|
INTRODUCTION: Your kid is having trouble with reading and you don't
know what to do. If the problem
is dyslexia, there is much that can be done.
|
Symptoms
|
1. Kid is called lazy when he gives up or stupid when
he doesn’t understand.
2. Child is frustrated at his inability to understand new material,
remember spelling and to compete as quickly as his peers.
3. Child feels that he is a failure and stupid.
4. Problems with reading continue.
|
|
Understanding the problem
|
1. Kid understands that he has a "learning difference"
and can learn with new methods of teaching.
2. Extra time in testing and in answering questions
gives the child new confidence that he can succeed.
2. New methods of teaching help student to learn to read.
|
Dyslexia is a problem because teachers can see that the child is
intelligent. They assume that if he is intelligent, he must not be trying.
Instead of this round-robin cycle, dyslexics need to know that their
brain works differently than the "usual" kid's brain but that
they are capable of reading and writing and, in most cases, doing it well.
The trick is to help them use the patterning skills of their brains to
learn to read.
Dyslexia is not a ticket to failure. In fact, the brain configurations
which cause dyslexia can also give skills that the "normal kid"
can only dream about. (See Davis's
page on the "Gifts" of Dyslexia). Further, 50 years of research
have made the lives of many dyslexics easier as trial-and-error efforts
have been replaced with process and structure.
What it is: Dyslexia is a non-technical term meaning poor
or inadequate language. In practice, it often means much more. Difficulty
organizing work and possible awkwardness may accompany dyslexia. Experts
are divided about when diagnosis is possible. Some (the most conservative)
say that diagnosis is questionable until after schooling begins when
problems have been occurring and the child has fallen two years behind his
peers. Others believe that symptoms are there earlier in life and diagnosis
can be confirmed when problems begin so that intervention can be made
BEFORE problems occur.
Who has it: It is estimated that between 5 and 10 percent of the U.S.
population (10-20 million) is dyslexic including some of the brightest and
most successful people in the country. Nelson Rockefeller (ex-Vice
President), Charles Schwab (successful stock broker), Cher,
Whoopi Goldberg and Tom Cruise (actors) are all
dyslexic. In fact, some experts say that there is evidence that Leonard de
Vinci (whose paintings are mirror images of the real thing) and Winston
Churchill may have been dyslexic. In short, it is important that dyslexic
children know that the way their brain operates will not hinder them from
attaining anything that they want to do as long as they get the help they
need.
SYMPTOMS: Having one or two of
these symptoms is not important. If the individual has five or more,
further testing will determine if he is dyslexic. Even if the child is NOT
dyslexic, many of these methods will help those children who are struggling
with reading.
WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT: The dyslexic needs help finding
patterns especially in reading. He isn't going to find them himself using
whole language programs. If left on his own, he may acquire a 3rd grade
level of reading which means that he recognizes certain small words,
pictures them in his mind and knows that they stand for certain meanings.
If he is going to learn how to read, he needs to be taught the structure of
language using phonics, rhyming, and formal grammar. You'll find some tips
on how to do this here as well as resources for other methods.
GIFTS: Dyslexic children excel in careers such as engineering,
architecture, and computer science. However, motivated dyslexics can
succeed in any career which is of interest to them including medicine,
education, and journalism.
GAMES
TIPS:
|
|
The "Right" Way (NOT)
|
|
|
For the Preschooler: Preparing to Read
|
|
|
For the Elementary Schooler:
Learning to Read, Write and Spell
|
|
The Alphabet Game
|
|
|
Spelling Tricks
|
|
|
|
Teaching an Older Child/Teenager how to read and spell
(Or How to Teach When the Student is Getting Frustrated) (Based on the
McCabe Method of Sequential Spelling)
|
My Daughter's Story: My daughter was tested at the end of 6th grade with
a 3rd grade reading level. At the beginning of 8th, she tested with a 9th
grade reading level. What changed was that we began homeschooling and she
developed her own method of learning to read.
In school, she was not able to read a book that
she wanted to read because she read slowly and the teachers would not allow
her to count a 350 page book as 2 books (the book had to be at least 150
pages.) During the summer, she read it with an audio version of the book
(It was Dragonflight by Anne McCaffery).
The tape broke in the middle of the book and she had to finish it on her
own.
She decided that it should be made into a movie.
But there isn't one. We researched the format for scripts at the library.
She took that information and began typing the dialogue into the computer.
She typed 80 single-spaced pages in one year. So she learned computer
skills by using a word processing program, vocabulary by using the
thesaurus to find out what the word meant, and she also learned spelling,
and keyboarding.
Getting online also helped. For several months,
she had a LARGE dictionary by her side to look up words people used that
she didn't know.
RESOURCES AND WEB LINKS
|
