Thoughtful quotes from parents.
News & Articles
Allegiance to the Facts: Best Approach for Students with Dyslexia
PC READS Co-Founders both attended the IDA Conference and heard Louisa Moats’ wonderful speech. This is a summary of the information she presented.
Dyslexia Action: Denied and Delayed
This article, written by Kyle Redford, may be a few years old, but it is definitely still relevant.
Mark Ruffalo – The Hulk – “I am Dyslexic”
“The multi-talented actor is an Oscar nominee, director, producer, and humanitarian activist. He also is the dad of three dyslexic kids.”
Dyslexia: a disorder, not a definition
“Alexander said the first issue is that, many times, dyslexia goes unidentified because, in too many cases, the assumption is that if a student can’t read, they are either lazy, not smart or a late-bloomer. So there is a wait-and-see approach, where the key is early intervention.”
Dyslexia and the English Learner Dilemma
While it may be more complicated to assess for dyslexia in ELL students, it is still important.
“Ortiz et al (2002) reported that ELL students who are struggling to learn English and have some foundation in reading in their native language should receive direct instruction that includes speech perception, phoneme awareness, and sound-symbol connections. This is very similar to the Orton-Gillingham approach that is recommended as the intervention for English readers who have dyslexia.”
Taking on World War D: One on One With Max Brooks
An interview with Max Brooks, who was the Keynote Speaker at Learning Ally’s 2015 Spotlight on Dyslexia Conference.
Common Core math requires students to justify every answer. Does that make sense?
“Those who developed the Common Core State Standards clearly ignored brain research in math, as they did in reading; the Common Core emphasizes conceptual understanding at every phase of math instruction. So, even young children are required not only to conduct a simple math procedure, but to also explain and justify every answer.”
My letter to 10 year-old me, by Richard Branson
“And when you do make mistakes, know that your parents will always be there for you. While you may get in trouble at times, they always have your best interest at heart and love you unconditionally.”
The Dyslexia Song…to the tune of Adam Sandler’s Chanukah Song Nancy Kleinfeldt
A fun video to watch around the holidays.
Dyslexia and the Wider World of Creativity and Talent
This article published in Mind/Shift includes information from Drs. Brock and Fernette Eide, authors of the book, “Dyslexic Advantage.”
EXCERPT: “Through all the stories reported here, one thing remains consistent: While many children and families feel the often debilitating and humiliating effects of not understanding why they can’t read and write like everyone else, there is a lack of understanding about what dyslexia is and is not; how to identify dyslexic students and intervene early; and how to structure classrooms to accommodate an astonishing range of neurodiverse strengths and weaknesses.”
Dyslexia: Myths and Facts
Good article for teachers with “actionable teacher tips” published in the Scholastic Teacher Magazine.
Dyslexia: A Gift or a Burden?
“Whoever invented reading is stupid! Whoever invented school is stupid! I wish reading was never invented!!”
7 Ways to Empower Children Who Have Dyslexia – Foster the Gifts!
Uplifting article with the message, “It is going to be okay.”
A New Way of Reading That Invites Everyone In
Article by Kyle Redford about the importance of audio books for dyslexic students.
Why is the consonant doubled in words like rabbit and kitten?
One article from an Orton-Gillingham based education blog, “Think Ready Read.” Sign up to receive new posts through email.
Dyslexia is more common than you know
Honest account by a classroom teacher who learned about dyslexia through one of her very bright students who was struggling to read.
“When I was in teacher credentialing school I received barely any instruction about dyslexia. This is tragic because the International Dyslexia Association says that “as many as 15 to 20 percent of the population as a whole … have some of the symptoms of dyslexia.” My first real experience with dyslexia was with a smart third-grade girl named “Estella.” Estella was supposed to be in fourth grade but the school held her back because she read at the kindergarten level.”
Who Helps Kids With Dyslexia Gain Reading Fluency?
An excellent article from October 2015 which helps explain the importance of ensuring our classroom teachers are prepared to explicitly teach reading skills.
“But the 50 percent who need direct instruction need first to learn how to decode, or be able to match the sounds of letters to print letters in order to form words. Teaching the whole class the basics of decoding will not damage the students who are already reading (Cutting said some research suggests that it might actually make their reading stronger).”
The Joyful, Illiterate Kindergartners of Finland
“After two hours of visiting a Finnish kindergarten, I still hadn’t seen children reading. I was, however, hearing a lot of pre-literacy instruction sprinkled throughout the morning—clapping out syllables and rhyming in Morning Circle, for example. I recalled learning in my master’s degree courses in education that building phonemic awareness—an ability to recognize sounds without involving written language—was viewed as the groundwork of literacy development.”
Understanding Dyslexia and the Reading Brain in Kids
Excellent article published by Mind/Shift in which Maryanne Wolf discusses the importance of understanding how our brain functions with respect to learning to read. “Understanding that these developments are nothing more than brain differences that can be aided with systematic and explicit instruction, Wolf said, is a large but necessary step for everyone involved: students, parents and teachers. When children find they’re unable to read or read with much difficulty, they often believe that it’s the result of a bad or broken brain. Some teachers may also unwittingly hold beliefs that reading happens for all children by a kind of osmosis.”
Wolf is the author of “Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain.”
Dyslexia: Mastering Math
This article provides practical advice for assisting dyslexic students in math through “tapping into their highly visual brains and using some creative methods geared for their unique style of learning. “
Good at Math, Bad at Word Problems: How to Help
This article from understood.org reviews different reasons that a child may be struggling with math word problems.
Dyslexia, Language Processing Problems, & Reading (1 of 4)
A well-written overview of dyslexia, research and OG interventions. Published by Decoding Dyslexia-OH. The link brings you to Part 1 of a four part article. Links to the other sections are provided at the end of each part.
Hard to read
Insightful article written by a dyslexic student at Yale. “I’m lucky if I even get through the first half of the reading. I pick classes based on how thick the books are, not how interesting their synopses seem, and anything with the potential for a pop quiz is out of the question.”
Dyslexia and Spelling: The Chicken or the Egg?
“Think about this for a minute: If you can spell a word you can read it, but being able to read a word does not guarantee you can spell it.”
yslexics Aren’t the Problem: the System Is
Article out of Massachusetts: “But it’s not the teacher’s fault; it’s the way they were taught. Most college teaching programs offer teaching and teaching for the disabled, but not together. Most teachers are not taught what dyslexia is, let alone how to spot it in a classroom. This makes is especially hard for students to get diagnosed with dyslexia because in order for the school to recognize the student as dyslexic, they must clearly show signs of it in the classroom.”
See Brain. See Brain Read…
This July 2014 article from the American Psychological Association is short, but includes excellent information regarding the impact of targeted interventions for specific reading disorders. EXCERPT: “By using brain images to study reading, psychologists and their colleagues in medicine and education have found a biological explanation for the 2004 finding that research-based teaching can significantly improve how students with dyslexia read and spell. Researchers have also found evidence that effective instruction normalizes brain function.”
The Importance of Word Prediction for Students with Dyslexia
Another excellent article by AT expert, Jamie Martin.
4 ways to feel positive about dyslexia
A short article which recognizes the importance of diagnosis and self-esteem.
