LAKELAND, Fla. — At first glance, a day inside the classrooms at Roberts Academy seems like any other classroom.
The students focus on reading, writing, math, and science—pencils in hand, taking notes as the teacher talks.
But there's a critical difference that separates Roberts from any other school in the state.
"We are a transitional school for students with dyslexia," explained Kim Kelly, the head of Roberts Academy.
Dyslexia is a learning difference marked by difficulties with reading, writing, and spelling.
The school opened in 2010 thanks to Lakeland civic leaders and philanthropists Hal and Marjorie Roberts.
"Three of their grandchildren are dyslexic. So, we began in 2010 with a reading tutor. We pretty much started with just tutors. And then, in 2010, we decided to open a school," Kelly said.
The school quickly grew. It started off with 23 first and second-graders. Today, there are 183 students between 2nd and 8th grade.
Laura Tomlinson's son, Turner, is a seventh grader at the school.
"He knew he was different. He knew he learned different. And when he made the transformation at Roberts Academy, he felt like he belonged here. He felt like he, he said, 'Mom, they understand how my mind works. They understand how I can learn," Tomlinson said.
The school sits right in the middle of the Florida Southern College campus. Teachers use the Orton-Gillingham Approach to teach the students. It's a method designed specifically for students with dyslexia.
"They know how to teach their minds in the way that in their way their minds work," said Tomlinson.
"The classroom teachers can go as fast as they can and as slow as they need to with the instruction," Kelly added.
It's the first transitional school of its kind in the state.
Now, it's getting attention outside of the state.
There's a possibility another could open in partnership with Vanderbilt University in Tennessee.
"They are speaking with us about opening their own school on their campus to model what we do here with training their teachers and having that school where we can be part of the college," Kelly said.
By situating the school on a college campus it also allows future teachers to get the special training, while showing those students at the Roberts School the potential that awaits after high school.
"They know how smart they are. They just know that they're different too. And they always talk about like, hey, all these famous people are dyslexic. And so that warms my heart, knowing that he knows that it's not a crutch. It's a superpower," Tomlinson said.
