Reading Success Tutoring Center Parent Information — Patrick Beaver Learning Resource Center

Is my child eligible for tutoring?

Children who are eligible for tutoring:

live in Catawba County.*
are 5 to 14 years old.
read below grade level.
struggle to sound out words.

We admit students who live in Catawba County on a first-come, first-serve basis. We will maintain a waiting list for available tutoring slots. Students who live outside of Catawba County will be placed on the waiting list and will be given available tutoring slots if no children from Catawba County are on the waiting list.

How do I get my child signed up for tutoring?

Sign up children for tutoring here.
PBLRC staff will contact parents in the order that requests are submitted on our website.
If you don’t have access to our website, call the office (828-624-2012) and have a staff member enter your child’s information.
Please bring your student’s most recent mCLASS/DIBELS assessment or any school testing data in reading that you have available
Before students begin their tutoring sessions, schedule your child for a pretest, so that our staff can tailor instruction to his or her needs.
This pretest will cost $10, which is nonrefundable.
The focus of PBLRC’s tutoring center is to help students who have difficulty sounding out words and reading smoothly. If the pretesting assessment does not discover weaknesses in these areas, our staff will let the parents know about available resources to help with other reading problems, but PBLRC will not tutor the child.

How much does tutoring cost?

Tutoring sessions will cost between $5 and $40. Tutoring sessions will be 50 minutes long.
The amount that you pay will be determined by your household income. Please see chart here to see how much you will be asked to pay for each tutoring session.
To verify income, you will need to provide your two most recent pay stubs and adjusted gross income from your most recent IRS 1040. Adjusted gross income is found on line number 11 on your income tax filing.
If you choose not to provide pay stubs and/or a federal income tax filing, you will be charged at the standard rate of $40 per 50 minute tutoring session.
Pay stubs and IRS filings will not be copied, scanned, or stored (electronically or physically) to protect your privacy.
Payment is required one week in advance. Payments through PayPal and cash are accepted. Parents will be responsible for the extra fees on PayPal transactions. Checks will not be accepted.

How much tutoring will my child need?

Research shows that struggling readers need consistent tutoring to make progress. Therefore, PBLRC asks that parents bring their children to tutoring twice a week.

Many factors influence how long it can take a child to become a fluent reader:

how far behind students are when they start
whether they have a learning difference like dyslexia, ADHD, or an auditory processing disorder.
how consistently they receive tutoring

Most students need 4-14 repetitions to recognize a word without sounding it out; however, other students may require 25-100 repetitions or more to master a word.

Students should show improvement in their reading in a few months, but it may take several years before they approach grade level standards in reading.

What happens if my child needs to miss tutoring or arrives late?

Notify PBLRC as soon as possible if your student will be absent.
After three unexcused absences, PBLRC will discontinue tutoring and give the student’s tutoring slot to someone on the wait list.
After 3 excused absences in 6 months, PBLRC may discontinue tutoring without documented reasons for absences.
Prepaid tuition for excused absences will be applied to the next week’s tuition. Tuition for unexcused absences will not be refunded.
Make every effort to make sure students arrive at their scheduled tutoring time.
Students who are late to sessions will be tutored for the remainder of their allotted time, but there is no flexibility in the schedule to make up for lost time.
Parents will be charged for the entire tutoring session even if the child is late.
After three tardies, future tardies will be treated as unexcused absences and your child may lose his/her tutoring slot.
For every five minutes late a parent is in picking up a student, there will be a $5 fee assessed.

What if my child is uncooperative?

While the multisensory strategies that our tutors use lessen behavior problems, occasionally a student may demonstrate unacceptable behavior.
If a child exhibits oppositional or threatening behavior, tutors will notify the parent during or after the tutoring session, and the behavior will be documented.
After three sessions with documented behavior problems, the child’s tutoring slot will be given to a student on the waiting list.

What happens when my child leaves the program?

Bring students exiting the program after 20 sessions or more for a post-test by our staff. There will be no charge for this assessment session.