Healing Hope Habilitation

FREE gaming software camp for high school students on the autism spectrum.
REGISTER NOW - JUNE 25th - REGISTRATION DEADLINE

5th annual EdASE Summer Camp (Educating Autistic Software Engineers) — a free (funded by the National Science Foundation), fully virtual video game design and development camp for high school students on the autism spectrum. Over three weeks, students build a real video game while developing teamwork, communication, and collaboration skills that prepare them for careers in computing.

Registration deadline is this Thursday! https://ow.ly/LjGp50ZfgjZ

Dyslexia in Young Adults & Adults

Reading

- A childhood history of reading and spelling difficulties
- While reading skills have developed over time, reading still requires great effort and is done at a slow pace
- Rarely reads for pleasure
- Slow reading of most materials—books, manuals, subtitles in films
- Avoids reading aloud

Speaking

- Earlier oral language difficulties persist, including a lack of fluency and glibness; frequent use of “um’s” and imprecise language; and general anxiety when speaking
- Often pronounces the names of people and places incorrectly; trips over parts of words
- Difficulty remembering names of people and places; confuses names that sound alike
- Struggles to retrieve words; frequently has “It was on the tip of my tongue” moments
- Rarely has a fast response in conversations; struggles when put on the spot
- Spoken vocabulary is smaller than listening vocabulary
- Avoids saying words that might be mispronounced

School & Life

- Despite good grades, often says he’s dumb or is concerned that peers think he’s dumb
- Penalized by multiple-choice tests
- Frequently sacrifices social life for studying
- Suffers extreme fatigue when reading
- Performs rote clerical tasks poorly

Strengths

- Maintains strengths noted during the school-age years
- Has a high capacity to learn
- Shows noticeable improvement when given additional time on multiple-choice examinations
- Demonstrates excellence when focused on a highly specialized area, such as medicine, law, public policy, finance, architecture or basic science
- Excellent writing skills if the focus is on content, not spelling
- Highly articulate when expressing ideas and feelings
- Exceptional empathy and warmth
- Successful in areas not dependent on rote memory
- A talent for high-level conceptualization and the ability to come up with original insights
Inclination to think outside of the box and see the big picture
- Noticeably resilient and able to adapt

For more information, call us today! 910-709-2824

Dyslexia - Second Grade through High School

Reading

- Very slow in acquiring reading skills. Reading is slow and awkward
- Trouble reading unfamiliar words, often making wild guesses because he cannot sound out the word
- Doesn’t seem to have a strategy for reading new words
- Avoids reading out loud

Speaking

- Searches for a specific word and ends up using vague language, such as “stuff” or “thing,” without naming the object
- Pauses, hesitates, and/or uses lots of “um’s” when speaking
- Confuses words that sound alike, such as saying “tornado” for “volcano,” substituting “lotion” for “ocean”
- Mispronunciation of long, unfamiliar or complicated words
- Seems to need extra time to respond to questions

School and Life

- Trouble remembering dates, names, telephone numbers, random lists
- Struggles to finish tests on time
- Extreme difficulty learning a foreign language
- Poor spelling
- Messy handwriting
- Low self-esteem that may not be immediately visible

Strengths

- Excellent thinking skills: conceptualization, reasoning, imagination, abstraction
- Learning that is accomplished best through meaning rather than rote memorization
- Ability to get the “big picture”
- A high level of understanding of what is read to them.
- The ability to read and to understand at a high level overlearned (or highly practiced) words in a special area of interest; for example, if he or she loves cooking they may be able to read food magazines and cookbooks
Improvement as an area of interest becomes more specialized and focused—and a miniature vocabulary is developed that allows for reading in that subject area
- A surprisingly sophisticated listening vocabulary
- Excels in areas not dependent on reading, such as math, computers and visual arts, or in more conceptual (versus fact-driven) subjects, including philosophy, biology, social studies, neuroscience and creative writing.

For more information about Dyslexia, call - 910-709-2824

Signs of Dyslexia in Kindergarten & First Grade

Difficulties

- Reading errors that show no connection to the sounds of the letters on the page—will say “puppy” instead of the written word “dog” on an illustrated page with a picture of a dog
- Does not understand that words come apart
- Complains about how hard reading is; “disappears” when it is time to read
- A history of reading problems in parents or siblings
- Cannot sound out even simple words like cat, map, nap
- Does not associate letters with sounds, such as the letter b with the “b” sound

Strengths

- Curiosity
- Great imagination
- Ability to figure things out; gets the gist of things
- Eager embrace of new ideas
- A good understanding of new concepts
- Surprising maturity
- A larger vocabulary than typical for age group
- Enjoys solving puzzles
- Talent for building models
- Excellent comprehension of stories read or told to him

For more information about Dyslexia, call today! We are more than happy to chat with you. 910-709-2824

Dyslexia signs in preschool .

- Trouble learning common nursery rhymes, such as “Jack and Jill”
- Difficulty learning (and remembering) the names of letters in the alphabet
- Seems unable to recognize letters in his/her own name
- Mispronounces familiar words; persistent “baby talk”
- Doesn’t recognize rhyming patterns like cat, bat, rat
- A family history of reading and/or spelling difficulties (dyslexia often runs in families)

What are the characteristics of dyslexia?

What should I look for?

In general, characteristics of dyslexia can include the following:
- Slow reading
- Inaccurate reading
- Difficulties with decoding words
- Difficulties with spelling
- Secondary difficulties may include:
- Difficulties with reading comprehension
- Reduced vocabulary

According to the Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity, the signs of dyslexia can appear as early as preschool. The Yale Center provides a listing of symptoms, grouped by grade levels, from preschool through adulthood.

For more information, call us today! 910-709-2824

What is Dyslexia?

The International Dyslexia Association defines dyslexia as...
“A specific learning disability that is neurobiological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities. Secondary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and background knowledge.”

Additionally, research over the last 20 years shows a strong causal connection between phonological processing deficits and reading problems found in dyslexia.

The importance of securing an accurate diagnosis as early as possible. Dyslexia can present differently in each child, which highlights the importance of securing an accurate diagnosis as early as possible. Other disorders that impact learning can also occur with dyslexia.

For more information about Dyslexia, call today! 910-709-2824

Know your child's rights...

PARENT RIGHTS & RESPONSIBILITIES IN SPECIAL EDUCATION.

Blow is the link to the IEP Handbook. Go through it and understand your rights for your child. If you have any questions, call us today. 910-7092824

https://www.dpi.nc.gov/parent-rights-handbook/open

www.dpi.nc.gov

Does your child have an IEP? Does it need an IEP?

What is an IEP?

An IEP (Individualized Education Program) in North Carolina is a legally binding roadmap detailing special education services for a qualifying student. Governed by the federal IDEA and NC state laws, it guarantees free, appropriate public education (FAPE) tailored to a child's unique academic, functional, and behavioral needs.

1. The Referral Process

You can request an IEP evaluation at any time.

Submit in Writing: Send a formal written request to your child's principal describing your concerns and requesting a full evaluation.

Referral Meeting: The school is required to hold a referral meeting with the IEP team (including you, teachers, and school staff) to decide whether to evaluate.

Next Steps: The team will either find the student eligible based on existing data, find them ineligible, or approve a comprehensive evaluation.

2. Eligibility Requirements

To qualify for an IEP in North Carolina, a student must meet three criteria:

Be diagnosed with one or more recognized disabilities (e.g., Autism, ADHD, speech/language impairment).

The disability must have an adverse effect on the child’s educational performance.

The child requires specially designed instruction to access the curriculum.

3. Key Components of the Document

If your child qualifies, the IEP team will meet to draft a document that includes:

Present Levels of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance (PLAAFP): Your child's current strengths and areas of need.

Measurable Annual Goals: Goals designed to measure progress and address educational deficits.

Special Education & Related Services: Specific services, accommodations, and therapies (e.g., speech therapy, occupational therapy) to be provided.

The above information, is just the surface. If there are any questions, call us today. 910-709-2824

Attention Autism Parents! Do You Understand FAPE?

If you've ever sat in an IEP meeting and heard someone mention FAPE, you're not alone if you nodded your head while secretly wondering, "Wait...what exactly does that mean?"

Think of FAPE as your child's right to receive the support they need to succeed in school.

FAPE stands for Free Appropriate Public Education, and it means that public schools are required to provide eligible students with an education that is tailored to their unique needs at no cost to families.

In simple terms, it means:
✔️ The school can't charge you for special education services.
✔️ Your child's educational plan should be designed specifically for them.
✔️ Supports and accommodations should help your child make meaningful progress.
✔️ You have a voice in the process.

Navigating special education can feel overwhelming, but understanding your rights is one of the most powerful tools you have as a parent. And remember—you don't have to figure it all out on your own.

At Healing Hope Habilitation, we're passionate about supporting families and helping children thrive both at home and in educational settings.

📞 Have questions about how ABA therapy can support your child's success? Call 910-709-2824 to learn more.