Read the amazing success story of Adam here!
Meet Adam’s Mom, Diane
Meet Adam’s Teacher, Mrs. Bonja
Letters from Parents
“My son was diagnosed with Kawasaki Syndrome, a rare childhood disease, 6-1/2 years ago when he was 18 months old. As he recovered, we noticed an increased level of sensitivity which would eventually be diagnosed as Sensory Integration Disorder. Adam was overly sensitive to almost everything including light, touch, smell, sound and taste. We learned to accommodate his sensitivities as he grew and they eventually lessened. But Adam contracted Kawasaki Syndrome again at 5 years old, which is a one-in-a-million odds. His sensitivities were much worse than before and we struggled with starting him in kindergarten. The teacher picked up on Adam’s issues quickly and put us through an IEP. Adam was labeled with having “Kawasaki Syndrome” related problems and he struggled through kindergarten, finally understanding the daily rituals in the classroom after 6 months of school. We were able to calm a lot of his tactile sensitivities with a brushing-technique, but he had a very hard time paying attention. Adam’s first and second grades were terrible. I would break down and cry at every parent teacher conference and IEP meeting. No one knew what was wrong with Adam. No one knew what to do. Adam’s frustration grew as well as ours. My breaking point was in April 2008 when the Occupational Therapy specialist at school suggested we try a vibrating watch to keep Adam on task. It almost made him jump out of his skin waiting for the vibration and he was in tears every day. The teacher asked me again if I was absolutely sure he was not autistic.
I found Sherrie Hardy in May after a co-worker mentioned that Sherrie had helped his son years before. During the evaluation, I learned so many things about my son that I never knew. I learned that he was reading at grade level 1.6, but when a dark overlay was put over words, it increased to grade level 2.9. I learned that Adam had a severe gross motor problem which would explain his constant quirkiness and inability to perform many tasks. We quickly became Sherrie’s first home-based client with Interactive Metronome and Reading Plus. At first, Adam could not circle his hands and clap to the Metronome beats for more than one minute. Over time, he was able to increase to 25 minutes on hands and 10 minutes on feet. We began to notice changes in our son. He was more agile and eagerly accepted any task as his confidence increased. He discovered a love for reading that never existed. We were working on the Metronome every other day during the summer and when Adam returned to start 3rd grade, his lexile had improved 46%! Almost all of his initial test scores were grade level and we were ecstatic. He was still easily distracted, but was able to get himself back on task quickly. 
After 4 weeks of school, I called my own IEP and showed the staff Adam’s scores and explained what we had been doing. I asked to eliminate several days of “special resource” per week as Adam was quickly approaching grade level on everything and they agreed. Family, friends and teachers all noticed the change in Adam. The best I can describe it is “an ugly duckling turning into a swan.” At his five month check by Sherrie Hardy, Adam was reading at grade level 5.1 and his Interactive Metronome scored him in the gifted motor skill range.
When I think about the improvement we have seen in Adam in 6 short months, it brings a very big smile to my face. I have never felt such pride and joy in his accomplishments. He is changed for life and I know in my heart that he will be OK now. Sherrie Hardy knew what was wrong with my son and told me that she knew how to fix it. And that is exactly what she did. I now happily look forward to our future with hope that everything is going to be great and cannot wait to see what my son is going to do next that will surprise me.
For anyone reading my letter that had every door closed and feel there is no hope, do not give up just yet. You may have an ugly duckling just waiting for a chance to be turned into a beautiful swan as well.
Thank you Sherrie – you will forever be a special person in our hearts.
~Diane Solomon”
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
“Dear Sherrie,
You helped us three years ago to save our son Jake. He had been vomiting before school almost daily, having migraines nearly daily, and just walking around like a broken kid.
You helped us understand him better, and helped him understand himself better. You guided him through the rest of his 7th grade year. He ended up finishing that year with straight A’s and, more importantly, walking tall, no more stress. His confidence came back!! He has continued to do a fantastic job in school, and has stayed strong and confident!
There have been many times we have found ourselves telling frustrated parents about you and your wonderful ability to figure out what is really going on with kids, how they best need to learn, and how we as parents can best facilitate that process for them. We have recommended you often and from what we heard at least one family came to you a month or two back for help with their son and they were so happy after speaking with you. We are SO happy for them! They have been struggling with him with homework and tutors for quite a while. From what he was saying, they had pretty much resolved themselves into thinking that he just isn’t that bright and he will always struggle and just “get by”. We feel strongly that he may just need a bit of Sherrie’s magic to figure how it is that his brain interprets the information and how it is that he needs the material taught to him to where he can best succeed! They are a lovely family and we just know that they will be feeling SO much lighter after they meet with you! So, I wanted to thank you in advance for helping them, and to belatedly thank you again for all of the help that you were for us!
Thank you again for helping Jack to understand himself better, and for helping us to also better understand him! He is doing amazing in all of his classes! And, even though he still doesn’t always throw his contact containers away or pick up the laundry that he has to step over to leave the room, in so many ways he has grown and gotten better, and he is comfortable now in his skin!!! He continues to play guitar and drums, loves to jump his bike and snowboard with Dad, and has achieved the rank of adult black belt in his kick boxing class. (the youngest to have done this by the way!)
We want you to know that you are never far from our thoughts or our hearts! We will never forget what it is that you did for our family and more importantly for Jack!
All the best to you,
Tanya, Carl, Jake and the boys!”
