Dyslexia

According to the National Institute of Child Health & Development, Dyslexia is a brain-based type of learning disability that specifically impairs a person's ability to read. Common characteristics people with dyslexia experience include difficulty sounding out words, understanding written words, and naming objects quickly.

Signs of Dyslexia

Information about Universal Screening for Reading Difficulties, like Dyslexia, in California provided by Decoding Dyslexia, CA

Dyslexia at a Glance

Websites

• Decoding Dyslexia CA

• The California Department of Education, California Dyslexia Guidelines

• International Dyslexia Association

• The Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity

• Wilson Reading & Spelling

• Bright Solutions for Dyslexia

• The Reading League

• National Center for Learning Disabilities

• Dyslexia Help at the University of Michigan

Books I've Found Helpful

• Looking For Heroes: One Boy, One Year, 100 Letters by Aidan A. Colvin (2016)

• The Dyslexia Empowerment Plan: A Blueprint for Renewing Your Child's Confidence and Love of Learning by Ben Foss (2013)

• Smart but Scattered; The Revolutionary Executive Skills Approach to Helping Kids Reach Their Potential By Peg Dawson & Richard Guare (2009)- I love this entire series!

• Teaching Students with Dyslexia and Dysgraphia: Lessons from Teaching and Science by Virginia Berninger, Ph.D.(2009)

• Overcoming Dyslexia: A New and Complete Science-Based Program for Reading Problems at Any Level by Sally Shaywitz (2008)

• DyslexiaLand: A Map and Guide for Students, Parents & Educators by Cheri Rae

Common Accommodations

• More time for homework and tests

• Reduced level of class and homework (i.e. 10 spelling words vs. 20)

• Audiobooks (Bookshare, Learning Ally)

• Dictation software (Google text to speech or similar extensions, , Dragon, CoWriter)

• Oral testing (vs. written responses)

Check out the Dyslexia Toolkit from the National Center for Learning Disabilities. Most of it is info you may be very familiar with but I thought the accommodations section and the interview with Ben Foss were worth sharing.

Some Intervention Methods That Are Successful for Students With Dyslexia

• Orton-Gillingham-based systems are recommended for students with Dyslexia. There are many intervention systems available that are based on the work done by Doctors Samuel Orton & Anna Gillingham. These systems are multi-sensory, sequential, and phonics-based. Some of the most popular Orton-Gillingham systems are listed below:

  • Barton Reading & Spelling System (This is what I initially chose to use personally and professionally, 1:1)

  • Wilson Reading & Spelling System (This is what I chose to use personally and professionally, 1:1 and small group, AUSD was using Wilson Materials and getting a limited number of teachers trained in WRS in 2019-2022)

  • Slingerland (classroom, group-based)​

  Other intervention models parents and teachers have suggested to me.

  • Lindamood Bell - Seeing Stars by Nancy Bell, LIPS can be a good resource for students struggling with letter/sound correspondence

  • Recipe for Reading (This is a good system for fluency, but not necessarily a great method for decoding and encoding.)

  • Explode the Code*

  • Read Naturally*

  • Hooked on Phonics*

  • SIPPS (Systematic Instruction in Phonological Awareness, Phonics, and Sight Words)* (This is a great system for learning letter/sound correspondences for those students who may need more intensive instruction)

  *These are systems my youngest child worked with that were strong in phonics but were not effective for them.