“Bringing her vast experience as a Special Educator, her knowledge of the ever changing legal landscape of Special Education Law, and her collaborative spirit, Suzie Keith Blattner works with school teams to identify the teaching support and environment a child who learns differently needs to make progress in Reading, Math and Writing.
Suzie has provided invaluable support to our family through her guidance on writing IEP goals and objectives; assistance with monitoring my child’s progress; knowledge of both public and private schools, and through her participation in our IEP team meetings. Thank you Suzie!! “
From the first meeting, Jean put my extremely anxious son at ease about academics which are a huge source of stress for him. Jean became his “school” during a transition when he wasn’t able to attend school due to his high anxiety and she made learning FUN!! She custom tailored her teaching to his unique interests. She drew him in from day one and made everything a game so he didn’t even realize he was learning and could relax and enjoy learning again. Jean went out of her way and spent countless hours outside of his sessions making books that were on his reading level and appealed to his love of sports. She always had the best interest of our son in mind and if he was having a rough day, she knew how to handle him and he would settled down quickly.
Jean took an extremely anxious boy who didn’t want anything to do with school and learning and a few months later he’s successfully reentered back into the school system and is thriving! He even asked the other day when we were near Jean’s office, when could he go back to see Jean? We are so thankful we found her and appreciate everything she did for our son!
Colleen Katz is a creative and talented tutor who builds on our daughters’ real life experiences to make therapeutic tasks engaging, meaningful and fun. She is incredibly sensitive and very much in tune with our daughters’ psyches in a way that allows her to get the very best out of them. They respond well to her tutoring style in part because she keeps things fresh and holds them accountable for their best work, but knows when to back off to keep the sessions productive. She has been wonderful partner with our daughters’ public school team as well as with other therapists on our private therapy team. She is always eager to help, to provide follow up and/or reinforce learning, and always accommodating in every way. Our children love to work with Colleen because she makes learning fun. They leave her sessions feeling prideful and empowered.
I have been using Suzie Blattner’s services for 9 years. I first heard of Ms. Blattner from two separate professionals who worked with children (one OT, one psychologist) who didn’t know each other and who each independently said to me “If you ever need an educational consultant, you should call Suzie Blattner. She’s excellent”. And, unfamiliar with the world that has now become a major part of my life, my first thought was “Only in Washington could two career couples all be so stressed that a field like “Educational Consultant” would even exist. Are people so busy, that they can’t take their own time to go check out schools for their children?” Clearly I had no idea what Suzie really does or even what an “Educational Consultant” is. Nonetheless, I jotted down her name and kept it for future reference. Little did I know how much I would need her and how integral a part of my life she would become.
Suzie Blattner understands and advocates for children. She doesn’t do this from a place of judgement or acting like she “knows it all”, although given her years of experience and success, I’d be hard pressed to find someone more knowledgeable. She truly looks out for each child and sees where their strengths and challenges are. She keeps current on all the information and offerings of local schools, after school programs, summer camps, doctors, tutors, paraprofessionals, tutors, language specialists. And she tells you if she needs to check things out further, if changes are in the offing, even if that isn’t public information yet, and the like. She understands the various terms people use, that when you hear potentially (never mind actually) applied to your child make your head spin. She sees the potential in each child. Additionally, she has close working relationships with the County and with many private and public schools. That said, unlike websites all around us that include links to sites they are paid to send you to, Suzie never trades off her professional comeradery for sound, solid advice on what is best for your child. Even if she has to go “toe to toe” with her contacts on any issue that will benefit of your child. She is an honest, straight shooter who is vested in her families and her cases, and who not only truly wants to help, but who know how to help and how to achieve results.
On a personal level, Suzie Blattner has become like a member of my family to me. She takes on the role of the wise sage, who you can always go to and who is always ready and eager to help. Not all of us have a family member like that. But you can avail yourselves of the services of a professional like that if you reach out to Ms. Blattner.
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Jean has been a miracle worker with our son. During the first year she tutored him, I sat in the room and observed her strategies. I was amazed at her resourcefulness in keeping my son focused and learning. My son has severe attentions issues, yet she is capable to keep him interested by incorporating his favorite topics into his learning. She tutors him in Math, reading, and writing. She has a keen understanding of my son’s challenges and can “think on her feet” and adapt to his rapidly changing interests and demeanor. She is well-versed in conditions such as dyslexia and uses appropriate strategies to enhance learning. I believe my son wouldn’t mind to have Miss Jean as his personal everyday teacher, and neither would I!”