This blog is dedicated to a subject matter close to my heart, dyslexia. There are many sites which explain it, define it, explain the legal responsibilities of school districts, and list the problems. Unfortunately, I have never been able to find one place which addresses the difficulties and tries to provide some sort of feedback and possible strategies.
This blog is an attempt on, my part, to help. The first step in dealing with any problem is to define the question. So...
What is Dyslexia? Dyslexia isn often found in families and may have many causes. Most individuals learn to read through proper teaching methods and practice.
People with dyslexia maken very specific mistakes in reading. Their problems are not random in either type or occurrence. The characteristics for older students may be different than those for younger children. This is because older students may have learned to deal with certain difficulties as they mature. For example--the first example on the list is that students will score at 73% on a state or grade level reading test. When the student has been taught to read correctly they can, and will, do as well as anyone else, often scoring above 90% if the or she is allowed extended time. If a dyslexic student is placed under a time constraint, the stress level skyrockets and performance plummets. Every dyslexic person reacts differently.
Dyslexic Characteristics:
People with dyslexia maken very specific mistakes in reading. Their problems are not random in either type or occurrence. The characteristics for older students may be different than those for younger children. This is because older students may have learned to deal with certain difficulties as they mature. For example--the first example on the list is that students will score at 73% on a state or grade level reading test. When the student has been taught to read correctly they can, and will, do as well as anyone else, often scoring above 90% if the or she is allowed extended time. If a dyslexic student is placed under a time constraint, the stress level skyrockets and performance plummets. Every dyslexic person reacts differently.
Dyslexic Characteristics:
If your child is older--teenager or adult he or she may have displayed some of these characteristics when they were younger. Even though he or she may not display a certain characteristic most of the time, it may be displayed when a person is under stress or is tired. (How much depends upon the person.) The characteristics which follow are generallyn applicable.
Characteristics forReading
1. Score at 73% or below on a state reading test.
2. May understand grade level material in content courses when it is read to them, but not be to understand it when they read it.
3. Not able to sound out unknown words.
4. Read slowly and inaccurately.
5. Confuse words with the same first and last letters.
6. Mix up letters within a word or add or drop letters in a word.
7. Read in a choppy, slow fashion with frequent pauses and/or skip over punctuation.
8. Read two or more years below grade level and/or tire after reading for only 10- 15 minutes.
9. Cannot understand what is read and/or remember what is read.
10. Flip, reverse, or read letters out of order.
11. Misread, omit, or add small words, such as: (a, an, from, the)
12. May omit, add, or change suffixes when reading.
13. Will often “guess” at a word using the beginning as a guide or substitute similar looking words.
14. Still confuse letter shapes and direction: b/d/p/q.
15. Adds or subtracts pieces of letters.
16. May have unusual problems with glare and lighting.
17. Often tries to shade part or whole page when reading.
18. Have trouble dealing with unpronounced letters in words, such as the p in pneumonia and the b in climb.
19. May complain that the print appears to be moving on the page.
20. May sound out the first syllable and then guess the rest.
21. May have trouble keeping the eye on one line of print at a time.
22. May lose place easily on the page.
Characteristics for Writing and Spelling
1. Spelling is often bad, even when copying something from the board or a book.
2. May show unusual difficulty when using punctuation and capitalization.
3. Written work often has:
4. numerous erasures,
5. cross-outs,
6. use of limited vocabulary,
7. writing that does not stay on the line
8. May have unusual trouble forming letters.
9. Handwriting may be difficult to read and/or student may take an unusually long time to write a short paragraph.
10. May not make good use of space on a page resulting in crammed writing or writing which is unevenly spaced.
Student As An Individual
1. May have extreme problems organizing:
2. tasks,
3. things,
4. time,
5. available space.
6. May have unusual difficulty keeping belongings put away.
7. May have extremely messy:
a. bedrooms,
b. lockers,
c. backpacks
8. May best be described as a “packrat.”
9. May have difficulty comparing new knowledge to what is already known.
10. May have “heaps” of things, rather than neat piles and files.
11. May often be late for class or appointments.
12. May have problems sequencing multi-step tasks.
13. May often arrive in class without needed supplies, operating in a constant state of confusion.
Characteristics for
1. Score at 73% or below on a state reading test.
2. May understand grade level material in content courses when it is read to them, but not be to understand it when they read it.
3. Not able to sound out unknown words.
4. Read slowly and inaccurately.
5. Confuse words with the same first and last letters.
6. Mix up letters within a word or add or drop letters in a word.
7. Read in a choppy, slow fashion with frequent pauses and/or skip over punctuation.
8. Read two or more years below grade level and/or tire after reading for only 10- 15 minutes.
9. Cannot understand what is read and/or remember what is read.
10. Flip, reverse, or read letters out of order.
11. Misread, omit, or add small words, such as: (a, an, from, the)
12. May omit, add, or change suffixes when reading.
13. Will often “guess” at a word using the beginning as a guide or substitute similar looking words.
14. Still confuse letter shapes and direction: b/d/p/q.
15. Adds or subtracts pieces of letters.
16. May have unusual problems with glare and lighting.
17. Often tries to shade part or whole page when reading.
18. Have trouble dealing with unpronounced letters in words, such as the p in pneumonia and the b in climb.
19. May complain that the print appears to be moving on the page.
20. May sound out the first syllable and then guess the rest.
21. May have trouble keeping the eye on one line of print at a time.
22. May lose place easily on the page.
Characteristics for Writing and Spelling
1. Spelling is often bad, even when copying something from the board or a book.
2. May show unusual difficulty when using punctuation and capitalization.
3. Written work often has:
4. numerous erasures,
5. cross-outs,
6. use of limited vocabulary,
7. writing that does not stay on the line
8. May have unusual trouble forming letters.
9. Handwriting may be difficult to read and/or student may take an unusually long time to write a short paragraph.
10. May not make good use of space on a page resulting in crammed writing or writing which is unevenly spaced.
Student As An Individual
1. May have extreme problems organizing:
2. tasks,
3. things,
4. time,
5. available space.
6. May have unusual difficulty keeping belongings put away.
7. May have extremely messy:
a. bedrooms,
b. lockers,
c. backpacks
8. May best be described as a “packrat.”
9. May have difficulty comparing new knowledge to what is already known.
10. May have “heaps” of things, rather than neat piles and files.
11. May often be late for class or appointments.
12. May have problems sequencing multi-step tasks.
13. May often arrive in class without needed supplies, operating in a constant state of confusion.
