Does your child see letters, numbers, or words backward? Is he unable to identify the names of letters by the beginning of kindergarten or unable to identify the sounds of letters by the beginning of first grade? Was she delayed in acquiring speech (First words should happen by about one year of age and phrasing should be in place between 18-24 months.)? Does he have difficulty in pronunciation beyond the age of five or six years? Does she not seem to pick up on nursery rhymes? Does your adolescent child have difficulty retrieving known words when expressing himself in speech? These signs may indicate dyslexia.
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Boy taking test
Learning challenges, including dyslexia, a diagnosis that can include many different sensory processing difficulties, may be largely overcome with the right academic intervention. Ideally, intervention should be applied as early as possible, between kindergarten and third grade. Learning difficulties are not limited to dyslexia. Any child experiencing difficulty in developing reading and writing skills may benefit from a specialized literacy intervention program with the right practitioner. Before hiring a tutor, ask to see records of the tutor’s graduate work and certifications as a reading specialist. “A teacher’s knowledge of how children learn to read as well as her experience teaching a specific program will ultimately determine the success of even the best reading programs,” stated Sally Shaywitz, in her book Overcoming Dyslexia.
For a medical diagnosis of dyslexia, a neuropsychologist can be consulted for evaluation at a cost of several thousand dollars, which may not be covered by insurance. However, an official diagnosis often is unnecessary. A qualified reading specialist can assess the academic needs of the student and implement effective intensive intervention.
There are three main program components for successfully teaching reading and writing to children with dyslexia and other learning challenges. The components should be combined seamlessly to create a powerful program for accelerated learning.
The first component is a multisensory approach to instruction. This allows the student to both receive (read) and produce (write) information through the use of methods that involve neuropathways connected to two or more of the senses (sight, hearing, touch/ kinesthetic movement).
The second component of an effective program is phonics instruction. Orton-Gillingham has been popularly considered the ‘gold standard’ of phonics instruction for children with dyslexia since the 1930s. The approach is systematic, highly structured, and multisensory, staying within the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) throughout each lesson. Developed by famous psychologist, Lev Vygotsky in the early 1930s, the ZPD is defined as the difference between what a child can do by himself and what he can accomplish with expert support.
Hiring private academic help can be an expense that some families cannot afford. Fortunately, in the state of Florida the Gardiner Scholarship provides funds to help pay for private reading specialists and certain other supports under particular circumstances. For more information on the scholarship, visit www.fldoe.org.
DIANA MYERS-FINCH, M. ED., is president of Reading Rescue of Naples. Visit www.readingrescuecenters.com.