Tributes Sent From Heroes To Heroes

Super Learning Center provides a nurturing and safe environment for adolescents and children to develop their self-esteem, develop positive peer relationships that are safe and accepting, and the most unique and greatly needed benefit attending Super provides is that truly no child is lost. I can truly say that as soon as your child becomes apart of the team at Super it is like they immediately are received into a loving environment that will teach them life skills specifically designed for their individual needs and personalities so that they can be successful at whatever choices they make after graduation.

Words cannot express the gratitude and appreciation I have for all the teachers and staff at the Super Learning Center. They have given me hope where the Akron Public School System only afforded content. The teachers and staff who promote a learning atmosphere are caring, patient and understanding. They saw a little light flickering and knew there was a bright beam inside those beautiful brown eyes waiting to escape. Jada has made progress in leaps and bounds since she started attending the Center. Hope - that's what the Super Learning Center has given us. My family thanks and appreciates your service.

Dear Mrs. Goodwin 

I am writing to express my gratitude for my son's progress at the SUPER Learning Center. The past two years have been remarkable. When my son entered your program, Hadden was under trauma treatment for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Unfortunately his previous educational setting had become unsafe due to bullying and harassment. The teasing had escalated to a sever incident at school. From that day forward, Hadden was suffering and unable to return to the district school. Our son's doctor advised us not to let him return to that school for fear that he could not handle any more traumas.

Our son was nine years old at the time of the trauma and it caused him to show regressive behaviors of a much younger child. Even with medications and trauma treatment we had felt helpless to ensure his safety. That all changed when he started at the SUPER Learning Center. Small class sizes with individual support by qualified professionals benefited our child. I believe any student would benefit from your services but it was critical for our son. You provided a safe environment and he is recovering with private counseling. Thankfully Hadden has made progress; academic, functional, social, emotional, and behavioral improvements at the SUPER Learning Center. Memories of harassment have been eased by your continuous compassion.

My daughter was diagnosed with Dyspraxia and Auditory Processing  Disorder when she was 2 years old. She went through two years in a specialized pre-school setting and then I continued teaching her at home where I could work one-on-one with her.

She excelled in math and comprehension; however, she struggled to read written words and could not spell. When she was eight, I turned to Lyn Goodwin for help. My daughter could only read at a kindergarten level and could not spell simple three and four letter words. She hated trying to read, felt stupid, was embarrassed to be around kids her age, was made fun of by other kids, and writing was impossible for her. She had little to no self-esteem.

Lyn began her in the specially designed PCS (Physical Cognitive Skills) program. I took her several times a week for over a year. During this time, her ability to focus was amazing! She slowly began to read better and sound out consonants. After a year of PCS we began her on the Fast ForWord Program. With adding the FF program we immediately began to see amazing advancements!

Today, my daughter loves to read! She carries a book with her everywhere.

The books she chooses are not small, easy reads, she reads books with hundreds of pages; even books that have a thousand pages! She loves to write, she keeps a daily calendar and assignment book, she writes letters, and she loves to leave little notes around for people. Her grades are A's and an occasional B.

The programs and style of teaching offered by SUPER Learning center literally saved my little girls life! I say this because now she feels successful.

She has opened up and blossomed. She has many friends of all ages. She has been taught lifelong skills that will be with her forever.

For years she asked me why God made her that way, why was she stupid, and why she struggled? Today, she said she knows why.... God was preparing her to some day be able to help kids like her, kids who just learn a little differently!

I wanted to write this letter to let you know how happy I am with my experience and results that my daughter has had with the Super Learning Center and the Fast Forward program. My daughter Kayla started at the beginning of September, 2009 for the 12 week program. She is in 8th grade. In May, 2009, my daughter took the Walsh Jesuit High School Entrance exam, and scored a little below average on the test.

Kayla finished the program in approximately 10 weeks. At the end of October, 2009, Kayla also took the St. Vincent St. Mary entrance exam and her scores were much higher this time. She scored average, and on most of the testing, above average with an 86% rate. I cannot tell you how happy we were. Kayla has more confidence and strive to do schoolwork and has much improved in her test taking.

I really appreciate all your help and effort, and am here to attest to the fact that the program really works!

Thanks again from both of us,

I noticed my son having trouble comprehending reading. I figured it had to do with how he was reading. To give him flash cards or spell the word aloud, he knew the word. The problem was that he was reading one word at a time. Without a flow, there is no way to understand what you're reading. I talked to his teachers, and as a parent I knew there was something wrong. I took him to SUPER and with a few simple tests they were able to get to the root of the problem. My son is now on the honor roll. SUPER teachers taught him with grace, patience and love. Without their knowledge, teaching techniques, and ability to recognize learning problems and how to correct them, my son would  be failing today. Because of SUPER my son loves to read.

Our son began experiencing challenges in school in the 1st grade. He was a very outgoing and jovial child who displayed a lot of curiosity in learning about the world around him. He was full of inquisitive questions that displayed a depth for understanding abstract concepts beyond his age level, yet struggled to master written language arts concepts in the time allotted within the framework of a regimented classroom curriculum.

He became extremely frustrated, discouraged and his self-concept suffered. We were unable to gain adequate support for his learning style and developmental needs through a traditional approach. Based on recognized principles of child development and learning and current brain research, we recognized the need for our son to be engaged in gross and small motor movement as he was engaged in learning new concepts. This also helps to normalize the stress and frustration he experiences in learning because of the failures he has experienced. While this is well researched and documented in both medical and educational research, we found its practice to be limited within traditional educational settings. We suspect that this may be due to funding issues across the wider educational sector.

We were blessed to find Lyn who understood the important concept of motor activity and development and how it affects the learning process. She is a breath of fresh air. She has been able to engage our son in activities that meet his developmental and educational needs. She has been able to accept our son without preconceived prejudices or labels that do not necessarily help a child succeed in learning. She has been a committed educator for many years and has a wide-breath of experience. Most importantly she has a genuine desire and commitment to help children become successful learners and confident individuals.

I am writing this letter regarding the tutoring of my daughter.

S.U.P.E.R. Learning Center tutored my daughter for about one year.

I would like to say what a wonderful job they did. My daughter went from a D-F student in math to strictly A & B's not only in math but in all her subjects. The staff was terrific role models and made a huge impact on my daughter's desire to do her homework. I would highly recommend S.U.P.E.R. Learning Center.

Both of our children have special learning needs. To help augment our home schooling curriculum we implemented the assistance of S.U.P.E.R Learning  Center.

We found Casandra very attentive to the special needs and interests of her students. Her classes have consistently been a positive, safe, and fulfilling environment for our children to learn in. Our children found her very caring, respect her and continue to have good learning relationship with her. We have been very pleased and I would highly recommend S.U.P.E.R Learning Center.

Dear Lyn,

You are an incredible, gifted, extraordinary woman! We are continually grateful to God for answering our prayers through your life in the healing and recovery of our precious son! We could never thank you enough for the awesome use of your teaching gift and the time, love and energy you have put into helping Grant! Thank you, thank you, thank you! We pray for God's continued blessings upon your life, family and Super Learning Center!

Dear Lyn,

Brittany was so excited after her first meeting with you. She thought you were really sweet and she was looking forward to working with you. For Brittany, it's a great pleasure to spend time with others since she's not as active as most kids her age, or around others much.

I just wanted you to know how much I appreciate you inconveniencing yourself to work with Brittany. Thank you for your kindness in making a place so she could still meet with you despite her disability. She doesn't care about the place, she's just interested in learning and having fellowship with others. Brittany made the comment "Mom, Mrs. Goodwin doesn't make me feel stupid when I'm not sure what I'm doing."

Thanks, Lyn, for your compassion and going the extra mile, to meet the needs of Brittany and myself.

Dear Mrs. Goodwin, Teacher, Second Mother,

First of all the lord likes to wake me up in the middle of the night for random reason. So I am writing this letter at roughly 5:30 am. He wanted me to tell you what I am thankful for.

Do you remember last thanksgiving when you asked us what we are thankful for, and that I couldn't really say what I wanted to say through all my tears? I am thankful for the lord to put such a wonderful person like you on this world. You inspire everyone around you. You also become a second mother to your students when their life at home isn't all that great (my mom's healing). I can't count the number of times that you could tell I was having a bad day and turned it upside down and stuck a smile on my face when I wondered what else was coming.

You have given me hope. When I first came to you I was no more than the students you have now. Sometimes a little rebellious, but you always put me in my place. I tried very hard to get out of schoolwork (seems like it never worked though!) I have seen that there are some students you have that don't behave, and that will sometimes purposely push your buttons. I have to tell you, those are the students that will remember your teachings for the rest of their lives. You push them to be a better person, other than useless which we think we are. You have made me feel like I was someone that was more valuable than all the gems under the earth, (other than when I first started I thought I was nothing more than trash.) You taught me to take pride in my wins, and to keep fighting a good fight with my losses.

Inspire! You inspire me even when I'm not around you! I think what Mrs. Goodwin would do if that happened, etc. I know in that you cheer me on even though I don't talk to you as much, and that you are proud of me. I know I would not be where I am now without you. That I would probably not be in college or even think I could make it there. You have opened doors that I never knew were open to me. Tests are not a big deal to me, (I do get scared on them still but I normally get 90%+ on the ones I'm scared about).

You are a remarkable person, in the spirit and in person. I never told you before, but I would always feel so at rest when I was at school. I saw angels lining your house, and sat beside you trying to show you what you needed to do, or even show you where your keys were when you lost them. I don't see them much, if at all anymore. But the lord is always trying to show you an answer to your prayers even when you're not looking for it.

I am thankful for the lord giving me a teacher I can brag about. I am thankful for what I have learned from you. I am thankful for the life I probably wouldn't have if I was in public school. I am thankful for the life you helped me into. I am thankful for. I AM THANKFUL FOR MRS. GOODWIN! And that the lord let me have a person in my life that I can turn to if things get bad, or if I'm confused.

My daughter hated school. She wouldn't read when asked to read out loud. After working in a small tutoring environment at S.U.P.E.R, she volunteered to read. She shot up in self-confidence. She made the honor roll. You are a Godsend.

Dear Casandra,

I can't tell you how thankful I am for you and for S.U.P.E.R!! As you know, when I first called you, I was in tears crying in frustration and helplessness. My daughter was in third grade and really couldn't read and had big problems in math. We had tried everything we knew to do, and weren't making much progress. She not only couldn't read, but because her peers were much better in reading, she refused to read aloud, and her self-confidence was extremely low. After a week of tutoring with you at S.U.P.E.R, her self-confidence started to grow again. I noticed she started saying things like "This is for my education." She began to take pride in her work. Her grades started coming up, and through the tutoring, the positive comments you made, and the PCS training, she has grown in leaps and bounds. She now loves school. She loves math. She loves to read. When we go to the library, she picks out not only books to read for pleasure, but history books of topics she'd like to know more about. I can't begin to thank you for all you've done for my daughter and our family. You gave us hope when we couldn't find it anywhere else.

When my daughter mentions S.U.P.E.R., I think of these things: my grand daughter goes out the door, happy - with a smile on her face to go to S.U.P.E.R. She has grown tremendously in her self-confidence. She has a feeling of accomplishment, being recognized for her work.

This is a testimonial for Lyn Goodwin who tutored and then home-schooled my then 7^th grade son. She was an absolute answer to my prayers. My son was so far behind in the public school system at the end of 6^th grade that I couldn't see him going on to Junior High in the up-coming fall. To make a long story short, Derek's reading level was approximately 3.5 years behind his grade level peers. (He's also dyslexic with ADHD.) She had a way of connecting with my son and children in general. My son loves her; therefore he would also want to please her by doing the things she asked him to do. She in turn earns the students respect. When he was home-schooled by her, everything they did was read aloud and discussed together. When they read a book, they all read the same book and they would discuss it, answering questions. They also did a lot of hands-on study. They also went on many field trips actually seeing for themselves what they were learning. Each year they were required to do a project for the Education Fair. This took a lot of research on the child's part, write a report and produce a visual to go along with it. Each child learns differently and she accommodates each student according to their needs. She is warm and compassionate. Too many times I have seen teachers lose their patience with the LD child, but not her - she works at their pace and she knows how far she can push them to challenge them. My son can do reports now, which I help proofread. He is also concerned about his spelling because he's always asking how to spell something correctly. His spelling is not perfect, but it is much better than it used to be. He is very artistic and her mother taught art; you should see the framed drawings on my wall that her mother guided him in doing. He is very good on the computer which they had computer assignments. She has so many different methods to teach these children who are struggling. Take for instance math - she shows them how to do the 9's multiplication on their hands. She teaches them how to do note cards; this can help in note taking and if they take public speaking - which my son did several debates. She actually makes learning fun. If it were not for us wanting him to learn a trade that they offer through the school system he would have completed his schooling with her. I can never say enough for what she has done for my son and for my peace of mind. She is absolutely wonderful and I still miss her and him being under her instruction. My son went to her right before his first semester exams; he actually studied 6 hours that day. I will continue to bring him to her for help because he listens to her better than me. I was also rewarded after all this schooling that a very close friendship resulted from all of this. If you have any questions, she can give you my number and you can call me. Thank you Lyn - Derek would not be where he's at today without you, and you have helped me to keep my sanity! I love you!