We sent our daughter to Hamlin in 5th grade. She is severely dyslexic, and Hamlin worked very well for her. I truly wish you could be sending your child to the Hamlin of five years ago.
Since then, they got a new headmaster and everything has changed. Lots of "experts" came in and rearranged everything. Us lowly parents found that it became a shadow of what it was.
Before, the math courses were tracked, which is very important in a student body where some students have enormous difficulties with numbers and some are advanced. Instead, all students were put in generic classes, which only led to great frustration for everyone. Algebra as a regular class was eliminated entirely, even though some students were entirely ready for it.
The english classes became very political. Any book that encouraged joy in reading was efficiently replaced with books about the teachers' political beliefs. Extra credit projects were going to online political events. The classes also began studying TV shows in addition to books, which is very frustration when the kids need a lot of help with reading.
The parents complained, of course. And they were ignored, as is the current standard. It's a sad situation, because Hamlin is a school that can do great good for the community and dyslexia as a whole. I hope they return to their focus. For now, it is very important that prospective parents be warned what they are getting into. read more