She used to avoid books altogether. Now she rereads them.

I've properly enjoyed the break these holidays. A bit of slowing down, some time with family, and a few catch ups with old clients who I've come to think of as friends more than anything else at this point.

Family time is exactly where this story starts. My granddaughter handed me the same battered copy of Harry Potter for the third time last week and said, "Nana, you have to read this bit, it's so good." I have now heard the Chamber of Secrets described to me in three separate instalments of enthusiasm, and I am not even mad about it.

Back in 2023, that same girl was eight years old and would rather do almost anything than sit down with a book. When she did read, she struggled through the words, sounding out what she could and replacing anything unfamiliar with a word she thought might be near enough.

That change did not happen by accident. We worked together, little by little, using an approach that is easy and experiential, and it gave her real tools for reading rather than guesswork. Once she had those tools, she stopped needing to replace words with something near enough, and started reading the words that were actually there.

Also during the holidays, I ran into a mum whose son I had worked with back in 2024. Two years ago he was two years behind his peers. Talking to her this week, he is right up there alongside them now.

Then this week, a school report landed in my inbox for a boy I worked with back in 2024 too. His teacher writes that he has continued to make progress in his reading, and that he is reading more fluently and faster, which is helping him understand what he reads. She also notes he now has a genuinely positive attitude toward his lessons, because he is finally feeling the progress for himself.

Three different people, three completely different timeframes, and the same thing underneath every one of them. Once a learner understands their unique way of learning, that progress does not diminish. It keeps going, long after they have left my one to one intensive programme.