S1E3 /// Misunderstood: What Struggling Readers Are Trying to Tell Us

My Child Can’t Read: A Heartland Crisis

What if the child getting in trouble at school wasn’t defiant, but desperate? In this moving episode, we hear directly from struggling readers and their families about what school really felt like when the system failed to see them. Kids labeled as lazy, inattentive, or “the problem” describe the shame, isolation, and heartbreak that came from not being able to read — and the turning points when someone finally listened. We also hear from parents, educators, and psychologists who reveal how often the signs of dyslexia and other learning differences are missed — and what misunderstanding really costs children. In This Episode You’ll Hear

• Evie, Austin, Emmie, Hadlie, and Cooper — students reflecting on what it felt like to be called “stupid,” “lazy,” or ignored in class
• Parents Stacie Swanson, Sarah Collins, and Lindsey Angleton — sharing the early signs they saw and the pushback they faced
• Dr. Janelle Tidemann — psychologist explaining the overlooked red flags and why bright, creative kids often slip through the cracks
• Jeanine Phillips, Jill Hodge, and Sarah Balzar — Kansas educators describing how training changed everything they thought they knew

• The national scope of reading struggles, the Reading Wars, and why balanced literacy wasn’t enough

Resources & Further Reading

• Phillips Fundamental Learning Center (Wichita, KS)
• LETRS Structured Literacy Training
• Children of the Code video series: What’s at Stake
• Sold a Story podcast — Emily Hanford & APM Reports
• Reading in the Brain by Stanislas Dehaene (Viking, 2009)
• Teaching Reading Is Rocket Science by Dr. Louisa Moats (AFT, 2020) — Read PDF
• Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University — Jack Shonkoff’s work
• National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Reading Scores, 2024
  Visit NAEP – Nation’s Report Card

“I wasn’t lazy. I was misunderstood. Something has to change.” – Emmie Johnston Key Takeaways

• Struggling readers often say they feel “stupid” or “invisible” long before they’re diagnosed
  
• Early signs — speech delays, difficulty rhyming, not recognizing letters — are often brushed off as “they’ll grow out of it”
  
• Dyslexia is real, common, and too often misdiagnosed as behavior problems, ADHD, or defiance
  
• Balanced literacy left teachers unprepared to meet the needs of all learners
  
• Early intervention and structured literacy change not just academic outcomes, but emotional lives
  
• Reading failure is not just an academic issue — it’s a biological and emotional stressor
  

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🎵 Music: SOUNDSTRIPE.COM Shimmer – What We Call Home, Cody Martin – Innovation, Reville – Curiosity, LNDO – Daydreaming, Shimmer – Craft

This podcast is produced by KB PODCASTS