeds go to The WDS from sales and rentals of Ed Roman’s highly acclaimed “Red Omen” video.

  For more information on renting or buying Red Omen click here 

• we gratefully accept donations through our Canada helps charity page. Thank you !

  Canada Helps
  
  
  

Celebrating 40 Years - The Ron Davis Story

Photo: https://blog.dyslexia.com/ron-davis-discovery/

“Forty years ago – in 1981 – Ronald Dell Davis stumbled on a breakthrough idea.”

That breakthrough idea was the discovery of the root cause of Dyslexia. Disorientation.

To read more visit Dyslexia the Gift Blog Here

To read The Ron Davis Story visit here

Absurdities of English Spelling

Photo by Amador Loureiro on Unsplash

The following is an article by The English Spelling Society on Poems showing the absurdities of english spelling.

The classic spelling poem is Chaos by Gerard Nolst Trenité, published by SSS in Journal 17.

I take it you already know
I take it you already know
Of tough and bough and cough and dough?
Others may stumble, but not you,
On hiccough, thorough, lough and through?
Well done! And now you wish, perhaps,
To learn of less familiar traps?
Beware of heard, a dreadful word
That looks like beard and sounds like bird,
And dead: it's said like bed, not bead -
For goodness sake don't call it deed!
Watch out for meat and great and threat
(They rhyme with suite and straight and debt).
A moth is not a moth in mother,
Nor both in bother, broth in brother,
And here is not a match for there
Nor dear and fear for bear and pear,
And then there's dose and rose and lose -
Just look them up - and goose and choose,
And cork and work and card and ward,
And font and front and word and sword,
And do and go and thwart and cart -
Come, come, I've hardly made a start!
A dreadful language? Man alive!
I'd mastered it when I was five!
Quoted by Vivian Cook and Melvin Bragg 2004,
by Richard Krogh, in D Bolinger & D A Sears, Aspects of Language, 1981,
and in Spelling Progress Bulletin March 1961, Brush up on your English.

Read More Here.....

"Is there really a ‘science of reading’ that tells us exactly how to teach kids to read?"

Photo by Josh Applegate on Unsplash

The Washington Post, Valerie Strauss, January 26, 2021

"One of the longest-running education debates — commonly referred to as a war — has been over how to teach reading. It started in the 1800s, when Horace Mann, often called “the father of public education” in the United States, argued against teaching the explicit sounds of each letter. He worried that students would concentrate on sounding out words rather than learning how to read for comprehension, so he argued that students should learn to read whole words instead.

Thus began the fight over teaching phonics or “whole language” — and more recently what is known as “balanced literacy.” We’ve also been hearing declarations that a “science of reading” proves that employing phonics in a particular war is the best and right path to teach young children how to read.

The following post looks at this broad issue and whether there really is a “science of reading” that has finally settled how reading should be taught."

read more.......................

Newsletter January 2021

January News

Disability Tax Credit information session: 

Join us on Tuesday, Feb 9 at 7pm for a free virtual seminar on The Disability Tax Credit with T.J. Firenze of Firenze Financial. Learn more about this federal benefit and why and how those with dyslexia and/or ADHD can apply.  Sue will send out a Zoom invitation, so please let her know you are planning on attending.. thank you !SO exciting and amazing!

Contact Sue at info@thewds.org

Dear All;

Happy, Healthy and vastly improved New Year to you all. Just a quick Newsletter with some exciting news!

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We are thrilled to say we finished up 2020 so close to our $8,000 goal - $7,147.00 to be exact.  A huge thank you to everyone who got us there.  We are planning a repeat in August 2021, just in case walking/running/biking is still our designated exercise… and adding an online auction … this year’s goal $10,000+ … we can do it ! 

Sue got accepted for the

TedXBearCreekPark Talk – March 27, 2021. 

She had to submit a script, which got her to the last 23 out of 60, and then had to read her script to the panel over Zoom, which got her to the final 12 ! The program will be up on this website shortly: https://tedxbearcreekpark.ca/

The theme of her talk is that everyone is learning able, some children just don’t learn the way they are taught, and she is really excited!

The hope is that more teachers and homeschoolers will attend a Davis Learning Strategies Workshop and ensure the learning challenges don’t have a chance to develop.  She is now immersed in TedX Talk boot camp – the coaching is phenomenal – right up to the middle of March!  We will make sure you have the link for the live streaming !

Davis Learning Strategies 2021

Davis Learning Strategies Workshop – April 15/16 2021 – ONLINE

We could not be happier to announce that this workshop is now available online, and the first one will take place in April.

Stacey Smith (Calgary) will be the presenter. 

PLEASE send the flyer and links to all the teachers/homeschoolers that you know, particularly those who work with K-3 children. Here are the links to share:

Our Flyer - click here

Event Details

The WDS Davis Learning Strategies Information .

 Thanks to Laura, the WDS Website is constantly updated, and we have added a Resource page recently.

To welcome in 2021 we have added a song written and composed by Don McLeod in 2008 for a fundraiser.

Listen on Podbean Here - enjoy !

Our 3rd series of podcasts was released on December 21 – very talented dyslexics who use their ‘gift’ to its full potential. You can find us on Podbean, Spotify and our YouTube Channel.

We are looking forward to having Nadine Schumont join the Board as our ‘eastern’ chapter.  She is a Facilitator in Ontario and very enthusiastic about all of our objectives.  If you have talents and or enthusiasm to share, please just let us know, we need more than a village to get our messages out there, either as a Board Director or a Member at Large.

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Family Summer Camp Weekend – details very soon !  Save May 28-30 !!!

Our Giving Guide: 

• See how donations can result in tax credits by reading the article below.

  Read MOre…Tax Benefits of Charitable Donations

• We have Christmas Cards for sale at The Card Project.

  Visit The Card Project Here

• Partial proceeds go to The WDS from sales and rentals of Ed Roman’s highly acclaimed “Red Omen” video.

  For more information on renting or buying Red Omen click here 

• we gratefully accept donations through our Canada helps charity page. Thank you !

  Canada Helps
  

Look for us Here:

Podbean & Spotify (Fish Don’t Climb Trees),YouTube (The Whole Dyslexic Society)