Episode 344-Unlocking Dyslexia With Science And Grit-A Conversation with Russell Van Brocklen
Tue Feb 03 2026
Send us a text
Imagine being told a first-grade reading level will define your futureâthen deciding to rewrite the script. Thatâs the spark behind our conversation with Russell, a New York Stateâfunded dyslexia researcher who turned personal roadblocks into a practical method that helps students jump from frustration to fluency without elite price tags.
We dig into the brain science that actually moves the needle: stop hammering the back of the brain where dyslexic readers show low activity and start training the frontal systems where activity surges. Russell explains a deceptively simple routine that blends word analysis and articulation: build three-word sentences grounded in the learnerâs real interests, read them aloud to ensure they sound right, then retype each misspelled word until it sticks. Itâs a 10-minute fix that compounds into stronger grammar, better spelling, andâcruciallyâconfidence. If they can write it, they can read it. And as sentences become body paragraphs and paragraphs become essays, organization emerges from a fast, creative mind.
Youâll hear vivid case studies. High schoolers in his pilot went from near-zero percentiles to college-ready performance in a single school year. A homeschooled fifth grader climbed from the 11th to the 64th percentile in reading and from the 4th to 65th in writing, with grammar hitting the 97th percentile. The common thread is motivation: specificity beats slog. Start with a studentâs genuine specialty, then use targeted questions to move from the specific to the general, borrowing the âcontext, problem, solutionâ frame from The Craft of Research to teach structure early. We even map how a 10-year-old building a Mars literature review can learn the peer-review process years ahead of schedule.
We also talk access. Russellâs program pairs weekly expert guidance with a full curriculumâfrom corrected sentences to publishable workâat a price families can manage. The goal isnât endless accommodation; itâs training that respects how neurodiverse brains learn and transfers to real classrooms. If youâre a parent, teacher, or curious learner ready for tools that work, tune in, try the sentence routine, and see what shifts for your student this week. If it helps, share the episode, subscribe for more practical strategies, and leave a review to tell us what changed for you.
Support the show
SJ CHILDS - SOCIALS & WEBSITE MASTER LIST
WEBSITES
- Stream-Able Live â https://www.streamable.live-COMING SOON
- The SJ Childs Global Network â https://www.sjchilds.org
- The SJ Childs Show Podcast Page â https://www.sjchildsshow.com
YOUTUBE
- The SJ Childs Show â https://www.youtube.com/@sjchildsshow
- Louie Lou (Cats Channel) â https://www.youtube.com/@2catslouielou
FACEBOOK
- Personal Profile â https://www.facebook.com/sara.gullihur.bradford
- Business Page â https://www.facebook.com/sjchildsllc
- The SJ Childs Global Network â https://www.facebook.com/sjchildsglobalnetwork
- The SJ Childs Show â https://www.facebook.com/SJChildsShow
INSTAGRAM
- https://www.instagram.com/sjchildsllc/
TIKTOK
- https://www.tiktok.com/@sjchildsllc
LINKEDIN
- https://www.linkedin.com/in/sjchilds/
PODCAST PLATFORMS
- Spotify â https://open.spotify.com/show/4qgD3ZMOB2unfPxqacu3cC
- Apple Podcasts â https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-sj-childs-show/id1548143291
CONTACT EMAIL
- sjchildsllc@gmail.com
More
Send us a text Imagine being told a first-grade reading level will define your futureâthen deciding to rewrite the script. Thatâs the spark behind our conversation with Russell, a New York Stateâfunded dyslexia researcher who turned personal roadblocks into a practical method that helps students jump from frustration to fluency without elite price tags. We dig into the brain science that actually moves the needle: stop hammering the back of the brain where dyslexic readers show low activity and start training the frontal systems where activity surges. Russell explains a deceptively simple routine that blends word analysis and articulation: build three-word sentences grounded in the learnerâs real interests, read them aloud to ensure they sound right, then retype each misspelled word until it sticks. Itâs a 10-minute fix that compounds into stronger grammar, better spelling, andâcruciallyâconfidence. If they can write it, they can read it. And as sentences become body paragraphs and paragraphs become essays, organization emerges from a fast, creative mind. Youâll hear vivid case studies. High schoolers in his pilot went from near-zero percentiles to college-ready performance in a single school year. A homeschooled fifth grader climbed from the 11th to the 64th percentile in reading and from the 4th to 65th in writing, with grammar hitting the 97th percentile. The common thread is motivation: specificity beats slog. Start with a studentâs genuine specialty, then use targeted questions to move from the specific to the general, borrowing the âcontext, problem, solutionâ frame from The Craft of Research to teach structure early. We even map how a 10-year-old building a Mars literature review can learn the peer-review process years ahead of schedule. We also talk access. Russellâs program pairs weekly expert guidance with a full curriculumâfrom corrected sentences to publishable workâat a price families can manage. The goal isnât endless accommodation; itâs training that respects how neurodiverse brains learn and transfers to real classrooms. If youâre a parent, teacher, or curious learner ready for tools that work, tune in, try the sentence routine, and see what shifts for your student this week. If it helps, share the episode, subscribe for more practical strategies, and leave a review to tell us what changed for you. Support the show SJ CHILDS - SOCIALS & WEBSITE MASTER LIST WEBSITES - Stream-Able Live â https://www.streamable.live-COMING SOON - The SJ Childs Global Network â https://www.sjchilds.org - The SJ Childs Show Podcast Page â https://www.sjchildsshow.com YOUTUBE - The SJ Childs Show â https://www.youtube.com/@sjchildsshow - Louie Lou (Cats Channel) â https://www.youtube.com/@2catslouielou FACEBOOK - Personal Profile â https://www.facebook.com/sara.gullihur.bradford - Business Page â https://www.facebook.com/sjchildsllc - The SJ Childs Global Network â https://www.facebook.com/sjchildsglobalnetwork - The SJ Childs Show â https://www.facebook.com/SJChildsShow INSTAGRAM - https://www.instagram.com/sjchildsllc/ TIKTOK - https://www.tiktok.com/@sjchildsllc LINKEDIN - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sjchilds/ PODCAST PLATFORMS - Spotify â https://open.spotify.com/show/4qgD3ZMOB2unfPxqacu3cC - Apple Podcasts â https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-sj-childs-show/id1548143291 CONTACT EMAIL - sjchildsllc@gmail.com