Verona - I totally understand about not wanted to test. In some ways I find it very invasive. I certainly wouldn't want anyone to look into my cognitive functioning in such a way and measure my competencies with hard numbers. And when I have had my children tested, it is hard to focus beyond the numbers and report and not get too caught up in it.
I'd say that if you are assuming he has dyslexia and are willing to address it, holding off on the testing for awhile would be ok. I did the same with my son as far as testing him for CAPD (central auditory processing disorder). I'm pretty sure he has it, I have an understanding of what type, and we are providing him the supports and interventions we would give him if he were formally diagnosed - so why put him through the testing?
I did a search on EMS and based on what I read with my very poor understanding of French - it is exactly the kind of program I was talking about. Using three senses (visual, auditory, tactile) it teaches the sound symbol relationship in a systematic way. It appears it was developed in conjunction with The Scottish Rite centers that are big providers of reading instruction in the US.
It looks like you are on the right track!
