My Nonprofit Reviews

I was baffled by how my math-loving child with a huge vocabulary and a love for inventions and science could be miserable and underachieving at 2 well-regarded schools in Madison--both with lovely teachers and caring staff. Research and testing finally turned up 2 learning disabilities, plus inattentive ADHD and a pretty high IQ (both of which make the learning disabilities harder to find- AND trickier to remediate- regular tutoring did not work for him).

After less than a year at Walbridge, his self-esteem is restored, he has friends of all ages there, and happily completes his homework (which used to cause weeping and take hours, even for very simple spelling worksheets.) Frankly, what they have done for him is AMAZING. There are several VERY experienced teachers there, and the teachers really care and love what they do.

When they had trouble understanding one of his learning issues and he was acting out and refusing to do some classwork, we met for an hour and a half. They really listened, and it was really clear to me that (after only a few months) they really understood my son, and his teacher, who was somewhat less experienced, just needed a different approach to getting him over a small hurdle that was causing him a LOT of frustration. Within a few weeks things were smooth again, and his attitude, willingness to engage and persevere to do the work he finds hard (handwriting is a real challenge) is just constantly getting better since then.

Meanwhile, they accelerate him in the subjects he loves best so he is both challenged in his strength areas and supported in his weaker ones. What they do is not voo-doo however: it comes from the faculty's training and experience in truly differentiating their teaching approach for each child, plus training in learning disabilities and implementing best practices for dealing with the disorganization and the focus problems that come with ADHD. The small classrooms and safe, positive (but structured) environment supports this approach.

This place is also great for kids with no LDs but social needs such as high-functioning autism or Asperger's, or just bright, creative kids who like to learn their own way and are not really engaged by mainstream educational approaches.

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