Literacy Foundation for Children

The Literacy Foundation for Children is a charity that helps build brighter futures for children with learning disabilities, particularly dyslexia.

One in five children struggle to learn to read fluently and write because of a learning disability. Dyslexia is the most common learning disability and is when a child has the intelligence to learn, but is not able to learn these skills as expected. This is caused by a naturally occurring variation in the way the brain works.

90 to 95 per cent of children with dyslexia can learn to read and write if they receive the right instruction when they are still young.

Learning disabilities, including dyslexia, are now recognised in Australia. But there is no specific government funding or policy to support these children. This means there is no standard assessment process to identify students and any support programs are at the discretion of the individual school.

Consequently, most families must seek a private assessment and subsequent treatment program. There are no rebates available for private assessment or treatment through Medicare or private health funds.

The cost of these programs can be out of reach for some families, which means these children may miss out on getting the help they need to learn to read.

We help these families by providing them with financial support to offset some of the costs of support services.

What we do to help …

• Supporting children with learning disabilities and their families … by providing financial assistance to access treatment/intervention for dyslexia and learning disability as well as additional integral support services which will facilitate intervention such as managing anxiety/mental health and speech/language difficulties.
• Promoting Awareness About and Improving Management of Literacy & Learning Disability and Dyslexia … by presenting professional development workshops to teachers and educators to help them better understand dyslexia and learning disabilities and how to remediate and support these difficulties in the classroom. These seminars will be provided by specialists and experts in the areas of paediatrics, education, psychology, etc.
• Providing Support and Education to Carers … byhosting information seminars and networking opportunities to educate and support carers of children with literacy and learning disability and help them on their journey of managing dyslexia and learning disability. These seminars will also be delivered by specialists and experts in the areas of developmental paediatrics, psychology and special education.

Learning Disability (Dyslexia) is the most prevalent of all learning disabilities.  Close to 20% of children have a learning disability with 10% of these being in the severe to profound category.  Many of these students also have other coexisting conditions which also increases their vulnerability to mental health disorders.

A number of these children come from disadvantaged backgrounds and their families are unable to afford many of the services some of us take for granted. The cost of a professionally administered literacy intervention may cost up to $6,000.  This may seem a lot but it is much less than the fees of most Brisbane private schools per year.

Reading, writing and spelling are indispensable commodities for modern life.  Your donation will help fund literacy intervention for a primary school child with a learning disability.  This gift of literacy will change a child’s life forever, allowing them to reach their full potential at school and in adulthood.

Why we are needed:

• Close to 20% of children in Australia have a learning disability;
• 10% of these are in the severe to profound category;
• Learning disabilities come in numerous forms and are impacted by varying diagnoses:  dyslexia (80% of all learning struggles), ADHD, ASD, anxiety, dyspraxia, dysgraphia and many more;
• 90 to 95 percent of reading impaired children can overcome their difficulties if they receive appropriate treatment at early ages.

Help us to help children with learning disability and build brighter futures

We review applications for financial assistance on a case by case basis to determine if a family is in a position where we can help them with the cost of intervention for learning disabilities.

If you are needing financial support you can apply for assistance by going to Get Support on our website.

President:  Jason McGowan

Treasurer:  James Speare

Secretary:  Gail Northcote

Other Board Members:  Jo Sorbello, Kathleen Ready, Alina McGowan

Why Help Us?

We are a young foundation, having just been recently established, and we would appreciate your support to provide assistance to at risk children and families who are waiting to receive help.  We are also unique. There is no other foundation in Australia that seeks to provide support for children suffering from learning difficulties related to literacy, such as dyslexia.

Every dollar will make a difference.

Visit My Cause where you can make a one-off or a regular tax-deductible donation.

Volunteer

We need volunteers to help in our fundraising efforts.

Register your interest to volunteer (using the Subscription Form and choosing ‘volunteer’) and we will keep you informed about volunteering opportunities: Volunteer

Supporter Newsletter

Subscribe to our supporter newsletter and receive regular news about learning disability, dyslexia, events, fundraising activities, volunteering opportunities, success stories and more: Subscribe

Other ways you can help:

• Like and Follow us on Facebook
• Share us on social media:  Tell your friends, family, neighbours and colleagues about the foundation by using the buttons at the top of this page (under DONATE NOW)

We are a small group of volunteers, and are particularly looking for people to help with coordinating the following key areas:

• Marketing – a marketing plan has been developed and much of a preliminary work has been completed, so there isn’t a huge amount of work required in an ongoing way.
• Fundraising – this role hasn’t been previously filled and we would be really keen to see what ideas that someone with ability in this area can bring to the table.

If you are able to help in either of the above areas, we would be grateful to hear from you.  Please email admin@literacyfoundation.org.au or call 0428 282 154.