What We Do

Changing children’s lives one step at a time

Learning Difficulties

Learning Ladders uses an evidence-based linguistic phonics (speech to print) approach. Our lessons are structured, cumulative, sequential and explicit – highly recommended for teaching children to read and spell. Each session is tailored to meet an individual’s needs.

We develop the concept of visualisation to teach each child to verbalise and remember what they see and hear. This helps each child to make sense of and ‘interpret’ the written word. Children initially read decodable, specialist readers. They learn to decode and encode more easily, working on developing fluency and comprehension simultaneously. Games and multisensory strategies are used in each lesson, then sent home for review.

Once each child has ‘cracked the code’, our program adjusts to focus on sentence structure, writing development & linking with school for assignment planning & writing.

Autism Spectrum Disorders

Our one to one sessions use the principles of child-centred Applied Behaviour Analysis as well as other special education strategies. ASD children are capable of learning well, but it takes a more structured setting, one where conditions are optimised for acquiring the same skills that other children learn ‘naturally’. Within our individualised programs, skills to be taught are broken down into small, teachable steps. Prompts and rewards are used and then reduced until each skill is mastered.

We offer a relationship focused intervention, working with each family to enhance the use of responsive interactive strategies, generalising taught skills in a wide range of environments. Training is offered to everyone on the child’s team and the program and resources are taken home to ensure continuity.

Testimonials

I met Kerri Wilson after she was recommended to me by OT to help my daughter learn to read. Ruby was just never able to retain sight words, but regular session with Kerri were able to correct that. Ruby now has a reading age two years above her actual age and is flying. It was during one of these sessions where I got to talking to Kerri about the behaviour difficulties I was having with my barely verbal four year old son with autism.

During his kindergarten year, Kerri was able to move him from grunting and pointing to using full sentences. She set a program based on ABA which we rigorously followed up at home. I am still astounded and immensely proud of the work Sid did to get ready for prep. Kerri taught our whole family a lesson about the value of commitment, repetition and practice. We would not be where we are today without Kerri.

Rebecca Quinnell

Kerri and the team at Learning Ladders have become part our of ‘tribe’. We consider her a wonderful asset to the ongoing learning my daughter needs and we would not hesitate to recommend her. My daughter has a number of learning difficulties and Kerri has assisted her (and us) in tailoring her learning style and skillset to see she gets the most out of it. Her compassion, friendliness and willingness to always help shines bright. My daughter loves her visits to Kerri and always leaves happy and motivated. She has given our family a wealth of knowledge and support.

Michelle

Learning Ladders has had a massive difference in our daughter’s reading and writing ability. Our daughter struggled to read and write in Prep and I figured it would just click for her like it did for her older brother. Then, when she hit Grade 1, I knew something wasn’t quite right as she was falling very behind in her class. My husband and I were both concerned about her. We happened to take our daughter to a Behavioural Optometrist who recommended our daughter see Kerri from Learning Ladders. And this was the best referral we have ever received.

Just after a few short weeks, we noticed lots of small changes with her learning and now, after six months, we are seeing lots of progress. Kerri has a wonderful way of getting the most out of our daughter and to make sure her concentration levels are being met. Kerri also has a way of making the sessions fun and not too heavy for my daughter. I can’t recommend Kerri enough – we are so pleased we found her!

A mum

Kerri has been a fantastic help to my seven year old son. She has a wealth of knowledge about teaching children to read and write and has helped him grow enormously in this area. Kerri also has excellent skills in working with children and is understanding to the individual needs of the child. Kerri has helped me to understand my child and also how I can help him at home. She provides fun and interesting game-based activities.

Kerri has been an absolute gem, I feel so fortunate that I have come across someone who has pointed us both in the right direction with regards to his learning and even social skills. Kerri does not put up with nonsense and is able to keep the lesson on track even with my child who has ADHD and often tries to derail the lesson. As a primary school teacher I recommend Kerri’s service to any family that has similar needs to my child, who struggles with the usual reading and writing practices at school. I highly recommend her and I am so grateful that she has worked absolute wonders for our family.

Melisa

Bec is amazing!! The connection that Jayden has with Bec is fantastic! She is always challenging him and finding new and interesting ways for him to learn which is great Jayden enjoys going to his sessions and is always happy to tell me all about it afterwards. The progress Jayden has made since starting is proof that Bec is great at what she does. I would highly recommend her to anyone looking for extra learning support for their child.

Taryn

It is such a relief as a parent to find a person who really ‘gets it’ (understands). As a mum to many children this doesn’t happen for me often so when I find these people I hold on to them. I remember coming home from our first session with Archie and telling my husband that Bec is one of these people for us. From this first meeting the connection between our son Archie and Bec was amazing and has just continued to strengthen and he absolutely LOVES his weekly session.

Bec has been working with Archie who is 4 years old and has Down Syndrome for almost a year. She connected with him instantly by meeting him where he was at with his needs, learning and current abilities and has continued to grow and challenge him since this first session. Bec genuinely loves what she does and is so patient, skilled and empathetic in her approach and manages to keep our easily distracted son engaged in sessions with her enthusiasm and redirection. We are so thankful to have discovered this amazing program (which some of our other children do too) and most importantly ‘Archie’s Bec’ as he affectionately calls her to his siblings.

Natalie

We feel very blessed and lucky to have met Kerri Wilson. We met Kerri when my daughter (who has ASD and dyslexia) was 8 years old and unable to read. School intensive programs resulted in my daughter developing extreme anxiety and destroyed her confidence – every day she was coming home crying so we had to remove her from school. Before meeting Kerri, we had spent a lot of money on phonics and reading programs but saw no improvement in my daughter’s learning. Kerri is the only person who actually helped my daughter learn to read and spell. And most importantly – she has helped my daughter become confident again.

Kerri has also worked with my son who has ASD and ADHD. She has helped him properly learn to read and write and has taught him how to sit and complete tasks. While my son refuses to write for other people (such as other therapists and teachers), he will write for Kerri and looks forward to seeing her.

Kerri’s program honestly works, is really enjoyable for the kids and I highly recommend it to anyone having difficulties with learning. Kerri is a wonderful, kind, caring and patient person and her ability to help children is exceptional. We travel an hour and a half to have appointments with Kerri – she is amazing and worth travelling to.

Caroline Ingram

My 8 yo son came to Rebecca as a very unhappy learner. He couldn’t read and was frustrated with school. His confidence was very low and he had started to stop wanting to go to school and to dislike books which he had always enjoyed before

Now his learning has turned around , he has become a very confident reader and speller , passing and thriving with all literacy at school
Rebecca has done amazing things for him , she has always been so patient even when he has struggled. Always encouraging him to keep going and that he will get it
We get access to great resources , always great communication and lots of ideas to help him at home

He always believed he was not smart for struggling with reading now his thinking has turned around and he calls himself a reader . Every day he tells me he loves books and to read
He recently took his chapter book on the bus to his school excursion which showed me how confident he has become

I would recommend Rebecca and Learning Ladders to anyone that needs help with their child’s literacy .He looks forward to it every session he says that it is his favorite day of the week
I cant imagine where he would be without Rebecca thank you so much.

Kellie

Although we have only had Bec in our lives for just over a year, it feels like so much longer. Bec is the most wonderfully patient, tolerant, hard working lady i have ever met. She has a genuine passion for the children she provides support and guidance for. Nothing is to much, too wrong for her and i don’t feel judged in anyway, i actually feel a warmth and true compassion i rarely see in professionals. The bond that Bec and my son Oscar have established, is very strong.

By allowing my son to build his confidence in his own time is something we are very grateful for. Bec engages with Oscar on a level that he can work with but also, on a level we have never seen from him. I couldn’t imagine Bec not being involved in our sons life and I’m pretty sure he would not want to miss out on the hot cross buns either. Thank you Bec.

The Gillins

Our 7 year daughter Charlotte has been working with Bec for the past 18 months now as she was struggling with reading and writing at school due to anxiety that runs in our family. She sees Bec weekly and the growth in her confidence has been amazing, she just loves Bec and looks forward to their sessions.

Charlotte’s progress in her reading and writing abilities has taken her from a shy girl reluctant to read or try for fear of getting it wrong to being a confident reader who attempts larger words and writes with phonological understanding appropriate for her age, from an academic perspective Charlotte now reads at an above expected level. This support has enabled her to blossom in so many other aspects at school.

The lessons are targeted to Charlotte’s needs and the homework is tangiable for us as parents to help Charlotte practice these skills at home which in turns continues to increase her confidence in the school setting.

We would highly recommend Bec as she keeps Charlotte engaged in her lessons and has a genuine care for her well being and delivers the lesson content in such a way that Charlotte doesn’t think of it as extra work – it’s lots of fun!!!

Jill

We’ve been seeing Kerri and Becky since my son was in year 1 (now year 6). They have taught him to talk, and then to read and spell and to adapt socially . Truly if it wasn’t for them he would’ve slipped through the cracks at mainstream school. When we’ve faced any problems or needed help they’ve dropped everything to help. He loves going to therapy to see these amazing ladies.

I would never hesitate to recommend any child to go to Learning Ladders.

Mother of a young man with Autism

Our daughter is smart, funny, kind and very social, but has struggled with literacy skills. After lots of tests (academic and medical), classroom interventions and trying to support her ourselves, we turned to Learning Ladders. Donna has done a wonderful job, providing our daughter with skills, tools and practices that have seen huge improvements in her reading, writing and spelling, and (most importantly) boosted her confidence and grown her love of learning.

Father of 8 year old

I was recommended Kerri at Learning Ladders by my neighbour as my daughter, Sharnee, was struggling at school and had no self confidence. She asked Donna to tutor Sharnee and Donna had been absolutely outstanding in helping Sharnee with her struggles and I would thoroughly recommend her. She has a beautiful personality around children where Sharnee is very comfortable, excited and looks forward to her visit every week and Sharnee improved in her grades with her help and guidance.

If I have a problem Donna is always there for me. Sharnee has now been diagnosed with absence seizures which we now know is the main reason of Sharnee’s learning difficulties, Kerri and Donna have embraced her new diagnosis and to my complete appreciation, have worked to make a plan to help Sharnee in 2020. Thank you from the bottom of my heart Donna and Kerri for everything you have done for Sharnee.

Karen D

Our girls have had difficulties since Prep in terms of reading and spelling. Coming from a bilingual home certainly added some difficulties for them. Since starting to work with Donna from Learning Ladders, we have seen them improve tremendously. They have become avid readers, and their confidence has grown over the past year. Donna has been fantastic in her approach to improve their reading and spelling. I can not recommend her highly enough.

Séverine

During the past two years Abbey has been providing tutoring to my daughter Annabelle, she has given her confidence, motivation and has increased her desire to learn. Abbey is a wonderful tutor who is dedicated and passionate about her job. She has made a wonderful connection with my daughter and is very supportive of her needs. She has strongly encouraged Annabelle to push herself to succeed but at the same time is sensitive to unsure those steps are within Annabelle’s reach.

I would highly recommend Abbey to anyone wanting an exciting, dedicated and cheerful tutor to support their child’s educational development.

Christine

Meg is amazing! She has been working with my daughter for nearly two years and has worked wonders with her reading and literacy. Meg provides a highly child-centred approach which is focused on meeting the specific need of each individual child. Her sessions are fun and engaging while always achieving the desired learning outcomes. My daughter always looks forward to her sessions with Meg. Meg is a highly competent, committed and caring practitioner who is committed to bringing the best out in her students.

Jodie