Review: ASD Reading

We have one child that would be considered not to be neuro-typical.  He was delayed with his speech, had fine and gross motor issues as well as many other obstacles that made his learning hard.  We were in therapies for about the first 10 years of his life. Reading seemed to be SO hard for him.  I really couldn't even pinpoint the issues and I was so frustrated that I couldn't seem to help him. His speech therapist actually started working with him on reading as well and gave me some suggestions to work on at home. Even though his reading has improved he's no where near grade level and I still worry about his comprehension. He understands and remembers much more when I read to him verses when he reads to himself. I decided that ASD Reading might be the thing he needed to strenghten his reading skills and take him to the next level.  This program is recommended for ages 4-10. Kids that don't know their letters, who aren't reading at all or even those that can read, but are struggling. The more frequent the sessions the faster the student will progress.  Children not yet in first grade should work 4 days a week in the program and children first and up should work 5 times a week. One session typically lasts 15-30 minutes, depending on the student. The student can also pause the lesson for up to 12 minutes.  The account is easily set up as well as you can give your student more time or less to answer the questions.  In the first introductory lesson the students will be taught how to use a mouse and keyboard. Even if this is something your student struggles with they can still use this program.  ASD Reading is recommended to be used with Google Chrome.  
ASD Reading relies on the 6-SIM Six Skill Integrated method by Dr. Marion Blank.  Dr. Marion Blank is the former Co-Director of the Columbia University Developmental Program for Autism.  This program uses "intensive word teaching".  All the components of the words are taught: their meaning, spelling, placement in sentences, relationships to other words, etc.  ASD Reading teaches students to read, comprehend what they read and write.  Most current methods do not work with children on the autism spectrum.  ASD Reading even works for those children that are NON-VERBAL.

I chose this program because my son was labeled on the autism spectrum and I thought the special teaching in this program would benefit him.  One thing I really like is when a program has an assessment to fit the program to the student.  Issac was able to start on level 3. That put him at about the middle of the course. I also like that the parent is shown how the child is doing in the levels. 

He really liked the program when he started, but as time went on he didn't want to work on it daily. One thing I noticed was that he got very frustrated by the amount of time that was used in the program. There was too much of him sitting there waiting to move to the next step. Thankfully  ASD Reading has given the parent or teacher an option to change the time that is given to the student.  You can chose more time or less time to give them during the lesson. I changed it to give him a little less time and that seemed to solve that issue.  I think the time option is great because each child on the spectrum is different and some need more time and others don't. The default selection is a great jumping off point for starting the program. 

Each lesson seems to focus on a set of words and the student uses those words in sentences, writing, comprehension, etc.  I like that it focuses on different words each time. Helps see if there are certain words that your student might struggle with and in what way they are struggling. Here are a few samples of the lessons.  

In the above the student has to type the letter that is coming down the screen.  

The above is one of the reading selections. 

One thing that seemed to disappoint my child was that at the beginning it's talking about a passport. When you've earned so many points from working through the lessons you get to open the passport. He thought there would be some surprise there and was really looking forward to it. He felt a bit let down by that.

Some of the other great parts to this program is that you get a 30 day free trial.  This gives you a chance to see how ASD Reading meshes with your student.  After the 30 day trial the program is $19.99 a month or $199.99 per year. If you have additional children in your family that will use the program they receive 50% off each month for a charge of $9.99.  This program is available for school settings and ASD Reading can be contacted for that pricing.  

Some of our crew members reviewed ASD Reading and some reviewed Reading Kingdom, so please check out all the different thoughts and opinions on these programs.  You can also check out their social media sites for additional information: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.