Having a child with special needs is a constant challenge. Constantly, new and daunting problems emerge. Recently, our thirteen-year-old son went from grades of A’s and B’s to C-‘s and D’s.

Despite our best efforts we were unable to figure out how to help our son. The school was also unable to help our boy. As we saw his grades plummet we also saw his self-esteem decline and he became more withdrawn. In desperation we tried medication and standard therapies all to no avail. We faced applying to high school with much trepidation- would our son be able to survive a more rigorous environment.

While browsing through the Berkeley Parents Teen Network I saw an advertisement for SFL. I had never even heard of an educational therapist. We were delighted when we met Phyllis Koppelman; her concern, intelligence, wit, and her attention to detail immediately gave us peace of mind. She was also a font of useful information and resources. Our son has been working with an amazing tutor for a couple of month and already I am getting positive response from the teachers. Our son has scored 98 on his last two papers- amazingly in the subjects, which, heretofore, he had struggled with the most. And best of all, our son is smiling and engaged again.