In August 2025 I met a parent with her daughter, then 10 years 8 months old. I administered the Burt reading test and found her reading at 8 years 5 months — a gap of more than two years.
It was a big ask of any parent: teaching your own daughter, especially coming up to her teenage years. But teach her she did, with very little help from me. She religiously did 15 minutes a day on the DcodeDyslexia Programme.
Last week this wonderful young lady scored a reading age of 13 years 6 months on the same test. In under a year her reading age rose by five years. She started more than two years behind her age; she is now almost two years ahead of it — with far better prospects at second level and beyond.
Left unaddressed, illiteracy is a pipeline into poor mental health and narrowed life prospects. This dedicated mother has given her daughter the gift of a better life. Together they became an incredible team, and an inspiration to every parent who has no teaching background. You can do this too - https://dcodedyslexia.com/
Names withheld for privacy reasons.
