This post is part of a three part series which discusses tips for helping teachers reach dyslexic students. To read the first post of the series visit the link next to #1:

1.    Understand How Dyslexia Affects the Student

2.    Help Dyslexics with Language Difficulties

Although you might think helping dyslexic students improve their reading skills is a daunting task, it is possible.

As discussed in the first post of this series about understanding dyslexia, the dominance of dyslexics’ right brain is what makes language tasks difficult for them.

To know how to help your dyslexic students improve reading you must use the simple logic found in a line from one of my favorite Disney® movies, Hercules:

Hades: “How do you kill a god?”
Panic: “Um... their immortal…?”
Hades: “Bingo! So, first we got to turn the little sun spot mortal.”

(I apologize if that is not word for word since I derived it completely from memory.)

The connection of this quote to helping dyslexics improve reading is that in their current state reading will remain difficult. However, if you help them use their brain in a different way, the task of helping them improve reading is no longer impossible.

How is this done?

Have you ever done a logic puzzle (such as a Sudoku) and gotten to the point where you feel there is no way you can figure it out or find one more answer. But, you keep trying and out of no where you have a moment of genius! The next thing you know you have solved the once deemed “impossible” puzzle. 

These “moments of genius” are a result of new connections in your brain; the same thing that is needed for dyslexics to improve their reading. 

You need to include two things in your reading instruction in order to help dyslexics make the new brain connections that will allow them to improve their reading:

1. teach phonics with an explicit & systematic approach
2. engage students in multisensory instruction

Explicit and systematic phonics takes a step-by-step approach to teaching students how to decode words starting with a single letter or sound before progressing to the whole word. This helps dyslexics to understand the sounds and rules of language and transfer these concepts to what they are reading.

The lack of foundational knowledge that comes from many strategies for teaching reading is what prevents many dyslexics and struggling readers from excelling with reading.

When teaching explicit phonics to dyslexics, it is important for you to realize that dyslexics have developed many coping strategies that help them get by with language tasks. Because of this, this type of instruction can feel below their level or too basic. However, the reason this instruction helps them with reading skills is not because they are unintelligent, it works because it helps them make new connections in their brain.

The other concept that you need to incorporate in your teaching is multisensory instruction. By engaging multiple senses during instruction, dyslexics are able to make new connections in their brain.

Dyslexics are not always the strongest visual or auditory learners; thus, when hands on activities are connected to visual and auditory instruction, their brain can make new connections and understand concepts in a way that didn’t make sense to them when they were only being taught through auditory channels.

To help incorporate both explicit phonics and multisensory techniques into your reading instruction for dyslexics, use Reading Horizons Online Workshop for Teaching Phonics>

(Although these concepts are crucial for helping dyslexics improve reading, they are beneficial for any student that is learning to read.)

3.    Focus on Dyslexics Strengths

I was glad to see an article today about an organization called Kids Count which is encouraging parents to dedicate time to helping their children with reading this summer. Lately there have been numerous articles about how critical it is for students to read at grade level at the end of 3rd grade and going into 4th grade.

Today Education News had an article which claimed that 85% of 4th graders in low-income areas are not obtaining proficient levels in reading. The article went on to say: “The evidence is clear that those students who do not read well have a very tough time succeeding in school and graduating from high schools and going on to successful careers and lives,” Ralph R. Smith, vice president of the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

Proficient reading skills are essential and summer presents students that are behind an opportunity to catch up to their peers. It also is important for all students to maintain their reading skills over the summer. Typically student's reading skills regress 2-3 months over the summer. This slows learning when school resumes in the fall and puts students who are behind, further behind.

Reading Horizons offers Reading Horizons At Home for students that need to spend additional time working on reading. It relies on the same method and covers the same materials as the version used in schools. It’s an effective resource for who are struggling with reading or that have a learning disability which makes reading difficult to improve reading over the summer.  

Reading Horizons At Home is an effective summer reading program for struggling readers. The reading program typically provides users 2-5 reading level improvements in 3-6 months. This program would allow many students to go back to school reading at grade level and greatly decrease the potential of them falling even further behind. This would be a good resource to refer to parents that have students that are struggling with reading.

Today I found a blog post from a former teacher that taught with Reading Horizons and reviewed Reading Horizons At Home for students. To read the blog post visit: http://www.womenshomeactivities.com/preschool-software-using-reading-horizons-at-home-intensive-phonics/

For more information on Reading Horizons At Home visit: www.ReadingHorizonsAtHome.com 

Recent research confirmed that dyslexic brains can be rewired to improve reading with proper reading instruction. The research is summarized in this video summarizing the research of Dr. Papanicolau from the University of Texas. I thought this video was really interesting and it was exciting to hear the results:

I found Dr. Papanicolau’s analogies of what reading is like for those with dyslexia very effective and informative. It was interesting to hear him explain that dyslexics read with the right side of their brain, as opposed to the norm of using the left side, which is comparable to “an artist trying to paint with their toes.” He further added clarity by explaining they have the right equipment to become strong readers, their brains just aren’t wired to use the right parts- but it can be rewired to use the right parts of the brain.

Picture of Dyslexic Brain

As Reading Horizons has found, as well as Dr. Papanicolau, dyslexics can become strong readers with the right type of reading instruction. The video covered a lot of the same teaching techniques that are used in Reading Horizons program: blends, connecting letters to phonetic sounds, phonemic awareness, etc.. It’s always exciting to hear about research that can help dyslexics improve reading.

Subscribe to Reading Horizons RSS Feed to get updates on exciting research such as these findings for rewiring the dyslexic brain to improve reading.

For decades one of the largest debates in Psychology has centered around Nature vs. Nurture and the effect each plays in development. Recently, a study conducted by Florida State University took this debate into the classroom to see the effects of Nature vs. Nurture in terms of literacy development.

Research Design

By assigning 280 pairs of identical twins and 526 pairs of fraternal twins to separate classrooms, the researchers were able to discover the impact the classroom environment played in students reading progress. Using identical twins, who would develop very similarly left entirely to Nature, allows researchers to see the impact Nurture (the teacher and classroom environment) plays on literacy development. To test these differences the researchers assigned the identical twins to classrooms with teachers who had received significantly different quality scores.

Study Results

Of the 280 identical twin pairs studied, 42 pairs revealed significant differences in reading development at the completion of the one year study. Twins with teachers that had similar quality scores had similar reading scores at the end of the year. The students that showed the largest reading improvement over the year were the students of the teachers that were rated with the highest quality scores at the beginning of the study.

Study Conclusions

Researchers were careful to clarify that teachers are not the sole purpose for reading differences between the twins in different classrooms. Tim Shanahan, Professor at the University of Illinois explained: “The word teacher or teacher quality is being used here as a shorthand for the kids’ entire experience in the classroom.”

There are several factors that could impact the difference in the performance of the identical twins in separate classrooms: disruptive students, teacher materials, the number of struggling students in the class, ect…

Shanahan also said: “Good classrooms are all alike; they maximize kids’ potential. Poor classrooms are not only poor in one way; they are poor in multiple ways.” Shanahan also asserted that teacher and classroom disparities can change with the right resources and training.

Resources:

“Better Teachers Make for Stronger Young Readers”

“Study: Better teachers help children read faster”

“Study: After genes, teachers help kids read faster”

Reading Horizons works to help teachers erase these disparities by providing Professional Development and materials to promote student reading. For more information visit: www.ReadingHorizons.com