Lorna Simmons was a special education teacher in the 1980’s when her own sons, Zac and Travis, started kindergarten. Both boys encountered unique challenges and successes as they learned to read. Lorna’s work with Zac and Travis ultimately led to the creation of the beloved foundational reading program, Saxon Reading Foundations. Here is Lorna's story.
The Early Reading Journey of Lorna Simmons' Sons
In September of 1983, Zac began kindergarten. I was a proud mom and couldn’t wait for this next chapter in his life. He was so bright and could do so many things that I thought school was going to be another successful adventure.
Only two weeks in, I got a call from his teacher asking if we could help Zac at home, as he was already falling behind in class. As a special education teacher, I was up for the challenge. I quickly turned his bedroom into a classroom and started working with him at home. He struggled to learn his letters and sounds, and trying to read was a major challenge. He had to work so hard to decode each individual word, and if the word was repeated, it was like he had never seen it before.
At the same time, his little brother Travis, who was three at the time and tagging along to our daily lessons, was learning everything I taught Zac with ease. It was a rough year for Zac. In the end, I did what many parents do—we moved him to another school with a different style of teaching program.
Discovering Dyslexia and a Path Forward
First grade proved even more difficult for Zac as the expectations were much higher. The school wanted to hold him back a grade, but he was already three inches taller than the other students, and I worried that would be a mistake. We moved him to yet another school, and that was the hardest year yet.
He had been tested for the gifted and talented program and scored extremely high, but his teachers worried it would put too much extra stress on him. Meanwhile, Travis was thriving in kindergarten.
Like many parents, I was so worried at this point that I explored anything I could to help Zac: brain training, special lenses, and every suggestion people gave me. I took him to Tulsa University to get tested. When the clinician came out to review his results, she told me I should be very proud—he had the highest IQ of any child she had ever tested.
But I remember thinking, “How can any of this matter if he can’t read?”
Finally, we met with another doctor who diagnosed Zac with severe dyslexia.
Summer School Success: The Beginning of a Movement
As a special ed teacher, I was determined to find a way to help Zac learn to read using an approach proven to work for kids with dyslexia. I heard about a program called Alphabetic Phonics, which was Orton-Gillingham-based and had shown success with struggling readers. I enrolled in the training immediately.
Worried that other parents were facing the same challenges, I offered to teach a summer class after completing the first four weeks of training. I put an ad in the local paper and had 26 K–5 students sign up to join Zac, Travis, and me that summer.
We worked together every weekday for an hour in July and August. When Zac was assessed by his new teacher at the beginning of the school year, he had made a three-year gain in his reading.
The Start of Saxon Reading Foundations
In the meantime, Travis started first grade and showed signs that our summer lessons had a profound impact on him as well. Just a few weeks in, his teacher called to say first grade wasn’t challenging enough and wanted to test him for second grade.
His word attack skills tested at a twelfth-grade level, and his comprehension at a fifth-grade level. He moved up to second grade that fall.
I know our story isn’t unique. Many students find learning to read difficult, and many parents feel overwhelmed trying to support them. And like Zac and Travis, classrooms are full of children with different learning needs that require personalized, evidence-based instruction.
That’s why I developed Saxon Phonics and Spelling—to give all kids the chance for success, no matter where they start. That original program has since evolved into Saxon Reading Foundations.
Why Saxon Reading Foundations Works Today
Today, Saxon Reading Foundations incorporates the latest reading science and research, while staying true to the immersive, phonics-based approach that changed my sons’ lives. Since that first summer class, Saxon has helped more than four million students across all 50 states become confident, independent readers.
Learn More About Saxon Reading Foundations
If you're looking for a foundational reading program that meets students where they are and helps them move forward, explore Saxon Reading Foundations today.
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Learn about how Saxon Reading Foundations aligns to the Active View of Reading in our whitepaper.
Learn more about how Saxon Reading Foundations aligns to the Active View of Reading
