The Amish Teacher's Dilemma and Healing Their Amish Hearts by Patricia Davids (all ebook reader .txt) 📕

Today will be better. Jenny Martin is going to be my helper. Jenny, I’d like you to assist the third and fourth grade students to do page one and two in their math workbooks. And make sure Sadie stays outside today.”

“Yes, Teacher.”

Eva looked to the two boys in the very last row. “If the dog comes in today we will all forgo recess. Do I make myself clear?”

The twins looked at each other and nodded. She smiled “Goot. Take your places for our singing.”

Willis dropped by after school the next day to see how Eva was getting along. Maddie was playing with Sadie and Jenny in the schoolyard. He found both his brothers still inside at the blackboard. Eva looked up and smiled when she caught sight of him, and it warmed his heart. “How did things go today?” he asked.

“I took your advice and the day went better. It’s going to take more than a few days for everyone to learn their schedules and to behave in a single classroom while I’m busy with other students.”

She quickly changed the subject. “Have you contacted the cabinetmaker I told you about yet?”

“I spoke to him on the phone this morning. I have a meeting with him tomorrow. He has asked me to visit his businesses in Portland and bring samples of my work.

“That’s wonderful.”

It was and he was going to do his best to secure a new line of income to support his family. The thought of being away from Eva for two days was already depressing him. How was he going to go through life without kissing her again?

He cleared his throat. “Dale has agreed to drive me. We leave this afternoon. I’ll be home late tomorrow night. I’ve arranged for the children to stay with Michael and Bethany while I’m gone and don’t say you will keep them. You have enough to do.”

He watched a wry smile curve her pretty lips. “I would happily take care them, but it would be a bit crowded with Danny here.”

She was kind and generous, and he loved her. If he told her that he couldn’t read would she react with compassion or recoil from his stupidity?

He needed to tell her. He didn’t want any secrets between them.

He gazed at her sweet face and knew he would do it. He would find the courage. When he was back from Portland with a contract for more work and a chance at a future together he would tell her when they were alone.

“I appreciate that you want to help,” he said softly and pushed his hands into his pockets to keep from touching her face. She gazed intently into his eyes and then looked away as a faint blush rose to her cheeks. Was she remembering that evening? He wished he knew how she felt about him. When he found the courage to tell her about his problem, would she be as understanding and as kind to him as she was with Otto? How could he doubt that?

“I have work I must get done.” Eva left his side to go back to her desk.

Harley was helping Otto write letters in colored chalk on the blackboard. The sound of someone calling outside caught his attention. Willis walked to the door.

“Who is it?” Eva asked from her desk.

“I don’t know them. Two Englisch women.”

Eva moved to stand beside Willis. “The shorter one is Mrs. Kenworthy. She teaches at the public school. I don’t know the other woman.”

Mrs. Kenworthy waved when she spotted them standing in the schoolhouse door. “It’s good to see you again, Eva. This is a friend of mine, Janet Obermeyer. She’s with the Early Learning Center. I was telling her about the child we believe has a learning disability and she wished to speak to you.”

Janet was tall and slim with short, straight red hair. She wore a lavender pantsuit and carried a briefcase. Willis turned to Eva. “Is she talking about Otto? He doesn’t have a learning disability. It doesn’t help the kid to have folks tell him he’s not as good as everyone else.”

“You are right, sir,” Janet said. “Labels are not useful. A proper diagnosis is.”

“There’s nothing wrong with my brother. He’s as smart as anyone. Maybe smarter.” He glanced at Otto. The boy looked ready to bolt.

“From what Mrs. Kenworthy has told me, I suspect your brother may be affected by dyslexia. Many people with dyslexia are of above-average intelligence. I have brought some educational materials with me.”

She looked directly at Otto. “The problem isn’t a lack of intelligence. The problem lies in the way the brain fails to interpret the connection between letters and words with the sounds that they should make.”

“So I’ve got a bad brain. Is that it?” Otto scowled at her.

Willis heard the pain in his voice and wished he knew how to help. Had he been blind to Otto’s struggle because of his own shame?

“Not at all,” Janet said. “Some children excel at math, others don’t. Some children are good at art, others are not. Those are only a few examples of how our brains function differently. None of which are bad.”

“Exactly what is dyslexia?” Danny asked from behind Willis. He hadn’t heard him come in.

“A good question but one without an easy answer,” Janet said.

“This is my brother Danny,” Eva said.

Janet handed several books to Eva and then turned to Danny. “Reading isn’t natural. Speaking is. Reading requires our brain to match letters to sounds, put those sounds together in a correct order to create a word, and then form words together into the sentences we can read, understand and write again. People with dyslexia have trouble matching the letters they see with the sounds the letters and combinations of letters make.”

“Can it be cured?” Eva asked.

Janet shook her head. “It can’t be cured. It is a lifelong problem, but with the right supports, dyslexic children can become highly successful students and adults.”

Eva leaned forward eagerly. “How do I accomplish that?”

“The first step