Join Madison Public Library and the Children's Dyslexia Center of the Madison Area for our annual celebration of October as Dyslexia Awareness Month!
A light pizza dinner will be served starting at 5:30pm, with a free screening of the documentary Left Behind (2025, 75 minutes) beginning at 6pm. The film will be followed by a short talkback moderated by Kelly Kuenzie, Director of the Children's Dyslexia Center-Madison and featuring Dr Barb Novak, Director of the Office of Literacy at the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction with Krissy Wick, Director of Public Services at Madison Public Library Public Library . This event is especially for parents, caregivers, educators, elementary school and older youth, and community members. Families are especially welcome, and kids 8 and up can take a break from the program in the children's area of the library as needed where an instructor from The Curious Crafter will also host a free scrapbook bookmark crafting station from 6-7pm.
Please note: this program is not recommended for children age 7 and under.
Registration for this event is appreciated but not required—please call 608-266-6385 or click below to register. Please contact librarian Abigail Ryan (ryana@madisonpubliclibrary.org) with any accessibility or dietary requirements 1 week before this program. CDC tutors may also receive one continuing credit with a one page response paper for this event.
Film Synopsis:
"Approximately 200,000 New York City public school students are dyslexic, yet there is no public initiative that provides the specialized skill and care necessary for these learners.
Frustrated that they had to remove their own kids from the public school system, a group of determined moms band together to do something that’s never been done before – open New York City’s first public school for dyslexic students. The journey is not a smooth ride, and they face both institutional and personal hurdles as they try to upend a system.
A new mayoral candidate bolsters their fight after he reveals his own dyslexia. But will they be able to convince a bureaucratic education system to overhaul outdated politics to ensure a brighter future for the city’s dyslexic youth?" - leftbehindthefilm.com