The Learning Disabilities Association of Saskatchewan (IDAS) now has an office to Moose Jaw at 109 Ominica Street West.

"(It's Dyslexia Awareness Month) and it's also Learning Disability Awareness Month and ADHD Awareness Month. So, part of the reason why we're doing our grand opening this month is in honour of that," said Lisa Heron, Regional Director at IDAS.

The office has several support and education programs that are available to all people with or without learning disabilities.

They have an Adult Education classroom that offers GED programs and testing spaces, "It's continuous intake. So, when people come and they want to get their GED we work with them to figure out where they're at and deliver personalized instruction from that point to get them to the point where they can take their GED exam. We don't have a specific time frame that they have to work within. Some people are faster than others... there are some GED programs in the city which are wonderful. The one thing we do have that they don't have is that continuous intake. So, if somebody missed the opportunity to attend one of those other programs, we are available for them to join in at any time of the year." says Heron.

They also have tutoring spaces that offer a program called 'Homework Club' which is a free tutoring program on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5 to 8 pm. Parents can call ahead to book a time slot to bring their child in for a 1 on 1 tutoring session. As well as a fee-for-service program for kindergarten to grade 12 tutoring where parents have the option for more flexible tutoring times and they can pay by the session.

A huge focus within the facility is working with people and kids who have ADHD or a learning disability but a person does not need to have a disorder to participate in these programs.

"ADHD is a mood disorder. It's a neurochemical disorder. So essentially, it impacts blood flow in the brain and causes the different symptoms of ADHD... Whereas a learning disability is a biological disorder. It has to do essentially, with the wiring of a brain and so how the information comes into a person's brain if they have a learning disability will be different. it's not that they cannot learn but they learn differently," says Heron.

However, since the facility is aimed at working with people struggling, IDAS offers ADHD specialized tutoring and coaching programs as well as ADHD testing. People can bring their kids in or go themselves and be assessed to find out if there are ADHD or learning disability diagnoses.

IDAS also has a registered psychologist that clients can work with.

The facility also offers support for students in post-secondary learning. The program is called 'Academic Strategy' which offers assistance to students with any kind of learning disability. Those students can work with an academic specialist to learn and practice organizational skills, study skills, how to prepare and stay on track while in school.

Since the grand opening for the IDAS Moose Jaw Office is during Dyslexia, Learning Disability, and ADHD Awareness Month, the facility is recognizing this month by hosting webinars and using social media to spread awareness. There is a webinar about learning disabilities on the 27th. For social media, they've been making posts about myths and facts that are attached to learning disabilities and ADHD. They can be found on Facebook or people can check out their website for more information on their webinars and programs.