Libsyn Directory

Ep. 240: Using the Summer Months to Advance Reading Skills with Dr. Steve Truch & Devan Kublik

Release Date: 07/15/2025

Ep. 266: The Myth of the Resilient Child: When “Pushing Through” Becomes Harmful

Diverse Thinking Different Learning

This week, Dr. Karen Wilson is touching upon resilience and how our definition of it can sometimes be part of the problem. She challenges the idea that resilience means pushing through stress, staying quiet, or succeeding no matter the emotional cost. After all, a child who appears to be thriving on the outside may actually be running on empty. After a recent conversation with a parent, Dr. Wilson felt inspired to explain why good grades, athletic success, and responsible behavior don't always reflect a child's well-being, and she explores the important difference between coping and genuinely...

Ep. 265: Back-to-School Anxiety in Neurodivergent Kids: Why the Transition Is So Hard and How to Help

Diverse Thinking Different Learning

Transitioning back to school after summer vacation can be challenging for many children, especially those who are neurodivergent. Continuing the Summer Solo Series, Dr. Karen Wilson shares seven practical, actionable strategies to help make the transition smoother. Dr. Wilson explains why even children who are genuinely excited to return to school may still experience significant anxiety. Changes in routine, increased cognitive and sensory demands, unfamiliar environments, and shifting social expectations can create overwhelming stress before classes even begin. Understanding these challenges...

Ep. 264: What an Assessment Can and Cannot Tell You

Diverse Thinking Different Learning

Dr. Karen Wilson continues the Summer Solo Series to address assessments and how they can be informative yet also have their fair share of shortcomings. They can be life-changing but are often misunderstood, and Dr. Wilson unpacks what psychological and educational evaluations can actually tell us, where their limitations lie, and why they should be viewed as tools for understanding rather than crystal balls that predict a child’s future. Dr. Wilson explores why so many mental health and neurodevelopmental diagnoses rely on behavioral patterns instead of definitive medical tests and how...

Ep. 263: Summer, Screens, and Sanity: Helping Kids Find Balance When School’s Out

Diverse Thinking Different Learning

Dr. Karen Wilson takes on an important topic solo this episode - screen use during the summertime when kids are out of school. With routines loosened and independence increased, many tweens and teens drift toward longer, more frequent device use, and what often begins as “just a little YouTube” can quietly stretch into hours of electronic usage, whether it be gaming, scrolling, and/or late-night screen time, often negatively impacting sleep, mood, and motivation along the way. This podcast, however, isn't here to frame screens as a simple matter of discipline or “too much time online.”...

Ep. 262: Balancing Summer Rest and Learning Support for Diverse Learners with Ashley Harding

Diverse Thinking Different Learning

For this episode, we are replaying another episode of Diverse Thinking, Different Learning, this time episode 239, in which we sat down with to discuss why it’s so important to allow students time for rest, rejuvenation, and exploration of their interests outside of academics, especially during the summer months. As a reminder, Ashley is a fourth-generation educator and is deeply committed to educational equity. She holds degrees from USC and Tufts University in Child Development, and her career spans more than a decade, during which she has supported students and families in private and...

Ep. 261: When Helping Becomes Overhelping: Helping Neurodivergent Kids Build Independence

Diverse Thinking Different Learning

This week on Diverse Thinking Different Learning, we are discussing the crucial challenge of supporting neurodivergent children without doing so in a way that hinders them from independence. Joining us to take on this topic is , founder of . Dr. William is also a tenured Chemistry professor at College of the Canyons in California, and has spent more than ten years supporting neurodivergent students as they transition from K-12 systems, helping them build confidence and independence in academic settings. Dr. Williams helps us understand why “helicopter parenting” is not a simple label...

Ep. 260: How Dyslexia Impacts Mental Health (Episode 212 Re-Air)

Diverse Thinking Different Learning

This month, we are replaying episode 212 of Diverse Thinking, Different Learning, in which Dr. Karen Wilson discusses the ways in which dyslexia can affect a child’s mental wellbeing. Even though dyslexia is commonly associated with reading and language difficulties, the emotional implications are far too often overlooked, and Dr. Wilson unpacks some of the harmful myths that have shaped the public understanding of dyslexia for decades, including the assumption that reading struggles are tied to intelligence. She explains how those misconceptions can affect self-esteem, delay diagnosis, and...

Ep. 259: Autism and ADHD Masking: The Signs & Hidden Costs with Dr. Deanna Dow

Diverse Thinking Different Learning

We warmly welcome Dr. Deanna Dow to the podcast. Dr. Dow is a licensed clinical psychologist with over two decades of experience supporting neurodivergent individuals and families. She is the founder and CEO of Spectrum Psych LA, a multidisciplinary clinic that provides assessment, therapy, occupational therapy, medication management, and community-based support, and she has trained and worked in autism clinics and research centers at major institutions including the University of Michigan, the University of North Carolina, Florida State University, and UCLA where her research has...

Ep. 258: Dyscalculia, Dyslexia, and ADHD: Why Math Feels So Overwhelming for Some Kids with Adrianne Meldrum & Heather Brand

Diverse Thinking Different Learning

We are so thrilled to have not just one guest this episode but two - Adrianne Meldrum and Heather Brand! Adrianne Meldrum founded and owns Made for Math, a fully online math center that supports students with dyslexia, dyscalculia, and other math-related learning challenges. She is a certified Multisensory Math Instructor and holds a master’s degree from Bridges Graduate School of Cognitive Diversity. Adrianne lives in Arizona with her husband and three sons, where she enjoys the beautiful sunsets. Heather Brand, M.Ed., is a licensed educator with two decades of experience teaching...

Ep. 257: Helping Kids with Dyslexia and ADHD Build Confidence Through Stories with Lynn Greenberg

Diverse Thinking Different Learning

We are so excited to have Lynn Greenberg join us for this edition of the show. Lynn has devoted her life to being an advocate for children as a trained attorney specializing in family law and pro bono work. When her youngest son, Jonathan, was diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD, she stepped into the role of being his advocate, using her expertise to help carve a path toward his success. The experience inspired her to support neurodivergent children more broadly, and she discusses how co-writing the children’s book with Jonathan became a natural next step, allowing her to create characters in...

More Episodes

We have not just one but two guests for you this week - Dr. Steve Truch and Devan Kublik! Steve has over 50 years of experience in education, beginning as a junior high school English teacher and then working as a school psychologist, ultimately founding The Reading Foundation clinics across North America to provide one-on-one therapy for students with learning difficulties. He is the primary author of the Discover educational programs used at the clinics and has written several books and articles on reading and cognitive assessment. His work reflects a continued commitment to aligning educational methods with current research, particularly in the science of reading.

Devan Kublik holds a Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics and has been with The Reading Foundation since 1999, currently serving as Director of Standards across all locations. She has held leadership roles in multiple clinics and has contributed to nearly every aspect of the organization, including training, program development, and student assessment. Outside of work, she enjoys traveling, reading, and mountain activities.

In our conversation, we discuss the issue of reading proficiency among U.S. students, where only 35% of 4th graders are considered proficient readers. We explore how reading instruction methods have changed and evolved over time, from the whole language method to the current emphasis on the science of reading and phonics. Dr. Truch explains how the speech-to-print method, focusing on teaching the phonemic structure of words and their corresponding visual representations, can be a more effective way to help students learn to read.

Devan also highlights the importance of "dosage” (the intensity and duration of intervention) in speeding along the process, especially during the summer when students are not constrained by the school schedule. She shares how the Reading Foundation's programs offer individualized and immersive instruction customized to each student's unique needs, often leading to remarkable changes in their confidence and academic performance.

Devan and Dr. Truch stress that while reading instruction has been a longstanding challenge for the education system, solutions that are backed by research are available, and that the key is connecting families with the right resources to help their children overcome reading difficulties and unlock their full potential. So, whether your child is a reluctant reader or has faced persistent challenges, this episode offers valuable insights and a glimmer of hope.

Show Notes:
[2:55] - Dr. Truch argues that teaching methods for reading often ignore science and harm struggling learners.
[5:20] - Traditional phonics rules are inconsistent, but speech-to-print offers a more logical alternative.
[8:49] - Dr. Truch adds that teaching children sound-to-spelling connections can lead to better results than relying on abstract rules.
[12:11] - Summer can accelerate reading gains for struggling students via structured but individualized intervention.
[15:46] - Proper intervention speeds along progress, especially when it is intensive, customized, and monitored.
[18:04] - Summer also allows for customized literacy support based on a student’s specific needs.
[19:14] - Dr. Truch points out how effective reading intervention depends on both program dosage and using the correct method.
[21:37] - Untreated reading struggles often leave lasting emotional damage, sometimes even resembling symptoms of PTSD.
[23:29] - When parents lack the training to lead interventions, both they and the children can get frustrated.
[25:45] - Rapid emotional changes happen once children experience early success via reading intervention.
[27:24] - Early, focused instruction can boost lifelong success for struggling readers, as is backed by data and expert recognition.
[30:01] - Hear how, with the right tools, one shy girl gained confidence and began reading aloud at school.
[32:17] - Dr. Truch explains how targeted assessments can help pinpoint delays.

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